The Ape, race-as-class

 

And lo! From the ancient depths of misty primeval jungles and the murky, antediluvian, ruined worlds beneath our own, there emerged the Ape! Hirsute, thick-thewed and sullen-eyed, to humble mankind as it did in ancient days and shall again - now, to tread the jeweled thrones of the earth under its grasping, prehensile paws.

Not as quite as competent a fighter as a true fighting-man or barbarian, the Ape is nonetheless a tough and formidable combatant capable of dishing out savage pummeling attacks. They are natural climbers and while initially somewhat gangly due to their simian body plan they are quite adaptable. This class uses d100 random advancement and is based on Ten Foot Polemic's Barbarian class and makes reference to his wrestling rules. 

The Ape, Hominid, Mangani, Australopithecus, Missing Link, White Ape or Gorilla - Racial Class

HD: d10

Attacks: Special, +1 at first level
Saves: Special, first level saves as Elf - (Paralyze 13, Poison 12, Breath 15, Device 13, Magic 15)

Level: as Fighter

Alignment: Neutral

Diverse: At first level, and every level thereafter, roll 1d100 twice on the Ape Abilities table and take both results. If you roll duplicate abilities you can choose to reroll one of them, taking the second result. These can be anything from boosted unarmed attacks, stats, climbing ability, specialized attacks or heightened sense of smell. Because of this leveling up method, Apes do not increase their savings throws or to-hit score as other classes do. Some abilities if rerolled stack and become more powerful, others direct you to another ability, if you are unsure - reroll. 

Apes Strong: Apes start with +1 to their strength and dexterity score.

Thick Hide and Fast Reflexes: Apes have a +1 bonus to AC from their tough simian skin and quick reactions.

Natural Climbers: Apes start with 4/6 climb or 66% as a Thief.

A Rare and Curious Beast: An Ape's personal reaction rolls have a maximum of 7 with non-monstrous, animal or simian strangers, those previously encountered or that have heard of the Ape can roll reactions as normal. (If your game is gonzo, ignore this rule)

Ape Physiology:  
        - Melee Weapons: Apes can use any melee weapon. However, the Ape is ungainly when bipedal and therefore cannot move and attack with two-handed or dual-wielded weapons. These attacks can only be performed from standing as a full round action. An Ape can move and attack with one-handed weapons or unarmed slams. 
        - Ranged Weapons: An Ape cannot use bows but can use thrown weapons. Crossbows and firearms can only be used at short range.

Ape Armour: Apes can only use light armour that has been made to fit their bodies. This armour costs double the regular amount. Apes cannot use shields (if bucklers exist as a separate entity in your rules, Apes can use those)

Slam Attack: An Ape's unarmed attack damage is equal to two unarmed attacks of a regular human in your system, if a normal man does 1d2 unarmed damage a first level Ape does 2d2 unarmed damage and so on.

Drown Prone: Apes can't swim and start to immediately drown in deep water.

Silverback: At level 8, the Ape becomes a Silverback. They gain an extra d6 HP and increase their unarmed attacks by one die size, in addition to rolling twice on the Ape advancement table as normal. 

The Ape Abilities table:

This is a standard Ape, this class could easily be split into several subspecies for a truer Planet of the Apes style game with combative Gorilla, expert Chimp, sage Orangutan, et al racial classes. Likewise, a Tarzan style, 'raised by apes' class could easily be written by removing the Ape's physiological drawbacks and removing the abilities that pertain to them, likely in exchange for a reduced HD. This post was made for Xaosseed's blog carnival 'It Came From Beyond Time'.