Cutthroats and Cravens: The Skulk for Blood & Treasure (& Rolemaster!)

Almost universally loathed, Skulks are regarded as a parasitic - and dangerous - culture that clings to life through petty theft and murder. Generally regarded as gutless opportunists, scavengers and cowards - stranglers in the night - they tend to dwell in the most shadowed alleys, the most twisted and darkest of woodlands, the forgotten mazes of crumbling sewers, abandoned buildings or caverns that no-one else values enough to drive them forth. Skulks are usually of Chaotic alignment - they are notoriously hard to regiment and seldom trust anyone long enough to build the stable systems associated with Lawful alignments. Skulk adventurers can be regarded as somewhat exceptional, however, and can be of any alignment (although even in the case of adventuring Skulks, save for a few remarkable individuals, the most one might hope for is Neutral or Chaotic Neutral).

Skulks average 72” in height and have a movement rate of 30’. Their sleek, hairless skin is seemingly indeterminate in colour, tending to take on the properties of their surroundings, but their eyes are the watery blue of hopes long forgotten. Although they can potentially live as long as humans, Skulks seldom make it past 40. They commence play knowing the most common local language, usually a human tongue, but occasionally a language such as Tur, Tvole or Urugraz.

Skulks are quick, wiry, perceptive and possessed of considerable low cunning, but their culture is severely distrustful of excessive cogitation and, in fact, founded more or less on distrust. Skulks gain +1 to Wisdom, Dexterity and Constitution, whilst losing 2 points of Charisma and 1 point from their Intelligence. They have the following minimum/maximum ability scores: STR 3/18, INT 3/18, WIS 4/18, DEX 6/18, CON 7/18, and CHA 3/15. They roll 1d4 + 2 for their Heritage score.

The minor chameleon-like nature of Skulks grants them a +2 to Hide in Shadows, whilst their lithe form is capable of considerable contorting and squeezing. If a Skulk wishes to pass through an area that is too small for creatures of Medium size, they may attempt to do so by rolling under their Dexterity score on a d20. They also gain +2 to task checks or saving throws to Escape Bonds or avoid becoming entangled, as well as a +2 to Grapple checks and attempts to break a foe’s Grapple.

Skulks may select from following classes: Acrobat, Anarchist, Assassin, Barbarian, Blackheart, Bounty Hunter, Demonologist, Diablo, Fighter, Magic-User (Conjurer, Illusionist, Necromancer), Pariah, Poltroon, Priest (Death, Weird), Saboteur, Scout, Sentinel, Shadowdancer, Sorceror, Thief, Thug, Tomb Raider, Warlock. 

They may also pursue the following multiclassing options: Assassin-Demonologist, Assassin-Necromancer, Assassin-Priest (Death), Conjurer-Thief, Demonologist-Thug, Fighter-Necromancer, Fighter-Priest (Death, Weird), Fighter-Thief, Necromancer-Thief, Priest (Death, Weird)-Thief, Sorceror-Thug, Thief-Warlock.

RMFRP stats:

Sly Shapeshifters: The Yelkhulda for Blood & Treasure (and Rolemaster!)

One of the most common Beastkin lineages, the vulpine Yelkhulda are found across the New Kingdoms, putting their cunning and cleverness in the service of all manner of foolishness: although highly intelligent, the Foxfolk are constantly overestimating their abilities and misreading the situations around them. Despite this unintentionally comical facet of their personality, they are generally good-natured and courageous, if somewhat pompous in speech and outrageously flashy in dress. 

They have many of the physical characteristics of the fox: long, whiskered muzzles, fox ears and the russet-and-white colouring of their forebears. They are a little shorter than humans - averaging 62" - and much more wiry. Their bodies and faces are lightly furred and their eyes a sparkling, friendly - and somewhat calculating - brown. 

Yelkhulda are known for their elusive and agile physicality, along with an innate ability to change their form to resemble those around them. This, along with their tendency to concoct convoluted schemes, causes others to view them as untrustworthy. In terms of alignment, the Yelkhulda favour Neutrality: they are seldom Lawful and even more unlikely to be Evil. Yelkhulda start play with one local human language, usually Hyarene, Urdrinn, Kanastasi or Avronakiyan. 

Yelkhulda are tough, swift and clever, but also prone to folly and physically weak, adding 1 to their CON, DEX and INT scores, but subtracting 1 from WIS and 2 from STR. Their movement rate is 40’. They have the following minimum/maximum ability scores: STR 3/16, INT 7/19, WIS 3/18, DEX 6/19, CON 7/18, and CHA 3/18. They roll 3d4 for their Heritage score. 

The Yelkhulda can deliver a nasty bite, doing 1d3 damage. Rolls to hit with the bite attack apply the Yelkhulda’s DEX modifier rather than the usual STR (although this still affects damage). The cheerful Fox-folk add +1 to any Reaction checks. They also add +1 to AC and all Move Silently, Hide in Shadows and Pick Pockets task checks. All Yelkhulda can reduce their attack rolls by 2 in order to add 2 to their AC (as per the Expertise feat). 

The ability for which the Yelkhulda are most famous, however, is their ability to magically change their appearance. All Yelkhulda can cast change self once per day, whilst those with a Charisma score of 13 or more can also cast alter self once per week. 

However, Yelkhulda are often overconfident, with a 1 in 6 chance of entering situations or arrangements that they are not equipped to handle (TK discretion; excludes combat). Thus, the Fox-folk sometimes find themselves in some trouble - usually for some task they fail to complete or an agreement broken. Their judgement of character is often poor, leaving them vulnerable to the depredations of shysters. Finally, Yelkhulda must be wary when in the wild: eagles and mountain lions seem to have a great appetite for the Fox-folk, attacking them with a +1 bonus and adding 2 to any damage rolled. 

The Yelkhulda may select from the following class options: Acrobat, Alchemist (Natural only), Assassin, Bard, Charlatan, Druid, Duellist, Elementalist, Fey-Mage, Fighter, Jack-of-all-Trades, Jester, Magic-User (Conjurer, Enchanter, Illusionist, Transmuter), Priest (Travel, Trickster), Ranger, Scout, Shadowdancer, Shaman, Sorceror, Thief, Venturer, Warlock, Zodiac. 

The Fox-folk also have the following multi-class options available to them: Conjuror-Fighter, Conjuror-Thief, Duellist-Thief, Illusionist-Fighter, Illusionist-Scout, Illusionist-Thief, Fighter-Shaman, Fighter-Thief, Shaman-Scout, Sorceror-Thief.

...& for those who play Rolemaster Fantasy Role Play...here are the Yelkhulda's stats: