Reskinning Races: Beastmen & Abhumans

My original beastman race/class for bx - added updated abilities on bottom as the stuff in comments box doesn't always get seen on phones or pdf. I renamed Abhumans as inclusive of more weird stuff.

http://elfmaidsandoctopi.blogspot.com.au/2013/09/emo-dnd-classes-pt-14-beastmen.html

Basically a fighter with d12hd, +50% leap, d4 unarmed damage and less weapon armour skills and better non weapon skills

Kind of the furries of my setting.

Looking back I got rid of petty skill+ then tried free skills which proved too good and prefer recommended skills instead. I will revise class again sometime. Im looking at streamlining everything next in my next EMO dnd revision. Damage dice bumping will be changed too to be a bit higher for fighting types. The danger of adding feat like stuff  and more spells in bigger damages which makes my characters more deadly than normal bx so typicaly means more hp and more foes to create chalenges. Current morlock player at 7th lv sometimes causes 30 damage a round or more. Some stuff to address in future.

I was probably inspired by some of the beast humanoids in Heavy Metal like a zebra people cover I saw once. I had dreamed of a elemental race since reading review of Element Lords (?) in 80s dragon. I just never got those early gonzo setting dreams happening to more recently.

This class in play proved very flexible to describe any beastman in game. In my Psychon setting they became Abhumans which includes more possibilities like plant, mineral or elemental folk. In game they I realized they were pretty close to barbarians (with nightvision) and could also handle orcs. This is some notes plus some revisions of old beastmen with possible extra abilities for 5th and 10th level.

In play my reskinned halflings work for wee animal folk. Changelings for more supernatural spirit folk many who are animals (although being a tree spirit that can turn into a tree level times per day is pretty weird and less useful than a bird). I meant to do a moss man or shrub folk for inoffensive small plant people based on halflings too.

Abhumans are about brute strength and savagery. Initially I thought mostly of goat men and pig men. These will be standard variant of my class revision with recommended skill lists.

Barbarian
This worked well and are almost beastmen of humans. Night vision and leap worked fine for me. 5th lv ability frenzy for +1 hit damage for lv per day. At 10th lv becomes +2. Can make WIS save to snap out of killing spree. Mongoose Conan has some ideas I might check out - apparently ability to kill a incappacitated foe and make enemy make morale check sounds good for a skill. Cavemen probably under this class too.

Orc
These are not your average orcs, they are biggest meanest ones that fight barbarians in the wasteland. Actually they are exactly the same as barbarians but uglier and more horrific

Plant
Related to some species of tree or even plant monster. Pitcher or flytrap or cactus men might be scary. Plants probably go for AC boosting abilities. Possibly a hibernation or remain motionless or chamo ability. Possibly grow fruit. Plant men do eat like humans but some might be vegetarian or only eat meat.

Elemental
So these are humanoids related to elementals like earth, air, fire, water. Also psuedo and quasis and demi elements like Metal, Fog, Crystal, Magma, Ice and lightning. Basically large humans with exotic skin colour. Abilities range from elemental resistances to water breathing/full MOV in water for water types. Icemen, rockmen, firemen etc. Make a good colourful adition to game not just on Psychon. Had a Iceman player for a while that came from the ice plane and served one of those evil para elemental lords. At least trace ancestry back to other planes when mortals cross bred with elementals. They will have access to som plane lore and elemental lore usually for wizards.

Marine
Need to include stuff like shark, crab, squid and fish men more than current version.

Mutants
I could be a jerk and create dwarves under this as they would in a Nightland RPG if there was one. I will do a mutant class one day im just too lazy and indecisive to do mutant tables. But true breed mutants without lots of variable abilities might work. Like the Nyatlenthotep looking guys in the above art. So could cover all kinds of weird muscular races.

Demon and Devils
Changelings and elves better for more magical breeds but some types of just brutal planar hybrids could be possible based on abhumans.

Monsters
Griffon or dragons or other human hybrids could work too