Those deadly bodaks

[Ormraxes]

This came up the other day. In Monster Manual it says that the bodak has a death gaze. In the description it says: Death, range 30 feet, blah blah blah. Is this mention of death simply the effect of the gaze, or the death descriptor? Would a Death Ward protect against this? I don't have the MM2, so maybe someone could tell me if the banshee's wail is clearer on this point.

 

[Mr Fidgit]

Death Gaze (Su): Death, range 30 feet, Fort negates DC 15. Humanoids who die from this attack are transformed into bodaks in one day.

and that's it. i don't have MMII, so i can't help you there

 

[hong]

This came up the other day. In Monster Manual it says that the bodak has a death gaze. In the description it says: Death, range 30 feet, blah blah blah. Is this mention of death simply the effect of the gaze, or the death descriptor? Would a Death Ward protect against this?

The gaze kills you, just like it says. Can't be much clearer than that. While it doesn't have the death descriptor, it certainly wouldn't be out of line to let death ward protect against it.

 

[(Psi)SeveredHead]

It's a magical death effect, so yes, Death Ward will save you.

 

[kreynolds]

i don't have MMII, so i can't help you there

MMI, not MMII.

 

[JChung2003]

The original poster mentioned MMII, because he wanted to know if the entry for the banshee in MMII had anything to say about her wail having the Death descriptor.

Here's the MMII entry for the banshee's wail:

Wail (Su): During the night, a banshee can loose a deadly wail. This attack can slay up to eighteen living creatures within a 30-foot spread centered on the banshee, or within a 60-foot cone extending from the banshee, at the creature's option. A successful Fortitude save (DC 26) negates the effect. Once a banshee wails, it must wait 1d4 rounds before it can do so again, and it can wail no more than three times per day.

I agree with the others: Death Ward protects against Death Gaze and Wail since both are "magical death effects." Supernatural abilities do not function in antimagic fields so that would seem to imply that they are magical in nature (as opposed to extraordinary abilities, which are not magical in nature).