Worghest

The Forgotten Realms are many things, but one thing in particular that people tend to forget about is that they are absolutely lousy with portals to the various planes of existence. As magocracy after magocracy has risen and fallen, usually attempting to exploit the creatures of the Outer Planes and Inner Planes for their own end, Faerûn has built up a diversity of planetouched native races exceeded in official Dungeons & Dragons lore only by Sigil. Issue #350 of Dragon Magazine covered four of these planetouched races in particular; the Azerbloods, the Celadrins, the D'hin'ni, and the Worghests, expanding upon other such races as baphitaurs, fey'ri and tanarukks.

Worghests are a planetouched race born of the interbreeding of barghests, fiendish shapeshifters that resemble goblinoid lycanthropes and the goblins they variously rule over, oppress, and eat as the whim takes them. The resultant creatures look like blueish-gray hued hirsute goblins, with a short, lupine snout for a face, orange-glowing eyes, sharp teeth, and wicked claws. Inheriting only some of their fiendish progenitors' powers, worghests are closer to the cowardly behavior of their goblin cousins and prefer ambush and pack-tactics when roused to battle. Woe betide the fool who underestimates them as just funny-colored goblins, though, as they retain one of the most fearsome powers of the barghest: the ability to devour the souls of people they kill. So those who take a worghest too lightly can look forward to an eternity burning in the netherhells.

Despite their cowardly streak, this trace of fiendish ancestry is enough to secure worghests great fear and thus respect amongst goblin tribes, which they exploit to live as comfortably as possible. Amusingly, they rarely bother to become leaders; as they see it, being boss of the tribe is too much work.

In the Forgotten Realms, worghests are especially common around the Mines of Tethyamar, due to the many barghest-led goblin tribes that overran the ancient dwarven holdings in that region. However, because barghests frequent the material plane with great frequency, and goblins are themselves prolific breeders, they are one of the most widely spread of the demihuman planetouched races.

+2 Strength, +2 Dexterity, -2 Charisma

Medium

Base land speed is 30 feet in worghest form and 50 feet in wolf form

Darkvision 60 feet

Low-light Vision

Scent

+4 to Move Silently

Track as a bonus feat

Change Shape: A worghest can assume the form of a wolf as a standard action, and gains a bite attack in its wolf form. It qualifies for feats that normally require Wild Shape as a prerequisite.

Feed: A worghest can use a full-round action to devour the body and soul of a slain humanoid opponent; the victim's body is destroyed, and has a 50% chance of the soul being destroyed as well, which renders even Wish, Miracle and True Resurrection useless to restore the victim. Feeding bestows the effects of a Death Knell spell on the worghest, with a caster level equal to the creature's Hit Dice.

Trip: In Wolf Form, a worghest has the Trip attack as a follow-up to its Bite attack.

Favored Class: Ranger

Level Adjustment: +2