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Wih
2007-07-03, 11:07 PM
OK. Recently I've planned on throwing my group against a mating pair of Pyro-Hydras, and I thought it would be interesting if the treasure would be replaced with a Hydra egg - either for them to sell (see the bottom of the entry for details on eggs). I got a bit carried away, and I'd like to see what people think - is it balanced (both for pricing, the handle animal checks, and the CR for each Hydra), and does it all make sense?

Anyway, here's the entry.

After defeating the Hydra with a bit of luck and a handy scroll of Fireball, Lidda was lucky enough to recover an egg from it's swampy nest. While she thought about selling it at market, before she could get there it started to hatch. Now stuck with a small brown quadruped with an elongated neck, Lidda is getting far too attached to her new pet...

Contrary to popular opinion, Hydras do not get born larger than a horse, with 5 heads. They actually hatch out of eggs roughly the same size as an ostrich egg, and gain their heads over time, or through mutations during battle (where the Hydra's extra heads do not wither at the end of the day).
A Hydra starts off it's life looking drab and brown, with a tan underbelly. Over their maturity, some turn more grey, and their underbelly may go light yellow, but this is a slow process, and so far there is no indications the suggest this has any impact on the Hydra itself.

Combat

Hydras can attack with all their heads at no penalty, even if they move or charge during the round.

A hydra can be killed either by severing all its heads or by slaying its body. To sever a head, an opponent must make a successful sunder attempt with a slashing weapon. (The player should declare where the attack is aimed before making the attack roll.) Making a sunder attempt provokes an attack of opportunity unless the foe has the Improved Sunder feat. An opponent can strike at a hydra’s heads from any position in which he could strike at the hydra itself, because the hydra’s head writhe and whip about in combat. An opponent can ready an action to attempt to sunder a hydra’s head when the creature bites at him. Each of a hydra’s heads has hit points equal to the creature’s full normal hit point total, divided by its original number of heads. Losing a head deals damage to the body equal to half the head’s full normal hit points. A natural reflex seals the neck shut to prevent further blood loss. A hydra can no longer attack with a severed head but takes no other penalties.

Each time a head is severed, two new heads spring from the stump in 1d4 rounds. A hydra can never have more than twice its original number of heads at any one time, and any extra heads it gains beyond its original number wither and die within a day. To prevent a severed head from growing back into two heads, at least 5 points of fire or acid damage must be dealt to the stump (a touch attack to hit) before the new heads appear. A flaming weapon (or similar effect) deals its energy damage to the stump in the same blow in which a head is severed. Fire or acid damage from an area effect may burn multiple stumps in addition to dealing damage to the hydra’s body. A hydra does not die from losing its heads until all its heads have been cut off and the stumps seared by fire or acid.

A hydra’s body can be slain just like any other creature’s, but hydras possess fast healing (see below) and are difficult to defeat in this fashion. Any attack that is not (or cannot be) an attempt to sunder a head affects the body.

Targeted magical effects cannot sever a hydra’s heads (and thus must be directed at the body) unless they deal slashing damage and could be used to make sunder attempts.

Fast Healing (Ex)
Each round, a hydra heals damage equal to half their Constitution score + the number of its original heads.

Skills
Hydras have a +2 racial bonus on Listen and Spot checks, thanks to their multiple heads (and so, a baby Hydra with one head does not get this bonus).

A hydra has a +8 racial bonus on any Swim check to perform some special action or avoid a hazard. It can always choose to take 10 on a Swim check, even if distracted or endangered. It can use the run action while swimming, provided it swims in a straight line.

Feats
A hydra’s Combat Reflexes feat allows it to use all its heads for attacks of opportunity.

Pyrohydra
Huge Magical Beast (Fire)

These reddish hydras can breathe jets of fire 10 feet high, 10 feet wide, and 20 feet long. All heads breathe once every 1d4 rounds. Each jet deals 3d6 points of fire damage per head. A successful Reflex save halves the damage. The save DC is 10 + ½ hydra’s original number of heads + hydra’s Con modifier.

Fire attacks cannot prevent a pyrohydra’s stump from growing new heads (since a pyrohydra has immunity to fire), but 5 points of cold damage does.

Cryohydra
Huge Magical Beast (Cold)

These purplish hydras can breathe jets of frost 10 feet high, 10 feet wide, and 20 feet long. All heads breathe once every 1d4 rounds. Each jet deals 3d6 points of cold damage per head. A successful Reflex save halves the damage. The save DC is 10 + ½ hydra’s original number of heads + hydra’s Con modifier.


Baby Hydra
{table] Size/Type: | Tiny Magical Beast
Hit Dice | 1d10+3 (8)
Initiative: | +1
Speed | 20 ft. (4 squares); Swim 20 ft. (4 squares)
Armor Class | 13 (+1 Dex, +2 Size) touch 13; flat-footed 12
Base Attack/Grapple | +1/-8
Attack | 1 bite +2 melee (d3-1, 20x2)
Full-Attack | 1 bite +2 melee (d3-1, 20x2)
Space/Reach | 2.5 ft/0 ft
Special Attacks | -
Special Qualities | Darkvision 60 ft, Lowlight Vision, Scent, Fast Healing 6
Saves | Fort +2 Ref +3 Will +0
Abilities | Str 8, Dex 12, Con 10, Int 2, Wis 10, Cha 9
Skills | Listen(WIS) +2, Spot(WIS) +2, Swim(STR) +7
Feats | Combat Reflexes(B), Toughness
Environment | Temperate Marshes (Pyro: Warm marshes) (Cryo: Cold marshes)
Organization | Solitary
Challenge Rating | 1/2 (normal); 2 (pyro- or cryo-)
Treasure | 1/10 coins; 50% goods; 50% items
Alignment | Usually Neutral
Advancement | - (See other Hydra entries)
Level Adjustment | - [/table]

Maturing Hydra (Two Headed)
{table] Size/Type: | Small Magical Beast
Hit Dice | 2d10+3 (14)
Initiative: | +1
Speed | 20 ft. (4 squares); Swim 20 ft. (4 squares)
Armor Class | 13 (+1 Dex, +1 Size, +1 Natural Armour) touch 12; flat-footed 12
Base Attack/Grapple | +2/-2
Attack | 2 bites +3 melee (d4, 20x2)
Full-Attack | 2 bites +3 melee (d4, 20x2)
Space/Reach | 5 ft/5 ft
Special Attacks | -
Special Qualities | Darkvision 60 ft, Lowlight Vision, Scent, Fast Healing 7
Saves | Fort +3 Ref +4 Will +0
Abilities | Str 10, Dex 12, Con 10, Int 2, Wis 10, Cha 9
Skills | Listen(WIS) +4, Spot(WIS) +5, Swim(STR) +8
Feats | Combat Reflexes(B), Toughness
Environment | Temperate Marshes (Pyro: Warm marshes) (Cryo: Cold marshes)
Organization | Solitary
Challenge Rating | 1 (normal); 3 (pyro- or cryo-)
Treasure | 1/10 coins; 50% goods; 50% items
Alignment | Usually Neutral
Advancement | - (See other Hydra entries)
Level Adjustment | - [/table]

Maturing Hydra (Three Headed)
{table] Size/Type: | Medium Magical Beast
Hit Dice | 3d10+6 (22)
Initiative: | +1
Speed | 20 ft. (4 squares); Swim 20 ft. (4 squares)
Armor Class | 14 (+1 Dex, +3 Natural Armour) touch 11; flat-footed 13
Base Attack/Grapple | +3/+4
Attack | 3 bites +4 melee (d6+1, 20x2)
Full-Attack | 3 bites +4 melee (d6+1, 20x2)
Space/Reach | 5 ft/5 ft
Special Attacks | -
Special Qualities | Darkvision 60 ft, Lowlight Vision, Scent, Fast Healing 9
Saves | Fort +4 Ref +4 Will +3
Abilities | Str 12, Dex 12, Con 12, Int 2, Wis 10, Cha 9
Skills | Listen(WIS) +5, Spot(WIS) +5, Swim(STR) +9
Feats | Combat Reflexes(B), Toughness, Iron Will
Environment | Temperate Marshes (Pyro: Warm marshes) (Cryo: Cold marshes)
Organization | Solitary
Challenge Rating | 2 (normal); 4 (pyro- or cryo-)
Treasure | 1/10 coins; 50% goods; 50% items
Alignment | Usually Neutral
Advancement | - (See other Hydra entries)
Level Adjustment | - [/table]

Maturing Hydra (Four Headed)
{table] Size/Type: | Medium Magical Beast
Hit Dice | 4d10+12 (37)
Initiative: | +1
Speed | 20 ft. (4 squares); Swim 20 ft. (4 squares)
Armor Class | 14 (+1 Dex, -1 Size, +4 Natural Armour) touch 10; flat-footed 14
Base Attack/Grapple | +4/+10
Attack | 4 bites +5 melee (d8+2, 20x2)
Full-Attack | 4 bites +5 melee (d8+2, 20x2)
Space/Reach | 10 ft/5 ft
Special Attacks | -
Special Qualities | Darkvision 60 ft, Lowlight Vision, Scent, Fast Healing 9
Saves | Fort +7 Ref +5 Will +3
Abilities | Str 15, Dex 12, Con 16, Int 2, Wis 10, Cha 9
Skills | Listen(WIS) +5, Spot(WIS) +6, Swim(STR) +10
Feats | Combat Reflexes(B), Toughness, Iron Will
Environment | Temperate Marshes (Pyro: Warm marshes) (Cryo: Cold marshes)
Organization | Solitary
Challenge Rating | 3 (normal); 5 (pyro- or cryo-)
Treasure | 1/10 coins; 50% goods; 50% items
Alignment | Usually Neutral
Advancement | - (See other Hydra entries)
Level Adjustment | - [/table]

Raising and Training Hydras

As Hydras are less intelligent than your standard Magical Beasts (having an Intelligence on 2), this gives you a few more options for rearing and training your new baby Hydra as a pet, guard or mount. The standard DC for training a wild Magical Beast is 20+HD, however due to their aggressive nature and the complexity of teaching more head than once, the DC increases also by the number of heads the Hydra has.
Use of Charm Monster, similar spells or spells that calm down creatures make training multi-headed hydras easier, negating the increase due to the number of heads the Hydra has.
Several things make training a Hydra easier, or harder: if you incubated the egg (+2 competence bonus), or were present during the hatching (+3 competence bonus) you will find it easier to rear and train your new companion. However, if you do not rear or train a Cryo- or Pyro-Hydra in it's natural terrain, you suffer a -5 competence penalty to the checks involved, as they are more aggressive in terrain less friendly towards their subtype.
Lastly, despite the extra heads a Hydra may have, they do not have an enhanced capability for learning, and infact cannot use their heads in multiple fashions (like an Octopus cannot manipulate more than 2 tentacles at once), so teaching a Hydra to manipulate more than one head for more than one task (such as attacking two different enemies during an attack action) is part of the second 'Attack' trick for a Hydra.

In order for a Hydra to lay an egg, it must form a mating pair, and be sufficiently mature (have at least five heads.) A standard Hydra egg is worth 2000gp on the open market, while a Pyro- or Cryo-Hydra egg is worth 4000gp.