(Cydra Rogues' Gallery-My Players STAY OUT)

[the Jester]

Monstrous Prestige Classes

Wow, I'm surprised I've never thought about this til now.

With a party around level 30, the lion's share of the monsters I throw at them are custom, advanced or tweaked. I advance monsters by HD, by class levels, and by templates. But until this last gargoyle guy came up, it never really occurred to me to look at monstrous prestige classes.

Damn, I could have a bunch of "functional" monster prestige classes- in other words, think of a function and build a prc to let monsters better fulfill it. A great example of the type of thing I'm talking about is the dungeon lord (in Dungeonscape).

Too bad I didn't think about this a long time ago; I think that a book of all-monstrous prestige classes, feats and spells would have been a great product!

This is also a good way to 'splain abilities in mechanical terms that a monster has to have to fulfill its role in the plot. For instance, I am working on a cold monster that's trapped in Bile Mountain, and has managed to build a defensible area and create some servants out of ice. Now, the monster itself doesn't have the ability to create these monsters, so the idea of making another monster prestige class occurred to me- one that would let it create ice beasts (see Frostburn for this template).

Whaddaya think?

 

[Sollir Furryfoot]

Sounds like a lot of fun This might be overly complex, I think I would make starting feats for crafting monsters but with certain monstrous requisites. Something like:

Spawn Aberrant Progeny
Requisites: Aberration HD 8+
Benefits: (Something similar to a craft feat)

Then, you can make some generic PrCs like, Mother of Horrors that focus on moving the craft requisites down. I probably wouldn't do it by XP (doesn't seem to make much sense for a monster) but maybe temporary Con damage and 'building materials' (certain HD of humanoids or similar foods).

In any case, I would love to see a product based around this kind of stuff. 3.5 isn't *quite* dead yet, go for it Jester!

 

[Quartz]

I like the Granite Shadow class: you might want to add in Spider Climb on stone surfaces in there somewhere.

 

[the Jester]

The monstrous prestige class idea has really, really struck my fancy.

Curse me for not thinking of it years ago!!

Oh well... here's another one:

Frost Lord

Some creatures of the frostfell are at one with their environment. Impervious to cold, these creatures actually seem to bring winter with them wherever they go. Transformed by the power of their icy homes, such beings sometimes become frost lords- able to bring the frostfell with them, wherever they go.
Hit Die: d8

PREREQUISITES
To become a frost lord, a creature must fulfill all of the following requirements:
Skills: Craft (sculpting) (13 ranks), Survival (13 ranks).
Special: The creature must have the cold subtype, must have the ability to deal cold damage with an attack or an exceptional, supernatural or spell-like ability and must have a cold climate as its native climate.

Class Skills: Balance (dex), Climb (str), Concentration (con), Craft (sculpting) (int), Knowledge (nature) (int), Spellcraft (int), Spot (wis), Survival (wis). Skill points per level: 2 + int bonus.

Base Attack: Medium (as cleric)
Good Saves: Fort and Will
Poor Saves: Ref

Level--- Special Abilities
1--- Reduce temperature
2--- Create ice and snow
3--- Enhance cold damage (slow)
4--- Aura of cold 10’/1d10
5--- Enhance cold damage (weakness)
6--- Aura of cold 20’/2d10
7--- Create ice beast, enhance cold damage (death)

CLASS FEATURES

Weapon and Armor Proficiency: A frost lord gains no new weapon or armor proficiencies.

Reduce Temperature (Su): The temperature within 100 yards of the frost lord is supernaturally suppressed by about three degrees per class level of the frost lord. This effect is continuous.

Create Ice and Snow (Sp): As a standard action, a frost lord may create an amount of normal snow sufficient to fill a 20’x20’ square with snow 1’ deep or normal ice sufficient to fill a cube 4’ on a side. It may do this once per day per class level.

Enhance Cold Damage (Su): Whenever a frost lord of 3rd or higher level deals cold damage, it also inflicts a secondary effect on its victim. Any time it deals cold damage, the frost lord may choose to slow its victim for one round (using the normal DC for the cold effect; if there isn’t one, the DC is 10 + ½ racial HD + class level + con modifier). This is a cold effect.

Beginning at 5th level, 3/day the frost lord may instead choose to weaken the enemy, inflicting 1d6 points of str damage (Fort save negates, as above). This is a cold effect.

Beginning at 7th level, the frost lord may attempt to instantly slay a victim that suffers cold damage 1/day. If the victim fails a Fort save, she dies. This is a cold, death effect.

Aura of Cold (Su): Beginning at 4th level, the frost lord has a constant aura of cold that radiates to a distance of 10’, dealing 1d10 points of damage to all creatures in the area at the start of the frost lord’s turn. Beginning at 6th level, the aura’s radius increases to 20’ and its damage increases to 2d10. Note that the frost lord may use his enhance cold damage ability with his aura.

If the frost lord already has an aura of cold, the two auras combine, dealing the better damage, having the larger radius and keeping all special effects.

Create Ice Beast (Sp): A 7th-level frost lord may create ice beasts (Frostburn 138) out of ice and snow. The frost lord must have enough ice and snow to physically sculpt the ice beast, and must make a successful Craft (sculpting) check with a DC equal to the ice beast’s Hit Dice. Doing so takes a number of hours equal to the ice beast’s Hit Dice + its special size modifier for grappling. The frost lord can then animate them with a ritual that takes a number of minutes equal to the ice beast’s Hit Dice to effect. A frost lord cannot construct a single ice beast with more than ½ its Hit Dice, and can construct total HD of ice beasts equal to its own HD.

 

[the Jester]

Here's one more, for good measure.

Unholy Conduit

Negative energy is what gives undead their power and their animation. It flows through them like a dark river. Some of them have a stronger tie to the Negative Energy Plane, which is often demonstrated by some sort of life-draining ability (such as energy drain). Some of these sorts become even more strongly tied to the negative energy plane, until they become unholy conduits for greater and greater amounts of negative energy.

Hit Die: d12

PREREQUISITES
To become an unholy conduit, a creature must fulfill all of the following requirements:
Base Will Save: +5
Skills: Knowledge (religion) or Knowledge (the planes) (8 ranks), with the other having at least 4 ranks.
Feats: Ability Focus (any negative energy attack), Great Fortitude, Skill Focus (knowledge: religion or the planes).
Creature Type: Must be undead.
Special: Must have an ability that is a negative energy effect, including inflicting negative energy damage, rebuking undead, energy drain and some other abilities. Must be free-willed.

Class Skills: Concentration (con), Intimidate (cha), Knowledge (religion, the planes) (int), Listen (wis), Move Silently (dex), Spellcraft (int), Spot (wis), Use Magic Device (cha). Skill points per level: 2 + int bonus.

Base Attack: Medium (as cleric)
Good Saves: Fort and Will
Poor Saves: Ref

Level--- Special Abilities
1--- Turn resistance +1
2--- Blistering attack +1d8
3--- Irresistible darkness
4--- Turn resistance +2, unholy rebuke 1/day
5--- Blistering attack +2d8
6--- Unholy grace
7--- Turn resistance +3, unholy power
8--- Blistering attack +3d8, unholy rebuke 2/day
9--- Unholy toughness
10-- Reality breach, turn resistance +4

CLASS FEATURES

Weapon and Armor Proficiency: An unholy conduit gains no new weapon or armor proficiencies.

Turn Resistance (Ex): An unholy conduit’s excess of negative energy makes it hard to turn. It gains a +1 enhancement bonus to its turn resistance at 1st level. This increases by +1 for every three additional class levels attained.

Blistering Attack (Su): Whenever the unliving conduit affects an enemy with the negative energy attack that its Ability Focus applies to, it deals extra negative energy damage. At 2nd level, this is an extra 1d8 points of damage; as the unholy conduit advances in level, the damage increases.

Irresistible Darkness (Su): The save DC to resist any negative energy effect created by an unholy conduit is increased by 2.

Unholy Rebuke (Su): Similar to an evil cleric rebuking undead, an unholy conduit can channel negative energy in an unholy rebuke. The conduit may use this ability to rebuke or bolster undead as an evil cleric would, or to attempt to rebuke a good-aligned outsider or divine caster. In this case, a successful rebuke check leaves the victim staggered for 1d4 rounds and inflicts blistering attack damage.

Unholy Grace (Su): Beginning at 6th level, the unholy conduit can add his cha bonus as a deflection bonus to AC and a resistance bonus to saving throws.

Unholy Power (Su): Beginning at 7th level, an unholy conduit can invoke unholy power 1/day as an immediate action upon affecting a target with a negative energy effect. This causes the negative energy effect to increase in potency. If it deals ability or negative energy damage, the damage is increased by one die type (excluding blistering attack damage). If the attack inflicts negative levels, it adds one extra negative level to the number inflicted.

Unholy Toughness (Su): At 9th level, the unholy conduit gains the unholy toughness special quality and can add his cha bonus to each HD. If it already has unholy toughness, it instead gains one additional hp per die.

Reality Breach (Sp): 1/day a 10th-level unholy conduit can create a reality breach as a full-round action. This functions as a reality maelstrom spell, except that the hole in reality always leads to the Negative Energy Plane.

 

[Mathew_Freeman]

Have the PC's met any of these characters yet? How did the monsters turn out?

 

[the Jester]

Have the PC's met any of these characters yet? How did the monsters turn out?

Not the recently-posted ones... we're finishing the halfling campaign first (only one more game left!) before we return to Beyond Bile Mountain. I actually have a couple weeks worth of work left to do on it, too...

 

[the Jester]

Not the recently-posted ones... we're finishing the halfling campaign first (only one more game left!) before we return to Beyond Bile Mountain. I actually have a couple weeks worth of work left to do on it, too...

Speaking of which, we just finished the halfling campaign on Monday night!

The next epic game will be incoming in two weeks. I'm gonna try to update the story hour at some point in the next week, too (if I can find the time). Meanwhile, I'm gonna post something the party did already fight: Vynj.

 

[the Jester]

Vynj

VYNJ (Raging)-- CR 30
Female bile great wyrm howling dragon barbarian 1/bloodscaled fury 5
CE colossal dragon (extraplanar)
Init +4; Senses Listen +58, Spot +57
Aura fearsome presence (DC 46)
Languages Abyssal, Draconic, Drow, Dwarven, Elven, Gnome, Goblin, Infernal, Orcish, Peshan, Undercommon

AC 47 (-8 size, +45 natural), touch 2, flat-footed 47
Hit Dice 48d12+816 (1128 hp); DR 25/magic and 15/law
SR 42
Immune acid, pain, paralyzation, poison, sleep, sonic
Fort +43, Ref +26, Will +36; agonized existence

Speed 60 ft. (12 squares), fly 200 ft. (clumsy) (40 squares)
Melee Bite +62 (4d8+24) and 2 claws +61 (4d6+12) and 2 wings +61 (2d8+12) and tail +61 (4d6+36)
Base Atk +45; Grp +85
Space 30 ft.; Reach 20 ft. (30 ft. with bite)
Atk Options Cleave, crush, Great Cleave, Power Attack, Quicken Breath, Rend (8d6+1.5x), Shock Wave, tail sweep, Wingstorm
Special Actions breath weapons (Quicken Breath, Recover Breath), rage (draconic fury) 3/day
Spell-like Abilities (CL 42): 3/day- Tasha’s hideous laughter (DC 22), wind wall; 1/day- confusion (DC 24), gust of wind (DC 23), insanity (DC 27), phantasmal killer (DC 24), shatter (DC 22), shout (DC 24), sound burst (DC 22), symbol of insanity (DC 28), weird (DC 29), whirlwind (DC 27).

Str 58, Dex 10, Con 44, Int 30, Wis 25, Cha 30
SQ scales of blood
Feats Cleave, Extra Rage, Great Cleave, Hover, Improved Initiative, Improved Multiattack, Improved Toughness, Lightning Reflexes, Multiattack, Power Attack, Quicken Breath, Recover Breath, Rend (B), Shock Wave, Weapon Focus (bite), Wingstorm
Skills Bluff +60, Climb +52, Diplomacy +55, Escape Artist +45, Intimidate +65, Knowledge (arcana, dungeoneering, history, planes) +55, Listen +58, Perform (singing) +37, Search +52, Sense Motive +52, Spot +57, Survival +34, Swim +75, Use Magic Device +55

Fearsome Presence (Ex): Vynj is fearsome to behold. All creatures viewing her must make Will saves, DC 46, or be affected. Creatures of 6 HD or less are panicked if they fail their saves, while creatures with more HD are shaken. Both fear effects last for 6d6 rounds.

Breath Weapons (Su): Vynj has three breath weapons: a 70’ cone of howling sound that deals sonic damage, a 70’ cone of maddening wails, or a glob of bile. In all cases, the save DC is 51. Creatures caught in the damaging cone suffer 24d10 hp of damage (Ref half). Creatures caught in the cone of maddening wails must make a Fort save or suffer 12 points of Wis damage. The bile breath weapon has a range of 60’ and explodes in a 15’ burst. Creatures caught within suffer 10d6 hp of acid damage and 3d6 points of Con damage (Fort save for half damage and no Con damage).

Crush (Ex): Vynj can simply crush creatures of Large and smaller size. She lands on them as a standard action, dealing 4d8+36 points of damage and pinning opponents unless they succeed at Ref saves, DC 43. If she maintains the pin, Vynj automatically deals damage to creatures that she has pinned unless she releases her hold on them.

Tail Sweep (Ex): As a standard action, Vynj can sweep a half-circle extending 40’ from her position. Medium and smaller creatures suffer 2d8+36 points of damage (Ref DC 43 half).

Rage (Ex): The draconic fury of Vynj’s rage is such that she gains +6 to Str and Con and a +3 morale bonus on Will saves. However, she suffers a -2 penalty to AC. These adjustments are included in the stat block above. Vynj remains enraged for 23 rounds- almost certainly the entire combat.

Agonized Existence (Ex): Because her bile-ridden form leaves it in perpetual pain, Vynj is immune to effects based on pain. If it falls subject to any enchantment effect or morale penalty, it automatically shakes off the effect in only 1d4 rounds.

Scales of Blood (Su): While raging, Vynj’s SR increases by +6 and its DR values each increase by +5. (These effects are included in the stat block above.)

 

[the Jester]

All right, we play the epic game tonight! Maybe they'll encounter something from up above- perhaps the deathbringers...?