Races of Wild

CHAPTER 5PRESTIGECLASSES124spellcaster before, you remain one. If you were a skilledmelee combatant before, you still are now. Do not expecta level or two in ruathar to change the way you handleyourself in a fight. Remember, though—elves don’t oftenseek out unnecessary fights, and it never hurts to ask yourselfwhether an act of stealth, subterfuge, or spellcastingmight achieve the same result as a battle, but with muchless risk.AdvancementAs a ruathar, you are not expected to abandon your previouscalling and try to be something you are not. You shouldcontinue to hone whatever skills or talents you previouslypossessed. If you were a fighter before you became a ruathar,you should continue to choose feats that support your owncombat style or help to shore up your weaknesses. If you werea wizard, you should continue to pursue knowledge of spellsin your favored schools of magic and search out arcane loreuseful in your chosen quests.While the ruathar class abilities offer few specific advancementpaths, the class slightly favors multiclass characters,who find the combination of a good base attack bonus andgood spellcasting advancement useful. If all you have (otherthan your ruathar levels) are levels in fighter or some othernonspellcasting class, you are not gaining the full benefitthe ruathar class offers. Consider picking up a level of aspellcasting class, even if you otherwise might not havedone so.The ruathar class also offers some attractive benefits forcharacters who are good at stealth and detection. While theclass does not provide a great number of skill points, its classskills are useful ones such as Hide, Search, and Spot. In addition,the low-light vision and elfwise abilities are very usefulfor characters such as halflings or humans who otherwisedon’t see well in the dark.ResourcesA ruathar can live among the elves as long as he likes, buthe will be expected to be as self-sufficient and responsibleas any other member of the community. A ruathar caneven bring nonelf guests into an elf community, and theelves will respect the ruathar’s judgment as to the intentionsand discretion of his comrades (although the ruatharmust answer for his poor judgment as any other elf would,should his trust prove to be misplaced). A ruathar cancertainly purchase or trade for minor magic items, elvenitems, spellcasting services, and other such useful objectsif he so chooses.Ruathars in distress can count on whatever aid the elvescan muster, without expectation of repayment. Of course,ruathars who require rescuing more than once or twice, orwho ask for help when it isn’t clearly needed, could conceivablywear out their welcome—but the elves don’t makeelf-friends of the sorts of people who would abuse their trust,and so the question “How much is too much?” simply doesn’tcome up.RUATHARS IN THE WORLDElf-friends are generally found in and around elf settlements,as one might expect. Any nonelf who spends a lot of time nearelves might be a ruathar, although in truth real elf-friendsare very rare indeed.Ruathars who don’t actually live among elves often serveas elven eyes and voices in other lands. For example, a humancleric who happens to be an elf-friend keeps her eyes openfor news that might interest elves, and certainly reports anydangers she discovers in her travels. If need be, a ruatharspeaks on behalf of his elf friends, representing their viewsin the courts of human nobles or the throne halls of dwarvenclan-fathers. Most ruathars would not presume to committheir friends to dangerous or distasteful courses of action,but if some matter must be decided, the ruathar can give ananswer, and the elves will give his words the same weightthey would give to their own.OrganizationNo real organization of ruathars exists. Each ruathar isa unique individual, and the majority of ruathars know noother elf-friends. (The elves themselves know many ruathars,of course.) Sometimes, small orders or bands of trustworthyelf allies—for example, the rangers of a particular forest,a druid circle, or an elite order of eldritch knights from anearby human realm—may include a number of ruathars,all of whom have rendered great service to elvenkind. Anycharacter belonging to such a group is likely to be treatedas an elf-friend himself, even if he has not formally beennamed as such.NPC ReactionsRuathars have chosen to stand with the elves, for better orworse. Those who befriend elves befriend ruathars; those whoare enemies to elves are also enemies to ruathars.Naturally, any elf who meets a ruathar is inclined to beeither friendly or helpful toward the character, unless theelf is devoted to evil—in which case he likely looks on theruathar as an insolent dog who crudely mimics the ways ofthe elf people.Rangers and good-aligned bards or druids also lookfavorably upon a ruathar. They know that anyone who hasearned so much trust from the elf people must be a staunchdefender of good and a potential ally in the fight againstevil. Dwarves tend to be suspicious of a ruathar and wonderwhat the character sees in the carefree, lazy lifestyle thatelves embrace.Orcs, goblins, and other humanoids who hate elves alsodespise ruathar. A ruathar would be wise to avoid falling intotheir hands.RUATHAR LORECharacters with the Knowledge (geography) or Knowledge(local) skills can research the ruathars to learn more aboutthem. When a character makes a skill check, read or para-