Looking for some help on finishing this villian, its for a party of lvl 15 adventurers. Assimar Cleric, Human Wizard, Human Barbarian and Dwarf Rogue. Serious feed back please.
He's a strength build druid, built with a 20 pt by, and i'm planning to use PC wealth as he is the final encounter. But he has plently of power behind his spell casting. A blight druid trying to destory the life in the area so that "his" nature can thrive. He of course will raise the dead to serve him in protecting the forest. Thoughts? Suggestions?
Gear: Scythe of Demise hasn't been fleshed out yet, but prehaps an intelligent item. His armor is only masterwork right now.
Aerandir Plaguewood CR 18
XP 153,600
Advanced Male Wood Elf Lich Druid (Blight Druid) 15 (Pathfinder RPG Advance Players Guide 98)/Warrior 1
CE Medium humanoid
Init +; Senses Darkvision 60ft, Low light Vision 60ft; Perception +
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DEFENSE
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AC 32, touch 16, flat-footed 31 (+9 armor, +1 dex, +5 deflection, +7 natural)
hp 204 (15d8+1d10+128)
Fort +20, Ref +6, Will +20 (+2 vs. Enchantment)
Defensive Abilities plaguebearer, blight blooded, channel resistance +4, rejuvenation; DR 15/bludgeoning and magic; Immune cold, electricity, undead traits
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OFFENSE
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Speed 20 ft (30 without armor)
Melee Scythe of Demise +17/+12 (2d4+12 /x4), or Paralyzing Touch +17 (1d8+8 plus paralysis)
Ranged
Special Attacks Bleeding Touch (7/rounds), Miasma (DC 28), Wild Shape 6/day
Druid Spells Prepared (CL 15th; concentration;
7th—
6th—
5th—
4th—
3rd—
2nd—
1st—
0 (at will)—
D Domain Spell; Domain Death
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STATISTICS
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Str 26, Dex 12, Con —, Int 20, Wis 32, Cha 26
Base Atk +9; CMB +9 CMD 21
Feats
Skills
Languages Common, Druidic, Elven, Draconic
SQ Vermin Empathy, Death’s Embrace, Keen Senses, Elven Immunities, Weapon Familiarity
Combat Gear +6 Belt of Strength, +6 Amulet of Mental Prowess (Wis, Cha), Black dragon Hide Full Plate, +5 Ring of Deflection, Scythe of Demise
MORE GEAR
EDIT
He is really a CR 16, unless you are using 3.5 rules, and in that case he is a 17, unless you are using 20 point buy, and PC wealth.<--Just trying to make sure you get an true CR 18 monster.
I would add the armor enhancement that lets him keep the bonus to AC when wildshaped. He should be able to do more damage in animal form. If he is in animal form he won't be using the scythe much.
If he will fight in human form I would give him a cohort that can buff him.
What AC do the PC's have?
Average AC of the party is around 27, the Cleric has an AC of 35 however, and yes he was built with a 20pt buy and i'm planning to use pc wealth.
Shouldn't he be neutral evil, as druids need some neutrality to their alignment?
just sayin' is all... :)
True, but I R GM :)
theres always a chance as a blight druid he has mastered the ability to make undead dryads or corrupt animals to make some interesting zombie-bears or skeletal tigers outcomes. if you want to focus soly on the druid however and make only hime more powerful (altho his stats alone i think are already a lil high) then why not a evil version of druids vestmants. or a light-medium poison spike armore. i did that one with a deathknight a spike armore coated in poison.. nice touch. you could even call it something like poison rosethorne armore. well thats all i can think of ta-ta
some nice ideas there, I like the idea of making undead dryads or animals.
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My biggest thing to say is, when your players are faceing him dont pull any punches. If theres a noticeable weakness he could take advantage of jump on it. Druids are asome villens and have some major abilities to use. One time I ran one and he was cool but I got distracted in the melee he and his animal were in and compleetly forgot the spells he was capable of casting. In short the group piled on him and cut the encounter down to a brawl when it could have been an epic battel of saves and mangeled gear.
Dont forget stuff like, Heat metel to mess with the warrior of the groups armor, warp wood to take out the archers bow, entagel to slow down the charging barbarian, Summon naturs ally to drop a dire bear behind the party to cut off any escape, call lightning storm to drill said party with damage before any real cambat starts.
He is a bad guy so be bad.
I'm planning the encounter to be a CR 19 with undead treants, and awakened animals with class levels loyal to the druid.
Are there any feats either from pathfinder or 3.5 that allows you to spend wild shape abilities? I remember one that increased your natural armor.
If he's got a grove (blighted or not), make sure it is rigged as all get out: statues that act as lightening rods, giant Stonehenge like standing stones that can fall on PCs, vines everywhere, a pool of clear looking water that is hydrochloric acid, or possibly a giant clear jelly that mimics water (but also make sure there are some fire attacks that force them to look for water in a hurry). Make everything appear classical and normal. Get diabolical. Make sure the terrain offers no help to the PCs.
There is a ton that you can do without even changing the villains stats.
So I've decided to drop the lich and advance templates and make him a dread lich instead. I love the idea of tactics for him to wipe the party, still working on ghear however, especially his scythe.
Is there a special reason why he has level of Warrior instead of Fighter?
fighter gives him a bonus feat and increases the CR, where as warrior does what I want it to and doesn't.
Well there is a spell that allows him to create a cloud of disease, and he's going to be using it on the PC's town, and it will cause alot of them to get sick, and die.
He might not have a con score, but he adds his CHA bonus to his hit points to even things out. the idea of an unhallowed standing stones shrine with dimensinal anchor is awesome though
Haley Hahn I agree with everyone you mentioned, and i'm still plugging away at his creation. I plan to give him an artifact but trying to think of something clever and awesome. Would also give the PC's one final quest, and thats destroy it...at least till the lich reforms himself.
He is using the blight druid archtype with the death domain, though I've been thinking of using the Decay sub-domain and simply adding animate dead, create undead, and greater create undead to his spell list. He is a master of death and disease so is fully possible he discovered how after years of study.
He has "allies", but they are sworn to him and aid him in his plans to rid the land of mankind so his "prefect" forest can grow and prosper.
Planning on making the standing stones an unhallowed site, but of course they do something epic. Still tinking with how, but; some how the standing stones will increase the range and power of his unhallow to affect the entire zone. Raising the dead as his unholy followers, warping the plantlife to his desire.
So many options! Its awesome this guy is going to be a beast!
As for toys, I'm thinking of giving him the helm that Tar-baphon uses (see undead revised), and making his scythe brillent energy that allows him to regain hp equal to the amount of damage done
Aerandir Plaguewood CR 18
XP 153,600
Male Wood Elf Unhollow Dread Lich Druid (Blight Druid) 15 (Pathfinder RPG Advance Players Guide 98)/Warrior 1
CE Medium Undead(Augmented Humanoid)
Init +5; Senses Darkvision 120ft, Perception +32
Aura Fear (60ft; DC 25)
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DEFENSE
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AC 42, touch 18, flat-footed 41 (+12 armor, +1 dex, +4 deflection, +1 insight, +12 natural, +2 shield) (+2 vs. Good)
hp 204 (15d8+1d10+128)
Fort +24, Ref +11, Will +24 (+2 vs. Enchantment) (+2 vs. Good)
Defensive Abilities channel resistance +4, freedom of movement, rejuvenation; DR 15/bludgeoning and magic, DR 10/adamantine; Immune acid, cold, electricity, polymorph, undead traits Resist fire 30
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OFFENSE
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Speed 20 ft (30 without armor) Fly 30ft (prefect)
Melee Scythe of Demise +20/+15 (2d4+15 plus 1d6 acid /x4), or Paralyzing Touch +17 (2d8+10 plus paralysis)
Special Attacks Command Undead (DC 25, 12/day) Bleeding Touch (7/rounds), Miasma (DC 28), Wild Shape 6/day
Druid Spells Prepared (CL 16th; concentration+26)
8th—finger of death (DC 29), summon natures ally 8, create greater undead (d)
7th— harm (DC 28), transmute metal into wood (DC 27), firestorm (DC 27), destruction (DC 28) (d)
6th— bulls strength mass, dispel magic greater (DC 26), summon natures ally 6, wall of stone, empowered flamestrike (DC 24), create undead (d)
5th— call lightning storm (DC 25), fire snake (DC 25), stoneskin (already cast), insect plague, wall of fire, wall of thorns, slay living (d) (DC 25)
4th— flamestrike (2) (DC 24), spikestones (DC 24), giant vermin, freedom of movement (already cast), thorn body (already cast), death ward (d)
3rd— call lightning (DC 23), meld into stone, plant growth, sleet storm, wind wall, stone shape, animate dead (d)
2nd— barkskin (already cast), fog cloud, heat metal (DC 22), owl’s wisdom, resist energy (already cast), stone call, wood shape, death kneel
1st— ant haul* (already cast), bristle*, entangle (DC 21), faerie fire, longstrider, obscuring mist, produce flame, cause fear (DC 21)
0 (at will) — detect magic, ready magic, guidance, detect poison
d Domain Spell; Domain Death
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STATISTICS
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Str 26, Dex 12, Con—, Int 18, Wis 30, Cha 24
Base Atk +10; CMB +18 CMD 29
Feats Combat Casting, Extra Channel, Greater Spell Penetration, Spell Focus (necromancy), Spell Penetration, Natural Spell, Improved Initiative, Empower Spell, Flyby Attack, Power Attack, Scribe Scroll, Eshew Materials, Craft Arms and Armor
Skills Bluff +21, Craft (armor) +22, knowledge (nature) +22, Knowledge (planes) +23, Linquistics +4, Perception +32, Spellcraft +26, Stealth +24, Survival +25, Use Magic Device +4
Languages Common, Druidic, Elven, Draconic
SQ Vermin Empathy, Death’s Embrace, Keen Senses, Elven Immunities, Weapon Familiarity, Plaguebearer, Blight Blooded, empowered spells, strong spellweaving
Combat Gear +6 Belt of Strength, +6 Amulet of Mental Prowess (Wis, Cha), +3 Wild Spiked Black dragon Hide Full Plate, +4 Ring of Deflection, +5 Cloak of Resistance, Ring of Force Shield, Orange Ioun Stone, Dust Rose Ioun Stone, Deep Red Ioun Stone, Scythe of Demise (+2 Brillient Energy, Acidic Scythe), Horns of Naraga Other gear Scroll of Word of Recall, Scroll of Harm
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SPECIAL ABILITES
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Alternate Spellcasting
Due to Aerandirs immense study into the death of nature, he has been able to call upon a number of spells not avaible to druids.
Command Undead (Su)
Aerandir can command other undead as a 15th-level evil cleric. (DC 25;12/day) as per the Command Undead feat.
Empowered Spells (Ex)
Aerandir’s spells from the Necromancy school, spells with the evil descriptor, and spell-like abilities are automatically affected as if by the Empower Spell feat. Such spells do not require higher-level spell slots or increased casting times. The Empower Spell feat cannot be used to further augment these spells.
Fear Gaze (Su)
Every creature within 60 feet of Aerandir that looks at it must succeed on a Will save (DC 25) or be affected as though by fear (caster level 16). As with most gaze attacks, Aerandir can actively gaze at a specific foe as a standard action, causing that foe to make a new save against the gaze in addition to the one it made on its turn in the initiative order.
Paralyzing Touch (Su)
Any living creature Aerandir touches must succeed on a Fortitude save (DC 25) or be permanently paralyzed. Remove Paralysis or any spell that can remove a curse can free the victim (see the Bestow Curse spell), but the effect cannot be dispelled. Anyone paralyzed by Aerandir seems dead, though a successful Perception check (DC 20) or Heal check (DC 15) reveals that the victim is still alive. This power works in conjunction with Aerandir’s damaging touch (see above) and with natural melee attacks.
Strong Spellweaving (Ex)
A –4 penalty applies to any dispel check made to dispel a spell cast by Aerandir.
Rejuvenation (Su)
If Aerandir is destroyed, his phylactery immediately begins to rebuild his body nearby. This process takes 1d10 days—if the body is destroyed before that time passes, the phylactery merely starts the process anew. After this time passes, Aerandir wakens fully healed (albeit without any gear he left behind on his old body.)
Horns of Naraga (Major Artifact)
Aura overwhelming varied; CL 22nd
Slot head; Price —; Weight 8 lbs.
Description
When worn by an undead creature, the Horns of Naraga reduce all damage taken from positive energy by half. In addition, whenever the wearer touches a living creature while wearing this helm (even if the touch is part of casting a spell or another touch attack), the touch deals an additional 5d6 points of negative energy damage and the wearer gains these hit points, just as if he had cast vampiric touch. The wearer of the helm is immune to acid and can see perfectly in darkness of any kind, even that created by magic. Once per day, on command, the helm can be ordered to transform into an ancient black dragon that obeys the creature that summoned it unquestioningly for 1 hour before reverting to a helm. Slaying the dragon does not destroy the helm, but it does prevent this ability from being used for 1 week. While the helm is in dragon form, the helm’s owner does not receive any of the helm’s other benefits.
Destruction
The helm can be destroyed by crushing it between the jaws of an ancient black dragon’s skull in the middle of a desert with the sun at its peak
The encounter happens later today, and I will inform what happened later on. I would like to thank everyone for there aid.
So the encounter started with the PCs fully rested and had used a scroll of greater teleport to arrive to a location just outside the standing stones. After spending 20 minutes devising a plan they buffed and cast invisibility on the rogue and he used his jacked stealth to sneak in to scout. Using a permanent telepathic bond with the wizard the rogue approached the stones, with only dead trees and a flock of crows standing on the stones kahing and flapping there wings.
Just as he stepped between the stones his invisibility disappeared and the undead trees (advanced undead treants fighters 2) that were seen came to life and presued the rogue.
The rest of the party then charged the battle with the wizard casting a fireball right on the rogue. The rogue evaded and the treants took the fire damage and turned there attention to the wizard and charging barbarian and cleric.
As the barb and cleric charged a wall of thorns appeared, making it difficult for them to move, and the treants took advantage of there reach to attack striking the barbarian. The cleric cast freedom of movement on himself and marched forward casting a flamestrike on the trees before the barbarian attacked.
The rogue now unharmed investigated the runes and made a successful check to notice that lightning was being called down to strike the stones, activating them. He told the wizard they have only a few rounds before the portal activated and flooded the land with negative energy.
The wizard launched another fireball at the trees, slightly injuring the cleric. Before he could act 3 elder earth elementals rose from the ground. The cleric used a channeled negative energy and managed to fell one of the treants, while the barb made his way through the thorns and attacked an elemental.
With 3 of the players focused on combat the rogue tried to stop the ritual, but because he was so focused he didn't realize a crow pecked at him. A failed fort save later and rogue couldn't move, paralyzed and bleeding out, he reported to the wizard who yelled to the cleric
The cleric then took a double move towards the rogue, taking 3 attacks of opportunity and was only struck once.
The following around the wizard casted an enlarge person on the barb using his rod of quicken lesser, and a cone of cold to finish off the treant and damage the elementals, while the barbarian now able to reach two elementals full attacked on one reducing it to rubble.
With the cleric in his sights the lich swooped down after taking the form of an air elemental form and attacked the cleric with his scythe while power attacking, natural 20 and confirmed the cleric found himself gravely injured, and was forced to cast defensively to heal himself though the cleric still found himself with only half hp left.
The wizard left the barbarian to handle the elementals and went to aid the cleric and rogue...this is where it started to fall apart for the pcs...
The lich cast his finger of death at the wizard who needed a 17 to pass, he rolled 1, and fell to the ground after taking 240 damage. The cleric then channeled positive energy so he could stop the bleeding on the rogue and heal himself. But the next round he casted destruction on the cleric and yet another 1 came up. The cleric was incinerated in unholy fire, and the next round the rogue fell from the coup de grace.
With only the barbarian left and still stuck in a wall of thorns, the lich began summoning weaker earth elementals and casting flame strike until the barbarian fell.
After stripping them of there gear the lich scarf iced the 3 remaining corpses while the ritual finished. The result was horrifying as negative energy flowed from the stone, augmented the liches power. The forest twisted and corrupted to the liches evil wishes, as it engulfed the land, cities and towns, all becoming lost. He now has complete control over of the land, and which will fight invaders if they step foot within his domain
Sadly some poor rolls occoured which happens, they want a rematch next week