Stats for the demon lord Pazuzu
- Thread starter Olrox17
- Start date
Ath-kethin
Elder Thing
You have a couple of typos "Pazuzus" instead of "Pazuzu's" but generally I like it. Is indicating 17th level for the fire bolt instead of describing the amount of damage 5e standard for fiends? I'm away from my book.
Olrox17
Hero
Yeah typos will eventually get fixed
In Out of the Abyss there are several demon lords with cantrips, and they all have a 17th level notice instead of saying the amount of damage, so I just copied that format.
Ath-kethin
Elder Thing
I figured the "17th level" stuff was standard format - there rest of your design was spot on in my opinion.
Anyways, Pazuzu has always been my favorite of these demon lords, and I like your take.
Anyways, Pazuzu has always been my favorite of these demon lords, and I like your take.
Looks pretty good! My only input would be to maybe give him some variant of flyby attack or other mobility-increasing traits, since Pazuzu was described as primarily a demon associated with air and the skies, so you'd think he'd have a great deal of experience with maneuverability. This sort of thing would also help him do hit-and-run tactics in between charming and dominating.
Olrox17
Hero
That's actually a pretty good idea. I might substitute the boring "attack" legendary action with a more fitting flyby. Thanks for the suggestion!
MonsterEnvy
Legend
The 17th level thing means that when Pazuzu casts fire bold it's at 17th level dealing it's max amount of damage of 4d10. If that was not there it would mean that it would only deal 1d10 and be worthless as an attack.
Olrox17
Hero
My reason for not allowing a save on Coercion was that, otherwise, Coercion needs two successful d20 rolls to do anything. First, a failed save for the target. Second, the target needs to hit its ally with the forced attack. It would end up being a very inaccurate power.
On the other hand, it makes sense to have a save (probably a Cha save). Maybe something like this:
Coercion. A creature Pazuzu can see must make a DC 25 Charisma saving throw. On a failed save, the creature must use its reaction, if available, to make a weapon attack or to cast a cantrip against a target of Pazuzu’s choice. Pazuzu decides which weapon or cantrip is used, if several are available. If the creature fails to inflict any damage to the target chosen by Pazuzu, the creature takes 31 (9d6) psychic damage.
In this version of Coercion, a save is allowed, but once the save is failed, damage is guaranteed to happen. I think it might work.
Quartz
Hero
Don't forget that you're forcing a creature to use its one and only reaction. And really, how often will a PC make a DC 25 CHA save? If they're proficient in CHA and have a high stat (bard, warlock, sorceror, paladin) they'll be saving at +9 to +11 at level 20, but that's rolling a 14 or more at best. A 2/3 chance of failure. And what about all the others? Your level 20 fighter or wizard or cleric or barbarian or... is going to be saving at maybe +1 or +2, so will only save on a 20.
Olrox17
Hero
Well, yes, DCs are high, but that's intentional. We're talking about a CR 26, something that even level 20 PCs could lose against. It is not meant to be your average opponent. Without strong backup or powerful magic items, I assume that even an high level party should have a chance to die to a CR 26 legendary demon.
The forced use of a reaction is also intentional, mirroring how spells such as Dissonant Whispers work. The bright side is that if you've already used your reaction for the round, Pazuzu can't target you with Coercion.
dave2008
Legend
Nice work Olrox17. Do you mind if I edit this a bit and use it in my "5e Epic Monster Updates" thread: http://www.enworld.org/forum/showthread.php?468639-5e-EPIC-MONSTER-UPDATES
I would of course credit you and link to this thread as well.
I would of course credit you and link to this thread as well.
Olrox17
Hero
Sure, go for it! I like what you're doing in that thread, and I'd be happy to have some of my work there.
dave2008
Legend
Great! Thank you so much. FYI, I will need to revise it some as my version of Pazuzu is CR 32 or 33 I think.
Olrox17
Hero
No worries, I knew that already. I've checked your thread a couple times in the past. I think I remember you having a similar thread on the old WOTC forums, too.
dave2008
Legend
Yes, I did.
While I hate to bring it up since not every group will have it, Paladins in particular with their aura can add +5 to everyone's saves, which gives pretty much everyone a slim chance, and make those optimized around it have +16 to the roll, which means that they'll make the save more often than not. Additionally, exterior factors like race (elves have advantage against charm saves, for example), items (consumable or otherwise) and spells can probably help mitigate some of it. Lastly, all this really does is increase damage to the team and deprive someone of their reaction. If it were a long-lasting hard CC I'd urge more caution, but I think it's fine for this ability to be above the curve in terms of chance to resist.
surfarcher
First Post
The new version looks like a fairly solid CR26 based on the DMG method.
I suspect in actual play it might be more like a CR24 or CR25 tho.
I suspect in actual play it might be more like a CR24 or CR25 tho.
Olrox17
Hero
Going by raw numbers, you're probably right. However, I wouldn't underestimate the sheer versatility that 1/day wish brings to the table.
