Race: Catfolk
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Catfolk have both human and cat characteristics. They walk on their hind legs yet have hands ending in claws and a long swift tail. Creatures of the night, they can see in the dark well and are good at scouting land from their ancestry of hunting the wilderness. Strong and very quick they are some of the best natural fighters bringing down even the most skilled warriors with their deadly claws. Because of their clawed hands and low visual acuity they have a hard time manipulating hand tools and learning the more delicate crafts. Catfolk make their homes in forests in trees, caves and the surrounding hills. With their fiery disposition and passionate nature, they have a slightly harder time learning new skills, but given their natural aptitudes at many things, they can easily surpass this barrier.
from Frederic's "Bestiary"
Catfolk
Catfolk are one of the oldest races in these lands, and as such have a society that is steeped in tradition and religion. Unfortunately, this tradition and religion tends to make them a bit eccentric. As anyone who has ever associated with a house cat could guess, however, the most prevalent form of this eccentricity is a race-wide egocentricity. For example, they often refer to their tongue as "the one true language." While it is not wise to compare the catfolk to house cats, especially when there is a catfolk within earshot, there are remarkable similarities.
The catfolk religion is at the center of their personal lives, and is one of the more unique faiths that I have ever encountered. They believe that on the day of judgment, the gods will look upon the races of our world and judge their merits. The race chosen to be most worthy will have dominion over this world, with the other races as their servants until the end of time. The catfolk intend to be this race. This occasionally leads to some problems when a group of catfolk see that another race is gaining dominance in a particular area.
There are really two castes in the catfolk society, the clergy and all others. The clergy are the governors and leaders of the faithful. While they do not command catfolk armies when they are formed, a high ranking member of the clergy generally serves as an advisor to the commander. Unfortunately, in these times of decay, there are catfolk who do not follow in the old ways and do not give the priests their respect. There are few of those in catfolk towns though, for in those places sacrilege and profanity are cause for capital punishment.
Catfolk are generally four to five feet in height. They are covered in a coat of short fur, colored much the same as domestic cats. Also like domestic cats, they have sharp retractable claws, which they often use in combat. In fact a weapon often used by catfolk warriors, especially pious ones, is a set of steel claw covers that have been sharpened to a razor's edge.