[3.5]Improved monster classes: adapting creatures for player use-taking requests!

[AustontheGreat1]

i could totally see myself playing vargouille necromancer who animates a headless body to ride upon

[Oslecamo]

i could totally see myself playing vargouille necromancer who animates a headless body to ride upon

Well, you would need still spell to cast whitout hands, but that's still a pretty wickned idea!

Working in your phoenix now, expect it done still today.

Everybody:Thank you very much for the compliments! Altough I'm doing this mostly for my amusement, praises do motivate me even more!

[Oslecamo]

Phoenix

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HD:d8
{TABLE]Level | BAB | Fort | Ref | Will | Feature
1 | +1 | +2|+2 |+2 | Phoenix body, Sun sparck
2| +2| +3|+3 |+3 |Wings, +1 Cha, +1 Str
3| +3| +3|+3| +3| Sun soul, lesser
4| +4| +4| +4|+4 | Shriek, +1 Cha, +1 Str
5| +5| +4| +4| +4| Sun soul
6| +6| +5|+5 |+5 |Growth, Spell-like metamagic,
7| +7| +5| +5| +5|Sun soul, advanced
8| +8| +6| +6| +5|Immolation
9| +9| +6|+6 |+6|Sun soul, greater, Bonus feat.
10| +10| +7|+7 |+7 |Defensive aura, +1 Cha, +1 Str
11| +11| +7| +7|+7 |Sun soul, adept
12| +12| +8| +8|+8 |Ritual, Bonus feat
13| +13| +8| +8| +8|Sun soul, master
14| +14| +9| +9| +9| Uncanny dodge, Bonus feat +1 Str, +1 Cha
15| +15| +9| +9| +9| Sun prophet
16| +16| +10| +10| +10|Planar travel, Bonus feat, +1 Str, +1 Cha
17| +17| +10| +10|+10 |Sun avatar
18| +18| +11|+11 |+11 |Burning metamagic, +1 Str, +1 Cha
19 | +19| +11| +11| +11|Sun incarnation
20| +20| +12| +12| +12|New Dawn
21| +20| +12| +12| +12|Nova, +1 Str, +1Cha
22| +21| +13| +13| +13|Great Phoenix,
23| +21| +13| +13| +13|Mighty Phoenix, +1 Str, +1 Cha
24| +22| +14| +14| +14|Elder Phoenix
[/TABLE]
Skills: 4+int modifier per level, class skills are Spot, Listen, diplomacy, Knowledge (any), concentration, heal.

Proefeciencies: it's own natural weapons.

Features:
Phoenix body: The phoenix loses all other racial bonus and gains magical beast traits (basicaly darkvision 60 feets and lowlight vision). It's a medium sized magical beast with base speed 30 feet. It has two claw attacks dealing 1d6 +str damage each and one bite attack dealing 1d8 +str damage. A phoenix doesn't have limbs capable of fine manipulation. It has telepathy 5 feets per HD.

The phoenix has a bonus to Nat armor equal to it's Cha modifier.

Sun sparck: The phoenix is filled with the fiery energy of creation, wich grant it several SLAs. Unless otherwise noticed, the save DC for a phoenix SLA is 10+1/2HD+Cha modifier.

In adition, at 1st level the phoenix can use detect evil, detect magic, produce flame and color spray 2/day for each HD it has.

Wings:The phoenix can fly at a speed of 10 feets per HD with average maneuverability.

Ability increase:The phoenix gains +1 Str and +1 Cha at levels 2, 4, 10, 14, 16, 18, 21, 23


Sun soul, lesser:The phoenix can now use dancing lights, blur, blindness/deafness, find traps, neutralize poison1/day for each HD it has.

Shriek:Every 10 minutes, the phoenix can unleash a scream wich slows as the spell all enemies (only enemies) whitin 5 feets for phoenix HD. Caster level equal to phoenix HD, except that it may affect any number of targets whitin the area. Save=10+1/2HD+Cha modifier.

Sun soul:The phoenix can now use protection from evil, remove fear, invisibilityand cure light wounds 1/day for each HD it has.

Growth:The phoenix increases one size category. Notice this is a long creature.

Spell-like metamagic:The phoenix may use any spell-like metamagic it has (like empower SLA) combined with any of her SLAs, instead of just 1. For example, if she picked extend SLA(cure light wounds), she may empower any other SLA it has now. She's still limited to 3 uses of metamagic per day for each feat. Applying the metamagic doesn't increase the casting time of the SLA.

Sun soul, advanced:the phoenix can now usePyrotechnics, see invisibility, remove curse 1/day for each 2 HD it has.

Immolation:1/day for each 4 HD it has, as a full round action, a phoenix may immolate itself. This produces a column of flame up to 5 feets wide and 10 feets high per HD of the phoenix (may choose to make a smaller column than the maximum size).

Creatures inside the column take 1d6 fire damage and 1d6 divine damage for HD of the phoenix, reflex save 10+1/2HD+Con modifier for half.

The phoenix is reduced to a small pile of ashe. Next turn, the phoenix is reborn from those ashes with full HP, ability scores restored and all extra special effects like spells removed, but keeping any previous equipment held. This ability doesn't recover any phoenix SLAs or other abilities limited per day.

Notice the phoenix must be able to take a fullround action to use this ability.

At 12 HD it may use immolation as a standard action. At 16 HD it may use immolation as a move action. At 20 HD it may use immolation as a swift action.

Sun soul, greater:greater dispel magic, dispel evil, blink, wall of fire as SLA 1/day for each 3HD it has.

Bonus feat:The phoenix receives a meta-SLA feat of it's choice, like empower SLA or maximize SLA.

Defensive aura:The phoenix gains a deflection bonus to it's AC equal to it's Cha. It also gains SR equal to HD+11 and DR/magic equal to half HD.

Sun soul, adept:The phoenix can now use fire seeds, veil and death ward as SLAs 1/day for each 4 HD it has. The fire seeds ability uses drops of the own phoenix's blood, but it doesn't damage the phoenix. The phoenix can throw them despite not having hands.

Ritual:If the phoenix spends one or more rounds of concentration as a standard action before using a SLA, the caster level for that SLA increases by 2 for each round spent concentrating. Maximum 10 rounds.

Sun soul, master:The phoenix can now use Mislead, heal, find the path as SLAs 1/day for each 3HD it has.

Uncanny dodge: as the rogue ability.

Sun prophet:the phoenix can now use reincarnation, incendiary cloud 1/day for each 4HD it has.

Planar travel:The phoenix can travel to the ethereal and astral planes and back to the material planes as a move action 1/day for each 2HD it has. She never gets lost in either the Astral Plane or the Material Plane and can use this to travel to any plane in 1d4 hours. The phoenix can guide other creatures, providing they have their own means of passing from plane to plane.

Sun avatar:The phoenix can now use Summon Nature's ally IX, dismissal 1/day for every HD it has.

Burning metamagic:Every metamagic SLA the phoenix has can be used a number of extra times per day equal to it's Cha modifier.

Sun incarnation:the phoenix can now use polymorph and polymorph any object as a SLA 1/day for every 4HD it has.

New Dawn:the phoenix can now use miracle as a SLA 1/day for every 5HD it has. If the miracle is used to create/improve a lasting effect, the phoenix must pay the full exp price.

Nova:The phoenix's SLAs have no limit on their caster level. Ritual may still only be used up to 10 turns.

Great Phoenix:After using immolation, the phoenix adds her Cha modifier to all saves, skills, attacks and damage rolls for 1 turn/HD.
Mighty Phoenix:The phoenix can now use immolation as a free action, even if it isn't it's turn.
Elder Phoenix:the phoenix may use immolation any number of times per day it wishes. Notice that it still needs 1 turn to return, so it can't choose to immolate itself an infinite number of times in a single turn.

Comments

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Well, my first epic progression.
The original phoenix is quite under CRd, so I buffed it a bit by giving it miracle and polymorph any object as it aproaches epic and allowing it to use immolation faster than normal.

The remaining SLAs are scattered along the levels, in the positions where I believed they would be more balanced, but since there were over 30 SLAs to organize, it may have ended up somewhat wonky.

Anyway, the phoenix is mainly a flying SLA machine with a good of mix of defensive, ofensive and support SLAs, making it some kind of jack of all trades, master of none. The metamagic special bonus give it some very nice versatility. And then it gets to blow itself up on the enemy to heal itself. Should be quite interesting to play. One barely notices the lack of hands.

The phoenix gets +6 str and +6 Cha pre epic (and then an extra +2 to each after epic). All good saves and good BAB make it durable enough since it lacks SLAs that actualy buff your combat abilities besides the polymorph at 19th level, and then 4 skill points per level and 8HD to round it up.

[Zexion]

This idea is awesome. I really can't say anything else. I am dumbstruck. Awesome.

[The Tygre]

Alright, I've got one for you. And it's gonna' be tricky, let me tell you. Could you try your hand at Gloom monster class? They're in the Epic Level Handbook, if that's any help. Ace this one and I might have a more... challenging project at hand.

By the by, awesome work so far! I'm really impressed by all this. I have a soft spot for monstrous PCs.

[AustontheGreat1]

Well, you would need still spell to cast whitout hands, but that's still a pretty wickned idea!

Working in your phoenix now, expect it done still today.

Everybody:Thank you very much for the compliments! Altough I'm doing this mostly for my amusement, praises do motivate me even more!

SURROGATE SPELLCASTING [MONSTROUS]
{Scrubbed}

This is from page 39 of the savage species. It makes it possible for things like this to cast spell.

Thanks for the Phoenix, my dream has been realized.

Also, I'd like to point out that you gave them blur in both the sun soul and lesser sun soul ability. Same with Find the Path

[Lord_Gareth]

Eiyrines

That is all.

[peacenlove]

Great job !!!
I am sure to recommend those monster classes to my players on their next campaign
Could you by any chance make a shadow or a deep dragon but instead of sorcerer casting he has shadowcaster casting?
Preety please?

[GoC]

The Skeleton and The Phoenix are AWESOME INCARNATE!!!
Here, have an internet:
*Oslecamo receives 1 Internet!*

Yeah, I know they're all awesome but the Phoenix in particular was pretty much the coolest thing I've seen on the homebrew subforum.

[DracoDei]

Awakened Skeleton shouldn't have the Mindless trait I don't think.

[CTLC]

Awesome, thanks for doing both of my requests!

So, here are some more
-Planetar and other angels?
-Pit Fiends?
-Platinum Dragons?
-The roc, or giant eagles?
-The bulette!
-Obviously, ive asked for the dragon-lion-horse, so im asking for the dragon-turtle!
-A lammasu?
-And Pegasus.
im done for now, sorry to dump requests on you, but i think any of these could be cool.

I love this thread!

[PersonMan]

The link in the first post to the redone Mindflayer and Minotaur is broken, it leads to Blue Dragon.

Otherwise, good.

[Zeta Kai]

Awesome, thanks for doing both of my requests!

So, here are some more
-half the Monster Manual
im done for now, sorry to dump requests on you, but i think any of these could be cool.

I love this thread!

Fixed it for you.

[Oslecamo]

Vasuthant

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HD:d12
{table]Level|Bab|Fort|Ref|Will|Feature
1|+ 0|+0|+0 | + 2|Vasuthant body, Light Immunity, Entropic touch.
2|+ 1|+0|+0 | + 3|Abomination, Absorb light, Reality Distortion, Unholy toughness
3|+ 1|+1|+1 | + 3|Growth, +1 Str
4|+ 2|+1|+1 | + 4|Void Bringer Initiate
5|+ 2|+1|+1 | + 4|Distortion armor, +1 Cha
6|+ 3|+2|+2 | +5|Growth, +1 Str
7|+ 3|+2|+2 | +5|Void Bringer, Lesser
8|+ 4|+2|+2 | +6|Alter past
9|+ 4|+3|+3 | +6|Growth, +1 Str
10|+ 5|+3|+3 | +7|Void Bringer
11|+ 5|+3|+3 | +7|Spawn, +1 Cha
12|+ 6|+4|+4 | +8|Growth, +1 Str
13|+ 6|+4|+4 | +8|Void Bringer, Greater
14|+ 7|+4|+4 | +9|Absorb, +1 Cha
15|+ 7|+5|+5 | +9|Growth, +1 Str
16|+ 8|+5|+5 | +10|Void Bringer, Supreme
17|+ 8|+5|+5 | +10|Reality horror, +1 Str, +1 Cha

[/table]
Skills: 2+int modifier per level, no class skills.

Proefeciencies:it's own natural weapons.

Features:
Vasuthant body:a Vasuthant loses all other racial modifiers and gains the following undead traits

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* No Constitution score.
* Darkvision out to 60 feet.
* Immunity to all mind-affecting effects (charms, compulsions, phantasms, patterns, and morale effects).
* Immunity to poison, sleep effects, paralysis, stunning, disease, and death effects.
* Not subject to critical hits, nonlethal damage, ability drain, or energy drain. Immune to damage to its physical ability scores (Strength, Dexterity, and Constitution), as well as to fatigue and exhaustion effects.
* Heals naturaly.
* Immunity to any effect that requires a Fortitude save (unless the effect also works on objects or is harmless).
* Uses its Charisma modifier for Concentration checks.
* Not at risk of death from massive damage, but when reduced to 0 hit points or less, it is immediately destroyed.
* Not affected by raise dead and reincarnate spells or abilities. Resurrection and true resurrection can affect undead creatures. These spells turn undead creatures back into the living creatures they were before becoming undead.

* Undead do not breathe, eat, or sleep.

The Vasuthant is a small sized undead with two natural slam attacks dealing 1d4 damage each and fly speed 30(perfect). Any class levels it takes have their HD increased to d12.

The Vasuthant's body is a ball composed of sheer entropic energy with tendrils. It is unable to perform fine manipulation or wielding weapons or shields, but custom armor can be made for it (follow barding rules). It's tendrils count as a pair of arms for the purposes of equipment (rings and bracers, but not gloves), and it can use it's main body as either a torso+belt slot or as a head+neck slot. Just like small elementals, a Vasuthant has no special resistance against mundane attacks.

In adition, a Vasuthant gains a Nat armor bonus equal to it's Cha mod. Whenever it grows a size category, it's Nat armor grows by +1.

Light Immunity: The vasuthant is immune to all light based effects.

Entropic touch (Su): A Vasuthant may move over the space of another creature, causing an attack of oportunity. At the end of the Vasuthant's turn, any creature inside it takes 1d3 Str damage and 1d3 damage. Fort save DC 10+1/2HD +Cha negates both damages. Creatures gain +2 bonus on this save for each size category they're bigger than the Vasuthant and -2 penalty for each size category they're smaller. Creatures reduced to 0 Str by entropic touch die. Both damages of the entropic touch increase a die category when the Vasuthant grows in size. The Vasuthant heals 1HP every time an oponent fails a save against his entropic touch. If it's at full HP, then it gains an extra hit points for 10 minutes. This amount of healing/extra HP doubles whenever the Vasuthant grows.

A number of times equal to it's HDxCha modifier, the Vasuthant may channel his entropic touch trough his tendrils, dealing both damages with each sucessfull slam attack. The Vasuthant can choose to use this ability after he know he has hit the enemy, but the target gets a fort save as normal.

The Vasuthant also deals entropic touch damage whenever it rolls a sucessfull grapple check.

Creatures immune to negative energy are immune to this effect. Undeads heal 1d3 HP.

Abomination:The vasuthant gains blindsight 5 feets per HD, resistance to acid and cold equal to it's HD and resistance to fire and electrecity equal to half it's HD.

Absorb Light (Ex): A vasuthant sucks light, creating a 10-foot per HD emanation of shadow around itself. All creatures within this area, including the vasuthant, gain concealment. Low light vision and darkvision pierce this effect. Light sources within the area are suppressed, not dispelled.The vasuthant can choose to produce a smaller trap light area than the maximum, minimum 5 feets.

Reality Distortion (Ex): A vasuthant can twist reality itself. 1/day for each 2 HD (but only once per round), a vasuthant can take a free action to reroll any die rolled by any creature it can see, including itself. The vasuthant must accept the result of the reroll, and must declare the use of this ability before it knows the result.

Unholy Toughness (Ex): A vasuthant uses it's CHA modifier instead of Con to calculate HP.


Growth:The vasuthant grows one size category.

Ability increase:The vasuthant gains +1 to Str at levels 3, 6, 9, 12, 15 and 17 and +1 to Cha at levels 5, 11, 14 and 17


Void Bringer Initiate the vasuthant slowly tears apart reality itself, allowing it to use some SLAs. The save DC for those SLAs is 10+1/2HD+Cha modifier.

In adition, the vasuthant can now use levitate and slow as SLAs 1/day for each 2 HD it has.

Distortion armor:The vasuthant gains DR/magic equal to half it's HD.

Void Bringer, Lesser: Telekinesis and ray of enfeeblement 1/day for every 2 HD.

Alter Past (Su): As a free action, a vasuthant can produce a rift in time that enables it to replay its last turn. The vasuthant returns to the position it occupied when its turn began, and any effects that occurred during that time are reversed (including any readied actions or attacks of opportunity that its actions provoked). If it used any spell-like abilities on the it's last turn, it regains the daily uses spent in that last turn. The vasuthant can use this ability 1/day for every 4HD it has.


Void Bringer: Waves of fatigue and Ray of Exhaustion 1/day for every 4 HD.
Spawn:Creatures killed by the Vasuthant's enervating crush rise as zombies or skeletons (vasuthant's choice) in the next turn. They are under it's control, but the Vasuthant can only control up to 4HD of undead for each of it's own HD. Those zombies and skeletons receive a bonus to their AC, saves, attacks, grapple checks and damage rolls equal to the Vasuthant's Cha modifier, and a bonus to HP equal to the Vasuthant's HD.

Void Bringer, Greater:Reverse gravity and Ethereal Jaunt 1/day for every 4HD.

Absorb:Whenever the vasuthant deals Str damage to a creature with it's enervating crush, it gains a bonus to it's own Str and Cha equal to the Str damage dealt for 10 minutes. Multiple absorbings don't stack, just count the bigger bonus.

Void Bringer, Supreme Time stop and temporal stasis 1/day for every 4 HD

Reality horrorthe Vasuthant can now use his reality distortion power any number of times per day it wants (still just 1/round). It can also use enervation and soul bind as SLAs 1/day for each HD it has. Captured souls are stored inside the Vasuthant's own body.

Comments:

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And I tought the Vargoille was weird. The Vasuthant is a deadly flying ball of entropic energy.

I changed the main feature of the monster because, well, grapple kinda sucks. Now it works as it should, damaging anything that comes too close and "drowning" his enemies in negative energy.

The Vasuthant can fly from the first level, but it's lack of limbs kinda compensates for that. It's fly speed doesn't improve and at medium-higher levels most things can outrun him, but it gets a good array of SLAs to slow down enemies and close in the distance for grapple. Blidnsight makes sure that you can run but you cannot hide.

To fill in the dead levels at the higher points of the progression I gave it the power to produce it's own usefull undead, absorb strenght from his enemies and a powerfull capstone.

In the middle of all of this, the powerfull undead traits are countered by all weak saves, BAB and crappy skills.

Thus, if you want to play a giant slow moving ball of killy energy that twists reality with it's simple presence, the Vasuthant's for you.

[erikun]

I really should stop by to say what a good job you're doing so far. I haven't tried any of them myself, but all look useful and usable, both by players and DM. I think you're accomplishing your mission very well here.

Erinyes
(devil)

That is all.

Fixed, and seconded. I'm not sure how you managed that misspelling.

[Dante & Vergil]

The size table in the opening post seems a bit odd in one aspect. Why, when becoming medium, does youre weight increase by 2000 lbs.? Seems like a lot for almost everything that size, except for very, very few cases.

[Mythestopheles]

The size table in the opening post seems a bit odd in one aspect. Why, when becoming medium, does youre weight increase by 2000 lbs.? Seems like a lot for almost everything that size, except for very, very few cases.

I was a bit confused also, but I believe it shows the modifiers for increasing from that size. So the modifiers on the medium column are for when you grow to large size.

[Oslecamo]

I was a bit confused also, but I believe it shows the modifiers for increasing from that size. So the modifiers on the medium column are for when you grow to large size.

That's indeed correct. First column is base size, and second column is the new size. Thus you get +2000lb for growing from medium to large size.

[Oslecamo]

Pit fiend

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HD:d8
{TABLE]Level | BAB | Fort | Ref | Will | Feature
1 | +1 | +2|+0 |+2 |Pit Fiend body, +1 Str
2| +2| +3|+0 |+3 | Devil, Pit fiend SLAs (invisibility), +1 Con
3| +3| +3|+1| +3| Summon Devil, Hell Skin, +1 Str
4| +4| +4| +1|+4 |Magic circle against good, Regeneration, +1 Con
5| +5| +4| +1| +4| Wings, +1 Str
6| +6| +5|+2 |+5 |Growth, Improved grab, constrict, +1 Con
7| +7| +5| +2| +5| Fireball , +1 Cha
8| +8| +6| +2| +5| Dispel magic +1 Str
9| +9| +6|+3 |+6|Persistent Image +1 Cha
10| +10| +7|+3 |+7 |Teleport, Create undead +1 Con
11| +11| +7| +3|+7 |Devil bite +1 Str
12| +12| +8| +4|+8 | Fear Aura +1 Con
13| +13| +8| +4| +8| Unholy aura +1 Str
14| +14| +9| +4| +9| Power Word, stun +1 Con
15| +15| +9| +5| +9| Blasphemy +1Cha, +1 Str
16| +16| +10| +5| +10| Meteor Swarm, +1 Con
17| +17| +10| +5|+10 |Mass Hold Monster +1 Cha, +1 Str
18| +18| +11|+6 |+11 | +1 Cha, +1 Str, +1 Con, +1 Dex
19 | +19| +11| +6| +11| +1 Cha, +1 Str, +1 Con, +1 Dex
20| +20| +12| +6| +12| Wish, +1 Con
[/TABLE]
Skills: 6+int modifier per level, quadruple at 1st level, class skills are Balance, Bluff , climb Concentration , Diplomacy , Disguise , Hide , Intimidate , Knowledge (any) , Listen , Move Silently , Search , Sense Motive , Spellcraft , Spot , Survival , Use Magic Device

Proefeciencies:Simple and martial weapons, it's own natural weapons.

Features:

Pit fiend body:The Pit fiend loses all other racial bonus and gains outsider traits (basicaly darkvision 60 feets). It's a medium sized outsider with base 40 feets and two natural claw attacks dealing 1d10+str damage each.

The Pit Fiend also gains a bonus to Nat armor equal to his Con modifier.

Ability increase:Pit fiend gains:
+1 Str at levels 1, 3, 5, 8, 1, 13, 15, 17, 18, 19

+1 Con at levels 2, 4, 6, 10, 12, 14, 16, 18, 19, 20

+1 Cha at levels 7, 9, 11, 13, 15, 17, 18, 19

+1 Dex at levels 18 and 19

Devil:gain resistance to fire and and a bonus on saves against poison equal to his HD, and resistance to acid and cold equal to half his HD. Plus telepathy 40 feets plus 10 feets for each extra HD from here. Also gains the evil and lawfull subtypes and his weapons/natural attacks count as evil and lawfull for bypassing DR.

In adtion, it's darkvision applies to all kinds of darkness, even deeper darkness.

Pit fiend SLAs: The pit fiend becomes able to use some SLAs. Saves are 10+1/2HD+Cha modifier.

In adition, he can now use Invisibility as a SLA 1/day for each HD.

Summon Devil:Twice per day, the Pit fiend can summon reinforcments, depending on it's HD:

3HD:2 lemures
8HD:2 bearded devils
10HD: 1 erineyes
12HD:2 bone devils
14HD: 1 ice devil
18:1 horned devil

Those devils serve for 1 minute per HD and then disapear. They can't use their own summoning abilities.


Hell Skin:he Pit fiend gains DR/silver and good equal to half it's HD and SR equal to 11+HD.

Magic circle against good: as a SLA 1/day for each HD.

Regeneration:equal to 1/4 HD, rounded down. A pit fiend takes normal damage from good-aligned silvered weapons, and from spells or effects with the good descriptor.

Wings:The pit fiend grows a pair of powerfull wings, wich can be used to fly at a speed of 5 feet per HD (with average maneuverability). Each wing can also be used to deliver an attack dealing 1d8+half str modifier damage.

Growth:The pit fiend grows one size category, and also grows a powerfull tail that can deliver a tail slap dealing 2d8+1/2 str damage.

Improved Grab (Ex):To use this ability, a pit fiend must hit with its tail slap 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 can constrict.

Constrict:2d8+ 2xStr modifier with every sucessfull grapple check.

Fireball: as a SLA 1/day for every HD.

Dispel magic:SLA 1/day for HD, upgrades to Greater dispel Magic at 11HD.

Persistent Image:SLA 1/day for 2HD.

Teleport:SLA 1/day for 3HD, upgrades to greater teleport at 13HD.

Create undead:SLA 1/day for each 5HD. Needs a dead body to be used, but the undead is automaticaly under the pit fiend's control. The Pit Fiend can control up to 4 times his own HD in undead HD.

Devil bite:Gains a bite attack dealing 4d6+half str damage. This bite inflicts poison (Injury, Fortitude DC 10+1/2HD+Con mofidier, initial damage 1d6 Con, secondary damage death).

A creature struck by a pit fiend’s bite attack must also succeed on a DC 10+1/2HD+Con mod Fortitude save or be infected with a vile disease known as devil chills (incubation period 1d4 days, damage 1d4 Str)

The pit fiend can "lick" weapons and it's own natural weapons to poison them, one move action for each. This "licked" poison only stays viable for 1 hour per HD. The disease also carries over with the poison. The Pit Fiend doesn't risk poisoning himself.

Fear Aura:A pit fiend can radiate a 20-foot-radius fear aura as a free action. Any oponent in the area must succeed on a DC 10+1/2HD+Cha mod or suffer the effect of a Fear spell as cast by a sorceror of the Pit Fiend's HD. A creature that successfully saves cannot be affected again by the same pit fiend’s aura for 24 hours. Other devils are immune to the aura.

Unholy aura: SLA 1/day for each HD.

Power Word, stun:SLA 1/day for each 2HD

Blasphemy:SLA 1/day for each 2HD

Meteor Swarm:SLA 1/day for each 2HD

Mass Hold Monster:SLA 1/day for each 2HD.

Wish: SLA 1/day for each 5 HD. If the pit fiend uses the wish to create/improve an item or lasting effect (like a permanent bonus to ability score), it must pay the full exp price.

Comments:

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Ah, the lawfull cousin of the Balor. The Pit fiend is more focused in powerfull natural weapons and battlefield control.

It's SLAs are more diverse, in particular Magic circle against evil and Create undead to produce it's own minions. I gave it the ability to auto-control his own undeads since it's kinda useless otherwise. It also has illusions and fear aura for extra control, giving it a solid array of threats.

The Balor does get dominate monster for his own minions and true seeing to counter illusions.

The pit fiend also flies and grows later than the Balor (and flies worst at that), but has regeneration. And poison.

They both have the same total stat modifiers, the Balor just gets a fat bonus at the last two levels, before geting the powerfull wish SLA. Since casting 1/year isn't very funny, I let the Pit fiend use it up to 4 times per day, with the typical "you must pay exp to abuse this" clause.

Finally, the pit fiend summons devils earlier and more times per day, but the Balor summons stronger forces.

[ScionoftheVoid]

Good work, bookmarked. Haven't looked these over too much but balance issues don't bother me anyway, as long as players can keep up. You're kinda drowning in requestes now but I have two more. The Nixie and the Phasm. For someone who likes Lawfulness so much I have a soft spot for Fey and mutable creatures. Love the Vasuthant, Vargouille, Succubus, Ogre Mage and Rakshasa write-ups BTW. If anyone knows of a monster with fast healing or regeneration and at least normal human levels of looks and Intelligence, I also request that (not out of spite for you to stat it, I just really want to play something like that. Everything with fast healing or regeneration has massive/no listed LA, mental stats through the floor, is butt-ugly or some combination of the three. The MM Troll manages all three at once.)

[Oslecamo]

Mummy

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HD:d12
{table]Level|Bab|Fort|Ref|Will|Feature
1|+ 0|+0|+0 | + 2|Mummy body, +1 Str
2|+ 1|+0|+0 | + 3|Eternal guardian, +1 Str
3|+ 1|+1|+1 | + 3| +1 Cha, +1 Wis, +1 Str
4|+ 2|+1|+1 | + 4|Mummy Rot, +1Cha, +1 Wis, +1 Str
5|+ 2|+1|+1 | + 4|Despair, +1 Cha, +1 Wis, +1 Str[/table]
Skills: 2+int modifier per level, no class skills.

Proefeciencies:Simple weapons and it's own natural weapons.

Features:
Mummy body:a mummy loses all other racial modifiers and gains the following undead traits

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* No Constitution score.
* Darkvision out to 60 feet.
* Immunity to all mind-affecting effects (charms, compulsions, phantasms, patterns, and morale effects).
* Immunity to poison, sleep effects, paralysis, stunning, disease, and death effects.
* Not subject to critical hits, nonlethal damage, ability drain, or energy drain. Immune to damage to its physical ability scores (Strength, Dexterity, and Constitution), as well as to fatigue and exhaustion effects.
* Heals naturaly.
* Immunity to any effect that requires a Fortitude save (unless the effect also works on objects or is harmless).
* Uses its Charisma modifier for Concentration checks.
* Not at risk of death from massive damage, but when reduced to 0 hit points or less, it is immediately destroyed.
* Not affected by raise dead and reincarnate spells or abilities. Resurrection and true resurrection can affect undead creatures. These spells turn undead creatures back into the living creatures they were before becoming undead.

* Undead do not breathe, eat, or sleep.

The Mummy is a medium sized undead with one natural slam attacks dealing 1d6+1,5 str mod damage and base speed 20. Any class levels it takes have their HD increased to d12.

A mummy has a bonus to Nat armor equal to it's Str mod.

Since it has it's body covered in dry clothings, the mummy takes 50% more damage than normal from any fire source.

Ability increase: a mummy gains +1 Str at all levels .
a mummy gains +1 Cha and +1 Wis at levels 3, 4 and 5.

Eternal guardian:The mummy's body it's exceptionaly tough. It has DR/- equal to half it's HD. If it multiclasses for an arcane/divince class it can count it's mummy levels as levels of that class for purposes of CL and for the purposes of learning new spells and geting new spell slots. So for example, a mummy 3 who took 1 level of sorceror could choose to have CL 4, get 3 2nd level spell slots, 1 1st level spell slot, 1 2nd level spell known and 1 0th level spell known. It wouldn't get the spell knowns and spell slots of a sorceror 3 however. He would get the familiar ability, but mummy levels wouldn't count for it.

Mummy Rot (Su): Supernatural disease—slam, Fortitude DC 10+1/2HD´Cha mod, incubation period 1 minute; damage 1d6 Con and 1d6 Cha. The save DC is Charisma-based.

Unlike normal diseases, mummy rot continues until the victim reaches Constitution 0 (and dies) or is cured as described below.

Mummy rot is a powerful curse, not a natural disease. A character attempting to cast any conjuration (healing) spell on a creature afflicted with mummy rot must succeed on a DC 20 caster level check, or the spell has no effect on the afflicted character.

To eliminate mummy rot, the curse must first be broken with break enchantment or remove curse (requiring a DC 20 caster level check for either spell), after which a caster level check is no longer necessary to cast healing spells on the victim, and the mummy rot can be magically cured as any normal disease.

An afflicted creature who dies of mummy rot shrivels away into sand and dust that blow away into nothing at the first wind.

Despair (Su):At the mere sight of a mummy, the viewer must succeed on a DC 10+1/2HD+Cha Will save or be paralyzed with fear for 1d4 rounds. Whether or not the save is successful, that creature cannot be affected again by the same mummy’s despair ability for 24 hours.

Comments

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For the mummy, I took the aproach of the caster undead. Mummies are always renowed for having strange ancient magic besides being zombies with clothes.

It is slower than the skeleton, and gets vulnerability to fire instead of resistance to cold. You also need 2 levels to get the DR.

In return you get +1 Str, and it's DR can't be bypassed.

As you level up, you get mummy rot midway and despair as the capstone. Total bonus of +3 to Cha, Wis and +5 to Str, making it specialy atractive for clerics.

As usual, the powerfull undead traits are countered by crappy skills, BAB and saves.

[erikun]

Wow, I'm pretty impressed. Your mummy makes an excellent melee Cleric (or melee Sorcerer, if you really want) but is also makes a very nice Duskblade or Monk. +5 Str, +3 Wis, and flurrying with a slam that deals 1.5x Str damage? It makes an impressive Paladin or, if you desired, Barbarian.

I wonder if the penalities will fully cancel out the bonuses, though. No bonus HP from high Con and +50% damage from fire will hurt, although you could possibly get around the second. No class skills keeps it from being an efficient Rogue or skill-monkey Bard, although there's nothing stopping you from ignoring your skills or just focusing on a select few.

Over all, really neat. Thanks for the work.

[GoC]

Oslecamo creates more awesome.

[Zeta Kai]

So, why is this so much better/more logical than anything WotC did to make monster classes? WotC MCs are okay, but they're put together so oddly (IE relying on the LA "system" to set the benchmark) that you just can't replicate them efficiently. Making CR = ECL works so much better. Anyone can follow that, & the OP has done a good job of turning that into a functional system.

Tip of the Hat: Oslecamo.

Wag of the Finger: WotC.

PS: What book is Vasuthant from?

[Mythestopheles]

PS: What book is Vasuthant from?

Monster Manual III

[Oslecamo]

Monster Manual III

Speaking of wich, what did you think of that conversion, since you were the requester? It was probably the monster I changed more from the original thing, in order to try to make it playable.


Zeta Kai:That's indeed something I'll never understand about 3.X monster design. Why oh why do the monsters HD doesn't follow their CR? It messes a lot of stuff up, not only with players as monsters but also with any spells/effects that are based on HD.

Also, buffed up the succubus a little, since I felt it was somewhat weaker at low levels.

Well, on to the hound archon.

[Mystic Muse]

So, is this like, you choose a monster and then choose a class and play as the monster in that class or is the monster the class?

[Oslecamo]

Hound Archon

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HD:d8
{table]Level|Bab|Fort|Ref|Will|Feature
1|+1 | + 2|+ 0| + 2|Hound archon body, Change Shape, scent
2|+ 2| +3 |+ 0| +3 | Archon, Hound Hide , +1 Str
3|+ 3| +3 |+ 1| +3 | Aura of Menace, Celestia Warden, +1 Cha
4|+ 4| +4 |+ 1| +4 |Magic Circle against evil Celestia Warden, greater, +1 Str
[/table]

Skills:4+int modifier per level, quadruple at 1st level. Its class skills are Balance, climb, Concentration, Diplomacy, Hide , Jump , Listen , Move Silently , Sense Motive , Spot , Swim, Survival

Proefeciencies: it's own natural weapons, simple and martial weapons.

Features:

Hound Archon body: at first level loses all other racial bonus and gains outsider traits(basicaly darkvision 60 feets). It's a medium sized outsider with base speed 40, a natural slam attacks dealing 1d4+Str mod and a bite attack dealing 1d8+ Str mod. In a full attack, it may use either the slam or bite attack as a secondary weapon adding only half str bonus to damage and with a -5 penalty on the secondary attack(but not any penalty on the primary). It can combine one natural attack with a manufactured weapon.

A Hound archon also gains a bonus to it's natural armor equal to it's Con modifier.

Change Shape (Su): A hound archon can assume any canine form of Small to medium size and back 1/day for each HD it has. While in canine form, the hound archon loses its bite, slam, and any manufactured weapon attack, but gains the bite attack of the form it chooses. For the purposes of this ability, canines include any doglike or wolflike animal of the animal type.

At 4HD, it may also take the form of large canines by expending one extra use of change shape. For each extra 4 HD, it may make the large canine form grow one extra size (huge at 8th, gargantuan at 12th, colossal at 16th), but it must expend one extra use of change shape for each extra size increase.

While transformed into a canine, the Hound Archon gains a circumstancial bonus to Hide and Survival checks equal to it's own HD.

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* The creature retains the type and subtype of its original form. It gains the size of its new form.
* The creature loses the natural weapons and movement modes of its original form, as well as any extraordinary special attacks of its original form not derived from class levels (such as the barbarian’s rage class feature).
* The creature gains the natural weapons, movement modes, and extraordinary special attacks of its new form.
* The creature retains all other special attacks and qualities of its original form, except for breath weapons and gaze attacks.
* The creature retains the ability scores of its original form.
* Except as described elsewhere, the creature retains all other game statistics of its original form, including (but not necessarily limited to) HD, hit points, skill ranks, feats, base attack bonus, and base save bonuses.
* The creature retains any spellcasting ability it had in its original form, although it must be able to speak intelligibly to cast spells with verbal components and it must have humanlike hands to cast spells with somatic components.
* The creature is effectively camouflaged as a creature of its new form, and gains a +10 bonus on Disguise checks if it uses this ability to create a disguise.
* Any gear worn or carried by the creature that can’t be worn or carried in its new form instead falls to the ground in its space. If the creature changes size, any gear it wears or carries that can be worn or carried in its new form changes size to match the new size. (Nonhumanoid-shaped creatures can’t wear armor designed for humanoid-shaped creatures, and viceversa.) Gear returns to normal size if dropped.

Scent: as the srd ability.

Archon:The Hound Archon gains resistance to electrecity and petrification equal to it's HD and and a bonus on saves against poison equal to half it's HD.

In adition, all natural attacks and weapons wielded by the hound archon count as good aligned for purposes of bypassing DR.

Hound Hide :The hound archon gains DR/evil equal to half it's HD and SR equal to it's HD+11.

Ability increase: The hound archon gains +1 Str at levels 2 and 4 and +1 Cha at level 3.

Aura of Menace (Su): A righteous aura surrounds archons that fight or get angry. Any hostile creature within a 20-foot radius of an archon must succeed on a Will save to resist its effects. The save DC is 10+HD+Cha mod (yes count all the HD, not just half). Those who fail take a -2 penalty on attacks, AC, and saves for 24 hours or until they successfully hit the archon that generated the aura. A creature that has resisted or broken the effect cannot be affected again by the same archon’s aura for 24 hours.

Celestia Warden: The Hound archon can use aid, continual flame, detect evil, message as SLAs, DC=10+1/2HD+Cha mod. Unless the hound archon uses the 50Gp of ruby dust, his continual flames just last 1 minute per CL instead of being permanent.

Magic Circle against Evil (Su): A magic circle against evil effect always surrounds an archon (caster level equals the archon’s Hit Dice). It can be dispelled, but the archon can create a new one next turn as a free action.

Celestia Warden, greater:The hound archon can use teleport as a SLA 1/day for each 4HD it has. At 13th level, this ability upgrades to greater teleport.

Comments:

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The hound archon can choose to combine bite and sword in his humanoid form or turn into a wolf to unleash the pain. As it grows, whetever you stay in the class or not, you can become bigger and nastier wolves

If you do stay in the class, you get some nice suport SLAs and extra resistances. Aid is always a nice buff, and magic circle against evil keeps your mind protected. Nerfed the continual flame because I don't think it would be very funny to be able to light everything wherever you go. Aura of menace gets a bonus to DC because it's effect isn't that powerfull anyway. +1 Cha gives a little help with all those abilities,

Decent skills, good BAB, two good saves and +2 to Str allow you to play frontline warrior.

Finaly, you get teleport at level 4, but since it's just 1/day untill lv 8, I believe it's aceptable.

[Oslecamo]

So, is this like, you choose a monster and then choose a class and play as the monster in that class or is the monster the class?

The monster is the class. Once you finish up the monster levels then you can pick up a class. You can also stop taking monster levels midway and pick class levels. You'll miss the stronger monster abilities but be able to get normal class bonus earlier.

[Oslecamo]

Centaur

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HD:d8
{table]Level|Bab|Fort|Ref|Will|Feature
1|+ 1|+2|+0 | + 2|Centaur body, +1 Str, +1 Con
2|+ 2|+3|+0 | + 3|Hooves, +1 Str, +1 Con
3|+ 3|+3|+1 | + 3|Growth, +1 Str, +1 Con
[/table]

Skills:4+int modifier per level Its class skills are Hide, Move silently Jump, Balance, Listen, Survival, Swim and Spot.

Proefeciencies:Simple weapons, longsword and longbow.


Features:
Centaur body: The Centaur loses all other racial bonus and gains monstruous humanoid traits (basicaly darkvision 60 feet). A Centaur is a medium monstruous humanoid with base speed 50. A centaur's lower body is like an horse, wich allows the centaur to count as riding for beneftical purposes. For example, a centaur charging with a lance deals double damage. It also counts as a quadruped for carrying purposes

A centaur adds his Con modifier to his natural armor bonus.

Hooves:The centaur gains two natural hooves attacks dealing 1d4+1/2 str damage each. When full attacking, it may use both hooves as secondary attacks with a -5 penalty each, but no penalty on the primary attack.

Ability increase:The centaur gains +1 to Str and Con at every level of the monster class.


Growth:The centaur grows one size category (notice it is a long creature).

Comments:

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The main advantage of the centaur is large size at level 3, even if it's just a long creature.

Besides that, not much to say. A couple natural weapons to unleash the pain in melee. +3 to Str and +3 to Con.

Decent skills and two good saves, but good BAB to help him do his job since he doesn't get any defensive ability.

High speed and the fact that it always counts as mounted makes it a mighty charger, and also opens the potential for a hit and run character.