Icemen

Icemen, also known as nurthans, are described as being more primitive in nature compared to their southern brothers and they are seen as strong warriors and endless wanderers. While the coastals proposed to settle down in the shores, the icemen decided to do what humans were made to do; discover the world and go beyond the known lands. They share many similarities with the western orcs, including ideas of atheism and values based around physical strength and competition. As they live in the icy wastes of Khemredet far in the north, they have a natural skill for survival and it is understandable that the endless fight to stay alive in the grim cold has made them dismiss the Gods in favor of their own instincts, for they have truly never given them anything. Their strong resolve however has attracted the attention of one God; Fjörn. He admires their spirit and strength and has supposedly given them better means of thriving within Khemredet. The icemen do not ask for favors, but their centuries of survival in harsh conditions has impressed Fjörn and so he has blessed his most favored individuals over the years. With his help, one can only imagine how far the nurthans can truly go. Their push to the north will never end and because of that they must endure and be willing to go even further.

## Physical description

Icemen are physically robust and much bigger than coastals or wildmen and have unusually hairy bodies and a strong skeletal structure. It is quite common for an iceman to stand above 2 meters tall and weigh close to 150 kilograms. Icemen also collect a large amount of fat in their bodies as it greatly helps them survive in cold conditions. Most of the icemen have developed light skin with a blueish tint of frost that is cold to the touch. Some have said that icemen living deeper in the north have become permanently covered in ice and snow, unable to survive in temperate or hot climates. Some scholars suspect that these kinds of icemen are the creations of Fjörn. Icemen also have the ability to consciously slow their metabolism down to a halt, preserving energy and allowing them to survive through harsh times with minimal bodily functions. The average lifespan of an iceman is unknown and it is believed that they can be very variable, with the ones living deeper in the north being able to live much longer. The baseline for an iceman's lifespan is the same as a coastal human's, rarely reaching over 100 years.

## Society

Not much is known about their different tribes and societies, other than the fact that they live scattered over Khemredet in quite large numbers. Studying the icemen has also proven problematic as they do not hold friendly relations with any other mortal races. All species of trolls and giants are the greatest enemies of the icemen as they have been fighting with frost giants and ice trolls since they arrived in the far north during their travels. Certain humans have theorized that the nurthans will eventually reach new and prosperous lands untouched by the mortals of Énelya after crossing Khemredet if they haven't already. Unfortunately, the isolated lifestyle of the icemen makes it so that these tales only exist as rumors and myths.

## Rules

* **Ability Score Modifiers:** Icemen are exceptionally strong and hardy folk, but they have forsaken the traditional ways of studying and learning and also have tendency to look down on others. They gain +2 Strength, +2 Constitution, -2 Intelligence and -2 Charisma.
* **Size:** Medium
* **Type:** Humanoid, human
* **Base speed:** 30 feet
* **Languages:** Icemen begin play speaking Nurthan. Icemen with high Intelligence scores can choose from the following; Common, Orc, Giant and Necril.

* **Bonus Feat:** Icemen select one extra feat at 1st level.
* **Evolutionary Benefits:** At 1st level, icemen must select either Strength or Constitution. They gain an additional +2 bonus on their chosen ability score that stacks with their innate racial ability score modifiers. Once this choice has been made, it cannot be changed.
* **Permafrost:** Icemen have cold resistance 5.
* **Cold Acclimated:** Icemen automatically succeed on Fortitude saves to avoid cold dangers for conditions up to and including severe cold.
* **Formidable:** Icemen gain a +2 racial bonus on Fortitude saving throws.
* **Survival of the Fittest:** Icemen gain a +2 racial bonus on Survival, Climb and Swim checks.
* **Giant Hunter:** Icemen gain a +1 bonus on attack rolls against humanoids with the giant subtype. In addition, they gain a +2 racial bonus on Survival checks made to find and follow tracks made by humanoids with the giant subtype. This bonus stacks with the bonus granted by Survival of the Fittest.
* **Weapon Familiarity:** Icemen are proficient with battleaxes and greataxes, and treat any weapon with the word "Nurthan" in its name as a martial weapon.
* **Darkvision:** Icemen can see perfectly in the dark up to 60 feet.

### Alternate Racial Traits

The following alternate racial traits may be selected in place of one or more of the standard racial traits above. In addition, icemen have access to all alternate racial traits normally available to humans. Consult your GM before selecting any new options.

* **Gifts from Fjörn:** A select few icemen have been blessed by the King of Frost as they have defied many challenges despite some of their shortcomings. These kinds of icemen are usually among the largest of their kind and have ventured into the coldest lands of the far north. Icemen with this racial trait gain a +2 bonus to two different physical ability scores of their choice, increase their cold resistance gained from Permafrost by 10 to a total of 15 and gain a +1 natural armor bonus. However, they also gain vulnerability to fire. If an iceman has the alternate racial trait Frost Breath, they do not increase their cold resistance and instead increase the damage dice of their Frost Breath ability from d6 to d8. This racial trait modifies Permafrost (or Frost Breath) and replaces Bonus Feat and Evolutionary Benefits.
* **Self-Sufficient:** Instead of tracking and hunting down their hated foes, some icemen focus on their crafting skills. Icemen with this racial trait gain a +1 racial bonus on Craft checks and gain a free point in one Craft skill of their choice at 1st level. This racial trait replaces Giant Hunter.
* **Frost Breath:** Many icemen have always thought of cold as a persistent opponent, but to some it is a friend that can be relied upon. However, this comes at a cost of their own health. Once per day as a standard action, icemen with this racial trait can use a special Breath Attack ability. This ability is used in a 15 ft. cone and all creatures in the affected area must roll a Reflex save to avoid some of the damage, and the difficulty class of this save is equal to 10 + half the character level of the iceman + their Constitution modifier. This attack deals 1d6 cold damage and successful saving throws reduce this damage to half of its original value. In addition, creatures that fail their saving throws are fatigued for 1 round. The damage of this ability increases to 2d6 at 3rd level and increases by 1d6 every two levels after that, up to a maximum of 10d6 at 19th level. This ability cannot be used in hot climates. This racial trait replaces Permafrost and Formidable.

## Iceman Racial Feats

* **Improved Permafrost**

*Your skin is extremely cold and resilient.*

**Prerequisites:** Iceman, Permafrost racial trait, Toughness, Con 13, character level 3rd.

**Benefit:** The cold resistance from your Permafrost racial trait increases by 5 points. At 10th level, it increases by an additional 5 points.

* **Ice Coat**

*The cold blood in your veins has hardened your skin, making it difficult to pierce.*

**Prerequisites:** Iceman, Permafrost racial trait, Toughness, Improved Permafrost, Con 15, character level 7th.

**Benefit:** You gain a natural armor bonus of +1 (or increase your natural armor bonus by 1 if you already have a natural armor bonus from another source).

* **Frost Carapace**

*You have learned how to manipulate your cold skin in a way that gives you increased protection for a limited time.*

**Prerequisites:** Iceman, Permafrost racial trait, Toughness, Improved Permafrost, Ice Coat, Con 17, character level 11th.

**Benefit:** As a full-round action that provokes attacks of opportunity, you concentrate on the icy particles on your skin and form a protective armor of frost around yourself. This armor increases your natural armor bonus by 2, increases your cold resistance by 10 and deals cold damage equal to your Constitution modifier to any enemy that grapples you or damages you with unarmed or natural weapons. It also grants you damage reduction 5/-, but this damage reduction can be bypassed by any attack that deals fire damage, such as an attack with a weapon that has the *Flaming* special ability on it.

The duration of this armor depends on the climate. In cold conditions, it lasts for 1 hour/level, in normal conditions 1 minute/level and in hot conditions 1 round/level. If you take fire damage from any source, the armor's duration is reduced to just 1 round as it rapidly melts away. You can use this ability a number of times per day equal to your Constitution modifier. This is a supernatural ability.

* **Frost Lungs**

*Your lungs can have adapted to storing the power of cold.*

**Prerequisites:** Iceman, Frost Breath racial trait, Endurance, Con 14, character level 4th.

**Benefit:** You gain one more daily use on your Frost Breath ability. In addition, creatures that fail their save are exhausted instead of fatigued, and any creature that succeeds on their save but still suffers damage is fatigued for 1 round.

* **Frozen Mist**

*The coldness of your breath can be used to create a freezing mist around you.*

**Prerequisites:** Iceman, Frost Breath racial trait, Endurance, Frost Lungs, Con 16, character level 8th.

**Benefit:** Instead of using your Frost Breath ability in a 15 ft. cone, you may use it to create a thick, frozen mist that surrounds you. This mist grants you concealment (20%) until the beginning of your next turn, and any creatures adjacent to you when you first create the mist are affected by your Frost Breath ability. In addition, any creature that moves into the mist is affected, but each specific creature cannot be affected by the mist more than once per round.

* **Freezing Death**

*Your breath is so cold that it can briefly freeze muscles and nerves.*

**Prerequisites:** Iceman, Frost Breath racial trait, Endurance, Frost Lungs, Frozen Mist, Con 18, character level 12th.

**Benefit:** You gain one more daily use on your Frost Breath ability. In addition, creatures that fail their save are paralyzed instead of exhausted, and any creature that succeeds on their save but still suffers damage is exhausted instead of fatigued for 1 round.

## Nurthan Weapons

#### Frost axe, Nurthan

**Cost**: 50 gp **Weight:** 15 lbs.
**Damage:** 1d10 (small), 2d6 (medium) **Critical:** x3 **Type:** slashing
**Category**: two-handed **Proficiency:** exotic
**Weapon Group:** axes
**Special:** sunder
*A traditional weapon for icemen living in the cold wastelands of Khemredet, these huge runic axes perform better in cold environments and gain unusual benefits from the cold itself.*
A frost axe gains a +1 cold damage bonus while exposed to cold weather and counts as a magical weapon for all intents and purposes. In addition, whenever a character wielding a frost axe takes cold damage (even if the damage does not bypass resistance), the axe gains a +1 cold damage bonus and counts as a magical weapon for all intents and purposes for 1 round. These bonuses stack.
If a frost axe has the *Frost* or *Icy Burst* special ability, it gains a constant +1 cold damage bonus.