Template

The TwinSoul Template

Template Cost: 10 RP

Prerequisite: Any Humanoid base race. Human characters may apply this template without DM approval. All other base races require explicit DM approval before the template may be applied. The combined RP total of the base race and this template may not exceed 20 RP; any excess must be offset by forfeiting base racial traits of equivalent value, selected with DM guidance.

History & Origins

Once in ten thousand pairs of twins, something goes wrong — or perhaps something goes profoundly right. At the moment of birth, two children draw their first breath together, and for an instant the universe seems to pause. A single soul, too vast for any one mortal body to contain, floods into both at once. Neither child receives a whole share. Instead, the soul stretches across the divide, anchoring itself in each and binding the two together in a way that no force short of death can fully sever — and even death, as TwinSouls learn early, is not always enough.

The event belongs to no single race, culture, or bloodline. TwinSoul births have been recorded among humans in port cities, dwarves in mountain holds, elves in ancient forest settlements, and halflings in rolling countryside villages. No pattern of ancestry or geography predicts them. Scholars who have spent generations cataloguing the phenomenon remain divided: some argue it is a blessing bestowed on souls whose purpose requires two perspectives; others hold it is a cosmic accident, a fraying of the boundary between two lives that should have been separate. The TwinSouls themselves tend to find both explanations unsatisfying, and most eventually stop asking the question.

What is not disputed is the effect. From the moment of birth, a TwinSoul pair is something other than two people. They are one person occupying two bodies — a fact the world around them finds alternately wondrous, useful, and deeply inconvenient. It is both gift and burden, and those who carry it rarely agree on which outweighs the other.

The TwinSoul Mark

Every TwinSoul pair carries two unmistakable signs of their condition, present from the moment of birth and permanent for life.

Blue Sclera: The whites of both twins’ eyes are a deep, luminous blue. The precise shade differs from pair to pair but is always identical between the two twins and does not change with age or circumstance. This mark cannot be concealed by mundane means and resists most illusion magic — it is a property of what they are, not merely how they appear. Observers’ reactions vary: some find it otherworldly and striking; others find it quietly unsettling. A number of cultures read significance into it, though they rarely agree on what that significance is.

Mirrored Birthmarks: Each twin bears a birthmark that resembles a divine glyph or arcane sigil — intricate and deliberate in appearance, as though drawn rather than grown. The mark appears on the same region of the body in both twins, but mirrored: what curves left on one curves right on the other, what rises on one descends on the other. No two TwinSoul pairs share the same pattern. Scholars and clergy who have catalogued hundreds of these symbols have yet to find a repeating design, and none has been conclusively matched to any known divine script or arcane notation. Whether the marks are a message, a signature, or simply the impression left by a soul too large for one body remains among the more persistent open questions in planar theology.

Society & Culture

TwinSouls have no homeland and no shared culture. They are born into whatever world their base race inhabits and must navigate it on that world’s terms. How any given community receives them depends almost entirely on local belief and circumstance.

In cultures that hold the divine in high regard, a TwinSoul birth may be treated as sacred. Priests arrive to record the birthmark patterns and search old texts for matching glyphs. The pair may be raised within a temple or set apart from childhood for a specific religious purpose. In communities shaped by suspicion of magic or a history of arcane misuse, the blue sclera can mark the twins as something unnatural, and quiet pressure may be applied to move them along before they cause trouble they did not ask for.

A few societies are simply pragmatic about it. TwinSouls make exceptional scouts, negotiators, and flanking fighters, and cultures that prize practical utility tend to focus on what they can do rather than what they are.

The TwinSouls themselves often develop a particular kind of clarity that comes from their condition. They are accustomed to holding two perspectives at once — not as a cognitive exercise but as a natural state. This tends to make them careful thinkers and patient listeners. Most describe their bond not as a limitation but as the only way of existing that feels complete.

Creating a TwinSoul Character (The Template)

To create a TwinSoul character, choose a Base Race. You retain all racial traits of that base race except where noted below. Then apply the following modifications.

1. Type & Size (0 RP)

• Type: Retain your base race’s creature type and all subtypes. This template grants no new type or subtype.
• Size: Both twins share the same size category as the base race. This template does not alter size.
• Speed: Both twins move at the base speed of the base race.

2. Senses — Twin Sight (2 RP)

• Twin Sight: Both twins gain Darkvision to a range of 60 feet.
• Note: If the base race already possesses Darkvision, Twin Sight provides no additional benefit. The template cost does not decrease.

3. The Twin Soul — Core Mechanics (4 RP)

• One Soul, Two Bodies: A TwinSoul pair advances as a single character. Both twins share the same class, level, and XP total. When experience is divided among the party, the pair counts as one character, not two. All choices of feats, skills, and class abilities are made once and apply identically to both twins — if one twin has Power Attack, both have Power Attack.
• Hit Points: Roll Hit Dice once per level. Each twin receives half the result of each Hit Die, but both apply the full Constitution modifier. Example: a 1st-level TwinSoul Fighter with Constitution 14 rolls a d10 and scores an 8. Each twin has 4 (half the die) + 2 (full Con modifier) = 6 hit points. If an area effect strikes both twins, each saves separately and takes damage independently.
• Shared Class Abilities and Spell Slots: All class abilities, limited-use powers, and spell slots are shared between the pair rather than duplicated. A 3rd-level TwinSoul Bard has three uses of Bardic Performance per day in total, not three per twin. Personal spells (range: You) affect both twins provided they are on the same plane. All other spells function normally and affect only the targeted twin or area.
• Spellcasting: Casting a spell requires the simultaneous concentration of both twins. Both must take the full actions required to cast — if one twin attacks or takes any action (including a free action) while the other attempts to cast, the casting fails and the spell is lost. Only one twin need supply material components. A lone twin may attempt to cast while temporarily separated from his partner only if the partner takes no action whatsoever during that round, including free actions.
• Mind-Affecting Effects: TwinSouls share a single mind. Any mind-affecting spell or ability that affects one twin affects both. If a single such effect targets both twins simultaneously, the pair makes only one saving throw between them.

4. Psychic Bond (2 RP)

• Shared Telepathy: The twins communicate telepathically at unlimited range, including across planar boundaries. This communication is language-independent and requires no action to maintain.
• Soul Awareness: As a full-round action, either twin can sense the other’s current hit points and general mental state. If both are on the same plane, the acting twin also learns the general direction and approximate distance to his partner.
• Effect Isolation: Most conditions and effects that apply to one twin do not carry over to the other. Petrification, charm effects, blindness, and similar conditions affect only the twin they target, with the exceptions noted below.
• Negative Level Contagion: If either twin suffers a negative level, both twins immediately incur its effects. The pair makes a single saving throw to remove the negative level. Level loss caused by returning from death (such as via raise dead) applies to both twins simultaneously.
• Soul Severance (Death Link): If one twin dies, the surviving twin begins to deteriorate. Each day after the partner’s death, the survivor takes 1d4 points of Constitution damage and 1d4 points of Wisdom damage and suffers a cumulative –1 penalty on attack rolls, skill checks, and saving throws. This damage and these penalties cannot be healed or removed by any means while the partner remains dead. They vanish immediately if the dead twin is restored to life. Many TwinSouls choose to accept death rather than endure the prolonged deterioration of severance.

5. Combat Traits (1 RP)

• Echo Attack (Su): When both twins are flanking the same opponent, they may spend a move action to combine their voices into a disorienting cacophony. The flanked creature must succeed at a Will saving throw — DC equals the result of a single Perform (sing) check made by the pair — or the twins gain their choice of a +1 bonus on attack rolls against that creature or a +1 bonus to AC against that creature’s attacks. This bonus lasts 1 round. Creatures that cannot hear, or that cannot be flanked, are immune.
• Pair Link (Ex): When the two twins flank an opponent together, each gains a +3 bonus on attack rolls rather than the normal +2. When one twin uses the aid another action to assist the other, the assisted twin gains a +4 bonus rather than the normal +2.

6. Ability Score Modifier — Dual Nature (1 RP)

• +2 to One Ability Score: At character creation, choose one ability score. Both twins gain a +2 racial bonus to that score, reflecting the unpredictable and often exceptional nature of those in whom a soul too vast for one body has taken hold.

7. Languages (0 RP)

• Automatic Languages: Common, plus all languages granted by the base race.
• Bonus Languages: Any, as determined by the base race.
• Note: TwinSouls do not possess a shared racial language. Their unique form of communication is the silent telepathic bond described under Psychic Bond, which requires no learned tongue and cannot be intercepted by mundane eavesdroppers.

8. RP Cap & DM Approval

• Human (No Approval Required): Human (10 RP) + TwinSoul Template (10 RP) = 20 RP exactly. No base race traits need to be forfeited and no DM approval is required.
• All Other Races (DM Approval Required): Applying this template to any non-Human base race requires explicit DM approval before play begins. Standard core races at 10 RP also reach exactly 20 RP when combined with this template and require no forfeit, but DM approval remains mandatory.
• Advanced or Homebrew Races: If a base race’s RP value would push the combined total above 20 RP, the player must forfeit base racial traits — selected with DM guidance — until the combined total is 20 RP or below.

Sample TwinSoul Characters

The following examples show how the TwinSoul Template layers onto three common base races, including the RP mathematics and relevant notes.

The Sundered Twins (Human TwinSoul)

Base: Human (10 RP) + TwinSoul Template (10 RP) = 20 RP. No forfeit required. No DM approval required.

• Ability Scores: +2 to any one score (Human base) + +2 to any one score (Template). May be applied to the same score or two different scores.
• Base Features: Bonus Feat, Skilled (+1 skill rank per level).
• Template Features: Darkvision 60 ft., Twin Soul Core Mechanics, Psychic Bond, Echo Attack, Pair Link.
• Flavor: The most commonly encountered TwinSoul pair. Their human appearance — unremarkable except for the vivid blue sclera and matching birthmarks — allows them to move through the world in a state of practiced normalcy that observers find difficult to quite put their finger on. Human communities tend to adapt to TwinSouls more readily than most other cultures, though responses remain highly variable by region and prevailing religious tradition.

The Mirror-Eyed (Elven TwinSoul)

Base: Elf (10 RP) + TwinSoul Template (10 RP) = 20 RP. No forfeit required. DM approval required.

• Ability Scores: +2 Dexterity, +2 Intelligence, –2 Constitution (Elf base) + +2 to any one score (Template).
• Base Features: Elven Immunities, Elven Magic, Keen Senses, Low-Light Vision, Weapon Familiarity.
• Template Features: Darkvision 60 ft. (supersedes Low-Light Vision), Twin Soul Core Mechanics, Psychic Bond, Echo Attack, Pair Link.
• Flavor: A striking figure even among other elves. Fine elven features set against deep blue sclera tend to draw attention before a word is spoken. Many elven communities possess theological frameworks that can accommodate TwinSouls, though agreement on which framework applies is rarely swift. The mirrored birthmarks are frequently the subject of extended scholarly correspondence.

The Stone-Bonded (Dwarven TwinSoul)

Base: Dwarf (10 RP) + TwinSoul Template (10 RP) = 20 RP. No forfeit required. DM approval required.

• Ability Scores: +2 Constitution, +2 Wisdom, –2 Charisma (Dwarf base) + +2 to any one score (Template).
• Base Features: Defensive Training, Greed, Hatred, Hardy, Slow and Steady, Stability, Stonecunning, Weapon Familiarity, Darkvision 60 ft.
• Template Features: Twin Sight provides no additional benefit (Dwarves already possess Darkvision 60 ft.). Twin Soul Core Mechanics, Psychic Bond, Echo Attack, Pair Link.
• Flavor: Dwarven TwinSouls are exceptionally rare. The concept of a soul shared across two bodies sits poorly with most holds’ theology, where the soul is understood as a private thing earned through honest labor and personal conduct. Those who do emerge are sometimes treated as a theological test case. A hold’s response to its first TwinSoul pair tends to reveal a great deal about the hold in question.