Converting monsters from Dungeon Magazine

[Shade]

Here's a start on a sample skelter:

Skelter, 5th-Level Human Fighter/1st-Level Demon Bloodline (major)
Medium Undead (Augmented Humanoid)
Hit Dice: 5d12 (32 hp)
Initiative: +1
Speed: 30 ft. (6 squares)
AC: x (+1 Dex, +3 natural, +x armor), touch x, flat-footed x
Base Attack/Grapple: +5/+8
Attack: Touch +6 melee (1d8+4 plus energy drain) or +1 longsword +9 melee (1d8+4/19-20)
Full Attack: Touch +6 melee (1d8+4 plus energy drain) or +1 longsword +9 melee (1d8+4/19-20)
Space/Reach: 5 ft./5 ft.
Special Attacks: Command undead, create spawn, energy drain
Special Qualities: Damage reduction 10/silver or magic, darkvision 60 ft., demon affinity, immunity to cold and mind-affecting attacks, resistance to electricity 5, +2 turn resistance, undead traits
Saves: Fort +4, Ref +2, Will +0
Abilities: Str 17, Dex 13, Con -, Int 14, Wis 8, Cha 18
Skills: Climb +11, Jump +11, Move Silently +3
Feats: Power Attack (B), 2 more, 3 FBFs
Climate/Terrain: Any
Organization: Solitary
Challenge Rating: 8
Treasure: Standard
Alignment: Usually chaotic evil
Advancement: By character class
Level Adjustment: +4

Command Undead (Su): This skelter can rebuke or command undead as a 6th-level cleric.

Create Spawn (Su): Any humanoid or monstrous humanoid slain by a skelter's energy drain attack becomes a zombire in 1d4 rounds. Zombire spawn are under the command of the spectre that created them and remain enslaved until its death. Creatures possessing a bloodline slain by a skelter instead become free-willed skelters.

Demon Affinity (Ex): Because of its bloodline, this skelter gains a +2 bonus on all Bluff, Diplomacy, Gather Information, Intimidate, and Perform checks made to interact with demons.

Energy Drain (Su): Living creatures hit by a skelter's touch attack gain one negative level. For each such negative level bestowed, the skelter gains 5 temporary hit points. The Fortitude save DC to remove the negative level after 24 hours is 17. The save DC is Charisma-based.

 

[freyar]

Is power attack the human bonus feat? For the other feats, let's go with Cleave, Combat Reflexes, Weapon Focus (Longsword), Combat Expertise, and Improved Disarm. Or whatever you think.

Looking at this example, do you think it's a little weak for CR8? A standard character has 3 fewer HD than CR because it has to spend a level on bloodline. Maybe we should do something to boost hp or else reduce to CR +1. What do you think?

 

[Shade]

Power Attack is a bonus feat from the demon bloodline.

Yeah, I agree that it is over-CR'ed. But +1 seems almost too low for energy drain.

The bloodline level really hurts it, since it grants no increase in base attack bonus or base save bonuses, no hit points or skill points, and no class features.

Hmmm...it we change the template to only be applicable to creatures with a "bloodline level", rather than simply a bloodline, that would prevent a 1st-level skelter to gain energy drain at CR 2-3. Then we might be able to get away with +1. It still feels uncomfortable, though. Especially since the less powerful wight template is CR+3 and ghast is CR+2.

What if we instead refigured HD based on the total of its class levels and bloodline levels? In this case, it would by a 6 HD creature at CR 8. Of course, this would only increase its HP by 6.5 and wouldn't affect BAB, etc.

What if we gave it a +2 to Str and Dex as well, like many of the undead templates? This would increase its attack modifiers by 1 to make up for the lost level.

 

[freyar]

Power Attack is a bonus feat from the demon bloodline.

Shouldn't there be an additional feat from the human bonus, then, or does the bloodline remove that?

Yeah, I agree that it is over-CR'ed. But +1 seems almost too low for energy drain.

The bloodline level really hurts it, since it grants no increase in base attack bonus or base save bonuses, no hit points or skill points, and no class features.

Hmmm...it we change the template to only be applicable to creatures with a "bloodline level", rather than simply a bloodline, that would prevent a 1st-level skelter to gain energy drain at CR 2-3. Then we might be able to get away with +1. It still feels uncomfortable, though. Especially since the less powerful wight template is CR+3 and ghast is CR+2.

What if we instead refigured HD based on the total of its class levels and bloodline levels? In this case, it would by a 6 HD creature at CR 8. Of course, this would only increase its HP by 6.5 and wouldn't affect BAB, etc.

What if we gave it a +2 to Str and Dex as well, like many of the undead templates? This would increase its attack modifiers by 1 to make up for the lost level.

How about if we give it +2 Str and Dex and instead of adding HD give it unholy grace or whatever adds the Cha modifier to the hp at each HD?

 

[Shade]

Shouldn't there be an additional feat from the human bonus, then, or does the bloodline remove that?

Good catch! Also, the extra skill point/level (Swim?)

How about if we give it +2 Str and Dex and instead of adding HD give it unholy grace or whatever adds the Cha modifier to the hp at each HD?

Sounds good.

 

[freyar]

Good, so is this one basically done then?

 

[Steve Jung]

Are the skelters and zombires from Birthright considered the same creatures as the ones from the 1st edition module L1: The Secret of Bone Hill?

 

[Shade]

Are the skelters and zombires from Birthright considered the same creatures as the ones from the 1st edition module L1: The Secret of Bone Hill?

Interesting...I'd forgotten that they had appeard in L1.

Looking now...

Every creature in or under these ruins hates and fears living beings, and thus they will jealously guard their treasure troves and seek at every opportunity to destroy any intruders. The wraith was once a mighty, evil warlord who now acts in concert with the magic-user to further its own hate-filled purposes. Likewise, the skelter and zombire who roam this site (detailed below) are unique beings, once utterly evil henchman of the wraith in life but then physically destroyed and cursed with undead forms, sustained by the powerful evil of this ancient and diabolical spot.

Zombire: (AC: 5, MV 12", HD 3 + 3, hp 18,#AT 1, D 2-12). The zombire is not slow like a zombie but might pretend to be so in order to deceive the party while approaching. A zombire is immune to hold, charm, sleep, and cold based spells, in addition to poison. It can be turned as per wraiths. In addition, the zombire, the animated corpse of a low-level magic-user, can cast the following spells:

First level: magic missile, protection from good.

It carries 20 pp and a potion of fire resistance.

Skelter: (AC: 6, MV 12", HD 2 + 2, hp 16, #AT 1, D 1-10). The skelter, like the zombire, is the animated remains of a once very evil low-level magic-user. It is immune to the same attack forms as listed for the zombire and can cast the following first level spells: shield, sleep. It can be turned as per wights and has 42 gp.

It appears that the author of the Dungeon Adventure used them for inspiration, and amped them up considerably.

 

[Steve Jung]

That's what I thought, based on the Dungeon magazine description. Just one of those things.

 

[Shade]

Updated.

I changed the longsword to ranseur so it better fit with the disarm feat chain freyar suggested.

All done?