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JackMage666
2007-07-09, 04:03 AM
So, I was looking through my old ragged copy of Manual of the Planes, when I happened across the Element Creature templates. Having a new campaign coming up, I wanted to work these buggers fo LA, since I wanted to be an Elemental for once. Thought it'd be cool, ya know. So I was looking at them, and I though, "Man, these are hard to rate. They're too strong for this, but too weak for that. And, theres something already like this, and It's stronger, but thats also weaker, and where did I put my pants?" So, needless to say, I wanted to rework them. So, without further introduction, the re-worked templates.
(All fluff can be found in the Manual of the Planes, or made up on your own. It's pretty basic, after all. Think creatures from outer planes.)

Air Element Creatures
"Air Element" is a template that can be added to any corporeal creature of the following base types: aberration, animal, humanoid, magical beast, monstrous humanoid, plant, or vermin. The creature's type changes to "Elemental (air)". It uses all the base creature's statistics and special abilities except as noted below.
Hit Dice: Change to d8
Speed: An air element creature gains a fly speed equal to his base land speed plus 20 ft, with manueuverability based on Dex.
{table=head]Dex|Maneuverability

1-6|
Clumsy

7-10|
Poor

11-14|
Average

15-17|
Good

18+|
Perfect[/table]

Special Attacks: An air element creature retains all the special attacks of the base creature ad also gains the following.
Air Mastery (Ex): Airborne creatures suffer a -1 penalty on attack and damage rolls against an air element creature.
Special Qualities: An air element creature retains all the special qualities of the base creature and also gains the following ones:
*Darkvision with a range of 60 ft
*Damage Reduction, based on HD:
{table=head]HD|Damage Reduction

1-7|
---

8-11|
5/magic

12+|
10/magic[/table]

If the base creature already has one or more of these special qualities, use the better value.
Abilities: Dex +4
Languages: An air element creature gains Auran as an automatic language, provided it has an intelligence of 3 or higher and can speak.
Challenge Rating: Same as base creature +1
Level Adjustment: Same as base creature +2

Cold Element Creatures
"Cold Element" is a template that can be added to any corporeal creature of the following base types: aberration, animal, humanoid, magical beast, monstrous humanoid, plant, or vermin. The creature's type changes to "Elemental (cold)". It uses all the base creature's statistics and special abilities except as noted below.
Hit Dice: Change to d8
AC: Natural armor improves by +3
Special Attacks: A cold element creature retains all the special attaks of the base creature and also gains the following.
Chill (Ex): In addition to the normal damage from their attacks, cold element creatures deal additional cold damage with their natural weapons. For a medium creature, this damage is 1d4, and increases or decreases depending on size.
Special Qualities: A cold element creature retains all the special qualities of the base creature and also gains the following ones:
*Darkvision with a range of 60 ft
*Damage reduction, based on HD:
{table=head]HD|Damage Reduction

1-7|
---

8-11|
5/magic

12+|
10/magic[/table]

*Cold Subtype (Ex): Immunity to cold, +50% damage from fire
*Icewalking (Ex): This ability works like the spider climb spell, but applies to all icy surfaces.
If the base creature already has one or more of these special qualities, use the better value.
Abilities: Con +4
Languages: A fire element creature gains either Aquan or Auran (choose one) as an automatic language, provided it has an intelligence of 3 or higher and can speak.
Challenge Rating: Same as base creature +1
Level Adjustment: Same as base creature +2

Earth Element Creatures
"Earth Element" is a template that can be added to any corporeal creature of the following base types: aberration, animal, humanoid, magical beast, monstrous humanoid, plant, or vermin. The creature's type changes to "Elemental (earth)". It uses all the base creature's statistics and special abilities except as noted below.
Hit Dice: Change to d8
Speed: An earth element gains a burrow speed equal to the base creatures land speed or 20 ft, whichever is less, in addition to the normal speed for the base creature.
AC: Natural armor improves by +3
Special Attacks: An earth element creature retains all the special attaks of the base creature and also gains the following.
Earth Mastery (Ex): An earth element creature gains a +1 bonus on attack rolls and damage rolls if both it and its foe touch the ground. If an opponent is airborn ot waterborne, the earth element creature suffers a -4 penalty on attack rolls and damage rolls.
Earth Glide (Ex): An earth element creature can glide through most stone, dirt, or almost any other sort of earth except metal or exceptionally strong stone, like marble, as easily as a fish swims through water. Its burrowing leaves behind no tunnel or hole, nor does it create any ripple or other signs of it's presense. A move earth spell cast on an area containing a burrowing earth element creature flings the creature back 30 ft, stunning the creature for 1 round unless it succeeds on a DC 15 Fortitude save.
Special Qualities: An earth element creature retains all the special qualities of the base creature and also gains the following ones:
*Darkvision with a range of 60 ft
*Damage reduction, based on HD:
{table=head]HD|Damage Reduction

1-7|
---

8-11|
5/magic

12+|
10/magic[/table]

*Tremorsense with a range of 60 ft
If the base creature already has one or more of these special qualities, use the better value.
Abilities: +2 Str, -2 Dex, Con +4
Languages: An earth element creature gains Terran as an automatic language, provided it has an intelligence of 3 or higher and can speak.
Challenge Rating: Same as base creature +1
Level Adjustment: Same as base creature +2

Fire Element Creatures
"Fire Element" is a template that can be added to any corporeal creature of the following base types: aberration, animal, humanoid, magical beast, monstrous humanoid, plant, or vermin. The creature's type changes to "Elemental (fire)". It uses all the base creature's statistics and special abilities except as noted below.
Hit Dice: Change to d8
Special Attacks: A fire element creature retains all the special attaks of the base creature and also gains the following.
Heat (Ex): In addition to the normal damage from their attacks, fire element creatures deal additional fire damage with their natural weapons. For a medium creature, this damage is 1d4, and increases or decreases depending on size.
Creatures hitting a fire element creature with natural weapons or unarmed strikes take fire damage as though hut by the fire element creature's attack, and also catch on fire unless they succeed at a Reflex save (see Burn, below)
Burn (Ex): Those hit by the natural weapons of a fire element creature must succeed at a Reflex save or catch fire. The flame burns for 1d4 rounds (See Catching on Fire in Chapter 3 of the Dungeon Master's Guide) The save DC is equal to 10+1/2 fire element creature's total HD.
Special Qualities: A fire element creature retains all the special qualities of the base creature and also gains the following ones:
*Darkvision with a range of 60 ft
*Damage reduction, based on HD:
{table=head]HD|Damage Reduction

1-7|
---

8-11|
5/magic

12+|
10/magic[/table]

*Fire Subtype (Ex): Immunity to fire, +50% damage from cold
If the base creature already has one or more of these special qualities, use the better value.
Abilities: Dex +2, Con +2
Languages: A fire element creature gains Ignan as an automatic language, provided it has an intelligence of 3 or higher and can speak.
Challenge Rating: Same as base creature +1
Level Adjustment: Same as base creature +2

Water Element Creatures
"Water Element" is a template that can be added to any corporeal creature of the following base types: aberration, animal, humanoid, magical beast, monstrous humanoid, plant, or vermin. The creature's type changes to "Elemental (water)". It uses all the base creature's statistics and special abilities except as noted below.
Hit Dice: Change to d8
Speed: A water element creature gains a swim speed equal to it's base land speed +20 ft.
Special Attacks: A water element creature retains all the special attaks of the base creature and also gains the following.
Water Mastery (Ex): A water element creature gains a +1 bonus on attack rolls and damage rolls if both it and its foe touch water. If an opponent or water element creature is landbound, the water element creature suffers a -4 penalty on attack rolls and damage rolls.
Drench (Ex): The water element creature's touch puts out torches, campfires, exposed lanterns, and other open flames of nonmagical origin, as long as these are with one size catagory larger than the water element creature or smaller. The creature can dispel magical fire it touches as dispel magic cast by a sorcerer whose level equals the water element creature's HD total. It gains no benefit or disadvantage against creatures from the Elemental Plane of Fire.
Special Qualities: A water element creature retains all the special qualities of the base creature and also gains the following ones:
*Darkvision with a range of 60 ft
*Damage reduction, based on HD:
{table=head]HD|Damage Reduction

1-7|
---

8-11|
5/magic

12+|
10/magic[/table]

If the base creature already has one or more of these special qualities, use the better value.
Abilities: Str +2, Con +2
Languages: A water element creature gains Aquan as an automatic language, provided it has an intelligence of 3 or higher and can speak.
Challenge Rating: Same as base creature +1
Level Adjustment: Same as base creature +2

JackMage666
2007-07-09, 01:58 PM
And now, oddly enough, the Half-Elementals. It's strange, since my calculated LA is higher than an Element creature. Spell-like abilites, I suppose...

Half-Elemental
"Half-Elemental" is a template that can be added to any corporeal creature with an Intelligence score of 3 or more (referred to hereafter as the "base creature"). Because the half-elemental is still mostly flesh, it cannot be of the elemental type. Instead, the creature's type changes to Outsider, with a subtype matching the parent elemental (Air, Earth, Fire, or Water). Do not recalulate base attack bonus, hit dice, or saves. It uses all the base creature's statistics and special abilities except as noted here.

AC: Natural armor improves by +1, or by +3 for a half-earth elemental.
Special Attacks: A half-elemental retains all the special attacks of the base creature. Half-Elementals with a Charisma or Wisdom score of 11 or higher possess the following spell-like abilities, using their character level as the caster level. Each spell-like ability is usable once per day. Spell-like abilities gained in this was are cumulative. The save DC for any spell-like ability is 10+spell level+the half-elemental's charisma modifier. If a spell allows for multiple type (like Elemental swarm), the half-elemental must use the type reflected by it's elemental heritage.

{table=head]HD|Air|Earth|Fire|Water

1-2|
Obscuring mist|
Magic stone|
Burning hands|
Obscuring mist

3-4|
Wind wall|
Soften earth and stone|
Produce flame|
Fog cloud

5-6|
Gaseous form|
Stone shape|
Flaming sphere|
Water breathing

7-8|
Air walk|
Spike stones|
Wall of fire|
Control water

9-10|
Control winds|
Wall of stone|
Fire shield|
Ice storm

11-12|
Chain lightning|
Stoneskin|
Fire seeds|
Cone of cold

13-14|
Control weather|
Earthquake|
Firestorm|
Acid fog

15-16|
Whirlwind|
Iron body|
Incendiary cloud|
Horrid wilting

17-18|
Elemental swarm|
Elemental swarm|
Elemental swarm|
Elemental swarm

19+|
Plane shift|
Plane shift|
Plane shift|
Plane shift[/table]

Special Qualities: A half-elemental has all the special qualities of the base creature. A half-elementals gains a +4 on Fortitude saves against poison, and are immune to disease and immune to one energy type, depending on type.

{table]Air|
Electricity

Earth|
Acid

Fire|
Fire

Water|
Cold[/table]

Saves: A half-elemental has all good saves.
Abilities: Change from the base creature as follows:

{table]Air|
+2 Dex, +2 Con, +2 Int, +2 Wis, +2 Cha

Earth|
+4 Str, -2 Dex, +4 Con

Fire|
+4 Dex, +2 Int, +2 Cha

Water|
+2 Str, +2 Con, +2 Int, +2 Wis, +2 Cha[/table]

Skills: A half-elemental gains skill points as an outsider and has skill points equal to (8+Int modifier) X (HD+3). Do not recalculate skill points from class levels in this calculation. Treat skills from the base creature's list as class skills, and other sklls as cross-class.
Challenge Rating: Same as base creature +2
Level Adjustment: Same as base creature +3

JackMage666
2007-09-28, 07:48 PM
I posted this several months ago, but didn't get any critques - Wondering if anyone wnated to throw their hat into it this time.

Karma Guard
2007-09-28, 10:28 PM
Why don't the elemental creatures get the SLAs or Elemental Immunities/Resistances?

As it is now, a half-elemental wolf is a lot better off than the actual elemental wolf.

I say give the elementals immunity and the halfies just resistance, and trim down the SLAs to one or two cantrip-y things like the Genasi (Gensai? They did get SLAs, right?), while the whole Elementals get the better ones.

Also:


Chill (Ex): In addition to the normal damage from their attacks, fire element creatures deal additional cold damage with their natural weapons.

Mis-copy.

JackMage666
2007-09-29, 01:37 AM
These were primarily the templates found in Manual of the Plains, updated to 3.5.

Elemental creatures do get the elemental immunities/resitances, because their type changed to Elemental.

And, the reason I think that Half-Elemental creatures get SLAs is because of the word Half. For example, a Half-Fiend gets a number of SLAs that a regular fiend might not get, and a Half-Fey recieves several the same way. I'm not sure, they were merely an updated version of the old templates.

Karma Guard
2007-09-29, 02:23 AM
These were primarily the templates found in Manual of the Plains, updated to 3.5.

Elemental creatures do get the elemental immunities/resitances, because their type changed to Elemental.

Oh hurf durf. I thought about it right after I posted :V


And, the reason I think that Half-Elemental creatures get SLAs is because of the word Half. For example, a Half-Fiend gets a number of SLAs that a regular fiend might not get, and a Half-Fey recieves several the same way. I'm not sure, they were merely an updated version of the old templates.

That's weird. D&D is weird why did i get in this game-- I mean. Well then, if that's the established pattern, then okay v(._.)v