One of the most important traits an entity can have in Realm of Runes is its creature type. Large numbers of options, be they feats or spells, reference a creature type to help determine when it functions at all or exclude potential targets. While it has great importance from a mechanical perspective, it's perhaps even more important from a story and world-building standpoint. Whether creating your own custom creatures, or making use of pre-generated ones from an adventure or Menagerie, understanding creature types plays a pivotal role in making encounters feel fleshed-out and alive.
This week we conclude our exploration of creature types in Realm of Runes. This entry is a more direct continuation from last two weeks than other entries, so it will probably be helpful to check out parts one and two first if you haven't yet had the chance. Without further ado, let's jump right in.
HUMANOID
Humanoid is the trait assigned to creatures that share a similar interior and exterior biology to humans, even if the ancestry in question collectively predates the rise of humanity. Indeed, older civilizations of dwarves and elves often resent being referred to as humanoids. The speed with which human civilizations expand and dominate their surroundings tends to overwhelm this preference, however. Non-human scholars stubbornly use different terms for this creature type, typically referencing their own sub-type. With the exception of the generalized "anthropoid" term, these other monikers don't generally catch on, and many simply use "anthropoid" to refer to the collection of humanoids and goblinoids together.
Like goblinoids, humanoids tend to be defined by their choices and experience rather than any unified strengths and weaknesses. Humans, in particular, tend to lead relatively short lives that are often ended by violence or neglect, and can easily be out-lived many times over by some of the more ancient humanoid ancestries. No humanoid ancestries are naturally immortal, however, and all humanoids will eventually die of old age unless they are able to individually discover the secret to immortality.
Most species of humanoids lack universal special abilities, which makes this category especially useful for player character ancestries. Dwarves, elves, gnomes, halflings and humans represent humanoids this way in the core rules, and other types will surely make their debuts when additional rules supplements are released. When using humanoids as a GM, therefore, it is recommended to use the NPC creation rules variant of monster creation instead of treating humanoids like typical monsters.
Humanoids, much like their goblinoid cousins, are frequently defined by their cultures. As such, those that are at least trained with the Society skill can always use that skill as a Knowledge Specialty when attempting to identify humanoids.
INSECT
Insects share many qualities in common with animals, but are sufficiently different to warrant their own creature type. Like animals, insects cannot have an intelligence modifier greater than -4, although most insects are further limited to a modifier of -6 or lower. Insects that somehow gain greater than animal intelligence always change their creature type to beast. Insects do now usually have common special abilities as a creature type, but often do on a species level.
As arthropods, insects tend to be easily recognizable by their tendency to have more than four legs. Four, eight, and even more absurd numbers are common among insect kind. These large numbers of legs make insects very difficult to use combat maneuvers like Trip and Shove against, and also make their carrying capacities incredibly huge. Insects are difficult to train, but they make for extremely versatile animal minions if they can be tamed.
Insects typically cannot understand and use language as most humanoids know it, but they nonetheless have vocal and non-vocal means of communicating simple concepts with others of the same species. Some magic can allow characters to bridge this communication gulf, perhaps allowing diplomacy and understanding to avoid conflict with unfamiliar insects. Many gnomes are so innately in tune with the natural world that they learn to communicate using these natural sounds directly.
This creature type is commonly associated with the natural world. As such, those that are at least trained with the Nature skill can always treat that skill as a Knowledge Specialty when attempting to identify insects.
OOZE
Amorphous blobs of protoplasm, or other animated substances, oozes lack a physical structure entirely, yet are not incorporeal. How this category of beings came to exist in the first place is not well known, and is the subject of philosophical and scientific debate. One theory suggests oozes are the result of poorly contained experiments in creating alchemical life. Alchemists, in return, tend to point to the many creatures that only exist because of the meddling of wizards. Other popular theories include divine curses or giant bacteria. Regardless of how much truth any of these theories possess, oozes remain dangerous to all other life.
Most oozes are mindless and amorphous and, as blobs of material, completely lack weak points to exploit. All oozes are immune to precision damage, such as Sneak Attacks, and the best result attacks against them can have is success, making them effectively immune to critical hits. They tend to be slow, and thus typically act as ambush predators. Perhaps the most frightening aspect of oozes is their ability to split into multiple different copies of the same ooze when subjected to certain types of damage. The types of damage that cause splitting varies from species to species, which can make even fighting these creatures dangerous if it is not certain which kind you have encountered.
Ooze "bodies" tend to be highly acidic in order to break down prey, which only adds to the difficulty of dealing with them. Unarmed attacks against an ooze will frequently deal acid damage back to the attacker, and weapons used against them break with alarming rapidity. The safest way to deal with an ooze is to out-run it, use magic from a distance, or make use of stainless steel equipment that is impervious to their acidic residue. Even using stainless steel can be tricky, as while the gear is protected, being so close to an ooze is likely to leave the wielder completely engulfed and dissolved even while the gear survives.
This creature type is strange, and possibly even man-made through obscure experiments. As such, those that are at least trained in Occultism can always use that skill as a Knowledge Specialty when attempting to identify oozes.
OUTSIDER
Outsider is a collective trait belonging to creatures that are native to planes other than the material plane, and all outsiders possess another creature type trait in addition to this trait. Because a large number of different creature types fall under this umbrella, simply knowing a creature is an outsider does not give a strong indication of what tactics might be appropriate. The exception to this rule of thumb is magic or other options that specifically work (or don't work) against creatures that come from different planes.
Despite their diversity, all outsiders share one thing in common: their body and their soul are a unit, and indivisible. A slain outsider is destroyed forever, and its essence is permanently lost. This causes many outsiders to desperately fear being killed, even if normally immortal, and outsiders can be especially dangerous if they feel in mortal peril. Some more powerful outsiders are able to hide a portion of their body-soul on their home plane as an insurance policy against death, and can use this stashed essence as a seed with which to regrow themselves later. This can make dealing with outsiders permanently somewhat tricky, as it is extremely difficult to tell if one has been defeated for good or merely delayed and angered.
Most outsiders' extra-planar nature causes them to resist physical damage. If an outsider's plane is associated with a damage type, the outsider is typically immune to that damage. If that damage type has an opposite, it's a pretty good bet that they will be weak to that damage type as well. As with most details about outsiders, however, these rules of thumb are not always applicable and an adventurer should use caution when encountering an unknown outsider.
Because outsiders are not a creature type by themselves, there is not one specific skill that can be used as a Knowledge Specialty for identifying them. Instead, outsiders use the Knowledge Specialties associated with their other creature types. For example, an angel could be identified using Religion while an elemental would instead use Nature.
PLANT
While most plants are stationary things that are easy to avoid or cultivate, plant creatures are surprisingly dangerous. Their size and mobility typically requires them to seek out sources of nutrition besides light and soil, and many of them are big enough to prey on humanoids. Plant creatures are most often solitary beings, unlike the collectivism of fungi, and few develop complex societies. Those that do have societies are typically secretive and secluded, and few other than experienced druids are ever allowed to observe or participate
It seems logical to assume that plants are weak to the burning power of fire, but this is a dangerous assumption to make. Some are indeed weak to that element, but many have evolved resistance to this natural foe, and some even use its burning power in their reproductive cycle. Knowing which type of plant creature has been encountered is critically important, lest an unwary adventurer discover a foe impossible to overcome, and spreading.
Plant creatures always have natural regeneration, making them extremely difficult to kill without the right tools. Most plant regeneration can be suppressed by acid or fire damage, though sometimes more obscure damage types are required. Many plants are able to subsist partially or entirely on the power of photosynthesis. Those that rely on meat can often go for extremely long durations between feeding, and tend to act as ambush or lure predators when they do.
This creature type is commonly associated with the natural world. As such, those that are at least trained with the Nature skill can always use that skill as a Knowledge Specialty when attempting to identify plants.
PROTEAN
Outsiders from the chaotic plane, proteans are very difficult to pin down. Most can change form at will, and do so regularly for no particular reason. Worse, each new form radically changes a protean’s abilities to new ones entirely, making being prepared against them an almost futile endeavor. The one constant when it comes to proteans is their strong desire to remain entirely unfettered in thought and deed. They cannot abide order or consistency, and should not be expected to hold to any bargains if called by a spellcaster over the long term.
As being composed of pure alignment energy, most proteans have physical resistance, and many further resist other types of energy damage as well. Which other damage types a protean resists can change rapidly over the course of moments, which makes repeating tactics against them frustrating. All proteans have a weakness to lawful damage. Some that hail from the regions of the chaotic plane where it metaphysically overlaps with the good or evil plane might also resist and be weak to those opposites, but this is comparatively rare.
Proteans can be tricky to use effectively as a GM, as their chaotic nature can easily be confused for sheer randomness. Like the alignment they are composed from, chaotic does not translate to such insanity, but flightiness and sudden mood swings should be expected. Proteans often refrain from planning ahead, and whether an encounter is friendly or hostile will often depend on the whims of the moment.
This creature type is commonly associated with chaotic deities. As such, those that are at least trained with the Religion skill can always use that skill as a Knowledge Specialty when attempting to identify proteans.
SWARM
Many creatures that are otherwise too small or too weak to be threatening become suddenly dangerous if encountered in a swarm. Such large groups gain the swarm trait in addition to their typical traits, and swarms are usually the only creatures that have more than one size category, possessing both the size of the swarm itself and its constituent creatures. Swarms use the overall size to determine its space on a battlefield, but use the size of the individuals for determining any other effects like creature bulk or bonus damage.
Because a swarm is a threat thanks exclusively to the sheer quantity included, all swarms are immune to effects that target a specific number of creatures. This immunity even extends to weapon attacks. This can make swarms extremely difficult for unprepared groups, but those that can take advantage of their weakness to area of effect and splash damage tend to have an easier time dealing with them. Swarms have very limited action economy, and generally cannot use reactions like Attack of Opportunity or do anything with their turns in combat other than to move over targets and damage them in the process.
As with giant and outsider, swarm is not a unique trait. Instead, swarm is applied where needed to other creature types. In this way, identifying a swarm can be helpful for recognizing the overall behavior of the encounter, but offers little in the way of recognizing what additional dangers may be present. For example, a swarm of venomous insects might deal additional poison damage, while a swarm of leeches might instead deal devastating amounts of bleed damage. Even creatures that are big enough to act alone behave very differently if in a swarm, as in the case of zombie swarms.
Because swarms are not a creature type by themselves, there is not one particular skill that can be relied upon as a Knowledge Specialty for identifying them. Instead, swarms use the Knowledge Specialties of their constituent creatures. A swarm of rats would use Nature, since they're animals, while a swarm of tiny demons would instead require Religion.
UNDEAD
Undead are twisted essences of souls that have died, cursed to remain in the mortal world and powered by the essence of negative energy. Undead are most typically classified by how they died, or how they were brought back. From mindless zombies, to alluring vampires and cunning liches, undead are as diverse as the life that their very being mocks. For many creatures, the undead creature type functions more as an added template than a unique creature type. When creating an undead, it can be helpful to preserve the natural abilities and quirks of the living creature when developing the undead version, making each individual undead of a type essentially a unique expression of tragic circumstance.
Most undead are evil or unaligned, and bear only a hunger for, or antipathy toward, the living. In rare cases, spirits might stay behind out of powerful love for those that remain, which can cause good undead. Even these, however, tend to become corrupted and malevolent if they persist for too long or those they stayed behind for abandon them or pass on themselves.
While undead do not have any common resistances or weaknesses, they are all alike in their lack of a living body. They are uniformly harmed by positive damage, healed by negative damage, and immune to disease and poison. Even though many retain echoes of the mind they once possessed, undead are nonetheless also commonly immune to mental interference like fear, making them difficult to fool or distract.
This creature type is commonly associated with religious traditions, and many undead have complicated relationships with consecrated or desecrated spaces. As such, those that are at least trained with Religion can always use that skill as a Knowledge Specialty when attempting to identify undead.
Creature types are important for keeping diversity in the universe, while also giving guidelines for how characters can interact with challenges. Knowing what spells, items and feats work where, and which skills can be used for identification, keeps some options relevant without being necessarily overly powerful. Next week we'll start looking more closely at the pantheon of Realm of Runes, and each of the individual deities included for use in the core rules.
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