Touch of the Inhuman: Water

## Introduction

Water spirits are as many and varied as bodies of water. there are fickle and furious river spirits, calm and placid lake spirits, fetid swamp spirits, and immense, inscrutiable ocean spirits. All human societies interact with water in some way, rivers being the most common as they require fresh water to live. Water spirits often create touched in communities and in families that place great importance and reverence on the waters. Sailors, canoeists, swimmers, riverside farmers, and the like. They usually are patient an enduring enough for the perfect candidate to come along before creating a touched.

## Description

**Physical Description:** Water touched are widely varied, but there are some traits that can be relied upon. All water touched are perfectly at home in the water, able to move and breathe in the water as easily as fishes. They are usually somewhat stronger than most of their human relatives, but it’s not a guaranteed trait. Water touched are somewhat divided, some being formed by spirits of liquid water, and others by frozen spirits of ice. The distinction is usually sharp, most of one having little to do with the other. Water touched have a range of traits, as subtle as sea-blue eyes, hair that never seems completely dry, or faint wisps of cold fog on their breath, or as dramatic as blue flesh, or shimmering skin of frost.

**Personality:** Water touched are as varied in personality as the natures of their supernatural sources. Some may be deep thinkers, other raging savages. Some are unstoppable tidal waves, others crystal-clear springs, others restless rivers. Still others may be immovable glaciers, cruel arctic frost, or destructive avalanches. Almost all water touched are fond of the water in some degree or another, either appreciating its beauty, or enjoying water-related activities like sailing or swimming.

**In the World:** Water touched appear in every human civilization, and fill many different roles. Water touched are one of the most accepted sorts of touched in many societies, their affinity for the water making them extremely valuable to a wide variety of communities. Many become Priests or Chosen Ones, the call of the waters taking on a deeply religious, spiritual tone to them. Others become warriors, taking advantage of their great strength to embody the power and wrath of torrential waters.

## Ability Modifiers

* **+2 Strength, -2 Charisma** Water touched are as strong and unrelenting as the pounding surf, but can come off as somewhat bland.

## Universal Abilities

* **Water-born** Water touched are perfectly at home in the water. They gain a swim speed of 30 feet, and a +8 racial bonus to swim checks. In addition, they can breathe water and air freely.

## Optional Abilities

* **Arctic Assault** The water touched is infused with cold energy. All successful melee attacks they make deal 1 cold damage in addition to their normal damage. They can suppress or resume this ability as a free action at will.
* **Bitter Chill** The water touched can chill the air around an opponent, creating arctic conditions. The water touched can chill a single creature within 30 feet. as a standard action. The target must make a fortitude save (DC 10 + ½ the water touched’s hit die + their charisma modifier) or suffer the effects of this sudden cold snap, taking 1d6 nonlethal cold damage plus the water touched’s hit die and becoming fatigued. The fatigue lasts until all the nonlethal damage from this ability is healed. Protection from cold weather, such as the bonus from a successful survival check, from warm clothes, or from magical protections, apply.
* **Cold Resistance** The water touched is inured to the cold. They gain cold resistance 5.
* **Frost Shaper** The water touched can turn water to ice with a touch, and shape it at their whim. They can freeze a gallon of water per hit die with a touch as a standard action. They can also shape the ice as it forms, creating nearly any sort of shape desired. This ice is magically hardened, as tough and keen-edged as steel. To create a weapon or tool with this ability requires a craft check. Items frozen this way remain frozen as long as the touched remains in contact with them and up to one minute afterward, at which point they revert to normal ice and, normally, begin melt back to water.
* **Geyser** The water touched can create a blast of water to push their foes or nourish their companions. As a standard action that provokes an attack of opportunity, the touched creates a powerful blast of water to bull rush a creature or object within 30 feet. Their CMB for this bull rush is equal to their HD plus their charisma modifier. This bull rush does not provoke an attack of opportunity. The water blast soaks the target, extinguishing any normal fires and soaking any exposed gunpowder on the creature, object, or 5-foot square it’s targeted against, but has no effect on magical flames. Most of the water from this ability is supernatural and dissipates harmlessly in minutes, but the water touched can hold on to some of it each day, as much as 2 gallons per hit die. This water is always fresh, clean, and safe to drink.
* **Ice-walker** The water touched is at home on the ice. They can move normally over natural difficult terrain in Cold terrain. Magically manipulated terrain still affects them normally. In addition, they can move normally on ice, and do not need to make balance checks to avoid falling.
* **Ocean Warrior** The water touched is an ally to the waters, and they stand aside to allow them to fight. They can fight freely underwater, their attacks taking no penalty from the water. Even ranged attacks underwater do not take the usual underwater penalties as they travel, though they still take range penalties against targets more than one range increment away as normal. The surface of the water does not provide cover against their attacks. In addition, if they and their target are in the same body of water, they gain a +1 circumstance bonus to attack and damage rolls. This ability only refers to water, other liquids impose penalties as normal.
* **Touch of the Sea** The water touched can grant an ally a measure of their affinity for the water. As a standard action, they can touch a willing creature and grant them a temporary swim speed equal to their base speed, which lasts for one minute. This swim speed grants a +8 racial bonus to swim checks. In addition, their touch grants the creature the ability to breathe both air and water for one round, allowing them to refill their lungs and begin holding their breath again.
* **Water is Life** The water touched is restored by the presence of water. They gain fast healing 1 in any round they are submerged completely within a body of natural salt water, fresh water, or brackish water. Stagnant, poisoned, or trapped water does not activate this ability.
* **Water Magic** The water touched is attuned to the magic of the seas and the ice. They gain a +1 bonus to caster level when casting spells with the [Cold] or [Water] subtype.
* **Water Senses** The water touched is able to navigate even in the lightless depths underwater. While underwater, they gain darkvision out to 60 feet. In addition, they can detect nearby objects and creatures while underwater, gaining blindsense out to 30 feet. This blindsense only detects creatures or objects in the same body of water as the water touched, and does not extend beyond the surface.
* **Water Tongue** The water touched can speak with the sound of crashing surf, and can communicate with elemental creatures. They can understand and be understood by any creature with the water or cold subtype, regardless of whether they share a language or not.