PDA

View Full Version : Grindylow [Monster]



The Demented One
2008-02-16, 11:51 AM
Grindylow
Size/Type: Medium Monstrous Humanoid (Aquatic)
Hit Dice: 6d8+6 (31 hp)
Initiative: +1
Speed: 15 ft. (3 squares), swim 30 ft.
Armor Class: 19 (+1 Dex, +4 chain shirt, +4 natural), touch 11, flatfooted 18
Base Attack/Grapple: +6/+9
Attack: Longspear +9 melee (1d8+3) or Claw +9 melee (1d4+3) or Tentacle +4 melee (1d4+1 plus numbing poison)
Full Attack: Longspear +9/+4 melee (1d8+3) or 2 Claws +9 melee (1d4+3) and 2 Tentacles +4 melee (1d4+1 plus numbing poison)
Space/Reach: 5 ft./5 ft. (10 ft. with tentacles)
Special Attacks: Hunter’s strike, numbing poison, spells
Special Qualities: Darkvision 60 ft., echolocation, hide in plain sight, hold breath, scent
Saves: Fort +5, Ref +5, Will +8
Abilities: Str 16, Dex 12, Con 12, Int 14, Wis 16, Cha 6
Skills: Hide +6, Listen +10, Move Silently +6, Spot +10, Survival +10, Swim +9
Feats: Power Attack, Great Fortitude Swim-By Attack (http://realmshelps.dandello.net/cgi-bin/feats.pl?Swim-by_Attack,Sto)
Environment: Aquatic
Organization: Solitary, pair, party (5-8), hunt (11-20 plusa 3rd-level Ranger), band (20-80 plus 100% noncombatants plus four 3rd-level Rangers and one 4th-level Ranger chieftan), or tribe (70-160 plus 100% noncombatants plus eight 3rd-level rangers, six 4th-level rangers, and a 10th-level Ranger patriarch)
Challenge Rating: 4
Treasure: Standard
Alignment: Usually Lawful Evil
Advancement: By class level (Ranger)
Level Adjustment: +3

The Grindylow are one of the less common aquatic races, dwelling only in the deepest reaches of the sea. Grindylow are renowned as deep sea hunters, their society placing great importance on those elite Grindylow hunters who track and slay the leviathans of the deep for honor and prestige. They are often thought to resemble humans strongly, but have much longer, lankier limbs, and are covered in slimy, squamous scales. They have two vestigial, wing-like stubs extending from their shoulders, from which protrude two long, grasping tentacles. Grindylow, though highly intelligent, are extremely xenophobic and secretive, and are willing to kill any outsider that so much as sees one of their villages. They have been known to occasionally deal with Sahuagins, but even that is a rare event.

Hunter’s Strike (Ex)
Grindylow are all trained hunters, and know how to strike the weak points of their prey. To use a hunter’s strike, a Grindylow must study its target for 1 round. While studying the victim, the Grindylow can undertake other actions so long as his attention stays focused on the target and the target does not detect the assassin or recognize the assassin as an enemy. Once the Grindylow has completed this round of study, its next attack against the target automatically threatens a critical hit. It must make this attack within 3 rounds of completing its study, and it loses the benefits of the hunter’s strike if it attacks a different creature.

Numbing Poison (Ex)
A Grindylow’s tentacles are covered with thousands of small stingers that inject its prey with a paralyzing poison. The poison has a DC of 15. It has initial damage of paralysis for 1 round, and secondary damage of 1d6 Dexterity. The save is Constitution-based.

Spells
A Grindylow casts spells as a 3rd-level Druid. The DC of its spells is equal to 13 + the spell’s level. Spells marked with a * are from the Spell Compendium; replace them with any appropriate druid spell if you do not have that book. A Grindylow with Ranger levels does not gain normal Ranger spellcasting; instead, he may add half his Ranger level to his effective Druid level for spellcasting.

Typical Spells Prepared (4/3/2)
0th–detect magic, guidance, know direction, resistance. 1st–camouflage*, cure light wounds, magic weapon. 2nd–bull’s strength, kelpstrand*

Echolocation (Ex)
A Grindylow can see using echolocation, granting it blindsight out to 30 ft. while it is submerged in water. However, it can only perceive things in the same body of water as it using this blindsight. It loses the benefits of this ability in an area under the effect of a silence spell or similar effects.

Hide in Plain Sight (Su)
A Grindylow can use the Hide skill even while being observed. As long as it is submerged in water, it can hide itself from view in the open without anything to actually hide behind.

Hold Breath (Ex)
A Grindylow can hold its breath in order to go above water. It can survive out of water for a number of hours equal to its Constitution score, after which it begins to suffocate.

Skills
A Grindylow 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.

Atticus Bleak
2008-02-17, 02:01 AM
I thank you kindly for making one of my favorite monsters, my good man...I do, as a folklorist, want to point out the grindylow legend was originally made to keep children away from the freezing rivers and lakes in England, with thick layers of moss that appeared to be ground and then gave way, and strong currents, more than deep oceans...I sort of got a Harry Potter grindylow feel, and they lived at the bottom of the lake on the Hogwart's campus...I don't mean to offend, i simply say that because I study Folklore for a living. I say i got a harry potter vibe from the tentacles...I've never found anything else besides Bas Lang that had tentacles...

I really like it, it seems nicely done...now that i read it it seems a bit more bas lang, but without the spellcasting and with poison, and so i feel the need to mention those were acually stated in Dragon 352...I can't decide if i like theirs or your's better...But good work! :smallbiggrin:

The Demented One
2008-02-17, 11:37 AM
Yeah, I'm afraid I wasn't entirely true to the Grindylow folklore, but I decided to adulterate it for the sake of neat monsteriness.