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(Disclaimer - I'm horribly biased since I know the author but thought this was worth posting)
This weeks Monday Monster over at Kobold Quarterly, the Pallid Herald, is well worth a look if you're running Seven Days to the Grave. It exists to spread disease and makes for a perfect servitor of Urgathoa, so I was thinking of using it as a handy PFRPG replacement for the Leukodaemon or a late-on sidequest if the party is short on XP.
Looks cool. Super high save on grey pox, so if I use it, it'll spread blood veil, but it has a decent concept.
I just don't suggest it for a leukodaemon replacement, especially after the blood veil vats. Could cripple your PCs even if they kill it in one or two rounds and provide either a long, drawn-out struggle in the final battle, or a TPK.
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Whenever I wonder if I set the save DC for the grey pox too high, I look at the lowly CR 7 aboleth, and all my concerns miraculously vanish. ;p
But yeah, having the pallid herald spread a different disease is totally in-concept. I always envisages grey pox as their 'default' setting, but figured heralds spread whatever their creator wanted them to - filth fever, blood veil, you name it. Some might even spread multiple diseases at once, though that would be very nasty indeed.
I would agree that having the herald there could make the last fight very nasty - it's a better replacement for Lady Andasain (sp? no books here) than the Leukodaemon.
Whenever I wonder if I set the save DC for the grey pox too high, I look at the lowly CR 7 aboleth, and all my concerns miraculously vanish. ;p
Yeah, definitely. Then again, remember that the aboleth's entire song and dance show can be completely negated by a well-placed magic circle against evil, whereas there's no equal magic circle against disease to counter the Herald.
Well, I guess your magic circle against pallid heralds would be asking your level two paladin friend to come along with you to the necromancer's den...
The real worry is if a PC met a Pallid Herald and was unlucky enough to have multiple diseases, (especially the two that're most common in 7DttG, filth fever and blood veil) he's basically dead. 1d3+1d3 con every round, relying on you making two saves in a row to get rid of will turn deadly quick. If you're a rogue, wizard, sorceror, bard or druid with no con modifier, you need to roll 2 natural 20s in a row to save versus Grey Pox at that level. Otherwise, you're _dead._ Even more so if he touches you, too, which is highly likely with a +11...
Still cool.
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Yeah, definitely. Then again, remember that the aboleth's entire song and dance show can be completely negated by a well-placed magic circle against evil, whereas there's no equal magic circle against disease to counter the Herald.
True, though less infallibly than in 3.5. Getting to save again against an on-going effect with a +2 bonus is no guarantee, though if I'm reading the spell right, it does stop the aboleth trying to dominate you if you're in the magic circle when it does so. I like the aboleth as a comparison because I think they're both very situational monsters; go up against them unprepared and you're basically paste. Come loaded for bear and I'd give either creature 3 rounds as an average before they messily expire.
Well, I guess your magic circle against pallid heralds would be asking your level two paladin friend to come along with you to the necromancer's den...The real worry is if a PC met a Pallid Herald and was unlucky enough to have multiple diseases, (especially the two that're most common in 7DttG, filth fever and blood veil) he's basically dead. 1d3+1d3 con every round, relying on you making two saves in a row to get rid of will turn deadly quick. If you're a rogue, wizard, sorceror, bard or druid with no con modifier, you need to roll 2 natural 20s in a row to save versus Grey Pox at that level. Otherwise, you're _dead._ Even more so if he touches you, too, which is highly likely with a +11...
Still cool.
You do need to be a class with poor Fortitude (so druid doesn't actually apply) with no Con bonus and no resistance item for that to be the case. It could happen, but it won't be the norm. Now, the herald is certainly a powerful creature for its CR. To be honest, I originally pegged it at CR 10, but its other numbers were so poor for that CR that I ended up dropping it to CR 9. And it's still under-par for hp and AC at that CR.
The problem with 'costing' the herald is that its impact is so variable based on the prevalence of diseases in the adventure. It's a real snag trying to build around that. If your players are clean-living types, it's unlikely to be able to impact them fast enough to make a difference, and the disease it carries as base actually kills you very slowly. (compared to diseases doing 1d3 Con, etc.) If the PCs are all festering clumps of disease, it's going to rot their faces off and dance on their putrescent corpses. Until they rise as zombies, anyway. ;)
In the end, it's all down to the GM. A GM needs to be aware of how dangerous the herald can be in the right circumstances and use it accordingly.
And finally, I'm glad you like it. :)