Converting Planescape monsters

[Cleon]

Yeah, these sound like they could be templates, but I think they're really just normal monsters with a single unique monster.

I see you have the possibility of a decaton modronoid in the org line. I don't recall seeing stats for those. Did I just miss them, or are they somewhere else?

Valran Stonefist is a Decaton Modronoid.

He/it's unique in the adventure, but I felt I might as well include the possibility of a group of normal monster modronoids including one.

Also, instead of a unique monster we were considering making the Decaton version a sample creature of a Hierarch Modronoid template.

Would you rather change the Organization line to include a Hierarch Modronoid instead, or cut out the Decaton Modronoid and have it just base modronoids with some humanoid support?

 

[Erdric Dragin]

It's kind of strange because Modronoids are given their own stats, but the descriptions for how they are created sound more like a template (modron) being added to a humanoid. For example, the npc ally named Xaldra ends up appearing as a Modronoid (pg 56). The PCs clearly recognize it as Xaldra covered in metal plates with bladed arms. When it dies, the metal parts fade away (Modrons vanish back to Mechanus when killed) and Xaldra's mutilated body is all that remains.

The Modronoid stats on pg 59 are identical to the Modronoid Xaldra. So it seems like the humanoid parts are just visually distinct, but the stats are all the same. I suppose this would still be a living construct?

Like you pointed out, the Valran Stonefist Modronoid on pg 109 keeps his wizard spell casting, but has the decaton spell-like abilities. Would the Hierarch Modrons use a Modronoid/humanoid template to gain any existing spellcasting abilities, lose the modron spellcasting, and keep the modron spell-like abilities?

This sounds right, better to be a template I think. Be pretty cool also. The Formians did something similar and they had a template for this in one of the Dungeon Magazines I believe.

 

[Cleon]

This sounds right, better to be a template I think. Be pretty cool also. The Formians did something similar and they had a template for this in one of the Dungeon Magazines I believe.

That rings a bell. Was it called a Half-Formian or something like that?

Just let me check…

…nope, the template was called Hiveblood Creature.

Not seeing much there that would apply to the "Decadroid" though.

If we do do it as a template, I'd think it'd be applied to a Hierarch Modron and give it some of the abilities of the brain donor rather than add modron abilities to a base creature.

 

[freyar]

Yeah, from the adventure text, it seems pretty clear to me that Valran is unique, and we shouldn't think a decaton modronoid is a new type of modronoid. I think we should go for the basic modronoid plus the unique Valran version.

 

[Cleon]

Yeah, from the adventure text, it seems pretty clear to me that Valran is unique, and we shouldn't think a decaton modronoid is a new type of modronoid. I think we should go for the basic modronoid plus the unique Valran version.

Well for the time being we should focus on the base Modronoid.

So we'd better start talking stats.

Is there a 3E monster we can use as a model? They're sort-of like Half-Golems, but that's a Template not a monster.

Let's see…

Medium Construct seems the obvious answer for Size & Type.

Directly translating some of the original stats give us some numbers.

Armor Class 18, probably all from natural armor. Most likely +8 like full plate armor.

Speed 20 feet.

The original creature's Strength was possibly 18 as it did 1d6+2 with its arm blades, and a +2 damage matches Str 18 in AD&D.

Speaking of its arm blades, I'm thinking they might just have the stats of a shortsword (including critical threat range). So its Attacks maybe do 1d6+4/19-20 damage?

Presumably it has mental abilities somewhere around 10 as the original had Intelligence Average. Its Wisdom and Charisma might be lower than that going by the descriptions.

Dexterity undetermined.

Not sure whether to make it a living construct with a Constitution score or a regular Construct with Con — or not. I can see arguments for both.

Any thoughts?

 

[freyar]

Can we compare the stats to the regular modron stats? Then we can reverse engineer some from the 3e modrons.

 

[Cleon]

Can we compare the stats to the regular modron stats? Then we can reverse engineer some from the 3e modrons.

Do you not have Dragon #354 with the 3.5 stats or the Manual of Planes Web Enhancement with the 3.0 stats?

The latter left WotC.com years ago but is still available from other archives like TSRArchive (see Modrons).

Unfortunately neither of them is Open Game Content so we can only use them for inspiration.

 

[freyar]

Yeah, it's weird, I thought I had one of those somewhere, but no.

But it would also be important to compare the 2e modronoids to the 2e modrons. Then we can adjust the 3e modrons. That's really what I meant.

 

[Cleon]

Yeah, it's weird, I thought I had one of those somewhere, but no.

But it would also be important to compare the 2e modronoids to the 2e modrons. Then we can adjust the 3e modrons. That's really what I meant.

Oh right. Apart from a couple of monster entries in adventures and the Rogue Modron PC class, which does not match any base Modron, the only Monstrous Compendium version of the Modron is the one from the Planescape Campaign Setting (1994) box set.

Apart from the formatting and extra Second Edition mechanics, the MC version is almost the same as the original 1E Modrons from the Monster Manual II.

The 3E incarnations are pretty close to the AD&D ones.

The Modronoid doesn't really resemble any of them. The Base Modrons have HD and number of attacks equal to their rank, from a Monodrone with 1 HD and 1 attack, up to a Pentadrone with 5 HD and 5 attacks, so the Modronoid's 6 HD are more than any Base Modron while being less than any Hierarch Modron which start at 10 HD.

Their Armor Class of 2 is better than any Base Modron too. The AD&D Base Modrons have AC equal to 8 minus their rank (i.e. a Monodrone is AC 7, a Pentadrone is AC 3) and the 1-step improvement continues with the non-unique Hierarchs, so a Modronoid is as tough to hit as a Decaton.

 

[freyar]

How about we start from the pentadrone and modify from there, since the modronoid is a bit better?