Half Breeds?

[applejuicefool]

I apologize if this has already been covered, but I'm new here, I only have the pocket rules, and I don't want to dig through 57 pages of threads right now.

Are there rules out for half-breed characters in Conan? If so, what supplement are they in?

If not, how would you as a GM handle half-breeds?

By half-breed, I mean a character with parents of different racial stock.

Thanks!

 

[argo]

There is no rule for this. I recomend you pick one of three options:

Pick one parent and use their race. The "blood" of that parent is "dominant" in the offspring.

Use the race of the foreign parent but replace the background skills with the background skills of the region where they were raised. The offspring is an "outsider" raised in the community.

Use the Hyborian race regardless of the parent's race. Possibly replace weapon familarity Greatsword with another weapon more appropriate. The offspring is a truly unique individual who must "choose their own destiny".

Generally speaking trying to "blend" the attrributes of any two races will just lead to headaches and/or a min-maxed munchkin character.

Hope that helps.

 

[applejuicefool]

There is no rule for this. I recomend you pick one of three options:

Pick one parent and use their race. The "blood" of that parent is "dominant" in the offspring.

Use the race of the foreign parent but replace the background skills with the background skills of the region where they were raised. The offspring is an "outsider" raised in the community.

Use the Hyborian race regardless of the parent's race. Possibly replace weapon familarity Greatsword with another weapon more appropriate. The offspring is a truly unique individual who must "choose their own destiny".

Generally speaking trying to "blend" the attrributes of any two races will just lead to headaches and/or a min-maxed munchkin character.

Hope that helps.

Those are some great suggestions. I really like the idea about using Hyborian race. Question: How would you handle a half-Cimmerian? Would it be reasonable to say that since the character's blood is "impure", Crom withholds his gifts of strength and will?

 

[Trodax]

Question: How would you handle a half-Cimmerian?

In Aquilonia - Flower of the West, Vincent Darlage statted up Conan's sons as Cimmerian hybrids, check that out (I think they had a couple of abilities from both races).
I would personally probably just use the race in which the character was raised straight up; that's the easiest way to do it and you won't have to worry about balance-issues.

 

[rgrove0172]

Ill loan you the Aquilonia module if you like Applejuice, but I had really intended we begin the campaign with only the core rules and bring in the supplements slowly as we go along. We can work out the particulars of your character and if you really want to to with something unusual, Im sure we can figure it out. Drop me an email.

 

[applejuicefool]

Ill loan you the Aquilonia module if you like Applejuice, but I had really intended we begin the campaign with only the core rules and bring in the supplements slowly as we go along. We can work out the particulars of your character and if you really want to to with something unusual, Im sure we can figure it out. Drop me an email.

No problem. I am pretty certain I'm just gonna go Aquilonian anyhow.

 

[argo]

Those are some great suggestions. I really like the idea about using Hyborian race. Question: How would you handle a half-Cimmerian? Would it be reasonable to say that since the character's blood is "impure", Crom withholds his gifts of strength and will?

And this is exactly why I made the suggestions I did. Most of the Conan races blend inherited traits with cultural ones but not in equal porpotion. Trying to do custom half-breeds is usually a headache.

Is the character favored by Crom despite being born in a foreign land? Then give him the full Cimmerian stats.

Or does he take after his mother who raised him? Then give him those stats instead.

Playing with background skills is a good way to represent half-breeds because all the races have them in about the same ammount. So you can swap them around without generating many balance issues.

Hope that helps.