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[your-dungeon-is-problematic]

Rakasta (AD&D) [Guest Article!]

[Mod’s Note: I must give especial thanks to @temporiludi for guest writing this article! So very thoughtful. :D] So! Cat-people. Everyone’s favorite race to cringe at when the local self-proclaimed “otaku” brings them to the game table. And while they insist their character looks almost entirely human, save for the “kawaii” additions of cat ears and matching tail, most iterations of a feline-humanoid race are closer in appearance to their quadrupedal real-life counterparts than the ever popular cat-girl of Japanese anime. Today we’ll be exploring a race of cat folk introduced in The Isle of Dread module for AD&D, the Rakasta (NOT Rakshasa). At a glance, they resemble the Khajiit of The Elder Scrolls series. Upon further inspection however…no, yeah. They’re Khajiit. But stronger.

General:

“Rakasta are a race of intelligent, nomadic, catlike humanoids. They are a proud, barbaric race of warriors who, while not prone to initiating hostilities, quickly respond when provoked.”

First off, it may be a fun drinking game (if you’re of age) to take a shot every time the monster manual uses the term “barbaric” to describe an entire race of people.

On second thought, that would probably cause severe liver damage by the time you get to the letter C. So (cat)scratch that.

With that out of the way, it’s good to see some positive adjectives attributed to the Rakasta. Intelligent makes sense, since their stat block clocks them as Very intelligent, and the fact that they won’t attack unless provoked plays nicely into their Neutral alignment. It makes sense that they would be quick to defend themselves if they’re attacked; they probably deal with tons of bandits and highwaymen on their travels hoping to get at their belongings.

“Rakasta walk upright, much like humans, with an agile, feline grace. They have feline heads and are covered with soft, tawny fur. Most fur coloration ranges from light tan to dark brown.”

Well, I would hope that they’re at least a little agile. But anyone who has owned a cat before knows that the “feline grace” only activates for about 10 minutes a day. After it’s used up, all that’s left are crash landings and getting stuck in places nobody thought they could even get to. Also, only various shades of brown? What about black cats? Siamese? Stripes? Spots? I find it hard to believe the generic tabby cat dominates the Rakasta world.

“Rakasta have catlike eyes, most of which are brilliant green. A Rakasta has a nonprehensile tail 4 to 6 feet long.”

Wait, catlike­? ­You’re telling me a race of anthropomorphic cat people have eyes that are only like a cat’s? How are they similar? How are they different? Does catlike mean they have thin vertical pupils that dilate into larger circles when they’re focused on something? Nowhere does it say they have any form of Darkvision, so that could be what separates them…but not giving them Darkvision seems rather counterproductive.

Nevertheless, a long nonprehensile tail makes perfect sense and I’d be miffed if they didn’t include them. Also, thank the Gods they’re not prehensile. I do not want monkey-cat-people. No thanks.

“Rakasta speak Common and their own language. Some of the more primitive Rakasta speak in a purring voice with many rolled r’s and hissed s’s.”

More…primitive. Great. If we’re considering that a synonym for “barbaric,” then take another shot.

Now, this implies that the standard Rakasta doesn’t speak with a purring voice, rolled r’s and hissed s’s. So, what, they sound like a run-of-the-mill adventurer with a vaguely British accent when speaking Common? I find that hard to believe, especially if their language (which is so conveniently not given a name) does involve rolled r’s and hissed s’s. Also, why the hell is that considered a primitive way of speaking? Dozens of real world languages roll their r’s in a variety of ways, and even English hisses some of its s’s in certain words (the double s at the end of success, for example). But, no. They’re a barbaric race. Their language is primitive. Ugh.

Combat:

“Rakasta are fierce fighters who neither ask for nor give any quarter. Eschewing normal weapons, Rakasta rely on their claws and bites. Since a Rakasta’s claws inflict only 1d2 points of damage, the creatures usually employ special metal war claws called kasas; worn on the paw like a glove, a kasa inflicts 1d4 points of damage on a successful attack.”

Alright, so if you’re dumb enough to attack a peaceful caravan of friendly cat people, you’re going to get ripped to shreds. I like that. They probably deal with expensive artifacts and high amounts of coin on the day-to-day, making them a prime target for the occasional (cat)burglar. And being a race of people who just want to be left alone? No wonder they show no mercy, and the fact that they ask for none in return shows just how badass these cats really are. However, 1d2 damage from a claw attack isn’t going to be dropping any highwaymen anytime soon. Their bark is probably worse than their bite, as it were.

It’s good that they included a way to augment their damage, though. The Kasas are a neat variation on the clawed-glove family of weaponry, and makes perfect sense for a culture that has favored their natural abilities over sword and shield. The jump from 1d2 to 1d4 isn’t much to celebrate, however, and really just adds an exotic curio for the standard adventuring party to loot once they’ve taken the caravan down.

“A Rakasta who strikes with both claws (or both kasas) in the same round can choose to rake with both rear claws. Rear claw attacks are rolled separately and cause 1d3 points of damage on a successful strike.”

Hold on. Rear claw attacks? Are you telling me these cat people can do a Kangaroo Jack-esque kick with their back legs in addition to their front claw attacks? Well that’s badass as all hell. These guys really are nimble fighters.

“Certain Rakasta ride saber-toothed tigers into battle.”

Sweet Jiminy Christmas. [Mod’s Note: The use of domesticated Ice Age fauna is a quick and easy way to immediately gain my interest, as well.]

“These tiger riders, known as the Hatra, are considered the bravest and strongest of the Rakasta warriors, and only they can hold the respect of the saber-toothed tigers. Hatra have 3+1 Hit Dice, a minimum of 15 hit points, and +1 bonus to damage rolls.”

Okay, okay. This is what I like to see. Large and powerful warriors able to tame savage wildcats and mounting them to ride into battle. The Hatra seem like the perfect defense against anyone stupid enough to threaten a pride of Rakasta. Not only do you have to take down the saber-toothed tigers that they ride, but also the warriors that were able to tame the damn things. Which is just another reason why you shouldn’t do that. Seriously, leave these guys alone, for your own sake.

“The Hatra use special saddles that enable them to leap as far as 20 feet from their mounts and still attack in the same round. The saddles allow the Hatra to fight unhindered while mounted, using both hands for attacks yet still maintaining control of their saber-toothed mounts.”

Here’s some of that feline agility we were talking about earlier. So not only can they leap 20 feet towards you, but they can also strike you with their claws as they’re doing so. They incur no penalties while fighting mounted, and they don’t even need to keep one hand on the reigns. With skills like this, no wonder their unarmed claws only do 1d2. Any more and it would be completely impossible for a low-level adventuring party to handle. Which they shouldn’t. Because fighting these guys is a bad idea­.

Habitat/Society:

“The nomadic Rakasta are organized into prides of 6d10 adult Rakasta plus an additional 25% of that number in noncombatant offspring. Each pride also has 1d12 saber-toothed tigers. When not on the move, each Rakasta pride sets up its own temporary settlements, composed of many colorful tens and pavilions.”

So that’s what, a maximum of 60 adults and 15 kittens, but only 12 of the adults would be Hatra?  I guess the Hatra are just so dang powerful and intimidating that they can get away with not having an entire platoon of tiger-riders guarding every pride.

Also, I am always wary whenever there’s a statistic for noncombatant offspring. While on the one hand, it’s much more realistic that families would be travelling together, but on the other hand, it creates the awkward situation of “What do we do with the children now that we’ve just murdered every adult they have ever known or called family?” If the party’s decent folk, they wouldn’t have attacked the damn pride in the first place. That leaves the unsavory party to either slaughter the children in cold blood, leave them to die in the wilderness, or any other horrible act they could think of. Again, not cool. [Mod’s Note: I mean, I guess the party could adopt them? But then again perhaps the people who just got done murdering their parents would not be the best parental replacements for these freshly orphaned kids...]

Moving on, it’s good to see that their lodgings aren’t small tents or pitiable sleeping bags, but actually representative of a thriving and artistic culture. It would almost be like a flea market to the uninitiated adventurer, with dozens of stalls to explore and hopefully find that one special thing that calls out to their coin purse.

“Rakasta possess excellent artisan skills. They typically own many bright rugs and silk tapestries of fine workmanship; artfully crafted bowls and drinking cups, and other items of value. These items are found in place of gems and jewelry in the treasure of a pride of Rakasta.”

So they don’t wear jewelry or gemstones? Interesting. I suppose they deal exclusively in coin and trade, then, which does make some sense. But no gemstones whatsoever? It’s bold choice. Would that imply their culture may not value gems of any kind, and decorating yourself with them is as silly as wearing a necklace made of pebbles you found outside your house?

“Each pride is led by a chief with at least 5+1 Hit Dice, a minimum of 24 hit points, and a +3 bonus to all damage rolls. The chief is always accompanied by six of the best Hatra and their saber-toothed mounts. The chief’s word is law, and is obeyed without question.”

So they have a chiefdom, which does make sense for the whole “pride of lions” sort of theme we’ve got going here. Typically, a chief is appointed via kinship, implying that a pride is either one large extended family, or made up of smaller families that decide upon whose elder holds the position every time a new chief is needed. But, looking at the chief’s statistics, if they’re so dang strong, why do they need 6 Hatra accompanying them? While an elite guard protecting the chief makes sense, that could potentially be half of all of the Hatra travelling with the pride.  It seems that a pride values the wellbeing of its leader over the wellbeing of people, which is…kind of sad. But hey, if they’re a good chief, they’ll order their guards to protect the rest of the pride during a crisis situation.

“Each pride has a Rakasta cleric of 4 Hit Dice who casts spells as a 4th-level priest. More powerful clerics are rumored to exist, as well as Rakasta with wizard abilities, perhaps as high as 7th level.”

Ohh, okay, so now we’re getting into magic. Up until now there’s been no mention of magic users in Rakasta culture, but it seems that a divine caster is present in every pride, no matter how small. Probably serves as the pride’s medical expert, as well as the link between the pride and their hereby still unnamed deities. The fact that more powerful casters are merely rumors implies that they either don’t exist, or the Rakasta don’t want outsiders knowing the upper limits of their magical capabilities. Perhaps they even use this as a tool of control? Keeping their magic users in the shadows so that they can call upon them when the chief needs something to get done…discreetly. Secret magical cat folk hitmen anyone?

“The Hatra, as the finest warriors in a pride, enjoy a special place in Rakasta society. Hatra are held in high honor, since this culture values combat prowess over all else. Rakasta also value their code of conduct, known as the Sri’raka. This code dictates a warrior’s behavior. Among the most noteworthy tenets:”

Good! So it’s been implied up until this point, but now we have confirmation that they’re a strength-based society. To that, it makes perfect sense that the chief is the most physically adept member of the pride, and perhaps hasn’t gained the title through age and wisdom, but instead earned the title themselves through proving their strength to the pride. It’s probably the case that every chief was at one point a Hatra themselves, as it has been stated that they are the strongest members of a pride, strong enough to tame and mount vicious saber-toothed tigers. Also, I’m excited to see what code these brutal tiger-riders hold themselves to.

Let’s take a look!

“No challenge to fight is ever refused.”

Hmm. So once a pride has been attacked, they have no choice but to engage in combat? That makes sense. But does it carry over into internal affairs? Like is someone wanted to challenge the chief for leadership of the pride. Of course, the chief’s word is law, but it’s likely they gained their position by issuing the a similar challenge to the chief before them? By their own rules, they would be forced to battle for the crown. Ultimately, it seems to be a matter of pride. Heh.

“Wounded are never left behind; carry them or kill them.”

Or kill them? Geeze, that’s harsh. I hope they get a say in whether or not they’re carried home or straight up killed. But I guess this is also so they can’t be taken prisoner, which can’t be a good thing in Rakasta society…

“Better to die in battle than in one’s sleep.”

Ah, here we go. That good ol’ “proper death” dealeo. A true warrior would want to go out in the most honorable way possible, which turns out to be struck down in combat. Come to think of it, that’s probably the way any challenge issued against the current chief ends. Either the challenger is killed, showing they weren’t the strongest and therefore didn’t deserve the chiefdom, or the old chief is killed, granting them an honorable death at the hand of the strongest member of the pride. Brutal.

“Give no mercy; never expect it.”

This was mentioned before, and from what we’ve read so far it’s pretty consistent. Go hard, or die trying.

“Retreat is permissible only in order to regroup. A new attack must be launched against the other force within two sunrises.”

Interesting. So this goes back to the 2nd tenet. During a tactical retreat, it may not be possible to gather up any injured, so it’s much easier to strike them down on the way out. At least they have two days to go back in for a second strike, but something tells me that if they weren’t successful the first time around, they’ll probably be just as unlucky on the second assault. [Mod’s Note: I wonder how many chieftains have used “We’re not retreating, we’re ‘advancing in a different direction’” as a face-saving semantic device...]

“Never surrender. Those who would exist as prisoners are not Rakasta.”

Oh wow, I was right! A Rakasta whose been captured is disowned from its entire race…I can’t imagine how bad that would be for the sorry sap who got left behind and wasn’t killed for some reason. They’d probably deal with a major identify crisis and off themselves at the first chance they get. The honorable thing for a dishonored warrior to do is to finish the job themselves. Quite the tragedy.

Well that was a bundle of joy to read about. I don’t imagine the other tenets are any more uplifting.

Ecology:

“The Rakasta make reliable trading partners when attention can be turned from battles. Rakasta are excellent hunters, and they keep the game herds from overpopulating.”

Well that’s not very much information. But I suppose it’s better than nothing…

Again, I’m digging the positive adjectives used to describe these guys. They’re reliable trading partners, which makes plenty of sense, but if they’re non-aggressors, why does their attention have to be turned away from battles in order to trade? I feel like this line is just another reminder that they’re “barbaric” and prone to violence, even if that sentiment was contradicted at the very beginning of their description. Being a society that values strength and merit doesn’t make an entire culture primitive or less-than-civilized. The Romans considered themselves to be the greatest culture to ever exist, and they were some of the most brutal people to ever walk the earth! But they still had literature, art, architecture, complex social ties and reverence for their Gods. I guarantee even the most hot-headed Rakasta is going to value economy over violence.

Also, they’re great hunters. Who would’ve guessed the cat people were good at hunting? But since they’ve eschewed traditional weaponry, do they hunt with their kasas? Do they stalk their prey on all fours and go for a full on sprint, only to strike at its neck and eviscerate its stomach with their back paws?

…that’s intense and makes them even more terrifying to deal with.

Again, who thinks it’s a good idea to fight these guys? At first I felt bad for them, being the under(cat)dog and getting the short end of the stick. But now I just feel sorry for any poor bloke who gets on their bad side.

Related Species:

So there are several subspecies of Rakasta, though they weren’t included in their original publication. Dragon magazine, Issue #247 instead gave a whole exposé about the Rakasta and their complicated culture and relationships among different prides. You can find it floating around the internet somewhere, which will go much more in depth than I’m going to go here. But for the sake of giving the whole picture, I’ll talk about a few noteworthy subspecies here:

Caracasta: Pariahs of Rakasta society, as they have adopted the usage of bows and arrows from the local human populations. As such, they’re looked down on by other Rakasta. They have large ears with black tufts of hair at the tips.

Cloud Pardasta: Arboreal Rakasta with innate magical abilities. They’re covered in leopard like spots and are especially proficient in leaping from treetop to treetop.

Simbasta: Essentially, lion Rakasta. They’re very proud and are the only Rakasta able of becoming Paladins. Also, insert The Lion King joke about Simba here. [Mod’s Note: HAHAHA I TOTALLY WANT LION-PALADIN-PEOPLE IN MY CAMPAIGN SETTING NOW. Even/especially if that would foster an endless amount of Thundercats references.]

Overall:

I feel like the Rakasta suffer from the same thing nearly every beast folk/monstrous humanoid race suffers from: they’re cast in a light that wants to simultaneously make them more like the other core races in terms of culture, but also keep them in the Monster Manual as something to kill and pillage the corpses of. But they’re not as bad as they could’ve been. Their culture is really interesting, albeit at some points contradictory, but I feel like that could be played up. They’re kind enough folk if you want to trade or make friends, but the moment you turn on them they strike you down hard. A culture that values strength is not inherently barbaric, and I wish that could be emphasized by exploring their religion or the significance behind the tapestries that they create. On the plus side, there was no gendered language used when talking about the Hatra or the chief, so that makes me believe that it is a very egalitarian society, which is good! Show me some badass tiger-riding female warriors that, on their down time, weave beautiful blankets and adorn their saddles with culturally significant beadwork.  You can do better in your setting. Give the Rakasta the attention and care that they deserve.

…you know, I’m glad that at no point was I given the opportunity to make a single skooma joke. Good job, AD&D.