Onbu

In my setting of Anacaona, I try to keep things familiar yet different. You won't find elves or dwarves naturally (except in the colonial cities as immigrants) but I have similar creatures that are analogous to them. With this, I'll be talking about my goblin analogue, the onbu. I had made these guys up on the fly in the ACKS solo game I'm running for my girlfriend. Luckily, it was towards the end of the game, so I've had some time to make up some cool blurbs about them. Enjoy!

Onbu are grey, short creatures that live in the steamy jungles of Anacaona. These creatures are lithe and wiry, and are generally the size of halflings. Onbu have wider noses and black hair, usually worn long. Their bangs are kept short and trimmed. Tattoos and piercings are prominent among the onbu. The piercings denote authority. The higher the piercing, the more important the onbu is. The native tribes of humans, called Sulano, have long held that onbu are primitive and bad omens, and many don't take kindly to onbu making homes on their lands. Onbu are tribal and do conduct raiding parties, but it's not unusual or even unheard of to have good relations with a tribe of them. 

What makes onbu interesting is their natural connection to the Spirit World. Onbu can see and talk to spirits, demons, and ghosts like they were living people. This makes onbu guides very popular among the natives and colonists, as they can help grant safe passage or news from the spirits of the rain forests. Onbu shamans are fairly powerful spirit talkers, using their natural abilities of spirit speech to parley more magic from the spirits. Onbu shamans have a particular special ability to eat fever dreams and divine truths from them. This requires a special ritual where the subject takes powerful hallucinogenics to get them to dream vividly. The onbu shaman then devours the dream and for a period of time, is addled with madness. Once their period of madness is done, they can then deliver a proper augury to the subject. It's an intense ritual that is draining on the onbu shaman and can't be done often.

Onbu live in tribes in the rain forests of Anacaona. Many times you'll see them in borderlands and marches of a kingdom, acting as parasites on the area. Occasionally, tribes of onbu will gather together to create their own large commune. These onbu are enamoured by the trade and culture they see with the other base races and will eschew their tribal tendancies to create villages. It's not unusual for people to trade with these onbu hamlets. The native Sulano are less likely to, but many of the other native tribes and colonists are more willing. And several of the colonists will make alliances with onbu fiefdoms that they feel can be a thorn in the sides of the native kingdoms.

Onbu Stats

HD: 1

AC: 11 (Cotton Armor)

Attacks: 1d6 (macana), 1d6+poison (shortbow; save poison or take 1 ongoing until death or antidote)

Morale: -1

Spiritspeech: Can see and talk with spirits as if they were visible and normal people.

Onbu Shaman

As above. Give cleric or druid spells that are appropriate. If running ACKs, make them a shaman.

Dream Eater: The onbu shaman can eat fever dreams brought on by hallucinogens. After doing an hour long ritual, the onbu can cast divination once for the subject of the dream. The onbu shaman must rest for a night after doing this.