Do You Think Flattery Will Keep You Alive?

Thursday, November 19, 2015

Only one creature could be the winner in this Bestiary 5 throwdown, and with it, five winners of our latest Pathfinder Roleplaying Game hardcover!

Dominating against the Pakalchi Sahkil, the Wyrmwraith emerged the victor in our battle royale! This CR 17 incorporeal undead has a terrifying array of powers at its command, making you long for the days of "just" fighting a dragon for its wealth. Not even dragons are safe from the wyrmwraith, for as much as this undead hates the living, it hates those that remind it of what it lost the most.

Many of you voted in our elimination contest, leading the Wyrmwraith to victory, and for your votes, we promised a signed copy of Bestiary 5, and I'm happy to announce that Thyrion is the winner! We'll be contacting you shortly, and the four winners of the PDF copy are: BelkarBitterleaf, fuzbuckle, Paladinosaur, and Drexer!

And following tradition, here's the complete table of contents for Bestiary 5!

Aatheriexa 7 Abrikandilu (demon) 74 Aerial servant 11 Aether elemental 106–107 Aether wysp 282 Ahkhat 14 Ahool 15 Air veela 264 Air wysp 282 Akaname 16 Amarok 17 Amphiptere 18 Android 19 Anemos 20–21 Animate hair 26 Annihilator (robot) 206 Anunnaki 28–29 Apallie 30 Apkallu 32–33 Apostate devil 78–79 Astomoi 37 Astral dragon 88–89 Bagiennik 40 Balisse (angel) 22 Bat plague swarm 193 Bisha ga tsuku 42 Blightspawn 43 Blood caterpillar 51 Blue whale 276 Bone ship 44–45 Boroboroton (tsukumogami) 252 Brain mole 46 Brain mole monarch 47 Caligni (dark folk) 66 Caller in darkness 48 Cambion (demon) 75 Cameroceras 49 Capramace 50 Celedon 52 Ceratosaurus (dinosaur) 83 Cervinal (agathion) 12 Cerynitis 53 Cetus 54 Chalicotherium (megafauna) 170 Cherufe 55 Chicken (familiar) 112 Choral (angel) 23 Chuspiki 56 Clockwork familiar 57 Corpse lotus 60 Crone queen 61 Crystal golem 126 Cuero 62 Cursed king 63 Cytillipede 65 Danava (titan) 246–247 Death coach 67 Deep merfolk 172 Deep one 68 Deep one hybrid 70 Delgeth 71 Devastator 77 Digmaul 82 Dire polar bear 41 Domovoi (house spirit) 142 Doppeldrek 85 Dragonkin 98 Dream dragon 90–91 Duppy 101 Dvorovoi (house spirit) 142 Dwiergeth 102 Earth veela 264 Earth wysp 282 Echeneis 103 Eclipse giant 121 Egregore 104–105 Elder deep one 69 Emotion ooze 108–109 Empyrean (angel) 24–25 Encantado 110 Esipil (sahkil) 213 Ether drake 99 Etheric dragon 92–93 Etiainen 111 Exscinder (archon) 34 Fastachee 114 Fext 115 Firbolg 116 Fire veela 265 Fire wysp 283 Flying fox (familiar) 112

Flytrap leshy 156 Frog father 117 Gancanagh (azata) 38 Gate archon 35 Gearsman (robot) 207 Gegenees 118 Ghoran 119 Giant assassin bug 36 Giant mantis shrimp 232 Giant muckdweller 175 Giant scarab 221 Giant termite 242 Glaistig 124–125 Goliath frog 117 Gravebound 128 Gray 129 Gray goo 130 Great assassin bug 36 Griefgall 133 Grim reaper 134–135 Grimslake 136 Grioth 137 Gristly demodand 72 Guardian scroll 138 Gunpowder ooze 139 Hag eye ooze 140 Heikegani 141 Heresy devil 80 Hobkins (gremlin) 131 Horn caterpillar 51 Hundun 144–145 Hunter urchin (sea urchin) 223 Ichthyocentaur 146 Isonade 147 Jungle drake 100 Kabandha (cyclops) 64 Kaprosuchus (megafauna) 170 Karkadann 148 Kasa-obake (tsukumogami) 252 Kawa akago 149 Ketesthius 150 Khala 151 Kikimora 152 Kimenhul (sahkil) 214–215 Knight ant 27 Koto-furunishi (tsukumogami) 252 Kurobozu 153 Lamhigyn 154 Lead golem 127 Leechroot 155 Leng ghoul 120 Lesser death (grim reaper) 134 Liminal sprite 158 Lipika (aeon) 8–9 Living mirage 159 Locust plague swarm 192 Lotus leshy 157 Lotus tree 160 Lusca 161 Maharishi manu (manasaputra) 164 Makara (vahana) 262 Manu (manasaputra) 163 Megapon ant 27 Megaprimatus (ape) 31 Mngwa 173 Moa (megafauna) 171 Moon dog 174 Moon giant 122 Muckdweller 175 Mummy lord 176–177 Muse 179 Mutant 180–181 Myrmidon (robot) 208 Narwhal (whale) 276 Nemhain 182 Nightmare dragon 94–95 Ningen 183 Nulmind 184 Nuno (gremlin) 132 Occult dragon 96–97 Ophiotaurus 185 Orang-pendak 186 Ostovite 187 Othaos (aeon) 10 Ovinnik (house spirit) 143 Pakalchi (sahkil) 216 Papinijuwari 188 Penguin (familiar) 112 Peuchen 189 Pharaonic guardian 191 Plagued beast 194

Plankta 195 Plesiosaurus (dinosaur) 83 Polar bear 41 Polong 196 Psychemental 197 Psychepore 198 Putrid ooze 199 Pyrausta 200 Qolok (sahkil) 217 Raelis (azata) 39 Ramidreju 201 Rat plague swarm 192 Red panda (familiar) 112 Reptial (agathion) 13 Reptoid 202 Rhu-chalik 203 Riftcreeper 204 Rishi manu (manasaputra) 165 Roiling oil 210 Rope dragon 211 Sangoi 219 Saxra 220 Scarab swarm 221 Scitalis 222 Seal (familiar) 113 Seilenos 224–225 Seraptis (demon) 76 Sha 226 Shabti 227 Shadow collector 228 Shasalqu 229 Shen 230–231 Skinwalker 233 Solar pitri (manasaputra) 166–167 Somalcygot 234 Spear urchin (sea urchin) 223 Sphinx colossus 58 Storm hag 235 Stormghost 236 Stranglereed 237 Stringy demodand 73 Su 238 Sun giant 123 Swamp mummy 178 Syricta 239 Taxidermic creature 240–241 Termite swarm 242 Terraformer (robot) 209 Therizinosaurus (dinosaur) 84 Thought eater 243 Thriae constructor 244 Thriae dancer 245 Tiyanak 248 Tizheruk 249 Trench mist 250 Trilobite (familiar) 113 Troodon (dinosaur) 84 Tsaalgrend 251 Tulpa 254–255 Turul 256–257 Twilight pitri (manasaputra) 168–169 Uintatherium (megafauna) 171 Undigested 258 Undigested swarm 258 Unfettered phantom 190 Uraeus 259 Urannag 260 Ursikka 261 Vahana 262 Ved 263 Vescavor queen 266 Vescavor swarm 267 Vilderavn 268–269 Vishap 270–271 Vukodlak 272 Wakandagi 273 Warmonger devil 81 Warmonger wasp 274 Water leaper 275 Water veela 265 Water wysp 283 Wihsaak (sahkil) 218 Witchcrow 277 Wizard's shackle 278 Wolliped 279 Wood colossus 59 Wyrmwraith 280–281 Xiao 284 Yangethe 285 Zygomind 286–287

Of course, we won't stop—can't stop—with previewing the amazing art in Bestiary 5!

Illustrations by Wayne England, Ben Wootten, Kent Hamilton, and Jorge Fares

Thank you to everybody who participated in the contest, and until we meet again...

Liz Courts
Community Manager

You Only Die Twice!

Thursday, November 12th, 2015

This is it folks—the final matchup round for our Bestiary 5 previews, and your final chance to get in your votes and a chance to win a copy of Bestiary 5!

Illustrations by Ben Wootten and Jose Parodi

Wyrmwraith CR ??

This ghostly, skeletal creature appears to once have been a dragon, but it is now something far less noble.

CE Gargantuan undead (incorporeal)

Init +16; Senses darkvision 60 ft., lifesense; Perception +38

Aura unnatural aura

Defense

Defensive Abilities channel resistance +4, incorporeal, positive energy transference; Immune undead traits

Weaknesses sunlight powerlessness

Offense

Special Attacks breath weapon (60-ft. cone, ?d? negative energy and 1 negative level), create spawn, ectoplasmic shift, energy drain (? levels, DC ??)

Statistics

SQ phase lurch

Ecology

Ecology any

Organization solitary or cadre (1 plus 2–4 dread wraiths)

Treasure double

Special Abilities

Create Spawn (Su) Any humanoids slain by a wyrmwraith become dread wraiths (Pathfinder RPG Bestiary 281) in 1d4 rounds. Spawn are under the command of the wyrmwraith that created them and remain enslaved until its death, at which point they become free-willed dread wraiths. They don’t possess any of the abilities they had in life.

Divine Dispelling (Su) When a wyrmwraith strikes a creature with one of its claws, that creature is also affected by a targeted greater dispel magic (CL ??th) that can dispel only divine spells.

Ectoplasmic Shift (Su) A wyrmwraith can push through the ectoplasmic veil to temporarily assume a physical form made of ectoplasm. As a swift action, the wyrmwraith can become corporeal for ?d? rounds. It can return to its incorporeal form as a free action. Once its ectoplasmic form’s duration ends, the wyrmwraith can’t assume that form again for ?d? rounds. While in ectoplasmic form, the wyrmwraith loses the incorporeal ability (including its deflection bonus to AC) and gains a +?? natural armor bonus to AC, DR ??/—, a Strength score equal to its Dexterity score, and the phase lurch ability. The AC for a typical wyrmwraith in ectoplasmic form is ??. When in ectoplasmic form, its attacks are Melee bite +?? (?d?+?? plus energy drain), 2 claws +?? (?d?+?? plus divine dispelling), 2 wings +?? (?d?+?), tail slap +?? (?d?+??).

Phase Lurch (Su) A wyrmwraith in ectoplasmic form can pass through walls or material obstacles. It must begin and end its turn outside whatever wall or obstacle it’s moving through. It can’t move through corporeal creatures with this ability, and its movement speed is halved while moving through a wall or obstacle. Any surface it moves through is coated with a thin, silvery mucus that lingers for 1 minute.

Positive Energy Transference (Su) Whenever a wyrmwraith succeeds at a saving throw to resist positive energy damage but still suffers damage, the wyrmwraith can immediately transfer that damage to any dread wraith spawn of its choice with ?? feet that it controls. The wyrmwraith takes any excess damage beyond the spawn’s hit points. Even if the wyrmwraith has no spawn under its control, when it succeeds at its save against a positive energy effect that normally deals half damage on a successful save, it instead takes one quarter damage.

The Wyrmwraith tore through the Deep Merfolk like me at a sushi bar, crushing it by a 2-to-1 margin to win. With a veritable host of abilities at its disposal, not to mention the ability to phase through solid objects, the Wyrmwraith is a mighty opponent, and not one to trifle with.

Pakalchi Sahkil CR ??

Thorny vines with tiny red flowers grow from this emaciated woman and flow like a train behind her.

NE Medium outsider (evil, extraplanar, sahkil)

Init +10; Senses darkvision 60 ft., low-light vision, true seeing; Perception +13

Defense

DR 10/good; Immune death effects, disease, fear effects, poison; Resist cold 10, electricity 10, sonic 10; SR 20

Offense

Special Attacks bleed (?d?), entangling train, look of fear (?? ft., DC ??), spirit touch, sudden strike, thorns

Statistics

SQ easy to call, emotional focus, skip between

Ecology

Ecology any (Ethereal Plane)

Organization solitary, pair, or plot (3–7)

Treasure standard

Special Abilities

Easy to Call (Ex) Sahkils count as having 4 fewer Hit Dice (minimum 2) for purposes of spells or effects that call outsiders, such as planar binding. However, they receive a racial bonus equal to 1/2 their Hit Dice on Charisma checks to break free of planar binding spells and similar effects, and their spell resistance counts as if it were 5 higher for the purpose of breaking free of planar binding spells and similar effects.

Emotional Focus (Ex) Whenever a sahkil casts a spell or uses a spell-like ability or effect with the emotion^UM or fear descriptors that allows a saving throw, the DC is increased by 2.

Entangling Train (Su) Creatures adjacent to a pakalchi must succeed at a DC ?? Reflex save or become entangled in its vines for ? rounds, and count as tethered. Entangled creatures take vine damage automatically each round they’re entangled. Creatures are no longer entangled if the pakalchi moves away. The save DC is Constitution-based.

Look of Fear (Su) A creature affected by a pakalchi’s gaze is panicked for ? rounds and shaken for ?d? rounds thereafter. A creature that successfully saves against this effect is only shaken for ? rounds. The save DC is Charisma-based.

Poison (Ex) Thorns—injury; save Fort DC ??; frequency ?/round for ? rounds; effect ?d? Wis damage; cure 3 consecutive saves. A creature with Wisdom damage from a pakalchi’s poison hears paranoid whispers warning of betrayal. It can’t treat any other creature as an ally or be a willing target for a spell or effect. This is an emotion^UM effect.

Skip Between (Su) Many sahkils can shift between the Ethereal Plane and the Material Plane as a move action. This ability is otherwise identical to ethereal jaunt (CL ??th).

Spirit Touch (Ex) A sahkil’s natural weapons, as well as any weapon it wields, are treated as though they had the ghost touch weapon special ability.

Sudden Strike (Ex) Once per round, a pakalchi can extend the reach of one claw or thorned vine by ? feet as part of a single attack. It can use this ability to threaten additional squares to cause an enemy to provoke an attack of opportunity.

Thorns (Ex) A pakalchi can fling a volley of poisonous thorns as a standard action (make an attack roll for each thorn). This attack has a range of ??? feet with no range increment.

The power of cute was not strong enough to save the Lotus Leshy, and the Pakalchi Sahkil crushed it with the power of its floral arrangement. Against the Wyrmwraith, the Pakalchi's spirit touch will be a great aid against the incorporeal Wyrmwraith—but will it be enough?

Customer Service Representative Diego Valdez: "No contest, the Wyrmwraith wins. The Pakalchi may not be afraid of the undead, incorporeal, dragon because it is immune to fear, but it should be. It should be. A bit of damage resistance barely slows down a dragons jaws."

Designer Mark Seifter: "The pakalchi might have barely knocked off the lotus leshy, but she’s bitten off more than she can chew with the wyrmwraith. As she unloads her attacks against her foe, she finds that it’s basically immune to her entire repertoire, from fear, to mind control, to poison. Bet she wishes she hadn’t given up on that whole psychopomp thing now; she might once have been a morrigna, and then she would have stood a better chance against undead. The best thing she can do here is step between to run away and forfeit the match. Meanwhile, the wyrmwraith’s first breath attack has left her enervated and badly hurt. There’s no chance she’ll survive the wyrmwraith's full attack!"

Now that you've seen the entrants for the Final Round, head on over to the Voting Booth to place your bets! If you vote on a winning creature, you'll increase your chances to win a signed copy of Bestiary 5, or be one of four winners of a digital version! The third round of voting closes at 12:00 PM Pacific time on November 18th, 2015, and remember, each round will give you more chances to win!

Vote Now!

After a late night of journeying in the Wastelands, I'm gonna need a quad-shot, so here's a quad-shot of monster previews!

Illustrations by Wayne England, Jim Nelson, and Dave Allsop

Until we meet again,

Liz Courts
Community Manager

Remember Remember, It's Bestiary 5 This November!

Thursday, November 5th, 2015

With the Round 2 votes in, we're down to the final four in our Bestiary 5 previews! Without further ado, let's get them in our lineup and presented for you to win a copy of Bestiary 5 with your winning votes!

Illustrations by Ben Wootten and Tomasz Chistowski

Wyrmwraith CR ??

This ghostly, skeletal creature appears to once have been a dragon, but it is now something far less noble.

CE Gargantuan undead (incorporeal)

Init +16; Senses darkvision 60 ft., lifesense; Perception +38

Aura unnatural aura

Defense

Defensive Abilities channel resistance +4, incorporeal, positive energy transference; Immune undead traits

Weaknesses sunlight powerlessness

Statistics

SQ phase lurch

Ecology

Ecology any

Organization solitary or cadre (1 plus 2–4 dread wraiths)

Treasure double

A clear winner with over a two-to-one margin, the Wyrmwraith crushed the Thought Eater out of the competition—and given its options, I can only imagine the manner in which it did so... Wait, what is this "phase lurch" ability?

Deep Merfolk CR ??

This gaunt mermaid has a long, semitransparent tail with a vivid red crest and caudal fin.

N Medium humanoid (aquatic)

Init +9; Senses blindsense 30 ft., darkvision 60 ft.; Perception +2

Defense

Defensive Abilities deep dweller, semitransparent; Resist cold 5

Weaknesses light sensitivity

Ecology

Ecology any oceans (trenches)

Organization solitary, family (2–4), or tribe (10–15)

Treasure standard (spear, other treasure)

Mortal flesh meant immortal doom for the Twilight Pitri Manasaputra, and the Deep Merfolk triumphed, though not as overwhelmingly so. The outcome of this match-up between the Wyrmwraith and the Deep Merfolk is going to be in the dark—after all, they are rather sensitive to the light...

Accountant Ashley Kaprielian: "Two creatures of darkness enter this battle. Will the Wyrmwraith’s hate light the way to the merfolk’s demise? Or will the merfolk lead the Wyrmwraith down a false path and give it what it needs the most—the end of its undead existence."

Customer Service Representative Diego Valdez: "A giant green, glowing, skeleton dragon!? Good thing merfolk are good swimmers! I bet undead dragons aren’t bad swimmers themselves though, what with the being undead and not needing to breathe. Goodbye Deep Merfolk!"

Designer Mark Seifter: "It looks like the Deep Merfolk is trying to use its semitransparency ability to hide, but the Wyrmwraith’s lifesense gives it the advantage. While the Deep Merfolk might still manage to get in a lucky sneak attack, all the Wyrmwraith has to do is change from ectoplasmic to incorporeal form for a sure victory."

Illustrations by Jose Parodi and Daniel López

Pakalchi Sahkil CR ??

Thorny vines with tiny red flowers grow from this emaciated woman and flow like a train behind her.

NE Medium outsider (evil, extraplanar, sahkil)

Init +10; Senses darkvision 60 ft., low-light vision, true seeing; Perception +13

Defense

DR 10/good; Immune death effects, disease, fear effects, poison; Resist cold 10, electricity 10, sonic 10; SR 20

Statistics

SQ ???, ???, skip between

Ecology

Ecology any (Ethereal Plane)

Organization solitary, pair, or plot (3–7)

Treasure standard

As Mark predicted, the Su and its whelps were no match for the Pakalchi Sahkil, who tore apart their familial bonds with a whisper. Make no mistake, the Pakalchi Sahkil is poison!

Lotus Leshy CR ??

A plant whose body resembles a blooming lotus flower exudes an air of serenity.

N Small plant (leshy, shapechanger)

Init +6; Senses darkvision 60 ft., low-light vision; Perception +14

Aura tranquility (20 ft., DC ??, 10 rounds)

Defense

Immune electricity, plant traits, sonic

Statistics

SQ ???, verdant burst

Ecology

Ecology warm lakes or ponds

Organization solitary

Treasure standard

The Lotus Leshy won out against the Roiling Oil, and is now head to head against the Pakalchi Sahkil—it's a Battle of the Flowers! The sahkil's poison won't affect the leshy, but will the leshy's aura be enough to deny the sahkil?

Ashley: "This leshy might be small, but it could be the only thing able to sooth the nightmare of this Pakalchi into a sweet dream. The Pakalchi’s thorny vines might squeeze all of the hope out of our little leshy before that’s possible though. This will be a knock-down, drag-out fight between the breaker and the unbroken!"

Diego: "The Pakalchi has those terrifying vines with all the thorns, but really, look at the Leshy. Can even an NE creature bring itself to tear apart something that adorable!? While the Pakalchi is cooing at the cuteness, the Leshy will serenely tear it to bits."

Mark: "The pakalchi is a terror in more ways than one, but the leshy is proving a thorn in her side. The cute contemplative is immune to her fear aura and dominate power, and so it's keeping its distance from her entangling train, dealing with the minor damage from her ranged thorns and pelting her with dream pollen. Eventually she’s going to fall asleep, so I’m tentatively calling this one for the leshy!”

Now that you've seen the entrants for Round 3, head on over to the Voting Booth to place your bets! If you vote on a winning creature, you'll increase your chances to win a signed copy of Bestiary 5, or be one of four winners of a digital version! The third round of voting closes at 12:00 PM Pacific time on November 12th, 2015, and remember, each round will give you more chances to win!

Vote Now!

And here's another trio of monster previews: an aberration, fey, magical beast, and an outsider!

Illustrations by Damien Mammoliti, Alexandru Sabo, Dave Allsop, and Tomasz Chistowski

Until we meet again,

Liz Courts
Community Manager

Let (Im)mortal Combat Continue!

Thursday, October 29, 2015

We've got the results in from Round 1, and we're ready to show off Round 2 of our Bestiary 5 previews—not to mention a chance for you to win a copy of Bestiary 5!

Without further ado, let's show off our winners from Round 1!

Illustrations by Bryan Sola and Ben Wootten

Thought Eater CR ??

A nimbus of glowing, intangible matter envelops this strange skeletal creature with a birdlike beak.

N ??? aberration (extraplanar)

Ecology

Ecology any (Ethereal plane)

Organization solitary or group (1–3)

Treasure none

With your votes, the Thought Eater beat out the Monstrous Humanoid it was paired against! Back into the ocean with you, Monstrous Humanoid! The Though Eater might have some problems with its new opponent, though...

Wyrmwraith CR ??

This ghostly, skeletal creature appears to once have been a dragon, but it is now something far less noble.

CE ??? undead (incorporeal)

Ecology

Ecology any

Organization solitary or cadre (1 plus 2–4 dread wraiths)

Treasure double

The Wyrmwraith crushed the Fey by one of the wider margins in the contest. Sharp-eyed fans may have noticed a glowing green dragon on the cover of the Advanced Class Guide, but now it has stats (and if it has a statblock, you can kill it...right? Guys, where did you go?)

Adam Daigle (Developer): "Dwarfed by the wyrmwraith, the thought eater is going to have to be clever to win this battle of the strange skeletons!"

Mark Seifter (Designer): "A lot of people have been saying that the wyrmwraith's phenomenally greater power level will cinch this fight, and it does have the ACG cover on its side, but fundamentally, this is a creature that detests its own existence, whereas the thought eater, while humble, has a go-getter attitude and isn't afraid to team up with adventurers."

Illustrations by Tomasz Chistowski and Subroto Bhaumik

Deep Merfolk CR ??

This gaunt mermaid has a long, semitransparent tail with a vivid red crest and caudal fin.

N ??? humanoid (aquatic)

Ecology

Ecology any oceans (trenches)

Organization solitary, family (2–4), or tribe (10–15)

Treasure standard (spear, other treasure)

Orthos correctly guessed that the humanoid was an "eel-humanoid mermaid-like thing", and the Deep Merfolk won against Outsider C. No love for creatures of the heavens, it seems—mortalkind wins again! But can it win a second time?

Twilight Pitri (Barhisad) Manasaputra CR ??

Cerulean light surrounds this towering four-armed figure in a vibrant corona.

LG ??? outsider (extraplanar, good, lawful, manasaputra)

Ecology

Ecology any (Positive Energy Plane)

Organization solitary

Treasure none

The Twilight Pitri Manasaputra is not the only manasaputra in Bestiary 5, and many of her abilities tie heavily into elements from Occult Adventures—but to see which ones, she'll have to make it to future rounds!

Ashley Kaprielian (Accountant): "Let's hope that the Twilight Pitri can slap some enlightenment into this Deep Merfolk before she's unmade. The Deep Merfolk is cool, calm, and elusive under pressure though, so this will be an epic battle between these paragons of light and darkness!"

Mark: "Let's face it, I have to give the twilight pitri credit for surviving the destruction of the previous Multiverse, and it could deep freeze the deep merfolk in an instant, but the deep merfolk is a mortal humanoid, so I think she's got this by just exploiting the pitri's aversion to meddling in mortal affairs. The pitri would have done better against the wyrmwraith or pakalchi."

Illustrations by Brynn Metheney and Jose Parodi

Su CR ??

This emaciated quadruped has a mouth full of jagged teeth and a cluster of bald, mewling offspring clinging to its back.

CE ??? magical beast

Ecology

Ecology any forests

Organization solitary, pair, or troop (3–6)

Treasure incidental

Alas, John, the Su stomped Magical Beast A by nearly twice the votes, offering no quarter and certainly no mercy. The fight between "who's art is creepier" is gonna be a tough one with its next opponent...

Pakalchi Sahkil CR ??

Thorny vines with tiny red flowers grow from this emaciated woman and flow like a train behind her.

NE ??? outsider (evil, extraplanar, sahkil)

Ecology

Ecology any (Ethereal Plane)

Organization solitary, pair, or plot (3–7)

Treasure standard

DeciusNero was the first to identify Outsider B as a sahkil fiend, and this particular variant is the pakalchi! I would say this creature is spooky good...but there is nothing "good" about any sahkil!

Adam: "Dragons are always tough contenders, so I'm glad that my pakalchi sahkil beat it in the silhouette round. Now that she's squaring off against the su, a beast one of my PCs squared off against recently, she has to bring it to make it to the next round. I'm confident she'll strike fear into her opponent and pull off a win."

Ashley: "It's a good thing the Pakalchi Sahkil can fight blind, because those whelps have a face only their mother could love. I would be angry all the time too if I had six kids clinging to me. The level of malice in this ring is enough to make even Zon-Kuthon take notice."

Mark: "This one's a slam dunk: The su brings its whole family to bear, using its young as psychic batteries for its magic, but the pakalchi specializes in breaking the bonds between loved ones, so this is the perfect match-up for her."

Illustration by Joshua Meehan and Daniel López

Roiling Oil CR ??

This viscous heap slides like an inky spill. It's the color of a starless night sky, and a thick odor permeates the air around it.

N ??? ooze

Ecology

Ecology any underground

Organization solitary

Treasure none

No tempura for me, alas! The Vermin gets to scuttle back to the ocean in peace and comfort, while the Roiling Oil will slither along to face its next victim!

Lotus Leshy CR ??

A plant whose body resembles a blooming lotus flower exudes an air of serenity.

N ??? plant (leshy, shapechanger)

Ecology

Ecology warm lakes or ponds

Organization solitary

Treasure standard

Dragon78 also correctly identified the Lotus Leshy as our representative flora of Bestiary 5! It's definitely winning in the cute department, but will it be enough?

Mark: "Roiling Oil is an unintelligent ooze and lotus leshy is an adorable plant possessed of mystical wisdom. The ooze might be able to resist the leshy's dream pollen attack, but the leshy is smart enough to keep out of the slower ooze's way and find something to slash it with from afar."

Now that you've seen the entrants for Round 2, head on over to the Voting Booth to place your bets! If you vote on a winning creature, you'll increase your chances to win a signed copy of Bestiary 5, or be one of four winners of a digital version! The second round of voting closes at 12:00 PM Pacific time on November 4th, 2015, and remember, each round will give you more chances to win!

Vote Now!

What's that? You want more creatures in this feature? Well, alright then! Here's a few representatives from the creature types that didn't make it into Round 2.

Illustrations by Ertaç Altınöz, Aleksey Bayura, and Jose Parodi

Until we meet again,

Liz Courts
Community Manager

It's a Fight to the Finish!

Thursday, October 22, 2015

Bestiary 5 is creeping, crawling, slithering, and sneaking its way to you soon—it's time for some previews! But we're gonna shake things up a bit, and give you the opportunity to choose what you want to see, not to mention a chance to win a signed copy of Bestiary 5 when it releases!

If any of you have been to PaizoCon and had a chance to play "Green Blood on a Black Rock", you'll have a great idea of what to expect in this elimination-style event. All of these creatures are brand new, unseen in any of our other books—but this time, we're leaving the choice of which ones you'll get the details on to you! As each round progresses, we'll reveal more information, starting with their name and a full picture.

With that out of the way, let's get ready to rumble, and meet our contestants!

Aberration vs. Monstrous Humanoid, Animal vs. Plant

Our Aberration would love to sit down and think about deep, meaningful topics with you, and our Monstrous Humanoid would love to have a long shuffle on the ocean beach, and it's flora and fauna puttin' up their dukes, and who's gonna win this one: small and fierce, or cute and cuddly?

Construct vs. Outsider A, Dragon vs. Outsider B

Will this crafted being be able to conquer a creature formed from the very fabric of existence, and this is no ordinary Dragon that the Outsider will be facing—but this Outsider has powers at its command that even dragons should fear!

Fey vs. Undead, Humanoid vs. Outsider C

Clearly our Fey might just like to have a good time—will they set the glass down long enough to face against this ferocious four-legged Undead? Mortal pit against immortal: who will win? The candle that burns twice as bright, but half as long, or the embodiment of endless and immutable forces?

Magical Beast A vs. Magical Beast B, Ooze vs. Vermin

We're pitting these two Magical Beasts against each other—time to see who really can conquer mind over matter! I'm pretty sure if you dipped our Vermin in the Ooze, it might make a tasty tempura treat...but I don't think they'd like that much!

What are you waiting for? Place your bets in the voting booth and give yourself a chance to win a signed copy of Bestiary 5—as well as a chance to receive one of four Bestiary 5 PDFs! The first round of voting closes at 12:00 PM Pacific time on October 28, 2015, and remember, each round will give you more chances to win!

Vote Now!

Illustrations by Rogier van de Beek, Alexandru Sabo, and Daniel López

And because I know you've all been super-patient for some art, I'm gonna whet your appetites with a trio of goodies that caught my attention (I blame Diablo III).

Until next week,

Liz Courts
Community Manager