More than Claw-Claw-Bite (CURRENT: The Desiccator)

[Terraism]

I've had some free time lately, and I've been looking through some of my lesser-used (or lesser-read) sourcebooks. This past weekend, it was Libris Mortis, which I'd barely browsed through after I picked it up. Life gets busy sometimes.

Anyway, I really liked some of the stuff I saw in there, especially the monsters section. I wasn't always - or even often - thrilled with the fluff stuff, full-tilt, but almost all of it looked like fun, mechanically, and just had some spark to it that made me want to play around. Long story short, I had the itch to start jotting down some notes about the monsters that caught my eye, and it turned into this.

More than Claw-Claw-Bite is what I'm calling a series of posts that flesh out some of the critters I've found inspiring, throughout various books. I'm not going to include stats - I like these books, after all, and I want to encourage having them. But the idea is to fill in all the neat details about the creature that the woefully short 3.5 (but still better than 3.0) monster descriptions don't. Generally, I'll stay within the original idea for the nature - I'm not trying to change them - but I may add a minor ability or two that doesn't serve much by way of a combat purpose (and thus, didn't need to be included in an experience block a compendium about adversaries).

Okay. I promise these won't have this long of a lead-in from now on. Also, I'm initially posting these on my website, and sometimes they'll go up there a day or two before here. If it's interesting enough you care, anyway. Reserving the rest of this post for an eventual index; the Desiccator comes up next!

 

[Terraism]

Originally posted on Tarkanan.com, on August 1st. (Please note that the site's been acting up a little bit lately; anything other than the first page is gonna look ugly.)

First up on the list is the "desiccator," from Libris Mortis (p. 94). This interesting fellow is the "undead remnants of creatures of elemental water." I'm going with "interesting" here because, well, it may be the only example of an undead elemental out there. That oughta be cool in and of itself. Unfortunately, the desiccator is little more than dry statistics (pun intended). So... creation mechanics and some nifty alternate abilities, coming up!

From Whence it Came
Planar scholars note that most elementals - any extra-planar beings, actually - return to their home plane when killed. As such, they cannot be truly killed while on the Prime itself... which makes the formation of undead elementals a rather atypical event. Desiccators, being a singular elemental type killed via dehydration, are especially rare on the Prime - the confluence of events that are required to ensure their creation isn't something that comes up very often.

To create a desiccator, an elemental with the [water] subtype must be killed in such a way that no fluids are left. This most common method of such an unpleasant death - literal parching - is long-term exposure to heat sources, such as in a desert or volcanic region. It's worth noting that creatures of elemental water - especially pure water elementals - take damage as though in very hot conditions (90 degrees or higher) on any occasion in which they are denied access to any form of liquids for more than twenty-four hours (this means that they take heat damage from a cold - but dry - tundra desert, for example.)

Similarly, magical items such as dust of dryness can force an elemental to rise as a desiccator. Most fire-based magics, however, such as the common fireball, do not create enough lasting heat to result in such a death.

Of course, conditions such as that are exceedingly rare on the Elemental Plane of Water, where these creatures usually make their home (and, as such, can only be made into undead while there). Because of this fact, a [water] creature killed via parching as above while on the Elemental Plane of Water nearly always (90% chance) rises as a desiccator within minutes of its death.

On the Prime, hazardous conditions are more common, but it is extremely unusual for elementals to be in a position where they may become undead. Native creatures with the [water] subtype, of course, may become desiccators when slain in the above methods, or via the create undead spell. Less common, it is possible for an extra-planar elemental to become trapped on the Prime (in something like a dimensional anchor effect,) where they can be killed and raised.

Swing and a Miss!
A desiccator exists solely to quench their unbearable, unnatural thirst, and its abilities - as well as its most common tactics - reflect that. While not mindless, their great need leaves them little room for "reason" or "persuasion" - or even basic planning. Every moment of their existence leaves them thinking, desiring, needing one thing. Liquid. Unless somehow restrained from doing so, they will always attempt to immerse themselves in the closest liquid, whether that be a nearby well, stream... or the pumping blood pounding through the veins of nearby fleshlings.

Unfortunately for these tormented creatures, their undead hunger isn't so easily sated. While they may desire liquid, most cannot begin to quench their thirst. Because the desiccator was once a being of living water, it takes a sort of aqua vitae to sate them. Though their very touch dries liquids around them, it simply shrivels away from their wizened, dry husks. Only liquids taken from living creatures, via their fatiguing touch ability, can benefit a desiccator.

When the desiccator drinks from such a source, the perfect, life-giving water flows through their frame, invigorating and strengthening them. Each fatiguing touch grants the desiccator 5 temporary hit points if the target fails his saving throw. Whenever a desiccator has at least half as many temporary hit points as its normal hit point total, it receives a +4 bonus to both its Strength and Dexterity scores from the renewed vitality, but the desiccating breath ability takes longer to recharge, usable every 1d2+2 rounds. If a desiccator ever has as many temporary hit points as its full normal hit point total, it joyously fades away, dying for the final time in a downpour of muddy water.

Running the Encounter
The desiccator can, as hopefully shown above, have a lot of feel to it. However, much of it may not show up to the players without good solid descriptions. Below are several suggestions on how the desiccator may react or effect its surroundings.

• Minor sources of liquid the desiccator touches, such as grass or small plants, shrivel and die when touched. This includes the surfaces upon which it walks, and so the creature leaves a trail of dead plants in appropriate terrain. This should probably result in a +5 circumstance bonus to Survival checks made to track the creature; increase the bonus by an additional +5 for each size category larger than small.
• Consider giving the desiccator some ability to destroy liquid, as dust of dryness. Something like 1 gallon/round while in contact certainly reflects them sucking it up, and the incredible rate of "evaporation" makes for a heck of a plot hook.
• When hit, a desiccator doesn't react the way most living creatures do. Whereas most would bleed or the like, a desiccator releases a burst of stagnant dust. If it's currently active with a substantial amount of water, it probably sprays forth mud when struck, in wide, sweeping arcs. It's magical, after all - make it descriptive.
• The desiccator might not be absolutely stupid, but it does have a one-track mind. It wants "life water," so have it turn on people who're bleeding. Remember, it does bludgeoning damage, so other injuries may be more likely to cause damage.

So. That's it for today. I may come back and touch this up a bit here and there, but for now, I'm calling it golden.

 

[Terraism]

Figure I'll give it one good bump before going home in tears. Seriously, though, no comments from anyone?

 

[freyar]

Sounds interesting, but I don't have LM... I'm interested in other ecologies, though. (Or you can submit them to WotC's DI!)