Sharuku the Black Dragon Assassin

When the dragons decide it's time for you to die, they call him.

Sharuku is an oddity among dragons. Not content to simply sleep on a treasure pile all day, he goes forth into the world of humans to hunt down those who have killed his fellow dragons-regardless of the breed. Bereaved dragons gladly offer him a share of their hoards for the pleasure of seeing revenge served by the shadowy dragon assassin.

Appearance:

A winged reptilian beast with pitch black scales, this dragon is no bigger than a horse but moves with surprising agility. Its long whiplike tail swishes with anticipation as it eyes you with contempt. A black metal band on its forelimb seems to hold three slim wands, and a pair of rings is stretched to the limit around two of the dragon's claws.

History:

Sharuku was the smallest of his brood, never quite as strong or powerful as his two brothers. While they excelled at flying and mastered the art of aerial hunting, Sharuku was more at home on the ground, squeezing his way through the tunnels and catacombs near their home.

When he reached young adulthood, he left his home to find his own treasure. Other dragons enjoyed the luxury of sleeping on piles of gold, but Sharuku found he preferred the power of magical items. He learned to master their secrets, and soon amassed a small collection of arcane devices. He began raiding towns and adventuring party campsites for magical items, which unfortunately brought him to the attention of the region's king.

The king hired a group of foreign dragonslayers to kill the marauding black dragon, and they were nearly successful. In the end, Sharuku was forced to hide beneath the waters of his swamp home to avoid the hunters, using an illusion to trick them into leaving. That very night, however, Sharuku turned the tables on the humans, using stealth and deception to slaughter the would-be dragonslayers in the middle of the night. The dragon had a revelation: the tactics that it had been taught to use in a battle were simply not effective for a dragon his size, but he could turn his small size to his advantage by mastering the ambush. He began practicing stealth techniques, even mastering a few spells from the lore of humanoid assassins.

Meanwhile, dragons from around the continent were hearing of Sharuku's victory over the dragonslayers, who had killed many dragons over the years and were roundly despised. Soon, dragons began to approach the semi-legendary Sharuku to eliminate threats that were too well-protected within fortified cities for them to reach. Sharuku began accepting contracts on the lives of humanoids, in accordance with the assassin traditions he had studied, and became renown among his kind for his efficiency and discretion.

Personalities:

Sharuku is quite happily sadistic, enjoying nothing more than the look of terror on his victims' faces when a dragon appears in their bedroom and begins shredding their flesh. He calculates his attacks as much for maximum terror as maximum effectiveness. However, Sharuku has learned the lessons of his first encounter with dragonslayers well; he carefully prepares each attack, and works hard to hide any clues likely to lead back to him.

Sharuku does not value monetary wealth, but treasures all forms of magic items. He will often stop to loot the magic items from his targets' corpses. While he only brings a choice few items with him when on the hunt, his lair, wherever it might be, is well-stocked with minor items and potions.

 

Sharuku Chaotic evil male black dragon (Large dragon) Adult black dragon / assassin 9 HD 19d12 (dragon) + 9d6 (assassin) + 140, Hp 305 Initiative +10, Speed 60 ft., fly 150 ft. (poor), swim 60 ft. Armor Class 33 (-1 size, +6 Dex, +18 natural) (Touch 15, Flat 33) Base Attack +25; Grapple +37 Attack: Bite +32 melee Full Attack: Bite +32 melee, 2 claws +30 melee, 2 wings +30 melee, and tail slap +30 melee Damage: Bite 2d6+8, claw 2d6+4, wing 1d6+4, tail slap 1d8+12 Face/Reach: 10 ft. / 5 ft. (bite 10 ft.) Special Attacks: Breath weapon (80 ft. line of acid, 12d4 damage, Reflex half DC 24), death attack (Fort negates DC 23), frightful presence (180 ft., DC 20), sneak attack +5d6, spell-like abilities Special Qualities: Blindsense 60 ft., damage resistance 5/magic, darkvision 120 ft., hide in plain sight, immunity to acid, sleep, and paralysis, improved uncanny dodge, keen senses, spell resistance 18, uncanny dodge, water breathing Saves: F +19, R +23, W +14 (+4 to saves vs. poison) Abilities: Str 26, Dex 18 (22), Con 20, Int 19, Wis 11, Cha 12 Feats: Blind-Fight, Combat Expertise, Fly-by Attack, Improved Disarm, Improved Feint, Improved Initiative, Improved Natural Attack (claw), Multiattack, Power Attack Skills: Balance +11, Bluff +32, Climb +19, Concentration +16, Diplomacy +5, Disguise +9, Escape Artist +26, Hide +35, Intimidate +3, Jump +22, Listen +26, Move Silently +39, Search +20, Sense Motive +16, Sleight of Hand +6, Spellcraft +10, Spot +31, Swim +16, Tumble +16, Use Magic Device +19 Sorcerer Spells per Day: 0th: 6, 1st: 6 Sorcerer Spells Known: Casts as 3rd level sorcerer. 0th: dancing lights, detect magic, ghost sound, mage hand, message 1st: charm person, mage armor, silent image Assassin Spells per Day: 1st: 4, 2nd: 7, 3rd: 4, 4th: 3 Assassin Spells Known: Casts as 9th level assassin. 1st: disguise self, feather fall, obscuring mist, true strike 2nd: alter self, invisibility, pass without trace, spider climb 3rd: deeper darkness, magic circle against good, misdirection, nondetection 4th: dimension door, greater invisibility, locate creature Spell-like abilities: Corrupt water (1/day, Will DC 20, 180 ft.), darkness (3/day, 60 ft.) Equipment: crystal ball with true seeing, gloves of dexterity +4, ring of freedom of movement, ring of wizardry II, wand of cure critical wounds (26 charges left), wand of dimensional anchor (11 charges left), wand of fireballs (17 charges left, caster level 8th). Sharuku will usually have up to 100,000 gp worth of minor magical items in his lair, most of which will be either unusable by him or simply redundant to his "working" equipment (such as a wand of cure medium wounds). Tactics Round-by-Round Sharuku prefers to attack from stealth, relying on his impressive ability to remain unseen to surprise his foes. Unlike most dragons, he actually prefers to fight indoors, as he is a clumsy flier but quite adept at squeezing through human-size windows. In an enclosed area, he also likely has more opportunities to hide, and his ability to cast dimension door can allow him to bypass doors and walls as necessary. Sharuku is a patient stalker, following his target for days or weeks before striking. If he can ascertain a routine, he will use that information to his advantage, attacking when the target is most likely to be alone or impaired. He will use his illusions to draw allies away from the target, or to confuse and disorient the subject before the attack. Sharuku can cast alter self (coupled with nondetection) in order to track prey through urban areas, using locate creature if he loses sight of them. He will create a temporary lair within an hour's flight of the city in which his target lives, being careful to cast pass without trace when entering. Prior to combat: Sharuku casts mage armor on himself when he begins hunting. When getting ready to strike, he will cast magic circle against good, spider climb and invisibility. If at all possible, he will study the target for 3 rounds so that he can use his assassin death attack. Surprise Round: Sharuku will strike from a place of hiding, biting the target (and gaining +5d6 sneak attack damage); if he had time, this will also be a death attack. If the target is a group of adventurers, he will always begin by attacking the party's wizard, hoping to kill him in one round. If he has strong reason to fear escape via teleportation, he might begin with a dimensional anchor from his wand, but prefers to open with a devastating attack. First Round: If Sharuku beats the target's initiative, he will simply open up with a full attack routine, adding his sneak attack dice to all six of his natural attacks. He attacks using Power Attack for -4 to attack, +4 to damage. If instead he loses initiative and is subject to a melee attack, he will still make a full attack (sans Power Attack), and will attempt to disarm the target of his weapon with his claw attacks (using both if necessary for this purpose). Once he succeeds in a disarm attempt, don't forget that he will be holding the weapon in his claw afterwards. Second Round: Unless Sharuku has already defeated the target, he will activate his darkness spell-like ability; he's smart enough to know that with enough noise, someone will be by to check on the target. He relies on his blindsense and Blind-Fight feat to locate his target. Once dark, he will fling away any snatched weapon as a move action, knowing the owner will never find it. Third Round: If Sharuku can sense two or more targets grouped, he will let loose with a blast of his acid breath; since there is no attack roll, it is his most accurate attack in darkness. If only one target remains, he will simply attack; while he cannot use his sneak attack in the dark, his Blind-Fight feat gives him two chances to hit with each of his physical attacks. In the very likely event that the darkness is dispelled, he will likely aim his acid breath at the dispeller. Fourth Round: Sharuku will feel he is in trouble if he hasn't taken down the target by this point (or half the targets, if a group). He will try to cast greater invisibility if he can avoid any attacks of opportunity; he loathes using this spell because it cuts down on his ability to cast dimension door. If his situation is dire (more than half of hit points gone), he will instead use the dimension door to begin his escape, teleporting to a nearby roof. Fifth and Subsequent Rounds: If now invisible, Sharuku will unleash repeated full attacks until his foes fall, flee, or take him below half of his total hit points. Since these attacks will all be sneak attacks (due to greater invisibility) , he is quite devastating in melee. If he continues to keep the upper hand, he might use a charge from his wand of cure critical wounds to keep him in the fight. On the other hand, if forced to escape, he will take to the air and fly in a random direction (away from any lair he might be keeping). He will discourage pursuit via his acid breath and his wand of fireballs before hiding in the clouds. Then, he begins plotting anew, based on what he learned about his foes' tactics. Challenge Rating: Sharuku's assassin levels are nonassociated, granting him a total Challenge Rating of 15.

 

Open Game Content Material on these web pages uses the Open Gaming License. All Open Game Content is contained within shaded boxes. Open Game Content on this page is copyright 2004-2006 by Rich Burlew.