Noble Cheetah

The cheetah is a large and powerful feline renowned for their immense speed when in a chase; capable of reaching speeds of more than 60mph for short periods of time.
Cheetahs have a long and slender body that is covered in coarse yellowish fur and dotted with small black spots. It’s long tail helps with balance and changing direction quickly and unlike the rest of the Cheetah’s body, there are ringed markings along the tail which ends in a black tip. Cheetahs have small heads with high set eyes that aid them when surveying the surrounding grasslands for potential prey. They also have distinctive black “tear marks” that run from the inner eye, along their nose and down to the outside of their mouths, which are thought to help protect them from being blinded by the bright sun. The exceptional speed of the Cheetah is caused by a number of things including having strong and powerful hind legs, and an incredibly flexible and muscular spine which allows the Cheetah to not only sprint quickly but also makes them very agile. They also have non-retractable claws which dig into the ground, giving the Cheetah better grip at high speed.

The adult cheetah weighs from 46 to 160 pounds. Its total head-and-body length is from 43 to 59 inches, while the tail can measure 24 to 33 inches in length. Cheetahs are 26 to 37 inches tall at the shoulder. Males tend to be slightly larger than females and have slightly bigger heads, but there is not a great variation in cheetah sizes and it is difficult to tell males and females apart by appearance alone. Compared to a similarly sized leopard, the cheetah is generally shorter-bodied, but is longer tailed and taller (it averages about 35 inches tall) and so it appears more streamlined.

Species Descriptions

Noble cheetahs are as far removed from other noble cats as they can be and still be considered feline. Their most outstanding feature, their speed, is a source of great racial pride. They sometimes have a tendency to look down their snouts at creatures that are slower than they are; and that includes every land animal in nature. They also guard their speed against those who don’t “deserve” it. This is why, even to a trusted friend, a noble cheetah spellcaster granting the sprint boon will always make it slightly weaker than the ability granted to noble cheetahs themselves.

Noble Cheetah Species Traits

  • Ability Score Modifiers: +4 Dexterity.
  • Size: Small.
  • Size Threshold: 3rd Hit Die.
  • Base Speed: 40 ft.
  • Natural Weapons: Bite (1d4), and 2 claws (1d2).
  • Senses: Low-light vision (Ex), scent (Ex).
  • Natural Talent Track: Improved Initiative, Weapon Finesse.
  • Skills: +4 racial bonus Stealth checks when in areas of tall grass.
  • Family: Mammal.
  • Noble Animal Type: Noble cheetahs have the noble animal type except where superseded by other species traits and features.
  • Social Group: None.
  • Automatic Languages: Feline and High Fauna.
  • Bonus Languages: Bat, Camel, Canine, Common, Crocodilian, Elephant, Equine, Herdspeak, Hyena, Lizard, Monitor, Raptor, Rodent, Serpent, Simian, Songbird, Ursine, and Woodland.

Noble Cheetah Class

Hit Die: d8

Class Skills

The noble cheetah’s class skills are Perception (Wis), Stealth (Dex), Survival (Wis).

Skill Ranks Per Level: 2 + Int modifier.

Table: Noble Cheetah
Level Base Attack Bonus Fort Save Ref Save Will Save Special
1st +0 +2 +2 +0 Ability increase (Dex +2), sprint
2nd +1 +3 +3 +0 Ability increase (Dex +2, Con +2), speed increase +10
3rd +2 +3 +3 +1 Ability increase (Dex +2, Str +2), trip, natural armor +1, negative level

Class Features

All of the following are class features of the noble cheetah class.

Ability Increase

At each level your Dexterity score increases by +2. At 2nd level your Constitution increases by +2. At 3rd level your Strength increases by +2.

Sprint (Ex)

At 1st level, you gain the Sprint ability. Once per hour, you can move ten times your normal speed when you make a charge.

Speed Increase

At 2nd level your Base Speed increases by 10 ft.

Trip (Ex)

At 3rd level, you gain the Trip special attack. If you hit with a bite or claw attack you can attempt to trip your opponent (+3 check modifier) as a free action without provoking an attack of opportunity. If the attempt fails, you are not tripped in return.

Natural Armor

At 3rd level you gain a +1 Natural Armor bonus.

Negative Level

At 3rd level, you gain a permanent negative level, similar to the ones gained through growth. If the hit points you gain for achieving 3rd level, minus the penalty for this negative level, equals zero or less, then you gain one hit point for 3rd level. This negative level can never be lost or removed, even through the use of magic. If this negative level coincides with a negative level gained by reaching a size threshold, the penalties all stack, but you will still gain at least one hit point.

Section 15: Copyright Notice

The Noble Wild. Copyright 2009 by Lee Garvin and Skirmisher Publishing LLC.

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