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Message: <blockquote data-quote="dante58701" data-source="post: 3476157" data-attributes="member: 40336">Are the challenge rating and level adjustment right?From THE DREAD CODEX...my personal favorite as a template...THE RED JESTER. It gets a lot of use, though Im sure the challenge rating and level adjustment are way off.Red JesterThis hideous and rotting humanoid is arrayed in brightly colored clothes, floppy shoes, and a bright red jester’s cap complete with jingling bells. The monster has a never-changing smirk or smile on its rotting visage.Red jesters are thought to be the remains of court jesters put to death for telling bad puns, making fun of the local ruler, or dying in an untimely manner (which could be attributed to one or both of the first two). Another tale speaks of the red jesters as being the court jesters of a god of undeath, sent to the Material Plane to “entertain” those the deity has taken a liking to. The actual truth to their origin remains a mystery.While they can be encountered from the coldest to the warmest regions of the world and on any type of terrain, a red jester is generally encountered near civilized areas. Though it is undead now, the creature still delights in entertaining living creatures through its humor.Red jesters speak Common and at least two other languages and often engage in humor during combat, spilling bad puns and riddles at their opponents. Some red jesters, in an effort to disguise their undead nature, don masks or wear heavy makeup.CombatA red jester opens combat using its fear cackle attempting to affect as many opponents as possible. Those that resist its effects are assailed with its magical playing cards and mace. During the entire combat, the red jester talks, laughs, and tells jokes and riddles.Creating a Red Jester“Red Jester” is an acquired template that can be added to any living creature that was formerly a bard of at least 15th level (referred to hereafter as the base creature).A red jester uses all the base creature’s statistics and special abilities except as noted here.Size and Type: Size is unchanged. The creature’s type changes to undead with the appropriate augmented subtype. Do not recalculate base attack bonuses, saves, or skill points.Hit Dice: Increase all current and future Hit Dice to d12s.Speed: Same as the base creature.Armor Class: The red jester’s natural armor bonus improves by +10 over that of the base creature.Attack: The red jester retains all the base creature’s attacks, and its weapon and armor proficiencies. These attacks retain the same primary or secondary status they had for the base creature. If the base creature possesses at least one mouth but has no natural attack with it, the red jester gains a bite attack with each mouth. The bite attack is primary if the base creature has no natural attacks; otherwise it is secondary. If the base creature possesses at least one arm but has no natural attacks with it, the red jester gains a secondary claw attack with each such limb. If the base creature possesses at least one head but has no natural attack with it, the red jester gains a secondary gore attack with each such head. The red jester can also wield any light mace as a +2 light mace of merriment (see it's Merriment special attack below). Damage: If the red jester gained bite or claw attacks from the application of this template, the base damage for each is as given on the following table.  Size         Bite Base Damage     Claw Base Damage    Gore Base Damage  Fine         1         1 (on crit.)        1  Diminutive     1d2         1        1d2  Tiny         1d3         1d2        1d3  Small         1d4         1d3        1d4  Medium         1d6         1d4        1d6  Large         1d8         1d6        1d8  Huge         2d6         1d8        2d6  Gargantuan     2d8         2d6        2d8  Colossal         4d6         2d8        4d6Special Attacks: The red jester retains all the base creature’s special attacks and gains those described here.- Fear Cackle (Su): A red jester can unleash a fear-inducing cackle as a free action. Anyone within 60 feet that hears it must succeed a Will save or become panicked for 2d4 rounds. Whether or not the save is successful, an affected creature is immune to the same red jester’s fear cackle for one day. The save DC is Charisma-based. - Jester’s Deck (Su): The red jester uses a deck of playing cards in combat that functions as a deck of many things (see the DMG for details). Once per round, as a standard action, the red jester can draw a single card and throw it at an opponent to a range of 20 feet. This requires a successful ranged touch attack. If successful, the card takes effect that round and affects the target just as if he had drawn a card from the deck of many things. A red jester can draw the same card more than once. The playing cards only function in the hands of a red jester. To anyone else, they are merely normal playing cards.- Merriment (Su): If a red jester strikes an opponent with a light mace, the creature must succeed on a Will save or fall to the ground laughing for 1d3 rounds. The opponent is not helpless, but cannot take any action. A mace of merriment functions only in the hands of a red jester. In the hands of any other creature it functions as a masterwork light mace.Special Qualities: The dread ghoul retains all the base creature’s special qualities and gains those described here.- Damage Reduction (Ex): A red jester has damage reduction 10/magic.- Spell Resistance (Ex): A red jester has spell resistance equal to it's Hit Dice +10.- Turn Immunity (Ex): A red jester cannot be turned, rebuked, or commanded.- Unassailable Mind (Ex): Anyone targeting a red jester with a thought detection, mind control, or telepathic ability must succeed on a DC 20 Will save or suffer the effects of an insanity spell (caster level 15th). The save DC is Charisma-based.- Undead Traits: Immune to poison, sleep, paralysis, stunning, disease, death, effects, necromantic effects, mind-affecting effects, and any effect requiring a Fortitude save unless it also works on objects. Not subject to critical hits, subdual damage, ability damage, ability drain, or energy drain. Negative energy heals. Not at risk of death from massive damage, but destroyed at 0 hit points or less. Darkvision 60 ft. Cannot be raised; resurrection works only if creature is willing.Abilities: Increase from the base creature as follows: Str +4, Dex +8, Int +4, Wis +4, Cha +6. As an undead creature, a red jester has no Constitution score.Skills: A red jester gains Balance, Hide, Listen, Move Silently, Perform (act), Perform (comedy), Perform (oratory), and Spot as class skills. A red jester has a +4 racial bonus on Perform (comedy) checks.Feats: A red jester gains Ability Focus (fear cackle), Alertness, Dodge, Improved Initiative, Mobility, and Weapon Finesse as a bonus feats if the base creature did not already have them.Environment: Any.Organization: Solitary.Challenge Rating: +10Alignment: Usually chaotic neutral.Level Adjustment:+15</blockquote>

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