If you wouldn't mind taking a look at my NPC and giving your opinion, I'd really appreciate it. I honestly have no experience creating an NPC monster from scratch, so I'm not sure if this is built in a way that justifies it being a an appropriate CR 3 NPC. I referenced the MM to help build it, but honestly, I don't know what I'm doing.
A Carrionette is a CR 1 monster in the Denizens of Dread book. Maligno is a special version of a Carrionette.
Carrionette, Maligno (aka Figlio)
Diminutive Construct
HD: 4d10 (23 hp)
Initiative: +4
Speed: 15 ft.
AC: 14 (+4 Size), Touch 14, Flat-footed 14
BAB/Grapple: +2/-10
Attack: Straight razor +7 melee (1d4-1) or silver needle +7 ranged (special)
Full Attack: Straight razor +7 melee (1d4-1) or silver needle +7 ranged (special)
Space/Reach: 1 ft./0 ft.
Special Attacks: Silver needles, Dancing Touch, Taunting Curse
Special Qualities: Construct traits, Immunity to Magic, Immunity to Cold & Electricity, Animate Toys, Ventriloquism, Unyielding Presence, Darkvision 60 ft
Saves: Fort. +1, Ref. +1, Will +2
Abilities: Str 8, Dex 11, Con -, Int 14, Wis 12, Cha 16
Skills: Climb +11*, Hide +14*, Perform (acting) +7, Perform (comedy) +5
Feats: - Weapon Finesse, Improved Initiative
Environment: Odiare (Demiplane of Dread)
Organization: Solitary or 4-18 Carrionettes
CR: 3
Treasure: None
Alignment: Always chaotic evil
Advancement: By character class
LA: -
Maligno is a 1-foot tall wooden marionette (a puppet controlled by strings). He is painted and carved to look like a happy, friendly little boy. He wears loose green shorts that have suspenderlike shoulder straps (called lederhosen), a white short-sleeved shirt, a long-sleeved jacket, and a cap with a single white feather stuck in it.Maligno’s body and face have dozens of articulated parts. His eyebrows, eyes, lips, mouth, even individual fingers, can all move independently. This gives him great expressiveness and agility.
Maligno’s voice is like that of an eight-year-old boy, pitched high and even a bit shrill. He is a consummate voice actor and basks in the glow of a crowd of childrens attention. Maligno can sound honest, naïve, bullying, petulant, fearful, or just about anything else. He is not able to imitate other people’s voices though.
Maligno is the unique creation of the mad toy maker Guiseppe. Driven by his own demented fantasy of creating a son for himself, Guiseppe crafted a marionette like no other. So strong was Guiseppe’s desire that this puppet actually came to life.
Though the marionette’s body looks like that of an innocent school boy, the puppet is actually a thoroughly selfish and evil creature. Blinded by his paternal feelings, Guiseppe is unable to see the puppet for what he really is.
Guiseppe named the puppet Figlio and showered him with love. Delighted with his work, Guiseppe presented Figlio to the town. While the doll maker adored his creation, most of the townspeople of Odiare did not. The adults didn’t believe in Figlio, and the puppet grew to hate them even more than he hated not being real. His envy, rage, and hatred grew until it included even Guiseppe. But the children of Odiare were a different matter, for they believed in Figlio. The puppet loved the children, for they loved him in return.
The angry puppet coerced Guiseppe into making more Carrionettes (as he called the puppets) and used them to slay all of the adults in Odiare. This caused the town to transport into the demiplane of dread. That night, Figlio renamed himself to Maligno. Maligno discovered that the demiplane of Dread conferred a curse upon him; he alone of all the Carrionettes is unable to inhabit a human body. In fact, any harm befalling Guiseppe seemed to affect Maligno as well.
Maligno abhors his own body and wishes always that he were human. He keeps Guiseppe prisoner, forcing him to make more toys and carrionettes as he needs them. He gives many of these to the children of Odiare as friends and protectors.
COMBAT
Maligno wields a folding straight razor whose blade is a full 4 inches long. He wields it with unnatural viciousness. Like other Carrionettes, he carries ten silver needles that he can use to paralyze the limbs of his victims.
Dancing Touch (Su): When Maligno makes a successful touch attack, the victim must succeed on a DC 15 Will save or be affected as though by Otto’s Irresistible Dance for one round. The save DC is Charisma-based.
Animate Toys (Su): Maligno can animate up to a total of 22 tiny size toys and 2 small size toys with a touch of his hand similar to a permanent Animate Object spell.
Immunity to Magic (Ex): Maligno is immune to any spell or spell-like ability that allows spell resistance. In addition, certain spells and effects function differently against the creature, as noted below.
Spells that contain the [fire] descriptor work normally against Maligno.
An Ironwood spell cast on Maligno gives him a +5 enhancement bonus to natural armor for a duration of 2d6+12 minutes.
A Repel Wood spell pushes Maligno away as if he were a wooden object.
A Warp Wood spell cast on Maligno inflicts 3d6 points of damage and slows him for 3 rounds.
A Wood Shape spell cast on Maligno can be used to inflict 1d8 hit points of damage or repair 1d8 points of damage (caster's choice).
Maligno gets no saving throw against any of these effects.
Taunting Curse (Su): To use this ability, Maligno must select a single target within 120 feet that can hear it and has an intelligence score. Maligno uses a harsh and mocking tone that conveys the insult clearly, whether or not the target can understand the language used. The affected creature must make a DC 15 Will save or become enraged for 1d4+1 rounds. An enraged creature charges Maligno on its next turn, throwing down any ranged weapons, spell components, or other hand-held items it was holding, but retaining its shield and melee weapons, if any. If charging isn't possible, the victim moves to attack Maligno by the shortest possible route. If moving into melee with Maligno proves impossible, the affected creature gets as close as it can, then stands dazed until either it can attack the object of its fury or the effect ends.
Maligno is so adept at cursing that this power can affect a single creature any number of times. Taunting curse is a sonic, mind-affecting ability. The save DC is Charisma-based.
Silver Needles (Su): Maligno carries a quiver of 10 small needles, which he can throw at targets up to 15 feet away. When Maligno throws a needle, a thin silver cord trails behind it, extending from his hand. A needle that hits one of the victims on a successful attack roll is assumed to strike an arm or leg chosen by Maligno. The needles do no damage, but the victim must make a DC 15 Will save. The target limb is paralyzed if the victim fails the save, and the silver cord becomes invisible. If the needle is removed from the limb, the paralyzation ends in 1d4 rounds. Maligno is immune to the paralyzing effect of the needles. Maligno can recover and reuse thrown needles; the needles themselves are nonmagical, serving only as a medium of delivery for the silver cords.
Ventriloquism (Sp): Maligno can cast a ventriloquism spell at will, DC 14 Will/disbelief. His voice is shrill and inhuman, almost a parody of a child’s voice. Caster Level 3.
Unyielding Presence (Ex): Due to his connection with Odiare, Maligno is difficult to utterly destroy. If Maligno is reduced to 0 or fewer hitpoints while in Odiare, he remains alive but cannot move or attack. He can still talk or taunt. Even if his body is destroyed due to a spell effect, he is not utterly destroyed. His creator, Guiseppe, can rebuild his body and, by using a bit of the remains, restore Maligno to that new body. There is probably a way to utterly destroy Maligno, but no one has determined what it is.
* Skills: Maligno receives a +8 racial bonus on Climb checks and a +12 size modifier on Hide checks.
