Converting World of Greyhawk monsters

[Shade]

Here's the second-worst gingwatzim's 3e stats:

Pakim
Small Elemental (Air)
Hit Dice: 2d8+2 (13 hp)
Initiative: +1
Speed: 20 ft., fly 40 ft. (perfect)
AC: 15 (+1 size, +1 Dex, +3 natural)
Attacks: Touch +2 melee
Damage: 1d2 temporary Strength
Face/Reach: 5 ft. by 5 ft./5 ft.
Special Attacks: -
Special Qualities: Alternate forms, elemental traits, DR 5/+1, telepathy
Saves: Fort +2, Ref +4, Will +0
Abilities: Str 10, Dex 13, Con 14, Int 3, Wis 10, Cha 5
Skills: Hide +7, Listen +2, Move Silently +3, Spot +2
Feats: Flyby Attack
Climate/Terrain: Any land and underground
Organization: Solitary
Challenge Rating: 1
Treasure: None
Alignment: Usually neutral
Advancement: See text

Pakim gingwatzims in their natural form are green air spheres with a diameter of 4 feet. Pakims have poor reasoning skills and can only understand simple commands. Particularly docile, they often don't bother to resist their master's control. They can be bound into the form of an animal or plant of up to Small size. In object form, they can be +1 weapons with no magical properties.

Alternate Forms (Su): Conjured gingwatzims are assigned two additional forms by the magic of the spell that calls them. The animate and object forms are chosen and fixed when the gingwatzim is called and cannot be changed unless the creature is returned to the Ethereal Plane. The gingwatzim can assume one of its other forms or return to its natural form as a free action once per round. Often (especially in the case of less intelligent gingwatzim) their controller orders them to remain in one particular form.

In the form of another creature, the gingwatzim retains its own ability scores and other abilities, and its deflection bonus becomes a natural armor bonus. It gains none of the assumed form's ability scores or abilities in any way, and retains the immunities of its elemental type. Armor class and skill bonuses based on size (such as Hide) use the new form's size instead of the gingwatzim's normal size.

In object form, a gingwatzim cannot move itself or drain Strength using its touch attack ability, and it loses its deflection bonus. When it takes the form of a weapon, a gingwatzim has an enhancement bonus equal to the bonus that would bypass its own damage reduction. For example, a pakim gingwatzim, which has damage reduction 5/+1, that takes the form of a longsword is effectively a +1 longsword.

Telepathy (Su): Gingwatzims can communicate telepathically with any creature within 100 feet as long as that creature has a language. The low intelligence of some gingwatzims hampers their ability to communicate anything but the most basic concepts.

 

[freyar]

Strange things. Well, I think we need to revisit the pakim first, since the weapon overcoming its own DR doesn't work right in 3.5. Otherwise, we mostly copy from the pakim?

 

[Echohawk]

Originally appeared in Greyhawk Ruins (1990).

Minor correction: the tim gingwatzim last appeared in Greyhawk Ruins, but originally appeared in Lost Island of Castanamir (C3). I know that's not relevant for the conversion, but...

 

[Echohawk]

Strange things. Well, I think we need to revisit the pakim first, since the weapon overcoming its own DR doesn't work right in 3.5. Otherwise, we mostly copy from the pakim?

If it helps, the Planewalker publication Denizens of the Transitive Planes updated the pakim to 3.5 as follows: "Pakim CR1; Init +1; BAB +1; Grap -2; Space/Reach 5 ft./5 ft.; SQ Remove damage reduction."

 

[Shade]

Minor correction: the tim gingwatzim last appeared in Greyhawk Ruins, but originally appeared in Lost Island of Castanamir (C3). I know that's not relevant for the conversion, but...

Thanks, it is relevant as we usually try to list the original source in the conversion entries.

 

[Shade]

Looking at the other gingwatzim, it looks like Con remains 14 across the board. Str changes as normal between size categories, so downsizing a pakim to Tiny gives Str 6. Dex is 11 for all but the pakim, which is 13, despite the others ranging from Medium to Large. So we could either stick with 13, or increase it to 15. The tim was listed as non-intelligent (0), but it seems like it is more like an animal, so maybe Int 1? Wis should probably be 10, and Cha should be less than 5 (that of the pakim).

So how about: Str 6, Dex 15, Con 14, Int 1, Wis 10, Cha 3?

Natural armor increases by 1 for each increase in "hierarchy", so subracting one from the pakim's natural armor gives the tim a +2 natural armor bonus.

 

[freyar]

Sounds fine to me overall. I'm going to need to look at the other ones to get a feel for this. What do you think about the bonus, since the 3.0 DRX/+1 for the pakim doesn't work anymore?

 

[Shade]

Sounds fine to me overall. I'm going to need to look at the other ones to get a feel for this. What do you think about the bonus, since the 3.0 DRX/+1 for the pakim doesn't work anymore?

I'd say they can only be bound to mundane (or possibly masterwork) weapons, and as such, don't have DR or overcome DR. Sound OK?

Started 'em up in Homebrews.

 

[freyar]

Looks good so far, but I have a couple questions.

Should we take out the "example" of DR5/+1 from the alternate form description? Then we can put in that tims can only be bound to masterwork weapons.

Should the touch attack be ability damage rather than energy drain?

 

[Shade]

Yes and yes.

Attempted rewrite...

Alternate Forms (Su): Conjured gingwatzims are assigned two additional forms by the magic of the spell that calls them. The animate and object forms are chosen and fixed when the gingwatzim is called and cannot be changed unless the creature is returned to the Ethereal Plane. The gingwatzim can assume one of its other forms or return to its natural form as a free action once per round. Due to the tim's low intellect, its controller usually orders it to remain in one particular form.

In the form of another creature, the gingwatzim retains its own ability scores and other abilities, and its deflection bonus becomes a natural armor bonus. It gains none of the assumed form's ability scores or abilities in any way, and retains the immunities of its elemental type. Armor class and skill bonuses based on size (such as Hide) use the new form's size instead of the gingwatzim's normal size.

In object form, a gingwatzim cannot move itself or deal Strength damage using its touch attack ability, and it loses its deflection bonus. When it takes the form of a weapon, a tim may only take the form of a masterwork or mundane weapon, and cannot consist of special materials such as mithral or cold iron.