LordErebus12
2014-01-24, 09:30 AM
“Good gods, it’s EATING the TREASURE!”
—typical adventurer reaction to a rust monster
http://imgur.com/dfbcnF3.jpg
“The only warning we had was the vein in front of us melting away
beneath our picks, and then they were upon us. They were hunched
and armored, like cockroaches or lobsters, with scuttling legs and
thrashing tails like bony fans. The noise of their chittering mandibles
was bad enough, but the worst were those antennae. Soft and
feathery, they caressed us all, and where they touched the metal
rusted away to dust in seconds. Some of us ran, others lay still
and let them take their fill. Garesk, though—he had three gold teeth.
He was a good man. I’ll give his family the news.”
—Durg Stonehollow, dwarven mine captain
Personally, I love the rust monster. To take a cheap dollar toy from a store and come up with such a nasty little critter was pure genius on Gygax's part. It wipes out some of the best defenses and tools that players rely on, as well as functions as a potent weapon against sieges against cities, especially if they rely on a lot of metal walls and weaponry.
I plan on messing around with the core build of the rust monster. Stumbling upon this (http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd%2Fdd%2F20060714a), someone has gone through the trouble of making some important changes to an old favorite, and I intend on doing the same. Some of what he used I like, but some will have to change. My hope is to make a nice little DM tool to use from time to time to surprise the players, as well as reinvent the wheel a bit, so to speak.
Much of the fluff will be taken from pathfinder's Dungeon Denizens Revised, because its brilliant when it comes to creating a real flavor to them beyond what was previously come up with.
Adult, Rust Monster
http://www.wizards.com/dnd/images/MM35_gallery/MM35_PG216.jpg
{TABLE]Size/Type:|Medium Aberration
Hit Dice:|5d8+5 (27 hp)
Initiative:|+3
Speed:|40 ft. (8 squares), Climb 40 ft.
Armor Class:|18 (+3 dex, +5 natural), touch 13, flat-footed 15
Base Attack/Grapple:|+3/+5
Attack:|'antennae' +6 melee touch (Rust) or 'bite' +6 melee (1d6+2)
Full Attack:|two 'antennae' +5 melee touch (Rust) and one 'bite' +6 melee (1d6+2)
Space/Reach:|5 ft./5 ft.
Special Attacks:|Rust
Special Qualities:|Darkvision 60 ft., Metalsense 90 ft., Scent
Saves:|Fort +2, Ref +4, Will +5
Abilities:|Str 14, Dex 17, Con 13, Int 2, Wis 13, Cha 8
Skills:|Climb +10, Hide +5, Listen +1, Move Silently +5, Search +0 (+10 if searching for metal items), Spot +1 and Survival +1
Feats:|Multiattack, Weapon Finesse
Environment:|Underground
Organization:|solitary or mated pair (2 rust monsters plus 10-12 rust monster nymphs)
Challenge Rating:|4
Treasure:|Standard (See Treasure Below)
Alignment:|Always Neutral
Advancement:|6-8 HD (medium-size); 9-15 HD (large)
Level Adjustment:|---
[/TABLE]
Hunched and armor-plated, the average rust monster is roughly 5 feet long and 200 pounds, its orange or rust-red bulk supported by four clawed legs that skitter with surprising speed when it charges. While its appearance,
with constantly moving fly-like mandibles and twitching propeller tail, would be alien and frightening on its own, most who delve into the mountain crevices and mineshafts where rust monsters are most commonly found quickly recognize the creatures for what they are: voracious consumers of anything metallic.
Called “Locusts of the Underdark” by some dwarves, rust monsters prefer iron, steel, and other ferrous alloys, but are capable of instantly oxidizing and devouring any metal objects merely by brushing them with their moth-like antennae. How exactly this process works is a mystery to scholars and magi alike, but not even arcane items or godly relics are capable of withstanding the alien creature’s unique ability. Many are the heroes who, after seeing their holy or enchanted broadswords rust and disintegrate in their hands, would rather face a dragon’s wrath than the blank-eyed rust monster’s mindless hunger.
COMBAT
A rust monster can smell the scent of a metal object from up to 90 feet away. When it detects one, it dashes toward the source and attempts to strike it with its antennae. The creature is relentless, chasing characters over long distances if they still possess intact metal objects but usually ceasing its attacks to devour a freshly rusted meal.
The creature targets the largest metal object available, striking first at armor, then at shields and smaller items. It prefers ferrous metals (steel or iron) over precious metals (such as gold or silver) but will devour the latter if given the opportunity.
Metalsense (Ex):
A rust monster can sense all metals within 90 feet of its location, via electromagnetic fields given off by the metal items. This grants a +10 racial bonus on search checks to find metal items.
Rust (Ex):
A rust monster that makes a successful touch attack with its antennae causes the target metal to corrode, falling to pieces and becoming useless immediately. The touch can destroy up to a 10-foot cube of metal instantly. Magic armor and weapons, and other magic items made of metal, must succeed on a DC 17 Reflex save or be dissolved. The save DC is Constitution-based and includes a +4 racial bonus.
A metal weapon that deals damage to a rust monster corrodes immediately. Wooden, stone, and other nonmetallic weapons are unaffected.
Nymph, Rust Monster
http://i.imgur.com/aIAzo2e.png
{TABLE]Size/Type:|Tiny Aberration
Hit Dice:|3d8 (13 hp)
Initiative:|5
Speed:|30 ft (6 squares), Climb 30 ft.
Armor Class:|20 (+2 size,+5 dex, +3 natural), touch 17, flat-footed 15
Base Attack/Grapple:|+2/-8
Attack:|'antennae' +9 melee touch (rust) or 'bite' +9 melee (1d3-2)
Full Attack:|two 'antennae' +7 melee touch (rust) and one 'bite' +9 melee (1d3-2)
Space/Reach:|2.5 ft./0 ft.
Special Attacks:|Rust
Special Qualities:|Darkvision 60 ft., Metalsense 90 ft., Scent
Saves:|Fort +1, Ref +6, Will +4
Abilities:| Str 6, Dex 21, Con 11, Int 2, Wis 13, Cha 8
Skills:|Climb +6, Hide +15, Listen +1, Move Silently +7, Search -2 (+8 if searching for metal items), Spot +1, Survival +1
Feats:|Multiattack, Weapon Finesse
Environment:|Underground
Organization:|solitary, pair or pack (3-9) or litter (10-12 rust monster nymphs plus 2 rust monsters)
Challenge Rating:|2
Treasure:|Standard (See Treasure Below)
Alignment:|Always Neutral
Advancement:|4 HD (small-sized), 5-8 HD (medium-size); 9-15 HD (large)
Level Adjustment:|--- (Improved Familiar)
[/TABLE]
Although just a newly hatched baby rust monster, the rust monster's hide is fully formed and ready for action. The hide of these creatures varies in color from a yellowish tan underside to a rust-red upper back, although often tend to be lighter in color than an adult rust monster or even partially transparent.
A rust monster’s prehensile antennae can rust metals on contact. Although it eventually has a nasty little bite, baby rust monsters do not have mouth parts large enough to deal a lot of damage, The typical rust monster measures about 9 inches long and one foot high, weighing about 12-15 pounds.
COMBAT
A rust monster can sense a metal object from up to 90 feet away. When it detects one, it dashes toward the source and attempts to strike it with its antennae. The creature is relentless, chasing characters over long distances if they still possess intact metal objects but usually ceasing its attacks to devour a freshly rusted meal.
The creature targets the largest metal object available, striking first at armor, then at shields and smaller items. It prefers ferrous metals (steel or iron) over precious metals (such as gold or silver) but will devour the latter if given the opportunity.
Metalsense (Ex):
A rust monster can sense all metals within 90 feet of its location, via electromagnetic fields given off by the metal items. This grants a +10 racial bonus on search checks to find metal items.
Rust (Ex):
A rust monster that makes a successful touch attack with its antennae causes the target metal to corrode, falling to pieces and becoming useless immediately. The touch can destroy up to a 10-foot cube of metal instantly. Magic armor and weapons, and other magic items made of metal, must succeed on a DC 15 Reflex save or be dissolved. The save DC is Constitution-based and includes a +4 racial bonus.
A metal weapon that deals damage to a rust monster corrodes immediately. Wooden, stone, and other nonmetallic weapons are unaffected.
Rust Monster Nymph Familiars:
Although very difficult to raise, some have been known to be kept as familiars. While the baby rust monster makes an excellent familiar when it comes to protecting a caster from enemies using metal gear, its also a double-edged sword. Rust Monsters have an incredible appetite when it comes to metal goods, and cannot resist taking a bite of any piece of metal within range. Casters with rust monster familiars don't make allies easily, since the rust monster really does not care if the metal in question is the party's gold pieces, armor or weapons. Many a caster has lost a potential ally because a rare holy weapon or ancestral armor suddenly turned to rust in the middle of the night.
5th level casters can chose rust monsters as familiars if they have the improved familiar feat.
Nymph Swarm, Rust Monster
Size/Type:|Tiny Aberration (Swarm)
Hit Dice:|6d8 (27 hp)
Initiative:|+5
Speed:|30 ft. (6 squares), Climb 30 ft.
Armor Class:|20 (+2 size, +5 dex, +3 natural), touch 17, flat-footed 15
Attack:|Rusting Swarm (1d6-2 plus Rust)
Space/Reach:|10 ft.(four adjacent 5 ft. squares)/0 ft.
Special Attacks:|Rusting Swarm (See Below), Distraction
Special Qualities:|Darkvision 60 ft., Metalsense 90 ft., Scent, Swarm Traits
Saves:|Fort +2, Ref +7, Will +6
Abilities:| Str 6, Dex 21, Con 11, Int 2, Wis 13, Cha 8
Skills:|Climb +6, Hide +15, Listen +1, Move Silently +7, Search +1 (+11 if searching for metal items), Spot +1, Survival +1
Feats:|Ability Focus (Rusting Swarm), Multiattack, Weapon Finesse
Environment:|Underground
Organization:|Solitary or Multiple (2-4)
Challenge Rating:|4
Treasure:|Standard (See Treasure Below)
Alignment:|Always Neutral
Advancement:|None
Level Adjustment:|---
A nightmare incarnate... A swarm of three hundred juvenile rust monsters, referred to as a nymph swarm. Like a swarm of locusts, they consume everything within their path, seeking metals with a hunger unmatched by any other known creature.
COMBAT
A nymph swarm can sense a metal object from up to 90 feet away. When they detect one, they move towards the source and attempts to consume it by moving over it. The swarm is relentless, chasing characters over long distances if they still possess intact metal objects but usually ceasing their attack to devour a freshly rusted meal.
They prefer ferrous metals (steel or iron) over precious metals (such as gold or silver) but will devour the latter if given the opportunity.
Distraction (Ex):
Any living creature vulnerable to a swarm’s damage that begins its turn with a swarm in its square is nauseated for 1 round; a Fortitude save (DC 13; constitution-based) negates the effect. Spellcasting or concentrating on spells within the area of a swarm requires a Concentration check (DC 20 + spell level). Using skills that involve patience and concentration requires a DC 20 Concentration check.
Metalsense (Ex):
A nymph swarm can sense all metals within 90 feet of their location, via electromagnetic fields given off by the metal items. This grants a +10 racial bonus on search checks to find metal items.
Rusting Swarm (Ex):
All metallic items within a nymph swarm instantly corrode, falling to pieces and becoming useless immediately. Magic armor and weapons, and other magic items made of metal, must succeed on a DC 19 Reflex save or be dissolved. The save DC is Constitution-based and includes a +4 racial bonus and a +2 feat bonus.
A metal weapon that deals damage to a nymph swarm corrodes immediately. Wooden, stone, and other nonmetallic weapons are unaffected.
Swarm Traits:
A swarm has no clear front or back and no discernable anatomy, so it is not subject to critical hits or flanking. A swarm made up of Tiny creatures takes half damage from slashing and piercing weapons. Reducing a swarm to 0 hit points or lower causes it to break up, though damage taken until that point does not degrade its ability to attack or resist attack. Swarms are never staggered or reduced to a dying state by damage. Also, they cannot be tripped, grappled, or bull rushed, and they cannot grapple an opponent.
A swarm is immune to any spell or effect that targets a specific number of creatures (including single-target spells such as disintegrate). A swarm takes half again as much damage (+50%) from spells or effects that affect an area, such as splash weapons and many evocation spells.
A swarm rendered unconscious by means of nonlethal damage becomes disorganized and dispersed, and does not reform until its hit points exceed its nonlethal damage.
---------------------------------------------------
The iron in the body of a warforged makes him vulnerable to rusting grasp. The creature takes 2d6 points of damage from the spell (Reflex half; save DC 14 + caster's ability modifier). A warforged takes the same damage from a rust monster's touch (Reflex DC 17 half). That's the same save DC listed in the Monster Manual entry; Con-based and with a +4 racial bonus.
---------------------------------------------------
ECOLOGY:
Ancient beyond compare, the rust monster’s origins are lost to the sands of prehistory. While most speculate that they somehow evolved from the giant isopods and crustaceans who roam the ocean floors near geothermal vents, others posit that they might have evolved on the Elemental Plane of Earth, their endless tunneling providing younger elemental races with space to live and grow. Still others suggest that, given its supremely alien nature, the rust monster might have been introduced to the material plane by visitors from another world—possibly as an act of aggression designed to slow the march of technology by limiting younger races’ access to metals, or as living power generators for some unknown future project. Whatever the case, rust monsters stand alone in their family, bearing similarities to crustaceans, insects, and mammals, but kinship to none.
The ability from which the rust monster gains its name is one of the strangest in the animal kingdom, more unusual than even the medusa’s stare or the mimic’s shapeshifting. Like the purple worm or the xorn, rust monsters gain their nourishment from consuming minerals instead of organic matter, but the manner in which they accomplish this is completely unique.
Like the electric eel, the rust monster’s body acts like a giant battery, capable of storing vast amounts of energy and manifesting it as a unique and powerful electromagnetic field. While this field passes through the flesh of most living creatures without notice, its effect on metals is profound. When metal is contacted by the rust monster’s body—particularly its feathery antennae—a circuit is closed and vast amounts of electrical current pour through the object, this supernaturally augmented electrolysis exponentially accelerating the normal rate of oxidization. To the outside observer, the metal simply disintegrates into uselessness. Inside the rust monster, however, a different story plays out.
The process of oxidization—called rusting, in ferrous metal—releases vast amounts of energy in the form of heat. This energy, gathered by the charged fields focused on the rust monster’s antennae, is the true source of the rust monster’s life force. Unlike most creatures, the rust monster gains no sustenance from the digestion process, having evolved to absorb energy only in its purest form.
While rust monsters are frequently observed gobbling up the rust left behind after a metallic item is destroyed, this consumption serves a different function, providing the animal with key minerals it needs to form its highly metallic bones and blood. Excess metals go to form the protective carapace on its back and tail—the plates armoring a rust monster’s back are made up almost exclusively of processed iron, giving the beast its typical red-orange coloration.
While the rust monster’s feeding process is singularly elegant, it does not provide well for energy storage when compared to creatures who can transform excess food into fat stores. Instead, the rust monster is born with the instinctual knowledge that its biological clock is ticking— when its internal battery runs down, it dies. As a result, the rust monster exists in a state of constant and extreme hunger, going to any lengths to ensure that it consumes as much metal as possible. This can occasionally lead to the hungry beasts taking in more energy than they can actually accommodate, giving rise to another unique trait: the creature’s strange propeller tail. After stymieing naturalists for hundreds of years, the fan-shaped appendage is now believed by researchers to be used to shed excess heat, much like a desert hare’s long ears, its shape uniquely suited to dispersing excess energy in the form of radiated heat before the overzealous rust monster cooks itself.
This manipulation of electromagnetic fields is also responsible for the rust monster’s ability to “smell” metal at a distance. In reality, this ability to locate even miniscule metal objects up to 90 feet away is part of a greater ability to see the complex twisting of the world’s own magnetic fields. Around any metallic object, these natural fields distort, creating a beacon that shines bright through wood, stone, and flesh, showing the hungry monsters where to find their next meal. While their eyes are perfectly functional, able to see even in the total darkness of their subterranean homes, the weaving of the magnetic fields so overrides a rust monster’s other senses that clever adventurers can frequently escape by distracting them with large chunks of metal armor and fleeing the other way.
In places where metal is scarce, however, some rust monsters have been known to hunt and kill unarmored creatures in order to harvest the iron from their blood.
HABITAT/SOCIETY:
Though heated competition for any and all available food sources makes rust monsters solitary by nature, areas rich enough with metal ore can sometimes attract swarms of them, the pugnacious beasts clashing violently whenever they come into conflict over a given delicacy but otherwise content to ignore each other. The exception to this is mating—when a rust monster comes upon enough metal that it feels consistently well fed for several weeks, it enters estrus and begins searching for a mate. Fully hermaphroditic, rust monsters choose their mates based on carapace size (a direct indicator of how well nourished a beast is) and band together just long enough to couple and raise their respective broods, with both parties carrying their young to term.
Unlike most insectoid creatures, rust monsters do not lay eggs; young are born live in litters of 10 to 12 juveniles, called “nymphs.” At birth, rust monsters are soft and partially transparent, completely boneless but already possessing long prehensile antennae—this lack of bones helps the young pass through the parent’s narrow and armored birth canal. Young are born already able to sense and consume metal, and by a year old most have already consumed enough ore to build themselves bones and carapace identical to an adult’s. (Possessing the same powers but easier to manipulate than adults,
rust monster nymphs can be extremely valuable in the right markets.)
Rust monsters live almost exclusively underground, and frequently inhabit iron-rich mountain regions, though they have been known to sometimes wander into populated areas and wreak havoc by consuming vast quantities of urban infrastructure. (A city with a rust monster loose in its sewer system does not quickly forget the ensuing unpleasantness.) Even in the wild, an infestation can be extremely destructive, as rust monsters burrowing through a region in search of metals can greatly increase erosion, with whole mountainsides collapsing and sloughing away as their metallic foundations are rotted out from within.
Due to their chosen environment, rust monsters are a notorious threat to dwarven societies, with the stout folk’s famous forges an irresistible prize to the hungry beasts. While not an everyday occurrence, the problem of rust monster attacks is common enough that most dwarven communities of a given size keep a supply of stone weapons close at hand for just such an occasion. These hunts, when they happen, are impressive and highly ritualized affairs with a history dating back well before the dwarves emerged onto the world’s surface. In them, young dwarven men prove their bravery by stripping naked, painting their bodies with fungus pigments, and stalking the insectoid creatures with stone spears and axes.
Not all interactions between the two groups are violent, however—though rust monsters are nearly impossible to domesticate, many groups of dwarven miners use leashed specimens to lead them to the best ore deposits.
With their formidable dietary requirements, rust monsters tend to be transient, and rarely stay in one place long enough to make a proper lair. In those cases where a given rust monster finds a vein of ore rich enough to support it for a long time, the chambers it creates are jagged and random, pitted natural caverns connected by long, thin cracks and chasms where the beast has sucked a vein dry. These narrow passages, which can stretch for miles, also present convenient hiding places for rust monsters and their young in the face of outside threats.
It is unclear how long a rust monster’s natural lifespan is, as most eventually die from starvation or violence, but accounts of famous rust monsters indicate that they can live for several centuries, if not longer.
TREASURE:
Though rust monsters themselves have no appreciation for treasure or material wealth beyond those metallic objects which can be immediately consumed, their lairs are often strewn with valuable items cast aside by the beasts in their quest for food. Loose gems and precious stones are particularly common, as once the metal in a gem-encrusted sword or diadem is consumed, the stones that remain are ignored by the rust monster. In fact, those adventurers who succeed in cutting open a deceased rust monster often find small gems in its gizzard as well, accidentally ingested in the monster’s race to devour their corroding metallic settings.
Due to their positions near or within natural metallic veins, gems are the only valuables a rust monster might come by naturally. After them, the most common items are those stripped from fleeing or deceased adventurers and other victims. Scrolls, books, and potions are all completely safe from rust monsters, as are bows, many staves and wands, magical clothing, and other such items. In areas where rust monsters regularly clash with civilized races, these items can sometimes be found trampled and gathering dust in forgotten corners, worthless to the rust monster and left wherever they have fallen.
Swarm Template Used:
CREATING A SWARM
“Swarm” is an acquired template that can be added to any creature of size tiny, diminutive, or fine (referred to hereafter as the base creature).
Size and Type: The creature gains the (Swarm) subtype. Its size does not change, but it occupies a 10' space with no reach.
Hit Dice: d8, as many as the base creature (minimum 1).
Speed: As the base creature.
Armor Class: As the base creature.
Base Attack Bonus: Medium (+3 per 4 HD)
Attacks: A swarm loses all of the attacks of the base creature. Instead, it gains:
Swarm Attack: Swarms do not make standard melee attacks. Instead, they deal automatic damage to any creature whose space they occupy at the end of their move, with no attack roll needed. Swarm attacks are not subject to a miss chance for concealment or cover. A swarm’s statistics block has “swarm” in the Attack and Full Attack entries, with no attack bonus given.
Swarms do not threaten creatures in their square, and do not make attacks of opportunity with their swarm attack.
Damage: The amount of damage a swarm deals with its Swarm attack is based on its Hit Dice, as shown below.
(refer to Swarm subtype table)
A swarm’s attacks are nonmagical, unless the base creature's natural or unarmed strike attacks are magical. Damage reduction sufficient to reduce a swarm attack’s damage to 0, being incorporeal, and other special abilities usually give a creature immunity (or at least resistance) to damage from a swarm.
Special Attacks: A swarm retains all of the base creature’s special attacks. Special attacks that depend on the base creature's natural or unarmed strike attacks instead apply to the swarm's Swarm attack (e.g., a poison bite attack would instead add the poison effect to the Swarm attack). A swarm gains the following special attack:
Distraction (Ex): Any living creature vulnerable to a swarm’s damage that begins its turn with a swarm in its square is nauseated for 1 round; a Fortitude save (DC 10 + 1/2 swarm’s HD + swarm’s Con modifier) negates the effect. Spellcasting or concentrating on spells within the area of a swarm requires a Concentration check (DC 20 + spell level). Using skills that involve patience and concentration requires a DC 20 Concentration check.
Special Qualities: A swarm retains the special qualities of the base creature and gains the Swarm subtype traits (such as immunity to or reduced damage from weapons, vulnerability to area effects, and immunity to most targeted spells; see the Swarm subtype description for full details)
Saves: As the base creature.
Abilities: As the base creature.
Skills: As the base creature.
Feats: As the base creature
Environment: As the base creature.
Organization: Solitary or multiple (2-4).
Challenge Rating: As the base creature (minimum 1) plus 1 per 3 HD.
Treasure: As the base creature (usually none).
Alignment: As the base creature.
Advancement: By hit die.
Level Adjustment: —.
—typical adventurer reaction to a rust monster
http://imgur.com/dfbcnF3.jpg
“The only warning we had was the vein in front of us melting away
beneath our picks, and then they were upon us. They were hunched
and armored, like cockroaches or lobsters, with scuttling legs and
thrashing tails like bony fans. The noise of their chittering mandibles
was bad enough, but the worst were those antennae. Soft and
feathery, they caressed us all, and where they touched the metal
rusted away to dust in seconds. Some of us ran, others lay still
and let them take their fill. Garesk, though—he had three gold teeth.
He was a good man. I’ll give his family the news.”
—Durg Stonehollow, dwarven mine captain
Personally, I love the rust monster. To take a cheap dollar toy from a store and come up with such a nasty little critter was pure genius on Gygax's part. It wipes out some of the best defenses and tools that players rely on, as well as functions as a potent weapon against sieges against cities, especially if they rely on a lot of metal walls and weaponry.
I plan on messing around with the core build of the rust monster. Stumbling upon this (http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd%2Fdd%2F20060714a), someone has gone through the trouble of making some important changes to an old favorite, and I intend on doing the same. Some of what he used I like, but some will have to change. My hope is to make a nice little DM tool to use from time to time to surprise the players, as well as reinvent the wheel a bit, so to speak.
Much of the fluff will be taken from pathfinder's Dungeon Denizens Revised, because its brilliant when it comes to creating a real flavor to them beyond what was previously come up with.
Adult, Rust Monster
http://www.wizards.com/dnd/images/MM35_gallery/MM35_PG216.jpg
{TABLE]Size/Type:|Medium Aberration
Hit Dice:|5d8+5 (27 hp)
Initiative:|+3
Speed:|40 ft. (8 squares), Climb 40 ft.
Armor Class:|18 (+3 dex, +5 natural), touch 13, flat-footed 15
Base Attack/Grapple:|+3/+5
Attack:|'antennae' +6 melee touch (Rust) or 'bite' +6 melee (1d6+2)
Full Attack:|two 'antennae' +5 melee touch (Rust) and one 'bite' +6 melee (1d6+2)
Space/Reach:|5 ft./5 ft.
Special Attacks:|Rust
Special Qualities:|Darkvision 60 ft., Metalsense 90 ft., Scent
Saves:|Fort +2, Ref +4, Will +5
Abilities:|Str 14, Dex 17, Con 13, Int 2, Wis 13, Cha 8
Skills:|Climb +10, Hide +5, Listen +1, Move Silently +5, Search +0 (+10 if searching for metal items), Spot +1 and Survival +1
Feats:|Multiattack, Weapon Finesse
Environment:|Underground
Organization:|solitary or mated pair (2 rust monsters plus 10-12 rust monster nymphs)
Challenge Rating:|4
Treasure:|Standard (See Treasure Below)
Alignment:|Always Neutral
Advancement:|6-8 HD (medium-size); 9-15 HD (large)
Level Adjustment:|---
[/TABLE]
Hunched and armor-plated, the average rust monster is roughly 5 feet long and 200 pounds, its orange or rust-red bulk supported by four clawed legs that skitter with surprising speed when it charges. While its appearance,
with constantly moving fly-like mandibles and twitching propeller tail, would be alien and frightening on its own, most who delve into the mountain crevices and mineshafts where rust monsters are most commonly found quickly recognize the creatures for what they are: voracious consumers of anything metallic.
Called “Locusts of the Underdark” by some dwarves, rust monsters prefer iron, steel, and other ferrous alloys, but are capable of instantly oxidizing and devouring any metal objects merely by brushing them with their moth-like antennae. How exactly this process works is a mystery to scholars and magi alike, but not even arcane items or godly relics are capable of withstanding the alien creature’s unique ability. Many are the heroes who, after seeing their holy or enchanted broadswords rust and disintegrate in their hands, would rather face a dragon’s wrath than the blank-eyed rust monster’s mindless hunger.
COMBAT
A rust monster can smell the scent of a metal object from up to 90 feet away. When it detects one, it dashes toward the source and attempts to strike it with its antennae. The creature is relentless, chasing characters over long distances if they still possess intact metal objects but usually ceasing its attacks to devour a freshly rusted meal.
The creature targets the largest metal object available, striking first at armor, then at shields and smaller items. It prefers ferrous metals (steel or iron) over precious metals (such as gold or silver) but will devour the latter if given the opportunity.
Metalsense (Ex):
A rust monster can sense all metals within 90 feet of its location, via electromagnetic fields given off by the metal items. This grants a +10 racial bonus on search checks to find metal items.
Rust (Ex):
A rust monster that makes a successful touch attack with its antennae causes the target metal to corrode, falling to pieces and becoming useless immediately. The touch can destroy up to a 10-foot cube of metal instantly. Magic armor and weapons, and other magic items made of metal, must succeed on a DC 17 Reflex save or be dissolved. The save DC is Constitution-based and includes a +4 racial bonus.
A metal weapon that deals damage to a rust monster corrodes immediately. Wooden, stone, and other nonmetallic weapons are unaffected.
Nymph, Rust Monster
http://i.imgur.com/aIAzo2e.png
{TABLE]Size/Type:|Tiny Aberration
Hit Dice:|3d8 (13 hp)
Initiative:|5
Speed:|30 ft (6 squares), Climb 30 ft.
Armor Class:|20 (+2 size,+5 dex, +3 natural), touch 17, flat-footed 15
Base Attack/Grapple:|+2/-8
Attack:|'antennae' +9 melee touch (rust) or 'bite' +9 melee (1d3-2)
Full Attack:|two 'antennae' +7 melee touch (rust) and one 'bite' +9 melee (1d3-2)
Space/Reach:|2.5 ft./0 ft.
Special Attacks:|Rust
Special Qualities:|Darkvision 60 ft., Metalsense 90 ft., Scent
Saves:|Fort +1, Ref +6, Will +4
Abilities:| Str 6, Dex 21, Con 11, Int 2, Wis 13, Cha 8
Skills:|Climb +6, Hide +15, Listen +1, Move Silently +7, Search -2 (+8 if searching for metal items), Spot +1, Survival +1
Feats:|Multiattack, Weapon Finesse
Environment:|Underground
Organization:|solitary, pair or pack (3-9) or litter (10-12 rust monster nymphs plus 2 rust monsters)
Challenge Rating:|2
Treasure:|Standard (See Treasure Below)
Alignment:|Always Neutral
Advancement:|4 HD (small-sized), 5-8 HD (medium-size); 9-15 HD (large)
Level Adjustment:|--- (Improved Familiar)
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Although just a newly hatched baby rust monster, the rust monster's hide is fully formed and ready for action. The hide of these creatures varies in color from a yellowish tan underside to a rust-red upper back, although often tend to be lighter in color than an adult rust monster or even partially transparent.
A rust monster’s prehensile antennae can rust metals on contact. Although it eventually has a nasty little bite, baby rust monsters do not have mouth parts large enough to deal a lot of damage, The typical rust monster measures about 9 inches long and one foot high, weighing about 12-15 pounds.
COMBAT
A rust monster can sense a metal object from up to 90 feet away. When it detects one, it dashes toward the source and attempts to strike it with its antennae. The creature is relentless, chasing characters over long distances if they still possess intact metal objects but usually ceasing its attacks to devour a freshly rusted meal.
The creature targets the largest metal object available, striking first at armor, then at shields and smaller items. It prefers ferrous metals (steel or iron) over precious metals (such as gold or silver) but will devour the latter if given the opportunity.
Metalsense (Ex):
A rust monster can sense all metals within 90 feet of its location, via electromagnetic fields given off by the metal items. This grants a +10 racial bonus on search checks to find metal items.
Rust (Ex):
A rust monster that makes a successful touch attack with its antennae causes the target metal to corrode, falling to pieces and becoming useless immediately. The touch can destroy up to a 10-foot cube of metal instantly. Magic armor and weapons, and other magic items made of metal, must succeed on a DC 15 Reflex save or be dissolved. The save DC is Constitution-based and includes a +4 racial bonus.
A metal weapon that deals damage to a rust monster corrodes immediately. Wooden, stone, and other nonmetallic weapons are unaffected.
Rust Monster Nymph Familiars:
Although very difficult to raise, some have been known to be kept as familiars. While the baby rust monster makes an excellent familiar when it comes to protecting a caster from enemies using metal gear, its also a double-edged sword. Rust Monsters have an incredible appetite when it comes to metal goods, and cannot resist taking a bite of any piece of metal within range. Casters with rust monster familiars don't make allies easily, since the rust monster really does not care if the metal in question is the party's gold pieces, armor or weapons. Many a caster has lost a potential ally because a rare holy weapon or ancestral armor suddenly turned to rust in the middle of the night.
5th level casters can chose rust monsters as familiars if they have the improved familiar feat.
Nymph Swarm, Rust Monster
Size/Type:|Tiny Aberration (Swarm)
Hit Dice:|6d8 (27 hp)
Initiative:|+5
Speed:|30 ft. (6 squares), Climb 30 ft.
Armor Class:|20 (+2 size, +5 dex, +3 natural), touch 17, flat-footed 15
Attack:|Rusting Swarm (1d6-2 plus Rust)
Space/Reach:|10 ft.(four adjacent 5 ft. squares)/0 ft.
Special Attacks:|Rusting Swarm (See Below), Distraction
Special Qualities:|Darkvision 60 ft., Metalsense 90 ft., Scent, Swarm Traits
Saves:|Fort +2, Ref +7, Will +6
Abilities:| Str 6, Dex 21, Con 11, Int 2, Wis 13, Cha 8
Skills:|Climb +6, Hide +15, Listen +1, Move Silently +7, Search +1 (+11 if searching for metal items), Spot +1, Survival +1
Feats:|Ability Focus (Rusting Swarm), Multiattack, Weapon Finesse
Environment:|Underground
Organization:|Solitary or Multiple (2-4)
Challenge Rating:|4
Treasure:|Standard (See Treasure Below)
Alignment:|Always Neutral
Advancement:|None
Level Adjustment:|---
A nightmare incarnate... A swarm of three hundred juvenile rust monsters, referred to as a nymph swarm. Like a swarm of locusts, they consume everything within their path, seeking metals with a hunger unmatched by any other known creature.
COMBAT
A nymph swarm can sense a metal object from up to 90 feet away. When they detect one, they move towards the source and attempts to consume it by moving over it. The swarm is relentless, chasing characters over long distances if they still possess intact metal objects but usually ceasing their attack to devour a freshly rusted meal.
They prefer ferrous metals (steel or iron) over precious metals (such as gold or silver) but will devour the latter if given the opportunity.
Distraction (Ex):
Any living creature vulnerable to a swarm’s damage that begins its turn with a swarm in its square is nauseated for 1 round; a Fortitude save (DC 13; constitution-based) negates the effect. Spellcasting or concentrating on spells within the area of a swarm requires a Concentration check (DC 20 + spell level). Using skills that involve patience and concentration requires a DC 20 Concentration check.
Metalsense (Ex):
A nymph swarm can sense all metals within 90 feet of their location, via electromagnetic fields given off by the metal items. This grants a +10 racial bonus on search checks to find metal items.
Rusting Swarm (Ex):
All metallic items within a nymph swarm instantly corrode, falling to pieces and becoming useless immediately. Magic armor and weapons, and other magic items made of metal, must succeed on a DC 19 Reflex save or be dissolved. The save DC is Constitution-based and includes a +4 racial bonus and a +2 feat bonus.
A metal weapon that deals damage to a nymph swarm corrodes immediately. Wooden, stone, and other nonmetallic weapons are unaffected.
Swarm Traits:
A swarm has no clear front or back and no discernable anatomy, so it is not subject to critical hits or flanking. A swarm made up of Tiny creatures takes half damage from slashing and piercing weapons. Reducing a swarm to 0 hit points or lower causes it to break up, though damage taken until that point does not degrade its ability to attack or resist attack. Swarms are never staggered or reduced to a dying state by damage. Also, they cannot be tripped, grappled, or bull rushed, and they cannot grapple an opponent.
A swarm is immune to any spell or effect that targets a specific number of creatures (including single-target spells such as disintegrate). A swarm takes half again as much damage (+50%) from spells or effects that affect an area, such as splash weapons and many evocation spells.
A swarm rendered unconscious by means of nonlethal damage becomes disorganized and dispersed, and does not reform until its hit points exceed its nonlethal damage.
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The iron in the body of a warforged makes him vulnerable to rusting grasp. The creature takes 2d6 points of damage from the spell (Reflex half; save DC 14 + caster's ability modifier). A warforged takes the same damage from a rust monster's touch (Reflex DC 17 half). That's the same save DC listed in the Monster Manual entry; Con-based and with a +4 racial bonus.
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ECOLOGY:
Ancient beyond compare, the rust monster’s origins are lost to the sands of prehistory. While most speculate that they somehow evolved from the giant isopods and crustaceans who roam the ocean floors near geothermal vents, others posit that they might have evolved on the Elemental Plane of Earth, their endless tunneling providing younger elemental races with space to live and grow. Still others suggest that, given its supremely alien nature, the rust monster might have been introduced to the material plane by visitors from another world—possibly as an act of aggression designed to slow the march of technology by limiting younger races’ access to metals, or as living power generators for some unknown future project. Whatever the case, rust monsters stand alone in their family, bearing similarities to crustaceans, insects, and mammals, but kinship to none.
The ability from which the rust monster gains its name is one of the strangest in the animal kingdom, more unusual than even the medusa’s stare or the mimic’s shapeshifting. Like the purple worm or the xorn, rust monsters gain their nourishment from consuming minerals instead of organic matter, but the manner in which they accomplish this is completely unique.
Like the electric eel, the rust monster’s body acts like a giant battery, capable of storing vast amounts of energy and manifesting it as a unique and powerful electromagnetic field. While this field passes through the flesh of most living creatures without notice, its effect on metals is profound. When metal is contacted by the rust monster’s body—particularly its feathery antennae—a circuit is closed and vast amounts of electrical current pour through the object, this supernaturally augmented electrolysis exponentially accelerating the normal rate of oxidization. To the outside observer, the metal simply disintegrates into uselessness. Inside the rust monster, however, a different story plays out.
The process of oxidization—called rusting, in ferrous metal—releases vast amounts of energy in the form of heat. This energy, gathered by the charged fields focused on the rust monster’s antennae, is the true source of the rust monster’s life force. Unlike most creatures, the rust monster gains no sustenance from the digestion process, having evolved to absorb energy only in its purest form.
While rust monsters are frequently observed gobbling up the rust left behind after a metallic item is destroyed, this consumption serves a different function, providing the animal with key minerals it needs to form its highly metallic bones and blood. Excess metals go to form the protective carapace on its back and tail—the plates armoring a rust monster’s back are made up almost exclusively of processed iron, giving the beast its typical red-orange coloration.
While the rust monster’s feeding process is singularly elegant, it does not provide well for energy storage when compared to creatures who can transform excess food into fat stores. Instead, the rust monster is born with the instinctual knowledge that its biological clock is ticking— when its internal battery runs down, it dies. As a result, the rust monster exists in a state of constant and extreme hunger, going to any lengths to ensure that it consumes as much metal as possible. This can occasionally lead to the hungry beasts taking in more energy than they can actually accommodate, giving rise to another unique trait: the creature’s strange propeller tail. After stymieing naturalists for hundreds of years, the fan-shaped appendage is now believed by researchers to be used to shed excess heat, much like a desert hare’s long ears, its shape uniquely suited to dispersing excess energy in the form of radiated heat before the overzealous rust monster cooks itself.
This manipulation of electromagnetic fields is also responsible for the rust monster’s ability to “smell” metal at a distance. In reality, this ability to locate even miniscule metal objects up to 90 feet away is part of a greater ability to see the complex twisting of the world’s own magnetic fields. Around any metallic object, these natural fields distort, creating a beacon that shines bright through wood, stone, and flesh, showing the hungry monsters where to find their next meal. While their eyes are perfectly functional, able to see even in the total darkness of their subterranean homes, the weaving of the magnetic fields so overrides a rust monster’s other senses that clever adventurers can frequently escape by distracting them with large chunks of metal armor and fleeing the other way.
In places where metal is scarce, however, some rust monsters have been known to hunt and kill unarmored creatures in order to harvest the iron from their blood.
HABITAT/SOCIETY:
Though heated competition for any and all available food sources makes rust monsters solitary by nature, areas rich enough with metal ore can sometimes attract swarms of them, the pugnacious beasts clashing violently whenever they come into conflict over a given delicacy but otherwise content to ignore each other. The exception to this is mating—when a rust monster comes upon enough metal that it feels consistently well fed for several weeks, it enters estrus and begins searching for a mate. Fully hermaphroditic, rust monsters choose their mates based on carapace size (a direct indicator of how well nourished a beast is) and band together just long enough to couple and raise their respective broods, with both parties carrying their young to term.
Unlike most insectoid creatures, rust monsters do not lay eggs; young are born live in litters of 10 to 12 juveniles, called “nymphs.” At birth, rust monsters are soft and partially transparent, completely boneless but already possessing long prehensile antennae—this lack of bones helps the young pass through the parent’s narrow and armored birth canal. Young are born already able to sense and consume metal, and by a year old most have already consumed enough ore to build themselves bones and carapace identical to an adult’s. (Possessing the same powers but easier to manipulate than adults,
rust monster nymphs can be extremely valuable in the right markets.)
Rust monsters live almost exclusively underground, and frequently inhabit iron-rich mountain regions, though they have been known to sometimes wander into populated areas and wreak havoc by consuming vast quantities of urban infrastructure. (A city with a rust monster loose in its sewer system does not quickly forget the ensuing unpleasantness.) Even in the wild, an infestation can be extremely destructive, as rust monsters burrowing through a region in search of metals can greatly increase erosion, with whole mountainsides collapsing and sloughing away as their metallic foundations are rotted out from within.
Due to their chosen environment, rust monsters are a notorious threat to dwarven societies, with the stout folk’s famous forges an irresistible prize to the hungry beasts. While not an everyday occurrence, the problem of rust monster attacks is common enough that most dwarven communities of a given size keep a supply of stone weapons close at hand for just such an occasion. These hunts, when they happen, are impressive and highly ritualized affairs with a history dating back well before the dwarves emerged onto the world’s surface. In them, young dwarven men prove their bravery by stripping naked, painting their bodies with fungus pigments, and stalking the insectoid creatures with stone spears and axes.
Not all interactions between the two groups are violent, however—though rust monsters are nearly impossible to domesticate, many groups of dwarven miners use leashed specimens to lead them to the best ore deposits.
With their formidable dietary requirements, rust monsters tend to be transient, and rarely stay in one place long enough to make a proper lair. In those cases where a given rust monster finds a vein of ore rich enough to support it for a long time, the chambers it creates are jagged and random, pitted natural caverns connected by long, thin cracks and chasms where the beast has sucked a vein dry. These narrow passages, which can stretch for miles, also present convenient hiding places for rust monsters and their young in the face of outside threats.
It is unclear how long a rust monster’s natural lifespan is, as most eventually die from starvation or violence, but accounts of famous rust monsters indicate that they can live for several centuries, if not longer.
TREASURE:
Though rust monsters themselves have no appreciation for treasure or material wealth beyond those metallic objects which can be immediately consumed, their lairs are often strewn with valuable items cast aside by the beasts in their quest for food. Loose gems and precious stones are particularly common, as once the metal in a gem-encrusted sword or diadem is consumed, the stones that remain are ignored by the rust monster. In fact, those adventurers who succeed in cutting open a deceased rust monster often find small gems in its gizzard as well, accidentally ingested in the monster’s race to devour their corroding metallic settings.
Due to their positions near or within natural metallic veins, gems are the only valuables a rust monster might come by naturally. After them, the most common items are those stripped from fleeing or deceased adventurers and other victims. Scrolls, books, and potions are all completely safe from rust monsters, as are bows, many staves and wands, magical clothing, and other such items. In areas where rust monsters regularly clash with civilized races, these items can sometimes be found trampled and gathering dust in forgotten corners, worthless to the rust monster and left wherever they have fallen.
Swarm Template Used:
CREATING A SWARM
“Swarm” is an acquired template that can be added to any creature of size tiny, diminutive, or fine (referred to hereafter as the base creature).
Size and Type: The creature gains the (Swarm) subtype. Its size does not change, but it occupies a 10' space with no reach.
Hit Dice: d8, as many as the base creature (minimum 1).
Speed: As the base creature.
Armor Class: As the base creature.
Base Attack Bonus: Medium (+3 per 4 HD)
Attacks: A swarm loses all of the attacks of the base creature. Instead, it gains:
Swarm Attack: Swarms do not make standard melee attacks. Instead, they deal automatic damage to any creature whose space they occupy at the end of their move, with no attack roll needed. Swarm attacks are not subject to a miss chance for concealment or cover. A swarm’s statistics block has “swarm” in the Attack and Full Attack entries, with no attack bonus given.
Swarms do not threaten creatures in their square, and do not make attacks of opportunity with their swarm attack.
Damage: The amount of damage a swarm deals with its Swarm attack is based on its Hit Dice, as shown below.
(refer to Swarm subtype table)
A swarm’s attacks are nonmagical, unless the base creature's natural or unarmed strike attacks are magical. Damage reduction sufficient to reduce a swarm attack’s damage to 0, being incorporeal, and other special abilities usually give a creature immunity (or at least resistance) to damage from a swarm.
Special Attacks: A swarm retains all of the base creature’s special attacks. Special attacks that depend on the base creature's natural or unarmed strike attacks instead apply to the swarm's Swarm attack (e.g., a poison bite attack would instead add the poison effect to the Swarm attack). A swarm gains the following special attack:
Distraction (Ex): Any living creature vulnerable to a swarm’s damage that begins its turn with a swarm in its square is nauseated for 1 round; a Fortitude save (DC 10 + 1/2 swarm’s HD + swarm’s Con modifier) negates the effect. Spellcasting or concentrating on spells within the area of a swarm requires a Concentration check (DC 20 + spell level). Using skills that involve patience and concentration requires a DC 20 Concentration check.
Special Qualities: A swarm retains the special qualities of the base creature and gains the Swarm subtype traits (such as immunity to or reduced damage from weapons, vulnerability to area effects, and immunity to most targeted spells; see the Swarm subtype description for full details)
Saves: As the base creature.
Abilities: As the base creature.
Skills: As the base creature.
Feats: As the base creature
Environment: As the base creature.
Organization: Solitary or multiple (2-4).
Challenge Rating: As the base creature (minimum 1) plus 1 per 3 HD.
Treasure: As the base creature (usually none).
Alignment: As the base creature.
Advancement: By hit die.
Level Adjustment: —.