TIEFLINGS

Carrying the taint of evil in their forms – and perhaps their very souls – tieflings are often persecuted and feared throughout the planes. The distant descendants of humans and evil outsiders, tieflings are regarded as twisted, devious, and untrustworthy. More often than not, this opinion is accurate.

Personality: Tieflings live as outcasts from an early age – as soon as their heritage shows itself – which contributes to their bitter outlook on life. Tieflings learn to keep others at a distance, often compensating for their loss with cruelty or depravity.

Physical Description: Tieflings look human (and are roughly the same height and weight as members of that race), except for one or two distinguishing features related to their unusual ancestry. Some examples of these features include small horns, pointed teeth, red eyes, a whiff of brimstone about them, cloven feet, or red skin. No two tieflings look alike. Tieflings reach adulthood at about the same age as humans but are longer-lived, with the eldest members of the race living to be 150 years old.

Relations: Tieflings treat most other races equally – at arm’s length. They are very slow to trust others and always wary of a friend suddenly becoming an enemy. Aasimars, bariaurs, and wildren often trigger an instinctive fear or revulsion in tieflings, making it difficult for them to work together at all. Tieflings respect other mixed-breed races that have to put up with persecution and derision, including half-orcs and mephlings. Still, a tiefling isn’t more likely to trust a member of one of these races; she’s just more likely to understand their perspective.

Alignment: Tieflings tend toward evil alignments, though neutral tieflings are not uncommon. Those who choose a life of good – and manage to stick to it – are particularly rare.

Religion: Tieflings have no common deity. Most choose to worship evil deities such as Erythnul, god of slaughter; Vecna, god of secrets; or Hextor, god of tyranny. Neutral tief lings may venerate Wee Jas, goddess of death and magic, or Olidammara, god of thieves. Still others choose to pay homage to archfiends whose names are best not mentioned.

Language: Tieflings share no common language. Some learn Infernal or Abyssal, although since most have no idea where their bloodline comes from, as often as not they choose the wrong racial language. A tiefling usually learns the language of her parents as well.

Names: As a rule, tieflings use human names until such time as they seek to differentiate themselves from their parents. At that point, they often take names that hint at their fiendish heritage. Some choose words of Infernal or Abyssal that sound menacing, occasionally without even knowing the words’ definitions.

Adventurers: As natural outcasts, tieflings often follow a life of adventure and intrigue. Those that hew to their heritage become thieves, brigands, or killers. Some tieflings reject their tainted blood and seek the light, aiming to help those in need.

TIEFLING LESSER RACIAL TRAITS

• +2 Dexterity, +2 Intelligence, -2 Charisma.
• Planetouched: Planetouched are humanoids (not outsiders) with the planetouched subtype. They are susceptible to spells and effects that specifically target both humanoids or outsiders. Charm person works against them, and so does banishment. This trait replaces the outsider entry in each planetouched description.
• Medium: As Medium creatures, tieflings have no special bonuses or penalties due to their size.
• A tiefling’s base land speed is 30 feet.
• Tieflings have darkvision out to 60 feet.
• Skills: Tieflings have a +2 racial bonus on Bluff and Hide checks.
• Darkness (Sp): A tiefling can use darkness, as the spell, once per day. Her caster level is equal to her character level.
• Resistance to cold 5, electricity 5, and fire 5: Tieflings share some of their fiendish ancestors’ resistance to energy damage.
• Automatic Languages: Common, Infernal. Bonus Languages: Draconic, Dwarven, Elven, Gnome, Goblin, Halfling, Orc.
• Favored Class: Rogue.
• Level Adjustment: +0.

Tieflings are not by default Human-Based. They can be thematically Elven, Dwarf, etc, etc.

Dwarven

• Language: Dwarven instead of Home region.
• Stonecunning: This ability grants a dwarf a +2 racial bonus on Search checks to notice unusual stonework, such as sliding walls, stonework traps, new construction (even when built to match the old), unsafe stone surfaces, shaky stone ceilings, and the like. Something that isn’t stone but that is disguised as stone also counts as unusual stonework. A dwarf who merely comes within 10 feet of unusual stonework can make a Search check as if he were actively searching, and a dwarf can use the Search skill to find stonework traps as a rogue can. A dwarf can also intuit depth, sensing his approximate depth underground as naturally as a human can sense which way is up. Dwarves have a sixth sense about stonework, an innate ability that they get plenty of opportunity to practice and hone in their underground homes.
• remove: +2 racial bonus on Bluff and Hide checks.

Elven

• Language: Elven instead of Home region.
• Immunity to magic sleep effects, and a +2 racial saving throw bonus against enchantment spells or effects.
• remove: Darkness (Sp): A tiefling can use darkness, as the spell, once per day. Her caster level is equal to her character level.

Gnome

• Language: Gnomish instead of Home region.
• -4 Str, +2 Dex, -2 Con
• Small: As a Small creature, a gnome gains a +1 size bonus to Armor Class, a +1 size bonus on attack rolls, and a +4 size bonus on Hide checks, but he uses smaller weapons than humans use, and his lifting and carrying limits are three-quarters of those of a Medium character.
• Add +1 to the Difficulty Class for all saving throws against illusion spells cast by gnomes. Their innate familiarity with these effects make their illusions more difficult to see through. This adjustment stacks with those from similar effects, such as the Spell Focus feat.

Halfling

• Language: Halfling instead of Home region.
• -4 Str, +2 Dex, -2 Con
• Small: As a Small creature, a gnome gains a +1 size bonus to Armor Class, a +1 size bonus on attack rolls, and a +4 size bonus on Hide checks, but he uses smaller weapons than humans use, and his lifting and carrying limits are three-quarters of those of a Medium character.
• +1 racial bonus on all saving throws: Halflings are surprisingly capable of avoiding mishaps.