>>13865562
Postan bats to bump

>>13865562

Awwww Hells Yeah!

I love you /tg/.

I had an idea. I think we should consider working out some more details on their sonic abilities. In that book (Silverwing?) the bats use sound to actually show objects as if they were physical. Making camouflage for other bats, or being able to show exactly how something looks, just by expert manipulation of sound.

Also are we going to give them sonic damage abilities?

>>13865682
Sonic manipulation as damage would be kinda like their version of wizards, I think. Simpler stuff like "shaping" sound to visualize things would be equivalent to simple cantrips that anyone could use.

bump

>>13865562

>>13865562
This is awesome. I like bats, they swarm over my house at night and scare my cats.

Stalactite ziggurats are a nifty idea. Personally, I think ropers and cloakers would make fine enemies for these bats in a D&D/Pathfinder setting. Combine ropers and cloakers, actually, that would be even better.

>when shit gets real in warfare against grounders they even have simple bombs made by their insane mad science alchemists

For whatever reason, I keep thinking of the yellow pikmin from the Pikmin series. Maybe their society is fueled by alchemy? Javelins, nets and bombs would be a nasty combination.

>>13865831
There's a reason why the explosives guys are seen as insane - they make REALLY LOUD bombs from their own shit. That's be like a human distilling his own piss into flash grenades. Hard to justify using explosives to kill a few enemies when the detonation leaves half your comrades "blinded" and disoriented in the middle of a battle.

FLY AWAY! FLY FAR, FLY FAST, OR GHOST-WHO-SHRIEKS WILL FIND YOU!

C'mon, guys, work with me here. Or I'll break out the embarassing baby pictures.

>>13865728
So like illusion but with sound?

Every Kalang at least has the ability to use ghost voice

>>13866061
basic cantrip, yeah.

These guys got blindsight, right? Or did we figure something else out for echolocation?

>>13866066
With the caveat that it isn't affected by AM zones. It's not magic after all, they're just really good at throwing their voices.

Also, would these guys be good candidates for substitution levels? I'm thinking rogue and monk would be good fits, with some mods to accomadate the sound shaping and flight.

>>13866089
They're not all blind, they just use their ears and sense of touch (lol, air currents) more than their eyes for navigation. Kinda like how humans primarily use their eyes, but aren't all deaf.

For example, giving directions, a Kalang would more likely describe the shape of something (the echo) rather than the color - they can see the color, it's just a bit lower in importance.

>>13865831
It was thought the insectivores would have scuffles with drow occasionally. Their caves are just full of such tasty treats but they get mad when they eat the web crawlers.

>>13866089

Blindsight would work fine, but we should add certain racial traits to change how they are affected by noise.

Every Kalang should have ghost voice as free action, and they should have prestidigitation as a spell like ability but only affects other Kalang.

What are we thinking about how well they fly? Extremely well/agile? Average? I'm thinking they should fit in Good, but definitely not perfect, they can't hover

>>13866138
The Underdark dwellers lack eyes though so I guess blindsight could work for them

>>13866143
I think it was agreed +2 Dex and -2 Con for stat changes

>>13866138
I am perfectly aware that bats are not blind, I was just thinking of how to represent that they can pinpoint the location of an insect by screeching at it.

>>13866143
well, yeah, not Perfect, since they can't hover, but closer to it than just Good - they spend most of their time flying after all, so they're be pretty skilled at it.

>>13865562
Pacifist, but in the same way Shaolin Monks are - they can kick ass if they need to, but try to avoid conflict.


"I do not want this fight. I do not like this fight. But I fight nonetheless, becan I can and I must, to protect those who cannot. If my wings are torn to ribbons while I keep a demon's claw from harming an innocent, then I will gladly cease to fly. If my life ends to prevent a nightstalker's hunger from destroying a village, I will meet the Great Silence with no fear and with a smile on my lips. I am a Vampire Hunter."

What other effects could we create from sound?

Maybe high level/highly specialized individuals can use their sound mastery for damage or mind control effects? I'm thinking something like a very old, no longer able to fly bat master of sound training some of the best soldiers in the use of their voice

>>13866429
ooh, kind of a Pied Piper hypno effect? Cool.

What of interspecies behaviours. Between them and other sapient races.

I imagine they don't have a lot of contact with the other races besides the Drow already mentioned and a peaceful / wary truce between them and dorfs.

What of humans? I'm thinking they take a hands off approach most of the time, but there would be some fairly militant individuals since most Vamps are human based. Elves would be pretty similar in outlook to them I imagine, simply because of the mutual general avoidance of other races. Though there might be frequent trading with the fruit eaters and the elves.

>>13866429
Perhaps their skilled Sonimancers (correct fakey latin?) can even make objects out of sound so sturdy they are made of solid kinetic force. So much even the 'hear-sightless' can see them

>>13866580
I'm pretty sure that would just be a concussive wave of air. That would probably be enough to rupture eardrums and cause bruising and/or internal bleeding. That's an 'explosion shockwave'-level sound wave.

>>13866527
I'd imagine they'd do well with some grim-marose sorta gloomy Uberwald type people. Putting down the roudier undead and ushering in the Great Silence

>>13866713

If they were able to maintain and shape it perhaps?

If we want to keep the idea we can always just invoke MAGIC!!! or toss it entirely

>>13866713
Imagine seeing just a gust of wind blow across someone and sudden them erupting in cuts with blood everywhere.

>>13866971
Inuyasha-style Wind Scar stuff for the high-level sonic-mages? That works.

>>13866717
Kalang HATE the undead. They go against the Way Things Must Be. Those who have met their Great Silence should not be going about like they still spoke with living voices. They mock the final judging of the Silent End and are servants of Ghost-Who-Shrieks.

>>13867121
Does that mean their feared evil bat analogue is something like a massive Bat Arch Lich?

>>13867245
Something like that. some kinda insane undead whatzit, but not necessarily a lich.
>>13865981
Pic related - Australian Ghost Bat (normally bone-white, seen here under infrared camera), one of only two bat species known to eat other bats. Seemed a fitting inspiration for a bat version of Satan.

This is an awesome idea. Do they have mages? I'm assuming this is in a D&D style fantasy world?

>>13867337
Yeah, they do - also, if you looked a bit up the thread, you'd see we're toying with the idea of having them get non-magical versions of Blindsight and Ghost Sound as racial traits due to their echolocation abilities.

I just realized something.

"Silence, 15' Radius" could be considered an equivalent to Blind, and maybe even an Evil-aligned spell for them...

>>13867337
Yep. They'd probably be either semi shaman-naturalistic or focus on wind and sonic magics.

>>13867442
Refluffing "Color Spray" to some sort of dischordant auditory reverb...

Any more ideas?

bump with semi-related pic - I could easily see a whole colony of Kalang living in a giant cavern like this.

>>13867570
We were trying to figure out how the weapons would work.

We just need some draw or writefags for fluff. Perhaps even rulefags to see how making a PC Kalang would work

I could give it a shot at the writing.

Been a while since I did something on /tg/.

What would elves think of the Kalang? I would imagine with their super-sensitive hearing, the Kalang's echolocation would cause them pain. Maybe they can't even physically coexist.

>>13867848
I'd suspect they keep distant out of courtesy, but there's no outright animosity or hostility between the two races (except the Drow, for reasons already discussed).

bump

Would their wings work like this for melee combat? Or are they in a constant 'outstretched' state?

>>13868094
I would say their wings were pretty fragile, but with a little reinforcement (armor/protective attire) they could use them as shields.

And, of course, if you have a shield, you can always spike or blade it, and make it a weapon.

>>13868110
True and I imagine at their size the membrane would be tough almost like deceptively thin but sturdy
leather

>>13868110
I was thinking that if their wings are that fragile and they were the type to be in melee combat they might have their wings folded inside, or have armor designed to protect their wings as you suggested.

If we do have a melee one, would they use their wings in battle a lot? To gain height for a jump or lunge?

>>13865562
>From Thread: Of course, Underdark Chiropterans are a whole different animal, with corpse-white skin and no eyes at all. And a double-wide mouth filled with venemous needle-fangs.

Your face when human sized Zubats

>>13868170
Indeed.
Would it be more efficient/effective to put spikes on the outside or line the interior? In the first case, they could do a fly-by attack/slam, but it would probably hurt quite a bit (ever flying tackle a man at 45MPH? Ha ha.. doesn't tickle.)

Or, they could blade the exterior, and do a fly-by slashing, but that would be kind of hit-or-miss (ha ha, second pun).

>>13868174
Believe it was decided they'd only have thumb and first finger free from membrane however they have curved blades that lay upon the outer wing border. Kalang monks practice sweeping, slashing, biting, and outright goring with feetclaws.

>>13868094
This is a real bat wing. The way I see a Kalang wing is like this, excapt instead of just a thumb with no extra fingers, there's a thumb-and-two-fingers hand there. The wing-strut fingers fold back against the arm kinda like a closing umbrella when not spread for flight.

>>13868170
real batwing membranes are indeed tougher than they look, and heal quickly. Minor cuts and tears would be like a sprained ankle to them - painful, but not wholly crippling. Only larger gashes, left without proper care, might hinder or prevent future flight.

Don't think they'd use their wings at all, or not as the main attack anyway. Some form of protection on them, certainly (Mithril? Does DnD have that? Something really light anyway), but I imagine their claws would be their main weapon.


Ever seen Guardians of Ga'hoole? Warrior owls with aussie accents. Well, the owls all wear adorable little helmets and strap big fuck off menacing spikes to their ickle toesies. Like those metal claws they strap on cocks feet in cockfighting.

Maybe something like that?

>>13868222
So, they technically have seven digits, with four making the wing and three making the hand? That's feasible, I guess.

>And when shit gets real in warfare against grounders they even have simple bombs made by their insane mad science alchemists.

You are now imagining thousands of Kalang initiating bombing runs on whoever is foolish enough to engage their cities in war.

Fighter: WTF is this shit?!
Druid: *rolls succesful Nature Knowledge check* LOL

>wake up
>check /tg/
>see this thread
>Underdark Russian Writefag
This looks promising.

>>13868324
They'd probably drop bombs on others only though since pikewalls/archery towers would tear them appart otherwise.

Using it on other kalang cities is strictly forbidden and would even have a strict and brutal Kalang city be like 'wtf is wrong with you?"

>On note of their social and communal lifestyle: Exile must be worse than a death sentence to them.

>So a bat exile might try to find a group of adventurers and latch on to them figuratively or literally

I d'awwwed.

>>13868363
yeah... I picture Kalang colonies/towns/whatever as being largely built in the "safety" of large caverns either naturally-formed or artificially-excavated (this is where befriending dwarves pays off - they dig out a mountain and keep all the stone and ore as payment, while the Kalang move in to the now-empty cavern), and because of cavern acoustics, detonating explosives inside is seen as a Bad Idea.

So they only let the crazy alchemists play poo-poo bombadiers in open spaces where the echoes from the blasts are less damaging and disorienting.

>unalso fur
Correct, Captcha, this is not a furry thread.

>>13868234
>Guardians of Ga'hoole
Fuck yeah. I imagine wars like that but with bats

OH FUCK, BAT-OGRE.

>>13868551
Kill it with fire!

>Oooh, explody time?

NO, you idiot, no bombs, just fire. What are you trying to do, deafen us all?!

>Awww...

And tinfoil is banned as an unlawful weapon.

>>13868638
...wat?

>>13868650
Tinfoil fucks up a bat's sonar reception. If ever you see a bunch of bats, throw a ball of tinfoil up; around a quarter of the time, you'll see them whack into each other.

>>13868671
the fact it's tinfoil isn't specifically what does it, it's the fact that, crumpled up, all the little angles and crevices and whatnot in the foil ball distort sound and confuse their echolocation. Large cotton-balls can do the same thing.

>>13868745

HA-HA
Foolish Bat-people, you cannot defeat me for I have Huge Cotton Balls!

>>13868771
And then you see about a dozen Kalang stare, snicker, then eventually start giggling and drop from the sky, doubled over and in tears, helpless with laughter.

>>13868798
Hey, whatever gets them on the ground.....

>>13868849
But really, who'd admit THAT was how they did it?

See Silverwing. I can see the Kalang like that. I don't think each subspecies would live together. In a city there would be seperate neighborhood and only get together in public situations.

Bump for epic homebrew

>>13868949
Yeah, Silverwing seems like it was a rather notable influence, I admit. Which is weird because, in my case at least, I'd never even heard of it until other anons in the thread brought it up.

>>13868964
thanks. maybe we can get this one archived too, if we get enough stuff put together.

>>13868970

The books are weird. They have this rather unique mysticism theme running through them. And at least the guys working on the culture seem to have picked up on it quite well

>>13868949
>>13868970
I remember that series. It was a good read when I was a kid.

The passage I remember best was the protagonist looking upon humans and going "Holy shit, they don't have wings!" Also, as they were the largest creatures he had ever seen, he could only wonder what it was like to be grounded and so heavy....

>>13869056
Now there's an idea one could explore - "first contact" between Kalang and some other races, whether beneficial/neutral, like dwarves, or antagonistic/hostile, like drow. I figure those two races are the most likely to encounter them first, being underground and thus in clse proximity to caverns like those the Kalang would colonize.

>>13869235
Drow are crazy... they worship food? Ridiculous.

We are avoiding the real question...

...bat crime families?

>>13868771
"Sorry, we're the fruit-eating kind."

And then they come over and ruin your shit with repurposed farming implements.

The use of guano as fertilizer is the main thing kalang alchemists do with it; tinkering with explosives was originally because of what amount to industrial accidents while making said fertilizer.

>>13869394
we covered that at the end of the last thread. Having a bat Mafia, while amusing, was too silly for the flavor we had established for the rest of the race's culture. So, sorry, you won't get to have some young Kalang become Batbat after his parents get killed by a mugger.

I was thinking:

If the bats are very into family, perhaps they would have a god (or goddess - or whatever) that represent that?

Because I'm imagining a representation of a bat with multiple, enormous wings, as if it could embrace all of his/her children.

>>13869235
Also dragons.

And any of the jungle-dwelling races might run into fruit-eaters.

>>13869394

Ah yes. The bat families.

Well for one thing selling excrement would be lucrative, especially if you had a crazy alchemists services to go along with it. For another the larger longer standing families have more power within the community. So they probably flex it to divert funds or effort where the need it.

I see something like L5R castes, except families

>>13869433
Familiar theme is familiar.

>>13869430
Not Batbat.

Manbat.

>>13869433
Now THAT would look awesome. I approve.

>>13869433
So for the bat pantheon we have

The Gold-Crowned: Alldeity, represented by sun and moon. Possibly nature oriented
Pipstrello the Seer: Mystic god of their kinds of magic
Great-Silence: Owl god of death
Ghost-Who-Shrieks: Evil bat deity

Could add more or figure what the followers or the deities themselves would look like.

>>13869433
>>13869475
You mean a Crobat?

The bestial ones. Do they have a name?

Also, their...roosts...should be extra dangerous. Because of the guano. Never mind the stench and the ammonia, but the floors are covered with a thick layer of the stuff and crawling through it, vermin of all sorts. Flesh eating beetles, ready to swarm on anything that should touch the ground. No problem but for the unluckiest of animalistic Kalang...but bad for any adventurers...

>>13869465
Yes, but this would be even stronger amongst the Kalang, because a child spends quite a bit of its infanthood clinging to its mothers belly, spending its night with its mothers wings wrapped around it....

>>13869508

Well we were saying that they were Vampire Bats, hence the Kalang's hate for vampires of all kinds. We don't have a name for them yet though.

I also fully support the dangerous guano. What cave is it in Planet Earth that the mountain of shit is taller than a person? Something like that but with giant insects

>>13869508
Well, in an actual city they have at least some degree of basic sanitation, if for no other reason than the value of their guano to the farmers.

The excess gets dumped, of course, but that doesn't make it that much worse than any other city in a medieval European fantasy world.

>>13869508
For added lulz, make those fire beetles instead.

I should be fucking working but this is awesome. Here's a half-assed drawfaggotry I did for you, guys. Lemme know if there's things you want to add/change, and I'll eventually work it into a full illustration, if you like.

>>13869508
the bestial ones, the ogre-vampire-flesheaters of the race... those would be the ones crawling on the floors of Kalang caverns, not beetles and vermin, feeding off whatever filth and refuse fell or was dropped from above, whether waste from a privy, discarded food, or some unfortunate Kalang who coudn't get reoriented and fly straight in time to recover from a fall...

But yes, they do need a name...

>>13869569

The sketch looks awesome. I'm not an expert but anatomically it looks exactly like what we were discussing. Need an actual biology-anon to maybe let us know if the wingspan is feasible but otherwise looks great.

Only thing I'd ask is some clothes (the almost penis is staring at me...), we were thinking many pocketed vests, and tight fitting pants for a typical outfit

>>13869574
Camazotz?

>>13869574
You need to see the video of the floors beneath actual bat colonies. Baby bats who can't fly properly the first time are devoured alive by beetles. Nothing but little tiny skeletons...HEY, maybe they could be necromancer fodder.

I just feel like if we're going to do bats, we have to look to the real word for some of the amazing things to include.

>>13869614

I like that. Its a good name, but we need to... pluralize? it a bit. Camazotall? Camazotzill?

>>13869671
Kamazotzl.

>>13869614
>googles
>"Death Bat"

YES. Perfect. Camazotz are the flightless disfigured monster-cannibals, the ogres to their humans.

>>13869624
Like I said, the Camazotz are like the beetles, feeding on filth and debris and poor unfortunates who fall the their doom.

How about we have the Camazotz be some sort of mystery - whenever a Kalang colony dwells in a cave long enough, the Camazotz appear, but nobody knows when they do, or why, or how, just that they eventually (inevitably?) do.

>>13869689

Perfect. Also plays up the slightly South American themes in the culture.

>>13869551
>>13869574
That makes no sense, the Vampire bat is the most social of all the bats. Plus you can't get very big on drinking blood alone, it's a poor diet. So I could see a Fruit Bat around Dwarf Size, Insects around Halflings and Vampires around Gnomes. They'd live in a top down community. Higher you live the lower your social standing in the society is. So I could see the fruit eaters on the top, insects in middle, and cannibalistic ones are the bottom and a special class for Vampire bats. The insects eaters keep the fruit bats from starving, and the cannibalistic keep the insect eaters under control. Vampire bats feed on everyone equally, they're the secret police, and spies of the society. They're equally comfortable on the ground and in the air.

As said before the guano will be used for fertilization of the fruit trees which the Fruit eaters need. Which attract the insect eaters, which in turn attract the cannibals. Have an Aztec/Mayan theme where the Cannibals are holy priests, and it's an honor to have your blood shed for the gods. Ritual sacrifice takes place ~ noon every lunar month. This is only time they're awake during the day, and for a short while before going back to sleep. It's like midnight mass.

Would they sell the guano?


To like, wizards? Y'know, for fireball casting.

>>13869689
Nice. Keeps the "Ka" sound from "Kalang". Maybe have that be the unifier, like "Ka" means "bat" or something in their language.

Now what do we call the eyeless zubat underdark sub species? Maybe they are what happens to those who join the discordant melody of the Ghost-Who-Shrieks

>>13869703
Nah. Vampire bats, we've already established they're the "monstrous brutes" here, not the ruling class. Try to keep up.

/tg/ proyects like this one is why i love this board. Plz when this is finished someone make a file with all the information and possible drawfaggotry.

>>13869719
Exactly what I was thinking, my good man.

>>13869721
Kallirruk.
The name translates to "Those Lost Below".
Sort of a boogeyman figure for the Kalang.

>>13869611

what kind of attire? I mean culturally, any reference?

>Vampire Brute Kalang

K so here's an overview to get rid of confusion

In the last thread we established that they would avoid feeding on sapients in favor of livestock (bigger = more blood). As well in fantasy settings you have the plethora of monstrously large animals that could very easily be good food sources plus miss a clinging medium creature.

We decided that they were the hated group amongst the Kalang. We never decided but tossed around the idea that blood was addictive, thereby making it so that the bats who are drinking blood are not a separate species. The Kalang make a distinction between these brutish individuals and true undead, but the connection is strong and a truly undead Vampire bat is executed as soon as they can manage it

>>13869703

>Vampire bats
>small
>sociable

PIRANHA BAT SWARMS

>>13869802

Huh, not sure. I'd say south american but colourful doesn't really fit for blind bats...

Anybody else?

>>13869747
I think what we're talking about here specifically is the False Vampire Bat. They don't drink blood, they eat flesh. Specifically batflesh.

>>13869747
Vampire bats aren't the ruling caste, the cannibals are. Think of it this way.

Farmers/Merchants are Fruit Eaters. They grow the crop and eat what they can and sell the rest. They turn the profit for the Empire. However they can't do it alone so they have the Slave/Working Caste, the insect eaters. They eat the insects around, and help grow the trees that are needed. The nobles are the Vampires, they leech off of everyone. However they're also the spies, assassins...etc. The priest caste is the Cannibals, they keep the religious and scientific knowledge going. They eat other Kalang because it's their job to keep the gods happy, and the population under control. The last caste would be the ogres, these are modeled after the flightless bats and eat what ever comes their way, but mostly ground insects.

Each has their role to play.

>>13869832
Just saw
>>13869828

My bad, carry on.

>>13869853


Perhaps something with mesoamerican motifs, but with cold greys and/or earthly colors?

>>13869703
>>13869859
You're trying to rewrite nearly two threads of agreed-upon stuff yourself... and it's not working. Go read the first thread and re-read this one. You're nowhere near close to what we're doing.

KAMAZOTZL!

>>13869886
Fuck if I agreed on anything, I can't tell. Things just come and go. I still think the top down, caste system, meso american thing works. I really don't like the D&D setting kinda takes away from the entire feel.

>>13869903
Well, you might not like it, but the rest of us do. Go refluf them in your own game if you like, along with the sort of guys who make beardless dwarves and tree-hating elves and whatever, but we're trying to make a canon for them right now, and don't need you trying to retcon everything before we're even done.

>>13869870
We were thinking standard was this but with shorter skirt and more pockets/belts/pouchies tied on.

Spiritual or family leaders will have feathers or jingly chains or bells that sound nice when sonic'd. Warriors probably have some battle scars and punctures where their blade-glove fist weapons would strap on through membrane.

>>13869943
I like bald dwarves. Dark Sun FTW.

>>13869491
The Gold-Crowned: Alldeity, represented by sun and moon. Possibly nature oriented
The Gold-Crowned is the only king the Kalang respects. He appears in the shape of a Kalang with his back white and his chest black, wearing a crown which shines bright as the sun and a silver medallion in his chest. He’s seen as serious, but their followers say he’s got a playful, somewhat mocking side when dealing with evil.
It is said that he never stops flying in the sky (and meddles little in the general affairs of the bat-folk) because he’s vigilant against threats little the Great Silence or the Ghost-Who-Shrieks. The Kalang know when The Crowned is passing through when the sky flares around his golden crown, drawing the attention of enemies towards him, leaving the skies free for the bat-folk to roam free.
His greatest nemesis is the Great Silence, who sworn vengeance up the Crowned, for he stole the most precious treasures (the crown and the medallion he wears) the Elder Owl had in his nest.
“The Stars of the Crown” or just “Starred Ones” is the name the Kalang give for those who follow the way of The Crowned. They are often sentinels for their communities, ever watchful. Like their God, the Golden follow a path of sacrifice, preferring to fight as if to draw the enemies’ attention towards themselves rather than allowing them to hurt his allies or family. They tend to wear asimpressively as they can, to look more powerful and menacing, although they sometimes are seems as gaudy by others stealthier Kalang


How is this /tg/? Sorry about the poor writfaggotry, english's not my mother language.

I can do the other's if you'd like.

And cities would be this. But Aztecian in design. And big wide tops to make for easier take offs and landings.

>>13869870
With different materials used where we'd use different colors. Metal thread, rough fibers, fine silk, anything else that might read differently to the echolocation. Color is there, but it's not really a focus.

>>13869984
You. I like you. You are a good addition to this thread.

>>13869957

I'll see what I can do. It might take me sometime as I am working, right now, but I'll come up with something more finished in a few hours, for sure. Can you give me a little more details about the blade glove thing? I'm having a hard time picturing it in my head.

>>13869987
Interconnections too. Things like their equivalent of roadside food stalls, for example. Chapulines are the kalang equivalent of french fries.

>>13869984
Ugh, forgot to say they are know as the "Strars" because their symbol is a star-shaped pendant.

("not as shiny as The Gold-Crowned, but still a capturer of gaze" - since seeing is not important to the Kalang, they probably think that only fools and foes would be distratect by such things)

>>13870008
Ever seen Bloodrayne? Kinda like those wrist-swords she has, except instead of hinging fully striaght-forward, they kinda follow the outer edge of the wing.

Bit like this, sorta. (image the thumb of the batwing is a Kalang hand gripping the blade's handle.)

>>13870008

It would be on the feet, for a swooping attack.

We also bounced around an idea for a blade that would attach along the outer edge of the wing, for a slashing kind of move while on the ground

>>13870079

Alright. Duly noted. I'll be back in a few hours. Hope the thread is still around.

>>13870103
We're working on it. Putting serious thought to archiving it, too, like the first one, especially now that we've got some imagery to work with.

How about we start talking about how a Kalang adventurer would function within a party.

Favored class is monk I assume, with their arm blades being treated as monk weapons for flurry and whatnot.

Low charisma I think, definitely not the party face. I also think they would rarely interact within towns and whatnot, instead preferring to scout ahead on the wing.

hmmm, I guess it will depend how common they are. I mean if they are common enough in the area the local inns and whatnot might have special rooms for them, as well as food

Weapon ideas:
>Scythe boots
For air-to-air combat. Cut the other Kalang's wing into ribbons and they're beetle food on the ground below.

>Dual crossbows
Fires two bolts, with a connecting cord between them. The idea is that it would create a drogue effect by attaching to .. well, anything else. Anchoring someone to a stationary object would be a terrifying battle tactic, if a bit unwieldy and hard to accomplish.

>Paralytic vapor bomb
Worn as a backpack, for chase scenes. Anyone flying through the area behind them may wind up with a lungful of this stuff and poof: so much for flight.

>>13870213
>low Charisma
Not in my interpretation of the Kalang. Charisma covers social connectivity, and thus far, they seem to be a very social race. If something had to take a penalty, I would say Constitution, due to their anatomical difficulties.

>>13870251
>crossbow harpoons

Have you read Snow Crash?

Because I have, and now I'm imagining a kalang version of YT.

>>13870267

I'm talking with other races. Depends on your setting of course but in my opinion the common reaction in a town would be "Holy Fuck a giant bat! Kill it before it eats our virgins!"

>>13870273
Ah, yes. The magnetic grapple o' certain doom.

That book is one of the two explanations of why I have the word "REASON" embossed on my luggage.

http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/archive/13865562/

Archived!

>>13870283
Perhaps, in lieu of a penalty to Charisma (which would tank out anyone's dreams of a Sorcerer Kalang), give them a penalty to social rolls with other races, reduced over time.

>>13870311
...what's the other one?

>>13870321

Very acceptable

>>13870336
Because they originally said "TREASON", but the letter 'T' fell off during an inspection by TSA officials when I was coming back from Europe.

>>13869491
No one said it was too bad, so I'll just continue with the god characterization. Let's see if the next one is still interesting.

Pipstrello the Seer: Mystic god of their kinds of magic
The Seer often appears in the shape of a very young Kalang, with eyes wide open in curiosity, reminding the bat-folk that sometimes there is wisdom in the foolishness of the childhood (indeed, Pipstrello is also the patron of children), urging them to remember when they had still not learned how to find themselves inside the Song of Creation (the world) and so were open to discovery and transformation.
He teaches the Kalang that wisdom and magic lies in trying and daring and searching, not just sitting about and mimicking what others have done before. He blesses all crafters, alchemists, and magicians.

It’s said he himself learned magic and crafts alone (and in some versions of the story, after being negligent with his family duties), so it’s not a surprise that his ways are a bit strange for the communal hearts of most Kalang, but he’s a kind-hearted one, in his own way.

His followers, the “Young”, are usually explorers, artificers, magicians. Their work usually demands them to be at least separated from others who don’t share their occupation, but they gladly accept that distressing solitude for the good of the community. They wear a pair of ornate (with eye motifs) bone earrings as their symbol.

>>13869491
>>13869984
>>13870414

I love this, please continue.

Rorik Coppersides massaged the bridge of his nose. In as much as a happy dwarf could be said to exist, he was very much the opposite. He had been awake for Moradin only knew how many shifts, answering or deflecting questions from worried citizens, jumped-up militiamen, superstitious miners, overbearing nobles, and every other variety of annoying individual to be found in a dwarven city.

And all because a bat the size of a damned man had fallen through his ceiling.

His initial reaction had been, to his mind, natural for any dwarf. When the enormous ball of wing and fur had plummeted onto the dinner table, he’d ushered his family out of the room and gone for the nearest axe. What he had not counted on was the great beast suddenly flicking out a silvered blade from under its wing to block what was meant to be an easy chop to the neck. Rorik was of course no fighter; the Coppersideses had been the hold’s record keepers since time immemorial, and the axe was a decorative affectation. The bat, it seemed, suffered no such deficiency; despite obviously being somewhat hurt from the fall, it had been as agile as an elf, seemingly as amused by Rorik’s clumsy windmilling as it was confused to be in his dining room.

When the old bookkeeper had finally collapsed at the mosnter’s feet, he had been solidly convinced that he was going to count the carts of ore in Moradin’s mine. Instead, the bat had screeched several things that sounded suspiciously like words, and commenced to hang from the edge of the ragged hole in Rorik's ceiling. Rorik had thought the beast asleep and made one last grab for his axe, but it had not taken kindly to that. It still had his axe.

>>13870495
Eventually the creature’s inactivity convinced him that it did not mean to drink his blood, and the lack of any ambushes from the tunnel extending up from over his shattered table convinced him the beast was alone. He had sent his family to the inner hold to speak with the council, staying behind to watch the creature. Rorik Coppersides had never been a brave dwarf, but he knew better than to leave the creature unsupervised. At least this way if it started killing people, they’d put on his tomb that he’d died trying to stop it rather than trying to save his own skin.

Eventually the lord’s party had arrived from the inner hold, clad in the thickest armor they owned. With them was a cleric of Moradin, though he was distinguishable from the sworn shields only by the pendant hanging from his gorget. When they had entered, the bat had flicked open one eye and screeched at them, then fallen to the ground clutching at its ears with the strange hands on its wings, making more of the word-like sounds. It kept going as the cleric muttered some prayer or other and touched the forehead of each dwarf present. As the enchantment took hold, Rorik began to understand the thing’s screeching.

“Eeek raik eke cursed armor, such painful angles, look-sounds like a bell around my ears, agh! Why did the Crowned curse you leg-things with such deafness? Bad enough you live in so small a cave, how can you possibly spread your wings here?”

>>13870523
At first Rorik was not certain the enchantment had worked properly. The bat had seemed to be making less and less sense the more it babbled. Eventually the cleric had put the spell on the bat as well, and the hold lord had conversed with it. Formal greetings were traded, as were formal apologies for certain ruined tables and certain attempted beheadings. The visitor had asked more strange questions throughout. Why was everything upside-down, did they have a moon-dial he could consult, how ever did they keep the floors so clean? Meanwhile, the dwarves’ own questions had puzzled him. He seemed to have no notion of why it was strange for a bat to be five feet tall, speak, carry weapons and wear clothes. Moreover he was dreadfully confused by the notion of a room dedicated solely to eating, and indeed the notion that a dwelling designed for a whole family seemed too small for more than four people. Eventually the entire group had retired to the inner hold, where dwarf and bat had each spent a goodly amount of time figuring out just what the other was banging on about.

Now Rorik was seated in his study, surrounded by every book on languages his branch of the clan had ever owned, trying very hard to write a letter of good will to the bat-thing’s own leader without being driven to suicide. Which would have been easier without the cursed creature peering over his shoulder every few seconds to inform him that he’d spelled, “eeik” wrong.

*****

That's all I managed to knock out. Thoughts?

>>13870267

I also agree with the +2 Dex -2 Con modifier, just because you've a literal shitface, doesn't mean you can't socialize with other races. Heck, I'm imagining these guys as the bro-race, they don't care about your material wealth, your social status, epic bosses you've slain. As long as you're a good chap to chill out with, they will always accept you with open arms.

Felled that tyrannical-dictatorial human king? They'll highfive ya.
Heavilly wounded after that awesome demi-dragon-lich fight? They''ll be the first to crack a joke that'll ease everyone's pain.
Humiliated that aspiring demi-god-whatever to face the truth of his mortality? They'll comment that during the battle, his nipples were showing.

I dunno about you guys, but I believe these Kalang are the bro-race type of people.

>>13870495
>>13870523
>>13870537

Refreshed the archive just to be sure this wasn't missed. Nice work.

>>13870544
I think their only real complaint would be things which squeak and squeal (armor with a - 3 ACP or worse), animals like ferrets, rats, some birds, etc.) and anyone who comments on the importance of color in organizing attire ("Red tabard? That's what I've been wearing with these.. blue .. pant-things? Huh.").

>>13870537
>>13870523
>>13870495

Very good sir. Captured a first meeting very well. The behaviour seems appropriate for both parties.

>>13870537
>Which would have been easier without the cursed creature peering over his shoulder every few seconds to inform him that he’d spelled, “eeik” wrong.

Considering how closely bats tend to congregate, this seems particularly apt. As social and familial and such as Kalang are, I suspect their idea of "personal space" is a bit less... separate... than other races.

>>13870566
"Green? Purple? Orange? Why should that matter? They all sound like the same fine cloth to me. Not like that awful chattering mail you wear. Every step sounds like tiny metal ants all over you."

I think we have a racial weakness: discordant sound.

>>13870622

"What do you mean its beautiful? Looks like a chunk of clay someone tossed down a mountainside, then polished."

"Look, see, you ground-bounders need to hear!"

>>13870647
Not really a weakness, but they are sensitive to it. Mostly a fluff thing, but maybe could have a minor stat tweak in the form of a bonus to Listen checks but a penalty to saves vs. Sonic attacks - it'd be overkill if every chain-rattle or stone-on-stone scrape sent them into panicky fits.

>>13870659
"They cannot help themselves, wing-brother - large eyes and small ears, they all have, even the tree-dwellers - though theirs are at least shaped to interesting-sounding points - so to them, what they see is more valued than what they hear... as backward as that seems."

>>13870560
>>13870568
>>13870593

Glad you guys liked it. It's a bit late where I am, so I'm heading to bed. If there's more need of a writefag in future though I'd be happy to oblige.

This is what happens when /tg/ stands for shi/tg/etsdone.

>>13870414
I enjoy yours. Very much so! Continue my good ba/tg/uy

>>13870743

Unfortunately we are so incredibly fickle with what we choose to get done its astounding.

We also lose interest rapidly. I'm putting maybe 1 more thread worth of content unless a crunch anon starts helping

>>13869491
Another god done!

Great-Silence: Owl god of death
The Elder Owl comes for every Kalang one day. Silent and invisible, snatching the young and the old without preference. He appears in the shape of an owl, barely visible in the shadows, except for his deadly claws and beak, gleams of what only hints his (usually) colossal size. Although the few unlucky and barely sane witnesses couldn’t say for sure, it is said the Great-Silence is covered in white feather.

He hungers for all creation. And what he can’t (or doesn’t want to) eat, he stores in his nest, where he breeds death and undeath. Who knows what kind of riches he already stole from the creation? The only one courageous enough to enter the Elder Owl and fast enough to escape alive is the Gold-Crowned, but even he knows this small victory is probably temporary: soon the Great-Silence will steal the Song out of the Creation, and no Kalang, not even the Crowned one, will be safe in their flight.

The “Eaten”, as are known the rare bat-folk followers of the Great Silence, are a much divided lot of believers. Some act as collectors of briberies for their god, taking treasures which could divert the hunger of Elder Owl. Others find strength in his silence, and can even sacrifice their own blood (and some, his or her own family) for a tiny drop of that power. And the rarest ones, who are (not completely without suspicion) still living among his peers and hold the knowledge of preparing the bodies of the departed, so the Great Silence may take their bodies, but not their souls. All of them, though, wear a Kalang bone as a pendant (usually a bone from their own cut finger – another sigh of an “Eaten”).

In case you just got here and don't even, if you could criticize my other gods' descriptions I'd be pleased.
>>13869984
>>13870070
>>13870414

>>13870811
I call you now "Sound-of-many-voices", Kalang lorekeeper.

>>13870836
Hm... "Gold-crowned", "Ghost-who-shrieks", "Great-Silence", and now "Sound-of-many-voices". Noticing a pattern here... Kalang names aren't simple words, like an elf named "Galdra Windchaser" or a dwarf named "Uruk Stonehammer", they're short phrases, descriptive clumps of words... fitting, since we have a lot of tribal flavor to them, and such names were common there.

One-Who-Sees-The-Truth, I dub thee.

Myths, legends and folklore of the Kalang.

>In the time before time was real, we once walked on the ground. One of the older gods took great interest in our lives and times, awarding us with challenges and boons accordingly. In the fullness of things, one of our fiercest warriors found himself in a battle with one of the lesser demigods' chosen sons. That fight took many nights, but eventually, he was the victor, proving we could champion even one of the lords of creation.

>This demigod petitioned to his own master, to lay upon us a curse; and ever since, we have lost our sense of color.

Why did we once walk on the ground, Grandka?

>Because we were stupid. We grew wings to send a message and to keep our feet clean. Now, the ground is beetle shit and dead young. We took to the air to defy the gods into sending more champions for us to best; now, we will meet them halfway. It is a good concession.

>In all of this time, since before time mattered, the gods have remained awed at our conviction.

>>13870879
The usually need descriptive names I imagine. Its a little difficult translating the noise of an Young Oak's Branches bending in a Rainstorm to a short name. So I imagine the prose-filled names or just short onomoetopiea as their nicknames/short names for friends and outsiders.

Here's a thought...

Ghost-who-shrieks and Great-Silence are both depicted as completely white - the former a pale bone-white and the latter a stark snow-white. Perhaps, like how Black is for most cultures in real life, White is a symbol of evil/death in Kalang cultural symbolism?

...I wonder/fear what sort of omen an albino child would be seen as being...

>>13870900
Fucking awesome.

>>13870918
They'd probably be the founders of Silence Cults or perhaps hounded by their own species as omens of a great disaster soon to come.

>>13870918
Depending on which deity is most feared at that time, I'd say.

Ghost Touched or Silenced Ones, living bridges to the deities they represent. To kill such a child would immediately incur the gods wrath so they are left alone, perhaps even revered, as a way to keep the gods eyes turned away from them.

Perhaps prohpets?

>>13870918
>>13870939
>cave dwelling creatures
>fearing albinos
They could start up a Messiah of the Week club, what with the sheer quantity of albino lifeforms down there.

>Its an omen!
No, its not an omen. Its a fucking cave cricket, so calm down.

>>13870918
I wonder what connection Ghost and Silence have to each other - evil and death and commonly interlinked in many mythologies. Perhaps one serves the other?

...wait, no, I have it. Ghost-who-shrieks is the husband of Great-Silence. How he and she came to be wed is not my tale to tell, but I am sure it is related to why one or both of them have the powers they now possess.

>>13870960
Fearing albinos of thier own SPECIES. Most bats are not white in coloration.

>>13870973
That gives me some writefaggery ideas...

>>13870918
Waitaminute. Wasn't it discussed the eyeless ones with huge mouths, spindly bodies, venom dripping fangs and tongues that live much deeper in the Underdark than they should would be pale? ....

Perhaps that's where they believe the Ghost lives. Deeper in the caverns than a sane Kalang should go. And that is what he does to you. Turns you into one of his 'children' to sing the discordant melody

>>13870975
indeed. Like we've said before, the only species of naturally-occuring (not albino mutation) white bats are also the only bat-eating bats. COINCIDENCE?

>>13870918
Hilarity ensues when the first kalang to encounter clerics of the common races in their bright ceremonial robes turns out to be a powerful sonomancer. He proceeds to knock down a church and screech something to the horrified crowd about freeing them from the clutches of the owlets before flying off into the dusk.

The local priest is heard to mutter discontentedly as he sees to his bruised colleagues.

>>13870987
Ooooh... creepy. I love it.

>>13870979
go for it, son.

>>13870811
I look forward to your take on Ghost-who-shrieks - you've done an awesome job with the others so far.

The chapel was still and silent at the midnight hour, the priest finishing up the final touches on his sermon for the next day's rituals. A noise in the upper portion of the church, above even the balcony seats, drew his attention. Donning his ceremonial robes and holding his war mace, he approached the stairs with care and combat pragmatism.

As he cleared the final flight, he could see the huddled figure of the man-shaped mass of shadows hanging from the center of the now-dark chandelier. Pointing his finger at a bench, he spoke the mystic words which produced light, revealing...

...a Kalang, wearing the robe-furs of a high priest of one of their more progressive churches. With a sigh of relief, he approached, his weapon slung on his belt and his hands raised in the universal gesture of goodwill.

"Priest."

The voice was not one he recognized, nor coming from the figure in the middle of the ceiling in front of him, suspended forty feet off of the floor, but from behind him, above him.

"We found them, in the attic. All of their little bones... crushed."

A bag of orange and blue silk rattled to the floor, dropped from the shadows above.

"You used a broom ... to ... sweep them out of this world, didn't you? And we thought your church showed such reverence for life. All life."

Fear ran through him, like a thief in a market-square.

"...but... those are just normal bats."

And the ceiling moved, the painted skins of a full fifty Kalang revealing themselves; carefully artwork had been applied to their clothing and skin, making them resemble the rafters and inner walls of the church's upper reaches.

Outnumbered, outflanked and out-planned, the priest looked at the approaching figures of the Kalang warriors, their faces a mask of unmoving snarls, the light from his spell fading as it glinted off of the icon of the bat each warrior had on both their tunics and daggers...

>>13871054
>>13870979

he Tale of Moontalon and Shadow-Of-The-Falling-River.

In the time before words and language, Owl and Ka lived side by side. They did not fight, then, as it was a time for plenty and a time of great and powerful beasts who would eat owl and ka alike. They lived together for safety, under the watch of the moon who hung in the sky every hour. There was no day, then.

Ka and Owl did not agree about everything, though. Squabbling was common, even amongst the shamans of the tribes. "We must offer blood to the moon!" Cried the Owls. "We must offer songs and food!" Returned the Ka.

Moontalon did not care for the fighting. She wanted to fly forever in the cold dark of the night. Shadow-Of-The-Falling-River also did not care for the squabbling of his kin, and took wing beside the pale owl.

>>13871154
They flew for days, months, years. They ranged far and wide over the world, taking what they wanted and toying with what they fancied, as children often do. Soon Moontalon yearned for the touch of her mothers wing and Shadow-Of-The-Falling-River sought his fathers voice. They broke thier unspoken agreement to never see thier people again, each seeking comfort in the past.

They returned to a broken tribe. Owl fought Ka, blood offerings to the Moon. Ka murdered Owl, seeking revenge on slaughtered kin. Moontalon shrieked in anger and began to kill Ka as she saw them, screaming her vengance for her own family. Shadow-Of-The-Falling-River howled his anger, tearing asunder his own family. They had murdered the only love of his lifes kith and kin! Taken from her, and given nothing in return!

Owl and Ka clashed for a year straight, never letting up. Two pale forms struck without warning, without discrimination and without care. Moontalon took the name Great Silence, winging without noise to take Ka from where she saw them. Shadow-Of-The-Falling-River abandoned his Ka name, calling himself the Ghost-Who-Shrieks.

Finally, Ka were driven from the eden of neverending night, and Ghost-Who-Shrieks and Great-Silence were married in blood. Taking unholy strength from the death and the life o f those they had slain they live forever, striking Ka where ever they find them.

Gold-Crowned eventually brought Day to the world, to limit when the twin terrors could strike his chosen people - but that is another story for another time, little ka, so go to sleep and worry not about Great-Silence and Ghost-Who-Shrieks.

How woudl they work as a 4e species?

+2 Dex +2 Wis?

>>13871133
Nice. I could all-too-easily see Kalang holding normal bats to being a form of sacred animal - not worshiped like Egyptian cats, but still pretty closely-regarded.

>>13871154
>>13871170

I love you forever.

Hey, guys. I finally got around working on these guys more, here's some progress from the last 15 min. I'm referencing Aztec warrior clothing emphasizing a bit the feather-ish motifs they give to clothing, in their case it was mostly eagles, I think, but here I'm going more for the owl God of Death thing (in reference of Mictlantecuhtli, the actual Aztec God of Death), also taking into account this is the warrior variety. Lemme know your thoughts, should I keep going with this design?

>>13871211
I like it. Needs artistic body modification.

>>13871211
oh hells yes. Originally, I think we had planned on only clerics/priests wearing feathered adornments, as a means of standing out, but I can easily see high-ranking warriors wearing them as "ceremony garb" kinda like the sabers real-life Marines wear as part of their dress uniforms... not combat gear, but ritual adornment.

>>13871211

It works great. Maybe if your adorning him a lot, add a bell or two. The sounds they make would be just as important to the Kalang as the visual things

>>13871325
More important, actually. Visual cues would be less of a priority, except perhaps if they were particularly contrasting, like red/yellow or black/white or purple/orange.

Hm, there's an idea. Clerics wearing garb adorened with contrasting patternts of black and white to symbolize night and day or life and death. Profound.

>>13869491
The Ghost was definitely the hardest one.
I decided to pick a few things from what was already posted, but I found the relationship with the Great silent kinda weird and not really in synch with what I had in mind... But I can change that later.


Ghost-Who-Shrieks: Evil bat deity.
The only thing about the Ghost-Who-Shrieks that every Kalang song seem to agree in is that he’s a complete abomination. He wears many faces and many more voices, but his most common representation is of a pale white Kalang without eyes and deformed features.

Why the Ghost lost his place in the Song of Creation is uncertain: a few legends depict him as a brave (but now forgotten) Kalang warrior god, the first to ever challenge the Great Silence. To make an example out of him, the Elder Owl ate the god’s part in the Song of the Creation, which twisted his mind against those who still sing. Others say he was selfish and evil god who killed his own siblings in a fit of deaf rage, and the other gods banished him from the Creation.

The Ghost-who-Shrieks is a murderer of kin, a traitor of the worst kind. But he has things no traitor should have: pride in his actions, and ambition. With those, he lives beyond the creation, creating a Song of Creation of his own, with children with his twisted mind and body, perhaps in a hopeless attempt to regain a place in the world.

He’s the god who fathers the few Kalang that are like him: loners by choice, selfish and ambitous. His voice is the one which is heard when one’s is most alone, which is why no sensible Kalang enjoys solitude, for fear his maddening whispers spirit them away.

No Kalang dared to give the followers of the Ghost apropriate titles, only throw curses at their names, although they are known among themselves as “Reborns”. They paint their skin white, gouge their eyes out and mutilate their own tongues in favor if their god.

>>13871380
>His voice is the one which is heard when one’s is most alone, which is why no sensible Kalang enjoys solitude, for fear his maddening whispers spirit them away.

I love this part as a lore-wise explanation for why they are so social and whatnot. Nice touch.

Alright, so not too adorned, that's for religious figures, more belts. I figured since these guys seem to carry a lot of stuff, it'd be practical for them to have this single, main piece from which all other accessories come from. I kind of imagine it like this, sort of a leather vest that runs through the chest with all these pouches and bags, etc.

What do you think?

So...any more god ideas I can work on?
I'll be wokring on my "Family God" one, but I can't think of a good name for him/her.

>>13871515
The blade's too tiny, no?
Also I think the chest is not the best place to bear a blade, perhaps his back or his hips is a better place?

>>13871154
>>13871170

How Gold-Crown made the Sun.

Before there was day, there was endless Night - the eden of our people. The tradgedy of the Blood Wedding forced out people into caves and deep, dark woods to hide, but the Ka were never truely safe from Ghost-Who-Shrieks and Great-Silence. We were being hunted to extinction. So we huddled closer and closer together in our caves and our woods, praying to whoever could hear us to save us, deliver us from the evil we had accidentally created.

One little orphaned Ka heard the pleas. He knew nothing was going to help them, cries for salvation going unheard. So he plucked up the courage and left his cave, going on a great journey to find a way to save his people. He was Gold-Eye-Of-The-Hawk, named after the myth of the almost god-like Hawk-Of-The-Plains. Gold-Eye's journey, as we know, took a year and a day to complete. He fought the Bog-Ka to save a nest of Herons, who taught him the way to inscribe sounds as letters and words. He planted the Seed-Of-Forgiveness at the scorched Heart-Of-The-Woods and brought life to the lifeless. He learnt how to forge and hold a blade from the Moles. He journeyed to the Fire Mountains, and dwelt with the ancient reptiles who slumbered there. A prism of unsoiled fire crystal was his to keep.

>>13871554
When he rerturned, Gold-Eye was a changed Ka. No longer small or fearful, but big and strong, unwavering in his desire to free his home. He held the Wing-Shear, the enchanted relic of his Mole tutors. He carried the Scroll-Of-A-Thousand-Songs, which he taught his people, a gift from his Heron teachers. He brought fruits from the Heart-Of-the-Woods, and tought his Ka brethren the art of farming, so they would never go hungry. He kept only the fire crystal from his brethren, as its use was already set in his mind.

He had but one task left, to banish Ghost-Who-Shrieks and Great-Silence. He left at the zenith of the Moon, taking with him naught but Wing-Shear. He fought both in the sky and on the earth, weakening them with each blow he struck. They gave wounds in return, cutting his body deeply. As he struck the last blow, they fell to the earth, weakened but alive - he knew he could not kill them, fueled as they were by the taking of life. Instead he lifted the fire crystal, and it drunk in the light of the Moon, gaining a life unto itself.

He threw it with all his might, and it grew as it flew into the sky. Soon it was a blazing orb, glowing so brightly the Moon fled into the retreating darkness. Great-Silence and Ghost-Who-Shrieks fled with it, too weakened to stand and fight in the blinding ligh. The Sun was born, and Golden-Eye was reborn with it. No longer just a Ka, he was something more - the embodiment of his peoples prayer, he was now Golden-Crowned, a band of Sun-Light across his brow.

And that is why we have day and night, little Ka. Now go outside and enjoy the gifts Golden-Crowned has given us.

>>13871538

I did not intend to make that a (main) weapon, it's like the equivalent of a small dagger or survival knife for them, in my thinking. More useful to cut rope or small fruits, etc. than for actual combat.

>>13871515
Excellent work. I like the small dagger. And yeah, we figured some kind of vest and/or harness with pouches would be best - gotta keep stuff in place while inverted, after all.

Bit mixed on all the intricate scrollwork, though - remember, sight's kinda secondary for them, so they'd be more into how something sounds, not-so-much how it looks... maybe you could do some clever texturing or something, y'know, that's have an interesting echo... the thick stitching's a nice example of that. Eh, save the nitpicks for the finish, worry later. LOVE what you've got so far, though.

>>13871554
>>13871557

EEEEE!! If it were not so late that I would wake the others, I would squeal with glee at your awesome stories. They just keep getting better and better.

>>13871579


Hmm, texturing...I think I've got just the thing.

>>13866429
Awesome!

Also, perhaps a shatter effect? Warlocks have the Black Speech invocation - maybe Kalang monks can use their own variant?

>>13870537
Pretty legit. Both races seem to handle it well (though I do wonder about only four dwarves in a dwelling - I thought entire clans of up to thirty lived in such places.

>>13870973
Fuck yes! Wedded dieties! That takes me back to days of reading Iroquois mythology. Good this, that works well

>>13870960
Perhaps these albino Kalang have racial feat which makes them key for necomancy? Like how dragonwrought kobolds immediately kick ass at sorcerers because of one racial feat?

>>13871661
sound as a shatter effect? Hmm, maybe... it's rare but possible for real-life human singers to crack glass with the right note, and bats can reach far higher pitches than humans...

I'm not fond of playing a race that takes a hit to CON, but I can see how this makes sense. These sound like an awesome PC race, but I have to wonder - what kind of crunch would they have? Darkvision? Is there any level adjustment?


>>13871579
So like bralle you can hear rather than see?

>>13870987 Again, this reinforces the fear of the isolation . If you're alone in the dark, the echoes will become your only company, and echoes quickly distort over time and distance

it seems there are two anons working different lorestuffs.

oh well.

>>13871721
>braille you can hear
Yeah, that's a nice analogy.

As for crunch, we'll probably get that another time, if this idea manages support for a third thread.

>>13871726
Yes, but I've always found having options allows MIXAN AND MATCHAN - we can take the best from one and the best from the other and make a truly great peice.

>>13871763
Personally, aside from that one idiot who wanted to turn them into cannibal-ruled Mayans with wings, I think the lore given so far meshes marvelously together, even if it's not all being written by one guy.

>>13871746
Fair enough. I'm overly nitpicky about these things anyhow.

Would Kalang hibernate? Given that we're borrowing s heavily from Silverwing, would there be need for Hibernacula? Would the Kalang hunker down for the winter and avoid activity during those times?

What are gender relations like? Would females rear the young then live seperately, except for times when the need for mating arises? How often do Kalang go into heat?

>>13871845
Bats clustered together in caves can generate a surprising amount of warmth, so I figure for a large enough colony, there'd be a structure for winter hibernation where they all just pile together and sleep surrounded by each other. (cue d'awww moment)

As for mating and heat and such, we're still a bit wary of discussing that, out of "furfag" complaints from trolls that inevitably pop up the minute nonhuman sexuality is mentioned, but so far as raising offspring, we've established the Kalang as being very social and group/family oriented, so, no, I don't think children/mothers are kept separate from the rest - raising the young would be a community effort, where one's neighbor would be seen as just another extended family member when it came to "babysitting".

>ayegi education
That's a nice name for it, "ayegi"... that's what they'll call helping to raise a young ka whether it is one's own offspring or not.

Added more textures. Lemme know if it needs something else. In the meanwhile, I'm moving to the arms and their main weapon.

>>13872094
That's PERFECT, I love it. Gonna be a bitch-and-a-half to color, but that's your problem, not mine, LOL.

>>13872159

If you loved doing this as much as I do, you wouldn't see it as a problem. :)

>>13872180
That's a too-rare outlook. Glad to hear it. We need more folks with your view of things. Keep up the great work!

>>13871518
Perhaps something matronly. A patron for the wisened brood mothers whose children sired entire colonies. Big body and great comforting wings. Embrace-Of-Night?

I love what we've done here, I really do.

>>13872278
Beautiful. Embrace-of-night could be some sort of female counterpart to Golden-Crowned.

>>13872308
Sure, why not? Polytheism usually had god/goddess pairs like that, right?

keeping this bumped until artguy returns.

Aaand, here's the finished guy (inks, anyway). Let me know what you think. I'll color it later today when I'm done with my stupid work and post it here along any sketch of other Kalang designs I manage to do.

Did this thread get archived already, btw?

>>13872788
Pretty sure but it could always use an update

>>13872889
>six limbs

THAT IS NOT HOW YOU ANTHROBAT DAMN IT

>>13872665
The preportions seem just a tad wonky. Thick neck and maybe longer legs. Other than that, just about perfect.

You know, the idea with religion makes me wonder if they'd have holidays.

Though I'd be willing to move on toward wondering what a lone Kalang adventurer might be like and what they might think of their company.

Oh should this wait for another day?

>>13872942

Alright. I'll work on it.

>>13872665
>>13872094
>>13871515
>>13871211
>>13869569
How is he wearing a full shirt? are the wing membranes not at all attached to the body?

>>13873260

Hmm. I just realized. My bad, haha. I'll have to fix that, as well.

>>13873324
all their clothes would have to drape over them or be worn like a harness. at best they would be able to make a few piercings to allow belt/fasteners to loop around them, but full shirts would be impossible. theirs hands would also restrict wrist movement a fair bit, what with the modified fingers linking with the wing webbing. raising their arms high would be an issue, again due to the webbing. Really they'd have a lot of odd anatomical issues not immediately apparent. I highly recommend they not use their hands as primary manipulators. just things they use to hold simple tools and bags while they can't use their feet. If you wanna go really crazy, they could walk on their hands while grounded. that'd be awkward as hell to look at though.

>>13873482
of course these are all just my bullshit opinions if you wanna go all hyperly-sciencey with it. i'm just upset i missed the entire thread...

(Time for a bit of writefagging here, since I've been inspired. I'm not amazing, but please feel free to enjoy and critique as you want.)

The world outside the caves is a very interesting place, and the people around are just as curious. For starters, their naming trends. In the caves I am known as he-who-see's-the-world, but outside my current travelling companions say that that title is too long for them, preferring to shorten it to "Kalak", half of one of those words in my native tongue. Such curious beings, who cannot simply sing their words together in harmony with their surroundings- but this, I find, is only the tip of a stalactite.

Another curious development would be a more personal one- walking. Such an odd yet exhilarating experience for me- in the caverns I would not, and still would not walk around- after all, the ground is littered with filth, beetles, and other creatures I'd rather not mention... but here? Here there is dirt, grass, mud- so many new textures to enjoy on the soles of my feet other than a perch, I wonder why my companions even wear shoes! Not to mention the actual act of walking, rather than flying to destinations, is so strange to behold. Honestly, I had never considered my legs that useful for anything but perching- so actually walking around such as the softskins do is new, to say the least.

So much stretching! At first I found myself struggling for balance a little, complaining to my companions as to why I couldn't fly around- apparently the villages we visit don't take kindly to such actions. Hopefully our diplomats will change their misguided views in time. There are also many types of walking, apparently- why, even today, our parties Bard taught me how to "strut"- amazing stuff! Apparently my wings make me look very impressive whilst doing it, so perhaps I should simply strut everywhere? The Orc barbarian thinks such a notion is silly, but then again I think walking is silly, so I'm not sure.

>>13873568
On another note, as well as the variety of civilised races, there's all sorts of strange creatures to find along my travels... though one stood out. Whilst exploring a wood searching for some kind of poisoned oak with my party (I don't really care for the details and let them decide, so long as it suits a good goal), I spotted something that made my heart skip a beat.

Apparently, creatures that look like the Greater silencer are common in this place, as one stared at me- viciously- from a nearby tree. Needless to say I did what any good Kalang would, and immediately took out my trusty crossbow and shot it dead. The elf gave me a bit of chastising for messing with nature, but I simply explained that defeating spawns of our great enemy WAS nature... apparently she didn't see it my way, though. Unfortunate.

Finally, did you know many people believe that the Kalang are totally blind? Not so, as our eyes do work, though not to the extend of many others. Instead, our eyes and ears are intertwined, though it mostly our sense of hearing we rely on to see, with our eyes simply helping us a bit. It is strange to explain to one who cannot experience it, though. As well as this, today I picked up a pair of tinted "goggles" from the marketplace, to help me see in the sun without all that glare getting in the way- I have to say they work a treat, and I recommend any exploring Kalang pick them up if they wish to go outside the caves!

>>13873568
>strut everywhere

>>13868234
>you are now aware that your post contains the phrase 'strap on cocks'
>you are now aware that apostrophes can do good as well as evil
>that is all

>>13873597
Indeed.
The only tihng I find funnier than this concept of a large bat-man strutting around, is its society to have a "Ministry of silly walks", a la monty python, dedicated to researching the outsiders travel methods.

>>13873578
We can haz?

Vampires remember who you are from the sound of your breathing!

http://www.biomedcentral.com/1741-7007/4/18/

Between the garish, colorful and textured clothes and
>strut everywhere
the mental image of a kalang adventurer looking like a be-goggled batpimp is just too amusing to let pass.

>>13873670
Possible. What kind of stuff would people want though? I was toying with writing up some sort of generic dungeon crawl experience from the viewpoint of a Kalang, but I don't want to subtract from this thread if people don't want that.

>>13873707
all the other PC's are going OPERATOR, the Kalang goes for a nice walk and nips off to visit his family for a quick meal?

>>13873707
Something endearing from our point of a view b/c of kalang's close-friendship-making habits/naivete about life in city?

Anti-grimdark, basically.

Hmm... alright, I have two ideas in mind. One is more passive, the other is more adventurous. Seeing as the moods seems to go toward the former, I'll try creating some sort of naive city-piece for Kalak first.

Also, I just thought of something. Its said the Kalang are a communual species, preferring eachothers company rather than isolation- but what about their punishments to those who break the rules? I would imagine that if a Kalang commits some sort of immense crime, such as murdering many of his kin without good reason but simply to kill them, the highest punishment of the Kalang would be given to them- he would be deafened.

Blocked from the "Song of Creation" itself, this is a fate considered worse than death for most Kalang, as being deafened (usually view two spikes being driven into the ears, bursting eardrums, etc) actually strips them of their hearing AND sight, causing most of those afflicted to go insane from the torment of true silence.

Thoughts?

If there's one wish I have for this, so far, great creation, is that some neckbeard doesn't overly anthropocize (not sure if word) the females into looking like a human with wings. People seem to make the females into what they would find attractive to their human senses.
These Kalang females need to be functional for their purpose, ie. no human tits or the typical X race female look. They would need to be attractive for the Kalang senses.
If they are more sound based than visual, perhaps the females possess beautiful voices and such.

>>13873827

That would serve as a very good analogy to the medieval punishments of poking out eyes. Though, being so socially connected, would there be any chance for the Kalang to be more empathic to other's needs and possibly more... "progressive" in their punishments, because they -feel- bad for hurting others? Minor crimes might deserve a fine, and more serious crimes might go with enforced isolation, tying someone down in the car corner of the cave for a few days, for example.

But then again, being so socially organized, there might be a greater need for normalizing sanctions. Because they want a working society, they need to severely punish disruptive individuals to make a point. ... Then again, that wouldn't be so different form the society you and I live in.

>>13872665
Holy shit. Are you a pro? That is some killer art, I'm kind of shocked no one has commented on it.

>>13874028

My thoughts exactly. Maybe we where all so stunned by it, words weren't enough for some people?

>>13874167
I'm certainly speechless.

>>13870495
>>13870523
>>13870537
Excellent work, old sport.

>>13872665
>I'll color it later today
>color

Oh hell yes. This just gets even better.

I've been thinking how the other

Okay, in my setting Kalang were discovered during some tunnel making, started out agressive, but got good treatment and some support from the main empire because they are a pain to fight and poison/destructive magic would drop the tunnel down or render it useless for a while.
The first messenger who could go inside their kingdom was deaf , because nobody could approach half a kilometer diameter of the city as the sound started to be too loud. The messenger went insane after returning anyway.
There is a huge drow city underneath and they also have a peace treaty with Kalang recently in order not to be found.

I doing it right?

>>13874565
>drow
>peace treaty

...free food?

Oh /tg/, you've still got it. I don't know how those few can bitch we've gone bad when we still regularly produce stuff like this.

Oops, sorry guys, I was working in the Embrace-of-Night and fell asleep (hurr).

I'm gonna do just another god (besides Embrace) and then I can play around with rituals and festivities if you want to.

Embrace-of-Night: Motherly goddess
The Mother is depicted as a Kalang with the fur black and gigantic wings (often multiple ones), as if able to embrace every Kalang.

She is the mate of the Crowned one, and is said to be the one who puts the souls of the to-be-born Ka inside the bodies of their mothers. So the communities pray and bring offerings to her (she usually accepts sweets and other "craving foods") for a healthy and multiple offsprings.

The Mother is the patron of every Family aspect in the Kalang culture: She's the one who allow lovers to find each other in the First Autunm Flight; the one that blesses the pregnancies and childlabor; and the one who first taught the "Ayegi"(the raising of the young) to the bat-folk.

But motherly duty isn't the only aspect of Embrace-of-Night. Her name is often whispered by every Kalang before their sleep (and if they can, before their last breath), for she's the goddess that protects the Ka with her long, dark wings, bringing comfort and warmth. And Kalangs warriors who use her wings as a second pair of their own, fighting in the dark, also bring her name to their lips.

Her followers are called "Wide-Winged", and they are often females (the ratio difference is not too big, something about 6:4). They wear a silver ring in their nose, and are normally the leaders or important advisors in their communities, organizing festivities, hibernations, and migrations.

>>13874833
>I fell asleep
Fitting. But seriously, nice work.

Last one, unless someone thinks of another god for me to do.

Choir-of-Creation: "Embodiment" of the Song of Creation
Although it is said that the Great Silence comes for every Kalang, his cruel talons aren't necessarily the last destination for the departed soul. If he or she can muster the strenght and the will to leave his or her body before it is devoured by the Elder Owl, he or she will eventually join the Choir-of-Creation.

The Choir are formed by the souls of their dead ancestors, and every new Ka adds his voice in singing the Song of Creation, now part of the past, present and future of the Kalang.

Altough the Choir isn't really a god per se, many Ka wishes to dedicate their lifes to the writing and recording of songs and legends, and are blessed by their ancestors and encouraged their peers to follow such path. The "Many-Voiced", as they are called, fill their wings with tatoos which retell the begining of the Song of Creation, and many other stories from their Family. They work as teachers, and they are the ones reponsible with the naming of the children,

>>13875030
And you, my friend, have certainly earned your place in the choir.

bumping to prevent thread death

bump

Bumpan for awesome. I love you, /tg/.

>>13876616
I think we just found our Cleric illustration. even got the hands right.

>>13876634
No, no, hands are still wrong.... just two digits, not three.

Sttating them up for 4e...what is their language called?

>>13877093
The good sound?

>>13877093
well, we've set that "Ka" means "bat" in their tongue, so it ought to begin with that... Ka... hm... Kateca. I like the sound of that. Ka-teca - Bat-song.

late-comer here.

You know, I've always thought that bats are a creature with potential. They're relatively young, and are already highly successful and diversified. I wouldnt be surprised to see large arboreal monkey-bats and aquatic penguin-bats a couple million years down the line. or giant arm-walking blind predatory bats

>>13877317
>giant arm-walking predatory bats
That's where I got the Kamazotzl image.
>>13869896

>>13877317
Kalang would love aquatic campaigns, at least once they have water-breathing spells cast on them. They'd be able to swim quite well, and sound works much better underwater than it does in the air.

>>13877420
yeah, but sound travels faster and farther in water than it does air, so it might take a bit of time to adjust to the changes, otherwise, their auditory depth-perception would be all screwy as things would seem to be in different places than where they really were.

one more bump.

Would Kalang suffer a penalty to attempting to wield two-handed weapons that weren't meant for them? I have a hard time imagining one swinging around a greatsword.

>>13878256
I can't really picture them handling two-handed weapons at all.

>>13878343
A fighting style that restricts flight? Not a good idea.

Should we start a new thread?

>>13878688
Sure, why not. This one's borderlining autosage. You start it, you linkback to here.

New thread
>>13878874
>>13878874