Pumpking (3.5e Monster)

''There he is! There he is! It's the Great Pumpkin! He's rising out of the pumpkin patch!'' ''Oh god... oh god, wait, what is happening. That's...'' Aa....aaaa.....AAAIYGRGRHGHAWGFJLEFGALHJFGEGAHWGFHG!!!!!

Pumpkings are floating, haunted giant pumpkins, or more appropriately jack-o-lanterns imbued with an evil flame. They are servents of an elder evil known as "the Great Pumpkin", though others claim they are merely the lost experiments of some mad beholder who attempted to imbue himself into a plant body, and ended up creating this floating monstrosity. Whatever the cause, pumpkings are dangerous beings which appear around the fall seasons. They feed on the fear of others, and work their best to hide in graveyards and pumpkin patches hiding within the masses, terrifying those who come near and mutilating and killing a few of their victims in order to start local legends and rumors about them, allowing them to drink deeply of fear from the lore.

Pumpkins are not known to speak, but they understand common, sylven, and undercommon. What few communication attempts have been established have shown them to be insane and unhinged, thinking strange alien thoughts and ultimately drawing in the Great Pumpkin itself if they create enough fear. A pumpking is about 8 feet around and weights 1000 lbs, though they float naturally.

Combat
The pumpking's tactics vary depending on if it intents to scare or kill. When scaring creatures, it relies on stealth and subtle actions, using its aura, frightful presence, and illusions to drive targets insane. When seeking to kill, it relies on ambush tactics, hiding often and making skirmishing attacks. It prefers to abuse its summoning prowess to distract opponents from the true target.

Aura of Paranoia :  Those fighting the pumpking are beset with shadowy figures which move in the corners of their eye, horrible monsters from the depths of their imagination, and other terrors. This effect is an illusion... mostly. Born of shadowstuff, it has partial reality. If those afflicted ignore the paranormal threats around them it may bite them in the rear.

All creatures within 60 feet of the pumpking are subject to these partly real illusions. Creatures affected have a 50% chance of taking 4d6 points of magical damage each round from the monsters which haunt them, and creatures are considered to be flanked. They can choose to attack the monsters by attacking a space adjutant to them with a 50% chance that the monsters aren't real. If they hit AC 10 and deal 1 point of damage, the monster vanishes and ceases to harm them and they cease being flanked until they leave and re-enter the aura of paranoia.

Buoyancy : A pumpking is naturally buoyant with a fly speed of 40 feet (perfect). It moves silently through the air and never needs to make Move Silently checks, even when moving though undergrowth and pumpkin patches.

Eldritch Bond : A pumpking has a strange connection to the entity known as "The Great Pumpkin". It gains bonus vile feats as if it were worshiping an elder evilEE.

Frightful Presence : A pumpking can unsettle foes with its mere presence. The ability takes effect automatically whenever the pumpking attacks, charges, or flies overhead. Creatures within a radius of 60 feet are subject to the effect. A creature must succeed on a Will save (DC 10 + 1/2 HD + Cha modifier) or become frightened for 1 round/level, or shaken for 1 round on a successful save. If they have more HD than the pumpking they are only shaken for 1 round/level on a failed save and have no effect on a successful save. A potentially affected creature that succeeds on the saving throw remains immune to that pumpking’s frightful presence for 24 hours. Pumpkings ignore the frightful presence of other pumpkings.

Inner Flame :  A pumpking is filled with a ghostly flame which they can adjust in brightness as a free action on their turn, from no light at all to as bright as a torch. Beyond illumination, the haunted flame can be used as a breath weapon that deals 1d6 points of fire damage per HD in a 60 foot cone, with a Reflex save for half (DC 10 + 1/2 HD + Con modifier). It may use this breath weapon once every 1d4 rounds. Curiously, the flames have no effect on plants, flora, or non-living materials, only living creatures with a Con score.

On death, the pumpking explodes into a 20 foot radius explosion which deals its inner flame damage one last time.

Instant Counterspell :  The pumpking automatically negates the attempts as seeing through its deceptions and lies whenever possible. As an immediate action it may attempt to counterspell any divination spell being cast which is identifies via Spellcraft. It makes a dispel check against the spell (1d20+9) to cancel it, usually seeking to negate true seeing and see invisibility.

Plant Traits : The pumpking is half plant and counts as a plant as well as an aberration. As a plant it is immune to all mind-affecting effects, poison, sleep, paralysis, polymorph, and stunning. It is not subject to critical hits. In addition, unlike plants, it does not breath, eat, nor sleep.

Spell-Like Abilities :  Constant- arcane sight (no glow); At Will- dancing lights, darkness (DC 18), entangle (DC 17), ghost sound (DC 16), major image (DC 19); 3/day- animate dead, bestow curse (DC 20), crushing despair (DC 20), detect thoughts (DC 18), greater dispel magic, displacement, fog cloud, telekinesis (DC 21), vampiric touch; 1/day- fear (DC 20), gaseous form, phantasmal killer (DC 20), nightmare (DC 21), web (DC 18). Its caster level equals its character level, and the saving throws are Charisma based.

Summon :  As a standard action a pumpking can duplicate the effect of summon undead V. The summoned creatures exist for 10 minutes before vanishing. It can use this ability once per day.

Wild Cameo : While in any sort of terrain with pumpkins, a pumpking can use the Hide skill even while being observed. Though large size, it seems to shrink down and blend in with the other pumpkins when hidden in this manner.

Skills: Pumpkings have a +8 racial bonus to Hide checks in pumpkin patches and graveyards, and a +4 bonus on Spellcraft checks.