I fought and killed an Arcanaloth (sorry Todd!) that was an ally of an evil archmage. So he wasn't brought there recently w/ a summon spell of any kind.
I think he's dead rather than "reforms on home plane", but that's not my real question. He had some magical items. Do they remain behind?
An Arcanaloth is an outsider.
Whether he was summoned, gated or came by his own means is not really relevant.
At his death, he gets back to his home plane.
With his stuff, unless he got some equipment which was not originally his, like given to him by the ally you mention, or stuff he grabbed from some monsters or people while traveling the plane where you met him.
An Arcanaloth is an outsider.
Whether he was summoned, gated or came by his own means is not really relevant.
At his death, he gets back to his home plane.
With his stuff, unless he got some equipment which was not originally his, like given to him by the ally you mention, or stuff he grabbed from some monsters or people while traveling the plane where you met him.
I thought such gear only remain if he dropped it, ie he wasn't in physical contact with it?
Would like to know if the above actually applied since I was looking at the summoning side of things for an explanation for foes bodies disappearing... well sort of foe
An Arcanaloth is an outsider.
Whether he was summoned, gated or came by his own means is not really relevant.
At his death, he gets back to his home plane.
With his stuff, unless he got some equipment which was not originally his, like given to him by the ally you mention, or stuff he grabbed from some monsters or people while traveling the plane where you met him.
That depends. My understanding is that this was true in the older editions. But what is in play in this scenario? Does the OP's group have the Fiendish Codices? If so, I think there are guidelines in there which say a fiend goes back to their homeplane upon destruction. Otherwise, there is nothing in 3.5 RAW to say that, if the creature isn't present via a summoning spell, that it isn't just outright dead. In fact, I think the calling spells specifically say as much.
I don't see how any of that has anything to do with gear, however. I would rule that the gear gets left behind and can be looted. I look to the balor as my precedent, which specifically states that its death throw destroys its gear. My thought is, if such a statement isn't made, I assume the gear remains.
Although the DM has final call in everything, there are some areas where the rules give a clear indication of what should happen according to the RAW. Other times, there's no guidance to be found, so it has to be a DM's call. This is one of the latter, I think. Consult your DM and see what he wants the rule to be in his game world.
IIRC, the arcanaloth can only truly be slain on its own plane, Gehenna. This applies in 3.5 as well to it. So it will definitely reform elsewhere. Whether its gear remains is up to a DM; generally, I'd say no.
Outsiders that are summoned can die, their gear vanishing with them. Creatures that are called (a different subschool of conjuration), when slain elsewhere, are truly dead and their gear remains. The arcanaloth I think still retains its verbiage from previous editiosn however. My group prefers the old rules for outsiders and says they can't die on the Material Plane permanently, but I think in this case the yugoloth's gear vanishes too.
If the arcanaloth was summoned, then you don't get any gear. Otherwise, it should remain....whether it was called, teleported there, plane shifted there, whatever. If it was Astrally Projecting, also no gear.
An outsider does not have a separate soul....it's body and soul are one. Therefore, if you kill its real body (not summoned or astally projected), you really kill it....that's why they REALLY don't like Calling spells that bind them to the Material Plane.
Lots of helpful, if contradictory, information! I wish this were really a straightforward thing. I'll have to look more closely at how it appeared where it did (I'm pretty sure through a Gate) on Oerth, and go from there.
Thanks everyone.
Lots of helpful, if contradictory, information! I wish this were really a straightforward thing. I'll have to look more closely at how it appeared where it did (I'm pretty sure through a Gate) on Oerth, and go from there.
Thanks everyone.
Ok, looking at Fiendish Codex 1, p. 8, on Death either "outside" or "within" the Abyss, along w/ sidebar on "Demonic Death Throes". From this, I can extrapolate to all Outsiders. It's clear that summoned outsiders return to their home plane when either the spell ends or they are "slain".
My scenario did not involve a summoned Arcanaloth, but one that was indeed not on its home plane. The text suggests the body MIGHT return to the home plane, but it might also remain behind (see example 20 under "Death Throes"). Regardless of what happens to the body, though, the "essence" gets sent back to the home plane.
So. I'm thinking that the essence survives, to a point, but the body could remain physically behind. In which case so do its items. I'm going w/ that; the bastard was incredibly tough to kill and I think the characters deserve the spoils of war ;-)
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As I understand it, the disappearing corpse (and loot) thing only happens when the creature is summoned via a temporary summoning spell (or, like a ghost, using some form of manifestation ability or astral projection from another plane).
When called up via Planar Binding, or having travelled there through a Gate (or some other planar portal), or via natural Plane Shift type abilities, it's body (and loot) remain, but it can still reform it's body back on it's home plane (although some creatures may take longer to do so, and some might even suffer a 'demotion' and reform as a lesser demon, devil, etc. and have to work their way back up!).
Items handed to a summoned monster may or may not leave with it, depending on your DM. This makes a great way to get rid of evil artifacts or whatever, if you allow it. "Oh, the Wand of Orcus. I summon a Hound Archon. I give it the Wand. X rounds later, the Hound Archon returns to Mount Celestia, taking the Wand of Orcus with it. If Orcus wants his Wand back, he can go storm the Seven Heavens to get it..."