Fearsome Fiends
Welcome again to From the Workshop, where we showcase a bevy of new magic items, monsters and even alternate class features. Since this week is Demon Week, I thought I would design a new species of demon to unleash on the abyss, as well as a template for mortals that serve demons.
This new species of demon is a close relative to an outsider that, until recently, was classified as a demon: the bebilith.
Terilith
This huge monstrous spider has the face of a tortured human with the mouth parts of a spider. Each of its eight legs end in clawed human hands, which drip with an acidic ichor. Its abdomen bears markings that give it the appearance of a humanoid skull.
Abyssal Rot (Su): A terilith's bite causes a horrible withering and weakening of the flesh, resulting in a hideous melting and foul rotting effect. This catastrophic withering begins on the round the creature is bitten and continues for another 4 rounds thereafter, for 5 rounds of withering in all. Each round the rot persists, the target must succeed on a DC 27 Fortitude save or take 1d4 points of Constitution damage. If the target makes two consecutive saving throws in a row, the effect is cured. Heal can also halt the rot effect. This ability damage doesn’t restore naturally and requires that a remove curse spell be cast in order for natural healing to occur, this doesn’t inhibit magical healing. The save DC is Constitution-based.
Acidic Ichor (Ex): A terilith’s claws constantly secret an acidic ichor which inflicts 1d6 acid damage on a successful hit. This thick ichor sticks to its target, inflicting an additional 1d4 acid damage each round it remains on the target. This acid damage doesn’t stack on multiple hits, so if a creature is hit twice with the terilith’s claw attacks, it still only takes 1d4 acid damage per round. This ichor dries up after 5 rounds and can be scraped off before that with the help of an object as a full round action which provokes attacks of opportunity. The ichor inflicts 1d4 acid damage to the object used to remove the acid.
Dismantling Strikes (Ex): A terilith’s claw attacks inflict damage to both its target and any armor the target is wearing. This damage ignores hardness just like an adamantine weapon.
Greater Penetrating Strike (Su): A terilith's natural weapons are treated as chaotic and magical for the purposes of penetrating damage reduction. Against creatures with the demon or devil type, its natural weapons are also treated as cold iron, good, and silver.
Predatory Ancestry (Ex): A terilith doesn’t count as a demon for the purposes of a bebilith’s penetrating strike special ability.
Relentless (Su): A terilith is constantly under the effects of spider climb and water walk; these abilities cannot be dispelled.
Teriliths are a form of demon closely related to the abyssal predator, the bebilith. Though not much larger than their non-demon kin, they are much more intelligent and will prey on any creature that crosses their path, though their preferred prey are evil outsiders such as demons and devils. Like their bebilith cousins, they will hunt and kill just for their own enjoyment, though they possess more self-control than their bebilith cousins, which allows them to keep lesser demons as servants and minions or even serve as generals for a greater demon’s army. Teriliths are known for slowly devouring those that fail them, keeping them alive for as long as they can in order to prolong their suffering.
The mere presence of a terilith corrupts all those around them, filling them with the urge to kill and maim. When teriliths come to the Material Plane, they come with the sole purpose of creating a swath of death and destruction, taking joy out of killing people themselves or by manipulating mortals into killing their friends and family. The most common sign of a terilith being in an area is a dramatic increase in violent crimes and murders.
Teriliths delight in death in all forms, even their own. Teriliths will usually charge into battle regardless of their own chances of surviving the encounter.
Abyssal Servitor
This human’s eyes glow with a malevolent light and his skin is covered in abyssal runes and glyphs. Though he doesn’t appear stronger than a normal man, he fights with the strength of his demon master.
Abyssal Boon (Su or Sp): See template entry, below.
Abyssal Link (Su): See template entry, below.
Creating an Abyssal Servitor
Abyssal servitor is an acquired template that can be added to any non-outsider corporeal creature with an Intelligence score of 4 or more. An abyssal servitor uses all the base creature's statistics and special abilities, except as noted here.
CR: HD 4 or less, as base creature + 1; HD 5 to 10, as base creature + 2; HD 11 or more, as base creature + 3.
Alignment: Any evil.
Size and Type: Same as the base creature.
AC: Natural armor improves by +2.
Defensive Abilities: Gains darkvision 60 feet; immunity to poison; acid, cold, electricity, and fire resistance 10; DR 5/good (if HD 11 or less) or 10/cold iron and good (if HD 12 or more); and SR equal to creature's CR + 11 (maximum 35). This SR doesn’t apply to the spells and abilities of creatures with the demon subtype. Additionally, an abyssal servitor gains the following.
Abyssal Link (Su): An abyssal servitor’s master can communicate with its servitor from any distance. This ability functions as the spell telepathic bond, except it function even if the servitor and his master are on different planes.
Speed: The base creature’s land speed increases by 10 feet.
Melee: An abyssal servitor gains two claw attacks (each deals 1d4 damage for a Medium creature).
Special Attacks: An abyssal servitor gains the following special attack.
Abyssal Boon (Su or Sp): As a move action, an abyssal servitor can invoke the power of his abyssal master. Abyssal boons have a 70% chance of being successful invoked, a 25% chance of doing nothing, and a 5% chance of inflicting 2d20 points of unholy damage on the servitor that is invoking the boon (this damage bypasses all forms of damage reduction). An abyssal servitor slain by a failed boon immediately rises as an advanced fiendish ghoul with the abyssal servitor template. If slain a second time by a failed boon, the servitor explodes in a fiery burst, inflicting 20 damage that is half fire and half unholy to all creatures within 10 feet of the servitor; a successful Reflex save (DC 10 + 1/2 the servitor’s Hit Dice + the servitor’s Charisma modifier) halves this damage. Abyssal boons can take the form of several effects, as described below.
Abyssal Flight (Su): The servitor gains a fly speed equal to twice his land speed with good maneuverability for 1 minute.
Abyssal Power (Su): The servitor is infused with abyssal power, making him stronger and more durable. The servitor gains a +4 enhancement bonus to his Strength and Constitution (or Strength and Charisma for undead servitors) ability scores for 1 minute.
Abyssal Summoning (Sp): The servitor calls forth a lesser demon to serve him and further his master’s plans. If the servitor is less than CR 11, he can only summon a single demon or fiendish animal whose CR is less than their own CR (maximum CR 10). If the servitor is CR 11 or higher, he can instead summon 1d4+1 CR 10 demons or fiendish animals. The summoned creatures act on the servitor’s next turn and remain for 1 hour. This boon can be used only once per hour.
Abyssal Torrent (Su): The servitor calls forth a torrent of abyssal energy which inflicts 1d6 points of random energy damage per 2 Hit Dice the servitor possesses (minimum 1d6 points of damage) in a 30-foot line; a successful Reflex save (DC 10 + 1/2 the servitor’s Hit Dice + the servitor’s Charisma modifier) halves this damage. To determine the damage type, roll a d4, with a 1 indicating acid damage, a 2 indicating cold damage, a 3 indicating electricity damage, and a 4 indicating fire damage.
Abilities: An abyssal servitor gains a +4 bonus on two ability scores of his choice and a +2 bonus on the other four.
Languages: An abyssal servitor learns how to speak Abyssal, Celestial, and Draconic, if he didn’t already know these languages.