New and Improved Iconic Creature
A bit of lore from my WraithswordTM campaign...
From the pages of the lore-keepers at the college of Sorânor in the City of Endless Light, Solarus:
The True Gorgons, or Fear Casters, are a wicked race of female serpents with awful powers and access to witchery magic. These foul hags have the bodies of giant snakes but the torso of female humans, all covered in scales. They are certainly not lovely, as their presence can cause fear: those who look upon the true gorgon must reach done deep inside and make a gut check of tremendous will or be over come with fear so terrible they are literally frozen and watch the gorgon in horror. Many a stalwart hero has been over come with fear and stood in place paralyzed fully aware of the gorgon as she consumed him.
It is said the powers of fear can even affect victims from a distance. Those that hear the fear caster still must resist the urge to run, and those who see the gorgon also suffer from permanent mental scarring do to the trauma produced from facing such overwhelming fear.
The magical powers are to be feared also. True gorgons have the ability to project their will into a victim overcome with fear and force the individual to watch as they commit great acts of evil. Many gorgons are also witches and manifest witchery powers.
As the pinnacle of the gorgon race, these are creatures to be avoided. If you enter a forgotten crypt and hear the evil and unholy laugh of a hissing woman: Run. Run fast.
True Gorgon:
Medusa (the original with the serpents body, as taken from the Tome of Horrors)
Replace the “Turn to Stone” with just a “Paralyzed with Fear” ability that only requires you to see her.
Add a ranged minor fear or run away affect
Remove the poison snakes for hair
Add the ghost template, without the incorporeal ability, undead traits, and keep the hit dice the same (These are not undead after all, we are just using the template)
From the template, make sure to keep the manifest ability and the ability to drain Cha, Wis, and Int to represent the scarring from overwhelming fear
Add at least one level of Witch from Arcana Unearthed. (Use sorcerer for those without AU/AE)
Add colorful flavor text
Mix: Walla! True Gorgon: The Fear Caster.
Final Note. This monster is still similar to the original, so play up the fear and magic in the flavor text. I had my characters really shaken about this monster before they ever even encountered it just from descriptions. A few bodies with twisted faces starring in horror, evil hissing laughter, and random fear checks, as they got close, as if they were being watched and hit with a fear aura. Great fun.
I was so happy with the feel of this monster I created a whole new category of monsters called gorgons and now I’m happily converting Nagas, Hags, and Ophideans to the cause…
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