• NOW LIVE! Into the Woods--new character species, eerie monsters, and haunting villains to populate the woodlands of your D&D games.

D&D 3E/3.5 Creature Catalog 3.5 Overhaul Project

A bulbous orb, over fifteen feet wide, floats in the air before you. Its body is dominated by a central, unblinking eye, and a large maw filled with daggerlike teeth. Hooded lids in the flesh of its body blink open, revealing additional, smaller eyes. The power of the creature is palpable.
 
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BOZ said:
what i'm saying is that the elder orb has an ECL of 28, and a +8 to the hive mother would give that also a ECL 28. if the elder orb is so much better, either we need to increase it's LA or give the hive mother less than +8.


why? If the elder orb has an ECL and so does the hive mother that means that they have the same ECL nothing more nothing less. Doesn't mean that one is more powerful than the other or any other such stuff like that. Means that if a PC were to be a hive mother (for whatever reason) they would have the same ECL.
 


NEXT VICTIM!


Inquisitor

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Medium-size Undead
Hit Dice: 6d12+3 (42 hp)
Initiative: +4 (Improved Initiative)
Speed: 30 ft
AC: 16 (+6 natural)
Attacks: Whip +9 melee, claw +5 melee
Damage: Whip 1d4+6, claw 1d6+3 and disease
Face/Reach: 5 ft by 5 ft/5 ft
Special Attacks: Frightful presence, paralyzing gaze, disease, torture
Special Qualities: Undead
Saves: Fort +4 Ref +2 Will +8
Abilities: Str 22 Dex 10 Con --- Int 14 Wis 16 Chr 18
Skills: Bluff +13, Hide +8, Intimidate +17, Move Silently +8, Search +10, Sense Motive +9
Feats: Great Fortitude, Improved Initiative, Toughness, Weapon focus (Whip)

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Climate: Any underground
Organization: Solitary
Challenge Rating: 05
Treasure: Standard
Alignment: Always lawful evil
Advancement: 7-18 HD (Medium-Size)

Inquisitors are powerful undead creatures, created by evil wizards as the ultimate in sheer terror and torture. These shambling, rotting horrors are ancient experts in torture, perfecting their techniques on any available victim. Most inquisitors were created hundreds, if not thousands of years ago and are cursed to cause pain for eternity. Many of these creatures are imprisoned by more powerful beings, and forced to work their art to extract information from prisoners. Some have no master, and dwell in dark places where they work on prisoners of their own.

These ghastly monsters lair in dungeons, caves, or even underneath towns where they keep their torture chambers in secret. This lair is filled with a variety of devices, such as torture racks, iron maidens, thumbscrews, vices, clamps, and even more exotic devices that the creature has devised of its own accord. Though no bribe can actually stay in inquisitor's hand, it often keeps items offered to it for its own personal hoard. It only really uses this treasure to buy new devices, or purchase captives.

Inquisitors appear very similarly to zombies, or other types of undead, but are much more hideous. They often wear black hoods to hide their gruesomeness, but are just as likely to expose their mucous-ridden eyes and mouths. The hands of an inquisitor are charred from many years of using red-hot torture implements, and have thick yellow nails that are used like claws.

An inquisitor speaks Common and may know several other languages, as per its region.

COMBAT
Inquisitors live for torture, and when in need of more victims, it will seek them out and capture them. The creature attempts to paralyze as many humanoids with its gaze attack as it can, then it begins to attack in melee with its whip and nails. When it successfully manages to incapacitate a victim, it will return to its lair, chain and shackle the victim to a table, and begin its torture with glee.

Frightful Presence (Ex): An inquisitor is so horrifying in appearance, and its reputation is so renowned that it can inspire terror in all who see it. Affected creatures must succeed at a Will save (DC 17) or become frightened. The creature is so terrifying that this effect lasts 1d6 rounds even after fleeing it.

Paralyzing Gaze (Su): The inquisitor's gaze can paralyze a single victim per round, unless the victim succeeds at a Will save (DC 17). This paralysis lasts for 1d4 hours. This attack can be used in addition to any physical attacks made in that round. Any victim who makes a successful saving throw will never be affected by that particular inquisitor's gaze attack again.

Disease (Su): The claw attack of an inquisitor carries a powerful wasting disease. Any victim hit by the claw attack must succeed at a Fortitude save (DC 17) or begin to lose one point of Strength and one point of Constitution temporarily per day. This condition continues and persists until a cure disease spell is cast to cure the victim and restore lost ability points. If either the character's Strength or Constitution reaches zero, it dies.

Torture (Ex): The inquisitor's torture techniques are designed to cause considerable pain and disfigurement, and eventually death. After every day the inquisitor spends torturing a victim, the victim must make a Will save (DC 17) to avoid going insane. Insane victims may still attempt to escape and defend themselves, but are unable to distinguish friends from foes, or interact with familiar situations. This insanity lasts for 1d4 weeks after the torture has ended.

A character tortured by an inquisitor loses one point of Charisma permanently, though this point can be regained by a heal or restoration spell.

Undead: Immune to mind-influencing effects, poison, sleep, paralysis, stunning, and disease. Not subject to critical hits, subdual damage, ability damage, energy drain, or death from massive damage.


Originally found in MC11, FR Appendix II (1991, David "Zeb" Cook), Monstrous Compendium Annual Four (1998).


Found one conversion of the inquisitor (appears to be down at the moment):
http://drs.yahoo.com/S=2766679/K=in...t/Games/3rd ed Basics/Monsters/Inquisitor.doc
 

the Inquisitor needs ranks in Heal to be a good torturer and to keep people from dying off to quickly. I think Heal is used as a skill to torture people in d20.

For some reason I think that thid monster might do better off with a lower Str and a higher Dex, it always struck me as a sort of finesse monster. Sneak attack might be good also.

Also, the Cha loss from the Torture abililty might be better standardized as just normal permanent ability drain.
 

the description uses the word "shambling" which says clumst to me. i'm almost thinking whether to lower the dex or not. ;)
 

Well, since it gets one less feat, I'd drop the always-lame Tougness feat. I'd also swap out Great Fortitude for Persuasive.

Since they are cadaverous undead, perhaps give them DR 5/slashing like zombies now have?

I'd support a -2 reduction in Dex. (once again, mirroring zombies).

The BOVD uses Intimidate as the torture skill, not Heal. I'm not sure about other D20 products. However, it could benefit from the Heal skill to keep its torture victims alive for further torture. ;)

I agree with Psychotic Jim on the CHA drain issue.

For skills, it has 54 points to spend. I'd suggest Bluff +13 (+15 if given Persuasive feat), Diplomacy +13, Heal +12, Intimidate +13 (+15 if given Persuasive feat), Search +11, Sense Motive +12. (I gave it Diplomacy since the kocrachon, the torturer of the devils, has it and they have similar career paths).
 

Shade said:
Well, since it gets one less feat, I'd drop the always-lame Tougness feat. I'd also swap out Great Fortitude for Persuasive.

Since they are cadaverous undead, perhaps give them DR 5/slashing like zombies now have?

Yeah, I was seriously rethinking great fortitude there… this is an old conversion of mine, and I probably didn’t realize that an undead doesn’t need such a feat. ;) and now that we have persuasive, that just works so much nicer. :)

And I wasn’t going to remove toughness, but that DR does toughen them up enough to change my mind. ;)

I'd support a -2 reduction in Dex. (once again, mirroring zombies).

done.

The BOVD uses Intimidate as the torture skill, not Heal. I'm not sure about other D20 products. However, it could benefit from the Heal skill to keep its torture victims alive for further torture. ;)

heheh, cool

I agree with Psychotic Jim on the CHA drain issue.

I’ll consider that…

For skills, it has 54 points to spend. I'd suggest Bluff +13 (+15 if given Persuasive feat), Diplomacy +13, Heal +12, Intimidate +13 (+15 if given Persuasive feat), Search +11, Sense Motive +12. (I gave it Diplomacy since the kocrachon, the torturer of the devils, has it and they have similar career paths).

ok, I’ll figure that out in a minute and then I’ll post an inquisitor to the homebrews forum. :)
 

first, let me toss in the original stats from MC11 (information in MCA4 is virtually identical):

Inquisitor

CLIMATE/TERRAIN: Urban/subterranean
FREQUENCY: Very rare
ORGANIZATION: Solitary
ACTIVITY CYCLE: Night
DIET: Omnivore
INTELLIGENCE: High (13-14)
TREASURE: W
ALIGNMENT: Lawful evil

NO. APPEARING: 1
ARMOR CLASS: 4
MOVEMENT: 9
HIT DICE: 6
THAC0: 15
NO. OF ATTACKS: 2
DAMAGE/ATTACK: 1-4/1-6
SPECIAL ATTACKS: Disease, fear, paralysis, torture
SPECIAL DEFENSES: Spell immunity
MAGIC RESISTANCE: Nil
SIZE: M (6' tall)
MORALE: Fanatic (17-18)
XP VALUE: 3,000

Created by evil wizards centuries ago, inquisitors are a shambling, rotting, undead abomination, living on sheer terror. Each is an ancient expert in torture and information extraction, an artist who works in screams and agony. Those without masters dwell in dark places where they can take prisoners and ask impossible questions that let them further perfect their techniques. Some inquisitors are themselves imprisoned by more powerful beings and forced to work their trade on demand, longing for the day they put their masters on the rack.

An inquisitor can be easily mistaken for a zombie or other undead. Nearly half of its flesh has rotted away, exposing tendons and yellowing bones. Many wear black hoods, but those who donít display foul smelling mucous dripping from their eyes and mouths. An inquisitor wears tattered pants and shoes, but no shirt or gloves. Its hands are charred from years of using red-hot torture implements, and its thick, yellow nails poke menacingly from its fingers. One is seldom encountered without its whip in hand.

An inquisitor can speak and understand Common and any racial languages particular to its location.

Combat: An inquisitor’s horrifying appearance and its reputation for lingering torture and death require those who see him to successfully save vs. paralyzation or flee in fear for 1-6 rounds. Once a victim has failed this saving throw, his attacks against that inquisitor are made with a -2 penalty to the attack roll, even after the victim stops fleeing.

The inquisitor’s gaze requires one opponent per round to successfully save vs. paralyzation or be paralyzed for 1-4 turns. This gaze attack is in addition to any physical attacks it makes during the round. On a successful saving throw, a victim can never be paralyzed by that particular inquisitor.

Each round an inquisitor can attack with its whip, causing 1-4 points of damage, and scratch with the nails on its other hand, causing 1-6 points of damage. Any victim who is hit with the nails must successfully save vs. poison to avoid a wasting disease that causes him to lose one point of Strength and one point of Constitution per day until cured. Only cure disease can rid a character of the affliction and restore lost points. If either ability score reaches zero the victim dies.

If an inquisitor manages to capture a victim, it chains and shackles him to a table and gleefully begins its torture. The inquisitor’s torture causes considerable pain and disfigurement. At the end of every day of torture, the victim must successfully save vs. paralyzation or become insane. While insane, the character may still attempt to escape the inquisitor and may defend himself, but is unable to distinguish his friends from enemies or interact with familiar places or situations. The character may only regain his sanity with time, 1-4 weeks after the torture has ended. In any event, the character loses one point of Charisma after being tortured by an inquisitor. This point can only be regained through magical healing such as a heal spell intended for this purpose only.

An inquisitor is immune to all mind affecting spells, such as charm, geas, or illusions.

Habitat/Society: Every inquisitor has its own torture chamber for its lair. The chamber can be in a dungeon or cave, in the secluded wilderness, or even in the town square. The devices it has vary, including but not limited to racks, iron maidens, thumb screws, vices and clamps, or even more exotic devices such as large helmets filled with hungry insects or rats. When screaming victims offer bribes to lessen their punishment, an inquisitor often keeps the gems and coins for itself rather than alert its master. Any treasure is hidden in or around the inquisitor’s chamber. Of course, no bribe will stay an inquisitor from its task.

The inquisitor’s home is its torture chamber. It only strays from its chamber when in search of new victims. If supplied with ample subjects for its torture, an inquisitor may not willingly leave his chamber for years or even centuries at a time.

The inquisitor is a solitary creature, but may employ lesser beings to do its bidding. Evil creatures such as orcs and kobolds sometimes make a small profit selling live captives to an inquisitor.

Ecology: Inquisitors are biologically immortal, cursed hundreds or thousands of years ago to forever cause pain and extract information. They cannot reproduce. If an inquisitor is denied the opportunity to mercilessly torture victims for a long period of time, it slowly wastes away and dies. Every year of such denial it loses one hit point permanently. More powerful beings who use inquisitors often keep them in check with threats of victim denial.
 

Into the Woods

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