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shale spitter

by Brant Vallier

Type: Animal
Size: Medium
Level: 2

shale spitter
creature 2
n
medium
animal
earth
Perception +8darkvision, tremorsense (imprecise) 60 feet
Skills Athletics +7, Stealth +9 (+11 in rocky areas)
Str +1, Dex +2, Con +4, Int -4, Wis +3, Cha +1
Items gem, shale spitter tourmaline (worth 1d4×25 sp)
AC 18; Fort +11, Ref +8, Will +5
HP 32; Immunities bleed; Resistances piercing 3, slashing 3
Carapace Recoil
Trigger The shale spitter is targeted by an attack. Effect The shale spitter hunkers down, gaining a +2 circumstance bonus to AC against the triggering attack and gains the slowed 1 condition.
Speed 20 feet, burrow 30 feet, climb 20 feet
Melee
claw +7, Damage 1d6+3 piercing
Ranged
rock +9 (range increment 80 feet), Damage 1d8+4 bludgeoning
Rock Stride A shale spitter ignores difficult terrain caused by any rocky mountain or underground terrain features.
Shale Spit
The shale spitter lets loose a hail of rock and dust in a 15 foot cone. This deals 2d6 piercing damage with a DC 15 basic Reflex save. On a critical failure, targets are also dazzled for 1 minute.
Stalagmite Burst
(80 foot range, primal) Requirement; The shale spitter is touching solid ground. Effect The shale spitter causes the ground to erupt into a 5 foot burst of long, sharp, rocky protrusions. Creatures within the area are dealt 2d6 piercing damage (DC 15 basic Reflex save). Creatures that fail this save take a –10 foot status penalty to their Speeds for 1 round.
Stalactite Drop
(120 foot range, primal) Requirement The shale spitter is underground. Frequency Once per hour; Effect The shale spitter causes spires of rock to fall from the ceiling in a 20 foot burst. Creatures within the area are dealt 3d6 piercing damage (DC 15 basic Reflex save) and the entire area is considered difficult terrain.

Resembling not much more than a pile of overlapping pieces of slate rock at first glance, the stalwart shale spitter is a skittering isopod with a rocky carapace that thrives in mountainous and underground areas, where they seek to gather minerals to reproduce asexually.

Akin to the common pearl oyster, shale spitters are known to produce unique, iridescent tourmaline gemstones that are quite prominent in fashionable circles - this makes the 'harvesting' of shale spitter gems an emerging enterprise - albeit a deadly one.

In response, shale spitters are notoriously territorial and typically congregate in small packs of three to five, keeping enough distance between each other so as to not interfere with one another's daily mineral extraction, and also to cast a wide defensive net when intruders or would-be predators are concerned.

Groups hunting shale spitters often struggle to get close enough to crack them open; They are instinctive guerrilla combatants using their tremorsense and ability to burrow to hide from threats, and avoid close range combat. From there, they seek to discourage predators with thorny stalagmite bursts and spit rocks at speeds that rival a champion slinger's. Those that do get up close will find themselves dealing with barrages of dust and rock as the creatures look to retreat, burrowing into the nearby terrain.

Word Count: 511

Art Direction

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Chiralus

by Kalen Herrmann-Mowling

Type: Aberration
Size: Large
Level: 9

Chiralus
creature 9
ne
large
aberration
astral
Perception +20lifesense (precise) 120 feet
Languages Aklo (Reversed Speech)
Skills Stealth +22
Str +3, Dex +6, Con +4, Int +3, Wis +4, Cha +7
Reversed Speech A Chiralus speaks backwards, which makes it exceedingly difficult to understand, requiring a successful DC 20 Society check to Decipher Writing.
Depthless A Chiralus can pass through any gap, however thin (so long as it would not be a perfect enough seal to stop the flow of air), and can freely pass through other creatures' squares.
AC 25; Fort +17, Ref +20, Will +18
HP 140; Immunities grabbed, restrained; Weaknesses physical 10 (when prone)
Two Dimensional Reorientation
Trigger The Chiralus rolls for initiative, or its turn ends. Requirements The Chiralus is not Prone. Effect The Chiralus chooses one side of its square. Until the next time it uses this ability or falls prone, whenever a hostile effect's source originates from that side or the opposite side of its square (using the same method as determining cover), make a DC 15 flat check; on a failure, the effect doesn't affect the Chiralus.
Broken Mirror Curse
(curse, misfortune) Trigger A creature reduces the Chiralus to 0 Hit Points. Effect The creature must make a DC 28 Will save. On a failure, the creature is afflicted with bad luck, and must roll twice and take the worse result on the next seven non-trivial checks it makes within the next 24 hours.
Speed fly 35 feet
Melee
sharp edge +20 (magical), Damage 2d6+9 slashing plus 3d4 persistent bleed
Ranged
haunting reflection +20 (illusion, occult, range 30 feet, visual), Damage 2d8+11 mental
Infinitesimal Slice
Trigger The Chiralus moves through another creature's square. Effect The Chiralus slices the creature both bodily and spiritually. The creature must make a DC 27 Reflex save, with a +2 circumstance bonus if they possess slashing resistance. Success The creature is unaffected. Failure The creature becomes wounded 1. The Chiralus makes a counteract check (+20, counteract level 5) against each magical effect directly linking the creature to its allies, such as the Shield Other spell, and other effects at the GM's discretion. Critical Failure As failure, but the creature becomes wounded 2, and if the creature is Astrally Projecting, their silver cord is damaged (or severed if it was already damaged).

A common refrain in folklore throughout the world paints some evil creatures (such as vampires) as so horrible, or perhaps so alien so as to be utterly unable to cast a reflection, despite being normally visible. These tales often turn out to be true, but leave a lingering question of, "Why?", but perhaps the question should instead be, "Where?". As any magical scholar or seasoned adventurer will attest, mirrors and the reflections seen in them often hold strange and mercurial power. For those who can seemingly defy such reflection, their visage may not be cast back at them, but instead cast away, drifting through the astral plane. These distorted figures — tiny fragments of pure malevolence — eventually coalesce into a Chiralus.

Just like a reflection on a mirror's surface, Chiralus are two dimensional, appearing impossibly flat, and almost indistinguishable from a mundane mirror, aside from the fact that living creatures won't see their reflections within. Observed side-on, a Chiralus is almost imperceptible — a property they often use to deadly advantage, for they are driven by little else besides a primordial desire to cut, sever, and kill.

Travellers to the astral plane must be especially wary of Chiralus, for the creatures' infinitely sharp form can sever even an astral tether, tragically ending their journey.

Word Count: 597

Art Direction A flat, reflective surface, like a mirror with no frame. The surroundings are reflected in a twisted form upon it, overlaid with the faint images of several creatures who normally have no reflection (such as vampires).

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Autumnal

by Arun Varma

Type: Fey
Size: Small
Level: 4

Autumnal
creature 4
n
small
fey
Perception +13low-light vision
Languages Common, Sylvan
Skills Acrobatics +12, Nature +11, Performance +11, Stealth +12 (+14 in forests)
Str +2, Dex +5, Con +4, Int +2, Wis +5, Cha +5
AC 21; Fort +9, Ref +14, Will +11
HP 60; Weaknesses cold iron 5
Whirling Cloak Leaves swirl about the autumnal whenever they move, granting them concealment until the end of their current turn.
Life from Death
(healing, necromancy, positive) Trigger A living creature within 30 feet dies; Effect The autumnal is strengthened by the fleeting life essence, gaining 5 temporary hit points that last for 1 minute.
Speed 30 feet, fly 60 feet; whirling cloak
Melee
leaf blade +14 (agile, finesse), Damage 2d4+6 slashing
Primal Innate Spells DC 19, attack +11; 4th petal storm (leaves instead of petals); 2nd sudden blight; 1st gust of wind (×2); Cantrips (2nd) gale blast; Constant speak with plants (4th)
Dance of Leaves
The autumnal Strides or Flies twice, making a leaf blade Strike against two different creatures at any time during the movement. Apply the multiple attack penalty to these Strikes normally.
Mark for Reaping
The autumnal singles out a creature for reaping. Any autumnal who Strikes the marked creature does an additional 1d4 damage. This damage is negative if the marked creature is living, and positive if they are undead. In addition, if the marked creature is living, it must roll twice and take the lower result on any recovery checks to reduce its dying condition. This is a misfortune effect. The mark lasts until the creature dies or the autumnal ends the effect as a free action.
Dirge for the Living The autumnal may use Performance instead of Intimidation for the Demoralize action. When they do so, they do not suffer a penalty for not sharing a language with their target.

Autumnals are melancholy fey that linger in a forest for a single season each year. They arrive just as summer's golden sun begins to gild the first green leaves, and they part after a forest's last such leaf has been embraced by the earth. They belong to the shepherds of the seasons, a group of fey including vernals and hibernals who guide the natural life of a wood from one stage into the next. Autumnals cull the sick and old, that their mulch might fortify vivacious young saplings against winter's privations.

A grove under the care of a "reaping" (between four and ten autumnals, usually) is unmistakable, filled as it is with the mournful dirges the fey sing as they work. A reaping is led by an elder of thirty or forty seasons, known as a quietus, who often has access to more advanced primal magic and can wield the potent musical power of their people with a maestro's skill.

Like many forest fey, autumnals are deeply tied to their woodland domains and will viciously fight any who either pre-empt or stall the seasonal cycle of the year. However, one who earns the trust of an autumnal, perhaps by aiding them in purging the woods of unnatural forces, gains more than just a potent ally. They might be gifted with secrets of the forest beyond the ken of even druids or nymphs: the last whispered revelations of ancient oaks, or the confessions of primordial juggernauts before they finally slipped from this world. These ageless mysteries might have been lost forever had they not been captured and immortalized in the sorrowful songs of the autumnal choir.

Word Count: 579

Elements death, music, wood
Art Direction Autumnals are always dressed in raiments of leaves, bark, and plant matter. They signify status by the colour of the leafcloth they wear, with the most vibrant shades of red and orange reserved for the most senior. While most autumnals use their voice as their instrument, many also carry woodwinds like flutes with them.
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