Unless you’ve been trapped in jotund troll’s lair for the past few months, you’ve probably noticed that here at Paizo we’ve been exploring a number of Asian themes for the Pathfinder RPG. From the release of the ninja and samurai alternate classes in Ultimate Combat to the Jade Regent Adventure Path, we’ve definitely had the myths and monstrous challenges of the East on our minds.
To kick off our preview of the soon-to-be-released Pathfinder RPG Bestiary 3, we are going to continue on with that theme and unleash one of the great challenges of the Dragon Empires—the forest dragon!
Just one of a suite of new imperial dragons—serpentine agents of ancient lands and cosmic balance—these fickle and malevolent creatures wind their way through the forest mists. And while they are capable of the wingless flight common to dragons of their ilk, they prefer to hunt on the forest floor, waylaying those foolish enough to trespass upon their emerald domain.
Illustration by Jim Nelson
Young Forest Dragon CR 10
XP 9,600
CE Large dragon (earth) Init +5; Senses dragon senses, tremorsense 60 ft.; Perception +15
Defense
AC 22, touch 10, flat-footed 21 (+1 Dex, +12 natural, –1 size) hp 126 (11d12+55) Fort +11, Ref +8, Will +8 Immune paralysis, poison, sleep
Offense
Speed 40 ft., burrow 20 ft., climb 30 ft., fly 200 ft. (poor) Melee bite +17 (2d6+9), 2 claws +16 (1d8+6), gore +16 (1d8+9), tail slap +14 (1d8+9) Space 10 ft.; Reach 5 ft. (10 ft. with bite and gore) Special Attacks breath weapon (40-ft. cone, 6d6 piercing damage, DC 19) Spell-Like Abilities (CL 11th; concentration +12)
At will—pass without trace Spells Known (CL 1st; concentration +12)
1st (4/day)—obscuring mist, shield
0 (at-will)—ghost sound, read magic, resistance, touch of fatigue
Statistics
Str 23, Dex 12, Con 18, Int 12, Wis 13, Cha 12 Base Atk +11; CMB +18; CMD 29 (33 vs. trip) Feats Improved Initiative, Multiattack, Power Attack, Skill Focus (Stealth), Toughness, Weapon Focus (bite) Skills Acrobatics +10 (+14 when jumping), Bluff +15, Climb +28, Fly –3, Intimidate +15, Knowledge (arcana, nature) +9, Perception +15, Stealth +17, Survival +10 Languages Common, Draconic SQ sound imitation, woodland stride
Bestiary 3 features adult and ancient versions of this dragon and three versions of the other imperial dragons—sea dragons, sky dragons, sovereign dragons, and underworld dragons—as well as rules for you to make your own imperial dragon menace. This monstrous supplement also features a host of other, similarly themed monsters. From a template for the noble guardian foo creatures, to the treacherous spidery jorogumos, to the ancient and otherworldly kami, and a host of new deadly oni, Bestiary 3 has enough monsters to stock an entire Dragon Empires campaign!
Not planning on adventuring in that part of Golarion for a while? Don’t fret. Next week we will be looking at a host of other monsters in Bestiary 3 that we’re sure can find a place in any one of your upcoming adventures. Until then, beware the twisting trail and cunning tactics of the forest dragon!
When we updated the ogre mage for the Pathfinder RPG Bestiary, we did a bit more than just bring his statistics in line with what he should be for a CR 8 foe. We made him into an oni. Alas, we didn’t have room to give oni as a full-on race of evil outsiders proper justice in that book, beyond mentioning that, yes, there were more oni out there.
This Gen Con, with the release of the first installment of the Jade Regent Adventure Path, we’ll be fixing that. Pathfinder #49 features an article about the oni, and for the duration of this Adventure Path, new oni will appear in the Bestiary. (And chances are better than good that you’ll be seeing even more oni near the end of the year!) Pictured here are four of those new oni—the fire yai, ice yai, water yai, and wind yai—oni closely associated with actual giants.
Available mid-August, Cheliax, Empire of Devils is a Pathfinder Companion sourcebook written by a star cast of authors led by Amber Scott (contributor to Dragon magazine, the "Ecology of the Varisians" article for Pathfinder, and Dark Markets, A Guide to Katapesh) and Colin McComb (TSR veteran and a designer for Fallout II and Planescape: Torment). Developed hand-in-hand with the Council of Thieves Adventure Path, Cheliax serves up a big spicy dish of diabolical bureaucracy with its hands around the throat of the common people.
In a land ruled by devil-worshipers, nothing is quite... normal. Basement arenas in slums host cockatrice fights. The elite military forces train against devils to overcome fear. Priests of Asmodeus interpret laws. At the top of the hierarchy, lovely young Queen Abrogail issues orders to the royal scribes, redacting events of the past and issuing new official histories so that eventually all will believe that Cheliax has always been in league with Hell.
As the Pathfinder Companion line is designed to be player-friendly, inside you'll find articles on Westcrown (an excellent source of info for players about to start the Council of Thieves Adventure Path) and the capital city of Egorian, magic items and spells of Cheliax, religion in Cheliax (including how non-Asmodean religions are allowed to exist there), new traits, new combat feats to emulate devil fighting styles, and four fully statted NPCs suitable for contacts, hirelings, or cohorts.
New Blog Entries
