Derinogen, Aristocratic Mage
Male human aristocrat 2/transmuter 5
Description: Derinogen is a handsome Taldan noble in the prime of his life. His short dark brown hair is rarely ever out of place and complimented by a short-trimmed goatee. He is always dressed in fine regalia with an elegant rapier at his side and accompanied by the scent of exotic perfumes.
All of this is a façade that hides the death he has caused to maintain his status among his peers. Secretly he is taking several types of medication to augment his natural abilities. Derinogen’s experiments have killed and maimed many in the progress of discovering what treatments would be beneficial to him.
To aid his schemes he has used his family’s connections and money to finance a business buying, transporting, and selling various medicines. This allows him to surreptitiously gather many of the materials he needs while funding his experiments.
Motivations/Goals: Derinogen is starved for any sort of attention and has found that, among nobility, nothing grants a man more attention than a handsome face, a swift blade, and a silver tongue. While he had some skill in all of these areas Derinogen required much more. Unfortunately, while he excelled at magical studies, training these abilities took too much effort and moved too slowly for him. Therefore, he turned to creating elixirs and potions to provide more immediate results. To protect himself from unknown side effects he took to testing enhancements on unsuspecting people causing some to die and leaving others crippled.
Schemes/Plots/Adventure Hooks: Derinogen has paid mercenaries to spread several treatments among the people of a small village nearby with the hope of discovering a life extending elixir or at least something useful for maintaining a youthful appearance. Recently this has caused several of the people in town to start rapidly aging. It is up to the party to find the cause and cure before it claims any lives or begins to affect more of the village.
He has just kidnapped another victim off the street in an effort to find something to expand a human’s mental capabilities. Derinogen has already killed half a dozen of his test subjects attempting to improve memory, enhance oratory skills, and awaken the hidden potential to read the minds of others. A companion of the missing person asks the party find the missing person. If the party does not act quickly, they may find the test subject disabled or killed.
The party has come close enough to Derinogen’s schemes for him to believe that they threaten his standing among other nobles. To remove them as a threat he hires assassins to kill the party. If the party accuses him publicly, Derinogen calls them liars and attempts to rally other nobles against them so the city will see the party as villains if they attack him directly. If they wish to take the noble down while maintaining their status, they will need to gather support from other nobles and city officials.
Derinogen, Aristocratic Mage CR 5 [-2 NPC with class levels, +2 aristocrat, +5 wizard]
NE Medium humanoid (human)
Init +3 [+3 Dex]; Senses Perception +0 []
===== Defense =====
AC 17 [10 base, +4 armor, +3 Dex], touch 13 [10 base, +3 Dex], flat-footed 14 [10 base, +4 armor]; (+4 [+4 mage armor] armor, +3 Dex)
hp 48 (2d8+5d6+22)
Fort +3 [+1 wizard, +1 Con, +1 cloak], Ref +5 [+1 wizard, +3 Dex, +1 cloak], Will +8 [+3 aristocrat, +4 wizard, +1 cloak]
Defensive Abilities brooch of shielding
===== Offense =====
Spd 60 ft. [30 ft. base, +30 ft. expeditious retreat enhancement]
Melee +1 rapier +7 [+3 base atk, +3 Dex, +1 enhancement] (1d6 [-1 Str, +1 enhancement]/18-20)
Special Attacks telekinetic fist
Spells Prepared (CL 5th [+5 wizard], melee touch +6 [+3 base atk, +3 Dex], ranged touch +6 [+3 base atk, +3 Dex])
3rd--ray of exhaustion (DC 18 [10 base, +3 level, +5 Int]), slow (DC 18 [10 base, +3 level, +5 Int])
2nd--eagle’s splendor*, fox’s cunning, minor image, scorching ray
1st--expeditious retreat* (2 [+2 wizard school power]), jump, mage armor, shocking grasp (2)
0--detect poison, mending, ray of frost, touch of fatigue (DC 15 [10 base, +5 Int])
*bonus spells from arcane school
Prohibited Schools abjuration, enchantment
===== Tactics =====
Before Combat Given time to prepare, Derinogen casts mage armor, fox’s cunning, and then expeditious retreat.
During Combat Derinogen starts combat by casting slow on as many enemies as possible and then casts mage armor if it is not already active. He likes to use ranged spells like ray of exhaustion and scorching ray on characters that prefer to fight in melee and use melee abilities like shocking grasp and his rapier on characters that fight at a range. Derinogen drinks the elixir of Calistria’s grace if he finds himself outnumbered more than four to one or after taking 10 points of damage in a battle.
Morale Derinogen has no intention of letting himself die, if brought below 16 hit points he drinks his potion of invisibility before running away, casting expeditious retreat to hasten his escape if necessary. He prefers to let the city guard or assassins deal with opponents that have defeated him.
Base Statistics If Derinogen is not under the effects of expeditious retreat, fox’s cunning, or mage armor, his stats change as follows:
AC 13 [10 base, +3 Dex], flat-footed 10 [10 base]; (+3 Dex)
Spd 30 ft. [30 ft. base]
Spells Prepared
3rd--ray of exhaustion (DC 16 [10 base, +3 level, +3 Int]), slow (DC 16 [10 base, +3 level, +3 Int])
0--touch of fatigue (DC 13 [10 base, +3 Int])
Int 17 [15 base, +2 racial]
Skills Appraise +8 [+2 ranks, +3 class skill, +3 Int], Craft (alchemy) +13 [+7 ranks, +3 class skill, +3 Int], Craft (painting) +8 [+2 ranks, +3 class skill, +3 Int], Knowledge (arcana) +10 [+4 ranks, +3 class skill, +3 Int], Knowledge (nobility and royalty) +10 [+4 ranks, +3 class skill, +3 Int], Spellcraft +13 [+7 ranks, +3 class skill, +3 Int]
===== Statistics =====
Str 8 [8 base], Dex 17 [14 base, +1 ability score increase, +2 specialist enhancement], Con 13 [13 base], Int 21 [15 base, +2 racial, +4 fox’s cunning enhancement], Wis 10 [10 base], Cha 12 [12 base]
Base Atk +3 [+1 aristocrat, +2 wizard]; CMB +6 [+3 base atk, +3 Dex]
Feats Agile Maneuvers, Brew Potion, Craft Wondrous Item, Eschew Materials, Scribe Scroll, Toughness, Weapon Finesse
Skills Acrobatics +8 [+2 ranks, +3 class skill, +3 Dex], Appraise +10 [+2 ranks, +3 class skill, +5 Int], Bluff +11 [+7 ranks, +3 class skill, +1 Cha], Craft (alchemy) +15 [+7 ranks, +3 class skill, +5 Int], Craft (painting) +10 [+2 ranks, +3 class skill, +5 Int], Diplomacy +8 [+4 ranks, +3 class skill, +1 Cha], Heal +3 [+3 ranks], Knowledge (arcana) +12 [+4 ranks, +3 class skill, +5 Int], Knowledge (nobility and royalty) +12 [+4 ranks, +3 class skill, +5 Int], Ride +8 [+2 ranks, +3 class skill, +3 Dex], Spellcraft +15 [+7 ranks, +3 class skill, +5 Int], Swim +4 [+2 ranks, +3 class skill, -1 Str]
Languages Celestial, Common, Elven, Osiriani
SQ Arcane bond (+1 rapier), specialist bonus (+2 [+2 wizard] Dex)
Combat Gear +1 rapier, elixir of Calistria’s grace, potion of invisibility, pearl of power 1st-level spell; Other Gear brooch of shielding, cloak of protection +1, signet ring, 19 pp, 10 gp
Elixir of Calistria’s Grace
Aura faint transmutation; CL 3rd
Slot --; Price 200 gp; Weight --
===== Description =====
After drinking this elixir you gain exceptional agility at the expense of your health. You gain a +2 dodge bonus to AC and Reflex saves and you begin taking 2 points of bleed damage. If the bleed damage is healed, you lose the dodge bonuses from this item.
In addition, as an effect of consuming this elixir you automatically contract Calistria’s vengeance, a non-contagious affliction (pg. 389) that acts like a disease with the following effects. Save Fortitude DC 15; Frequency 1 hour/1 day; Effect 1d4 Con damage; Cure 2 consecutive saves
If you are either immune to the disease or bleed damage, you cannot benefit from this elixir.
===== Construction =====
Requirements Craft Wondrous Item, cat’s grace, creator must have 3 ranks in the Craft (alchemy) skill; Cost 100 gp
Director of Game Design
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Well, I am impressed. I cannot really find much of anything wrong with this stat block on a cursory inspection. The skills are right, the hit points include the favored class bonus, the spells are right, and the attack and save bonuses are correct.
I think the background for this villain is a little light, but it would make for an interesting adventure that is not all about combat. I am not 100% sure I buy the motivation, since magic items and spells would cover much of his perceived deficiencies, but this is more of a roleplaying issue than a rules issue.
The new rules object here is also solid. Although the pricing appears to be a rough guess, that is fine since the item comes with some pretty severe drawbacks. I appreciate the correct usage of the new disease rules.
Good work. If I were putting this into an adventure, I would have to do very little work.
My Grade (on a 1-10 scale) is a 9.
Jason Bulmahn
Lead Designer
Paizo Publishing
Joshua, very well done! The boards ate my actual post so you get the short version. I love that you did more than just a simple editorial pass on Derinogen. You tightened him up and played on the strengths. You delivered a marvelous stat block. And you gave us one of his elixers--which I was expecting and which would have gotten you in trouble if you hadnt done as your rules bit. This is an excellent submission and one of the strongest, in my view.
Brilliant!
Derinogen is strongly recommended to advance.
Description:
I like this MUCH better than the R2 version. I know why he's doing this and understand how he got here.
Stat Block:
Looks good. I would have thought he'd carry more potions, though. :)
New Rule:
Nice benefit, wicked drawback, looks clean. Well done!
Rec: advance.
Kobold Press
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Barely 1400 words, so one of the shorter entries. I have to admit I like the concept but I'm starting to be "maged-out" at this point. So many spellcasters in this round...
Anyway, first impressions: I'm delighted that it's a lower-level villain. And you've really honed the concept to a villainous sheen; this guy is a right ruthless bastard, and that's good. I especially like the hook where he calls the PCs liars and uses his political pull to make them suffer for such claims (though the hook is a slightly vague, I have confidence you could pull it off).
I think the tactics are solid if not inspired, and there's only a small bobble with mage armor (is in included in the stats or not? should be clearer). In particular, the equipment is well done (the elixir, of course, but it is also nice to see his arcane bond is with the rapier, for instance).
Most of all, I find myself liking this guy. He has potential as a villain beyond mere moustache-twisting (though there's some of that). For a lower-power villain, that shows real strength in pulling a design together.
Recommendation Short and sweet. Advance, villain!
Contributor, RPG Superstar 2008 Top 4, Legendary Games
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Another one I voted for last round, and I like him again. Low-level wizards are sometimes hard to do as bad guys and really feel satisfied that they'll stand up, but this guy is good (well, he's really BAD, but you know what I mean) and the tactics are well-described and well set up for him to face off against a 4th-5th-ish level party, in particular describing how he goes about doing his badness and how he would respond to different things the PCs might do. I like the elixir too. It's clean and very well done, and on my list to think about voting again.
Marathon Voter Season 6, Dedicated Voter Season 7
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I was hoping you would continue the promise shown with the Hurricane Gloves, and it is nice to see my hopes fulfilled. You may be the only person to get my vote in both round 2 and 3, as 2 of my other votes were stolen by good development. I still have to decide on my 4th vote.
This was one of my favorite entries from last round. And I like what you did this round with him, too...both the revisions and the proper stat-block execution. You were able to show growth and great rules-fu at the same time. Great job! This is a likely vote-grabber for me this round, too.
My two-cents,
--Neil
I'm kind of disappointed in this guy's equipment... His schtick is that he's an evil alchemist. And he has TWO potions and NO alchemical items? No Tanglefoot Bags? No Alchemist's Fire? No Acid? He can craft potions and alchemical substances cheaply, stretching his NPC bucks further. And no poisons? And NO ALCHEMIST'S LAB in his equipment list for 500 gp?
Plus, he's an aristocrat and you left him with normal NPC gear rather than give him PC gear at the cost of +1 CR?
And no leadership feat? No major domo to handle his appointments? No gruff bodyguard? No sycophants singing his praises?
I'm really sorry. Nobody's more into fostering class warfare through gaming than me. I love low level aristocrat villains. You were one of my faves last round, just missing the cut.
Man... if you make it, I hope to see a really kickin' villain's pad.
A minor noble who is seeking self-improvement through magery and arcane experimentation. Low level and pretty solid. A bit short and could have benefitted from fleshing out the fluff. Doesn't wow me, but is solid, and thus rises above most of the competition. 6/10
Last round, this one left far too much work for the GM to fill in the holes ... you did a darn fine job of filling those holes this round :)
I make notes as I go along, anything that strikes me as odd or that I had to go looking up, and in looking at my notes, I have this: please use spacing/hard returns to indicate paragraphs to make your entries easier to read.
And that was it ::laughing::
I do agree that I'd like to see an alchemical lab, and more potions on this boy, though with his write up, I'm not sure he'd really use other alchemical toys.
Good, solid, low level villain. :)
((And it's my bedtime, so more villain commentary tomorrow <G>))
Yes, somewhat lacking in equipment.
I do like that you took this guy to the lower level and thus made him an effective low-level villain, always nice to have those. And I do have a soft spot for alchemists...
You didn't get my vote last round but now you are definitely short-listed. Plus, there's potential for a cool lair for this guy :)
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i already knew who i was voting for. And i almost didn't bother to read this because i really didn't like him in the last round. However a few of my favorites from round two really bit it hard, ctting and pasting instead of improving. None the less i still found 4 that wher up to snuff. Now i have to figure out which one of those 4 is going to get the boot.... BTW, i love that he is low level. A perfect villan that hangs around for a couple of adventures before giving way to the high level baddies. Good show.
I agree with roguerouge. This villain's shtick is that he augments his abilities with alchemy and transmutation, and he uses his social class to make life miserable for the PCs. And yet he doesn't have much alchemical equipment, an alchemy lab, or any more than a handful of potions, and he doesn't have Leadership to represent his bodyguard, retinue and prized sycophants.
On the plus side, his new rule is perhaps my favorite out of the whole lot this round, so kudos for that.
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RPG Superstar 2008 Top 32, 2011 Top 16
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Star Voter Season 6, Star Voter Season 7, Star Voter Season 8, Star Voter Season 9
aka JoelF847
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I wasn't a big fan of Derinogen last round, but overall, I think he's much better executed in R3. I think he's now fine, but he doesn't excite me. It's tough to make a good low level villain, since you can't give him all the bells and whistles that a CR 15+ powerhouse has. At the same time, since you have limited "stuff" to work with, you have to make it all count. My biggest problem with Derinogen is that I don't see him as much of a threat for his CR. I guess against level 2 PCs he might do okay, but beyond that I don't think he's got enough to do in a fight (and sooner or later, it will come down to a fight.)
He's got a lot of debuffing spells, but not much offensively. After he casts his scorching ray and 2 shocking grasps, he is left with his 1d6 rapier. Sure the PCs could be slowed or exhausted, but I have my doubts he could take one down even before the rest of them beat him to a pulp. He could have henchmen, etc, but with his resources as presented, it doesn't seem like he'd have a lot. A lightning bolt instead of the ray of exhaustion would give him a much bigger punch. The only issue I could find with the stat block itself is that he's got a Cloak of Protection +1, when it's clear that he actually has a Cloak of Resistance +1. (I did suggest this as a change for the PRPG, but it's not part of Beta.) He also seems to be missing his spellbook.
Also, while the elixir shows why he's still testing new concoctions (since it seems his best so far/secret weapon has some severe drawbacks), I was definately expecting more from him. Where are his discoveries that help him have a "handsome face, a swift blade, and a silver tongue"? I expected at least a potion of cat's grace and eagle's splendor.
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RPG Superstar 2013
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Dedicated Voter Season 6, Dedicated Voter Season 7, Dedicated Voter Season 8, Star Voter Season 9
aka Steven T. Helt
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Congratulations on Superstar '09 Top 16!
Growth
The changes to the description give added depth, for sure. It's a big improvement and kudos to you.
Mechanics
-To be fair, he can probably get away with CR 4.
-The math seems in line, but I don't feel excited by this villain. Once it becomes combat for the Pcs, he's a little more durable than Sharina. He's really one bad round from dead. I feel I should give him a bit of a break, because we've only seen one of his crazy experimental elixirs, and he's gonna be hopped up on a couple, right?
New Hotness
Good use of the elixir, as that's your villain's schtick. I am not really excited by the specific item you give us, because I'm not thrilled about about combining (essentially) a potion, a poison and a disease into one rules category. But I acknowledge that's a personal thing. The design for the choice you made is tight, and I think pretty balanced. I wonder if it's worth it to a guy with few hp and a +3 Fort save. But I definitely see it as a prototype that gets the party looking for who could make and distribute the elixir that's killing homeless people. Not my thing, but not bad.
Overall
You improved significantly in terms of motivations and personality for Derinogen. I still think the name needs work, but I grant you he's one of the better submissions in the "guy i wouldn't really use myself" category.
It's early, but I'd have to give you my second vote so far.
Top 17 was too long a list for me to go through so I missed 2 votes. This round is only half as long so I am able to read them all. Without further ado, here is my first pick.
Dear Mr. Blazej,
When I suggested for you to polish your next entry, I didn't mean for you to blind me with it.
It seems that you took notes about the R2 comments and made this character into someone one can relate to and despise with delight. You're one of the few entries that took advantage of this round and made his character more plausible. In short, you tightened your character and it shows! Short, sweet and to the point.
IMHO, a low level villain may lack the bluster of a high level villain but if done right, they will be remembered and loved or hated (they are bad guys/gals after all) by all players including the DM, and isn't that what counts? I'd rather remember the time I laughed so hard when the villain died ironically from a potion he drank to escape rather than the time the DM got frustrated looking at a 3 page stat block just to figure out something mundane, causing him to put off the adventure for next time.
Well done, sir! Hoping to see you next round.
Vote: 1 of 4
TL
I just want to point out that Derinogen only has to be a capable threat to a party of 2nd or 3rd level PCs, based on his CR. That should guide your thoughts about his combat-effectiveness.
I just want to point out that Derinogen only has to be a capable threat to a party of 2nd or 3rd level PCs, based on his CR. That should guide your thoughts about his combat-effectiveness.
I don't know about that. He certainly seems credible for his level. I do think that Mr. Helt is right, that a he could have gotten away with a CR 4, but the rules are somewhat vague on mixing PC and NPC class levels.
In fact, my only quibble with this character is that I would like to have seen more potions and Alchemy type wonderous items (dusts, powders, elixers, etc.) in his equipment. It seems to be a big part of what this character is about. A handful of "Alchemical" items would help too: acids, tangelfoot bags, thunderstones, etc.
Overall, I think that this character is extremely well done. I good candidate for one of my precious four votes. :)
Hmmm. I'm in a quandry... which is perhaps the dues I should expect, seeing I wanted some harder choices.
The problem is, this guy doesn't really excite me like perhaps he 'should.'
Like his title suggests, he's a human aristocrat mage. Maybe this reveals a bit too much gonzoid in my heart, but I feel like saying, "Um. Yay." The fact he's trying to improve himself through alchemy kicks him up a notch. That's a good angle. The problem is he's not trying to turn himself into a bug woman who throws fire from her hands, or a superhuman constantly-mutating blob, which are, like, the cool reasons to use alchemy to improve yourself. The fact that there's already another human spellcasting alchemist in the contest who's actually trying to better himself and in the right and proper ways (with extra eyes and mouths,) makes Derinogen less attractive.
Personal Gonzo villain needs aside, his stat block is very competent, crisp, and easy to use. I know what he does, how to use him, and that's better than I can say for a lot of spellcaster villains. Some extra alchemical items might be nice, or a wand maybe, because I forecast him running out of spells quickly when confronted. Still, some minions might help with that too. I'm a bit fuzzy on one thing, though... does fox's cunning give him extra spell slots, because it looks like his sans FC spell list is smaller than it should be, even accounting for spells cast & worn off. I'm relatively sure it doesn't work that way.
Anyway, I've voted for the ones that excite me for whatever reason. I have one last vote, and I think it's going to have to go to the most competently executed stat-block of the remaining entries... and (a couple questions aside,) Derinogen is in the running for that based on a very clear, useable stat block. Good job!
I don't know about that. He certainly seems credible for his level. I do think that Mr. Helt is right, that a he could have gotten away with a CR 4, but the rules are somewhat vague on mixing PC and NPC class levels.
Well, if he's CR4 that's an acceptable EL4 final battle for a party of 1st-2nd level PCs. If he's a CR6, that's an EL 6 encounter that makes for a fine final battle for a party of 3rd level characters. I'm generally looking at Party Level +3 for final battles.
In fact, my only quibble with this character is that I would like to have seen more potions and Alchemy type wonderous items (dusts, powders, elixers, etc.) in his equipment. It seems to be a big part of what this character is about. A handful of "Alchemical" items would help too: acids, tangelfoot bags, thunderstones, etc.
We agree on that point.
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Contributor, RPG Superstar 2008 Top 6
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Dedicated Voter Season 6
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I already loved this guy in round 2, so you should have had an easy job keeping it. And yet you're the only contestant in this round to *keep* my vote, so apparently I'm hard to satisfy :)
This year's contest is making it abundantly clear that we all look for different things in a stat block. I look for clean, clear and simple execution, a stat block that can bring a villain to life without burning up too many column inches. Here we have a suitable low-level villain that doesn't take pages to describe, and with enough personality to serve as a recurring foil. Proof you don't need to be CR 16 to be interesting.
I'm a bit surprised to not see alchemical toys in an alchemist's inventory. While most alchemical items don't play to the caster's strength, antitoxin wouldn't be out of place, and the poor guy could use some alchemist's fire for when the spells are low. But that's a pretty minor quibble.
Like the rules option. Interesting magic items are always welcome.
An easy vote for advancing for me. And as I said, my only repeat vote in the round.
Congratulations, Joshua on making Top 8!!! On to the next round. Goodluck!
