Ratling

THE RATLINGS

See:

Carcass Crawler 5

Survivors of the Margins

Ratlings are fur-covered, rat-like humanoids who thrive in cities, ruins, and the overlooked spaces between orderly lives. Agile, sharp-nosed, and socially dense, they are survivors by habit rather than ideology.

In the Mandala Kingdom of Reisa, ratlings are most commonly found in large cities such as Kalorand and Trushandar, where they serve as scouts, thieves, messengers, illusionists, informants, and quiet problem-solvers. They occupy the cracks of civilization: under streets, behind markets, between guild jurisdictions, and beyond the reach of ritual geometry.

Ratlings may be played either as a race or, in campaigns that allow it, as a racial class, representing a character who fully embraces ratling traditions of agility, awareness, and adaptation rather than institutional belonging.

Description

Ratlings are bipedal humanoids standing roughly 4 to 5 feet tall, with long furred tails up to 3 feet in length. Their fur ranges from mottled brown and gray to pale ash or near-black. They have large ears, sharp incisors, highly sensitive noses, and bright eyes that gleam in low light.

Their movements are quick, economical, and rarely wasted. Ratlings seldom stand still unless they are listening.

Ratlings are born in broods of 3 to 5, mature quickly around age 7 or 8, and rarely live past 40 years. This short lifespan contributes to their gregarious, risk-tolerant outlook. Many adopt a practical humor and an instinct to seize opportunity before it disappears.

Despite their intelligence and adaptability, their resemblance to vermin places them permanently on the margins of polite society. Ratlings are used to being underestimated and frequently exploit that fact.

Place in Reisa

Ratlings are tolerated but never fully accepted within Reisan civilization.

The Great Church does not persecute ratlings, but it does not rely on them either. Ratlings are considered ritually unreliable: difficult to classify, hard to bind to shrine obligation, and prone to slipping between jurisdictions. Many mandala cities unofficially depend on ratlings to manage problems that should not exist.

To the Church, ratlings are a symptom of stress.

To the ratlings, the Church is a structure best navigated sideways.

Velkari tend to treat ratlings cautiously but without contempt. Both peoples understand survival without institutional certainty, though they approach it differently.

Harudjin often find common cause with ratlings in trade wards, border towns, and caravan districts.

Ratling Racial Traits (OSE)

Requirements
Minimum Constitution 9

Ability Modifiers
+1 Dexterity
−1 Charisma

Alignment
Any (ratlings skew Neutral or Chaotic)

Languages
Common

Special Abilities

Awareness
Ratlings are only surprised on a roll of 1 due to their keen sense of smell. This may allow a ratling to act during the surprise round even if their companions are surprised.

Detect Poison
A ratling has a 25% chance of detecting poison by smell when it is mixed into food or drink or applied to an object. If a poison has its own listed detection chance, add this 25% to that value.

Infravision
Ratlings have infravision to 60 feet.

Listening at Doors
Ratlings have a 2-in-6 chance to hear noises when listening at doors or similar barriers.

Prehensile Tail
A ratling may hold a single item weighing up to 50 coins in their tail. The tail cannot be used to attack, wield weapons, or manipulate fine objects such as keys or tools. A ratling cannot climb while holding an item in their tail, as it is required for balance.

Class Availability and Maximum Levels

Ratlings may advance in the following classes:

• Acrobat up to 8th level

• Assassin up to 7th level

• Fighter up to 6th level

• Illusionist up to 6th level

• Thief up to 8th level

In campaigns using racial classes, the Ratling class represents a character who leans fully into these traits, emphasizing agility, awareness, and survival literacy over brute force or institutional authority.

Playing a Ratling

Ratlings excel in environments where information matters more than strength.

They thrive in cities, ruins, tunnels, and crowded spaces. Many are drawn into the shadow economies of mandala cities whether they intend to be or not. Ratling adventurers often begin as couriers, lookouts, fixers, or go-betweens long before they become dungeon delvers.

Ratlings rarely adventure for prophecy, doctrine, or legacy.

They adventure because it pays.
Because it is interesting.
Because standing still is more dangerous than moving.

They are not heroes by reputation.
They are survivors by design.

Racial Bonus Skill: Urban Instinct (Unique Skill)

What It Represents

An ingrained, cultural sense for:

• Hidden movement in cities, ruins, and crowded spaces

• Informal power structures and who truly controls an area

• Street rhythms, patrol patterns, and neglected routes

• When a place is about to turn dangerous

This is not criminal training. It is survival literacy in dense, stressed environments.

How It Works in Play

A Ratling character can:

• Sense when they are being watched, followed, or subtly herded in urban terrain

• Identify safe routes, bolt-holes, and neutral ground without asking

• Recognize gang, guild, or informal territorial boundaries

• Know which doors are watched and which are ignored

This does not replace Thief skills. It provides context, warning, and positioning, not precision.

Design Note for You as Referee

Ratlings are pressure indicators in the setting.
Where they are numerous, something is wrong:

• Mandalas are failing

• Jurisdictions overlap

• Guild control is weakening

• The Church is stretched thin

Ratlings do not cause decay.
They survive it.