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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Cleon" data-source="post: 6666624" data-attributes="member: 57383">Hmm, I don't much care for a Colossal 36 HD version. The Yellow Belly isn't that big compared to a whale. It may be 100 feet long but its "extremely long and tapering" tail presumably takes up a lot of that so it oughtn't to be as massive as the largest sperm whales which have comparatively much bulkier bodies.I prefer Gargantuan, like my original Working Draft.Modifying that to use the Cachalot as the "base whale" produces:Yellow BellyGargantuan Animal (Aquatic)Hit Dice: 12d8+84 (138 hp)Initiative: +1Speed: Swim 40 ft.Armor Class: 16 (-4 size, +1 Dex, +9 natural), touch 7, flat-footed 16Base Attack/Grapple: +9/+33Attack: Bite +17 melee (4d6+18 [?])Full Attack: Bite +17 melee (4d6+18 [?])Space/Reach: 20 ft./15 ft.Special Attacks: Improved grab, swallow whole, vortex mawSpecial Qualities: Amphibious?, blindsight 120 ft. [?], low-light visionSaves: Fort +15, Ref +9, Will +6Abilities: Str 35, Dex 13, Con 24, Int 2, Wis 14, Cha 6Skills: Listen +15*, Spot +14*, Swim +20Feats: 5 [Alertness, Diehard, Endurance, Improved Natural Attack (bite), Toughness] Environment: Warm aquaticOrganization: SolitaryChallenge Rating: ??Treasure: NoneAlignment: Always neutralAdvancement: 13–18 HD (Gargantuan); 19–36 HD (Colossal)Level Adjustment: —Description.Background.A yellow belly is is about ?? feet long.CombatTactics.Improved Grab (Ex): To use this ability, a yellow belly must hit with its bite attack. It can then attempt to start a grapple as a free action without provoking an attack of opportunity. If it wins the grapple check, it establishes a hold and can immediately attempt to swallow the foe.Swallow Whole (Ex): A yellow belly can try to swallow a grabbed opponent of a smaller size than itself by making a successful grapple check. The swallowed creature takes [XdY+12 or XdY+18?] points of crushing damage plus Z points of acid damage per round from the yellow belly’s gizzard. A swallowed creature can cut its way out by using a light slashing or piercing weapon to deal 25 [?] points of damage to the gizzard (AC 14). Once the creature exits, muscular action closes the hole; another swallowed opponent must cut its own way out.A Gargantuan yellow belly’s interior can hold 2 Huge, 8 Large, 32 Medium, 128 Small, or 512 Tiny or smaller opponents. Vortex Maw (Ex): A yellow belly can open its mouth so quickly that it creates a powerful suction. All creatures within a ??-foot cone must make Strength checks opposed by the yellow belly's Strength check (+24 for a standard yellow belly), with the same modifiers as a bull rush. If the yellow belly beats a creature's Strength check result, it pulls the victim 5 feet closer to its jaws. For each 5 points by which its check result is greater than a victim's check result, the yellow belly pulls the victim an additional 5 feet closer. The victim provokes attacks of opportunity if it is moved.Skills: A yellow belly has a +8 racial bonus on any Swim check to  perform a special  action or avoid a hazard. It can always choose to  take 10 on a Swim  check, even if distracted or endangered. It can use  the run action while swimming, provided it swims in a straight line.*A yellow belly has a +4 racial bonus on Spot and Listen checks. These bonuses are lost if its blindsight is negated.I like that a lot better. I'm thinking we ought to increase the bite damage to, say, 6d6+18 so the average damage is close to a Colossal Cachalot 6d6+16 [that doesn't include any ability increases for the Cachalot's advanced HD, which could easily increase the Strength bonus by another 2].The only problem that leaves is the reference to "maximum hit dice", so how about we give the Yellow Belly the maximum HD for a Cachalot Whale's Gargantuan advancement range of 13-18, i.e. 18 HD. I think that works better than using the Colossal HD maximum:Yellow BellyGargantuan Animal (Aquatic)Hit Dice: 18d8+126 (207 hp)Initiative: +1Speed: Swim 40 ft.Armor Class: 16 (-4 size, +1 Dex, +9 natural), touch 7, flat-footed 16Base Attack/Grapple: +13/+37Attack: Bite +21 melee (6d6+18 [?])Full Attack: Bite +21 melee (6d6+18 [?])Space/Reach: 20 ft./15 ft.Special Attacks: Improved grab, swallow whole, vortex mawSpecial Qualities: Amphibious?, blindsight 120 ft. [?], low-light visionSaves: Fort +18, Ref +12, Will +7Abilities: Str 35, Dex 13, Con 24, Int 2, Wis 14, Cha 6Skills: Listen +18*, Spot +17*, Swim +20Feats: 7 [Alertness, Diehard, Endurance, Improved Natural Attack (bite), Toughness] Environment: Warm aquaticOrganization: SolitaryChallenge Rating: ??Treasure: NoneAlignment: Always neutralAdvancement: 19–36 HD (Colossal)Level Adjustment: —</blockquote>

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