Special Conversion Thread: Lycanthropes and their ilk

[doctorbadwolf]

it bothers me that the general noun is “lycanthrope”, rather than theriomorph.

 

[Cleon]

It looks pretty good. While I like the aesthetics of the smaller table, I'm not sure if someone might get confused. It's probably best to stick with the larger table. It looks more like the SRD one. I am a little confused by the wording of the example of the werepseudodragon, though. Do you just mean to say that you mean the hybrid form has Str +4 and the dragon form has Str +0 (as for the sample)?

I was just trying to rephrase the previous couple of paragraphs to show how the hybrid/dragon stats work. It seems I failed in my aim of clarification!

How about this instead:

Example: A pseudodragon is a Tiny dragon with Str 6, Dex 15, Con 13; applying –10 or –11 comes to Str –4, Dex +4, Con +2. In hybrid form, a werepseudodragon uses the weredrake's minimum Strength adjustment of +4. In dragon form, the werepseudodragon uses the hybrid form's Str +4 if the base creature is Tiny or Diminutive, but if the base creature is Small the weredrake adds the –4 penalty from the Changes to Statistics by Size Table to give the dragon form Str +0. In both dragon and hybrid forms, a pseudodragon weredrake has Dex +4, Con +2.​

Is that clearer?

 

[Cleon]

it bothers me that the general noun is “lycanthrope”, rather than theriomorph.

There's not that much we can do about that as it's the SRD terminology.

 

[freyar]

Yes, that reads a bit better.

Tactics: Forest gnome werepseudodragons prefer to avoid combat, and often use their spell-like abilities to lead opponents away. When pressed into combat, they rely on their poisonous sting.

That work?

 

[Cleon]

Yes, that reads a bit better.

Updating the Weredrake (Vulgar Drakanthrope) Working Draft

Tactics: Forest gnome werepseudodragons prefer to avoid combat, and often use their spell-like abilities to lead opponents away. When pressed into combat, they rely on their poisonous sting.

That work?

Could do with a little polishing.

How about:

Forest gnome werepseudodragons avoid combat, preferring to use their stealth and spell-like abilities to avoid direct confrontations and lead opponents away. If forced to fight, they rely on their venomous sting.​

Better?

 

[freyar]

Sure, sounds good!

I'm always tempted to pass on flavor and description for template sample critters. Do you have any ideas for this one?

 

[Cleon]

Sure, sounds good!

Updating the Werepseudodragon Working Draft.

How's this for the description and flavour:

A petite humanoid dragon less than half as tall as a human, bat-winged and covered in fine scales the red-brown of autumn leaves. Its long flexible tail ends in a bulbous barb resembling a scorpion's stinger.

These drakanthropes of forest gnome and pseudodragon are extremely shy and reclusive, so it is hard to determine how rare they are. They are naturally benign and have been known to aid visitors to their woodland homes, although they avoid revealing themselves as they do so. If they must communicate with a stranger, werepseudodragons prefer to do so telepathically while in hiding. These creatures have a playful side and occasionally play pranks on others. This mischief is harmless or helpful if the other creature appears benevolent, but will aim to sabotage or repel a hostile intruder.

A forest gnome werepseudodragon is about 1 foot long in dragon form with a 2-foot tail and weighs about 7 pounds. In humanoid and hybrid form it stands 2 to 2½ feet tall. The forest gnome form weighs around 25 to 30 pounds, the hybrid form is about 40 pounds and has a 3- to 4-foot long tail.​

I think that covers everything. Had a bit of difficulty finding out how much a forest gnome weighs as it isn't listed in the SRD, but being so much shorter than a regular gnome I assumed they must be at least a little lighter.

Finally tracked down some official weights in Races of Faerûn.

 

[freyar]

Seems good! Ready to move on?

 

[Cleon]

Seems good!

Updating the Werepseudodragon Working Draft.

Adding it to the Weredrake (Vulgar Drakanthrope) Working Draft.

Ready to move on?

Yes, I'm ready to proceed with the True Drakanthrope.

 

[Cleon]

Updating the Werepseudodragon Working Draft.

Hold on, we forgot the Skills!

Base Saves: Fort +2+3+2/3, Ref +0+3+0/+2, Will +0+3+0
Gnome Skills (8 SPs): ??? Hide, Listen, Spot
Pseudodragon Skills (12 SPs): Diplomacy, Hide, Listen, Search, Sense Motive, Spot, Survival
Total Skill Ranks: Hide (+ in forests and wooded or overgrown areas)

SRD Forest Gnome Skills: Craft (alchemy) +2, Hide +7, Listen +1, Spot +1

A standard issue 1st-level Gnome warrior has Hide 4 ranks and Spot 4 ranks, for 8 SPs in total. Note that none of the Gnome's skills are class skills, so it only gets half ranks. Note that the Gnome's Hide Skill forgot to include the –3 armor check penalty for its chain shirt and light shield.

SRD Pseudodragon Skills: Diplomacy +2, Hide +20*, Listen +9, Search +6, Sense Motive +7, Spot +9, Survival +1 (+3 following tracks).

A Pseudodragon has 6 ranks apiece in Hide, Listen, Search, Sense Motive and Spot, all of which are class skills, for 30 SPs in total.

I propose focusing on Hide, Listen and Spot. We've just got enough SPs to match a standard pseudodragon's skills in those areas.

Gnome Skills (8 SPs): Hide 4 SP [½ ranks], Spot 4 SP [½ ranks]
Pseudodragon Skills (12 SPs): Hide 4 SP, Listen 4 SP, Search, Sense Motive, Spot 4 SP, Survival 0 SP
Total: Hide 6 ranks, Listen 4 ranks, Spot 6 ranks

That give is:

Skills (Gnome Form): Craft (alchemy) +2, Hide +11*ᴬ (+15 in forests), Listen +8, Spot +8
ᴬ includes –3 armor check penalty
Skills (Pseudodragon Form): Craft (alchemy) +2, Hide +20* (+24 in forests), Listen +8, Spot +8
Skills (Hybrid Form): Craft (alchemy) +2, Hide +16* (+20 in forests), Listen +8, Spot +8

I've updated the Werepseudodragon Working Draft and Weredrake (Vulgar Drakanthrope) Working Draft to match.