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You got more than you bargained for (Peltasts)

Psychotic Jim

First Post
Here's the a reposting of a conversion I posted a while ago, but revised for 3.5. Hopefully they will be helpful for any further conversions. I'll post the greater peltast and palimpsest later.
Edit: I converted this from 2E Monstrous Comp. II, I think it may originally have came from Forgotten Realms MC, but I could wrong there.

Peltast
Tiny Aberration (Shapechanger)
Hit Dice: 2d8+2 (11 hp)
Initiative: +2 (Dex)
Speed: 10 ft.
AC: 18 (+4 Dex, +2 size)
Base Attack/Grapple: +1/-11
Attacks: touch +7 melee
Full Attack: touch +7 melee
Damage: Attachment
Space/Reach: 2 1/2 ft /0 ft
Special Attacks: Attach
Special Qualities: Symbiosis, mimic shape, contamination, blindsight 60 ft, immunities, SR 12
Saves: Fort +1, Ref +4, Will +4
Abilities: Str 3, Dex 18, Con 13, Int 10, Wis 13, Cha 10
Skills: Disguise +14, Hide +10, Listen +4, Move Silently +8, Spot +4
Feats: Alertness, Weapon finesse (touch) (B)
Climate/Terrain: Any land and underground
Organization: Solitary
Challenge Rating: 1
Treasure: None
Alignment: Usually Neutral
Advancement: 3-4 HD (Tiny)
Level Adjustment: -- (+1 if bonded to host?)
Peltasts are tiny, amorphous creatures that have brown skin highly resembling that of well-made leather. They are fairly inoffensive creatures that masquerade as various small leather items such as bags and gloves in order to attract hosts to bond with. Humans and goblinoids are its only suitable hosts; it only uses other humanoid races as carriers to bring it into contact with humans and goblinoids. After a possible host picks it up and conveniently stores it away, it attaches itself to the host almost unnoticeably. Peltasts are indistinguishable from normal leather items, and a host has only a 1% chance of noticing a peltast as it attaches. Peltasts are silent and do not breathe, nor do they radiate heat or magic.
Combat
Peltasts do not engage in combat and are helpless except for fleeing. Fortunately, it is not likely to enter combat.
Attach (Ex): Upon coming in contact with exposed skin of a host, a peltast releases a natural anesthetic and “joins” with a host harmlessly. If the host is a human or goblinoid, he or she becomes symbiotically linked with the peltast.
Symbiosis (Ex): A peltast linked with a proper host drains 1 hp from the host each day it is bonded. It also functions in every way as part of the host. In return, the peltast neutralizes any poison introduced into the host’s system, effectively giving the host poison immunity. It also bestows its spell resistance upon the host assuming he or she does not already have spell resistance superior to that of the peltast. Once per day if the host is gravely wounded (driven to two hit points or less), the creature will give the host 1d4+2 hit points.
Mimic Shape (Ex): A peltast can take the form of any tiny, mundane leather object. A successful Spot check (opposed by the peltast’s Disguise check) is required to distinguish a peltast from a normal leather object. Its texture, smell, and weight matches that of leather, and it does not give off any heat.
Contamination (Ex): A peltast dipped into water releases toxic materials, rendering the water undrinkable. Any one who drinks such contaminated water must make a Fortitude Save (DC 12) or become nauseated for 2d4 rounds.
Blindsight (Ex): The peltast’s acute sense of smell and touch give it blindsight with a 60 ft range.
Immunities (Ex): A peltast is immune to bludgeoning and falling damage as well as poison.
Skills: A peltast gets a +10 racial bonus on disguise checks.
 
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BOZ

Creature Cataloguer
IIRC the peltast was originally found in an old issue of Dragon (by Ed Greenwood), and later found in a few FR products before being reprinted in the MC Annual.
 


Psychotic Jim

First Post
Here's the peltast's big brother.

Peltast, Greater
Tiny Aberration (Shapechanger)
Hit Dice: 3d8+3 (16 hp)
Initiative: +2 (Dex)
Speed: 10 ft.
AC: 18 (+4 Dex, +2 size)
Attacks: touch +8 melee
Damage: Attachment
Face/Reach: 2½ ft /0 ft
Special Attacks: Attach
Special Qualities: Symbiosis, mimic shape, contamination, blindsight 60 ft, immunities, SR 17, Spell-like abilities
Saves: Fort +2, Ref +5, Will +6
Abilities: Str 3, Dex 18, Con 13, Int 15, Wis 14, Cha 12
Skills: Concentration +8, Disguise +16, Hide +10, Listen +6, Move Silently +8, Sense Motive +6, Spot +6
Feats: Ability Focus (Suggestion), Alertness, Weapon finesse (touch) (B)
Climate/Terrain: Any land and underground
Organization: Solitary
Challenge Rating: 5?
Treasure: None
Alignment: Usually Neutral
Advancement: 4-6 HD (Tiny)
Greater peltasts are similar to their lesser cousins but take the form of tiny, translucent gemstones and are more aggressive. They disguise themselves as valuable gems instead of leather objects. It is indistinguishable from a mundane crystal until it feeds, on which it grows and becomes opaque. A greater peltast feeds more actively than its normal counterpart, draining 3 hp worth of bodily fluids. It also uses its spell-like abilities to cause bloodshed for it to feed upon. Because of its aggressive tendencies, it often feeds on sleeping or otherwise helpless hosts. A greater peltast is in other ways similar to a normal peltast.
Spell-like Abilities: At will- Summon Monster VI, Suggestion (DC 15)*, Slow(by touch) (DC 15). Caster Level 7, The Save DCs are Charisma based. *DC is two higher because of Ability Focus.
 

Psychotic Jim

First Post
And here's the palimpsest. Again from MC Annual vol. II. I think it was also in one of the Volo books, perhaps the Guide to All Things Magical?

Palimpsest
Diminutive Construct
Hit Dice: 1d10 (5 hp)
Initiative: +1 (Dex)
Speed: 10 ft.
AC: 15 (+1 Dex, +4 size)
Base Attack/Grapple: +0/-10
Attack: Paper-cut +5 melee
Full Attack: Paper-cut +5 melee
Damage: Paper-cut 1d4-2
Face/Reach: 1 ft/0 ft
Special Attacks: Absorption
Special Qualities: Construct, immunities, camouflage, blindsight 60 ft, SR 13
Saves: Fort +0, Ref +3, Will +0
Abilities: Str 6, Dex 13, Con -, Int 3, Wis 11, Cha 2
Skills: Hide +14*, Move Silently +11*
Feats: Stealthy, Weapon finesse (B)
Climate/Terrain: Any temperate land and underground
Organization: Solitary, Pamphlet (2-8), Book (20-100), or Library (100+)
Challenge Rating: 1
Treasure: None
Alignment: Always Neutral
Advancement: 2-5 HD (Diminutive), 6-10 HD (Tiny)
Magic at times seems like a disease; it has a nasty habit of infecting everything it touches with weirdness. It has done so with the palimpsest, a formerly mundane piece of paper or parchment given life. The palimpsest is a subtle predator, lying in wait for victims whose life it can “absorb” into itself. A palimpsest is normally indistinguishable from a normal scroll or piece of paper.

Combat
A palimpsests hides in bookshelves and similar locations waiting for a potential “meal” to come within its reach and then lashes out using the advantage of surprise, cutting the victim with severely bleeding gashes and possibly absorbing the foe.
Absorption (Su): If a palimpsest hits an opponent in combat, the victim must make a Fortitude Save (DC 10) or have her essence eaten by the palimpsest. It takes two rounds for the palimpsest to absorb the foe, after which the likeness of the absorbed victim appears as an illustration on the palimpsest. Absorbing the victim in the subsequent rounds counts as a full-round action for the palimpsest, leaving it vulnerable The creatures takes 1 day per Hit Die or level of the victim to totally “digest” the victim, after which time there is no way to get the character back; not even resurrection, wish, or miracle will work. However, there are several ways to retrieve an absorbed victim from a palimpsest’s clutches before the digestion process is finished. A wish or miracle spell will bring back the victim, as will the judicious use of certain spell combinations. A remove curse spell followed by a resurrection spell will bring back the character. Shocking grasp has a flat 20% chance to bring a victim back, a lightning bolt spell a 50% chance, and a chain lightning a 90% chance. A palimpsest can digest up to one victim per HD.
Construct: Immune to mind-influencing effects, poison, disease, and similar effects. Not subject to critical hits, sub-dual damage, ability damage, energy drain, or death from massive damage.
Immunities (Ex): A palimpsest is immune to all piercing and slashing weapons as well as fire. As it has no clear front or back, it cannot be flanked.
Camouflage (Ex): A palimpsest disguising itself as a piece of paper is almost indistinguishable from a normal parchment or paper. It requires a Spot check roll higher than the Palimpsest’s Hide check to notice before it attacks.
Blindsight (Ex): As a palimpsest can feel the vibrations of potential victims nearby, it has blindsight 60 ft.
Skills: A palimpsest gets a +8 racial bonus to Hide checks to pass itself off as a normal sheet of paper and a +5 racial bonus to Move Silently
 

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