Send In The Clowns… (or, Converting the Oddballs)
- Thread starter BOZ
- Start date
Cleon
Legend
The original's "Winged owlbears fight as the wingless variety, utilizing their front claws, sharp beaks, and mighty hug" rather suggests they don't fight from the air, which is hardly surprising considering they're very clumsy fliers (Type E).
That said, feel free to give it Flyby Attack if you fancy it.
Cleon
Legend
Yup, that was my thinking too.
Cleon
Legend
I guess it's done then.
Here's my own homebrew of them, for the sake of comparison:
Owlbear, Winged
Large Magical Beast
Hit Dice: 5d10+20 (47 hp)
Initiative: +2
Speed: 30 ft. (6 squares), fly 60 ft. (clumsy)
Armour Class: 15 (–1 size, +2 Dex, +4 natural), touch 11, flat-footed 13
Base Attack/Grapple: +5/+15
Attack: Claw +10 melee (1d8+6)
Full Attack: 2 claws +10 melee (1d8+6) and bite +8 melee (1d8+3)
Space/Reach: 10 ft./5 ft.
Special Attacks: Improved grab, rend 2d8+9, swoop, tear & bite
Special Qualities: Scent, superior low-light vision
Saves: Fort +8, Ref +6, Will +2
Abilities: Str 22, Dex 15, Con 18, Int 6, Wis 13, Cha 9
Skills: Listen +12, Move Silently +6 (+14 when flying), Spot +8, Survival +3.
Feats: Multiattack, Track
Environment: Temperate forests and mountains
Organization: Solitary, pair, or family (2–5)
Challenge Rating: 4
Treasure: None
Alignment: Always neutral
Advancement: 6–8 HD (Large); 9–15 HD (Huge)
Level Adjustment: —
A creature with the burly body of a grizzly bear and the head and talons of a great owl, with broad wings sprouting from its shoulders. Feathers coat its forelegs and upper body and its hindquarters are covered in fur. The beast's huge eyes seem to shine with murderous fury.
A winged owlbear’s coat ranges in colour from brown-black to yellowish grey; with a black or dull ivory beak. A full-grown male can stand as tall as 8 feet and weigh up to 1,200 pounds.
Like other owlbears, the winged variety can speak a debased form of Sylvan that is nothing but bestial screeches to the untutored ear. They never willingly talk to humanoids.
Combat
Winged owlbears attack prey—any creature bigger than a mouse—on sight, always fighting to the death. Being ungainly but eerily quiet flyers, they usually approach their prey by air, seeking to ambush them with a surprise swoop attack, then proceed to fight on the ground.
They may carry slain or helpless victims back to their nest to feed to their young—a typical winged owlbear can fly while carrying a load of up to 346 pounds.
Improved Grab (Ex): To use this ability, a winged owlbear must hit an opponent up to its own size with a claw attack. It can then attempt to start a grapple as a free action without provoking an attack of opportunity and can proceed to Tear & Bite its opponent.
Rend (Ex): If a winged owlbear hits a single opponent with both its claw attacks, or uses its Tear & Bite special attack (see below), it automatically inflicts an additional 2d8+9 damage.
Swoop (Ex): A winged owlbear can use a dive attack to make two claw attacks against a single opponent, with a +2 bonus on the attack roll but normal damage (+12 melee and 1d8+6 damage for a typical winged owlbear). If both its claws hit it will Rend (see above) for an additional 2d8+9 points of damage.
Tear & Bite (Ex): If a winged owlbear makes a full attack against a single grappled opponent it will automatically Rend its opponent for 2d8+9 points of damage (see above), even if it misses with its claw attacks. Furthermore, it makes bite attacks against grappled foes at its full +9 attack bonus, doing 1d8+6 damage if it hits.
Superior Low-Light Vision (Ex): A winged owlbear can see five times as far as a human can in dim light.
Skills: Winged owlbears have a +8 racial bonus on Listen checks, and a +4 racial bonus on Move Silently and Spot checks.
*When in flight, winged owlbears gain a +8 bonus on Move Silently checks.
Here's my own homebrew of them, for the sake of comparison:
Owlbear, Winged
Large Magical Beast
Hit Dice: 5d10+20 (47 hp)
Initiative: +2
Speed: 30 ft. (6 squares), fly 60 ft. (clumsy)
Armour Class: 15 (–1 size, +2 Dex, +4 natural), touch 11, flat-footed 13
Base Attack/Grapple: +5/+15
Attack: Claw +10 melee (1d8+6)
Full Attack: 2 claws +10 melee (1d8+6) and bite +8 melee (1d8+3)
Space/Reach: 10 ft./5 ft.
Special Attacks: Improved grab, rend 2d8+9, swoop, tear & bite
Special Qualities: Scent, superior low-light vision
Saves: Fort +8, Ref +6, Will +2
Abilities: Str 22, Dex 15, Con 18, Int 6, Wis 13, Cha 9
Skills: Listen +12, Move Silently +6 (+14 when flying), Spot +8, Survival +3.
Feats: Multiattack, Track
Environment: Temperate forests and mountains
Organization: Solitary, pair, or family (2–5)
Challenge Rating: 4
Treasure: None
Alignment: Always neutral
Advancement: 6–8 HD (Large); 9–15 HD (Huge)
Level Adjustment: —
A creature with the burly body of a grizzly bear and the head and talons of a great owl, with broad wings sprouting from its shoulders. Feathers coat its forelegs and upper body and its hindquarters are covered in fur. The beast's huge eyes seem to shine with murderous fury.
A winged owlbear’s coat ranges in colour from brown-black to yellowish grey; with a black or dull ivory beak. A full-grown male can stand as tall as 8 feet and weigh up to 1,200 pounds.
Like other owlbears, the winged variety can speak a debased form of Sylvan that is nothing but bestial screeches to the untutored ear. They never willingly talk to humanoids.
Combat
Winged owlbears attack prey—any creature bigger than a mouse—on sight, always fighting to the death. Being ungainly but eerily quiet flyers, they usually approach their prey by air, seeking to ambush them with a surprise swoop attack, then proceed to fight on the ground.
They may carry slain or helpless victims back to their nest to feed to their young—a typical winged owlbear can fly while carrying a load of up to 346 pounds.
Improved Grab (Ex): To use this ability, a winged owlbear must hit an opponent up to its own size with a claw attack. It can then attempt to start a grapple as a free action without provoking an attack of opportunity and can proceed to Tear & Bite its opponent.
Rend (Ex): If a winged owlbear hits a single opponent with both its claw attacks, or uses its Tear & Bite special attack (see below), it automatically inflicts an additional 2d8+9 damage.
Swoop (Ex): A winged owlbear can use a dive attack to make two claw attacks against a single opponent, with a +2 bonus on the attack roll but normal damage (+12 melee and 1d8+6 damage for a typical winged owlbear). If both its claws hit it will Rend (see above) for an additional 2d8+9 points of damage.
Tear & Bite (Ex): If a winged owlbear makes a full attack against a single grappled opponent it will automatically Rend its opponent for 2d8+9 points of damage (see above), even if it misses with its claw attacks. Furthermore, it makes bite attacks against grappled foes at its full +9 attack bonus, doing 1d8+6 damage if it hits.
Superior Low-Light Vision (Ex): A winged owlbear can see five times as far as a human can in dim light.
Skills: Winged owlbears have a +8 racial bonus on Listen checks, and a +4 racial bonus on Move Silently and Spot checks.
*When in flight, winged owlbears gain a +8 bonus on Move Silently checks.
Cleon
Legend
Donald Duck
Presenting our April's Fool monster for this year:
Walt Disney’s
DONALD DUCK
Written by Tom Moldvay
10th-level fighter/berserker
ALIGNMENT: Neutral good
HIT POINTS: 138
ARMOR CLASS: 4
NO. OF ATTACKS: 3
DAMAGE/ATTACK: 1-6 (+1 or +3)
HIT BONUS: +1 or +3
MOVE: 12"
STRENGTH: 17
INTELLIGENCE: 9
WISDOM: 6
DEXTERITY: 18
CONSTITUTION: 19
CHARISMA: 13
Like many cartoon characters, Donald Duck cannot really be killed. When reduced to zero hit points, he loses interest in the battle and wanders away. He need never make a saving throw, and attacks which require saving throws (even if checking for half damage only) never succeed against Donald. They might produce a visible effect; e.g., poison may turn Donald green for a turn, a fireball may blacken his feathers for a turn, but Donald will then return to normal and be unharmed.
Donald usually wears a blue sailor suit and, while he possesses all the skills one might expect from a sailor, he is an indifferent sailor at best, preferring to remain on land. Donald often delights in playing tricks and practical jokes. He does not, however, take kindly to having the tables turned on him. He has a hair-trigger temper which often sends him into a quacking fury. Even when berserk, he has a +2 bonus both to hit and on damage done (hence the dual statistics). It is left to the DM's discretion to decide when Donald goes berserk.
Donald especially dislikes chipmunks and mountain lions. One of the quickest ways to turn him berserk is to shoot an arrow at him or throw something at his head and then shout: "Hey, Donald, duck!"
From Dragon Magazine #60 (April 1982, Dragon's Bestiary)
Presenting our April's Fool monster for this year:
Walt Disney’s
DONALD DUCK
Written by Tom Moldvay
10th-level fighter/berserker
ALIGNMENT: Neutral good
HIT POINTS: 138
ARMOR CLASS: 4
NO. OF ATTACKS: 3
DAMAGE/ATTACK: 1-6 (+1 or +3)
HIT BONUS: +1 or +3
MOVE: 12"
STRENGTH: 17
INTELLIGENCE: 9
WISDOM: 6
DEXTERITY: 18
CONSTITUTION: 19
CHARISMA: 13
Like many cartoon characters, Donald Duck cannot really be killed. When reduced to zero hit points, he loses interest in the battle and wanders away. He need never make a saving throw, and attacks which require saving throws (even if checking for half damage only) never succeed against Donald. They might produce a visible effect; e.g., poison may turn Donald green for a turn, a fireball may blacken his feathers for a turn, but Donald will then return to normal and be unharmed.
Donald usually wears a blue sailor suit and, while he possesses all the skills one might expect from a sailor, he is an indifferent sailor at best, preferring to remain on land. Donald often delights in playing tricks and practical jokes. He does not, however, take kindly to having the tables turned on him. He has a hair-trigger temper which often sends him into a quacking fury. Even when berserk, he has a +2 bonus both to hit and on damage done (hence the dual statistics). It is left to the DM's discretion to decide when Donald goes berserk.
Donald especially dislikes chipmunks and mountain lions. One of the quickest ways to turn him berserk is to shoot an arrow at him or throw something at his head and then shout: "Hey, Donald, duck!"
From Dragon Magazine #60 (April 1982, Dragon's Bestiary)
freyar
Extradimensional Explorer
Uhhh, I don't think even Santa was this invincible. We should make him really tough and maybe give him rejuvenation, but I don't think I like invicible like this.
Should we give him an SQ that he can't talk intelligibly?
Abilities are spelled out pretty clearly, at least, but we may want to boost Str a bit to go with his likely CR.
Should we give him an SQ that he can't talk intelligibly?
Abilities are spelled out pretty clearly, at least, but we may want to boost Str a bit to go with his likely CR.
Mortis
First Post
I guess he's a humanoid duck (ala Runequest) with 10 levels of Barbarian. Although, given that he has three attacks per round, we should really make sure that he has a BAB of at least 11 - maybe an 11th level of Barb (unless his racial HD gives him another).
Maybe a level or two of Ranger to give him Favored Enemy (Chipmunks and Mountain Lions) - rules wise it should be Animals, but I reckon that's too broad a category.
Mortis
Maybe a level or two of Ranger to give him Favored Enemy (Chipmunks and Mountain Lions) - rules wise it should be Animals, but I reckon that's too broad a category.
Mortis
Cleon
Legend
My preference would be making him effectively unkillable - regeneration plus rejuvenation plus immunity to "Save or Dies".
We could have a few "secret methods" to put him out of the picture, such as:
Some evil mad genius has invented an acid which Toons can't regenerate/rejuvenate from. It's called Dip...
Reducing a Toon to negative hits and using a carefully worded wish/alter reality can transform it into a lifeless painting.
Should we give him an SQ that he can't talk intelligibly?
It's tempting...
Maybe allow an Int check to figure out what he's saying, unless he's in a Quacking Fury?
Yes, that makes sense.
Similar Threads
