Swimmer Template (Revised)

[Khisanth the Ancient]

CREATING A SWIMMER:
"Swimmer" is a template that may be applied to any corporeal aberration, beast, dragon, fey, giant, humanoid, magical beast, monstrous humanoid, or undead without a swim speed. Humanoids become monstrous humanoids.
Hit Dice: By type.
Init. : -1 due to Dex.
AC: -1 due to Dex.
Speed: Add swim 20 ft.
Attacks:No claws.
Damage:As above.
Abilities: Dex -2
Skills: +8 bonus to Swim due to swim speed
Feats: Flyby Attack can't be taken, even by winged swimmers.
Climate/Terrain: Climate is as base creature; terrain changes to aquatic.
Treasure : No scrolls; otherwise as base creature.
CR: If the creature had claw attacks, -1 (or halved if less than 1), otherwise, no change.

 

[Clay_More]

I can understand the concept, that you want to make a template that adds swimming ability without altering the CR of the creature. Yet, couldnt any creature simply use "Swim" skill to swim?
Might need to add some few regulations on which creatures you can modify (swimming iron golems?)

 

[Khisanth the Ancient]

I changed a few things. No animal, construct, elemental, ooze, outsider, plant, shapechanger, or vermin can be a swimmer. So that gets rid of the iron golem (plus swimming flesh jellies and balors).

 

[Krishnath]

Interresting concept, but it is pretty much the same as the aquatic template (that was cut from Savage Species, but can be found in the unofficial Savage species faq over on the WotC boards).
But I must say that it does not make sense that the creature's Dex is reduced, as swiming creatures tend to be more agile than their landlocked relatives...

<Why do I get the nagging feeling that I know Khisanth the Ancient?>

Later,

 

[Khisanth the Ancient]

Krishnath, do you use the dndadventure.com forums? I'm known as "Flamestrike" there.

Or if you meant you recognized the name, Khisanth was a dragon in Dragonlance : Dragons of Autumn Twilight.

 

[Clay_More]

Might need to add something about HOW they change. Do they grow flippers instead of hands? Or flippers instead of legs?

 

[Krishnath]

Khisanth: Well, I know where the name is from (that book series got me seriously interrested in roleplaying, although I was hooked on Tolkien and Fantasy Movies allready). But I have never been on that particular site, no it is something else... I have the eerie feeling that I have met you somewhere before....

Edit: Not necesserily with that nick of course...

 

[Clay_More]

Arent you on the Realms of Evil ?

 

[Krishnath]

Personally, I have only been to Realms of Evil once... and I have never posted there...

 

[Khisanth the Ancient]

Maybe, the JP Aftermath forums ... or Neopets ...