Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Ryuu_Tenshi 01-05-07, 02:57 PM	Right... So I had a dream a while back with a truly interesting creature in it. This beastie's been bothering me for a while. I wrote a short story with it, I drew a picture of it, and now I want stats. I'm really bad at stating creatures though, so I decided to post this as a bit of an interesting challenge. http://www.deviantart.com/deviation/45973579/ ^ There's the picture. I stood on the ridge and looked out over the Grey Waste: this is what I saw. Mile upon mile of ash grey earth, punctuated by the occasional twisted tree. I knew if I walked far enough, I would find low stone, cracked and blackened, marble and glass twisted and melted into shapes too bleak for dreams. I did not weep. It is not a Warder's place to weep. I scanned the Grey Waste, my eyes taking in every detail. From on high came a piercing cry, followed by a sharp weight on my extended forearm. My falcon. I gazed into her eyes before covering them with the dark hood: the darkness reflected in them told me all I needed to know. I wheeled my horse around and rode down to my gathered companions in the small depression below. A few sat on the ground beside their horses - one was smoking a small pipe. I gave him a sharp look; he did not respond. As he was several years my senior, I did not press the matter. I swept my gaze over the lot. All faces were hidden by robes that billowed in the wind. In the Waste, it was important to hide one's face... I made a slight gesture. The old one with the pipe nodded and got to his feet, shaking ash out of his long robes, pulled his mask down over his mouth, and shook out the tabac from his pipe. One of the others started in suprise; the rest mounted their horses in silence. As one, we rode... The ash kicked up behind my horse does not bother to float in the air, instead coming down flatly with only a slight 'thump.' My falcon circles overhead, and I am aware of it, though in the light of the Waste, it casts no shadow. Nothing casts shadows in the Waste. I draw my sword. It does not flash, because the light in the Waste is not enough to make it flash. It makes no noise, just as the horses make almost no noise as they run across the soft ash. It is an ordinary, if well-made, sword, with a simple handle and a fine curve. It is well-polished and sharp, though it bears the signs of use. A proper blade, in my eyes. And there it is. I do not even slow down as a massive pointed claw shoots past me, the ropey limb it is attached to clattering as I go. My horse dives to one side as a second deadly spike comes at me. Our horses are well-trained, indeed. I don't bother looking at my comrades. I know they're doing their jobs. I don't bother striking at the limbs. It is a Khyr-ghuake, therefore, the body is the only thing vulnerable. If you can get to the body. I launch myself from my horse as another spike seeks me out. The horse turns and flees, as it was trained to do. I roll through the ash and stand, and for an instant, I take in the whole of the horror. Even this close, it seems naught but a writhing mass of tentacles. But tentacle isn't the right word. "Tentacle" suggests something slimy, something wet, and nothing is wet in the Waste. These are long, ropelike, and plated in bone. Each one is tipped by a triangular spike, much like the point of a spear. The base of each spine is fully one and a half spans across, and the tip need not be sharp to spear a man to the ground. I have seen it before. An unpleasant way to travel to Shara'nai. The spines can split into four, as they are, in fact, gigantic claws. They can just as easily pick a man up and tear him in two, as spear him. So many trendils writhe... I dive and roll under, over, around, barely a hair's breadth away from razor-edged doom. One snaps just nearby me, tearing my cloak. It is said that the only time you know the number of trendils a Khyr-ghuake has is when it is dead, or you are. I pray to A'shara that this day, it will be the former. I come upon it suddenly. A vast expanse of pulsing black flesh. I only have a moment to raise my sword before I am battered to one side by something not covered in razor sharp spines. The face. A'shara, the face... The face of a Khyr-ghuake is horrible. It is smooth, bone white, and eyeless, a swept back and smooth thing. But that is not what is terrible. What is terrible is the smile. Because the teeth of a Khyr-ghuake are almost human. Larger, to be sure, bleached-white, and set behind lips that are ever pulled back, but human nonetheless. I would say that I am not afraid, but that would be a lie. Instead, I bury my fear, and I do not allow it to control me. I jump backwards just as a spine plunges into the ground before me. I do not curse through teeth. The Khyr-ghuake screams in pain and I smell something acrid. A black line nears my boot. First strike. Someone was close enough. Time to change tactics. I switch from trying to reach it to an acrobatic display, all leaps and jumps. I begin to chant loudly, singing an old war-song from the days before the Waste, when all was green. A time that even the oldest among us do not remember. The creature turns its attentions to me, and my world becomes a forest of bone, a maze of spines. Flash, tumble, evade. There is no blocking. One strike from this creature is all it would take to shatter my blade. I must evade and pray that my comrades finish the creature before I die. If not... well. Then I pray they finish it after. And at once it is too much, and all I have time to do is mutter a prayer to A'shara before... ... No, it is over. The trendils collapse around me, and I sink to the ground, allowing myself this one moment of respite. I thank A'shara. A strong hand takes my arm and helps me to my feet. I accept the help. Our horses return, as they have been trained. I mount. I steal one last look behind. Sixteen. It had sixteen limbs. Then I turn my horse, and we ride home. Yes, the one in my dream did have sixteen limbs. Also, it lived in a desert canyon with bright sunlight, rather than a grey waste. The colours? The body is a dark purple-black colour, while the head and the tips of the trendils are of a silvery colour. should have picked a better thread title.
LivingShadow 01-05-07, 05:34 PM	Let's see. Type Abberation Huge size Attacks Tentacle or claw, bite, spike (long reach with spike) imp grab with tentacle or claw
IdleAltruism 01-05-07, 06:04 PM	That must have been one interesting dream you had :D . Here's my attempt to "stat out" your creature. Khyr-ghuake Colossal Aberration Hit Dice: 40d8+400(580) Initiative: 11+ Speed: 80 Armor Class: 39 (-8 + 7Dex + 30 Natural), Touch 9, Flat Footed 32 Base Attack/Grapple: 30/61 Attack: Bite +37 6d6+22 ,Tentacle +37 4d6+15 Full Attack: +35 10 Tentacles (4d6+15/19-20x2) and Bite +37 (6d6+22/19-20x2) Space/Reach:30/20(40 with tentacles) Special Attacks: Improved Grap Special Qualities: Damage reduction 15/adamantium, Regeneration 25, Spell resistance 35 Blind Sight 30 Feet( From your earlier post I thought you said yes he has it correct me if I'm wrong about the blind sight) Saves: Fort 24, Ref 21, Will 33 Abilities: Str 40, Dex 25, Con 31, Int 16, Wis 24, Cha 18 Skills: Climb +66, Listen +50, Move silently +50, Hide +42, Survival +7 Feats: Combat Reflexes, Improved Initiative, Improved Critical(Tentacle), Improved Natural Attack(Tentacle), Lightning Reflexes, Great Fortitude, Iron Will, Power Attack, Cleave, Great Cleave,Improved Critical(bite), Multi-attack, Track, Improved Natural Attack (Bite) Enviorment: (Not sure where ya want the lil bugger) Treasure: Standard coins, Double goods, Standard items Alignment: (I'm thinking some kind of evil) Usualy Neutral Evil Advancement: 40+colossal Level Adjustment: --- I'm not sure what the regeneration should be bypassed by.
Ryuu_Tenshi 01-05-07, 06:11 PM	I have interesting dreams all the time >.< Someday I'll build a campaign setting based on 'em, but the world in my dreams is unimaginably large so it's somewhat hard to do.* And yeah, interesting would be the word... I'm liking what I'm seeing so far, but... wtf is with the Hide 42? I guess with its penalty for being FARKING HUGE... but still. That's decidedly epic. *laughs* it'd make the fellows in my short story rather high level... *for instance, the Grey Waste is from a different, unrelated dream I had, created by a terrible cataclysm that was tangentially related to me. Or rather, three aspects of me (the fourth merely watched) On one edge of the Grey Waste lies the Bone Tower, called so because of its bone white colour and the skulls at its base. It's made of driftwood and glass, and filled with the sorts of puzzles you only see in Myst and Zork... on that edge of the waste the sun actually does shine, 'cause it's the edge, but it looks hazy. ... sorry, tangent.
Thiez 01-05-07, 06:23 PM	So what CR are you aiming at?
Ryuu_Tenshi 01-05-07, 06:34 PM	So what CR are you aiming at? None in particular. I'm not sure if it should actually be epic... ... Ok, personally, CR 12-15. It should be above 10, absolutely.
IdleAltruism 01-05-07, 07:38 PM	I was going by your picture. I saw a little man in there, at that scale hes colossal. Its hard to make a non-epic colossal creature thats not an animal. If you want a lower CR its size will probably have to change to gargantuan or Huge. I gave it a +8 racial bonus to hide check in natural terrain. I'm thinking it probably mainly lives in caves(maybe his tentacles can look like stalgmtites or something). The reason I gave it such a high hide is I can't really see this creature hunting very well without ambushing things big enough to satisfy it(how many humanoids will go near a place where you can clearly see a colossal terror waltzing around). Right now its not really epic, as of now its maybe cr 17-19 with all of those tentacle attacks its like a non-spell non-flying dragon( I'm thinking it can attack with 10 tentacles as a full attack action and uses the other 6 as legs)
Ryuu_Tenshi 01-05-07, 11:10 PM	I was going by your picture. I saw a little man in there, at that scale hes colossal. Its hard to make a non-epic colossal creature thats not an animal. If you want a lower CR its size will probably have to change to gargantuan or Huge. I gave it a +8 racial bonus to hide check in natural terrain. I'm thinking it probably mainly lives in caves(maybe his tentacles can look like stalgmtites or something). The reason I gave it such a high hide is I can't really see this creature hunting very well without ambushing things big enough to satisfy it(how many humanoids will go near a place where you can clearly see a colossal terror waltzing around). Right now its not really epic, as of now its maybe cr 17-19 with all of those tentacle attacks its like a non-spell non-flying dragon( I'm thinking it can attack with 10 tentacles as a full attack action and uses the other 6 as legs) Your version is fine. And you're probably right. ... and you know, the fact that something that big has the potential to sneak up on you makes it scarier. In the dream I didn't see it till we got into the canyon and it decided to go hunting around the observation room we were in.
Morrowner 01-06-07, 12:27 AM	Tentamort Hit Dice: 13d8+65 (123 hp) Initiative: +3 (-1 Dex, +4 Improved Initiative) Speed: 5 ft, climb 5 ft AC: 21 (-2 size, +3 Dex, +9 natural) Attacks: 2 tentacle slaps +15 melee Damage:Tentacle slap 2d6+9 Face/Reach: 10 ft by 10 ft/ 10 ft (15 ft with tentacle) Special Attacks: Improved grab, constrict, liquefy organs, compression/expansion Special Qualities: Blindsight, Ambushing Savant Saves: Fort +9, Ref +9, Will +8 Abilities: Str 28, Dex 16, Con 20, Int 12, Wis 10, Cha 6 Feats: Improved Initiative, Lightning Reflexes, Improved Natural Attack, Skill Focus(Move Silently), Improved Grapple Skills: Hide +21, Move Silently +30, Spot +20, Listen +18 Climate/Terrain: Any marsh and underground Organization: Solitary or brood (2-5) Challenge Rating: 9 Treasure: None Alignment: Always neutral Advancement: 14-17 HD (Large); 18-33(Huge) Expansion and Compression(Ex) Tentamorts have tremendous skill over their bodies and are imbued with magic that lets them shrink and increase the size of their bodies with the greatest of ease. As the psionic powers, manifester level equal to HD Improved Grab (Ex): To use this ability, the tentamort must hit an opponent of up to Large size with a tentacle attack. If it gets a hold it can constrict or deal Constitution damage depending on which tentacle hits. Constrict (Ex): A tentamort deals 1d4+2 points of damage with a successful grapple check against Large or smaller creatures when using its leftmost tentacle. A tentamort will constrict its prey until either it or its prey is killed or the tentacle is severed. A single attack with a slashing weapon that deals at least 10 points of damage severs a tentacle (AC 17). A severed tentacle regenerates in one week. Blindsight (Ex): Tentamorts have no visual organs but can ascertain all foes within 30 feet using body heat and vibration. Liquify Organs:Liquefy Organs (Ex): On a successful grapplecheck that does not provoke an attack of opportunity, the tentamort grabs and holds its prey with its rightmost tentacle and inserts the needle-like projection into the victim, injecting its acidic-saliva into the wound. The saliva liquefies the victim’s muscles and organs allowing the tentamort to suck them through the hollow needle. This attack deals 1d4 points of temporary Constitution each round the hold is maintained and for 1d3 rounds after the needle is removed. At Constitution 0 the creature dies. A heal, lesser restoration, miracle, remove disease, restoration, or wish will halt the Constitution damage after the needle has been removed. A tentamort will hold its prey until either it or its prey is killed or the tentacle is severed (see above). Camaflague: A Tentamort gains a +8 bonus to Hide checks due to its ability to change its color. Ambushing Savant:Though stupid, a Tentamort has a +8 to the following skills from many successful sneak attacks: Move Silently, Hide, Spot, and Listen. Apologies if any of the numbers are off. Its an adaptation of an adaptation, an old skool creature brought to 3.5 from Enworld, changed a bit for you. Hope the numbers are all on.
Ryuu_Tenshi 01-06-07, 12:29 AM	... except Khyr-ghuake can't change their shape, and it's not all about ambushing. It also doesn't constrict so much as it just stabs things, and it has blindsight. IdleAlturism is the most like what I had in mind thus far.
IdleAltruism 01-06-07, 01:20 AM	I updated my first post. I'm thinking about only allowing a certain amount of tentacles to attack on any given side of it, something like 5 per side(Front,left,right,back) not sure tho.