[Creature]It's a dead man's party, who could ask for more... (PEACH)

Why? Well, when I commanded my generals to collect corpses for my experiments, I didn‘t expect them to be so… efficient. I had all the bodies I needed and more after only a month or so, and more were being brought in every week! Not that it bothered me, mind you… I just had to find a project that used a massive amount of corpses… so I did…
-Archlich Nalmyr, in response to an assistant‘s query

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Demonecris
Colossal Undead
Hit Dice: 30d12 plus 60 (255 hp)
Initiative: +6
Speed: 50 ft. (10 squares)
Armor Class: 35 (-8 Size, +2 Dex, +31 natural), touch 4, flat-footed 33
Base Attack/Grapple +15/+50
Attack: Slam +27 melee (2d8+19 plus 3d8 negative plus entrapment) or corpse launch +9 ranged touch (see below)
Full-Attack: 2 slams +27 melee (2d8+19 plus 3d8 negative plus entrapment) or corpse launch +9 ranged touch (see below)
Space/Reach: 30 ft/30 ft
Special Attacks: Corpse launch, cry of the masses, entrapment, mighty leap
Special Qualities: Darkvision 60 ft, frightful presence(DC 27), , DR 20/good, skull chariot, unholy toughness, undead traits
Saves: Fort +12, Ref +14, Will +20
Abilities: Str 48, Dex 15, Con -, Int 8, Wis 12, Cha 14
Skills: Intimidate +35, Jump +55*, Spot +34
Feats: Ability Focus (cry of the masses), Great Fortitude, Improved Initiative, Iron Will, Lifesense, Lightning Reflexes, Power Attack, Skill Focus (Intimidate), Skill Focus (Jump), Weapon Focus (Slam)
Environment: Any
Organization: Solitary
Challenge Rating: 18
Treasure: None
Alignment: Always neutral evil
Advancement: 30+ (Colossal)
Level Adjustment: -

The ground trembles beneath your feet. Curious, you look around, and freeze as you find the source of the tremors. An eighty foot tall humanoid…thing… is moving towards your party. As it nears you, you see that it is comprised of thousands of corpses, all in various states of decay. It has no nose or mouth, and it has huge skulls where the eyes should be. The smell of death fills your nostrils as it prepares to strike, almost like a chilling promise of what it will do to you…

While not the most “lethal” creation of Nalmyr, the Demonecris is certainly the biggest, standing over eighty feet tall and weighing over thirty-five tons. Luckily, only a handful exist, mostly due to the sheer number of corpses that are required in the creation process. They love fear and mindless destruction, which makes them perfect for their intended purpose: to smash through a town’s defenses.
Demonecrii do not speak of their own accord, but anyone controlling them inside their Skull Chariot may speak through them, with all the bodies on the outside of the body speaking in unison to relay the message. Demonecrii understand Draconic.

Combat: Demonecrii only know one “strategy”: get close to the enemies and smash them. They prefer to have multiple targets to switch between, allowing them to entrap enemies as quickly as possible. If no enemies are nearby (or if there’s a larger group than the one they are fighting), they will use their Mighty Leap to quickly close the distance.

Corpse Launch (Ex):As a standard action, a Demonecris can literally “shoot” one of the bodies that comprise it, be it dead or the unfortunate victim of the Corpse Titan’s entrapment ability. Treat this as a ranged touch attack (+9 to hit, range 60 ft), with success meaning that the target is rammed with a body flying at high velocity, dealing 2d8+19 damage to both the target and the body that was fired, and forcing both to succeed on a Reflex save (DC 27) or fall prone. The save DC is Dexterity-based.

Cry of the Masses (Su): As a standard action, a Demonecris can cause all corpses within 100 feet (including those inside it) to emit a horrid scream. All living creatures within 100 feet of the Demonecris must succeed on a DC 29 Will save or be deafened and take a -3 morale penalty to all attacks and saves for one minute as the screams ring in their ears. Once a Demonecris uses Cry of the Masses, it must wait one hour before it can use it again. This is a sonic, mind-affecting effect. The save DC is Charisma-based.

Entrapment (Ex): Any Large sized or smaller creature struck by a Demonecris' slam must succeed on a DC27 Reflex save or be sucked into the Demonecris' form. Trapped creatures are considered pinned, take 3d8 negative energy damage every round, and must hold their breath or suffocate. Any creature that dies while entrapped is automatically assimilated into the Demonecris' form, healing it 2 hp for every HD the creature had. Creatures can escape by succeeding on either a DC 25 Strength check or a DC 30 Escape Artist check with success allowing them to move into a square adjacent to the Demonecris. The save DC is Dexterity-based.

Frightful Presence (Su): A Demonecris can strike fear into the hearts of its enemies simply by attacking or charging. Whenever a Corpse Titan attacks or charges, all creatures within 60 feet of it must succeed on a DC 27 Will save or become frightened for 5d6 rounds. Creatures that successfully save against a Demonecris' frightful presence are immune to it for 24 hours. The save DC is Charisma-based.

Mighty Leap (Ex): As a full round action, a Demonecris may leap into the air and slam onto a large mass of foes. The Demonecris makes a Jump Check and moves the allotted distance as normal. However, any creature within the space that the Demonecris lands must make a DC 27 Reflex save or take 2d8+19 damage and be automatically Entrapped.

Skull Chariot (Ex): During the creation process, one of the skulls used for the Demonecris' eyes can be replaced with a Skull Chariot, the description of which is below. A Skull Chariot is not destroyed when a Demonecris “dies” - it automatically starts flying as soon as the body falls apart.

Unholy Toughness (Ex): The necromantic effects animating a Demonecris are exceptionally strong, providing it with extra vitality. A Demonecris gains additional hp equal to its Charisma modifier times its HD.

Skills: All Jump checks a Demonecris makes are treated as full-round actions. A Demonecris does not take a penalty to its Jump check for not getting a 20 foot head start.

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Skull Chariot
(Minor Artifact)
Crafted out of the skull of a Titan, a Skull Chariot is the ultimate mode of transportation for anyone commanding an undead legion. It can either be bound to a Demonecris or used as an independent vehicle.
Activation: Activating a Skull Chariot is a standard action, which requires touching it and speaking the proper command word. Upon activation, a Skull Chariot transports the user to an extra dimensional pocket roughly 10 feet wide, with a simple but comfortable chair for them to sit in. While active, the Skull Chariot provides use of the following abilities:

As a vehicle, the Skull Chariot has a Base AC of 15 (+5 Natural), Hardness 5, and 250 HP. It has the following abilities:
Evasive: The Skull Chariot gains a deflection bonus to AC equal to the Intelligence or Charisma modifier of its current controller (use whichever is higher).
Sight: The user may swap between their own eyes and the eyes of the skull as a free action. The skull has low-light vision, Darkvision 120 ft, and has access to the Lifesense feat.
Flight: As a move action, the user can control the movement of the skull, which has a fly speed of 90 feet with perfect maneuverability. If not commanded, the skull simply floats in place.
Binding: As a full-round action, a Skull Chariot can fuse itself with a Demonecris, replacing one of the skulls that make up the creature's eyes. Once bound, a Skull Chariot cannot be removed from a Demonecris by any means other than the destruction of the Demonecris.

When bound to a Demonecris, a Skull Chariot is a bit tougher to hit. Treat attacking the Skull Chariot as a "called shot" (each group I've seen has different rules for it...I normally put a -4 penalty on the attack), with the Demonecris' AC replacing the Skull Chariot's. Hardness and HP remain the same, and it is also worth noting that the Skull Chariot doesn't have any exterior identifying markers while bound...the attacker has to pick an eye and hope they're right... It has these abilities while bound:
Sight: As above, but the user may see through both eyes of the Corpse Titan, allowing for a wider range of vision.
Speak: The user may speak through the Demonecris, having the bodies comprising it recite the message in unison.
Command: The user has absolute command of the Demonecris it is riding in. Treat this as a Dominate Monster effect with an unlimited duration. However, the Demonecris never resists being controlled, and will follow any task given it, even suicidal ones.

To date, Nalmyr is the sole creator of Skull Chariots, and carefully guards their creation process. The only known ways of obtaining one is to either gain his favor, or to kill a Demonecris and somehow gain control of the Skull Chariot that was in it.


Explanations

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I got the stat block finished ok, but my brain decided to stop working once I started working on the ability descriptions…please let me know if any of this doesn’t make sense…

I really need a better name for this thing… please offer any suggestions you have… -Awesome name provided by Zeta Kai

I ran out of feat ideas after the first eight…let me know if you have ideas on what to replace Skill Focus with.

Shameless Bump...

Is it unreadable? Bad? Should I burn it?

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It's a dead man's party, who could ask for more...

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...Everybodys coming leave your body at the door, leave your body and soul at the door!


I like it. Your problem might just be that this board is less active than some of the others. Of course, having a forum-criminal like me post may or may not help.

This is quite awesome. Definitely very creepy...I for one quite like the name. If you want to change it though some other possible words for you include Colossus, Behemoth, Leviathan, Duke.

As to the skull chariot, I think it requires a few more numbers...can it be attacked/damaged?

By the way, having the commander residing within it be able to talk through the resounding horror of the mouth of every involved corpse is REALLY inspired. And very disturbing.

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Originally Posted by Icewalker

This is quite awesome. Definitely very creepy...I for one quite like the name. If you want to change it though some other possible words for you include Colossus, Behemoth, Leviathan, Duke.

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My problem is that the name doesn't seem...unique enough... if that makes sense. Corpse Titan fits just fine, I was just hoping for something with a bit more kick. :smallredface:

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Originally Posted by Icewalker

As to the skull chariot, I think it requires a few more numbers...can it be attacked/damaged?

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Never really thought of that...I'll grab my copy of Dungeonscape later to put together AC, Hardness, and HP...as it's the only book I know of that has Bone included in it... (granted, I may be wrong)... Hopefully I'll have your answers within the next 24 hours...

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Originally Posted by Icewalker

By the way, having the commander residing within it be able to talk through the resounding horror of the mouth of every involved corpse is REALLY inspired. And very disturbing.

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Originally Posted by Stormthorn

I like it. Your problem might just be that this board is less active than some of the others. Of course, having a forum-criminal like me post may or may not help.

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Thanks guys! i got worried when no one commented for ten days...so I thought I had just done a horrible job on it or something...

I like it. There aren't enough enormous composite undead.

I does remind me though, of a monster a saw in Dragon (can't remember the issue, I will look it up as soon as I am able). It was called a Humbaba, Humbalba or something like that.

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Originally Posted by Terror_Incognito

It was called a Humbaba, Humbalba or something like that.

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Humbaba, Gilgamesh's nemisis in his eponymous Babylonian epic. Wild stuff.

I like this creature; it has a unique & interesting flavor, & some terrifying abilities for a pre-epic monster.

As for names, I'd suggest Demonecris, which is (roughly) Greek for "Group-Dead". Icewalker's suggestions are also nice.

Also, exactly how large is this creature? It doesn't say, & therefore I cannot determine precisely how many bodies it would require to make one of these.

LAstly I must complain about the flavor text, as it is a pet peeve of mine. I love when homebrewers take the time to add this, but they often fall into the same trap. Your description contains the following line:

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It reaches your party’s guide first, and the smell of death fills your nostrils as you watch the beast’s arm engulf him…

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This will almost never get used, as it is so specific that a DM cannot possibly guarantee that it will make any sense to read this. How do you know that a party that goes up against your monster is even going to have a scout? As it is meant to be read aloud during a game, this text needs to paint a concise, vivid picture of the monster. What it should NOT have is any details that pertain to the surrounding area, or any player actions. You should avoid any reference to the PCs reacting in horror, local NPCs cringing is disgust, nearby buildings being lit by the monsters unearthly glow, or anything else that refers to situations that may not exist in an average game. This text should be 2-5 short sentences that are dedicated solely to illustrating this one monster, to the exclusion of all else. Anything extra only invalidates the rest.

Sorry for the rant, but this is a good monster, & deserves good flavor text.

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Originally Posted by Icewalker

As to the skull chariot, I think it requires a few more numbers...can it be attacked/damaged?

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Numbers for attacking it have been included, based off of the Natural AC of medium undead, and the statistics of bone walls from Dungeonscape.

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Originally Posted by Zeta Kai

Humbaba, Gilgamesh's nemisis in his eponymous Babylonian epic. Wild stuff.

I like this creature; it has a unique & interesting flavor, & some terrifying abilities for a pre-epic monster.

As for names, I'd suggest Demonecris, which is (roughly) Greek for "Group-Dead". Icewalker's suggestions are also nice.

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That name sounds perfect! Consider it used... however, what is the plural form (if any)? I prefer to avoid grammatical mistakes :smallredface:

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Originally Posted by Zeta Kai

Also, exactly how large is this creature? It doesn't say, & therefore I cannot determine precisely how many bodies it would require to make one of these.

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I prefer to make the stats as accurate as possible, so I avoided including that (as it would only be the roughest of "guesstimations"...) They have been added in for ease of use.

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Originally Posted by Zeta Kai

Lastly I must complain about the flavor text, as it is a pet peeve of mine. I love when homebrewers take the time to add this, but they often fall into the same trap. Your description contains the following line:

This will almost never get used, as it is so specific that a DM cannot possibly guarantee that it will make any sense to read this. How do you know that a party that goes up against your monster is even going to have a scout? As it is meant to be read aloud during a game, this text needs to paint a concise, vivid picture of the monster. What it should NOT have is any details that pertain to the surrounding area, or any player actions. You should avoid any reference to the PCs reacting in horror, local NPCs cringing is disgust, nearby buildings being lit by the monsters unearthly glow, or anything else that refers to situations that may not exist in an average game. This text should be 2-5 short sentences that are dedicated solely to illustrating this one monster, to the exclusion of all else. Anything extra only invalidates the rest.

Sorry for the rant, but this is a good monster, & deserves good flavor text.

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No problem with the rant...it actually clued me in on the "normal" use for flavor text. I normally read it and use it as a guideline for when I describe it to my group. The line has been changed in an attempt to make it more "user-friendly". :smallbiggrin:

Thanks for all the comments guys ^_^ Every little bit of critique helps!

an 80-foot walking pile of corpses is going to weigh well over 3000 lbs. a car weighs 3000 lbs. start thinking just on the slight side of a gray whale or so...

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This is quite awesome. Definitely very creepy...I for one quite like the name. If you want to change it though some other possible words for you include Colossus, Behemoth, Leviathan, Duke.

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But try to avoid Colossus, as i believe a giant colossus thats a composite of corpses exists already.

maybe call it a corpse golem? but i also like Zeta Kai's name. Maybe Corpse golem could be a nickname, since its not a real golem.

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Originally Posted by Stycotl

an 80-foot walking pile of corpses is going to weigh well over 3000 lbs. a car weighs 3000 lbs. start thinking just on the slight side of a gray whale or so...

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I'm a poor judge of weight, so I just threw a number out there...however, I looked up the average weight of a Gray Whale (36 tons), and 35 tons is a nice round number...we'll use that...

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Originally Posted by Stormthorn

But try to avoid Colossus, as i believe a giant colossus thats a composite of corpses exists already.

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Originally Posted by mr.fizzypop

maybe call it a corpse golem? but i also like Zeta Kai's name. Maybe Corpse golem could be a nickname, since its not a real golem.

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The initial name was "Corpse Titan", which I didn't really like... Zeta Kai's suggestion of "Demonecris" has become the 'official' name for the thing...granted, this is 'official' in the sense that it's the name I like... if you use it you're free to call it what you will :smallbiggrin: