Deepwater Octopus (alternative version)
Deepwater Octopus
Medium Magical Beast (Aquatic)
Hit Dice: 3d10-3 (13 hp)
Initiative: +2
Speed: 10 ft. (2 squares), swim 30 ft.
Armour Class: 14 (+2 Dex, +2 natural), touch 12, flat-footed 12
Base Attack/Grapple: +3/+3 [+1 per grappling tentacle]
Attack: Tentacle +4 melee (1d2) or shortspear +4 melee (1d6)
Full Attack: Primary tentacle +4 melee (1d2) and 5 tentacles +2 melee (1d2) and bite +2 melee (1d4); or shortspear +4 melee (1d6) and 2 shortspears +2 melee (1d6) and bite +2 melee (1d4)
Space/Reach: 5 ft./5 ft. (10 ft. with tentacle or shortspear)
Special Attacks: All-around tentacles, constrict, expert grappler, gnawing beak, improved grab
Special Qualities: Bioluminescence, blindsense 20 ft., DR 5/slashing or piercing, ink cloud, jet, rubbery body, superior low-light vision
Saves: Fort +2, Ref +5, Will +2
Abilities: Str 10, Dex 15, Con 9, Int 9, Wis 12, Cha 10
Skills: Escape Artist +12, Hide +8, Listen +5, Move Silently +4* [+8 in water], Spot +7, Swim +10
Feats: Alertness, Blind-Fight (B), Multiattack (B), Stealthy
Environment: Cold aquatic
Organization: Solitary, cluster (2-12) or colony (10-40)
Challenge Rating: 2
Treasure: Standard goods (pearls, jewellery & artworks?)
Alignment: Usually neutral good
Advancement: 4–6 HD (Medium); 7-9 HD (Large) or by character class
Level Adjustment: +3?
A floating arrangement of greenish lights resolves into an octopus, with a large body and slim, dainty tentacles longer than a man is tall. It has the pallid skin and huge eyes of a creature that sees very little light.
Deepwater octopuses are mysterious cephalopods that farm shellfish, worms[FONT="] and shrimp [/FONT]around hydrothermal vents in the abyssal depths of the ocean. Although they have learned to be capable fighters to deal with marine predators they have little experience with hostile sapients and are peaceful, curious and benevolent creatures. Most reside in a state of semi-innocence and possess no weapons. The few colonies that have been recently attacked by hostile wildlife have crafted bone spears to defend themselves with.
These cephalopods have learned how to use tools and practice animal husbandry. They are fine sculptors but have no concept of money, spellcasting or religion. Deepwater octopus society is remarkably egalitarian, with all members having (nearly) equal standing and working together for the common good. Particularly powerful octopuses are valued for their greater ability to help the colony, but do not have any higher authority.
Deepwater octopuses can move about dry land by slowly dragging themselves along with their tentacles. They can not breathe air like the Kraken, so must soon return to water or drown.
An average deepwater octopus has a 15 foot armspan and weighs around 65 pounds.
These creatures speak a language based on patterns of bioluminescence and beak-clicks, making it very difficult for other races to communicate with them.
Combat
A deepwater octopus can strike with up to six of its eight tentacles simultaneously when making a full attack, dividing its attacks among as many opponents as it likes without penalty. A deepwater octopus can bring all six of its tentacle attacks to bear against an opponent of its own size or more, it can attack a creature 1 size smaller with 4 tentacles, and opponents 2 or more sizes smaller with 2 tentacles.
An opponent can attack a deepwater octopus’s tentacles with a sunder attempt as if they were weapons. A deepwater octopus’s tentacles have 4 hit points each. If a deepwater octopus is currently grappling a target with the tentacle that is being attacked, it usually uses another limb to make its attack of opportunity against the opponent making the sunder attempt. Severing one of a deepwater octopus’s tentacles deals 2 points of damage to the creature. A deepwater octopus usually withdraws from combat if it loses four tentacles. The creature regrows severed limbs in 1d10+10 days.
All-Around Tentacles (Ex): A deepwater octopus can attack and defend in all directions without penalty and can not be flanked.
Bioluminescence (Ex): A deepwater octopus can produce an eerie blue light from specialized spots on its skin. It has complete conscious control of the pattern and brightness of the light-spots and can create anything between a glimmer fainter than a candle to a glow equal to a lamp, clearly illuminates a 15-foot radius and giving shadowy illumination out to a 30-foot radius. It can opt to completely extinguish its organic lights if it wants to use the concealment of darkness.
Blindsense (Ex): A deepwater octopus can locate creatures within a 20-foot radius by feeling water-movements with its sensitive tentacles. This ability works only when the octopus is underwater.
Constrict (Ex): Every round a deepwater octopus maintains a grapple it can automatically deal 1d4 points of constriction damage, the damage is increased by 1 for each additional tentacle the octopus constricts the opponent with.
A grappled opponent can use a standard grapple action to attempt to break the constriction, for every point they beat the octopus's grapple check they break the hold of one tentacle. They need to beat the deepwater octopus's grapple check by a number greater than the number of tentacles it is holding them with to entirely break free of the grapple.
Example: a deepwater octopus is holding a triton adventuress with five tentacles, an average deepwater octopus constricting with 5 tentacles inflicts 1d4+4 damage. The triton tries to break the constriction. The octopus rolls 13 on its grapple check, the triton a 16. Since the triton rolled 3 higher, she breaks the hold of 3 tentacles and only takes 1d4+1 constriction damage from the remaining two tentacles. She'd have needed to roll 5 or more higher than the octopus's grapple check to break free.
Expert Grappler (Ex): If a deepwater octopus chooses to grapple with its tentacles and remain ungrappled itself, it takes a –10 penalty on its grapple checks instead of the normal –20 penalty.
Gnawing Beak (Ex): If a deepwater octopus seeks to bite an opponent it is grappling, the attack is resolved as a primary attack (bite +4 melee for 1d4 damage).
Improved Grab (Ex): To use this ability, a deepwater octopus must hit an opponent of any size with a tentacle 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 constrict.
If the octopus hits an opponent with multiple tentacles as part of a full attack it only rolls one grapple check to establish a hold, but it gets a bonus to the grapple check equal to the number of tentacles it hits with.
Ink Cloud (Ex): A deepwater octopus can emit a cloud of glowing ink in a 10 foot radius sphere once per minute as a free action. The cloud provides total concealment, which the octopus normally uses to escape a losing fight. Any creature in the area of effect is stained with blue luminescence for 4d4 rounds, with the same effects as a faerie fire spell. If they succeed at a DC11 Reflex save they are only stained for 1d3 rounds.
The save DC is Charisma-based.
Rubbery Body (Ex): A deepwater octopus's boneless and elastic body gives it damage resistance 5 against bludgeoning damage, which includes most crushing and constriction attacks, and also allows it to squeeze through narrow confines as it if were two size category smaller than it actually is.
Superior Low-Light Vision (Ex): A deepwater octopus large eyes see five times as far as a human in shadowy conditions.
Skills
A deepwater octopus also can squeeze and contort its body, giving it a +10 racial bonus on Escape Artist checks. Deepwater octopuses have a +4 racial bonus to Hide and their keen eyesight gives them a +4 racial bonus to Spot, they gain a +4 racial bonus to Move Silently checks when in the water. A deepwater octopus has a +8 racial bonus on any Swim check to perform some special action or avoid a hazard. It can always choose to take 10 on a Swim check, even if distracted or endangered, and can use either its Dexterity or its Strength bonus for Swim checks, whichever is better. It can use the run action while swimming, provided it swims in a straight line.
Advanced Deepwater Octopuses
Deepwater octopuses usually only gain levels in NPC classes, generally investing their skill points in Craft, Handle Animal, Perform and Profession skills so they can create art and raise food. Since they have no idea of spellcasting or religion, they usually gain levels in Commoner, Expert or Warrior. A few gain levels in Aristocrat, although these are more like poets and judges than most surface-dweller's concept of a nobleperson. They have no position of authority, they're more historian-advisor and entertainer.
As a deepwater octopus grows in size its arms become proportionally longer and thinner.
Big Deepwater Octopus
Medium Magical Beast (Aquatic)
Hit Dice: 5d10 (27 hp)
Initiative: +2
Speed: 10 ft. (2 squares), swim 30 ft.
Armour Class: 14 (+2 Dex, +2 natural), touch 12, flat-footed 12
Base Attack/Grapple: +5/+7 [+1 per grappling tentacle]
Attack: Tentacle +7 melee (1d2+2) or shortspear +7 melee (1d6+2)
Full Attack: Primary tentacle +7 melee (1d2+2) and 5 tentacles +5 melee (1d2+1) and bite +5 melee (1d4+1); or shortspear +7 melee (1d6+2) and 2 shortspears +5 melee (1d6+1) and bite +5 melee (1d4+1)
Space/Reach: 5 ft./5 ft. (15 ft. with tentacle or shortspear)
Special Attacks: All-around tentacles, constrict, expert grappler, gnawing beak, improved grab
Special Qualities: Bioluminescence, blindsense 20 ft., DR 5/slashing or piercing, ink cloud, jet, rubbery body, superior low-light vision
Saves: Fort +4, Ref +6, Will +2
Abilities: Str 14, Dex 15, Con 11, Int 9, Wis 12, Cha 10
Skills: Escape Artist +12, Hide +8, Listen +6, Move Silently +4* [+8 in water], Spot +8, Swim +10
Feats: Alertness, Blind-Fight (B), Multiattack (B), Stealthy
Environment: Cold aquatic
Organization: Solitary, cluster (2-12) or colony (10-40)
Challenge Rating: 4
Treasure: Standard goods (pearls, jewellery & artworks?)
Alignment: Usually neutral good
Advancement: 6 HD (Medium); 7-9 HD (Large) or by character class
Level Adjustment: +4?
A big deepwater octopus has a 25 to 30 foot armspan and weighs around 250-300 pounds.
Combat
Tentacles 6 hit points, 3 damage to octopus if severed. Other abilities as above, except:
Bioluminescence (Ex): A big deepwater octopus can produce light up to the brightness of a torch, clearly illuminates a 20-foot radius and giving shadowy illumination out to a 40-foot radius.
Constrict (Ex): Every round a big deepwater octopus maintains a grapple it can automatically deal 1d4+2 points of constriction damage, the damage is increased by 1d2 for each additional tentacle the octopus constricts the opponent with.
A grappled opponent can use a standard grapple action to attempt to break the constriction, for every point they beat the octopus's grapple check they break the hold of one tentacle. They must beat the big deepwater octopus's grapple check by a number greater than the number of tentacles it is holding them with to entirely break free of the grapple.
Example: a big deepwater octopus is holding a triton adventuress with five tentacles, an average deepwater octopus constricting with 5 tentacles inflicts 1d4+4d2 damage. The triton tries to break the constriction. The octopus rolls 13 on its grapple check, the triton a 16. Since the triton rolled 3 higher, she breaks the hold of 3 tentacles and only takes 1d4+1d2 constriction damage from the remaining two tentacles. She'd have needed to roll 5 or more higher than the octopus's grapple check to break free.
Gnawing Beak (Ex): Bite +7 melee (1d4+2) against grappled foes.
Ink Cloud (Ex): 15 ft. radius sphere, Ref DC12. Save DC Charisma-based.
Giant Deepwater Octopus
Large Magical Beast (Aquatic)
Hit Dice: 7d10+7 (45 hp)
Initiative: +2
Speed: 10 ft. (2 squares), swim 30 ft.
Armour Class: 15 (-1 size, +2 Dex, +4 natural), touch 11, flat-footed 13
Base Attack/Grapple: +7/+15 [+1 per grappling tentacle]
Attack: Tentacle +10 melee (1d3+4) or shortspear +10 melee (1d8+4)
Full Attack: Primary tentacle +10 melee (1d3+4) and 5 tentacles +8 melee (1d3+2) and bite +8 melee (1d6+2); or shortspear +10 melee (1d6+4) and 2 shortspears +8 melee (1d6+2) and bite +8 melee (1d6+2)
Space/Reach: 10 ft./5 ft. (20 ft. with tentacle or shortspear)
Special Attacks: All-around tentacles, constrict, expert grappler, gnawing beak, improved grab
Special Qualities: Bioluminescence, blindsense 30 ft., DR 5/slashing or piercing, ink cloud, jet, rubbery body, superior low-light vision
Saves: Fort +6, Ref +7, Will +5
Abilities: Str 18, Dex 15, Con 13, Int 9, Wis 12, Cha 10
Skills: Escape Artist +12, Hide +6, Listen +6, Move Silently +4* [+8 in water], Spot +8, Swim +10
Feats: Alertness, Blind-Fight (B), Iron Will, Multiattack (B), Stealthy
Environment: Cold aquatic
Organization: Solitary, cluster (2-12) or colony (10-40)
Challenge Rating: 6
Treasure: Standard goods (pearls, jewellery & artworks?)
Alignment: Usually neutral good
Advancement: 8-9 HD (Large) or by character class
Level Adjustment: +5?
A giant deepwater octopus has a 40 to 50 foot armspan and weighs between 750 and 1500 pounds.
Combat
Tentacles 8 hit points, 4 damage to octopus if severed. Other abilities as above, except:
Bioluminescence (Ex): A giant deepwater octopus can produce light up to the brightness of a hooded lantern, clearly illuminates a 30-foot radius and giving shadowy illumination out to a 60-foot radius.
Constrict (Ex): 1d6+4 damage, increased by 1d3 for each additional tentacle.
Gnawing Beak (Ex): Bite +10 melee (1d6+4) against grappled foes.
Ink Cloud (Ex): 20 ft. radius sphere, Ref DC13. Save DC Charisma-based.