The Sigil
Mr. 3000 (Words per post)
Glanced very briefly through a copy of the Fiend Folio at the GAMA Show yesterday, and found the following tidbits I thought I'd pass along, since they appear to be 3.5e updates:
Shapechanger - This is changed in the FF from a creature type to a subtype - in other words, there are now 11 creature types instead of 13 (Beast is also gone). Hence, my guess is a 3.5e doppelganger will be a Medium-Sized Humanoid (Shapechanger) or some similar designation.
Swarm - This is an amalgam of Tiny, Fine, or Diminutive creatures that effectively act as one creature; the swarm "shares" hit points among its members, for instance (so catching the swarm of infernal bees in an area-effect spell does not necessarily mean the end of the swarm since each individual creature has 1 hp; if the swarm has 100 hp, it could "shrug off" a 50 hp lightning bolt and keep fighting - presumably, some of the individual critters in the swarm die, but not enough to negate its efficacy). This is another creature subtype.
Symbiont - Didn't get a chance to check this closely, but I believe it is a creature that "lives" with another creature, perhaps adding a template to it. Again, a subtype.
Extraplanar - Not a "true" subtype in the full sense of the word, this refers to any creature that is not currently on its native plane (e.g., PCs who travel to the elemental plane of fire would be considered "extraplanar") - creatures like giants that are otherwise identical to "prime material plane" giants but that are native to, say, Asgard, would be considered "extraplanar" on the prime. Presumably, this governs creatures that can/cannot be banished, et al with spells like Holy Word.
Just a few random tidbits if anyone cares. Also, I saw a mockup of the new 3.5e PH Cover. It looks similar to the current cover, but with 6 "spheres" of gold surrounding the sword on the front, and some more goldwork and "faux gems" as well (IIRC, the spheres were arranged at 30, 90, 150, 210, 270, and 330 degrees around the sword, and the additional "goldwork with gems" stretched thenceforth with "channels" running at 90 and 270 degrees, splitting off from one red gem into three other channels, each containing red gems (the angle of split was that one line continued in the original direction and the others looked to be 30-degree angles or so).
It looks more garish than the 3e PHB, but also a bit uglier IMO.
Then again, it could be just a "test piece" - the cover was "contact-papered" onto a 3e PHB and in a glass case with a bunch of other stuff in there as well, so there was no opportunity for close inspection.
--The Sigil
Shapechanger - This is changed in the FF from a creature type to a subtype - in other words, there are now 11 creature types instead of 13 (Beast is also gone). Hence, my guess is a 3.5e doppelganger will be a Medium-Sized Humanoid (Shapechanger) or some similar designation.
Swarm - This is an amalgam of Tiny, Fine, or Diminutive creatures that effectively act as one creature; the swarm "shares" hit points among its members, for instance (so catching the swarm of infernal bees in an area-effect spell does not necessarily mean the end of the swarm since each individual creature has 1 hp; if the swarm has 100 hp, it could "shrug off" a 50 hp lightning bolt and keep fighting - presumably, some of the individual critters in the swarm die, but not enough to negate its efficacy). This is another creature subtype.
Symbiont - Didn't get a chance to check this closely, but I believe it is a creature that "lives" with another creature, perhaps adding a template to it. Again, a subtype.
Extraplanar - Not a "true" subtype in the full sense of the word, this refers to any creature that is not currently on its native plane (e.g., PCs who travel to the elemental plane of fire would be considered "extraplanar") - creatures like giants that are otherwise identical to "prime material plane" giants but that are native to, say, Asgard, would be considered "extraplanar" on the prime. Presumably, this governs creatures that can/cannot be banished, et al with spells like Holy Word.
Just a few random tidbits if anyone cares. Also, I saw a mockup of the new 3.5e PH Cover. It looks similar to the current cover, but with 6 "spheres" of gold surrounding the sword on the front, and some more goldwork and "faux gems" as well (IIRC, the spheres were arranged at 30, 90, 150, 210, 270, and 330 degrees around the sword, and the additional "goldwork with gems" stretched thenceforth with "channels" running at 90 and 270 degrees, splitting off from one red gem into three other channels, each containing red gems (the angle of split was that one line continued in the original direction and the others looked to be 30-degree angles or so).
It looks more garish than the 3e PHB, but also a bit uglier IMO.
Then again, it could be just a "test piece" - the cover was "contact-papered" onto a 3e PHB and in a glass case with a bunch of other stuff in there as well, so there was no opportunity for close inspection.
--The Sigil
).
