Fun with Fake Undead [Archive] - Wizards Community

Fun with Fake Undead [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
Edymnion
04-14-07, 09:54 PM When they're in Karnnath fighting undead, toss in a skeleton that has been wired together and had Animate Object cast on it. Looks like a skeleton, fights like a skeleton, but is an animated object so that it isn't affected by Turning attempts, nor does it take damage from healing spells. Do the same thing to general corpses (which do count as objects), and have unturnable "zombies" coming after the party.
Faithful_One
04-14-07, 11:30 PM When they're in Karnnath fighting undead, toss in a skeleton that has been wired together and had Animate Object cast on it. Looks like a skeleton, fights like a skeleton, but is an animated object so that it isn't affected by Turning attempts, nor does it take damage from healing spells. Do the same thing to general corpses (which do count as objects), and have unturnable "zombies" coming after the party.

I actually thought of something similar to this once involving dead animals.
Imagine the big time game hunter who keeps his kills as stuffed trophies on the wall. Animate them and we got the same thing as undead just about.:cool:
JulesCARV
04-15-07, 01:03 AM It's kinda fun as a gimmick, although as a battle strategy it's a bit of a waste of a cleric's level 6 spell. ("You could have summoned a chain devil... and instead you made a skeleton walk around for one round/level? How did you ever survive to be level 11+ with tactics like that?")
Edymnion
04-15-07, 12:43 PM It's kinda fun as a gimmick, although as a battle strategy it's a bit of a waste of a cleric's level 6 spell. ("You could have summoned a chain devil... and instead you made a skeleton walk around for one round/level? How did you ever survive to be level 11+ with tactics like that?")If memory serves, you can apply Permanence to Animate Object, and you don't have to worry about how many hitdice you can control at once.
Moblin
04-15-07, 02:00 PM If memory serves, you can apply Permanence to Animate Object, and you don't have to worry about how many hitdice you can control at once.
Yes but that is just so damn expensive in terms of xp that you'd be better of leveling (gaining access to even higher summon monster spells).
lets face it, baring eldrich machines creating animated objects and undeads in DnD is a waste of resources because the designers had to prevent the PC's from running around with their own army.

PS: Was probably way to serious about the idea. If you don't think to hard about the mechanics behind it, it's an ok surprise for your players.
Drag0nUL
04-15-07, 02:19 PM I think this idea has potential. The way I see it is that it could be used as a possible means of intimidating the party, by making something that looks like a very powerful thing. An example of this: the aspect of a Grisgol(MM 3) can be easily duplicated by stacking some used scrolls/staffs/wands and animating them. This can be done by a 11th level spellcaster, while the real grisgol is CR 15 itself and requires a caster of at least 19th level to animate(and the phylactery of a lich). Well, if I saw 'golem' made of scrolls and wands and I was around level 10-11(assuming I had in-game knowledge of a grisgol) I would think that a tactical retreat is the best option.
Edymnion
04-15-07, 04:19 PM Yup.
Faking 'em out is the name of the game.

I mean, if you tell the players that they pass a big clay statue, and then it suddenly comes to life and starts attacking, odds are they are going to metagame and think its a clay golem. Will throw them for a loop when its nothing but an animated statue.
ekomega
04-15-07, 05:16 PM This gives me an idea for defending a Cannith enclave in the Mournlands.

Since the Mournlands are littered with corpses, many of which are undead, a Cannith enclave hidden in the Mournlands could defend itself by animating bones into skeleton shapes. The traditional method of fighting "undead" would fail, and this would probably hold off a lot of adventurers from getting too close. All they'd need is an eldritch machine to animate the bones as objects.

I think I'm going to pull this one on my players.
korcheck
04-15-07, 06:17 PM This gives me an idea for defending a Cannith enclave in the Mournlands.

Since the Mournlands are littered with corpses, many of which are undead, a Cannith enclave hidden in the Mournlands could defend itself by animating bones into skeleton shapes. The traditional method of fighting "undead" would fail, and this would probably hold off a lot of adventurers from getting too close. All they'd need is an eldritch machine to animate the bones as objects.

I think I'm going to pull this one on my players.

except in the mournlands unless your by a grave yard they wouldn't be skeleton they would have to be zombies instead since nothing decays.
ArcTan
04-16-07, 01:49 AM Hey, we were just talking about the difference between Skeletons and animated corpses in the other thread! Inspiration much?

I would probably allow someone with a high Knowledge (religion) or (arcana) check to notice a substantial difference between the Zombie/Skeleton troops and the merely animated corpse -- unless the animated corpse was being directed to do so by a spellcaster at the time, it'd probably "forget" to walk like a human and start doing all kinds of things as needed, like flipping over and bouncing on its head, hopping on its belly, etc -- much as an animated desk or boulder would move around wildly without regard for its shape. The Skeletons would attack with direction (and yes, in my campaigns, malice), fighting with a determined tenacity and using weapons and some semblance of combat tactics, while the animated corpse would fling itself bodily at enemies, whapping them with its head, its shoulder, flipping onto its hands and kicking you backwards, whatever.

Of course, while this is a cute idea, it won't actually *do* much to the party. They will be freaked out when the apparent Zombie resists turning and is unaffected by undead bane or holy weapons, but the fact is that a Medium Animated Object really isn't that powerful and a party equipped to deal with a group of skeletons can certainly deal with an extra CR 2 Construct on top of that.

Animated Objects are only really dangerous when a caster takes you completely by surprise with them and animates all the furniture while you're sitting around having tea. Now there's a fun image. (Probably a reason animated objects was put in the Chaos domain.)
ArcTan
04-16-07, 01:53 AM This gives me an idea for defending a Cannith enclave in the Mournlands.

Since the Mournlands are littered with corpses, many of which are undead, a Cannith enclave hidden in the Mournlands could defend itself by animating bones into skeleton shapes. The traditional method of fighting "undead" would fail, and this would probably hold off a lot of adventurers from getting too close. All they'd need is an eldritch machine to animate the bones as objects.

I think I'm going to pull this one on my players.

I dunno. I mean, anything is possible when you're the DM and have eldritch machines and undefined ways for large groups of Magewrights to boost each others' powers and other DM tricks that only NPCs can use.

But looking at the spell as-is, that's a 6th-level slot and 3,000 XP a pop. That ain't cheap. It would be a lot easier to just defend the camp with *actual* undead (likely to be available, at least for Cannith South, which is in Karrnath). Or, if you want to use the "fake people out into assuming a greater danger" route, have a bunch of Warforged guards pretending to work for the Lord of Blades (and pray the real LoB doesn't find out).
JulesCARV
04-16-07, 02:07 AM Thought: this "fake undead" strategy may not be so great for a cleric, but it could be used by a kineticist. Fake undead, while a suboptimal (although still fun) strategy at level 11, seem like a perfectly decent strategy at level 1, when a kineticist can have Control Object. Of course, the corpse would have to be under 100 pounds, but if we're talking about the skeleton of a human and not a reasonably fresh corpse, it should work.
Daydreamer
04-16-07, 02:25 AM could be interesting as a plot device, new way of 'undead', possibly for a raid on thrane? whos making this, and why?

HOwever, anything other than that and its basically sticking your tongue out at the party and laughing at the clerics.
Phalo
04-25-07, 01:35 AM if your are going through all that work why not make effigies of zombies you get a construct that has all the immunities and none of the weaknesses. But honestly if you go through the effort you might as well make and effigy of like an mummy ghoul or something like that
Splendide
04-25-07, 08:23 AM My party got attacked by an animated carpet once. It was Huge so had insane hitpoints. Ugh.

If you want fake anything, use illusions. They kick so much arse.
Hideous Phidias
04-27-07, 01:57 PM Seems like something out of Scooby doo. What happens at the end of the adventure the party pulls a mask of the bad guy and it is a gnome on stills that sayes damn you and your dog too
Edymnion
04-28-07, 12:48 AM it'd probably "forget" to walk like a human and start doing all kinds of things as needed, like flipping over and bouncing on its head, hopping on its belly, etc -- much as an animated desk or boulder would move around wildly without regard for its shape.I'm sorry, but where do you get the idea that an animated table belly flops? Unless you can quote me something that says "Animated Objects move in an unpredictable, illogical fashion", then a table is going to walk around on it's four legs, and a statue will walk around on it's two legs, and things will generally move in a normal manner.

There is no reason to expect an animated corpse to cartwheel around, and plenty of reason to expect that they don't.
Oorlof
04-30-07, 06:28 AM Bit of a tangent, but I thought of a nice way to fool PCs and set up a story.

We all know Warforged can't be animated as undead, right? Imagine the horror when a town close to a battlefield is being plagued by hungry Warforged ghosts! They enter closed buildings and suck the life-force out of their victims while slashing at defenders with their swords.

Counter-attacks pass right through the horrid things and the town cleric lacks the divine power to turn the ghosts away. The things don't attack warforged - are they working together? The news that Warforged can become undead is one more strike against the race built for war and conquest - is Eberron never to be rid of them? The PCs must travel to the town and save it from the undead horde, then uncover how the warforged were turned into undead. Is a powerful necromancer of the Blood of Vol doing this? Is the Lord of Blades behind it all, making his fellow warforged serve even after death?

Of course, the undead warforged are Breathdrinkers from MM II, disguised by illusions and commanded by either a cleric with the air-domain or a powerful mage. Still nasty, but at least they're not undead reproducing like shadows...and the party will spend quite some resources on the beasties (turn undead, invis. from undead) before they figure it out.
Splendide
04-30-07, 06:31 AM Seems like something out of Scooby doo. What happens at the end of the adventure the party pulls a mask of the bad guy and it is a gnome on stills that sayes damn you and your dog tooHow would that not be awesome?
Warforged Goblin
04-30-07, 10:07 AM One I threw at my PCs, and decimated them with, was my homemade bone golem.

GOLEM, BONE
Large Construct (Evil)

Hit Dice: 13d10+43 (114 Hp)
Initiative: +1
Speed: 25 ft (5 squares)
Armor Class: 25 (-1 size, +1 Dex, +15 natural), touch 10, flat-footed 24
Base Attack/Grapple: +9/+19
Attack: Arm blade +14 melee (3d6+6/19-20 x2) or mace hand +14 melee (2d8+6/x2)
Full Attack: Arm blade +14 melee (3d6+6/19-20 x2) and mace hand +9 melee (2d8+3/x2)
Space/Reach: 10 ft/10 ft.
Special Attacks: Absorb bone, berserk, turning hatred
Special Qualities: Construct traits, body weaponry, unholy toughness, damage reduction 10/bludgeoning, low light vision, darkvision 60 ft, immunity to magic
Saves: Fort +4, Ref +5, Will +4
Abilities: Str 27, Dex 12, Con -, Int -, Wis 11, Cha 1
Skills: –
Feats: –
Environment: Any
Organization: Solitary, gang (2-4)
Challenge Rating: 12
Treasure: None
Alignment: Neutral Evil
Advancement: 14-19 HD (Large); 20-45 HD (Huge)
Level Adjustment: –

A large skeleton slowly lumbers toward you. As it drags itself closer however, you realize that it’s made up of a mismatched array of differing bones. Its limbs are much larger and thicker then a normal skeleton’s, nearly three times the diameter due to the numerous bones lashed together. Instead of hands, a wicked looking sword and heavy mace adorn the ends of its arms. The smell of death hangs in the air as it stands before you.

A bone golem is made from the stolen or broken remains of undead skeletons. First created by the Order of the Emerald Claw to utilize the remains of their destroyed skeletal armies, bone golems are now created to help guard holy sites devoted to the Blood of Vol, such as the Crimson Monastery.

A bone golem usually wears no clothing, although those found guarding sacred sites usually have a tabard depicting either the Blood of Vol or the Order of the Emerald Claw insignia. Bone golems can’t speak, but occasionally release a hissing rasp before attacking. They walk with a slow gait and weigh approximately 1,000 pounds.

COMBAT
Bone golems are usually found with a squad of at least 5 undead skeletons or a cleric of the Blood of Vol. They wade into melee combat swinging their body weaponry and using their absorb bone ability on either downed foes or destroyed skeletal allies.

Berserk (Ex): When a bone golem enters combat, there is a cumulative 1% chance that the elemental spirit that powers the golem breaks free and goes berserk. The uncontrolled golem goes on a rampage, attacking the nearest living creature or smashing some object smaller than it if no creature is within its reach, then moving on to spread more destruction.

The golem’s creator, if within 60 ft, can try to regain control by speaking firmly and persuasively to the golem, which requires a DC 21 Charisma check. An evil cleric, or neutral cleric that rebukes undead, can spend a rebuke attempt to try and calm the golem. The cleric attempts to rebuke as normal and if the cleric is successful in rebuking a number of HD equal to or greater than half the bone golem’s Hit Dice, the golem is calmed. A full minute of inactivity by the golem resets the golem’s berserk chance back to 0%.

Turning Hatred (Ex): Should a good cleric, or a neutral cleric that turns undead, try to turn a bone golem the attempt automatically fails and, at the beginning of the golem’s next action, it attacks and tries to kill whoever tried to turn it in exclusion of any other threat. If another cleric attempts to turn it before it kills the first one, it abandons the former to attack the latter.

Absorb Bone (Su): As a full round action, a bone golem can attempt to absorb the bones of another creature into its body. The golem must succeed in grappling and pinning the target before it can start using this ability. If the target is still living, it must make a DC 17 Fortitude save or take 1d6 points of Constitution damage every round is remains in the grapple as its bones are slowly absorbed into the golem. The bone golem gains 2 hit points for every point of Constitution absorbed in this manner. Any excess hit points above the golem’s total hit points are treated as temporary hit points that last up to one hour. If the target is dead, no save is permitted and the target’s bones are completely absorbed in 2 rounds, but the golem only gains a number of hit points equal to the target’s hit dice.

Any time a bone golem uses this ability on an already dead creature, or drops a creature to 0 Constitution, the body is no longer suitable to be used with a raise dead spell. However, a true resurrection or reincarnate spell will still work properly. This ability can only be used on creatures that have bones skeletons, including bone golems and certain other types of golems, such as flesh golems. Constructs, other types of golems without skeletons, oozes, and plants are unaffected.

Body Weaponry (Ex): A bone golem’s arm blade and mace hand cannot be in any way disarmed. They can, however, be sundered as normal weapons. If both of the body weapons are sundered, the bone golem gains a slam attack at +10 melee that deals 2d6+8 points of bludgeoning damage. A bone golem’s body weaponry has a hardness of 10 and 10 hit points.

Unholy Toughness (Ex): A bone golem gains a number of hit points equal to its Charisma modifier, minimum 1 hit point, per hit die it possesses.

Immunity to Magic (Ex): A bone golem is immune to any spell or spell-like ability that allows spell resistance. In addition, certain spells and effect function differently against the golem, as noted below.

Any spell from the healing subschool slows the golem, as the slow spell, for 1 round per spell level with no saving throw. Any equal level inflict spell breaks the slow effect. An animate dead heals the golem for 10 hit points. A create undead heals the golem for half its total hit points. The spell raise dead does not deal damage to the golem, but negates its damage reduction and immunity to magic for 3 rounds.

CONSTRUCTION:
A bone golem is made from 1,500 pounds of bones. These bones need not be from the same creature, or even the same kind of creature. The only specific bone that is required is at least one skull. The bones that are not directly used for the construction of the golem’s body are ground up and mixed together with special unguents and bindings that hold the body together. This mixture costs 500 gp. Assembling the body requires a DC 18 Heal check or a DC 18 Craft (weaponsmithing) check. The golem’s body weaponry may be any type of Large, one-handed, non-exotic weapon and may be purchased or made by the caster. However, the weapons must be at least masterwork quality.

CL 15th; Craft Construct, antimagic field, blasphemy, create undead, geas/quest, caster must be at least 15th level; Price 125,000 gp, 95,500 gp + 4,500 XP.

The thing beat the hell out of, then absorbed, the party's blackscale lizardfolk tank. At that point, the party decided to run like girls :D
RogueElement
04-30-07, 07:09 PM could be interesting as a plot device, new way of 'undead', possibly for a raid on thrane? whos making this, and why?

HOwever, anything other than that and its basically sticking your tongue out at the party and laughing at the clerics.

Because a smart villain (as well as a smart player) always makes his opponent waste time and resources. If you can make the party's cleric waste action rounds and turn attempts on a non-undead, the villain is at an advantage. (especially if the villain is undead himself)
TheAnthroDM
04-30-07, 08:16 PM Because a smart villain (as well as a smart player) always makes his opponent waste time and resources. If you can make the party's cleric waste action rounds and turn attempts on a non-undead, the villain is at an advantage. (especially if the villain is undead himself)
And especially if the Villan knows the character has other ways to channel his positive energy(See Divine Feats)

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Edymnion 04-14-07, 09:54 PM	When they're in Karnnath fighting undead, toss in a skeleton that has been wired together and had Animate Object cast on it. Looks like a skeleton, fights like a skeleton, but is an animated object so that it isn't affected by Turning attempts, nor does it take damage from healing spells. Do the same thing to general corpses (which do count as objects), and have unturnable "zombies" coming after the party.
Faithful_One 04-14-07, 11:30 PM	When they're in Karnnath fighting undead, toss in a skeleton that has been wired together and had Animate Object cast on it. Looks like a skeleton, fights like a skeleton, but is an animated object so that it isn't affected by Turning attempts, nor does it take damage from healing spells. Do the same thing to general corpses (which do count as objects), and have unturnable "zombies" coming after the party. I actually thought of something similar to this once involving dead animals. Imagine the big time game hunter who keeps his kills as stuffed trophies on the wall. Animate them and we got the same thing as undead just about.:cool:
JulesCARV 04-15-07, 01:03 AM	It's kinda fun as a gimmick, although as a battle strategy it's a bit of a waste of a cleric's level 6 spell. ("You could have summoned a chain devil... and instead you made a skeleton walk around for one round/level? How did you ever survive to be level 11+ with tactics like that?")
Edymnion 04-15-07, 12:43 PM	It's kinda fun as a gimmick, although as a battle strategy it's a bit of a waste of a cleric's level 6 spell. ("You could have summoned a chain devil... and instead you made a skeleton walk around for one round/level? How did you ever survive to be level 11+ with tactics like that?")If memory serves, you can apply Permanence to Animate Object, and you don't have to worry about how many hitdice you can control at once.
Moblin 04-15-07, 02:00 PM	If memory serves, you can apply Permanence to Animate Object, and you don't have to worry about how many hitdice you can control at once. Yes but that is just so damn expensive in terms of xp that you'd be better of leveling (gaining access to even higher summon monster spells). lets face it, baring eldrich machines creating animated objects and undeads in DnD is a waste of resources because the designers had to prevent the PC's from running around with their own army. PS: Was probably way to serious about the idea. If you don't think to hard about the mechanics behind it, it's an ok surprise for your players.
Drag0nUL 04-15-07, 02:19 PM	I think this idea has potential. The way I see it is that it could be used as a possible means of intimidating the party, by making something that looks like a very powerful thing. An example of this: the aspect of a Grisgol(MM 3) can be easily duplicated by stacking some used scrolls/staffs/wands and animating them. This can be done by a 11th level spellcaster, while the real grisgol is CR 15 itself and requires a caster of at least 19th level to animate(and the phylactery of a lich). Well, if I saw 'golem' made of scrolls and wands and I was around level 10-11(assuming I had in-game knowledge of a grisgol) I would think that a tactical retreat is the best option.
Edymnion 04-15-07, 04:19 PM	Yup. Faking 'em out is the name of the game. I mean, if you tell the players that they pass a big clay statue, and then it suddenly comes to life and starts attacking, odds are they are going to metagame and think its a clay golem. Will throw them for a loop when its nothing but an animated statue.
ekomega 04-15-07, 05:16 PM	This gives me an idea for defending a Cannith enclave in the Mournlands. Since the Mournlands are littered with corpses, many of which are undead, a Cannith enclave hidden in the Mournlands could defend itself by animating bones into skeleton shapes. The traditional method of fighting "undead" would fail, and this would probably hold off a lot of adventurers from getting too close. All they'd need is an eldritch machine to animate the bones as objects. I think I'm going to pull this one on my players.
korcheck 04-15-07, 06:17 PM	This gives me an idea for defending a Cannith enclave in the Mournlands. Since the Mournlands are littered with corpses, many of which are undead, a Cannith enclave hidden in the Mournlands could defend itself by animating bones into skeleton shapes. The traditional method of fighting "undead" would fail, and this would probably hold off a lot of adventurers from getting too close. All they'd need is an eldritch machine to animate the bones as objects. I think I'm going to pull this one on my players. except in the mournlands unless your by a grave yard they wouldn't be skeleton they would have to be zombies instead since nothing decays.
ArcTan 04-16-07, 01:49 AM	Hey, we were just talking about the difference between Skeletons and animated corpses in the other thread! Inspiration much? I would probably allow someone with a high Knowledge (religion) or (arcana) check to notice a substantial difference between the Zombie/Skeleton troops and the merely animated corpse -- unless the animated corpse was being directed to do so by a spellcaster at the time, it'd probably "forget" to walk like a human and start doing all kinds of things as needed, like flipping over and bouncing on its head, hopping on its belly, etc -- much as an animated desk or boulder would move around wildly without regard for its shape. The Skeletons would attack with direction (and yes, in my campaigns, malice), fighting with a determined tenacity and using weapons and some semblance of combat tactics, while the animated corpse would fling itself bodily at enemies, whapping them with its head, its shoulder, flipping onto its hands and kicking you backwards, whatever. Of course, while this is a cute idea, it won't actually do much to the party. They will be freaked out when the apparent Zombie resists turning and is unaffected by undead bane or holy weapons, but the fact is that a Medium Animated Object really isn't that powerful and a party equipped to deal with a group of skeletons can certainly deal with an extra CR 2 Construct on top of that. Animated Objects are only really dangerous when a caster takes you completely by surprise with them and animates all the furniture while you're sitting around having tea. Now there's a fun image. (Probably a reason animated objects was put in the Chaos domain.)
ArcTan 04-16-07, 01:53 AM	This gives me an idea for defending a Cannith enclave in the Mournlands. Since the Mournlands are littered with corpses, many of which are undead, a Cannith enclave hidden in the Mournlands could defend itself by animating bones into skeleton shapes. The traditional method of fighting "undead" would fail, and this would probably hold off a lot of adventurers from getting too close. All they'd need is an eldritch machine to animate the bones as objects. I think I'm going to pull this one on my players. I dunno. I mean, anything is possible when you're the DM and have eldritch machines and undefined ways for large groups of Magewrights to boost each others' powers and other DM tricks that only NPCs can use. But looking at the spell as-is, that's a 6th-level slot and 3,000 XP a pop. That ain't cheap. It would be a lot easier to just defend the camp with actual undead (likely to be available, at least for Cannith South, which is in Karrnath). Or, if you want to use the "fake people out into assuming a greater danger" route, have a bunch of Warforged guards pretending to work for the Lord of Blades (and pray the real LoB doesn't find out).
JulesCARV 04-16-07, 02:07 AM	Thought: this "fake undead" strategy may not be so great for a cleric, but it could be used by a kineticist. Fake undead, while a suboptimal (although still fun) strategy at level 11, seem like a perfectly decent strategy at level 1, when a kineticist can have Control Object. Of course, the corpse would have to be under 100 pounds, but if we're talking about the skeleton of a human and not a reasonably fresh corpse, it should work.
Daydreamer 04-16-07, 02:25 AM	could be interesting as a plot device, new way of 'undead', possibly for a raid on thrane? whos making this, and why? HOwever, anything other than that and its basically sticking your tongue out at the party and laughing at the clerics.
Phalo 04-25-07, 01:35 AM	if your are going through all that work why not make effigies of zombies you get a construct that has all the immunities and none of the weaknesses. But honestly if you go through the effort you might as well make and effigy of like an mummy ghoul or something like that
Splendide 04-25-07, 08:23 AM	My party got attacked by an animated carpet once. It was Huge so had insane hitpoints. Ugh. If you want fake anything, use illusions. They kick so much arse.
Hideous Phidias 04-27-07, 01:57 PM	Seems like something out of Scooby doo. What happens at the end of the adventure the party pulls a mask of the bad guy and it is a gnome on stills that sayes damn you and your dog too
Edymnion 04-28-07, 12:48 AM	it'd probably "forget" to walk like a human and start doing all kinds of things as needed, like flipping over and bouncing on its head, hopping on its belly, etc -- much as an animated desk or boulder would move around wildly without regard for its shape.I'm sorry, but where do you get the idea that an animated table belly flops? Unless you can quote me something that says "Animated Objects move in an unpredictable, illogical fashion", then a table is going to walk around on it's four legs, and a statue will walk around on it's two legs, and things will generally move in a normal manner. There is no reason to expect an animated corpse to cartwheel around, and plenty of reason to expect that they don't.
Oorlof 04-30-07, 06:28 AM	Bit of a tangent, but I thought of a nice way to fool PCs and set up a story. We all know Warforged can't be animated as undead, right? Imagine the horror when a town close to a battlefield is being plagued by hungry Warforged ghosts! They enter closed buildings and suck the life-force out of their victims while slashing at defenders with their swords. Counter-attacks pass right through the horrid things and the town cleric lacks the divine power to turn the ghosts away. The things don't attack warforged - are they working together? The news that Warforged can become undead is one more strike against the race built for war and conquest - is Eberron never to be rid of them? The PCs must travel to the town and save it from the undead horde, then uncover how the warforged were turned into undead. Is a powerful necromancer of the Blood of Vol doing this? Is the Lord of Blades behind it all, making his fellow warforged serve even after death? Of course, the undead warforged are Breathdrinkers from MM II, disguised by illusions and commanded by either a cleric with the air-domain or a powerful mage. Still nasty, but at least they're not undead reproducing like shadows...and the party will spend quite some resources on the beasties (turn undead, invis. from undead) before they figure it out.
Splendide 04-30-07, 06:31 AM	Seems like something out of Scooby doo. What happens at the end of the adventure the party pulls a mask of the bad guy and it is a gnome on stills that sayes damn you and your dog tooHow would that not be awesome?
Warforged Goblin 04-30-07, 10:07 AM	One I threw at my PCs, and decimated them with, was my homemade bone golem. GOLEM, BONE Large Construct (Evil) Hit Dice: 13d10+43 (114 Hp) Initiative: +1 Speed: 25 ft (5 squares) Armor Class: 25 (-1 size, +1 Dex, +15 natural), touch 10, flat-footed 24 Base Attack/Grapple: +9/+19 Attack: Arm blade +14 melee (3d6+6/19-20 x2) or mace hand +14 melee (2d8+6/x2) Full Attack: Arm blade +14 melee (3d6+6/19-20 x2) and mace hand +9 melee (2d8+3/x2) Space/Reach: 10 ft/10 ft. Special Attacks: Absorb bone, berserk, turning hatred Special Qualities: Construct traits, body weaponry, unholy toughness, damage reduction 10/bludgeoning, low light vision, darkvision 60 ft, immunity to magic Saves: Fort +4, Ref +5, Will +4 Abilities: Str 27, Dex 12, Con -, Int -, Wis 11, Cha 1 Skills: – Feats: – Environment: Any Organization: Solitary, gang (2-4) Challenge Rating: 12 Treasure: None Alignment: Neutral Evil Advancement: 14-19 HD (Large); 20-45 HD (Huge) Level Adjustment: – A large skeleton slowly lumbers toward you. As it drags itself closer however, you realize that it’s made up of a mismatched array of differing bones. Its limbs are much larger and thicker then a normal skeleton’s, nearly three times the diameter due to the numerous bones lashed together. Instead of hands, a wicked looking sword and heavy mace adorn the ends of its arms. The smell of death hangs in the air as it stands before you. A bone golem is made from the stolen or broken remains of undead skeletons. First created by the Order of the Emerald Claw to utilize the remains of their destroyed skeletal armies, bone golems are now created to help guard holy sites devoted to the Blood of Vol, such as the Crimson Monastery. A bone golem usually wears no clothing, although those found guarding sacred sites usually have a tabard depicting either the Blood of Vol or the Order of the Emerald Claw insignia. Bone golems can’t speak, but occasionally release a hissing rasp before attacking. They walk with a slow gait and weigh approximately 1,000 pounds. COMBAT Bone golems are usually found with a squad of at least 5 undead skeletons or a cleric of the Blood of Vol. They wade into melee combat swinging their body weaponry and using their absorb bone ability on either downed foes or destroyed skeletal allies. Berserk (Ex): When a bone golem enters combat, there is a cumulative 1% chance that the elemental spirit that powers the golem breaks free and goes berserk. The uncontrolled golem goes on a rampage, attacking the nearest living creature or smashing some object smaller than it if no creature is within its reach, then moving on to spread more destruction. The golem’s creator, if within 60 ft, can try to regain control by speaking firmly and persuasively to the golem, which requires a DC 21 Charisma check. An evil cleric, or neutral cleric that rebukes undead, can spend a rebuke attempt to try and calm the golem. The cleric attempts to rebuke as normal and if the cleric is successful in rebuking a number of HD equal to or greater than half the bone golem’s Hit Dice, the golem is calmed. A full minute of inactivity by the golem resets the golem’s berserk chance back to 0%. Turning Hatred (Ex): Should a good cleric, or a neutral cleric that turns undead, try to turn a bone golem the attempt automatically fails and, at the beginning of the golem’s next action, it attacks and tries to kill whoever tried to turn it in exclusion of any other threat. If another cleric attempts to turn it before it kills the first one, it abandons the former to attack the latter. Absorb Bone (Su): As a full round action, a bone golem can attempt to absorb the bones of another creature into its body. The golem must succeed in grappling and pinning the target before it can start using this ability. If the target is still living, it must make a DC 17 Fortitude save or take 1d6 points of Constitution damage every round is remains in the grapple as its bones are slowly absorbed into the golem. The bone golem gains 2 hit points for every point of Constitution absorbed in this manner. Any excess hit points above the golem’s total hit points are treated as temporary hit points that last up to one hour. If the target is dead, no save is permitted and the target’s bones are completely absorbed in 2 rounds, but the golem only gains a number of hit points equal to the target’s hit dice. Any time a bone golem uses this ability on an already dead creature, or drops a creature to 0 Constitution, the body is no longer suitable to be used with a raise dead spell. However, a true resurrection or reincarnate spell will still work properly. This ability can only be used on creatures that have bones skeletons, including bone golems and certain other types of golems, such as flesh golems. Constructs, other types of golems without skeletons, oozes, and plants are unaffected. Body Weaponry (Ex): A bone golem’s arm blade and mace hand cannot be in any way disarmed. They can, however, be sundered as normal weapons. If both of the body weapons are sundered, the bone golem gains a slam attack at +10 melee that deals 2d6+8 points of bludgeoning damage. A bone golem’s body weaponry has a hardness of 10 and 10 hit points. Unholy Toughness (Ex): A bone golem gains a number of hit points equal to its Charisma modifier, minimum 1 hit point, per hit die it possesses. Immunity to Magic (Ex): A bone golem is immune to any spell or spell-like ability that allows spell resistance. In addition, certain spells and effect function differently against the golem, as noted below. Any spell from the healing subschool slows the golem, as the slow spell, for 1 round per spell level with no saving throw. Any equal level inflict spell breaks the slow effect. An animate dead heals the golem for 10 hit points. A create undead heals the golem for half its total hit points. The spell raise dead does not deal damage to the golem, but negates its damage reduction and immunity to magic for 3 rounds. CONSTRUCTION: A bone golem is made from 1,500 pounds of bones. These bones need not be from the same creature, or even the same kind of creature. The only specific bone that is required is at least one skull. The bones that are not directly used for the construction of the golem’s body are ground up and mixed together with special unguents and bindings that hold the body together. This mixture costs 500 gp. Assembling the body requires a DC 18 Heal check or a DC 18 Craft (weaponsmithing) check. The golem’s body weaponry may be any type of Large, one-handed, non-exotic weapon and may be purchased or made by the caster. However, the weapons must be at least masterwork quality. CL 15th; Craft Construct, antimagic field, blasphemy, create undead, geas/quest, caster must be at least 15th level; Price 125,000 gp, 95,500 gp + 4,500 XP. The thing beat the hell out of, then absorbed, the party's blackscale lizardfolk tank. At that point, the party decided to run like girls :D
RogueElement 04-30-07, 07:09 PM	could be interesting as a plot device, new way of 'undead', possibly for a raid on thrane? whos making this, and why? HOwever, anything other than that and its basically sticking your tongue out at the party and laughing at the clerics. Because a smart villain (as well as a smart player) always makes his opponent waste time and resources. If you can make the party's cleric waste action rounds and turn attempts on a non-undead, the villain is at an advantage. (especially if the villain is undead himself)
TheAnthroDM 04-30-07, 08:16 PM	Because a smart villain (as well as a smart player) always makes his opponent waste time and resources. If you can make the party's cleric waste action rounds and turn attempts on a non-undead, the villain is at an advantage. (especially if the villain is undead himself) And especially if the Villan knows the character has other ways to channel his positive energy(See Divine Feats)