# Races with bonuses to Int/Cha



## malichai (Jan 2, 2005)

What are some races that provide the largest bonuses to intelligence and charisma? If there are few bonus abilities and big hits to strength and/or con to keep the ECL down that's even better. Any sourcebooks are fine, or even a nice post. Humanoid preferably. I'm mostly looking for some framework to use as a base for a human-ish one-off magic/psionic experiment character that's incredibly intelligent and insightful whilst weak and/or slow.


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## Nightfall (Jan 2, 2005)

Assimar is about the only one I know with Wis and Int.


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## Lonely Tylenol (Jan 2, 2005)

They're remarkably reluctant to give racial bonuses to casting stats.  I think this says something about how balanced R&D thinks spellcasting is compared to melee combat.

Regardless, there are a few.  Gold elves and deep imaskari from Forgotten Realms, aasimars and grey elves from the SRD, dromites and blues from the expanded psionics handbook.  I'm sure there are more.


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## Mouseferatu (Jan 2, 2005)

I think one of the reasons for the relative dearth of races with Int bonuses is because it steps on the toes of the humans.

Humans have two major race-related abilities: A bonus feat, and one extra skill point/level. A race with +2 Int gets... one extra skill point/level, after you do the math. *Plus* bonuses to all Int-based skills, plus bonuses to spellcasting.

I haven't givne it much thought, so I'm not sure which side of the line I come down on. But I think an argument could be made that Int is much like Str, in as much as it probably needs two stats (or some other penalty) to balance out a bonus.


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## Storyteller01 (Jan 2, 2005)

From FFG's Mythic Races

Artathi (Puma): +2 Int, +2 Cha, -2 Con
Medium Critter
+2 hide and move silently (+6 in high grass or thick forest)
+6 Balance 
+2 Dodge
Claws (1d6)
No ECL adjustment
Favored Class: Sorcorer


Noimus: +2 Int, +2 Cha, -2 Str
Medium Critter
Fly 50 (Average) [Wings]
Cold Res 5
+2 Jump
+2 search and spot
ECL: +2
Favored Class: Wizard


There are several that give a bonus to one orthe other, but these are te only ones I have found that give a bonus to both.

Note: The first one (I'm guessing) doesn't have an ECL because of it's social status. They control from the shadows, but have no obvious power in politics or religion.


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## Thanee (Jan 2, 2005)

Star Elves from UE give +2 to Cha (and have +0 LA).

Bye
Thanee


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## Merlion (Jan 2, 2005)

> They're remarkably reluctant to give racial bonuses to casting stats. I think this says something about how balanced R&D thinks spellcasting is compared to melee combat





I think it says more about how bound they are by convention than anything else.

There actually are quite a few races with mental ability score bonuses, but not many that arent either very strange, or with high ECLs




> I think one of the reasons for the relative dearth of races with Int bonuses is because it steps on the toes of the humans





Thats probably somewhat true as well.


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## Crosshair (Jan 2, 2005)

Fey/Pixies, but that will give you quite a LA(+4, if you're a sorcerer and don't have Otto's irresistable dance), But they do get some big boosts, as well as greater invisibility and flying:Makes them very good for spellcasting.

Gray Elf in the Monster Manual(Very similar to Half-Elf)
+2 INT/-2 STR (Playing one right now, as a Variant Sorcerer)
+2 gather info/diplomacy
+1 Spot/Search
Favored Class:Any


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## Diirk (Jan 3, 2005)

Is that a 3.0 gray elf ? I never played 3.0, so not sure... maybe you just misread the entry for them in the 3.5 MM ? It says as per high elf, not half elf  So nix the skill point and favoured class stuff you have there, they're exactly the same as normal elves, except they have the +2 int, -2 strength IN ADDITION to the +2 dex, -2 con and other relevant elven modifiers.


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## Gez (Jan 3, 2005)

No, gray elves, be they 3e or 3.5., have always been like high elves except with the additional ability modifiers of -2 Str, +2 Int.

Crosshair probably missread the "These traits are in addition to the *high elf* traits" part as "These traits are in addition to the *half-elf* traits."


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## LiKral (Jan 3, 2005)

I actually think that the designers thought that mental bonuses are too weak, not too powerful, and that is why they rarely give them to any races. Think about the way that Strength is meant to  be worth 2 mental penalties to the half-orc.


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## Merlion (Jan 3, 2005)

well certainly a mental-stat bonus is going to be useful to less classes, as far as their actuall class abilities go.

A Str bonus is a big thing for a Fighter, Paladin, Ranger, Monk, Rogue, regardless of specfic focus. Likewise with Dex, and Con especially is very useful to all classes.

But take Int for example...skill stuff aside, as far as actual class abilities the only class it benefits is Wizard. And it gives you more skill points, which is very nice but from a combat perspective, mostly not that important.

Wisdom is only super big for Clerics and Druids, and also of slightly less importance to rangers, druids and monks. 

Cha only effects the class abilities of sorcerers, bards and paladins.


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