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

More Paizo Blog.
Tags: Aleksey Bayura Ben Wootten Bestiary 5 Bryan Sola Brynn Metheney Community Contests Ertaç Altınöz Jose Parodi Joshua Meehan Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Subroto Bhaumik Tomasz Chistowski
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Cool, though I am disappointed that the dragon or the fey didn't win it's round.


Ah then i'm gonna give myself some credits here, I was right about the Succarath, which is called a Su here, but it's the same monster in mythology.

Can't believe the Mantis Shrimp lost to the Oil Ooze that I even already posted the picture from, thought Mantis Shrimps were popular?

Veela? Is that a Vila with an error in its name?

And is that AWESOME knight a Valravn-thing?

Another Golem, it appears cool though.

My votes go to Thought Eater, Deep Merfolk, Su and the Roiling Oil.

I like the Wyrmwrath, Pakalchi Sahkil and the Lotus Leshy as well. I'm drowning in 4/6 armed women, so that isn't something I want to see winning this competition.

Hardest is the Sahkil vs the Su, but my ultimate favorite in this competition is of course the mythological Su.


Huzzah! I've actually always wanted an eel-like mer-creature so I am totally cool with this =D


Pathfinder Adventure, Adventure Path, Starfinder Adventure Path Subscriber

And I went the exact opposite of MythLord. Give me more outsiders!

Designer

2 people marked this as a favorite.
Quote:
And is that AWESOME knight a Valravn-thing?

The vilderavn (see picture name) is the valravn by its Germanic rather than Danish name (so feel free to call them valravn). It not only has cool art, it has some nasty and interesting powers too. You'll have to wait and find out what they are!


1 person marked this as a favorite.

The knight looking thing is cool.

I vote for Thought Eater, Deep Merfolk, Su, and Lotus Leshy.


I'm really loving how Paizo's artists took the relatively doofy-looking floating duck that the Thought Eater used to be and turned it into something legitimately awesome-looking.


Dragon78 wrote:

The knight looking thing is cool.

I vote for Thought Eater, Deep Merfolk, Su, and Lotus Leshy.

That's actually my votes one-for-one as well.

RPG Superstar 2011 Top 8

Go, wyrmwraith, go! You can do it!

Grand Lodge

Pathfinder Adventure, Rulebook Subscriber

Voted for 7 of 8 winners. :)


Darn it, the celestial lost out. Dang it! :(


Mark Seifter wrote:
Quote:
And is that AWESOME knight a Valravn-thing?
The vilderavn (see picture name) is the valravn by its Germanic rather than Danish name (so feel free to call them valravn). It not only has cool art, it has some nasty and interesting powers too. You'll have to wait and find out what they are!

I knew they were Valravn because of that similar name!

Vilderavn is cool name, so I don't mind!

I think I have a thought on what it's powers are lol :-p Really best artwork i've seen so far for the Bestiary 5!


1 person marked this as a favorite.

I'm likin' it! Not all of my votes made it, but I'm still happy. I only wish the robot-looking construct had won. I LOVE the deep merfolk. All the art is especially incredible, particularly the merfolk and vilderavn. Great work all around, and I'll be excited for what we see next no matter my personal preferences. :)

Sovereign Court

I'm seeing a little Dark Souls inspiration in one of those creatures (The vilderavn).


I would have liked the robot to have won as well.

Community Manager

Dragon78 wrote:
I would have liked the robot to have won as well.

It was so shiny and sparkly! Alas, it was not to be.


Pathfinder Lost Omens, Rulebook, Starfinder Roleplaying Game Subscriber
Steven Simmons wrote:
I'm seeing a little Dark Souls inspiration in one of those creatures (The vilderavn).

Hah yes. The Vilderavn looks VERY much like Artorias of the Abyss.

I mean that in a good way, too.


Any chance we will find out what the names of the losers of round one before B5 comes out?


1 person marked this as a favorite.
Dragon78 wrote:
Any chance we will find out what the names of the losers of round one before B5 comes out?

Then it would not be a competition if the losers are also shown.

The Bestiary 5 comes out in less than a month, you'll find out soon enough.

And seeing to which the robot lost, I should have also voted for the robot.

Dark Archive

Pathfinder Adventure Path Subscriber

Veela? Could one make a half-veela witch? :v

Dark Archive

Pathfinder Adventure Path Subscriber

I always figured the wyrmwrath was merely a ravener. Cool.


Veela are from Harry Potter? They are a siren race? I thought they were another spelling of Vila...

Well maybe they are still related.

Community Manager

3 people marked this as a favorite.

Veela are *in* Harry Potter, but do not originate from Harry Potter. Vila is another spelling of it.


I'm surprised I always thought the wyrmwraith on the cover of ACG was a ravener.

Vilderavn looks very cool.


Roiling Oil... you guys have been watching Creepshow 2 again haven't you? Delightful.


First hit on google was from Harry Potter lol, but i'm glad its the vila from legends! Storm Nymphs all the way! I knew they had many names, but never seen this spelling from them.

I really hope they are like I wished for, dancing into battle with those blades and controlling storms and winds. They already have the right color!

Designer

Milo v3 wrote:

I'm surprised I always thought the wyrmwraith on the cover of ACG was a ravener.

Vilderavn looks very cool.

Without revealing anything directly, the wyrmwraith shares a certain...trait in its art with certain other sorts of creatures you've seen in books that came out after ACG that are similar in particular ways, and this is something that makes the ravener not really a match for the ACG cover.


So The Golem is a construct (robot that was eliminated), the Veela is a fey (clurichaun that got eliminated was fey), but what is the Vilderavn /Valravn?

Vermin and animals were other options that got lost in the competition, but its obviously not that! Monstrous Humanoid me thinks?


Mark Seifter wrote:
Milo v3 wrote:

I'm surprised I always thought the wyrmwraith on the cover of ACG was a ravener.

Vilderavn looks very cool.

Without revealing anything directly, the wyrmwraith shares a certain...trait in its art with certain other sorts of creatures you've seen in books that came out after ACG that are similar in particular ways, and this is something that makes the ravener not really a match for the ACG cover.

I really hope the Wyrmwraith is a spectral/ectoplasmic undead creature and not a skeleton.


Mark Seifter wrote:


Without revealing anything directly, the wyrmwraith shares a certain...trait in its art with certain other sorts of creatures you've seen in books that came out after ACG that are similar in particular ways, and this is something that makes the ravener not really a match for the ACG cover.

Yeah it does look rather phantom.


Pathfinder Starfinder Roleplaying Game Subscriber

Hmm, first we had a male dryad in that Pathfinder Origins comic, now a male veela. More male nymphs in general, a good thing, I think.

Vilde ravn looks like it's going to be great...wonder if it's going to be a magical beast, a monstrous humanoid, or maybe even some sort of native outsider. Probably a shapechanger? Undead seems possible too, I think some myths have them as restless souls that are stuck as ravens until they drink a child's blood to seek redemption? Of course other myths they are just supernatural ravens, or half-wolf, half-raven, so who knows for sure. I think magical beast with shapechanger subtype or outsider with native and shapechanger subtype would be more interesting than undead but we shall just have to see.

Some tough choices, wyrmwraith certainly looks awesome, but I like neutral-ish monsters more since they often fill more roles...though the 3.5 thought eater was kind of lame as I recall, so hopefully Paizo has done a good job fixing it up flavorwise (visually they've done a great job). Deep merfolk is pretty cool but I've been hankering to know more about the manasaputra for awhile, especially with the awesome tidbits in Esoteric Planes section of Occult Adventures. Su versus pakalchi sahkil is also a tough choice, but the concept of a su seems pretty cool even though I am curious about sahkil in general and the vines out of the eye sockets are a nice touch. Definitely disappointed mantis shrimp didn't win...not really a fan of most oozes unless they're intelligent, so I guess it's the leshy by default...


Myth Lord wrote:
Mark Seifter wrote:
Milo v3 wrote:

I'm surprised I always thought the wyrmwraith on the cover of ACG was a ravener.

Vilderavn looks very cool.

Without revealing anything directly, the wyrmwraith shares a certain...trait in its art with certain other sorts of creatures you've seen in books that came out after ACG that are similar in particular ways, and this is something that makes the ravener not really a match for the ACG cover.
I really hope the Wyrmwraith is a spectral/ectoplasmic undead creature and not a skeleton.

It does have the incorporeal subtype, so I don't believe it'll be a skeletal creature, at least not in the corporeal sense. It also looks similar to the ectoplasmic phantoms of the spiritualist class, which may be what Mr. Seifter was referring to.


2 people marked this as a favorite.

The Sahkil looks freaking awesome. Seriously dying to know what their deal is.

Grand Lodge

1 person marked this as a favorite.

I clicked on the Su to see a bigger image. That was a mistake. I CAN NEVER UNSEE THAT. Seriously horrifying. Kudos to Brynn for one of the scariest illustrations I've ever seen.


hMeh. Only two of my votes won. :/ (Lotus Leshy and Twilight Pitri)
My votes this time: Thought Eater, Twilight Pitri, Pakalchi, and Lotus Leshy.


I also thought that it was a Ravener on the ACG cover.

I always thought Vila were female.


Quote:

Then it would not be a competition if the losers are also shown.

The Bestiary 5 comes out in less than a month, you'll find out soon enough.

Paizo Publishing will do what they want so it kinda doesn't matter what any of us think in that regard dude.

Personally though, I wouldn't mind seeing a preview of the celestial's artwork. :D


WHAT?!? I didn't even realized the Veela doesn't have female features! But that is clearly female hair and a female mask?

Is that a transgender creature? (which is cool!)

It looks like a mixture of Vila and Katsura-Otoko (moon-based male nymphs from Japanese myths)


Pathfinder Starfinder Roleplaying Game Subscriber
Dragon78 wrote:

I also thought that it was a Ravener on the ACG cover.

I always thought Vila were female.

Traditionally they are, but at least F. Wesley Schneider seems to think that all-female monster races are getting a little old...and perhaps some other staff at Paizo agree?


A Ghost Dragon is also very cool, reminds me of the old Heroes of Might and Magic days where the Ghost Dragon was the upgrade for the Bone Dragon.

Always wanted a ghost dragon in pathfinder so this one is cool! Finally an undead dragon I can use!

Those eel women are my favorite humanoids, damn that art is pretty!

Same with that plant-trail outsider (I still can't remember the name from and too lazy to scroll up sorry lol) she looks so awesome!

I wonder why they went with the name Su, and not with Succarath? Hope that name is at least mentioned in the description. So it uses its own children to fuel its abilities? That is MORE than awesome! Damn paizo stop making mythology monsters so awesome!

Community Manager

3 people marked this as a favorite.
Myth Lord wrote:
WHAT?!? I didn't even realized the Veela doesn't have female features! But that is clearly female hair and a female mask?

Long hair and masks are not gender-specific, nor is the presence of body jewelry.

Myth Lord wrote:
Is that a transgender creature?

While I'm assuming it wasn't your intent, please keep aware that saying "transgender" and "creature" together can be dehumanizing to those that are trans. Please keep this mind in the future. :)


The Su-Monster? Wow, that's a blast from the past!

That Roiling Oil does remind me of the Black Oil from X-Files ... I can only hope that it's similar. :)


Liz Courts wrote:
Myth Lord wrote:
WHAT?!? I didn't even realized the Veela doesn't have female features! But that is clearly female hair and a female mask?

Long hair and masks are not gender-specific, nor is the presence of body jewelry.

Myth Lord wrote:
Is that a transgender creature?
While I'm assuming it wasn't your intent, please keep aware that saying "transgender" and "creature" together can be dehumanizing to those that are trans. Please keep this mind in the future. :)

Oh sorry, didn't know creature is an insult, as everything is a creature in this world?

But some of my closest friends are trans, so don't worry was not meant as an insult.

And such a mask I never seen on a man before, same with THAT long hair, at first I didn't even see this was a male, thought it was a nymph like any other.

But I still love it though, there are enough female nymphs, and something inside me tells me that Veela can be both male and females.

Quote:
The Su-Monster? Wow, that's a blast from the past! :)

I don't think this Su has much in common with the Su-Monster from D&D which was nothing like the real myth.

Community Manager

Myth Lord wrote:

Oh sorry, didn't know creature is an insult, as everything is a creature in this world?

But some of my closest friends are trans, so don't worry was not meant as an insult.

It's the combination of the words that's the problem, not the words individually.

In any case, I'm glad you're enjoying the previews for Bestiary 5. I'm very curious to see who's going to go into Round 3!


Must be really fun to make/control a contest like this! I hope we see more of these contests in the future!


Well that is disappointing to hear, I never get tired of female monsters. Looks like the Veela will be my least favorite art piece in this book. It reminds me of every annoying pretty boy anime character that all the girls flock to.

Community Manager

13 people marked this as a favorite.

After 30+ years of chainmail bikinis, boob plates, and boob windows, I'm okay with pretty boys in my fantasy art.

There is plenty more art to be had in Bestiary 5, don't worry, and while some art won't appeal to some folks, there is plenty that will. :D

Silver Crusade

2 people marked this as a favorite.
Pathfinder Adventure Path Subscriber
Dragon78 wrote:
Well that is disappointing to hear, I never get tired of female monsters. Looks like the Veela will be my least favorite art piece in this book. It reminds me of every annoying pretty boy anime character that all the girls flock to.

Move out of Japan, that might help.

Despite being a massive chunk of heterosexual manly animal, I find the gender-bent harem girl trope represented by Veela delicious. There's nothing like messing stereotypes upside down.


Quote:

The Su-Monster? Wow, that's a blast from the past! :)

Myth Lord wrote:

I don't think this Su has much in common with the Su-Monster from D&D which was nothing like the real myth.

So long as it hates psychic/psionic creatures and prefers to attack them, I'll count that as close enough to the old edition Su-Monster.


3 people marked this as a favorite.
Liz Courts wrote:

After 30+ years of chainmail bikinis, boob plates, and boob windows, I'm okay with pretty boys in my fantasy art.

Not to mention midriff windows on armour ...

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