The Earthbound

"The Earthbound"

## Rakshasa

### History

Long ago lived an ancient sorcerer king, obsessed with his own mortality, who desired to continue his enjoyment of material pleasures for all eternity, and so he resolved to live so much that his essence would continue on past death in a cycle of reincarnation. The king became a patron of the arts, a conqueror, and ultimately a cannibal, consuming the bodies of his foes to absorb their life forces. Finally, when he grew too old for his magic to keep him alive any longer, he and his chief generals partook in a feast in which they each devoured a totem animal that, he said, would guide them to their next lives as more powerful beings. The king himself consumed a tiger, and ate himself to death. Many years later he returned in a twisted reincarnated form and proceeded to kill off his generals, retake his throne, and rule for a thousand years This is the tale of the first Rakshasa. Since the return of the sorcerer king and later his many generals, earthbound fiendish souls have been forming and reincarnating into host humanoid young before birth in an endless cycle, propagating this strange and sinister race of native devil kind.

### Ecology

Rakshasas, also known as Earthbound, are born on the Material Plane, but they are not of it. They possess the powers and shapes of fiends, but their fates are inexorably tied to the mortal world, and it is there that they seek to rule. The reincarnations of manipulators, traitors, and tyrants obsessed with earthly pleasures, rakshasas embody the very nature of materialistic evil. After dying violent deaths, these spirits are so tied to worldly decadence and selfish concerns that they take shapes that better reflect the baseness of their lives and are reborn as fiends.

A rakshasa cannot impregnate another of its own kind, and so new rakshasas come into being via the coupling of a rakshasa and a non-rakshasa or, rarely, that of two non-rakshasas. A rakshasa born to non-rakshasa parents generally only occurs when one or both of the parents commits a great evil during the mother's pregnancy, allowing the disembodied spirit of a previously slain rakshasa to reincarnate into the world by usurping the unborn offspring's body. Rarely, such blasphemous births afflict good or innocent parents, typically in cases where the parents are exposed to great evils beyond their control. A rakshasa grows to maturity more quickly than a human, and often functions as a full-grown adult earlier than age 14. Despite this quick maturation, a rakshasa can live for 500 years or more before dying, at which point its spirit seeks a new host to be reborn in, continuing the vile cycle of fiendish reincarnation over and over again.

### Appearance

Earthbound can vary widely in overall appearance but many common Rakshasa possess feral bestial features, such as fur, feathers, hide, scales, tails, slit pupils, or even fully animal like heads. One universal trait Rakshasa all share is the fact that every Rakshasa has one element in their physiology that is reversed: normally their hands, but sometimes their limbs, will bend the wrong way; or their ears will face backwards etc.

### Relations

Most Rakshasa are evil, and all possess an impulse to be selfish, power hungry, and greedy for material wealth and pleasures. For this reason not many would be willing to put trust in or associate with a known Rakshasa without good reason or a shared attitude. There are actually good aligned Earthbound though, these are referred to by the rest of their own kind as Pagala, or traitors. These Earthbound may find the hardest life of all, finding hatred and bias from their own kind as well as the many races of the world. Redemption for a Rakshasa is a treacherous road, but perhaps to some it may be worth the effort.

## Race Traits

**Outsider (Native) (3RP)**

**Medium (0RP)**

**Speed (0RP)**  30ft

**Fiendish Charm (4RP)**  Rakshasa are skilled manipulators and schemers, they dazzle and seduce with enchantments and illusion, trick and plot with guile and cunning, and always stay one step ahead of everyone they meet if they can. Though many are capable of rending flesh with tooth and claw and blade if need arises, Intellect and charm are a rakshasa first weapon of choice. Rakshasa gain +4 Cha +2 Int

**Language (0RP)** Rakshasa begin speaking Infernal and Common, Rakshasa with a high intelligence modifier may chose to also know Abyssal, Aklo, Celestial, Necril, Elven, Dwarven, Gnomish

**Fiend’s Sight (4RP)** Members of this race gain the See In Darkness ability, allowing them to see through all forms of darkness including magical darkness

**Shapechanger (3RP)** Rakshasa often learn to master the ability to take many forms via magic, but even an untrained Rakshasa possesses the innate ability to hide their feindish features and assume a more mundane appearance. This functions as the spell Alter Self but may be used at will and functions until the Rakshasa decides to dismiss the disguise as a standard action. This ability grants the Rakshasa a +10 to disguise checks to appear to be a member of the chosen race, but grants the Rakshasa no other benefits listed in the spell. The Rakshasa must choose one form at creation, this form is static and can not be changed each time it uses this ability.

**Masters of Deception (2RP)** Rakshasa gain a +4 racial bonus to Bluff

**Unnatural Hunger (-2RP)** all Rakshasa suffer from a innate desire and need to devour the flesh and or blood of humanoids. In fact they can derive sustenance from only such a meal, eating anything else, including meat from non-humanoid sources, does nothing at all to sate a rakshasa’s hunger. Furthermore any such meal will taste as if they are feasting on only dirt and ashes. Despite this many can and do eat and drink common meals, unpleasant as it is to do so, purely for the sake of keeping up appearances in mixed company.

## Feats

#### Mask of Many Faces

Prerequisite: Rakshasa

You can precisely mimic the physical features of any individual you have encountered. When you use your racial Shapechanger ability, you can attempt to take the form of an individual, granting you a +10 circumstance bonus on Disguise checks made to fool others with your impersonation

#### Hand of the King

Prerequisite: Rakshasa, 10 HD

The rakshasa gains an extra pair of arms while in her original form. She can use these arms to manipulate or hold items, and to wield weapons as part of multiweapon fighting. The arms have their own “hand” and “ring” magic item slots, but the rakshasa paragon is still limited to using two rings and one hand slot item at a time.

#### Head of the Noble

Prerequisite: Rakshasa, 12 HD

The rakshasa gains a second head while in her original form. This head provides her with only a second bite primary natural attack. Once per day, the rakshasa can reroll a failed Will save against a mind-affecting effect.

#### Head of the Lord

Prerequisite: Rakshasa, Head of the Noble, 15 HD

The rakshasa gains a third head while in her original form. This head provides her with only a third bite primary natural attack.The rakshasa can now reroll a failed Will save against a mind-affecting effect twice per day.

1. ↑ https://pathfinderwiki.com/wiki/Rakshasa
2. ↑ https://pathfinderwiki.com/wiki/rakshasa