Hashmalum
Explorer
This is a work in progress. Before moving on to such things as a Master Tonberry PrC and various tonberry-specific feats, magic items, and so forth, I decided to get some feedback on the base creature.
[size=+2]Tonberry[/size]
Small Monstrous Humanoid
Hit Dice: 9d8+90 (130 hp)
Initiative: +6
Speed: 15 ft. (3 squares)
Armor Class: 22 (+1 size, +2 Dex, +9 natural), touch 13, flat-footed 20
Base Attack/Grapple: +12/+5
Attack: Tonberry knife +1 +14 melee (1d3+1/19-20)
Full Attack: 2 tonberry knife +1 +14/+9 melee (1d3+1/19-20)
Space/Reach: 5 ft./5 ft.
Special Attacks: Disrupt summons, everybody's grudge, light of penance, malice, sneak attack +5d6, throat stab, words of bane
Special Qualities: Darkvision 60 ft., dying curse, extreme fortitude, hatred, hold breath, oversoul, rancor
Saves: Fort +16, Ref +5, Will +17
Abilities: Str 11, Dex 14, Con 31, Int 15, Wis 10, Cha 14
Skills: Concentration +22, Hide +14, Move Silently +14, Swim +4, one Craft +14 or one Profession +12
Feats: Weapon Finesse, Weapon Focus (dagger), Improved Initiative, Iron Will
Environment: Underground
Organization: Solitary, trio, or settlement
Challenge Rating: 9
Treasure: Standard, plus tonberry lantern and tonberry knife +1
Alignment: Usually lawful evil
Advancement: By character class
Level Adjustment: ?
You see before you a robed humanoid figure little more than half the height of a human. Its hairless scaly skin is green in color, and a piscine tail is visible extending from the back side of its robe. Two huge pupilless yellow eyes stare you from a face with no nose and a small, fish-like mouth. In one hand, it holds a glowing lantern; in the other, it holds a wickedly sharp knife. The strange creature emits a high-pitched gurgle and shuffles towards you, knife raised to attack.
Tonberries are vicious but cunning and determined opponents who hold a religious grudge against the human-seeming races.
Tonberries prefer to lair in the deserted ruins of humanoid buildings and excavations, but when they cannot find such places they will dwell in underground cavern complexes. Due to the short range of their attacks and their slow movement rate, they prefer cramped spaces, where their foes cannot easily hold back and pepper them with ranged assasults.
Tonberries stand 3 to 3-1/2 feet tall and weigh 60 to 70 pounds.
Tonberries speak Tonberry, Common, and Draconic.
[size=+1]Combat[/size]
Tonberries that have been attacked are loathe to retreat or surrender, due to the extreme hatred they hold towards their assailant. Usually, where there is one tonberry, there are others nearby, and a retreating tonberry will return with others in tow. Tonberries are intelligent and use their special abilities to good effect, but their tactics are to some extent dependent on which of their enemies choose to attack them; the supernatural rancor that fuels their power is dependent on being directly attacked.
Dying Curse (Su): The terrible dark strength of a tonberry's hatred allows it to strike at its enemies even from beyond the grave. When a tonberry is killed, one of its enemies within 60 feet is the recipient of its dying curse. Accursed creatures take an extra 1d6 points of damage from any tonberry's Everyone's Grudge ability; furthermore, any tonberry can tell at a glance how many Dying Curse effects afflict the character. This effect stacks with itself and can only be removed by a properly-worded limited wish, wish, or miracle, by receiving an atonement spell from a tonberry, or by being the target of a tonberry's Oversoul ability (see below). One atonement or limited wish spell removes all instances of Dying Curse on one character, and one miracle or wish spell can remove all instances of Dying Curse from up to one character per caster level.
Extreme Fortitude (Ex): For purposes of its monstrous humanoid Hit Dice, a tonberry's Fortitude save is considered to be its "good" save instead of its Reflex save (already included in the statistics given above).
Hatred (Ex): Due to its incredible hatred, a tonberry adds a bonus to Will saves against attacks made by its enemies equal to its Hit Dice (already included in the statistics given above).
Hold Breath: Due to their aquatic origins, tonberries can their breath for a number of rounds equal to four times its Constitution before it risks drowning (see page 304 of the Dungeon Master's Guide).
Malice (Su): By spending three rounds to focus its anger against a particular foe, a tonberry may make a supernaturally fast attack against that foe on its next turn. This allows the tonberry to make a single attack against the foe as a standard action; the target is denied its Dexterity bonus against this attack. (This allows the tonberry to sneak attack that foe.) During the three rounds of preparation, the tonberry may take no actions other than moving its speed per round towards the target of this ability.
Oversoul (Su): If at least one enemy within 60 feet of the tonberry has 16 or more Dying Curse effects, the tonberry may draw upon the spiritual power of the curses to avenge the defeated tonberries. This is a standard action that gives the tonberry +9d8+90 temporary hit points, a +9 attack bonus, +9 to all saves, and adds +2 to the DC to save against the tonberry's special abilities. Furthermore, the tonberry may use deep slumber (save DC 17), fireball (save DC 17), and poison (save DC 18) at will until the Oversoul condition ends. The Oversoul condition lasts for a number of rounds equal to the number of Dying Curse effects on the character; when the condition ends or the oversouled tonberry is defeated, that number of Dying Curse effects are removed from the character. Oversouled tonberries are worth double XP.
Rancor (Su): As a tonberry is attacked, its preternatual hatred of its foe builds up, and it is this dark emotional energy that fuels many of its most feared attacks. Each tonberry has a rancor level and a rancor target. Once per round, as a free action, a tonberry may designate one enemy that has made an attack against the tonberry since its last usage of the rancor ability as its rancor target. If the new rancor target is not the same as the old rancor target, the rancor level is set to one; otherwise, the tonberry's rancor level increases by one, to a maximum of half the tonberry's Hit Dice. Spell-like abilities with a rancor component reset the tonberry's rancor level to zero when used.
Disrupt Summons (Sp): The tonberry's rancor target suffers a magical assault through the summoning spell that maintains its presence in this plane of existence. The caster of the summoning spell makes a caster level check, opposed by 1d20 + the tonberry's Hit Dice + the tonberry's rancor level; if the tonberry wins this check, the summoned monster takes 9d6 points of damage. This ability's damage is based on the tonberry's Hit Dice. Neither spell resistance nor a saving throw is applicable, but if the tonberry accidentally uses this ability against a creature not summoned by a summoning effect, it does nothing. This ability is the equivalent of a 3rd-level Abjuration spell with rancor and focus components (the tonberry's knife) and a range of 60 feet.
Everyone's Grudge (Sp): The tonberry's rancor target sees visions of his defeated foes, in which any tonberries he might have killed figure prominently, surrounding him on all sides and rending him with knives before fading away. Everyone else only sees a dark cloud that envelops the target briefly and then disappears. For every two Hit Dice that he possesses, the target takes 1d6 points of damage. If the target makes a successful Will save to disbelieve (DC 16 + the tonberry's rancor level), he only takes half damage from Everyone's Grudge. The save DC of this ability is Charisma-based; spell resistance is not allowed. This ability is the equivalent of a 4th-level Illusion (Phantasm, Shadow) spell with rancor and focus components (the tonberry's lantern) and a range of 60 feet.
Light of Penance (Sp): The tonberry's rancor target must make a Will save (DC 16 + the tonberry's rancor level) or be blinded and unable to move; all it can see is the light of the tonberry's lantern and its feet seem rooted to the floor. This effect lasts for 1d4 rounds + a number of rounds equal to the tonberry's rancor level. The save DC of this ability is Charisma-based. This ability is the equivalent of a 4th-level Enchantment (Compulsion) [Mind-Affecting] spell with rancor and focus components (the tonberry's lantern) and a range of 60 feet.
Sneak Attack (Ex): Tonberries have the sneak attack ability of a rogue of a level equal to their Hit Dice; thus, a common tonberry deals +5d6 damage with its sneak attack.
Throat Stab (Su): If the tonberry's rancor target is denied its Dexterity bonus, the tonberry may make a single attack on its rancor target as a standard action to deal damage equal to the target's current hit points. This ability resets the tonberry's rancor to zero.
Words of Bane (Sp): The tonberry's rancor target must make a Will save (DC 16 + the tonberry's rancor level) or have its movement speed reduced by half and suffer a -1d3 penalty to Constitution and Wisdom. This ability does not stack with itself. This effect lasts until removed by remove curse. The save DC of this ability is Charisma-based. This ability is the equivalent of a 4th-level Necromancy spell with verbal and rancor components and a range of 60 feet.
Skills: The tonberry's fishlike tail gives it a +4 racial bonus on Swim checks.
[size=+1]Tonberry Magic Items[/size]
Tonberry magic items are invariably dweomered in such a way that they can adjust their size to suit their user, but only tonberries can use them; the item neither changes size nor functions for any other creature.
[size=+1]Tonberry Society[/size]
Tonberries have little to do with other races. For that reason, tonberries have become skilled at a variety of crafts, including weaving, sewing, tanning, and metalworking. Tonberries also skillfully create several forms of art, including painting, sculpting, and gourmet cooking. Tonberry communities stock ponds full of fish, and also keep bees to produce honey for cooking.
Tonberries have a hereditary kingship, but other positions in tonberry society are by merit. High-ranking tonberries can be distinguished by their crimson robes. Unlike in many other evil societies, tonberry leaders don't consider their followers expendable, and when too many of his followers are killed, a tonberry leader is expected to avenge them himself.
[size=+1]Tonberries As Characters[/size]
Tonberries often become rogues, assassins, or wizards. Tonberry wizards typically specialize in evocation, conjuration, or necromancy--with death spells and curses being particularly favored. Tonberry clerics worship Uggalepih. Tonberry rangers take humanoids as their favored enemies.
[size=+1]The Goddess Uggalepih[/size]
Uggalepih is a lawful evil lesser goddess; her portfolio elements are hatred, vengeance, and tonberries. Clerics of Uggalepih have access to two of the following domains: Death, Hatred (FRCS), and Retribution (FRCS). Uggalepih's favored weapon is the dagger.
The most common ritual performed by worshipers of Uggalepih consists of cutting themselves with their knives and letting the blood flow into a common pool while the officiating cleric chants verses of hatred and revenge; this symbolically binds the worshippers together towards vengeance on their foes and those of the goddess.
[size=+2]Tonberry[/size]
Small Monstrous Humanoid
Hit Dice: 9d8+90 (130 hp)
Initiative: +6
Speed: 15 ft. (3 squares)
Armor Class: 22 (+1 size, +2 Dex, +9 natural), touch 13, flat-footed 20
Base Attack/Grapple: +12/+5
Attack: Tonberry knife +1 +14 melee (1d3+1/19-20)
Full Attack: 2 tonberry knife +1 +14/+9 melee (1d3+1/19-20)
Space/Reach: 5 ft./5 ft.
Special Attacks: Disrupt summons, everybody's grudge, light of penance, malice, sneak attack +5d6, throat stab, words of bane
Special Qualities: Darkvision 60 ft., dying curse, extreme fortitude, hatred, hold breath, oversoul, rancor
Saves: Fort +16, Ref +5, Will +17
Abilities: Str 11, Dex 14, Con 31, Int 15, Wis 10, Cha 14
Skills: Concentration +22, Hide +14, Move Silently +14, Swim +4, one Craft +14 or one Profession +12
Feats: Weapon Finesse, Weapon Focus (dagger), Improved Initiative, Iron Will
Environment: Underground
Organization: Solitary, trio, or settlement
Challenge Rating: 9
Treasure: Standard, plus tonberry lantern and tonberry knife +1
Alignment: Usually lawful evil
Advancement: By character class
Level Adjustment: ?
You see before you a robed humanoid figure little more than half the height of a human. Its hairless scaly skin is green in color, and a piscine tail is visible extending from the back side of its robe. Two huge pupilless yellow eyes stare you from a face with no nose and a small, fish-like mouth. In one hand, it holds a glowing lantern; in the other, it holds a wickedly sharp knife. The strange creature emits a high-pitched gurgle and shuffles towards you, knife raised to attack.
Tonberries are vicious but cunning and determined opponents who hold a religious grudge against the human-seeming races.
Tonberries prefer to lair in the deserted ruins of humanoid buildings and excavations, but when they cannot find such places they will dwell in underground cavern complexes. Due to the short range of their attacks and their slow movement rate, they prefer cramped spaces, where their foes cannot easily hold back and pepper them with ranged assasults.
Tonberries stand 3 to 3-1/2 feet tall and weigh 60 to 70 pounds.
Tonberries speak Tonberry, Common, and Draconic.
[size=+1]Combat[/size]
Tonberries that have been attacked are loathe to retreat or surrender, due to the extreme hatred they hold towards their assailant. Usually, where there is one tonberry, there are others nearby, and a retreating tonberry will return with others in tow. Tonberries are intelligent and use their special abilities to good effect, but their tactics are to some extent dependent on which of their enemies choose to attack them; the supernatural rancor that fuels their power is dependent on being directly attacked.
Dying Curse (Su): The terrible dark strength of a tonberry's hatred allows it to strike at its enemies even from beyond the grave. When a tonberry is killed, one of its enemies within 60 feet is the recipient of its dying curse. Accursed creatures take an extra 1d6 points of damage from any tonberry's Everyone's Grudge ability; furthermore, any tonberry can tell at a glance how many Dying Curse effects afflict the character. This effect stacks with itself and can only be removed by a properly-worded limited wish, wish, or miracle, by receiving an atonement spell from a tonberry, or by being the target of a tonberry's Oversoul ability (see below). One atonement or limited wish spell removes all instances of Dying Curse on one character, and one miracle or wish spell can remove all instances of Dying Curse from up to one character per caster level.
Extreme Fortitude (Ex): For purposes of its monstrous humanoid Hit Dice, a tonberry's Fortitude save is considered to be its "good" save instead of its Reflex save (already included in the statistics given above).
Hatred (Ex): Due to its incredible hatred, a tonberry adds a bonus to Will saves against attacks made by its enemies equal to its Hit Dice (already included in the statistics given above).
Hold Breath: Due to their aquatic origins, tonberries can their breath for a number of rounds equal to four times its Constitution before it risks drowning (see page 304 of the Dungeon Master's Guide).
Malice (Su): By spending three rounds to focus its anger against a particular foe, a tonberry may make a supernaturally fast attack against that foe on its next turn. This allows the tonberry to make a single attack against the foe as a standard action; the target is denied its Dexterity bonus against this attack. (This allows the tonberry to sneak attack that foe.) During the three rounds of preparation, the tonberry may take no actions other than moving its speed per round towards the target of this ability.
Oversoul (Su): If at least one enemy within 60 feet of the tonberry has 16 or more Dying Curse effects, the tonberry may draw upon the spiritual power of the curses to avenge the defeated tonberries. This is a standard action that gives the tonberry +9d8+90 temporary hit points, a +9 attack bonus, +9 to all saves, and adds +2 to the DC to save against the tonberry's special abilities. Furthermore, the tonberry may use deep slumber (save DC 17), fireball (save DC 17), and poison (save DC 18) at will until the Oversoul condition ends. The Oversoul condition lasts for a number of rounds equal to the number of Dying Curse effects on the character; when the condition ends or the oversouled tonberry is defeated, that number of Dying Curse effects are removed from the character. Oversouled tonberries are worth double XP.
Rancor (Su): As a tonberry is attacked, its preternatual hatred of its foe builds up, and it is this dark emotional energy that fuels many of its most feared attacks. Each tonberry has a rancor level and a rancor target. Once per round, as a free action, a tonberry may designate one enemy that has made an attack against the tonberry since its last usage of the rancor ability as its rancor target. If the new rancor target is not the same as the old rancor target, the rancor level is set to one; otherwise, the tonberry's rancor level increases by one, to a maximum of half the tonberry's Hit Dice. Spell-like abilities with a rancor component reset the tonberry's rancor level to zero when used.
Disrupt Summons (Sp): The tonberry's rancor target suffers a magical assault through the summoning spell that maintains its presence in this plane of existence. The caster of the summoning spell makes a caster level check, opposed by 1d20 + the tonberry's Hit Dice + the tonberry's rancor level; if the tonberry wins this check, the summoned monster takes 9d6 points of damage. This ability's damage is based on the tonberry's Hit Dice. Neither spell resistance nor a saving throw is applicable, but if the tonberry accidentally uses this ability against a creature not summoned by a summoning effect, it does nothing. This ability is the equivalent of a 3rd-level Abjuration spell with rancor and focus components (the tonberry's knife) and a range of 60 feet.
Everyone's Grudge (Sp): The tonberry's rancor target sees visions of his defeated foes, in which any tonberries he might have killed figure prominently, surrounding him on all sides and rending him with knives before fading away. Everyone else only sees a dark cloud that envelops the target briefly and then disappears. For every two Hit Dice that he possesses, the target takes 1d6 points of damage. If the target makes a successful Will save to disbelieve (DC 16 + the tonberry's rancor level), he only takes half damage from Everyone's Grudge. The save DC of this ability is Charisma-based; spell resistance is not allowed. This ability is the equivalent of a 4th-level Illusion (Phantasm, Shadow) spell with rancor and focus components (the tonberry's lantern) and a range of 60 feet.
Light of Penance (Sp): The tonberry's rancor target must make a Will save (DC 16 + the tonberry's rancor level) or be blinded and unable to move; all it can see is the light of the tonberry's lantern and its feet seem rooted to the floor. This effect lasts for 1d4 rounds + a number of rounds equal to the tonberry's rancor level. The save DC of this ability is Charisma-based. This ability is the equivalent of a 4th-level Enchantment (Compulsion) [Mind-Affecting] spell with rancor and focus components (the tonberry's lantern) and a range of 60 feet.
Sneak Attack (Ex): Tonberries have the sneak attack ability of a rogue of a level equal to their Hit Dice; thus, a common tonberry deals +5d6 damage with its sneak attack.
Throat Stab (Su): If the tonberry's rancor target is denied its Dexterity bonus, the tonberry may make a single attack on its rancor target as a standard action to deal damage equal to the target's current hit points. This ability resets the tonberry's rancor to zero.
Words of Bane (Sp): The tonberry's rancor target must make a Will save (DC 16 + the tonberry's rancor level) or have its movement speed reduced by half and suffer a -1d3 penalty to Constitution and Wisdom. This ability does not stack with itself. This effect lasts until removed by remove curse. The save DC of this ability is Charisma-based. This ability is the equivalent of a 4th-level Necromancy spell with verbal and rancor components and a range of 60 feet.
Skills: The tonberry's fishlike tail gives it a +4 racial bonus on Swim checks.
[size=+1]Tonberry Magic Items[/size]
Tonberry magic items are invariably dweomered in such a way that they can adjust their size to suit their user, but only tonberries can use them; the item neither changes size nor functions for any other creature.
[size=+1]Tonberry Society[/size]
Tonberries have little to do with other races. For that reason, tonberries have become skilled at a variety of crafts, including weaving, sewing, tanning, and metalworking. Tonberries also skillfully create several forms of art, including painting, sculpting, and gourmet cooking. Tonberry communities stock ponds full of fish, and also keep bees to produce honey for cooking.
Tonberries have a hereditary kingship, but other positions in tonberry society are by merit. High-ranking tonberries can be distinguished by their crimson robes. Unlike in many other evil societies, tonberry leaders don't consider their followers expendable, and when too many of his followers are killed, a tonberry leader is expected to avenge them himself.
[size=+1]Tonberries As Characters[/size]
Tonberries often become rogues, assassins, or wizards. Tonberry wizards typically specialize in evocation, conjuration, or necromancy--with death spells and curses being particularly favored. Tonberry clerics worship Uggalepih. Tonberry rangers take humanoids as their favored enemies.
[size=+1]The Goddess Uggalepih[/size]
Uggalepih is a lawful evil lesser goddess; her portfolio elements are hatred, vengeance, and tonberries. Clerics of Uggalepih have access to two of the following domains: Death, Hatred (FRCS), and Retribution (FRCS). Uggalepih's favored weapon is the dagger.
The most common ritual performed by worshipers of Uggalepih consists of cutting themselves with their knives and letting the blood flow into a common pool while the officiating cleric chants verses of hatred and revenge; this symbolically binds the worshippers together towards vengeance on their foes and those of the goddess.
