The Madlands Campaign: The Artathi...

Good Morning, All:

In continuing to develop the races of my future Madlands Campaign, I decided to abandon the vanaran monkey-man concept, given that the Madlands are effectively the great plains region of Cameria, and went back to basics. In the process of reviewing Fantasy Flight Games's Mythic Races, I found the Artathi, a race of cat-men well suited for life on the savannah-esque plains of the Madlands. Borrowing the core concept of the race, I came up with the following translation for Swords & Wizardry.

Artathi
The Artathi are a proud race of felinids who live upon and rule on the vast plains of central Cameria now known as the Madlands. While most resemble a humanoid lion in appearance, covered with a thin tawny coat and leonine facial features, other sub-races of Artathi exist that resemble other species of large cats. As a rule, the Artathi are very close to humans in terms of average height and weight, and possess a similar lifespan. A very proud race, the Artathi are easily insulted by others, and tend to react poorly to such efforts.
Ability Requirements: Artathi characters must have a minimum Dexterity score of 9, and a maximum Intelligence of 17.
Character Advancement: Artathi characters may progress as Fighting-Men and Clerics (from the Swords & Wizardry Core Rules, or as Crusaders, Rangers and Thieves (from the Hammersong's Legacy Campaign Setting). They may advance as high as eighth level as a Fighting-Man, Ranger or Thief, or up to sixth level as a Cleric or Crusader.
Weapon/Armor Restrictions: While the Artathi do no suffer any restrictions on armor or weapons, they prefer simple, primitive weapons and very lightweight armor that does not hinder their movement.
Low-Light Vision: The Artathi possess the ability to see in poor lighting conditions. They ignore any penalties from darkness, except in conditions of total darkness.
Natural Weapon (Claws): The Artathi may use their sharp claws to deal damage equivalent to a dagger (1d4).
Saving Throws: The Artathi are incredibly nimble and gain a +4 on saving throws to avoid effects that target an area instead of an individual. They do not gain this bonus when wearing armor heavier than leather.
Languages: For campaigns that give each race its own dialect, the Artathi should be able to speak with other tribes in the area, as well as humans, orcs, gnolls, and goblins.

In terms of Savage Worlds, the following stats would probably work pretty well:

Artathi
The Artathi are a proud race of felinids who live upon and rule on the vast plains of central Cameria now known as the Madlands. While most resemble a humanoid lion in appearance, covered with a thin tawny coat and leonine facial features, other sub-races of Artathi exist that resemble other species of large cats. As a rule, the Artathi are very close to humans in terms of average height and weight, and possess a similar lifespan. A very proud race, the Artathi are easily insulted by others, and tend to react poorly to such efforts.
Artathi Racial Traits:
* Agile: As a race, Artathi are naturally quite dextrous. They start with a d6 in Agility.
* Claws: Str+d4.
* Proud: The Artathi are easily insulted by others, and tend to react poorly to such efforts. They suffer a -2 penalty when attempting to resist Taunts, and must win an opposed Spirit trait check to avoid attacking those that successfully taunt them.
* Common Languages: Trade, Artathi

Hope This Helps,
Flynn