Cervitaur

"It is always possible the records are incomplete."

- Proverb of the Azurejays, Scholar-Knights of San Sylvester

This article is incomplete and will require additional work.

Cervitaur, alongside the Minotaur and Centaur, make up one of the three most common races in the Confederacy of Sages. Smaller than the centaur, their close cousins, the Cervitaur are a race with humanoid upper bodies and the lower bodies of deer.

Appearance

Cervitaurs' humanoid upper bodies exhibit a complexion ranging from golden through brown. A form of inverse freckling is common, as is the ordinary sort of freckling (particularly among the lighter-skinned examples of the species). Cervitaur also appear to bear similarities to a variety of different cervid species.

Cervitaur males develop annual racks of antlers which are shed at the onset of winter. Traditionally these antlers are used for sparring and courtship rituals, but owing to their entanglable nature and direct connection to the skull and scalp are not favoured in mortal combat.

Variants

While most cervitaur hail from the western and central Lordless Lands, Bastonian sailors in the north report rare sightings of cervitaur-like beings more akin to moose, the Inaaki.

History

Cervitaur history is the history of the Confederacy of Sages. It is said to have been a cervitaur ancestor, Mayaa Hapathea, who called the first Convocation of Sages and promulgated the Great Law among the Minotaur, Centaur, and Cervitaur, effectively founding the confederacy. The cervitaur are also responsible for the promulgation of much of the Confederacy's knowledge of astronomy and astrology.

Habitat and Society

Within the Confederacy of Sages, the Cervitaur tribes favour woodland areas, forming travelling tribal groups of several connected families.

Statblock for Pathfinder 1st Edition

As the cervitaur are not an established creature type within Pathfinder, let alone a playable race, it was necessary to create one.

--Under Construction--

Cervitaur in Pathfinder Second Edition

• Hit Points 6
• Size Large
• Speed 35 Feet
• Ability Boosts: Dexterity, Wisdom, Free
• Ability Flaw: Constitution
• Languages: Common, Sylvan
• Bonus Languages (Equal to intelligence modifier) Celestial, Orcish, Firbolg, Minotaur
• Traits: Quadruped, Cervitaur
• Taur Anatomy: Though you are a large creature, the proportions of your body is such that you have the torso, arms, and strength of a medium humanoid. Cervitaur fight with medium weapons and shields, and must wear armour with the Taur type.

Cervitaur Heritages

Inaaki

You dwell in the lands far across the nothern sea. The winter is as much in your soul as the growing years are in the souls of your southern cousins. You gain incredible resiliency amongst cold, including cold resistance equal to half your level, minimum 1. You treat environmental cold effects as if they were one step less extreme.

Starlight Cervitaur

Your family makes up the tribes that frequent the plains around star rock, and the gift of foresight and love of the stars is in your blood. You have an inborn ability to detect and understand magical phenomena of all kinds. You can cast the detect magic cantrip as an arcane innate spell at will. Such a cantrip is heightened to a spell level equal to half your level, rounded up.

In addition, you gain a +1 circumstance bonus to checks to Identify Magic and to decipher writing of a magical nature. These skill actions typically rely on the Arcana, Nature, Occultism, or Religion skills.

Woodland Cervitaur

You are of a proud race of your kind and live among the tall and unspoiled coastal woods of western Wisteria. You can always use the Take Cover action when you are within forest terrain to gain cover, even if you're not next to an obstacle you can normally Take Cover behind. You are versed in the wildness of such places and gain a +2 circumstance to subsisting via the survival skill in woodlands, regardless of seasons.

Moonlight Cervitaur

The tides of the moon of Ahren pull firmly on your soul, and you and your people have spent their lives herding and gathering in the twilight, and the long hours of the night. You've developed the low-light vision ability.

Cervitaur Feats

1st Level

• Cervitaur Lore: You have studied the traditional arts and culture of the cervitaur, learning the ways of nature and the world around you. You gain the trained proficiency rank in Nature and Survival. If you would become trained in one of these skills automatically (via class or background), you instead become trained in an alternative skill of your choice. You also become trained in Cervitaur Lore.
• Cervitaur Weapon Familiarity: you become trained in shortbows, composite shortbows, spears, javalins, and slings.
• Fleetness of the Stag: You are faster than any hart, and twice as clever. Your speed increases by 5 feet.
• Voice of Nature: You gain a supernatural rapport with an animal, which becomes magically bonded to you. You gain a familiar using the rules on page 217 of the Core Rulebook.
• Soul of Ahren: Your soul is close to the nature from which you sprung. Choose one cantrip from the primal spell list. You can cast this spell as a primal innate spell at will. A cantrip is heightened to a spell level equal to half your level, rounded up.

5nd Level

• Tongue of the Wild: For you, animal noises are more than merely half-intelligible. You can speak to all animals. You gain a +1 cirumstance bonus to make an impression on animals. (Prerequisite: Voice of Nature)
• Animal Magnetism: You are half-natural and half-fay, but fully yourself. You can manifest this force to become more appealing or alluring, allowing you to cast charm as a natural innate spell once per day.

9th Level

• Nature's Adept: Your connection to the soul of Ahren and the underlying secrets of nature is all the stronger. You gain Barkskin and Tree's Shape as second-level primal innate spells. You can cast each of these primal innate spells once per day. (Prerequiste: Soul of Ahren)
• Hartspring: You move in a graceful and lithe fashion. Step 5 twice.

13th Level

• Stag's Stealth: You move at your full speed when you use the sneak action, and you no longer need to have cover or greater cover to be concealed in order to Hide or Sneak. This only works in natural environments such as plains, forests, and mountains, and not in urban environments, caves, or at sea. (Prerequisite: Fleetness of the Stag)