Shapechanger

Shapechangers vary considerably in appearance, though most look like tall, thin humans with slightly pointed ears. They are typically between 6' and 7' tall, and weigh anywhere from 130 to 170 pounds.

Personalities vary almost as much as appearances, though the majority are good-natured. Shapechangers are also generally very non-materialistic, and own only what they can carry, at the most. They value money only for interactions with other races.

Shapechangers get along well with humans, dwarves, elves, halflings, and most other peaceful races, though they can be found living with just about any species. They are very close to nature and the woodlands, but are also comfortable in cities and other environments. Shapechangers feel a strong kinship to the Fairies, and are often found in each other's company.

Shapechangers, unlike the other demihuman races, are not front-line fighters, though they can defend themselves if need be. While they can use many types of weapons, many prefer to simply carry a single dagger (or other small, disposable weapon).

Class Details

Prime Requisite: Shapechangers have two prime requisites: Intelligence and Wisdom. If a Shapechanger has a score of 13 or more in both ability scores, he gains a 5% bonus to experience points earned. If his Intelligence score is 16-18 and his Wisdom is 13 or more, the bonus is 10%.

Minimum Scores: A Shapechanger character must have Constitution 9 or greater when first played.

Hit Dice: Roll a 6-sided die (1d6) to determine a Shapechanger's hit points. A Shapechanger starts with 1d6 (1-6) hit points (plus Constitution bonus, if any) and gains 1d6 more hit points (plus bonus) with each level of experience. One additional hit point is gained at 10th level.

Armor: A Shapechanger may only wear leather armor, but may use a shield.

Weapons: A Shapechanger may use any missile weapon, and any other weapon usable with one hand (two-handed weapons are prohibited).

Special Abilities

Second Sight

The Shapechangers' variable nature gives them a 5% cumulative chance per level to have Second Sight. (See PC1: Tall Tales of the Wee Folk, page 25 for details.) This is checked when the character is created, and upon every level gained. All Shapechanger Elders have Second Sight (see below).

Languages

In addition to the languages of all characters --the Common and alignment tongues--a Shapechanger can speak the languages of the Shapechanger and Fairy races, and can communicate with any normal animal.

Detection

Shapechangers have an excellent sense of direction, and are hard to disorient. Under normal circumstances, a Shapechanger has a 2 in 3 chance to know which way is north. In unusual circumstances (thick fog, underground mazes, etc.) this is reduced to 1 in 3.

If your Shapechanger character wants to use this ability, tell the DM. The DM will roll 1d6, and a 1-4 (under normal circumstances, 1-2 otherwise) will indicate success. You may check once for each environment your character passes through. You must tell the DM if you wish to do this; the detection is never automatic.

Shapechanging

Shapechangers have the ability to physically transform themselves into the forms of other creatures. They can change themselves into anything in the animal kingdom (reptiles, birds, mammals, insects, etc.). They cannot change into any sort of plant, including plant-like monsters, nor can they change into non-living things (inanimate objects, Constructs, Undead, etc.).

When changing to another form, the shapechanger retains his own mind, hit dice, hit points, saving throws and attack rolls (THAC0) as his "normal" form. All physical abilities are gained; special abilities, if any, are not necessarily gained (see below). The change is non-magical and cannot be dispelled. Truesight or Second Sight will reveal the Shapechanger's nature.

A beginning shapechanger can assume the form of one normal animal of 2 Hit Dice or less. If the shapechanger has an Intelligence of 13 or higher, he gains an additional number of forms equal to the languages bonus. So if a 1st level shapechanger has an Intelligence of 13-15, he begins with two forms; if it is 16-17, he begins with three forms; and if it is 18, he begins with four forms.

As the shapechanger advances in level, he gains a number of forms equal to the level he is gaining. This means that a shapechanger (of average Intelligence) will have three forms at 2nd level, six forms at 3rd level, ten forms at 4th level, etc. After 1st level, the shapechanger can also turn into creatures other than normal animals (i.e. any animal that exists in the real world), as long as the Hit Dice of the creature does not exceed twice the Shapechanger's level.

To acquire these new forms, the shapechanger must "memorize" a new form. This is not like a magic-user or cleric memorizing spells, because the shapechanger does not (under normal circumstances) forget a form. Instead, the shapechanger imprints the nature of the creature into his body in order to assume its shape.

To memorize a new form, the shapechanger must come into close contact with a specimen of the creature whose form is to be memorized. Prolonged exposure, such as what you would get with a good friend's pet, is sufficient, as long as contact is at least once a week for several months. This, however, generally takes too long for many wandering shapechangers, and so they turn to the second option. If the shapechanger can ingest a piece of the creature (flesh, fur, scales, etc.; anything with DNA in it), this allows him to assume its form. However, unless the shapechanger has had an opportunity to study the creature's behavior, any time he assumes that form, beings familiar with that form's behavior realize that something is wrong by making a successful Intelligence check. Learning a creature's behavior, however, can be as simple as facing it in combat, or as complex as observing the creature for a week in its natural habitat.

The desire to acquire new forms is what drives many shapechangers to adventuring.

To make a change, the shapechanger must make a successful Constitution check, modified by adding twice the shapechanger's level to his Constitution and subtracting the creature's Hit Dice.

In addition, if the form has any special abilities (denoted by an * next to the Hit Dice in the monster description), the number of *s is also subtracted from the shapechanger's Constitution for the shapechange check. If the check would have succeeded were there no *s, then the shapechange still succeeds, but the shapechanger does not gain any special abilities the form may have.

A shapechanger typically remains of the same gender as normal, but may attempt to shift gender as well. This incurs a -10 penalty to the shapechange check, and if this fails, the change fails.

The shapechanger also typically becomes a generic member of the species changed to, but can attempt to duplicate a specific individual. If this is attempted, the shapechange check is halved (round down) after all other modifiers are applied.

All of these modifiers are summarized in the following table:

A shapechanger can change form any number of times per day, and each change is unlimited in duration, except that the shapechanger must remain conscious. If a shapechanger falls asleep or is knocked out while in another form, he reverts to his normal from immediately. However, if a shapechange check fails, the shapechanger cannot attempt to assume that form until completely rested (i.e. a good night's sleep).

Each change takes one round to complete, during which time the shapechanger can do nothing except move at 1/2 his normal movement rate. A shapechanger need not return to his normal form before changing into something else.

Higher Experience Levels

A shapechanger that reaches Name (9th) level, is often referred to as a master changeling (whether male or female).

A shapechanger may choose to build a stronghold at any time, whenever he has the money and the interest. This does not, however, attract any sort of following.

Most shapechangers, however, simply take up residence in some sort of wildlife area, similarly to a Druid. The shapechanger will befriend the local animals, similarly to an Elven community.

Shapechangers and Lycanthropy

Unlike with most Demihumans, Lycanthropy is not lethal to Shapechangers. In fact, due to their variable nature, Shapechangers have a degree of resistance to the disease.

If a Shapechanger loses half or more of his or her hit points to the natural attacks of a Lycanthrope, roll 2d12. After that many days have passed, the Shapechanger must make a Saving Throw vs. Poison. If the save is successful, the Shapechanger does not become a Lycanthrope. Instead, the weretype becomes one of the Shapechanger's own forms. This form does not count towards the Shapechanger's normal maximum number of forms.

For example, if a Shapechanger successfully resists becoming a Werebear, he or she gains 'bear' as a free form.

If the Saving Throw is not successful, then the Shapechanger does become a Lycanthrope. All normal rules about Lycanthropy apply, with two exceptions: One, the Shapechanger has more control over his or her changes, so does not necessarily have to change during the full moon and can change at will. Two, the Shapechanger can resist changing alignment when changing to wereform, as Shapechangers are more skilled at controlling themselves in other forms.

If the Shapechanger is a PC, the character must be turned over to the DM upon contracting Lycanthropy, unless the Player Creatures rules from PC4: Night Howlers are used. In this case, apply the werecreature rules to the character normally, but with the following modification: all rolls involved with form changing (voluntary changes, resisting involuntary changes or alignment changes) are affected by the Shapechange Check Modifiers from the table above. (The form's HD would be the Shapechanger's current HD or level in wereform, whichever is less. Note that below 1st level, they do not have a level rating. Technically, Normal Monster level is not equal to 0.)

If the shapechanger fails to resist an involuntary change or alignment change, he or she cannot use his or her normal shapechanging powers: the wereform has overridden the character's control, and must run its course.

Elder Shapechangers

A 10th level Shapechanger with a Wisdom of 13 or better may attempt to become an Elder. This requires a great deal of training and meditation. However, due to shapechangers' solitary natures, there is no predetermined method for going about this process. One option is to search out another Shapechanger Elder to instruct the character, but as Elders are extremely rare, this would be an extremely difficult task. Another alternative is to seek out a Druid, as a cleric attempting to become a Druid does, or to receive magical training from Elves or Fairies. The DM and player must determine a suitable arrangement for the character.

No matter how the training proceeds, all Elder Shapechangers follow the same advancement and spell procedures.

Upon completion of the training and meditation process, the 10th Level Shapechanger becomes a 0 Level Initiate, and only once 1st Level is achieved is the Shapechanger truly considered an Elder.

Shapechanger Elders gain one Hit Point for every level, and also gains one additional form for each level beyond 0. For each Elder level, the Shapechanger also gets a +1 bonus to Constitution, for the purposes of Shapechanging Checks, and the maximum Hit Dice of a form increases by one.

So a 15th Level Elder has 9d6+16 hit points, gets +35 to his Shapechange check, and can change into creatures of up to 35 Hit Dice.

Upon achieving 1st Level, the Shapechange Elder also gains Second Sight, if he did not already have it.

Shapechanger Elders also cast spells according to the table below. The available spells are listed below. Shapechangers do not need spellbooks, but do need to rest and meditate to re-memorize spells -- their spellcasting should be treated like that of Fairies (i.e. they follow the same rules as Clerics). They can also cast spells in any form, even forms that lack normal arms or speaking capabilities. Shapechanger Elders simply translate the requirements of the spell to use the capabilities of the form. For example, in rat form, an Elder might twitch its tail and squeak to cast a spell. Therefore, they still cannot cast spells if bound, held, or silenced.

Their spells draw on the spell lists for both Clerics and Magic-Users, as well as Druids, Fairies, and certain other sources. Existing spells have their source and page number in parentheses (abbreviations: RC = D&D Rules Cyclopedia, PC1 = Tall Tales of the Wee Folk, GAZ9 = The Minrothad Guilds). New spells and spells that need special explanations or notes are italicized. An asterisk indicates that a spell is reversible. New spells are described below the spell lists.

Shapechanger Elder Spells

First Level
Charm Person (RC 44)
Chill (PC1 42)
Courier (PC1 42)
Cure Light Wounds* (RC 34)
Detect Danger (RC 41)
Growth*
Hold Portal (RC 45)
Invisibility (RC 46)
Oilskin (GAZ9 18)
Precipitation* (PC1 42)
Purify Food and Water (RC 35)
Sleep (RC 46)
Tickle
Ventriloquism (RC 46)
Watcher (PC1 43)

Second Level
Assume Gaseous Form (PC1 44)
Fairy Slumber (PC1 43)
Heat Metal (RC 41)
Hold Person* (RC 35)
Horse-rush (PC1 44)
Invisibility 10' radius (RC 49)
Knock (RC 46)
Levitate (RC 46)
Obscure (RC 41)
Protection from Poison (RC 42)
Resist Cold/Fire
Silence Individual (PC1 44)
Snake Charm (RC 35)
Web (RC 47)
Wizard Lock (RC 48)

Third Level
Clothform (RC 49)
Create Air (RC 48)
Cure Blindness*
Cure Disease* (RC 36)
Fly (RC 48)
Force Shapechange*
Haste* (RC 48)
Hibernation*
Hold Animal (RC 42)
Infravision (RC 48)
Magic Translator
Protection from Normal Missiles (RC 49)
Water Breathing (RC 49)
Watery Form (GAZ9 20)

Fourth Level
Charm Monster (RC 49)
Confusion (RC 49)
Create Normal Animals (RC 38)
Create Water (RC 36)
Cure Serious Wounds* (RC 37)
Enchanted Claw
Neutralize Poison* (RC 37)
Polymorph Other (RC 50)
Polymorph Self (RC 50)
Protection from Lightning (RC 42)
Sticks to Snakes (RC 37)
Summon Animals (RC 42)
Woodform (RC 52)

Fifth Level
Create Food (RC 37)
Create Normal Monsters (RC 54)
Cure Critical Wounds* (RC 37)
Dissolve* (RC 51)
Hold Monster* (RC 52)
Insect Plague (RC 37)
Magic Jar (RC 52)
Passwall (RC 52)
Rock (PC1 45)
Shapechange Other
Truesight (RC 38)

Sixth Level
Animate Objects (RC 38)
Anti-Animal Shell (RC 43)
Create Magical Monsters (RC 57)
Cureall (RC 38)
Ironform (RC 55)
Polymorph Natural Object (PC1 45)
Reincarnation
Speak with Monsters* (RC 39)
Stone to Flesh* (RC 54)
Stoneform (RC 54)

Seventh Level
Clone (RC 56)
Create Any Monster (RC 59)
Creeping Doom (RC 43)
Immunity (RC 59)
Polymorph any Object (RC 58)
Shapechange (RC 60)
Statue (RC 55)
Steelform (RC 58)
Survival (RC 39)
Travel (RC 40)

First Level Spell Descriptions

Growth*

This spell causes the recipient to grow by 10% per level of the caster. Size, weight, carrying capacity and damage all increase accordingly. FOR EXAMPLE: A 6th level caster casts this spell on a 5' tall Elf who weighs 110 lb. The Elf would end up being (160% x 5' = ) 8' tall, weighing 176 lb and able to carry up to 640 cn, still with a move of 120'. In combat, if he made a hit and rolled a 6 for damage, he would do (1.6 x 6 = 9.6, rounds to) 10 points of damage. If cast on an unwilling target, a Saving Throw vs. Spells will negate the effect.

The reverse of this spell, Shrink, reduces a creature's size to 1/Level of the caster (a 3rd level caster shrinks a creature to 1/3 size). Size, weight, carrying capacity and damage change as described above.

Tickle

This spell affects 1 Hit Die of creatures for each level of experience of the caster. It will not affect creatures with a natural AC of 4 or less (indicating armor plating or thick, insensitive skin), nor those unaffected by hold spells (constructs and Undead especially). A maximum of 10 creatures can be affected, regardless of their hit dice.

Those affected feel as if they are being tickled vigorously and cannot attack, cast spells or move at faster than half normal movement rate. A Saving Throw vs. Spells may be made at the end of each round to resist the effect.

Second Level Spell Descriptions

Resist Cold/Fire

This spell makes the recipient resistant to either cold or fire and heat; which must be specified when the spell is cast. For the duration of the spell, the recipient cannot be harmed by normal cold/fire. In addition, the recipient gains a +2 to all Saving Throws against magical cold/fire. Furthermore, damage from such attacks is reduced by 1 point per die of damage (but with a minimum of 1 point per die). White/red dragon breath damage is reduced by 1 point per hit die of the creature (again to a minimum of 1 point per hit die).

Third Level Spell Descriptions

Cure Blindness*

This spell will cure nearly any form of blindness, including those caused by light or darkness spells (whether normal or continual), and the reverse of this spell. It will not, however, affect blindness caused by a curse.

The reverse of this spell, Cause Blindness, will cause one creature to go blind for 2-16 turns. A blinded creature suffers penalties of -4 on all Saving Throws and +4 on Armor Class.

Force Shapechange*

This spell causes all creatures within a 10' radius of the caster that are not in their normal forms (shapechangers, fairies, lycanthropes, polymorphed creatures, etc.) to revert to their normal forms (or the forms that they use most often). Creatures with hit dice less than the level of the caster are not allowed Saving Throws. Those with hit dice equal to or greater than the caster's level may make a Saving Throw vs. Spells to avoid the effect.

Since this spell takes effect instantaneously, the creature affected can change form again in the next round, if the shapechanging ability is innate or the result of a spell or effect that has not yet expired. If the change was the result of an instantaneous effect (such as Polymorph Other), the effect is essentially dispelled.

The reverse of this spell, Freeze Shapechange, causes all creatures in a 10' radius to be locked in whatever form they were in when the spell was cast. Saving Throws are the same as above, but all creatures get to make a Saving Throw every turn thereafter to cancel the effect. As should be apparent, this version of the spell has no effect on permanent changes (such as Polymorph Other spells).

Hibernation*

The recipient of this spell falls into a deep trance. Heartbeat and breathing slow considerably. The creature falls unconscious and appears to be dead except under close examination. The recipient will then sleep for up to one month per level of the caster, or until pre-specified conditions are met (e.g., when the temperature reaches some point, creature's name is shouted nearby, etc.). This spell can only be used on a willing creature; it cannot be used as an "attack"; but it can be cast on the caster himself.

The reverse of this spell, Awaken, causes one creature touched to regain consciousness, so long as it is still alive. This spell does not affect creatures that are already conscious in any way (even Held or Charmed).

Magic Translator

This spell enables the caster to communicate with other creatures within 30'. One type of creature may be communicated with for every 3 levels of experience of the caster. This does not affect the reactions of the subject to the caster in any way. The caster can only communicate with creatures that actually have a language; most animals, constructs and Undead are not affected.

Fourth Level Spell Descriptions

Enchanted Claw

When this spell is cast, the caster's natural attack forms become magical for the duration of the spell. When cast, the attack forms become +1. Every 6 levels after 7th, another 'plus' is gained; e.g., +2 at 13th, +3 at 19th, +4 at 25th, and +5 at 31st level. The attack forms are counted as magical weapons of the appropriate plus in all respects; to-hit and damage rolls, as well as for hitting monsters immune to non-magical weapons (for example, a gargoyle can be hit by the claws of a Shapechanger using this spell).

Fifth Level Spell Descriptions

Shapechange Other

This spell enables the shapechanger to extend his shapechanging power to another living creature. For the duration of the spell, the caster can make the target change form once per round. The creature can only change into forms that the caster knows, and a shapechange check must be made using the caster's Constitution, Level, etc. All other "normal" rules for shapechangers apply. The target retains its own mind and can control its own actions, except shapechanging. If a change in form is drastic (a man to a fish), the target must make an Intelligence check to use the body properly. If failed, the creature has failed to adapt and is immobile and helpless (but will not die).

Sixth Level Spell Descriptions

Reincarnation

The Shapechanger version of this spell functions similarly to the 6th Level Magic-User spell Reincarnation, with the following modifications:

The race of the new body is taken from the list of the caster's memorized forms. (Note that the race shapechanger itself is not a memorized form, and so is not one of the races available for the reincarnated body.)

The caster may attempt to control which form the creature is reincarnated as, exactly as if the shapechanger were changing into that form. To do this, the caster must make a successful Wisdom check, using the adjustments in the Shapechange Check Modifiers table. If this check fails, the DM may choose from the caster's memorized forms, or may determine randomly which form is used.

The creature retains its alignment no matter which form is used, and if the creature is capable of gaining levels, its accumulated XP total remains unchanged. (This will only apply to humans and demihumans unless the DM allows the Player Creature rules from GAZ10 The Orcs of Thar and the Creature Crucible series to be used.)