I'm looking at giving the vrykolakas (Bestiary 6) wings and a fly speed. Currently, I'm considering 80 ft. (average). It would retain its 40 ft. base speed.
I've made other changes to the vrykolakas already. It has the advanced simple template, and I added some of the 2e vrykolakas stuff (lair dependent, vulnerable to decapitation) that made it more flavorful. I also made its charm animal ability at-will instead of 3/day. With it now being lair dependent, I also added a ritual it can use to dedicate a new location as its lair.
In addition, I added 1d6 bleed on its bite attack, as well as gave it a variant fast healing ability (sanguine healing) that only functions when it is adjacent to a bleeding creature or a creature covered in or made primarily of blood (such as a bloody skeleton, vampiric ooze, or a blood knight).
Standard vrykolakas is CR 10. Advanced Simple Template by itself bumps it to 11. With the additional changes above, I'm looking at also giving it two more hitdice and bumping it to CR 12. Doing a side-by-side comparison with the recommended damage/AC/hitpoints/etc. from the back of the Bestiary, it looks like CR 12 is about right.
The wings will just be for arriving/fleeing a fight, or giving chase, as it is still not an aerial combatant. I think they'll also help differentiate it appearance-wise from festrogs. I only have plans for one vrykolakas in my campaign, unless it creates more, so I'm looking at this being the "standard" vrykolakas for my game.
I'm prettymuch have it worked out at this point, but I haven't decided what new feat to give it.
I decided to increase its caster level from 10 to 12 too, so its fear ability would qualify for the Traumatic Spell-like Ability feat.
Note: All my modified undead tend to have Varisian as a free bonus regional language since my campaign is in Ustalav. That can be removed. I included Rend in the details of the special abilities below to save myself from looking it up later. That can be deleted as it's just using the rules of the standard Rend ability and already listed in the Special Attacks section. The lair dependent and decapitation vulnerability are from the Pathfinder2e version of the vrykolakas. I added the ability to do a ritual for a new lair. The listed +8 Climb racial modifier is just the +8 bonus it gets for having a climb speed.
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Vrykolakas CR 12
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XP 19200
Advanced variant 14 HD vrykolakas (Bestiary 6 273)
NE Medium undead (shapechanger)
Init +10; Senses darkvision 60 ft.; Perception +18
Aura pestilent aura (5 ft., DC 30, horrifying bubonic plague)
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DEFENSE
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AC 27, touch 17, flat-footed 20 (+6 Dex, +1 dodge, +10 natural)
hp 175 (14 HD; 14d8+112); sanguine healing 10
Fort +12, Ref +12, Will +15 (+19 vs. channel)
Defensive Abilities channel resistance +4; Immune undead traits
Weaknesses decapitation, lair bound, vulnerability to fire
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OFFENSE
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Speed 40 ft., climb 20 ft., fly 80 ft. (average)
Melee bite +20 (1d6+10 plus bleed 1d6, energy drain) and
2 claws +21 (1d8+10 plus rend)
Special Attacks bleed (1d6), create spawn, energy drain (1 level, DC 25), rend (2 claws, 1d6+15)
Spell-like Abilities (CL 12th; concentration +20)
At will—charm animal (DC 19)
3/day—traumatic* fear (DC 22), vampiric touch
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STATISTICS
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Str 30, Dex 23, Con —, Int 11, Wis 22, Cha 27
Base Atk +10; CMB +20; CMD 37
Feats Dodge, Improved Initiative, Lightning Reflexes, Mobility, Stealthy, Traumatic Spell‑like Ability(HA 95) (fear), Weapon Focus (claw)
Skills Climb +28, Disguise +22 (+32 when disguised as former living self), Escape Artist +20, Fly +17, Perception +18, Stealth +24;
Racial modifiers +8 Climb, +10 Disguise when disguised as former living self
Languages Common (Taldane), Varisian
SQ change shape (as its previously living humanoid form; alter self), feral possession
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ECOLOGY
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Environment any
Organization solitary
Treasure standard
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SPECIAL ABILITIES
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Create Spawn (Su) A humanoid slain by a vrykolakas becomes a free‑willed vrykolakas itself in 1d4 days if not blessed and given proper funerary rites. A blessing might entail either the spell bless or a more mundane consecration, but at the very least requires a proper prayer (with a successful DC 15 Knowledge [religion] check) invoking a good‑aligned deity. A beheaded corpse cannot rise as a vrykolakas.
Decapitation Vulnerability A vrykolakas that is beheaded can't use its Feral Possession ability and is immediately destroyed.
Feral Possession (Su) Upon reaching 0 hit points, a vrykolakas attempts to possess each animal within 100 feet, beginning with the nearest first. This ability is similar to possession and has a duration equal to 1 day for every Hit Die of the vrykolakas. The target animal must succeed a DC 25 Will save or be possessed. If an animal's save is successful, it is immune to feral possession attempts for 24 hours. If the possession fails, the vrykolakas attempts to possess the next animal within 100 feet on the vrykolakas's next turn. If there are no animals within 100 feet, or all animals within range are immune to feral possession, the vrykolakas is immediately destroyed.
If the possession succeeds, the animal immediately retreats to the vrykolakas's lair, where it attempts to bury itself in the earth. If left uninterrupted for 1d4 days, the animal transforms into a new vrykolakas with all the same statistics and memories as the original. If discovered and decapitated during this time, both the animal and the vrykolakas are destroyed. If discovered, the possession effect may be ended by first breaking the curse via remove curse or break enchantment, then ending the possession by dispel magic or a similar effect. If the possession is dispelled, the animal returns to normal and the vrykolakas is destroyed (caster level of feral possession is equal to the vrykolakas's CR for the purposes of resolving the spellcasting). If the animal is slain and not decapitated, and left in the vrykolakas lair, its corpse still transforms into the vrykolakas. This is a curse effect. The save DC is Charisma-based.
Lair Bound (Su) A vrykolakas is bound to the place of its death or interment. It must return to this location once per week and bury itself in the earth for 24 hours, during which time it is paralyzed and can be beheaded. If it is unable to return to this site, it is reduced to 0 hit points and uses feral possession. If the possessed animal can't return to the lair before the possession ends, the vrykolakas is destroyed and the animal returns to normal.
A vrykolakas can designate a new lair by performing a ritual to bind itself to a new location. The ritual requires 1 day for every Hit Die of the vrykolakas, during which time the vrykolakas reduces its hit points to 1 hit point per Hit Die, remains at rest, and must consume the liver of a sentient creature every night at midnight. Every night that it consumes a suitable liver during the ritual, it offsets its need to return to its lair by one day. A vrykolakas may only have one lair at a time.
Pestilent Aura (Su) Creatures within 5 feet of a vrykolakas must succeed at a DC 30 initial Fortitude save or contract horrifying bubonic plague. Subsequent saves are DC 25. Any creature that successfully saves against a vrykolakas's pestilent aura cannot be affected by the aura of that same vrykolakas for 24 hours. The save DC is Charisma-based.
See Column 2 for Horrifying Bubonic Plague.
Rend (Ex) If the vrykolakas hits a single target with both claw attacks in the same round, it latches onto its opponent's body and tears flesh. This attack deals an additional 1d6+15 damage and may occur no more than once per round.
Sanguine Healing (Su) A vrykolakas gains fast healing 10 while adjacent to any creature suffering a bleed effect. It also benefits from this ability while adjacent to a bloody skeleton or any creature primarily composed of blood, such as a blood knight or vampiric ooze.
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And below is the description for my Horrifying Bubonic Plague, which is a homebrew horrifying disease (a variation of unchained diseases that was introduced in Horror Adventures). It also uses the Plague Disease Template from Horror Adventures. I have replaced standard bubonic plague in my campaign with this variation. The save DCs listed in the description below are the baseline saves for horrifying bubonic plague. The saves for the vrykolakas's bubonic plague are significantly higher as they are calculated from its hit dice and charisma.
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Horrifying Bubonic Plague
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Variant Plague-templated Unchained Bubonic Plague
Type disease, contact or inhaled; Save Fortitude DC 17 (DC 22 for initial save);
Frequency 1/day;
Effect ‑2 penalty to Fortitude saves, Constitution‑based and Charisma‑based skill checks and ability checks for 1 day; Cure 2 consecutive saves;
Special Any effect that would cause a creature suffering from the disease to be cured of it (including remove disease) instead moves the affected creature to the previous stage of the disease progression. If the affected creature moves to a stage prior to carrier, the creature is cured of the disease. Each failed save against the disease progresses the affected creature to the next stage of the disease. Stage effects are cumulative.
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STAGES
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Carrier: The creature has contracted the bubonic plague, and may pass it on, but suffers no ill effects at the carrier stage. The creature is contagious. Any coughing or sneezing releases clouds of disease-causing organisms into the air. Any living creature that comes within 30 feet of the diseased creature is exposed to the plague and must make an initial Fortitude save or contract the disease. A potential victim must attempt a new initial save each time it moves within 30 feet of the diseased creature, to a maximum of one saving throw every 10 minutes. Any uninfected creatures that remain within 30 feet of the disease carrier must attempt a new initial saving throw every 10 minutes. Each time an uninfected creature touches the diseased creature, or touches an object that was touched by the diseased creature in the last 24 hours, the potential victim is exposed to the plague and must succeed at a new initial Fortitude save or contract the disease.
Weakened: In addition to gaining the disease's listed effect, the creature gains the sickened and fatigued conditions. Some of the creature's lymph nodes (located in their groin, armpits or neck) ache and itch as they gradually swell.
Impaired: The creature gains the exhausted condition. The creature's lymph nodes swell into painful buboes. Strenuous movement is painful. Whenever taking a standard action, a Fortitude save (DC 17) must be passed or lose the action and gain the nauseated condition for 1 minute.
Disabled: The creature gains the disabled condition. When taking a standard action, the creature's hit points are reduced by 1 hit point or reduced to ‑1 hit point, whichever is worse.
Bedridden: The creature is awake and can converse, but cannot stand or take any standard or move actions.
Terminal: The affected creature is unconscious, feverish, and cannot be awakened from the comatose state by any means while the creature remains terminal. The creature can no longer fulfill the cure condition without magic. If it fails a saving throw against the disease's progress at this stage, it dies.
Dead: The creature's corpse remains contagious after death. After the diseased creature has been dead 24 hours, the radius at which the disease can be contracted by inhalation is reduced to 5 feet, and a successful save means a creature cannot be affected by the corpse's instance of the disease for 24 hours.
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