Gith

Psionics Summary

Telepathy - Sciences: tower of iron will, project force; Devotions: id insinuation, mind thrust, contact.

Psychokinesis - Science: telekinesis; Devotions: animate object, animate shadow, ballistic attack, control body, control flames.

Note: Only leaders commanding 25 or more gith have psionic powers. The psionics listed above are representative of these leaders, but their powers do vary greatly. Gith with more Hit Dice have correspondingly greater powers.

The gith are a race of grotesque humanoids that appear to be a peculiar mixture of elf and reptile. They are extremely gaunt and lanky, with long gangling arms and spindly legs. Their hands have three fingers with no opposable thumbs, yet they are able to use tools and wield weapons. Their fingers and toes end in sharp claws. If one could get a gith to stand up straight, he would measure close to 7 feet tall. However, most gith appear to be no more than 5 feet tall, for they always stand hunched over at the shoulders, in a permanent slouch.

Combat: If possible, the gith attack in mass, usually starting with a psionic attack by one of their leaders. Then the entire party charges quickly into melee. Their main charge is often accomplished by springing up to 20 feet in one giant leap to close with their enemies. When they employ this spring, it gives them a +2 attack bonus on the first round of combat.

The gith are usually armed with large, wicked-looking spears that have giant, razor-sharp heads of polished obsidian (1d6-1 damage). Although these spears look like thrusting weapons, they are used primarily to slash or chop. The gith often armor themselves, and especially their vulnerable backs, with inix-shell armor (AC 6) of their own manufacture.

Habitat/Society: The gith live in tribal organizations. The individual with the most powerful psionics generally acts as the leader. All other social positions are distributed at his pleasure.

For every twenty-five gith, there will be a 5 HD leader, for every fifty, a 6 HD leader, and for every tribe of 100 or more a 7 HD leader. In addition to having hit points and THAC0 numbers appropriate to their HD, these leaders will have psionic powers approximately equal to a psionicist of an equivalent level.

Some of these leaders are priests. While little is known of the gith religion, shamans up to the 4th level are known to accompany and sometimes lead gith tribes. There have also been reports of gith wizards (defilers) ranked at the 6th level. Even if true, 6th level would be unusual for gith, but wizards of up to 4th level have been reported by reliable witnesses.

Not much is known about the reproductive cycle of the gith. It is known that they are egg layers; females lay approximately 1d6 eggs in a clutch. It is rumored that the gith operate hatcheries containing hundreds (some say thousands) of nests.

Ecology: Mountain gith live in underground lairs, claiming a particular canyon or valley as their territory. Gith inhabiting tablelands tend to organize their society more along the lines of a nomadic hunting clan, going wherever the game takes them. They do not hesitate to attack human or demihuman groups, for they view humans and demihumans as a choice food supply, preferring it over other flesh. They will even attack thri-kreen, if they are hungry enough, but the insectoids taste bad, and usually escape gith raiders.