User:Zhenra-Khal/Eiji Challenge/Bonepriest (3.5e Monster)
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Bonepriest[edit]
Boneling[edit]
| N Tiny Magical Beast | |
| Init/Senses | +2/Darkvision 60ft, Tremorsense 90ft; Listen +6, Spot +6 |
| AC | 14, touch 14, flat-footed 14 (+2 Natural, +2 Dex, +2 Size) |
| hp | 7 (1d10+1 HD) |
| Immune | Negative energy |
| Fort/Ref/Will | +3/+4/+1 |
| Speed | 20ft, burrow 10ft, climb 15ft |
| Melee | +0,Bite, 1d3+1 plus poison (See below) |
| Ranged | +3 ranged touch, Solar Ray, Xd6 radiant damage, 30ft range increment. |
| Space/Reach | 2-1/2ft/0ft |
| Base Atk/Grp | +1/-4 |
| Special Actions | Absorb Light (1 Charge), Solar Ray, Scintillating Shell |
| Abilities | Str 9, Dex 15, Con 13, Int 11, Wis 12, Cha 13 |
| Feats | Weapon Focus (Bite) B, Track |
| Skills | Spot +4, Listen +4, Survival +4 (+14 when tracking undead by scent), Hide +10 |
| Advancement | 4-8 Small, 9-17 Medium, 18+ Large |
Smaller and softer than the adults, Bonepriest hatchlings can be obtained as improved familiars.
Bonepriest[edit]
| N Small Magical Beast | |
| Init/Senses | +3/Darkvision 60ft, Tremorsense 90ft; Listen +6, Spot +6 |
| AC | 17, touch 14, flat-footed 14 (+3 Natural, +3 Dex, +1 Size) |
| hp | 25 (3d10+3 HD) |
| Immune | Negative energy |
| Fort/Ref/Will | +4/+6/+3 |
| Speed | 30ft, burrow 15ft, climb 20ft |
| Melee | +8,Bite, 1d4+3 plus poison (See below) |
| Ranged | +8 ranged touch, Solar Ray, Xd6 radiant damage, 30ft range increment. |
| Space/Reach | 5ft/5ft |
| Base Atk/Grp | +3/+1 |
| Special Actions | Absorb Light (3 Charges), Solar Ray, Scintillating Shell, Turn Undead (6/day, CL 1) |
| Abilities | Str 15, Dex 17, Con 13, Int 11, Wis 14, Cha 17 |
| Feats | Weapon Focus (Bite) B, Track, Talent Dilettante (Turn Undead) |
| Skills | Spot +6, Listen +6, Survival +4 (+14 when tracking undead by scent), Hide +7 |
| Advancement | 4-8 Small, 9-17 Medium, 18+ Large |
Crowned Bonepriest[edit]
| LG Medium Magical Beast | |
| Init/Senses | +3/Darkvision 60ft, Tremorsense 90ft; Listen +7, Spot +7 |
| AC | 17, touch 13, flat-footed 14 (+5 Natural, +3 Dex) |
| hp | 74 (9d10+18 HD) |
| Immune | Negative energy |
| Fort/Ref/Will | +15/+13/+10 |
| Speed | 30ft, burrow 15ft, climb 20ft |
| Melee | +8, Bite, 1d4+3 plus poison (See below) |
| Ranged | +8 ranged touch, Solar Ray, Xd6 radiant damage, 30ft range increment. |
| Space/Reach | 5ft/5ft |
| Base Atk/Grp | +9/+12 |
| Special Actions | Absorb Light (5 Charges), Solar Ray, Scintillating Shell, Turn Undead (8/day, CL 1), Smite Undead 1/day, Spells, Lay On Hands 20 HP/day |
| Paladin Spells Prepared | (CL 1st): 1st— Force Pulse (DC 14)
|
| Abilities | Str 16, Dex 17, Con 14, Int 12, Wis 16, Cha 21 |
| SQ | Divine Grace, Divine Health, Aura of Courage |
| Feats | Weapon Focus (Bite) B, Track, Talent Dilettante (Turn Undead), Power Attack, Cleave |
| Skills | Spot +7, Listen +7, Survival +5 (+15 when tracking undead by scent), |
| Advancement | 4-8 Small, 9-17 Medium, 18+ Large |
Abilities[edit]
Absorb Light (Ex): Bonepriests can absorb light, gaining charges. A Bonepriest of any type can hold a maximum of one charge for every point of Charisma bonus they possess. To gain a charge, the Bonepriest must spend a move action in normal light, a full round in dim light, or a full minute in the equivalent of starlight. They cannot gain charges if there is no light.
They can also try to extinguish [Light] spells, either actively or reactively. Actively, they can attempt a Dispel check against an existing [Light] spell within Close range of them, using their HD as their caster level. If successful, they gain one charge per spell level. Reactively, they can forego their normal save against an incoming [Light] spell such as Searing Light, and instead make a Fortitude save against the spell. If they are successful, the spell is absorbed, ending upon absorption, and the Bonepriest gains one charge per spell level.
If a Bonepriest absorbs more charges than it can hold, it takes 1d6 Fire damage per excess charge and the energy is wasted. Charges last indefinitely until discharged.
Solar Ray (Su): The main ability of a Bonepriest is their ability to absorb and hold light energy within themselves, and fire it in destructive blasts. As a standard action, an adult Bonepriest can expend any number of charges to coalesce light between their antlers and fire a ray of blazing illumination, dealing 1d6 damage per charge as a ranged touch attack with a range increment of 30ft. The die size increases to 1d8 against undead and fungal creatures, and to 1d10 against creatures particularly susceptible to sunlight, such as vampires.
Bonepriest Venom: Bonepriests feed on the negative-energy-soaked flesh of the undead, and as such, they possess one of the few venoms the undead are not immune to. Injected by bite, Bonepriest Venom deals 1d4 Strength and Constitution damage initially, and another 1d4+1 as its secondary damage; The save DC is Charisma-based (DC 14 for an average adult Bonepriest). Undead creatures do not take the Constitution damage, as they lack a Constitution score altogether, but they suffer a -2 penalty on saves against the poison, and the Strength damage is Maximized when dealt to an undead creature.
Scintillating Shell (Su): As a swift action, a Bonepriest can choose to expend light charges to coat their shells in solid light for protection. In doing so, they heal themselves for 1d4 hp per charge expended, and grant themselves a personal shield with 5 hp per charge. The shield lasts until destroyed or the Bonepriest chooses to reabsorb it as a swift action, regaining 1 charge per 10 HP remaining in the shield. While the shield is active, the Bonepriest sheds illumination as a torch. The shield grants immunity to critical hits while active.
Senses And Immunities: Due to a combination of their senses of smell and their unique and sensitive legs, Bonepriests possess Tremorsense out to 90ft when touching a solid surface. A semisolid surface like sand, fabric or mud halves this distance. They also possess the Scent ability, and Darkvision out to 60ft. In order to fully blind a Bonepriest, you must both trap it in or on a nonsolid or semisolid material, and block out its sense of smell, such as with a Stinking Cloud spell. As predators of the undead, Bonepriests are immune to negative energy damage, including ability damage or negative levels causes by it. Likewise, they are immune to damage dealt by [Light] spells, like Searing Light. Bonepriests have a +10 racial bonus to Survival checks made to track corporeal Undead creatures by scent.
Description[edit]
Often mistaken for the undead they hunt and eat, the Bonepriest appears to be a large centipede with six glowing yellow eyes (Three on each side of its head), hard, bone-colored chitin, and a pair of antlers atop their heads. Though rarely seen, those that know of them (Knowledge [Nature] DC 20) will immediately recognize them from the tales of insects that blast necromantic creations with rays of sunlight and eat the corpses. Their venom weakens undead creatures, one of the few toxins that can harm the creatures, making them incredibly valuable. This is probably why the Bonepriests are so hard to find, driven into seclusion by the overwhelming demand for ways to stop the undead without needing a Cleric.
Young Bonepriests may elect to become a familiar to any non-undead wizard who is willing to put up with something that eats corpses. Feeding a Bonepriest generally requires necromancy if no undead are around; Casting Chill Touch or Inflict Light Wounds on a slab of meat (such as a roast or a few steaks) is sufficient. Generally a Boneling goes through only one such meal a day, but as they grow, they will need more, up to three times this in a day for an adult. Fortunately, you can temporarily stunt a Boneling's growth using either a Gentle Repose spell or a complex mixture of herbs costing 25 gp per dose. With either method, each dose or casting will grind the creature's growth to a halt for one week at a time. Some caster will enchant a collar or necklace for their precious undead-eater, enabling them to cease growing as long as they wear it.
Some particularly old and powerful Bonepriests will take levels in Paladin, granting them even more utility against the undead whose flesh they consume. Bonepriests understand Common, but cannot speak normally. However, they do possess the intelligence to "write" by either pushing a rock around in loose dirt with their nose, or by using blasts of light energy to sear words onto rock. So if you come across warnings scorched onto a wall, know that undead are likely nearby.
The listed example is a 5-HD Bonepriest with 4 levels of Paladin.
Strategies and Tactics[edit]
Bonepriests rely on surprise in combat. They tend to stock up on light charges before they go on a hunt, and when hunting undead, will travel in packs of three to five individuals. Typically against undead, on the first round of combat, each member will fire at a different undead target in turn to wear them all down, before wading into melee to use their bites while one or two members stay back and charge up in order to fire off another round of blasts. The only difference in this strategy against living opponents is that they focus fire and take turns, repeatedly blasting the same target until it goes down or comes close enough to bite.
Sample Encounters[edit]
TBA
Ecology[edit]
Bonepriests are one of the few kinds of creatures known to be able to consume necromantic flesh and actually survive the experience. It's theorized they they have evolved from mere bugs, the carrion that came to clean up after a mass war, specifically war against undead abominations. The scavengers that weren't killed by the tainted meat were invigorated by it, and grew larger and stronger than before, as their bodies produced a flood of positive energy by digesting the negative energy.
Environment: Bonepriests dwell underground, often in tunnels underneath graveyards or old battlefields, places where death - And thus, undeath - Resides. However, they try not to stray too far from the light, so if you find Bonepriests deep underground, it's usually because they've found lava, glowing crystals, or civilized, torch-using folks to hang around and draw light from.
Typical Physical Characteristics: Bonepriests very much resemble overgrown centipedes or millipedes, with gnarled bony plating covering their bodies and resembling somewhat of an amalgamation of several skeletons tightly mushed together. Their eyes are striking and metallic, like molten gold. Their impressive antlers are ebony, and normally covered in webby white velvet during the hot months.
Alignment: As semi-animals, Bonepriests are typically Neutral, though those that do take sides tend to be good over evil, despite their connection to undeath.
Lore[edit]
Bonepriests look how their name sounds. This appearance makes them appear to be an undead creature at first glance, which allows them to sneak up on their prey more easily. However, their appearance also meant they tend to get blasted with offensive magic when first spotted, generally by every single trigger-happy Cleric who uses Searing Light to solve all their undead-related problems. This became such a common occurrence that they actually developed a resistance to such spells, and evolved to be able to reflexively absorb them and fire blasts of their own back. Some become Paladins to help fight the undead, while others discover arcane talent and use it to create and control undead for themselves and their families to feed on.
Society[edit]
Generally, Bonepriests are peaceful beasts, and just want to be well-fed and left alone. When an individual needs something, the entire colony pitches in what they can. Individuals take turns watching the entire colony's children as sort of a daycare routine, and likewise, individuals rotate out when tending to the hurt or guarding the nest.
Sample Lair[edit]
Typical Treasure[edit]
Bonepriests don't really care for gold, so often coins and gems end up piled in a corner of their lair, reserved for the hatchlings to keep them entertained. Likewise, they often leave bits of weapons and armor lying around, and the bits that aren't sharp are usually combined with wood shavings and/or rock chips to act as bedding.
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