The new Pathfinder Tales novel, The Wizard's Mask, is getting ready to ship out to stores and subscribers! Folks have been asking us for years when we planned on releasing an Ed Greenwood Pathfinder novel, and it's hardly surprising—after all, Ed is responsible for both the Forgotten Realms and Elminster, his wizardly alter-ego who's without question one of the most recognizable characters to come out of fantasy RPGs. Now, at last, all those Greenwood fans will finally get to see what happens when Ed's turned loose in Golarion for a complete novel, and I can safely say that The Wizard's Mask is chock-full of all the crazy action, witty repartee, and detailed world building you'd expect!
The Wizard's Mask is set in the middle of the conflict between authoritarian Molthune and rebellious Nirmathas, with the heroes caught up in a deadly game of espionage and magical missions, and you can read more about it here or check out a brand new free story featuring Tantaerra, the halfling half of its protagonist duo, on the weekly web fiction. Yet the thing I want to talk about today isn't the heroes or their quest, but that awesome cat on the novel's cover!
You see, fiction isn't the only way Ed Greenwood's contributed to the Pathfinder campaign setting. Way back in the Kingmaker Adventure Path, we brought Ed in to help suggest monsters for that AP's bestiary. He came up with a bunch of crazy stuff, but one that stuck in everybody's heads was the dweomercat from Pathfinder Adventure Path #36, a First World creature attracted to magic that has the strange ability to teleport whenever it's targeted by a spell. Naturally, when it came time for Ed to plan out a novel, we were all excited to see the dweomercat step back into the spotlight.
Though native to the First World, dweomercats sometimes pop up in particularly magical areas of the Material Plane as well, having followed the metaphysical scent of magic through planar rifts. While I don't want to give any spoilers about the book, it's safe to say that you'll be seeing plenty of these furry magic junkies in The Wizard's Mask, and they're not nearly as cuddly as they look...
Illustration by Damien Mammoliti
Dweomercat CR 7
XP 3,200
CN Medium magical beast
Init +10; Senses darkvision 60 ft., scent; Perception +16Defense
AC 23, touch 17, flat-footed 16 (+6 Dex, +1 dodge, +6 natural)
hp 85 (10d10+30)
Fort +10, Ref +13, Will +6
DR 5/magic; SR 19Offense
Speed 40 ft.
Melee 2 claws +16 (1d4+2), bite +16 (1d6+2)
Special Attacks dweomer leap, pounce, rake (2 claws +11, 1d4+2)
Spell-Like Abilities (CL 10th)
Constant—detect magic
At will—lesser globe of invulnerability, dispel magic
3/day—dimension door (self only), antimagic fieldStatistics
Str 15, Dex 23, Con 16, Int 13, Wis 16, Cha 16
Base Atk +10; CMB +12; CMD 29 (33 vs. trip)
Feats Dodge, Improved Initiative, Mobility, Spring Attack, Weapon Finesse
Skills Climb +6, Knowledge (arcana) +11, Perception +16, Stealth +19; Racial Modifiers +4 Climb
Languages Common, Sylvan
SQ spell linkSpecial Abilities
Dweomer Leap (Su) When a dweomercat is targeted by a spell or within the area of effect of a spell, it can, as an immediate action, choose to teleport to a square adjacent to the spell's caster, effectively appearing mid-leap and aimed toward the caster. This ability takes effect regardless of whether or not the spell overcomes the dweomercat's spell resistance. If it chooses, the dweomercat can immediately make a full attack against the spell's caster as though pouncing. Using this ability does not provoke an attack of opportunity. If there is no safe space adjacent to the caster—or if the dweomercat chooses—the dweomercat can forgo using this ability.
Spell Link (Su) When a dweomercat is targeted by a spell or within the area of effect of a spell, it can, as an immediate action, forgo its dweomer leap ability to gain an effect related to the school of the spell targeting it. This effect activates before the dweomercat is affected by the spell targeting it and regardless of whether or not the spell overcomes its spell resistance. Each power lasts for 1 minute per level of the spell targeting the dweomercat, until the dweomercat uses this ability again, or until the dweomercat chooses to dismiss the effect as a free action, whichever duration is shortest. This ability does not prevent the spell affecting the dweomercat from taking effect; it only provides an additional benefit.
Abjuration: Gains acid, cold, fire, electricity, or sonic resistance equal to 2 per spell level.
Conjuration: Gains a deflection bonus to AC equal to +1 for every 5 levels of the spell.
Divination: Gains the effects of detect chaos/evil/good/law.
Enchantment: Grants the effects of the spell heroism.
Evocation: Inflicts an amount of damage equal to the spell's level upon the spell's caster.
Illusion: Grants the effects of invisibility. This effect ends as per the spell.
Necromancy: Gains the effects of false life, as if cast by the opposing spell's caster.
Transmutation: Gains an enhancement bonus on its natural weapons equal to +1 for every 5 levels of the spell.Ecology
Environment any forest (First World)
Organization solitary, hunt (2–3), ambush (1–3 dweomercats and 2–12 dweomercat cubs)
Treasure standard
James L. Sutter
Senior Editor/Fiction Editor
