The original Inhabitants of Cania...

[Casimir Liber]

High level campaign - lost city of Kintyre. Imagining original inhabitants as insectoids. Their ghosts still inhabit the sunken city. They manifest but solidifying frozen vapour and appear as semi-bipedal hexapod arthropods with psychic abilities. Using sphinx statblock as template and pondering conversion. (have left sphinx spells in momentarily to give and idea of equivalent power replacements

Pondered calling them black locusts, caniites, or arcane hexapods...? Musing....

 

[Cleon]

Pondered calling them black locusts, caniites, or arcane hexapods...? Musing....

Erm, that's the statblock for Baalphegor you just posted on 5E: Converting AD&D Monsters to Fifth Edition.

 

[Casimir Liber]

Ack. meant this one...

 

[Cleon]

Ack. meant this one...

What source(s), if any, are you basing these critters on?

First impression is Hyperfocused Mind looks a bit unbalanced.

Standard 5E Sphinxes have Legendary Actions they can use to make attacks, teleport or cast spells. You could consider going that route rather than giving it a special Bonus Action and Reaction that does more-or-less the same thing.

Incidentally, I've long found the "only at the end of another creature's turn" wording of Legendary Actions a bit strange, since if taken literally it'd mean these Actions won't function if there aren't any other creatures around.

For example, it'd mean a Sphinx could not teleport when no one else is around.

It's sort-of explicable why some Legendary Actions only occur when a monster is surrounded by creatures. The said Sphinx might need multiple targets of opportunity to use Claw more than the twice of its Multiattack, but other Legendaries don't really make much sense as only-when-another-creature-is-involved abilities.

 

[Casimir Liber]

I was planning on ditching the legendary actions but left there so could replace with an equivalent

So story goes there is an ancient city beneath the ice in Cania called Kintyre - my idea was something with a bit of a lovecraftian flavour. So millennia-old race of intelligent psychic insectoids as something quite alien and very powerful. PCs are level 20 which is why I went for a powerful statblock as template. So idea is weird mind stuff.

 

[Cleon]

I was planning on ditching the legendary actions but left there so could replace with an equivalent

So story goes there is an ancient city beneath the ice in Cania called Kintyre - my idea was something with a bit of a lovecraftian flavour. So millennia-old race of intelligent psychic insectoids as something quite alien and very powerful. PCs are level 20 which is why I went for a powerful statblock as template. So idea is weird mind stuff.

Hmm, in that case I'd assume the PCs would be fighting groups of these things, so it'd be easier to ditch the Legendary Actions for the sake of simplicity.

Maybe give them weird team-based abilities, like a Far Realms version of Pack Tactics (whatever that might be) as a substitute for the Hyperfocused Mind.

If they got, say, advantage on Spell Attacks and a selection of weird and/or rare spell abilities that could make them see suitably freaky.

You could always just "reskin" a standard spell so it seems weird and freaky while keeping the basic mechanics the same (which'd help keep it balanced).

 

[Casimir Liber]

Hmm, in that case I'd assume the PCs would be fighting groups of these things, so it'd be easier to ditch the Legendary Actions for the sake of simplicity.

Maybe give them weird team-based abilities, like a Far Realms version of Pack Tactics (whatever that might be) as a substitute for the Hyperfocused Mind.

If they got, say, advantage on Spell Attacks and a selection of weird and/or rare spell abilities that could make them see suitably freaky.

You could always just "reskin" a standard spell so it seems weird and freaky while keeping the basic mechanics the same (which'd help keep it balanced).

Yes - maybe DC for spell save increases by 1 per arcane hexapod present.

have to break out spells as unique spell-like attacks then I guess to make them unique (and also annull counterspell)

 

[Cleon]

Yes - maybe DC for spell save increases by 1 per arcane hexapod present.

That'd (a) get out of hand with large groups of these diabolical insects and (b) is maybe contrary to 5E philosophy, which prefers to use the advantage/disadvantage mechanism.

Maybe make it some kind of "Mystic Coordination" ability where these monsters gain advantage on their Spell Attacks or their targets gain disadvantage on their saving throws.

Or possibly both, or maybe it depends on how many bugs cooperate?

Like if two use the same spell attack (or just one uses a spell attack will an ally is nearly or uses some kind of "assist" action?) the spell gains advantage on the "to hit" but if there's three coordinating they can opt to give their target disadvantage on the spell's saves instead, while if there's four or more then BOTH effects apply.

I'm just spitballing here. Might end up dropping some of the coordination options or modify the minimum numbers needed for it to work.

Might want to have it only apply to a limited list of actions though, possibly dependent on the power of the coordinating monster.

Like, maybe they can use a few Warlock-style abilities as Actions and are able to use this coordination ability with them, but their Innate Spellcasting can't be coordinated?

 

[Casimir Liber]

okay how about

Mindmerging. The black locust's psychic attacks are made at advantage, with saves against them at disadvantage, if two or more black locusts are within 5 feet of each other and neither is incapacitated.

(could also call it Psychic Buff)

Incidentally the sphinx spells look pretty lame so gonna come up with some random spell-like powers.

Psychic Rebuke. The black locust focusses its mind on a creature that damaged it, which is struck with a wave of psychic malevolence. The creature must make a DC 16 Intelligence saving throw. It takes 4d10 psychic damage on a failed save, or half as much damage on a successful one.

maybe telekinesis as a spell?

 

[Cleon]

okay how about

Mindmerging. The black locust's psychic attacks are made at advantage, with saves against them at disadvantage, if two or more black locusts are within 5 feet of each other and neither is incapacitated.

(could also call it Psychic Buff)

Would split the Mindmerging and Psychic Buff into two abilities, so the Buff gives the save disadvantage and the merging the attack advantage.

A range of 5 feet is piddling. The locusts would have to stand next to each other to use it. It was fine with Pack Attack, since wolves only have their teeth to attack with, so it's meant for ganging up against a target within the 5 feet range of their bite attacks, but I think a longer range is called for with Mindmerging.

Was also assuming it would apply to all attack rolls like Pack Attack does rather than just "psychic attacks" (e.g. Spell Attack, Melee Attack, et cetera), especially as psychic attack is undefined.

Here's a first draft:

Traits​

Mindmerging. The black locust has advantage on an attack roll against a creature if at least one allied black locust is within 30 feet of the black locust, isn't incapacitated, and can see the target creature.​

​

Reactions​

Psychic Buff. If an allied black locust is mindmerging with the black locust and hits a creature, the black locust can use its reaction to give the target disadvantage on its saving throw against the attack the ally hit it with. If the attack has no saving throw, or the creature has already rolled its saving throw (possibly including a Psychic Buff from another allied black locust), the target takes ## (#d#) psychic damage instead.​

Note that the additional psychic damage offers a reason for more than two locusts to dogpile a target with mindmerged psychic buffs.