Centurion
Medium Humanoid (Centurion)
Hit Dice: 2d8+2 (11 hp)
Initiative: +5
AC: 17 (+1 Dex, +4 Chain Shirt, +2 Heavy Steel Shield), Touch 11, Flat-footed 16
Base Attack/Grapple: +1/+4
Attack: Longsword +4 melee (1d8+3/19-20) or Longbow +2 ranged (1d10/x3)
Full Attack: Longsword +4 melee (1d8+3/19-20) or Longbow +2 ranged (1d10/x3)
Space/Reach: 5 ft./5 ft.
Special Attacks: Collective Tactics, Guardian, Wound
Special Qualities: Growing Ranks, Sense Rank
Saves: Fort +4, Ref + 1, Will +4
Abilities:Str 16, Dex 12, Con 12, Int 10, Wis 10, Cha 8
Skills: Listen +5, Spot +5
Feats: Improved Initiative
Climate/Terrain: Any land and underground
Challenge Rating: 1
Treasure: Standard
Alignment: Always Neutral Evil
Advancement: –

Standing before you is a creature that looks much like a perfect specimen of human physicality, standing at close to seven feet tall with bulging musculature. Its muscles bronze flesh, however, reflects the light in a way that normal flesh shouldn’t. Clad in well-maintained battle gear, the creature approaches.

Standing out as one of the most dangerous “savage” races, Centurions are creatures riddled with contradictions. While they pride themselves in their physical prowess, most take no efforts to care for themselves and many willingly starve to death in pursuit of foes. While they work well in teams and seem to obey some pseudo-military structure amongst themselves, they are suicidally xenocidal and throw themselves towards any creatures of other species with full intent to kill, disregarding such factors as tactics, numbers, and strength. While they profess to be the most “civilized” race, most groups devolve to the level of orcish society if left alone without new foes. Though they are stronger than the average human, they lack any capacity for growth.

The greatest contradiction Centurions are known for, however, is precisely what makes them so dangerous. The more centurions that are slain, the more of them that there are. Through means not even the centurions can explain, two new Centurions appear in existence every time that another is slain. While few Centurions would intentionally slay themselves, this single factor lets small attacks breed into raids and soon transform into nigh-unstoppable armies. Most Centurions still in existence are either kept in prison planes, are held in deep stasis, or have entirely taken over their worlds, occasionally escaping to new worlds through the use of salvaged magic or technology.

With Centurions resisting all attempts at bargaining or diplomacy (even in the face of their own destruction), very little is known about their internal structure or their mysterious origins. The best guess that most sages can come up with is that they originated from a wish for an unstoppable army.

Centurions stand close to seven feet tall, weigh around 230 pounds, and speak common.

Combat
Upon seeing a non-centurion creature, a centurion immediately alerts all centurions that it travels with an immediately sets out to kill it, stopping only when the target is dead or a more convenient target reveals itself. In the course of a fight, centurions utilize rough tactics and great use of teamwork. On the rare occasion centurions deem to speak with their foes, it is typically to explain or justify why the targets must be immediately slain (excuses that range from “you are invading our exploratory settlement” from “look what your kind has done to the environment” to “why would you wear that hat with those shoes?”). These “reasons”, however, are nothing more than empty self-justifications. No matter how many an opponent shrugs off or reasons away, another is always waiting.

Collective Tactics (Ex): Centurions fight as a single unit. The centurion gains a +1 bonus to attack rolls and damage rolls for every two additional centurions within 50 feet. Further, centurions may use the aid another action as a swift action.

Growing Ranks (Su): Whenever a centurion is slain, two new centurions appear in existence, fully grown and equipped for battle, 1d% miles away in a random direction. These centurions are neither reincarnations nor children of the prior centurion and effects that prevent a creature from returning to life or from having children do not stop this ability. The new centurions always appear in an area of relative safety. If there are no such areas within a 100 mile radius, no new centurions are slain. Likewise, centurions that die within a dead magic zone or antimagic field create no new ones.

Guardian (Ex): As a standard action, a centurion can grant all centurions within 50 feet a +1 Insight bonus to AC and saving throws for 1 round or until this centurion dies. While this bonus stacks with itself, any centurion using this ability gains no benefit from this ability (even when use by others) for 1 round.

Sense Rank (Ex): Though they possess no difference in powers or physical appearance, all centurions are created with a pseudo-military rank assigned to them. All centurions can detect the name and rank of any other centurion that they are aware of and act in accordance with the military power structure created in this way.

When a centurion detects a creature without a rank, however, its attitude becomes immediately hostile towards that creature. Centurions are immune to diplomacy checks and other skill checks made to improve its attitude towards such creatures, as well as against intimidate checks made to force its cooperation with such creatures (even through torture). Finally, the centurion gains immunity to charm effects and gains a +4 bonus to will saves (factored in the above).

Because of this ability, most attempts to disguise as a centurion, even through illusory magic like disguise self, are doomed to failure. Transmutation effects like polymorph, however, successfully grant a false centurion the rank of private.

Wound (Su): Aside from their propagation, the one bit of magic that centurions hold rests in the ability to wound opponents. If a centurion makes a successful attack roll against a flanked or flat-footed target, the target takes one additional point of damage, ignoring hardness and damage reduction. This point of damage can only be healed through natural healing (including regeneration or fast healing). A creature immune to critical hits is immune to this extra damage as well.

This point of damage is also added if at least two other centurions have made successful attack rolls against the target within the past round. In this situation, even creatures immune to critical hits are subjected to this supernatural wound.