Converting Planescape monsters

[Cleon]

That all works for me, but I don't have a good reference for the weight.

I'd use a fat-bodied lizard like a Blue-Tongued Skink (Tiliguq scincoides). An average blue-tongued is roughly 18 inches long (nose-to-tail) and weighs a pound or so.

The Demarax if 6 feet long. If that's nose-to-tail it'll weigh roughly 90 pounds. However, default 3E monster length are body lengths, so we'd need to add a tail of, say, 4 feet long, which would make it weigh about ... 300 pounds if it had the same shape and density as the Skink.

However, Demaraxs would have dense flesh due to their crystal additions. That should add to the weight. Let's say another 33%:

I'd move the "Its movements are always slow and deliberate." bit to the general introduction section of the flavour, I don't think it belongs in the dimensions & age bit.

Putting that together would make the flavour:

Demaraxas are reptilian creatures that feed upon magical or psionic crystals, such as ioun stones, dorjes, and gems of seeing. They travel alone or in small groups, roaming the planes in an endless search for magical crystals. Its movements are always slow and deliberate.

Demaraxas have perfect memories and are unable to lie, making them excellent sources of information if a traveler can hold one's attention long enough. A demarax's gem-covered hide is worth 500 to 1,000 gp.

Legends claim that demaraxes were created by lawful deities to help control the chaos spread by magical crystals throughout the planes. The fact that demaraxes are always lawful and are usually found on lawfully-aligned planes seems to support these tales.

A typical demarax is 6 feet long (not including a 4 foot tail) and weighs about 450 pounds. The magical energies it consumes can prolong a demarax's lifespan to over 1,000 years. As demerax's age they accumulate crystals in their skin, so an ancient demarax will be heavier than a youngster of the same size.

Demaraxes speak Common in a crude manner. Their typical dialogue goes something along these lines: "S-s-seen crys-s-stals-s? Need crys-stals. Hun-gry. Hun-gry now."

EDIT: Come to think of it, the "A demarax's gem-covered hide is worth 500 to 1,000 gp." clashes with my earlier proposal for the treasure entry. I'll have to think about that.

P.S.: Don't forget the Magic Missiles.

 

[Cleon]

I'd go "Double goods (gems only, see text)" with a mention in flavour about their gem-studded skin.

EDIT: Come to think of it, the "A demarax's gem-covered hide is worth 500 to 1,000 gp." clashes with my earlier proposal for the treasure entry. I'll have to think about that.

How about just making it 100 gp per Hit Dice?

Treasure: Gems (see text)

Demaraxas are reptilian creatures that feed upon magical or psionic crystals, such as ioun stones, dorjes, and gems of seeing. They travel alone or in small groups, roaming the planes in an endless search for magical crystals. Its movements are always slow and deliberate. The magical energies it consumes can prolong a demarax's lifespan to over 1,000 years.

Demeraxes grow crystals in their hide as a side effect of their diet, their skins become thicker and more crystal-studded as they age. A few of these crystals are valuable gemstones, making a demarax's hide worth 500 to 1,500 gp (typically 100 gp per Hit Dice).

Demaraxas have perfect memories and are unable to lie, making them excellent sources of information if a traveler can hold one's attention long enough.

Legends claim that demaraxes were created by lawful deities to help control the chaos spread by magical crystals throughout the planes. The fact that demaraxes are always lawful and are usually found on lawfully-aligned planes seems to support these tales.

A typical demarax is 6 feet long (not including a 4 foot tail) and weighs about 450 pounds. An ancient demarax will be heavier than a youngster of the same size, because it has a stonier hide.

Demaraxes speak Common in a crude manner. Their typical dialogue goes something along these lines: "S-s-seen crys-s-stals-s? Need crys-stals. Hun-gry. Hun-gry now."

 

[Shade]

Updated.

Finished?

 

[Cleon]

Updated.

Finished?

I was suggesting the racial bonus to Search only applies to gems. Also, What about my proposed racial bonus to Spot and Survival checks to find gems?

Quite. Even with SF its Search bonus is pretty pathetic. I'd much rather give it a racial bonus to Search, Spot and Survival checks to find gems (or an enhancement bonus, since it's probably derived from its supernatural Gemsense?).

Then swap SF for Endurance.

Guess it ought to have Track (bonus) as well.

So, something like this:

Feats: Alertness, Endurance, Track (B)
Skills: Listen +3, Search +3*, Spot +6*, Survival +1* (+3* following tracks)

Skills: *A demarax has a +8 racial bonus on Search, Survival and Spot checks to locate gems and crystals. A demerax can track magical gems and crystals using its Gemsense and scent abilities, it has a +8 racial bonus on its Survival checks to track magical gems.

 

[Shade]

That'll work. Updated.

 

[freyar]

Fine with me.

 

[Cleon]

The demarax looks finished as soon as it goes to an ophthalmogist to have its "three jellow eyes" fixed.

 

[Shade]

The demarax looks finished as soon as it goes to an ophthalmogist to have its "three jellow eyes" fixed.

There's always room for jellow.

Fixed.

 

[Shade]

Quill
Climate/Terrain: Any brush or scrub
Frequency: Uncommon
Organization: Family
Activity Cycle: Night
Diet: Omnivore
Intelligence: Animal (1)
Treasure: None
Alignment: Neutral
No. Appearing: 1-6
Armor Class: 5
Movement: 6
Hit Dice: 3
THAC0: 17
No. of Attacks: 1 bite, 1 tail
Damage/Attack: 1d3/1d6+1
Special Attacks: Throw quills
Special Defenses: Quills
Magic Resistance: None
Size: M (4’ long)
Morale: Unreliable (2-4)
XP Value: 270

Quills are natural animals native to some of the most inhospitable reaches of the Great Wheel. They’re common enough in grassland or scrub all over the Outlands, but they’re also found in places where it doesn’t seem possible for a herbivore to exist. A body can run across a quill in the howling tunnels of Pandemonium, the iron battle-plains of Acheron, the fiery waste of Avernus, or the war-torn Plain of Infinite Portals.

A sharp basher can make a meal of a quill when his rations’re running low and there’s nothing else to eat. He’s just got to be a little careful about catching his dinner.

Quills look like large porcupines, but their spiny hide alternates with bands of tough, thick, leathery skin like an armadillo’s. A quill’s spines are much larger and more dexterous than a porcupine’s – each clump is rooted in a small but powerful muscle that can twitch and agitate the spines with surprising strength and speed. The creature’s tail is long and strong, with a dense clump of spines at the end. The quill’s been known to kill a human in mail armor with a single blow of its tail.

Quills are voracious foragers and grazers who’ll chew their way through anything given enough time. They’ll eat razorvine, bloodthorn, or even chew on ironmaw roots, let alone less formidable vegetation such as grass or brush. Quills aren’t real tasty, but they’re better than nothing, and most fiends’ll try to kill and eat one if they’re hungry. ’Course, minor fiends like spinagons or imps are better off looking for an easier meal.

Combat: Quills don’t normally initiate combat. When they encounter anything that looks human or demihuman, they’re inclined to keep a moderate distance and go about their business. If some addle-cove persists in trying to get too close, the quill’s first lines of defense are its throwing spines. Each round, the quill can fire 1 to 4 spines at any target within 20 feet, with a THACO of 20 (they’re not terribly accurate with fired spines.) The spines each inflict 1 to 3 points of damage per hit, and stick in the victim. (See below.)

If that doesn’t deter an aggressor, the quill defends itself with its bite and its tail lash. The bite’s not much to worry about, but the tail’s capable of killing a full-grown human. A blow from the tail inflicts 1d6+1 points of damage, and leaves 0 to 3 (1d4- 1) spines stuck in the victim. The quill can’t fire spines and make its melee attacks in the same round.

Attacking the quill bare-handed or with natural weaponry’s a bad idea. Each time the attacker scores a hit, the quill counterattacks with 1d4+1 spines, which each inflict 1 to 3 points of damage per hit. Even striking the creature with a hand-held melee weapon creates a counterattack of 0 to 3 spines (1d4-1). These incidental attacks strike with a THAC0 of 20, and any spines that hit stick in their target. The quill can be safely attacked with missiles or thrown weapons.

Fighting a quill’s likely to mean that the attacker has a few spines stuck in him by the end of the combat. Quill spines are wickedly barbed. Removing a spine causes 1 goint of damage unless the character pulling the spine out passes an unmodified healing proficiency check or a Dexterity check at a -4 penalty. Leaving the spine in the wound prevents the wound from healing and activates a cumulative 10% chance per day that the wound festers. Festering wounds cause 1 point of damage per day per wound unless the victim survives a saving throw versus poison, and they continue to do so until the victim succeeds with three consecutive saves or is treated with cure disease.

Habitat/Society: Quills usually gather in small family groups comprising a mated pair and several offspring of various ages. (Very young quills have just 1 Hit Die, and their spines are too soft to do any real damage, although they still hurt.) Quills aren’t particularly aggressive or territorial, and quickly withdraw from a confrontation with a predator.

Quill spines can be modified for use as blowgun darts or other light weapons. With a successful check of the armorer proficiency, a basher could fix spines to his armor anywhere he’s wearing a level plate, such as his shoulders, knees, or elbows. The DM can decide how effective a deterrent this might be – generally, the spines look dangerous but offer no measurable combat effect.

Ecology: Quills’re very useful because they take otherwise indigestible plant life and turn it into marginally digestible meat. Quill meat may not taste good, but it’ll sustain life, and in some quarters of the Lower Planes, it’s actually considered a delicacy. Quills are naturally reclusive and usually forage only by night, so they can be harder to find than a cutter’d think.

Quills typically nest in labyrinthine earth burrows not much bigger than 1½ to 2½ feet in diameter. If they’re anywhere near their burrow when danger threatens, they’re likely to go to ground and wait it out. Even a determined fiend’ll think twice about trying to pull a quill out of its burrow.

Originally appeared in Planescape Monstrous Compendium Appendix II (1995).

 

[freyar]

Animal (extraplanar) work for everyone else?

It's either a large Medium or a small Large, I guess, depending on how we interpret that 4 ft length. I'm inclined to go with Medium based on their burrow size, though.