I_Got_This_Name
2006-02-07, 08:14 PM
Yet another innocent terrain feature that turns out to be intent on killing your PCs. This one looks manmade, so it couldn't possibly be a destructive force of nature or a servant of the malevolent fey, right? No.
Dread Highway
Colossal Outsider (Earth)
Hit Dice: 35d8 + 455 (612 HP)
Initiative: 0
Speed: 10 feet, burrow 10 feet
AC: 26 (-8 size, -4 dex, +28 natural), Flat-footed 26, Touch 3
Base Attack/Grapple: +35/+68
Attack: Slam +52 melee (4d6+17)
Full Attack: Slam +52 melee (4d6+17)
Space/Reach: 100 ft / 0 ft
Special Attacks: Consume, Spell-like abilities
Special Qualities: Amorphous, Camouflage, Damage Reduction 10/adamantine Strange Senses, Superior Combat Reflexes, Travel
Saves: Fort +32, Ref +15, Will +19
Abilities: Str 44, Dex 3, Con 36, Int 15, Wis 10, Cha 23
Skills: Balance +33, Bluff +39, Climb +55, Disguise +39, Hide +33, Knowledge (The Planes) +40, Listen +38, Move Silently +33, Spellcraft +40, Swim +55
Feats: Ability Focus (Hallucinatory Terrain, Mass Suggestion, Misdirection), Cleave, Combat Expertise, Improved Feint Improved Initiative, Improved Trip, Power Attack, Quicken Spell-like Ability (Greater Dispelling, Mass Suggestion)
Environment: Any Land
Organization: Solitary
Challenge Rating: 20 (shot in the dark)
Treasure: None
Alignment: Often Neutral Evil
Advancement: 36-90 HD (Colossal)
Level Adjustment: You're joking, right?
The road trails off into the distance, and gives you a vague feeling of unease.
Dread Highways are outsiders from an unknown part of the multiverse. Their primary composition is elemental earth, but earth elementals claim no kinship with them; their origins are a mystery to sages and scholars; some say that they are akin to an earth elemental, or a kind of fiend, that disguises itself as a road, others associate them with Fey, and yet more say that they are roads that are simply tired of connecting two places. A few even say that they were made by someone for some nefarious purpose. Though not always evil, their name comes from the legends of the evil majority, leading travelers into places best left undisturbed, for whatever reasons these Highways have. Sometimes they have been known to work in pairs, teleporting travellers from one half of the pair to the other. Most times, though, they work alone. Some tales tell of travellers able to persuade Dread Highways to speed them to their destinations, but these are dismissed by reputable sages as myth. Their motives are as mysterious as their origins. One curious property of them is their thickness, which they seem to be able to vary freely, from a few inches of packed earth or flagstones to several feet of well-made masonry, blending in with any road built to last centuries. Dread Highways usually speak three languages; Draconic, Common, Terran, Abyssal, and Infernal are the most common choices.
Combat: Dread Highways prefer to trip enemies first, then use their Improved Trip feat to damage them. They prefer not to fight, instead leading others to their doom, but will fight to defend themselves. Outside of combat, they use their Mass Suggestion to prevent their Hallucinatory Terrain from being interacted with, when necessary (typically suggesting that those walking along it keep on the road), and may try to herd unsuspecting people through Gates
Amorphous (ex): Immune to sleep, poison, paralysis, form-changing, and stunning effects. Cannot be flanked. Has 400 squares that can be arranged in any pattern, but must all be contiguous (although not necessarily linear). A typical Dread Highway arranges itself in a line four or five squares wide. Advanced Dread Highways have a number of squares equal to the square of their hit dice - 15. A Dread Highway may relocate its squares as it sees fit as part of a move; no square can move more than the speed of the creature. The Dread Highway cannot be tripped.
Camouflage (ex and su): The Dread Highway gains a +20 racial bonus to Hide and Disguise checks when attempting to pass for road. Additionally, the Dread Highway can alter itself to appear as any type of road, flagstone, masonry, or dirt track. These alterations are a supernatural ability, but the Highway retains its form even when such are suppressed.
Consume (su): Any creature that spends at least one round prone on the Dread Highway may be absorbed into the Highway, at its choice. Any creature being absorbed is considered grappled. The Highway attempts to pin those it absorbs, and inflicts 1 point of damage to a random ability score every round it maintains its pin; if this would knock constitution to 0 before all other scores are reduced to 0, roll again. One round after Constitution falls to 0, the creature is magically entombed, only able to be freed with a Freedom, Miracle, True Ressurection, or Wish spell. Every point drained is added to the Dread Highway's ability score as an enhancement bonus, decreasing by one per twelve hours (these bonuses stack with themselves); a well-travelled (but not too well-travelled as to be suspicious) highway will typically have 3d4 points more on all ability scores due to use of this ability. Additionally, while consuming a creature, the Dread Highway cannot leave the square the creature to be consumed is in; the creature may be ejected prematurely to allow a retreat.
(Modified to apply to more than just Int, Wis, and Cha, and to explain the Entombment more clearly).
Strange Senses (ex and su): No creature standing on the Dread Highway (occupying the same space) may be concealed at all from it. The Dread Highway automatically senses all unconcealed magical auras, and knows their school, within 120 feet of any of its squares. Concealed magical auras are detected with a successful opposed Spellcraft check between the Highway and the one concealing the aura (such as by casting an Undetectable Aura spell; if the Highway succeeds it is detected (and the Highway knows that it is concealed); success by 10 or more gives school as well. Unconcealed auras, and concealed auras of known school, are known to within 10 feet, concealed auras of unknown school merely gives a general area. As a move action, the Dread Highway may pinpoint all known-school auras, to the point of denying concealment to their origins, and to know the square and only give concealment to the origins of unknown-school auras, for one round. The Dread Highway completely lacks a sense of sight (all creatures not otherwise revealed have total concealment), but can hear using the closest of its squares to the noise source. Its lack of sight, and its hearing and sense of creatures standing on it are extraordinary, while its magic sense is supernatural.
Superior Combat Reflexes (ex): Despite its low dexterity score, a Dread Highway may take one attack of opportunity per creature standing on it per round. These attacks of opportunity must still be provoked. Additionally, it can use a Quickened Spell-like Ability in place of an attack of opportunity.
Spell-like Abilities: At will: Light, Misdirection (DC 20), Nondetection, Obscuring Mist (to 20' from all squares). 5/day: Gate (travel only, can connect to same plane), Greater Dispelling, Hallucinatory Terrain (DC 23), Mass Suggestion (DC 24; suggestions can be given telepathically). 3/day: Sympathy. All are otherwise as the spells cast by a 30th-level Sorcerer. Remember to adjust DCs for increased charisma from the Consume power.
Travel (ex): A Dread Highway's movement does not provoke attacks of opportunity unless it runs, even if it enters its enemy's square, but it cannot charge. If a Dread Highway positions itself along difficult terrain, any moving along or standing on it may use its Swim, Balance, or Climb check result instead of attempting their own, and may move on it full speed, although it gains a +8 bonus to all trip attempts against creatures doing such. Creatures standing on a moving Dread Highway do so effortlessly and potentially without noticing, so long as it doesn't attempt to trip them; they move with it.
Is it broken? Is it too easy to kill so I should lower the CR? Too hard? Most awesome concept ever? A horrible idea and I shouldn't try to make any more terrain features into monsters?
Dread Highway
Colossal Outsider (Earth)
Hit Dice: 35d8 + 455 (612 HP)
Initiative: 0
Speed: 10 feet, burrow 10 feet
AC: 26 (-8 size, -4 dex, +28 natural), Flat-footed 26, Touch 3
Base Attack/Grapple: +35/+68
Attack: Slam +52 melee (4d6+17)
Full Attack: Slam +52 melee (4d6+17)
Space/Reach: 100 ft / 0 ft
Special Attacks: Consume, Spell-like abilities
Special Qualities: Amorphous, Camouflage, Damage Reduction 10/adamantine Strange Senses, Superior Combat Reflexes, Travel
Saves: Fort +32, Ref +15, Will +19
Abilities: Str 44, Dex 3, Con 36, Int 15, Wis 10, Cha 23
Skills: Balance +33, Bluff +39, Climb +55, Disguise +39, Hide +33, Knowledge (The Planes) +40, Listen +38, Move Silently +33, Spellcraft +40, Swim +55
Feats: Ability Focus (Hallucinatory Terrain, Mass Suggestion, Misdirection), Cleave, Combat Expertise, Improved Feint Improved Initiative, Improved Trip, Power Attack, Quicken Spell-like Ability (Greater Dispelling, Mass Suggestion)
Environment: Any Land
Organization: Solitary
Challenge Rating: 20 (shot in the dark)
Treasure: None
Alignment: Often Neutral Evil
Advancement: 36-90 HD (Colossal)
Level Adjustment: You're joking, right?
The road trails off into the distance, and gives you a vague feeling of unease.
Dread Highways are outsiders from an unknown part of the multiverse. Their primary composition is elemental earth, but earth elementals claim no kinship with them; their origins are a mystery to sages and scholars; some say that they are akin to an earth elemental, or a kind of fiend, that disguises itself as a road, others associate them with Fey, and yet more say that they are roads that are simply tired of connecting two places. A few even say that they were made by someone for some nefarious purpose. Though not always evil, their name comes from the legends of the evil majority, leading travelers into places best left undisturbed, for whatever reasons these Highways have. Sometimes they have been known to work in pairs, teleporting travellers from one half of the pair to the other. Most times, though, they work alone. Some tales tell of travellers able to persuade Dread Highways to speed them to their destinations, but these are dismissed by reputable sages as myth. Their motives are as mysterious as their origins. One curious property of them is their thickness, which they seem to be able to vary freely, from a few inches of packed earth or flagstones to several feet of well-made masonry, blending in with any road built to last centuries. Dread Highways usually speak three languages; Draconic, Common, Terran, Abyssal, and Infernal are the most common choices.
Combat: Dread Highways prefer to trip enemies first, then use their Improved Trip feat to damage them. They prefer not to fight, instead leading others to their doom, but will fight to defend themselves. Outside of combat, they use their Mass Suggestion to prevent their Hallucinatory Terrain from being interacted with, when necessary (typically suggesting that those walking along it keep on the road), and may try to herd unsuspecting people through Gates
Amorphous (ex): Immune to sleep, poison, paralysis, form-changing, and stunning effects. Cannot be flanked. Has 400 squares that can be arranged in any pattern, but must all be contiguous (although not necessarily linear). A typical Dread Highway arranges itself in a line four or five squares wide. Advanced Dread Highways have a number of squares equal to the square of their hit dice - 15. A Dread Highway may relocate its squares as it sees fit as part of a move; no square can move more than the speed of the creature. The Dread Highway cannot be tripped.
Camouflage (ex and su): The Dread Highway gains a +20 racial bonus to Hide and Disguise checks when attempting to pass for road. Additionally, the Dread Highway can alter itself to appear as any type of road, flagstone, masonry, or dirt track. These alterations are a supernatural ability, but the Highway retains its form even when such are suppressed.
Consume (su): Any creature that spends at least one round prone on the Dread Highway may be absorbed into the Highway, at its choice. Any creature being absorbed is considered grappled. The Highway attempts to pin those it absorbs, and inflicts 1 point of damage to a random ability score every round it maintains its pin; if this would knock constitution to 0 before all other scores are reduced to 0, roll again. One round after Constitution falls to 0, the creature is magically entombed, only able to be freed with a Freedom, Miracle, True Ressurection, or Wish spell. Every point drained is added to the Dread Highway's ability score as an enhancement bonus, decreasing by one per twelve hours (these bonuses stack with themselves); a well-travelled (but not too well-travelled as to be suspicious) highway will typically have 3d4 points more on all ability scores due to use of this ability. Additionally, while consuming a creature, the Dread Highway cannot leave the square the creature to be consumed is in; the creature may be ejected prematurely to allow a retreat.
(Modified to apply to more than just Int, Wis, and Cha, and to explain the Entombment more clearly).
Strange Senses (ex and su): No creature standing on the Dread Highway (occupying the same space) may be concealed at all from it. The Dread Highway automatically senses all unconcealed magical auras, and knows their school, within 120 feet of any of its squares. Concealed magical auras are detected with a successful opposed Spellcraft check between the Highway and the one concealing the aura (such as by casting an Undetectable Aura spell; if the Highway succeeds it is detected (and the Highway knows that it is concealed); success by 10 or more gives school as well. Unconcealed auras, and concealed auras of known school, are known to within 10 feet, concealed auras of unknown school merely gives a general area. As a move action, the Dread Highway may pinpoint all known-school auras, to the point of denying concealment to their origins, and to know the square and only give concealment to the origins of unknown-school auras, for one round. The Dread Highway completely lacks a sense of sight (all creatures not otherwise revealed have total concealment), but can hear using the closest of its squares to the noise source. Its lack of sight, and its hearing and sense of creatures standing on it are extraordinary, while its magic sense is supernatural.
Superior Combat Reflexes (ex): Despite its low dexterity score, a Dread Highway may take one attack of opportunity per creature standing on it per round. These attacks of opportunity must still be provoked. Additionally, it can use a Quickened Spell-like Ability in place of an attack of opportunity.
Spell-like Abilities: At will: Light, Misdirection (DC 20), Nondetection, Obscuring Mist (to 20' from all squares). 5/day: Gate (travel only, can connect to same plane), Greater Dispelling, Hallucinatory Terrain (DC 23), Mass Suggestion (DC 24; suggestions can be given telepathically). 3/day: Sympathy. All are otherwise as the spells cast by a 30th-level Sorcerer. Remember to adjust DCs for increased charisma from the Consume power.
Travel (ex): A Dread Highway's movement does not provoke attacks of opportunity unless it runs, even if it enters its enemy's square, but it cannot charge. If a Dread Highway positions itself along difficult terrain, any moving along or standing on it may use its Swim, Balance, or Climb check result instead of attempting their own, and may move on it full speed, although it gains a +8 bonus to all trip attempts against creatures doing such. Creatures standing on a moving Dread Highway do so effortlessly and potentially without noticing, so long as it doesn't attempt to trip them; they move with it.
Is it broken? Is it too easy to kill so I should lower the CR? Too hard? Most awesome concept ever? A horrible idea and I shouldn't try to make any more terrain features into monsters?