Special Conversion Thread: Lycanthropes and their ilk

[freyar]

Well, I took the Ref save as meaning the victim just gets hit near the eye and can see out of it soon enough that they wouldn't be dazzled that long. But I'm not fussed by it, so 1d4 minutes is ok by me.

 

[Cleon]

Well, I took the Ref save as meaning the victim just gets hit near the eye and can see out of it soon enough that they wouldn't be dazzled that long. But I'm not fussed by it, so 1d4 minutes is ok by me.

Updating the Werepanther Thrall Working Draft.

Is that it apart from the flavour text?

 

[freyar]

I think that's about it.

Flavor: hard taskmasters for their slaves, but slaves themselves to their panther lord. I guess a bit of physical description. Is there much else to say?

 

[freyar]

Any other ideas about flavor?

 

[Cleon]

I think that's about it.

Flavor: hard taskmasters for their slaves, but slaves themselves to their panther lord. I guess a bit of physical description. Is there much else to say?

We've still got the Organization to fill out. I was thinking the "pride" would be all-werepanther, possibly including the panther lord, while the "tribe" would be the pride plus a bunch of slaves.

How about:

Organization: Solitary, gang (2-8), pride (7-16 plus 10% chance of 1 panther lord) or tribe (7-25 plus 1 panther lord and 20-80 humanoid slaves)

 

[Cleon]

Any other ideas about flavor?

Give me a moment or three...

A lithely powerful humanoid with the head, tail and black fur of a panther. It has the claws of a great cat but wields weapons like a human.

Werepanther thralls are humanoids who have been transformed into lycanthropes by a panther lord. They have three forms, of which their hybrid panther-humanoid form is their favorite. Werepanther thralls enjoy taking animal form when hunting or indulging in feline recreations, but usually only take humanoid form to conceal their true nature from outsiders. A thrall's humanoid appearance is drastically altered by its lycanthropy. Its hair and skin have darkened and their features shifted, rendering the thrall nigh unrecognizable to anyone who knew them before their transformation. A dead werepanther thrall reverts to its pre-lycanthropy appearance.

A werepanther thrall's temperament has many of the worst traits of a great cat. Arrogant, secretive, and cruel, they delight in tormenting their victims like a cat playing with a mouse. They also have a feline fastidiousness, and keep their persons and equipment in immaculate order. They rarely fight among themselves, despite their chaotic and evil natures, because of the magical control their panther lord has over them.

These creatures typically live in hidden hamlets. All the menial labour is performed by captured slaves who are savagely whipped at the werepanthers' whim. If they happen to capture a particularly strong individual, that person is usually taken to the panther lord to be transformed into another werepanther thrall.

The werepanther thrall presented here is a 1st-level human warrior using the following base ability scores: Str 13, Dex 11, Con 12, Int 10, Wis 9, Cha 8.

In hybrid and animal form a werepanther thrall is more massive than their humanoid form, weighing roughly 50% more. Their hybrid form is approximately 10% taller than the humanoid form, while their animal form has a body length (excluding tail) roughly equal to the humanoid form's height.

COMBAT
I also fancy rewriting the tactics, but we can leave that for later.

 

[freyar]

Your suggested org line and flavor look good to me! I don't have a problem with the tactics as is, but I'm willing to entertain a re-write.

 

[Cleon]

I don't have a problem with the tactics as is, but I'm willing to entertain a re-write.

Updating the Werepanther Thrall Working Draft.

I don't have a problem with the tactics as is, but I'm willing to entertain a re-write.

How's this for the tactics:

Werepanther thralls prefer to fight with weapons while in hybrid form, but also enjoy the "game" of attacking victims while in panther form. This helps disguise their predations as animal attacks. They fight in human form when they have to keep their true nature secret.

Werepanther thralls tend toward ambush attacks and flanking, they often stalk opponents for hours to assess their strengths and wait for the perfect moment to strike. Werepanthers are likely to cruelly toy with enemies they judge are too weak to threaten them. The thralls' actions are coordinated through the telepathic bond they all have with the panther lord who created them. A werepanther thrall has strong survival instincts and will readily flee a losing fight, but these urges are easily overridden by the commands of its panther lord. A panther lord who's own life is threatened thinks nothing of summoning all its thralls to fight to the death in its defense.

 

[freyar]

The new tactics look fine to me. Are these all done? Ready for the panther lord?

 

[Cleon]

The new tactics look fine to me. Are these all done? Ready for the panther lord?

Yup, I think we can proceed to their boss.