Nagaji

## Overview

Nagaji are a race of snake-like humanoids created by naga, powerful monsters in need of slave stock to support their burgeoning empire. Within a century, however, the nagaji had turned their strong social bonds and stronger arms against their masters and won freedom as the naga were utterly wiped out. Left without masters, the nagaji inherited the ruins of the naga kingdoms, but found them completely useless for a species with usable hands and without inborn magical abilities. Instead, they set out into the wider world and quickly made a name for themselves as loyal, dedicated soldiers and workers. While they don't have much respect for intellectual pursuits, seeing it as a gateway to abilities that allowed nagas to create and enslave an entire race, their bodies rarely tire. Combined with a ubiquitous sense of responsibility, outspoken and outgoing personalities, and both racial and national pride, nagaji are willing to undergo any trial to fulfill their duties and improve the world around them. To a nagaji, an ideal world is one where everyone has the freedom to choose their livelihood, while also fulfilling the obligations of their family and community.

## Mechanics

Standard Racial Traits

* **Ability Score Modifiers**: Nagaji are strong and have forceful personalities, but tend to ignore logic and mock scholastic pursuits. They gain +2 Strength, +2 Charisma, and –2 Intelligence.
* **Size**: Nagaji are Medium creatures and thus have no bonuses or penalties due to their size.
* **Type**: Nagaji are humanoids with the reptilian subtype.
* **Base Speed**: Nagaji have a base speed of 30 feet.
* **Languages**: Nagaji begin play speaking Draconic. Nagaji with high Intelligence scores can choose from the following: any human tongue, Abyssal, Aklo, Celestial, Giant, Infernal, and Sylvan.

Defense Racial Traits

* **Armored Scales**: Nagaji have a +1 natural armor bonus from their scaly flesh.
* **Resistant (Ex)** Nagaji receive a +2 racial saving throw bonus against mind-affecting effects and poison.

Feat and Skill Racial Traits

* **Serpent’s Sense (Ex)** Nagaji receive a +2 racial bonus on Handle Animal checks against reptiles, and a +2 racial bonus on Perception checks.

Senses Racial Traits

* **Low-Light Vision**: Nagaji have low-light vision allowing them to see twice as far as humans in conditions of dim light.

## Society

Nagaji are rarely found in racial enclaves, as such situations leave the dutiful creatures without clear leadership and remind them of their days as slaves. Instead, they prefer to join together with other races in diverse kingdoms, taking great joy in sharing national pride with races that they may not ever truly understand. The ability of kingdoms and their accompanying cultures to bring people together under a single banner is something that nagaji find singularly inspiring, and it often speaks to their community-focused mindset. Many nagaji, despite their individual talents or desires, will gravitate towards filling whatever roles a community or kingdom needs most. Rather than see this as a sacrifice or hardship, they see it as the responsibility of every member of a nation, and take pride in their effort and loyalty towards the greater good. As a result, most nagaji end up as jacks-of-all-trades with a variety of experiences that they can turn towards future careers which often involve fields that take advantage of their hardy bodies, such as the military, farming, hunting, and construction, or their natural charm, such as diplomats, merchants, and the hospitality industry. Though they will endure it if it is asked of them, nagaji never actively choose to pursue scholarly or academic work, and any who are found in those fields are bound to leave as soon as they are able.

## Religion

Nearly every nagaji holds a special place in their heart for Ketar Mozog and Dowager Empress Kyouko, who have spheres that perfectly encompass the nagaji view of social interactions and civilization as a shared responsibility where everyone's efforts should be synchronized and directed towards a unified goal. They also value Basang Ba's, Petya Naumov's, and Zhihao Jin's Apparitions, necessary as they are for any large community to sustain itself. Pahala Kadam is less popular, but is revered in her aspect of applying rules and honor to otherwise chaotic and terrible warfare. As a created race, the nagaji have a sense of distance and estrangement from Masik, and as ex-slaves from that arrangement, they bear a deep grudge against Jolein Composed of Desire, who decides what knowledge can be safely known and yet allowed the naga to do as they pleased. They also tend to see worship of Fa'qamuu Twice-Heavenbound, who asks for retreat from wider society, and Nothing Left of Quibatus, who inherently privileges the individual over the community, as being unforgivably selfish - which isn't even to mention their outspoken hatred for Quibatus' espousal of slavery.

## Relations

Nagaji are usually well-liked by their fellow citizens due to their valuing of civic bonds over racial divides, especially by aasimar, aphorites, duergar, dwarves, halflings, hobgoblins, lizardfolk, oreads, parmans, skinwalkers, tieflings, undine, and vanara.

Changelings see them only as another source of derision and exile, which is only slightly better than violence.

Dhampir and orcs seethe under the pity of the nagaji, but some in dire straits accept aid, becoming temporary allies.

Drelmans, drow, and fetchlings pity the nagaji, seeing their communal mindset as being little better than martyrdom at best - and many fetchlings taking their national pride as xenophobia towards outsiders.

Elves and suli find that nagaji make excellent companions, being quite willing to treat them with the overwrought respect they demand.

Ganzi and ifrits consider nagaji to be individuality-challenged future friends and perfect subordinates, respectively, but both form relationships with the same eagerness.

Gnomes and sylphs both consider nagaji to be incredibly dull as companions, but tend to rely on them more than others when it comes to getting supplies for projects or reliable information in investigations.

Ghorans see nagaji as predators and little else.

Grippli usually only encounter nagaji in the company of lizardfolk, since the nagaji do their best to avoid them, and consider them trustworthy, if troubled.

Kitsune find nagaji to be more effort than they're worth in almost all interactions, and after lackluster first impressions, rarely bother.

Kobolds feel that the attitude that most nagaji take towards them to be infantilizing and insulting, and will often insult them back or order them to engage in demeaning tasks as revenge.

Lizardfolk take comfort in the nagaji's honorable conduct and cold blood and take advantage of every opportunity to trade or meet that they can.

Orcs see the nagaji devotion to duty and kingdom over home and family to be harsh and emotionless, but can't deny their strength - in the end, they're viewed as competitors at best and natural foes at worst.

Ratfolk dislike nagaji, often being the recipients of scorn for their intellectual work, despite such work being done for the good of their community.

Tengu and nagaji never end up as friends, having an innate inability to stomach the presence of the other - tengu find nagaji to be rootless and in denial of their origin while nagaji see tengu as romanticizing and glorifying the naga.

Vishkanya love nagaji, despite being more likely than any other race to kill them - it simply is the case that vishkanya can pretend to be a nagaji with far greater ease than other races, and thus their reputation for honesty and diligence is extremely easily weaponized.

Goblins and nagaji get along great, as the goblins have no intellectual or scholarly pursuits for the nagaji to be wary of and the nagaji are ever-ready to provide whatever a wayward goblin may need.