Reply to thread

Message: <blockquote data-quote="Faolyn" data-source="post: 9248134" data-attributes="member: 6915329">The next collection of monsters is from a Dragon’s Bestiary subtitled “spawn of the sewers,” and indeed, every creature within is designed to lurk beneath a city’s streets. Despite the claim made in an Order of the Stick comic, that sewers are anachronistic, they’ve actually been around a very long time. Babylonians had brick-lined sewers. The Romans had a goddess who ruled over Rome’s sewer system. Her name was Cloacina, which to me sounds like something a GM would come up with if they suddenly had to come up with a name and didn't have a list handy.The first monster is called the necromantic sludge, a nasty fellow which creates its own zombies on which to ride around. This effectively makes it a two-part monster. D&D has Mythic monsters, but I don’t think that Level Up has something similar (yet), although I could have missed something. Anyway, this thing isn’t mythic-level, really.I’ve very unsure about the CR for this creature. Let me know if you think I’m off with it.[ATTACH=full]344154[/ATTACH]Necromantic SludgeDragon’s Bestiary, Dragon Magazine 238Creature by John Baichtal; art by Tom BaxaThe path to lichdom is a dangerous one, and many spellcasters fail to achieve it. Some of those casters who fail find that their bodies liquify into the dark red ooze known as the necromantic sludge. Although they lose most of their mind in the transformation, necromantic sludges typically feel compelled to remain near the places where they sought immortality, in the dungeons and sewers below their former homes.Necromantic sludges feel an instinctual desire to collect magical tomes and books, even though they have no ability to actually use them. Such items are often completely degraded due to the foul conditions in which the sludge lives, but occasionally something of use can be found in their “hoard.”Dangerous Threats. Unlike most oozes, their touch is harmless to metal, wood, leather, or, technically, flesh. Like the liches they would have become, they feed on life force; their touch drains vitality but it doesn’t disintegrate. Instead, those they feed on become little more than withered husks as the life is drained out of them. Worse yet, they can impart some of that stolen life into corpses, causing them to rise as vile, disease-bearing zombies.Zombie-Riders. Necromantic liches have an unusual ability. When they find a corpse—usually one they’ve drained—they enter the body through its orifices and puppeteering it. Their new body turns a disturbing bruise-gray in color and can last for several months until it is finally too rotten to remain intact. Although this body resembles a zombie, it isn’t, causing many a cleric to waste resources on destroying them.Semi-Eusocial. Necromantic oozes reproduce by budding when they’ve consumed enough life force, but each new bud is literally an offshoot of the original ooze—they all share a mind. They recognize their sibling-offspring as themselves and work with each other, for they are all the same thing. Although their intelligence doesn’t increase, their abstract thinking skills do, and they begin to lay traps, use tactics, and coordinate with one another when they attack—an impressive feat, since even in groups they lack language.Climate/Terrain: any climate; dungeon, laboratory, ruin, sewerLegends and LoreWith an Arcana check, the characters can learn the following:DC 10. Necromantic sludges are oozes that can “ride” corpses, effectively giving themselves a zombie form.DC 15. Magic tends to literally bounce off a necromantic sludge, endangering the original caster.DC 20. These oozes are quite intelligent and social (for oozes) and can engage in rudimentary tactics.Necromantic Sludge EncountersCR 3-4 Necromantic sludgeCR 5-10 2-3 necromantic sludges and 1d4 zombiesTreasure: a tome with information leading to the discovery of a rare 2nd-level spell, spell scroll of false lifeCR 11-16 2-3 necromantic sludges and zombie hordeTreasure: spell scrolls of ray of enfeeblement and spare the dyingSigns1-2. A greater than usual number of zombies in the area.3. Black, slimy handprints on the wall.4. A withered corpse that’s covered in smears of black gooNecromantic SludgeMedium ooze; Challenge 3 (700 XP)AC 9HP 30 (4d8+12; bloodied 15)Speed 20 ft.STR 14 (+2) DEX 9 (-1) CON 16 (+3)INT 5 (-3) WIS 9 (-1) CHA 5 (-3)Proficiency +2; Maneuver DC 10Skills Perception +1Damage Resistances damage from nonmagical weaponsDamage Immunities necroticCondition Immunities blinded, charmed, deafened, fatigue, frightened, proneSenses blindsight 120 ft. (blind beyond this radius), passive Perception 9Languages —Amorphous (As Ooze Only). The sludge can pass through an opening as narrow as 1 inch wide without squeezing.Animate. The sludge engulfs the body creature it has killed with its pseudopod attack within the last 10 minutes and animates it. While animated in this manner, the sludge is indistinguishable from a zombie, but is not undead. The sludge gains 30 temporary hit points and loses the Amorphous trait. When it runs out of temporary hit points, the zombie body is destroyed and the sludge resumes its true form.Magic Resistance. The sludge has advantage on saving throws against spells and other magical effects.Necrotic Absorption. If the sludge it hit by an attack that deals necrotic damage, it takes no damage and instead regains that number of hit points.Spider Climb. The sludge can use its climb speed even on difficult surfaces and upside down on ceilings.ActionsMultiattack. When attached to a zombie, it makes two Slam attacks.Pseudopod (As Ooze Only). Melee Weapon Attack: +4 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 9 (2d6+2) bludgeoning damage plus 7 (2d8) necrotic damage and must make a DC 13 Constitution saving throw or be poisoned until the end of its next turn. Additionally, Its hit point maximum is reduced by an amount equal to the necrotic damage taken, and the sludge regains that number of hit points.Slam (As Zombie Only). Melee Weapon Attack: +4 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 6 (2d8+2) bludgeoning damage plus 7 (2d7) necrotic damage. Its hit point maximum is reduced by an amount equal to the necrotic damage taken, and the sludge regains that number of hit points.Bonus ActionsArise! (1/day). The sludge touches the body of a corpse and causes it to rise as a zombie with the Vile Discharge trait. The zombie isn’t under the sludge’s control, but will not attack the sludge.ReactionsTurn Spell. If the sludge is targeted by a spell that targets only it, the spell instead targets the caster, using its original slot level, spell save DC, spell attack modifier, and spellcasting ability.Attach. If the sludge is in its true form and ends its turn within 5 feet of a corpse, it uses Animate. It regains all lost hit points and gains 30 temporary hit points.CombatNecromantic sludges prefer to attack while animating a zombie, and does so recklessly, with little regard for its safety. It attacks creatures who venture into range and persues the closest creature. It retreats only if exposed to sunlight or it is seriously injured and there are no intact bodies around for it to animate.Variant: Gestalt Necromantic SludgeSometimes, multiple necromantic sludges merge back together, forming a truly large sludge. The many different minds of the sludges also merge, creating a higher, and truly disturbing, form of intellect.The gestalt necromantic sludge is CR 6 (2,300 XP). It is Large and has 102 (12d10+36; bloodied 51) hit points. Its Intelligence becomes 12 (+1). Its Arise! Bonus action becomes usable once per rest. It gains the following new trait:Deathly Aura. A creature that starts its turn within 5 feet of the sludge must make a DC 14 Constitution saving throw. On a failure, it takes 5 (1d10) necrotic damage. On a success, it is immune to this sludge’s Deathly Aura for 24 hours.It also gains the following additional actions:Multiattack. The sludge makes three pseudopod attacks.Command. The sludge issues a mental command to any zombies it has created that are within 60 feet. It must issue the same command to all zombies.</blockquote>

Verification