Cave Dweller (Barbarian Archetype)
(Art by Gell4 on Deviantart)
Caves are pretty awesome all things considered. For one they are full of fascinating geological formations, and they serve a major role in providing habitats for all manner of creatures, including humanity during our earliest days. Indeed, the same is probably true of many fantasy races as well, not to mention the many that typically spend most of their lives underground in whatever trademarked name for what is essentially the Hollow Earth you choose to explore in your games.
Whether they belong to a culture that is adapted to the tunnels, or simply chose to never develop architecture technology, some characters may simply be most comfortable in the underground. Some may refuse to leave for anything other than necessities, and those that do might still be unnerved by the lack of ceiling.
There are a lot of evil cultures among the species that traditionally dwell underground, so surface-dwellers may be cautious of those who claim to prefer to live underground, depending on the setting of course, but even races that have a lot of evil members have plenty of others that are good as well, and even entire cultures that still dwell underground but do not share in the wickedness of their kin. That prejudice may yet remain, however, and these heroes may have to deal with it.
There is also the stereotype of being a cave-dwelling barbarian being some sort of primitive throwback, but just like in the real world, assuming another culture is primitive based on the standards and assumptions of western civilization is small-minded. Heck, these cave dwellers might even be more advanced, using advanced stonecarving or magic to construct elaborate cities that seem to have grown from the cave walls, blending seamlessly with the dripping speleothems.
The tunnels of a cave are carved by time, rock composition, and raw natural forces. In other words they’re effectively random, and therefore, rarely allow for straight-line running. As such, these warriors have learned how to change direction fairly easily when moving for speed in confined spaces.
Those cave dwellers not naturally adapted to darkness develop keen sight over time, letting them fight and navigate in darkness with ease. Additionally, their senses are well-developed to react to surprise attacks in the dark.
Preferring the dark has its disadvantages, so cave dwellers learn techniques to avoid and resist the worst effects of suddenly changing light levels and light-based effects.
Rage powers associated with this archetype include those that enhance senses, create difficult terrain by smashing the ground, enhancing the ability to move along walls, and even magically darkening the nearby area.
I am disappointed by the fact that this archetype does not grant a bonus to races that already possess darkvision, but even still, if you are interested in a barbarian character that does surprisingly well underground, this archetype might be for you, especially if you’re playing a race that has light sensitivity, which can be a real pain at times.
One might assume that cave-dwelling tribes or cultures may be xenophobic, but given the dearth of natural resources that can be found in caves, perhaps some of them are more than happy to venture out and trade with visitors, especially those belonging to fantasticaly underground societies, where being underground would not preclude them from being a stop on a travelling merchant’s path.
The surface jungle is fraught with peril, everything from poisonous man-eating plants, sinister predatory fey like the biloko, and more. No wonder the Sorvaa people prefer to remain in their hidden cave homes, sustaining themselves with clandestine hunts and hidden farm groves.
In the distant past, the munavri split off from humanity, developing strange powers in the darkness. However, a new threat has emerged from even deeper in the earth, and a munavri warrior must ascend to the surface, and the strange, blindingly-bright world to seek an artifact weapon hidden away far from the depths.
The svirfneblin of Shatterrock have had bad run-ins with surface dwellers before, which is why they were preemptively attacked upon entering the deep gnome’s territory. With some diplomacy, it might be possible to overcome this different, but not every one of the gnomes can be swayed.
