Octocrow [Don't Ask]

[Eldan]

The Octocrow

"What? ... Why? Dear Moradin, why?"
-Gorborach Thundermaul, Dwarven Hunter



Octocrow
Tiny Aberration
HD 3d8 (13 HP)
Speed 10 ft., Fly 30 ft. (average)
Init: +3
AC 16 (+3 dex, +1 natural, +2 size); touch 15; flat-footed 13
BAB +2; Grp -6
Attack Claws +0 melee (1d2-4) or Arms +5 melee (0)
Full-Attack Claws +0 melee (1d2-4) and Arms +5 melee (0)
Space 2.5 ft.; Reach0
Special Attacks Improved Grab, Bloodbeak
Special Qualities Ink Cloud, Jet, Darkvision, Hide in Plain Sight,
Saves Fort +1 Ref +4 Will +5
Abilities Str 3, Dex 16, Con 11, Int 5, Wis 14, Cha 6
Skills Listen +4 Hide +13, Search -1, Spot +6
Feats Flyby Attack, Alertness, Weapon Finesse [B]
Environment Temperate Forests, Cities
Organization Solitary, Pair or Murder (3-50)
Challenge Rating 2?
Treasure None
Alignment Neutral Evil
Advancement 4-6 HD (tiny), 7-9 HD (small) or by class level
Favoured Class: Rogue

Improved Grab (Ex)
To use this ability, an octocrow must hit an opponent of any size with its arms attack. It can then attempt to start a grapple as a free action without provoking an attack of opportunity. If it wins the grapple check, it establishes a hold and may use it's bloodbeak attack.
Octocrows have a +4 racial bonus on grapple checks.

Bloodbeak (Ex) :
If the octocrow starts it's turn holding on to a living target, it automatically deals one point of constitution damage as it beings to bite and suck blood with it's beak, which is normally concealed between it's facial tentacles.

Magic Ink Cloud (Su)
An octocrow can emit a cloud of jet-black ink 10 feet high by 10 feet wide by 10 feet long once per minute as a free action. The cloud provides total concealment as it hangs in the air, which the octocrow normally uses to escape a losing fight. All vision within the cloud is obscured. A strong wind disperses the cloud in one round, otherwise it stays for five rounds.

Jet (Ex)
An octocrow can jet backward in the air once per round as a full-round action as it uses siphons hidden under it's wings to shoot forth a jet of air, at a speed of 100 feet. It must move in a straight line, but does not provoke attacks of opportunity while jetting. It can gain or lose height at will while doing so, ignoring normal limitations from it's manoeuvrability, but it can not use it's fly-by attack while doing so.

Hide in Plain Sight (Ex)
An octocrow's chameleonic feathers, able to change colour, shape and texture, allows it to hide even while observed, and grants it a +8 racial bonus on hide checks.


Background: so, we were gaming today, and the subject "What are the coolest animals?" came up. A bit later, and this was created. I'll probably write some real fluff later.

[Volthawk]

Man, you actually made it...

[byaku rai]

... I'm asking.

[Volthawk]

... I'm asking.

Well, Eldan said that if he could control any kind of animal, it would be either crows or octopodes (since the intelligent crow that we have IC was knocking on a door, and a player asking about it got Eldan to talk about how crows are awesome). And then, given how octopodes had their flaws (their solely aquatic nature), the natural solution was octocrows.

[wiimanclassic]

Well, Eldan said that if he could control any kind of animal, it would be either crows or octopodes (since the intelligent crow that we have IC was knocking on a door, and a player asking about it got Eldan to talk about how crows are awesome). And then, given how octopodes had their flaws (their solely aquatic nature), the natural solution was octocrows.

Can the Octocrows tentacles open doors?

[Eldan]

Sure, if they have something to stand on.

Fun fact of the day: good Octocrows are called Cuttledoves, while neutral ones are much smaller and called Squidgeons.

[Owrtho]

Sure, if they have something to stand on.

Fun fact of the day: good Octocrows are called Cuttledoves, while neutral ones are much smaller and called Squidgeons.

I can't help but notice those would be 6 different species of animals. Though it may explain their squid like tentacles on the back. The important thing though, is will these be usable as familiars or animal companions?

Owrtho

[LOTRfan]

Yeah, this definitely has to be an Advanced Familiar.

[Qwertystop]

...
What kind of person could think of this kind of hilarious awesomeness?!

[Eldan]

I can't help but notice those would be 6 different species of animals. Though it may explain their squid like tentacles on the back. The important thing though, is will these be usable as familiars or animal companions?

Owrtho

In fact, Octocrow is a misnomer. Pseudocorvus theutidomusus is in fact more closely related to squids, as you can see from the tentacles. But the first dwarven explorers who found these in the Nevergotherewood didn't know much about cephalopod biology.

[Worlok]

Okay... Strangely adorable feathered sky-squid. With a proper scientific name. That one would likely not want to be sitting on a statue anywhere in public. All airborne vampiric illithid in songbird-size. I am in awe.

(But really, though, this right there is genius. I'd probably give it some sort of further enhancement to the HiPS / some manner of shapechanging that allows it to pose as a regular crow and sic it on players like straight out of nothing, but nonetheless, a very nice concept. )

[Debihuman]

Secondary attacks are always secondary even when used as a primary attack and should have the -5 penalty.

How many arms does it have? Why aren't its facial attacks listed in Full Attack?

Sucker Attack is mentioned in Improved Grab but should be listed as a Special Attack unless you renamed it as Bloodbeak.

Debby

[Eldan]

Corrections made. The number of arms doens't matter, apparently. It's copied directly from the Octopus, which also has a single "arms" attack.

[Jarrick]

Waiting on someone to draw up stats for "Crowthulhu, King of the Octocrow"

[Debihuman]

The "arms" of the octopus are much clearer to understand since it is a real world animal. However, you gave your octocrow an "arms" attack while you mention that it has facial tentacles but gave no mention to the appendages on its back. Hence my confusion as to what what constituted its "arms" and how many there were.

If it uses its pair of back tentacles in a single arms attack, that would be clarification. I'd imagine the facial tentacles would be too small to use as weapons. However, without the proper description, I'm uncertain if this is what you had in mind or not.

Also the damage in an attack should be a minimum of 1 not 0; otherwise, there is no point in giving it an arms attack at all.

Debby

[Eldan]

Well, I suppose I could give it tentacle attacks as well. Anyway, the 0 damage comes, again, from the Octopus. It's a bit weird, I admit, but it's mostly supposed to represent grabbing on before starting to suck blood.

[Debihuman]

With a 3rd attack, you probably need to increase its HD. Or you could say that only octocrows with 7 or more HD can make a tentacles attack.

Debby

[DracoDei]

"constitution damage as it beings to bite and suck blood with it's beak"
Should be "begins".

[Lateral]

Oh dear sweet travelling sandels of Fharlanghn, what horrors have you unleashed upon my innocent, unsuspecting PCs?!

This is awesome, but now I can't stop thinking about Phrenic Half-Fiend Octocrow riding Pseudonatural Monstrous Crabs.

[Zaydos]

This is an excellent example of illithid biological modification

Honestly I really like it, and now have the urge to create a mad illithid druid who twists nature to make it more "perfect".

Other notes:
There are creatures which have two primary natural weapons but can only use one in a round (Mastodon Monster Manual III page 101; has slam +20 and 2 stamps +15; or gore +20 as its full attack; core examples would be crocodiles and elephants) so you could let them have claws and tentacles as primary natural weapons as long as only one can be used in a round.

Also there are plenty of creatures with 3 or less hit dice with 3 natural attacks usable in a round so you could probably give it tentacles without upping its hit dice but would need to be careful for CR purposes due to its blood drain and hide in plain sight abilities.

Also, due to a newly developed pet peeve from too much monster manual reading, thank you for actually noting what size creatures it can grab.

[Eldan]

As I said, half of that comes from copy-pasting. I'm a bit wary about giving it tentacles... wouldn't they have reach? That seems a bit strange on such a small creature.

[DracoDei]

As I said, half of that comes from copy-pasting. I'm a bit wary about giving it tentacles... wouldn't they have reach? That seems a bit strange on such a small creature.

If you don't want to give the tentacles reach, just don't give them reach. It seems perfectly logical based on the picture for them not to have it.

[Eldan]

Hmm. As far as I'm aware, most natural weapons are more or less standardized. I just assumed that tentacles had reach. How strong do people think they are for their challenge rating? I'd think that a single one isn't much of a threat for a party, but a small swarm of these should be rather nasty.

[dethkruzer]

This is intersting, but allow me to ask,was the creation of this... thing in any way inspired by the Fuzors

[Eldan]

No, it was really just a handful of throwaway sentences in a conversation on Skype. I've never watched anything even remotely related to Transformers.

[Zaydos]

With their -6 to grapple, and maximum of 1 damage per round otherwise, anti-synnergy between flight and grapple (they can't fly past you if they start grappling you)?

Honestly not much of one.

They're a little better than an eagle and I'd guess at CR 1.

They have a lot of abilities for that CR, but to explain my thinking: Jet doesn't actually add to their combat ability (it's purely retreat), and Magic Ink Cloud is a total double edged sword except when pure retreat is involved; now coupled with other creatures Ink Cloud is much more dangerous (something with AoEs or blindsight). Bloodbeak is their real combat ability and it is irreliable at best due to requiring Improved Grab which with their low grapple modifier they can barely pull off (wizard +0, fighter +4-6 at this level; they have a 22.75% chance of succeeding at their grapple check with a wizard, and have to do so twice to use bloodbeak giving them about a 5% chance of doing so; against a fighter this is an 11.25% chance of getting hold on a hit and a 1.27% chance of getting off a blooddrain).

It's chance of hitting isn't included here.

[Eldan]

True, true. Still, I guess it's an absolutely vicious ambush hunter against things like rodents, rabbits or smaller birds. I'll put it down to 1, then. It isn't all that better than an octopus, just more versatile.

[Starsign]

Wow, based on the popularity so far, I think you've just made the Octocrow a hit. Though I'm not sure an enemy that can do constitution damage should have a challenge rating of 2, even if it's still in the works.