Lupin

Lupins are canine humanoids. While a few sages believe the creatures descended from a cross between gnolls and humans, many others argue that they are an offshoot of true werewolves (although lupins abhor all types of lycanthropes). 

Personality: Lupin personalities range widely, but most tend to be loyal to friends and somewhat rude to strangers, testing their tolerance.

Physical Description: Lupins look like furred humans with canine heads. Their short fur ranges from tan to black, with rare instances of white. An individual lupin's fur is usually one color, perhaps with some small touches of another lighter color around the muzzle, hands, and feet, but a few individuals have spots. Like humans, lupins have comparatively long hair on their heads. This is often a shade darker than the lupin's body fur, though it turns gray or white with age. Lupins usually wear their hair long and straight, though braids are not unusual.
   Lupins are built much like humans, and their eyes resemble human eyes, with irises of blue, brown, or green. They also have short tails, about 2 feet long. A lupin's limbs are human in appearance, though the hands are furred on the back and have dark, leathery palms, and the feet are furred on top and have leathery soles.

Relations: Lupins are on friendly terms with humans, elves, and dwarves. They do have occasional territorial disputes with the rakastas, but otherwise they bear them no animosity. They dislike phanatons, whose screeching hurts their ears, and they view caymas, shazaks, gurrash, and tortles as savages of varying degrees. Lupins dislike goblinoids and hate all evil canines, especially werewolves.

Alignment:  Lupins are usually of good alignment, though some are neutral, and a few are evil.  They tend to favor Law over Chaos.

Lupin Lands: Though lupins once roamed the steppes and plains in nomadic bands, except for wandering adventurers, they are now a settled people. Some traditions still remain from nomadic days, however, such as Beast Riders, who are now considered part of the upper classes, if not actual nobility. The country has a strong feudal government, and it can raise an army for national defense within a matter of days. Renardy's borders are carefully patrolled for goblinoid incursions.

Religion: While Lupins have no organized religion, many Lupin priests and sages follow Rawulf, their patron deity of Animals, Knowledge, and Protection.

Language: The lupin racial language, known as Lupin, consists of barks and howls. Lupins speak this language as well as Common.

Names: Like most races, lupins generally have only one name.  Clan or ancestor names may be used in conjunction with this name, but most lupins prefer a “first name basis” with each other and with outsiders.

Adventurers: Warriors and priests are common in lupin society, but wizards and rogues are not unusual. A lupin ranger always chooses some kind of lycanthrope as its first favored enemy, usually werewolves. Most of Renardy's nobles and knights are Beast Riders, who are all considered knights of the kingdom. Lupins with pure white coats are often sorcerers. Those gifted in this way are nearly always adopted by mages or priests and taught the appropriate craft.

Lupin Racial Traits

•	Medium-size: As Medium-size creatures, Lupins have no special bonuses or penalties due to their size.
•	Lupin base speed is 30 feet.
•	Darkvision 60’: Lupins may see in the dark up to 60 feet.  Darkvision is black and white only, but it is otherwise like normal sight, and Lupins may see fine with no light at all.
•	+4 racial bonus to Listen and Spot checks.  Lupins have excellent hearing and sense of smell.
•	-4 racial penalty to sonic and odor attacks and their applicable save throws.  Lupins have sharp senses, which isn’t always a blessing.
•	Bonus Feat: Blind Fighting.  Lupins automatically start the game with the Blind Fighting feat, without having to spend any Feat slots.  Lupins have an incredible sense of smell, which gives them a limited ability to detect invisible and etherial creatures within melee range, and their sharp hearing allows them to fight such creatures within missile attack range.
•	Bonus Feat: Track.  Lupins have heightened senses of smell and hearing, which makes them natural trackers.  Lupins automatically start the game with the Track feat, without having to spend any Feat slots.
•	Odor recognition: By using their sense of smell, Lupins may recognize a lycanthrope in any form with a successful Search check.  They can also recognize the smell of a person or creature that they have encountered before with a successful Search check.  Recognition of a particular race is automatic, but more skill is required to recognize specific individuals.
•	Wolfsbane: lupins are repelled by wolfsbane, similar to the manner in which lycanthropes are.  The substance is poisonous to them as well, and can be fatal if ingested.  Fortunately, the keen senses of a lupin almost always alert it in time to avoid it.
•	Favored Class: Ranger.  A multiclassed Lupin’s ranger class does not count when determining whether he suffers an XP penalty.