Should be "retains" not "regains".
Fixed!
Another template I had previously skipped, this one is for the death knight—or dread knight, in Level Up terms.
I just noticed: the dread knight has no particular resistances to nonmagical weapons. Weird.
Dread Knight Creature (Template)
The Death Knights of Oerth, Dragon Magazine #287
Creature by Gary Holian and Rich Redman
“Dread knight” is a template that can be placed on any humanoid that has proficiency with heavy armor, shields, and martial weapons and has a CR of 5 or higher. It regains all of the statistics of the base creature except as noted below.
Type. The dread knight’s type changes to undead. It loses any other tags it had.
Attributes. The dread knight’s Strength, Constitution, and Intelligence increases by 4 (maximum of 30), and its Charisma becomes 20 (+5) unless it was already higher. Recalculate its hit points.
Saving Throws. The dread knight gains proficiency in Dexterity, Constitution, Intelligence, Wisdom, and Charisma saving throws.
Skills. The dread knight gains proficiency in Intimidation. If it already has proficiency in Intimidation, it gains a d4 expertise in it.
Immunities. The dread knight is immune to cold, fire, necrotic, and poison damage, and to the charmed, fatigue, frightened, poisoned, and stunned conditions.
Senses. The dread knight gains truesight to 60 feet.
Bonus Action: Break Magic. The dread knight ends all spell effects on a creature, object, or point within 30 feet. The maximum spell slot level which the dread knight can end depends on the base creature’s CR:
CR 5 – 16: 3rd level
CR 17 – 22: 5th level
CR 23 or higher: 7th level
Action: Cursed Weapon. One of the dread knight’s melee weapon attacks is cursed. A creature hit by the weapon takes additional necrotic damage depending on the base creature’s CR.
CR 5 – 16: 7 (2d6) necrotic damage
CR 17 – 22: 14 (4d6) necrotic damage
CR 23 or higher: 21 (6d6) necrotic damage
The target’s hit point maximum is reduced by an amount equal to the necrotic damage taken. This reduction lasts until the target finishes a long rest. The target dies if its hit point maximum is reduced to 0.
Bonus Action: Cursed Weapon Attack. The dread knight makes a cursed greatsword attack.
Action: Fire Blast (1/Day). A fiery mote streaks from the dread knight’s finger to a point within 120 feet and blossoms into a 20-foot-radius sphere of black fire which spreads around corners. Each creature within the area must make a Dexterity saving throw (save DC = 8 + the creature’s PB + the creature’s Intelligence modifier). The creature takes fire damage (half as much on a successful save) depending on the base creature’s CR:
CR 5 – 16: 42 (12d6) fire damage.
CR 17 – 22: 63 (18d6) fire damage.
CR 23 or higher: 84 (24d6) fire damage
This damage ignores fire resistance and treats immunity to fire damage as fire resistance.
Action: Ice Wall (1/Day). The dread knight magically creates a wall of ice on a solid surface it can see within 60 feet. The wall is flat, 1 foot thick, and can be up to 50 feet long and 15 feet high. The wall lasts for 1 minute or until destroyed. Each 10-foot section has AC 12, 30 hit points, vulnerability to fire damage, and immunity to cold, necrotic, poison, and psychic damage.
If the wall enters a creature’s space when it appears, the creature is pushed to one side of the wall (creature’s choice). The creature then makes a Dexterity saving throw (save DC = 8 + the creature’s PB + the creature’s Intelligence modifier), taking cold damage (half as much on a successful save) depending on the base creature’s CR:
CR 5 – 16: 35 (10d6) cold damage
CR 17 – 22: 48 (14d6) cold damage
CR 23 or higher: 63 (18d6) cold damage
Action: Multiattack. The dread knight attacks twice with its Cursed Weapon, unless it could already attack more often than that.
Action: Soul Wrack (1/Day). A creature within 60 feet of the dread knight must make a Dexterity saving throw (save DC = 8 + the creature’s PB + the creature’s Intelligence modifier), falling prone and taking necrotic damage (half as much on a successful save, and doesn’t fall prone).
CR 5 – 16: 35 (10d6) necrotic damage
CR 17 – 22: 70 (20d6) necrotic damage
CR 23 or higher: 105 (30d6) necrotic damage
Action: Summon Fiendish Steed (1/Day). A fell nightmare or wyvern magically appears in an empty space within 5 feet. The steed follows the dread knight’s commands and acts on its turn. It may attack on the turn on which it is summoned. It remains until the dread knight dismisses it as an action or it is killed.
At the Narrator’s discretion, the dread knight may instead summon a
blood horse, drake (
here or
here), or
equar.
Unholy Aura. The dread knight and allies within 30 feet have advantage on saving throws against spells and other magic effects and against features that turn undead. Other creatures of the dread knight’s choice within 30 feet have disadvantage on saving throws against spells and other magic effects.
Undead Nature. A dread knight doesn’t require air, sustenance, or sleep.
Variant: Dread Knight Champion
This template can be placed on any creature that has the Dread Knight template on it and has the a CR of 10 or higher. It regains all of the statistics of the base dread knight except as noted below.
Legion. The dread knight’s Cursed Weapon is magical. A creature killed by the dread knight’s Cursed Weapon rises the next dusk as a zombie. While attuned to the weapon, the dread knight can use a bonus action to command zombies created in this manner.
Reaction: Riposte. When an attacker the dread knight can see would hit it with a melee attack, it adds 5 to its AC against the attack. If the attack misses, the dread knight can make a cursed greatsword attack against the attacker.
Reaction: Deflect. When an attacker the dread knight can see would hit it with a ranged weapon attack or ranged spell attack, it adds 5 to its AC against the attack. If the attack misses, the dread knight can force the attacker to reroll the attack, targeting a creature of its choice within 30 feet.
Reaction: Seal of Silence. When the dread knight succeeds on a saving throw against a spell cast by a creature it can see, the caster of the spell makes a Constitution saving throw (save DC = 8 + the creature’s PB + the creature’s Intelligence modifier),. On a failure, the caster is magically unable to speak or cast spells with a vocal component until the end of the caster’s next turn.
Reaction: Cold Sacrifice (1/Day). When the dread knight would fail a saving throw , it can choose to succeed instead. It then magically teleports to an unoccupied space within 30 feet, leaving behind an inanimate duplicate of herself made of snow.
--
The following uses a hobgoblin warlord as the base creature (hobgoblin warlords are elite monsters, but its hp total puts the base creature at CR 6, so I’m going to treat it as that and not CR 3 doubled):
Dread Hobgoblin Warlord
Medium undead; Challenge 8 (3,900 XP)
AC 18 (full plate)
HP 136 (16d8+64; bloodied 68)
Speed 30 ft.
STR 20 (+5)
DEX 14 (+2)
CON 18 (+4)
INT 18 (+4)
WIS 12 (+1)
CHA 20 (+5)
Proficiency +3;
Maneuver DC 16
Saving Throws Str +8, Dex +5, Con +7, Int +6, Wis +4, Cha +8
Skills Athletics +8, Engineering +6, Intimidation +7 (+1d4), Perception +3
Damage Immunities cold, fire, necrotic, poison
Condition Immunities charmed, fatigue, frightened, poisoned, stunned
Senses truesight 60 ft., passive Perception 13
Languages Common, Goblin
Formation Movement. If the hobgoblin begins its turn within 5 feet of an ally that is not incapacitated , its movement doesn’t provoke opportunity attacks.
Bloodied Rage. While bloodied , the warlord can attack four times with its greatsword or twice with its javelin when it uses Multiattack but no longer gains the benefit of its Military Training trait.
Elite Recovery. At the end of each of its turns, while bloodied, the hobgoblin can end one condition or effect on itself. It can do this even when unconscious or incapacitated.
Military Training. The hobgoblin has advantage on ability checks to make a tactical, strategic, or political decision.
Unholy Aura. The dread knight and allies within 30 feet have advantage on saving throws against spells and other magic effects and against features that turn undead. Other creatures of the dread knight’s choice within 30 feet have disadvantage on saving throws against spells and other magic effects.
Undead Nature. A dread knight doesn’t require air, sustenance, or sleep.
Actions
Multiattack. The hobgoblin attacks twice with its greatsword.
Cursed Greatsword. Melee Weapon Attack: +8 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target.
Hit: 10 (2d6+3) slashing damage plus 7 (2d6) necrotic damage. The target’s hit point maximum is reduced by an amount equal to the necrotic damage taken. This reduction lasts until the target finishes a long rest. The target dies if its hit point maximum is reduced to 0.
Javelin. Melee or Ranged Weapon Attack: +8 to hit, reach 5 ft. or range 30/120 ft., one target.
Hit: 6 (1d6 + 3) piercing damage.
Officer’s Command (1/Day). The hobgoblin inspires creatures of its choice within 30 feet that can hear and understand it and that have a Challenge Rating of 2 or lower. For the next minute, inspired creatures gain an expertise die on attack rolls and saving throws. A creature can benefit from only one Officer’s Command at a time.
Fire Blast (1/Day). A fiery mote streaks from the dread knight’s finger to a point within 120 feet and blossoms into a 20-foot-radius sphere of black fire which spreads around corners. Each creature within the area must make a DC 14 Dexterity saving throw or take 42 (12d6 fire damage), or half-damage on a successful save.
This damage ignores fire resistance and treats immunity to fire damage as fire resistance.
Ice Wall (1/Day). The dread knight magically creates a wall of ice on a solid surface it can see within 60 feet. The wall is flat, 1 foot thick, and can be up to 50 feet long and 15 feet high. The wall lasts for 1 minute or until destroyed. Each 10-foot section has AC 12, 30 hit points, vulnerability to fire damage, and immunity to cold, necrotic, poison, and psychic damage.
If the wall enters a creature’s space when it appears, the creature is pushed to one side of the wall (creature’s choice). The creature then must make a DC 14 Dexterity saving throw taking 35 (10d6) cold damage, or half-damage on a successful save.
Soul Wrack (1/Day). A creature within 60 feet must make a DC 14 Dexterity saving throw, falling prone and taking 35 (10d6) necrotic damage on a failed save. On a successful save,t eh creature doesn’t fall prone and takes half-damage.
Action: Summon Fiendish Steed (1/Day). A fell nightmare or wyvern magically appears in an empty space within 5 feet. The steed follows the dread knight’s commands and acts on its turn. It may attack on the turn on which it is summoned. It remains until the dread knight dismisses it as an action or it is killed.
Bonus Actions
Break Magic. The dread knight ends all spell effects created by a 3rd-level or lower spell slot on a creature, object, or point within 30 feet.
Cursed Weapon Attack. The dread knight makes a cursed greatsword attack.