Phantom Armor PC Race: Help me refine it!


Homebrew and House Rules


Attempting to build a Phantom Armor Race. Here's what I have so far, any ideas on how to improve this Race and on how to balance it out are welcomed.

Racial Restrictions/Info:
- Always considered wearing Masterwork Chain Shirt armor (as their AC is pretty much locked).
- Does not incure the normal penalties from aformentioned armor.
- Cannot wear other armors.

===== ===== ===== Racial Description

Though at first appearing to be an ordinary suit of Masterwork armor, this imposing being begins to move, its lumbering movements slow
and methodical. Raised from the corpses of knights and soldiers slain by treachery rather than battle or conflicts considered crimes even
in the heat of war, Phantom Armors appear as suits of animate armor, walking or floating of their own accord. Most phantom Armors haunt
the halls and blasted battlefields where they were slain, seeking revenge against their murderers or, should that prove impossible, confronting
any living creature that might give them the opportunity to do battle once more.

Dastardly necromancers have also discovered the process for binding violent spirits to suits of armor, giving rise to eerie servants that combine
endless patience with cold brutality. Such Phantom Armors are sometimes released from the necromancers control, when their dark masters are
slain by other adventurers. When this happens, some resign to a un-life of eternal sleep, entering a dead-like state of being. While others still take
to the life of adventuring, slaying monsters wherever they may go. Though, all too often, they find that their kind are unwelcome in civilized society
should their secret become known.

===== ===== ===== [total 10rp]
Type: Humanoid (Undead) [0rp]
- Darkvision 60ft.
- Doesn't need to sleep or eat, except to gain benefits.

Size: Medium [0rp]
- No bonuses/penalties due to size.

Base Speed: 30ft [0rp]

Ability Score Mod: Standard [0rp]
- +2 Str, +2 Wis, -2 Cha
Phantom Armor's are strong and wise from their years of long life, but don't socialize well with members of living Races.

Language Quality: Standard [0rp]
- (base) Normal, Necril
- (bonus) Abyssal, Celestial, Draconic, Dwarvish, Elvish, Infernal, Orcish

Natural Armor (2 RP): Prerequisites: None; Benefit:
Members of this race gain a +1 natural armor bonus to
their Armor Class.

Undead Resistance (1 RP): Prerequisites: None; Benefit:
Members of this race gain a +2 racial bonus on saving throws
against disease and mind-affecting effects.

Improved Natural Armor (2 RP): Prerequisite: Natural
armor racial trait; Benefit: Members of this race gain a
+1 natural armor bonus. Special: This racial trait can be
taken multiple times. Each additional time you take this
trait, increase its cost by 1 RP. Its effects stack. (total +3 AC)

Shards of the Past (4 RP): Prerequisites: None; Benefit:
Members of this race have past lives that grant them two
particular Knowledge skills. Each member of this race
picks two Knowledge skills. The member of this race
gains a +2 racial bonus on both of these skills, and those
skills are treated as class skills regardless of what class the
member of this race actually takes.

Stalker (1 RP): Prerequisites: None; Benefit: Perception
and Stealth are always class skills for members of this race.

RPG Superstar Season 9 Top 16

This doesn't strike me as a race at all. It feels more like a monster. A monster that definitely wouldn't be a humanoid. They would more likely be like an animated object or an undead.

And you're trying to make this a player race?


Cyrad wrote:

This doesn't strike me as a race at all. It feels more like a monster. A monster that definitely wouldn't be a humanoid. They would more likely be like an animated object or an undead.

And you're trying to make this a player race?

Undead-type is 16 Race Points. That's way beyond the Standard (10). I called them "humanoid" because they're made up of armor (chest, head, arms, legs.

And I built in 'Shards of the Past' because 1) it seems to fit the theme of the character. And 2) It makes sense, knowledge from your life as an (living) adventurer.

And yes. Yes I am :) Kind of fell in love with the idea of a group coming across a suit of armor in a dungeon, party Fighter tries on the helm for size... When suddenly- "Hey! unhand me, you ruffian!"

*Fighter drops helm, armor puts it back on shoulders*

"Why, I have half a mind- How'd you like it if people went around trying on your head for size!?"

EDIT - Humanoid allows you to create your own Sub-, so I created the Undead-Sub for this concept.


Cyrad makes a good point, it feels like a sort of animated object with special flavor. That said, maybe this could be worked into a player race if one treats the armor as having the relative strength of a normal body?

For this, I'd suggest removing the armor concept from the works. It's fun, but it isn't fitting for a player character necessarily. Mage Armor or Shield as a spell-like ability 1/day would be entirely in line with the concept and previous racial abilities. You could flavor that around them more fully manifesting their armor to match its strength in life. Undead Resistance is great, but this should follow the Half-Undead racial trait mentioned in the Creating New Races page. I think it's fitting for them to be close to Undeath, and the negative energy switch may reflect better on their origin. As for skills, definitely remove Stalker but keep Shards of the Past as it fits in flavor and mechanics.

So here's what I think:
Humanoid (Half-Undead) [5 RP]
Standard Abilities, Size, Speed, Language [0 RP]
Mage Armor or Bed of Iron SLA 1/day for Charisma 11 or higher [2 RP?]
Shards of the Past [4 RP]


Now I wanna start a game as Alphonse Elric, NG Phantom Armor Transmuter 1.


Nice concept. There's certainly a classic element to it.

My main question is, how would they go about enchanting their forms, if at all?

Could they take feats to take on a better form (suit of armor)?


Stompy Rex wrote:

Nice concept. There's certainly a classic element to it.

My main question is, how would they go about enchanting their forms, if at all?

Could they take feats to take on a better form (suit of armor)?

I'm not sure if there are such Feats that can raise Armor Class, but I suppose their primary source of AC would be the Natural-type. Or maybe a Wizard casts Mage Armor + Permanency? Also, there's no reason they couldn't wear magical items like the Ring of Protection or Bracers of Armor.


Substitute Hero wrote:

Cyrad makes a good point, it feels like a sort of animated object with special flavor. That said, maybe this could be worked into a player race if one treats the armor as having the relative strength of a normal body?

For this, I'd suggest removing the armor concept from the works. It's fun, but it isn't fitting for a player character necessarily. Mage Armor or Shield as a spell-like ability 1/day would be entirely in line with the concept and previous racial abilities. You could flavor that around them more fully manifesting their armor to match its strength in life. Undead Resistance is great, but this should follow the Half-Undead racial trait mentioned in the Creating New Races page. I think it's fitting for them to be close to Undeath, and the negative energy switch may reflect better on their origin. As for skills, definitely remove Stalker but keep Shards of the Past as it fits in flavor and mechanics.

So here's what I think:
Humanoid (Half-Undead) [5 RP]
Standard Abilities, Size, Speed, Language [0 RP]
Mage Armor or Bed of Iron SLA 1/day for Charisma 11 or higher [2 RP?]
Shards of the Past [4 RP]

That kind of defeats the concept of the character. I mentioned, in the OP, that I was basing it on the Phantom Armor monster. Think of something along the lines of Edward Elric (FMA anime).


Not really sure how much it will help, but I thought an Eberron book from 3.5 had feats in the back somewhere about different body types for the Warforged. I want to say it is Races of Eberron, but I could be wrong. Might be useful for determining different types of 'bodies' for this new race.

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