1Mac's Firewig Swarm
Firewig Swarm
From the geothermic vent emerges a swarm of reddish insects, moving with great speed and apparent purpose.
CR 9
XP 6,400 N Diminutive vermin (swarm)?
Init +3; Senses blindsense 30 ft., tremorsense 30 ft.; Perception +4
DEFENSE
AC 23, touch 20, flat-footed 18; (+8 size, +3 Dex)
?hp 77 (14d8)?
Fort +11, Ref +7, Will +4?
Defensive Abilities swarm traits; Immune mind-affecting effects, weapon damage
OFFENSE
Speed 30 ft., climb 30 ft.
?Melee swarm (3d6)?
Space 10 ft.; Reach 0 ft.?
Special Attacks infest, firewig fever, distraction (DC 18)
Defensive Abilities Resist fire 5
Weaknesses Vulnerability to cold
STATISTICS
Str 1, Dex 16, Con 14, Int —, Wis 10, Cha 2?Base Atk +10; CMB —; CMD —?Skills Climb +10, Perception +4; Racial Modifiers +4 Perception
SPECIAL ABILITIES
Blindsense (Ex)
A firewig swarm detects creatures based on their body heat. Creatures with the cold subtype cannot be detected by the firewig swarm’s blindsense, nor can many kinds of non-living creatures that do not have body heat. The firewig swarm’s blindsense also does not work in extremely hot environments, like lava caverns or furnaces, as it cannot distinguish creatures from background heat.
Infest (Ex)
Instead of dealing swarm damage, the firewig swarm can make a touch attack versus a single target. If successful, the swarm infects the target with firewig fever (see below). A single swarm can infect one Large creature, two Medium creatures, four Small creatures, or eight Tiny or Diminutive creatures. To infect creatures larger than Large, it takes a number of firewig swarms equal to the target’s size bonus to combat maneuvers (i.e., 2 for Huge creatures, 4 for Gargantuan creatures, etc.).
Firewig Fever (Ex)
Type disease, touch attack;
Save Fortitude DC 19
Onset immediate;
Frequency 1/day
Effect 1d4 Charisma damage, and the target is fatigued. A creature that reaches 0 Charisma becomes a Firewig Host (see below).
Cure 3 consecutive saves. If the victim’s skin is kept cold, he gains a +8 bonus to his save.
Firewigs burrow deep into their victims with the goal of controlling their very minds. Breaking down a victim’s psyche takes several days, and if the victim is kept cool, it slows the progress of the infestation considerably. As the disease progresses, the victim becomes increasingly incoherent, while its body swells with fever, sometimes nearly doubling in size. This is both to provide room for the swarm, and to increase the host’s temperature, which facilitates its transformation. If the disease successfully runs its course, the victim become a Firewig Host (see below), which single-mindedly searches for a new source of heat for the swarm to spawn. When it does, the swarm bursts forth from the host, killing it.
ECOLOGY
Environment Warm hills and mountains, warm underground locations, and anywhere of natural or man-made heat
?
Organization solitary, pair, patrol (3–6 swarms), or legion (7–16 swarms)
?
Treasure none
Firewig swarms are rarely encountered, given the extreme environments in which they thrive. Their terrifying life cycle is enough to keep most potential hosts away from their homes.
Firewig Host
“Firewig Host” is an acquired template that can be added to any corporeal creature, referred to hereafter as the base creature.
Challenge Rating: This depends on the creature's total number of Hit Dice, as follows:
Code:
HD CR XP
1/2 1/8 50
1 1/4 100
2 1/2 200
3–4 1 400
5–6 2 600
7–8 3 800
9–10 4 1,200
11–12 5 1,600
13–16 6 2,400
17–20 7 3,200
21–24 8 4,800
25–28 9 6,400
Alignment: Always neutral.
Armor Class: Natural armor is based on the Firewig Host's size:
Code:
Firewig Host Size Natural Armor Bonus
Tiny or smaller +1
Small +2
Medium +4
Large +6
Huge +8
Gargantuan +11
Colossal +14
Saves: Base save bonuses are Fort +1/3 HD, Ref +1/3 HD. The base creature retains its Will save.
Speed: Winged Firewig Hosts can still fly, but maneuverability drops to clumsy. If the base creature flew magically, so can the Firewig Host. Retain all other movement types.
Attacks: A Firewig Host retains all the natural weapons, manufactured weapon attacks, and weapon proficiencies of the base creature. It also gains a slam attack that deals damage based on the Firewig Host's size, but as if it were one size category larger than its actual size.
Special Attacks: A Firewig Host retains none of the base creature's special attacks.
Abilities: Str +4, Dex –2, Con +4. A Firewig Host has no Int or Cha score, and its Wis becomes 10.
BAB: A Firewig Host's base attack is equal to 3/4 its Hit Dice.
Skills: A Firewig Host has no skill ranks.
Feats: A Firewig Host loses all feats possessed by the base creature, and does not gain feats as its Hit Dice increase.
Special Qualities: A Firewig Host loses most special qualities of the base creature. It retains any extraordinary special qualities that improve its melee or ranged attacks. A Firewig Host gains the following special qualities.
-
Fire Resistance 5
-
Vulnerability to Cold
-
Staggered (Ex)
Firewig Hosts have poor reflexes and can only perform a single move action or standard action each round. A Firewig Host can move up to its speed and attack in the same round as a charge action.
-
Lucidity (Ex)
The base creature is under tenuous control of the Firewig swarm. Every day after it is infected, the base creature may make a Will save. If it succeeds, it shakes the Firewig swarm’s control. Any mental ability scores, Base Attack Bonus, saves, skills, feats, and special qualities and abilities that were lost are regained, including its original Charisma score. It still retains the ability scores, special attacks, and special qualities gained from the template. A lucid Firewig Host is still infected with Firewig Fever and begins to undergo the effects of the disease again the next day.
ECOLOGY
Environment Warm hills and mountains, warm underground locations, and anywhere of natural or man-made heat?
Organization Usually solitary?Treasure as the base creature
Firewig Hosts operate under a single-minded mandate, to find a source of heat sufficient for its Firewig invaders to spawn and thrive. Anyone or anything that tries to stop it is met with violent resistance, but they are otherwise not hostile.
Hooks
The Changing: A legendary artifact is said to be found in the fire caves on the island of L’hai inokhi. The natives strongly discourage the PCs from pursuing this course, warning of “The Changing” that those who enter the caves invariably suffer. Only one person has ever made the journey and survived; a sorcerer with icy-blue skin and breath like fog.
Dr Pretravit, I presume?: Famed adventurer Dr Petravit has disappeared after an expedition from the remote jungle village into the jungle’s heart. The doctor’s disappearance coincides with news of a terrifying creature attacking hunters and foragers. But is the creature the monster it seems to be?
Okay, same as before. Vote via the poll. Monster with the most votes when the poll closes is the winnah! Monsters follow this initial post. This time the prize is again unlimited bragging rights for having the best monster as judged by the votes of your peers plus any one PDF from my catalog. The picture at the right for WIIC3 comes from FreakyGaming.com.
).
