Abt'atunian Ghoul

Ghouls are traditionally chaotic evil undead that feast on the flesh of the living.  With their paralytic touch, and horrible ghoul fever, they are kept out of civilized society for a reason.  The denizens of Abt’atunis by all appearances are just the same as these monsters.  Appearances are not everything though.

## Description

The citizens of Abt’atunis are the remanence of the various city-states of the Kingdom of Dust, or their ancestors.  The affliction that they all suffer from seems to have been quite rare.  Even the most populous areas produced only one or two of these ghouls.  What caused them to suddenly suffer so?  None of the ghouls know first hand, but between their research, and that of the Caluna archeologists, there is no doubt.  The magical event that lead to the destruction of the once great nations in the lands of dust killed most, but turned a few into what resembles the walking dead.

## Physical Description

The ghouls of Abt’atunis resemble walking corpses.  Their flesh is dried and peeling off of the bone.  Years in the sun have bleached any of their exposed bones, and tanned their skin.  Hair (when present at all) is always thin, stringy, and white.  When a Abt’atunian ghoul has a child, it generally starts out looking like a normal member of their previous race (most often human).  When they hit puberty though, they begin transforming.  Their hair starts to thin out; their skin dries and peels; some teeth fall out, while others get sharper.  After a year or two of this transition, an Abt’atunian ghoul reaches full maturity and possesses the body they will use for the rest of time, lest they experience the second change.

## Society

Since the phenomenon that created this race of ghouls has been lost to time, there seems to only be one culture of these peoples.  Before coming upon the necropolis at Abt’atunis, the ghouls wandered the desert.  Any time two groups encountered one another, they banded together for safety and companionship.  Decades of random encounters would eventually lead to these nomads coming together in one larger group that eventually discover the grand necropolis of Abt’atunis, and it was here that they made their home.

The current residents are the ghouls that have survived the years with their minds and bodies mostly intact, as well as the descendants of those that may or may not have made it.

## Relations

Abt’atunis is located in a fairly isolated corner of the lands of dust.  For this reason, they tend not to encounter other races and thus have few relations.  The most common type of creature that they encounter would be their former kin.  Mad ghouls as they are called are not aggressive towards the near undead Abt’atunians, but are extremely aggressive to any travelers that they encounter.  Because of this association Abt’atunians are generally shunned or avoided by the survivors of mad ghoul encounters.

## Alignment and Religion

The ghouls of Abt’atunis are generally lawful.  The desperate circumstance of their locale requires strict order to ensure the survival of all.  For this same reason they do not have any particular leanings towards good or evil.  Many still worship the old animal headed gods of the past, particularly Anubis despite their potential intrusion upon a sacred tomb.  Due to their recent discovery by Caluna archeologists, the modern religions are starting to take hold though.

## Adventurers

Due to their isolation, very few ghouls felt the ability to go out adventuring.  For, if they left their families behind, who might provide for them?  Now that contact has been made with Caluna, many ghouls are realizing that they can explore a life outside of Abt’atunis.

## Racial Traits

Ability Score Racial Traits: Abt’atunian ghouls are strong and tough, but lack social grace due to their appearance and isolation.  +2 Strength, +2 Constitution, -2 Charisma

Size: Abt’atunian ghouls are Medium creatures and thus receive no bonuses or penalties due to their size.

Type: Abt’atunian ghouls are humanoids with the half-undead subtype as well as a subtype related to their original or ancestral race (usually human).

Base Speed: Abt’atunian ghouls have a base speed of 30 feet.

Languages: Abt’atunian ghouls begin play speaking Sheng and Osiran. Ghouls with high Intelligence scores can choose from the following: Necril, Draconic, Sphinx, Ignan, Terran. See the Linguistics skill page for more information about these languages.

### Senses Racial Traits

Darkvision: Abt’atunian ghouls can see perfectly in the dark up to 60 feet.

Carion Sense: Abt’atunian ghouls can sniff out the dead, or close to dead.  This functions like the scent ability, but only for corpses and badly wounded creatures (creatures with 25% or fewer hit points).

### Defense Racial Traits

Immortal: Abt’atunian ghouls do not age naturally and cannot die of old age.  They do not naturally gain age bonuses or penalties.  Spells and effects that cause aging affect a ghouls as normal.

Resist Level Drain: An Abt’atunian ghoul takes no penalties from energy drain effects, though he can still be killed if he accrues more negative levels than he has Hit Dice. After 24 hours, any negative levels a shabti takes are automatically removed without the need for an additional saving throw.

Undead Resistance: Abt’atunian ghouls gain a +2 racial bonus on saving throws against disease and mind-affecting effects.

Negative Energy Affinity: Abt’atunian ghouls are harmed by positive energy and healed by negative energy. They still benefit from the fast healing special quality.

Desert Runner: Abt’atunian ghouls are adapted to the harsh desert.  Members of this race receive a +4 racial bonus on Constitution checks and Fortitude saves to avoid fatigue and exhaustion, as well as any other ill effects from running, forced marches, starvation, thirst, and hot or cold environments.

### Offensive Racial Traits

Plagued Blood: Abt’atunian ghouls have a lesser version of normal ghouls’ paralytic touch and ghoul fever.  A number of times per day equal to its Constitution modifier (minimum 1/day), a member of this race can envenom a weapon that it wields with its toxic blood.  Using blood in this way requires the user to be injured when it uses this ability. Applying venom in this way is a swift action.

Lesser Ghoul Fever: Injury; save Fort DC 10 + the 1/2 user’s Hit Dice + the user’s Constitution modifier; frequency 1/round for 6 rounds; effect 1d2 Dex; cure 1 save.

### Other Racial Traits

Dormant Darkness: Abt’atunian ghouls who are killed are exceptionally difficult to return to life. Those who attempt to return an Abt’atunian ghoul to life using raise dead, resurrection, or similar spells must succeed at a caster level check equal to 10 + the Abt’atunian ghoul’s Hit Dice. If this check fails, the spell fails and the caster can’t return the ghoul to life for the next 24 hours (though the caster can try again after this period).  If the Abt’atunian ghoul is not brought back from the dead within 1d4 plus 1 day per Hit Die, the ghoul comes back as a standard ghoul.

Hungerless:  Abt’atunian ghouls do not need to eat.  They still breathe and sleep normally.

Ghoulkin: Scholars believe that the cause of an Abt’atunian’s transformation into a mad ghoul has to do with the strand of ghoul fever that runs through their veins.  Part of this comes from the fact that a mad ghoul’s touch and bite become far more potent.  Part of this comes from Abt’atunians’ succeptibility to a ghoul’s powers.  Abt’atunian ghouls take a -2 penalty to Fortitude saving throws made to resist a ghoul’s paralysis touch, as well as ghoul fever.  While a ghoul is suffering from ghoul fever though, the DC for their Plagued Blood ability is increased by 2.