Help with MM solo

[Epinephrine]

I'm running some Scales of War material soon, and in doing the preparation I notice that the enemies are built on the old monster stats. I don't mind doing a bit of adjusting on the fly (damage is easy enough, and I've seen the errata), but what really strikes me is that the elites/solos need adjustment. More recent solos and elites generally have ways to get additional attacks off, either triggered actions or minor actions.

The solo in this part of the adventure seems very underpowered; it's a
Berbalang, which are written up in the MM; I don't know if they were rewritten in the monster vault (can't check atm, will later), but it doesn't strike me as that "classic" a monster, so I doubt it. Basically, it wants to get duplicates of itself out there (before encountering opposition, preferably, or it spends its actions making the duplicates) to get as many attacks as possible and to take advantage of flanks. It needs to split itself by handing its HP out to make duplicates, so it effectively turns itself into a bunch of ~standard monsters, which aren't very impressive. Actually, it says that it will duplicate a maximum of 4 duplicates, but it can't even make that many, since it can't create them when bloodied, and it bloodies itself making the third duplicate (say it starts at 400 HP; it makes a 100 HP duplicate, a 75 HP duplicate, and a 56 HP duplicate, and it is now at 169/400 HP and can't make any more)

So, re: berbalang -
1) Given that it splits itself into 54 creatures, with a total HP equal to its original HP, and only a single standard action attack each (no encounter power, no recharge power, no minor action power), does it need its HP reduced to the 4x rather than 5x value listed in the MM? If so, it essentially becomes 4 creatures that have fewer HP than a normal set of 5 creatures, and fewer actions.

2) The standard action attack of a berbalang sucks. It delivers no status effects, and is on the low column of the normal damage expressions in the old DMG, with a situational bonus of 1d8 if it can flank with itself (not for CA, just for flanking). Obviously, the damage is off; rather than 1d8+6 (average 10.5) it should be adjusted to reflect MM3 damage (which would be ~2d8+9, or 18 damage, for a level 10 berbalang - in the adventure they've lowered it to level 7, but I can tweak things around). Other than improving the damage, is anything else needed? I suppose that 4 attacks at standard damage are pretty good (with some extra damage if it can flank), but since like most standard creatures it will be vulnerable to focus fire picking off its attackers, it still ends up behind a set of 5 standard creatures. Frankly, it's a little lackluster; compare the 4 berbalang-bits to a set of 5 level 10 skirmishers (Su Sentinel is a good example from MM3; it gets a 3d6+7 damage basic attack, an attack that deals 2d6+4, shifts the skirmisher 2 squares, and grants an attack against the target if it moves next to the Su Sentinel, and has a pair of triggered actions, granting it extra damage/attacks during the fight, and deals 5 extra damage with attacks if it has moved at least 4 squares) and you see how ludicrously underpowered they are.


The Berbalang is meant to be a skirmisher, but there is nothing remotely suggesting that in its build. It needs the flanks to be more effective than a horde of really average foes of its level, but has no way to gain them really (no shifting, sliding, or other ways to achieve this). Solos can afford to be a little less damaging, since they maintain their power through the duration of a fight, while groups of creatures become reduced in effectiveness as they fall - but so does a berbalang!

The only special powers the berbalang really has are to detonate a duplicate (using its standard action), and to heal by absorbing a duplicate (also standard). Plus, if the party identify the true berbalang (easy enough, it's the only one that can duplicate, sacrifice, absorb, and transfer damage) it can kill all the duplicates by focusing on the master.

Frankly, the berbalang is pretty pathetic. It should be impressive when it splits apart, and when it is absorbing itself or detonating, but it's virtually never in its best interests to detonate or absorb; it invested a quarter of its HP in the duplicate, and takes damage when detonating it, so the duplicate had better be pretty low on HP to make it worth detonating, and most PCs are pretty good at focus fire, so the odds aren't good of it coming around to the Berbalang's turn with a duplicate just happening to be low enough to be worth killing. Absorbing gets about half the HP it invested back, which could be decent if the duplicate was badly injured already, though you are using your standard action to recoup a fairly small number of HP.

Now, there's no reason to use a berbalang, plot-wise, it could be anything, though I do think it's a potentially interesting foe that could be made to feel like a solid solo fight. If you were to re-jig a berbalang to be an interesting encounter, where it gets to actually play like a skirmisher (or a bunch of skirmishers) and use its powers effectively, what would you do, what modifications should be made?

Thanks!

[Epinephrine]

Ok, maybe it was too vague? Anyway, I've thought about it - would it seem reasonable to take a 3 skirmishers of the right level and just relabel them as 'duplicates,' and a 4th Elite version that can shift damage from an attack to the others once a turn, but if it dies the others all drop, too? Give the duplicates a power that is a burst 1, kills them when they use it, and can only be used once bloodied, or simply add a triggered attack on dropping to 0 (unless they drop because the elite dropped)?

That would seem to capture the basic premise, and puts the encounter at a better approximation of the power level.

Is it reasonable to add those powers to skirmishers; would it overpower them?

[Doug Lampert]

Ok, maybe it was too vague? Anyway, I've thought about it - would it seem reasonable to take a 3 skirmishers of the right level and just relabel them as 'duplicates,' and a 4th Elite version that can shift damage from an attack to the others once a turn, but if it dies the others all drop, too? Give the duplicates a power that is a burst 1, kills them when they use it, and can only be used once bloodied, or simply add a triggered attack on dropping to 0 (unless they drop because the elite dropped)?

That would seem to capture the basic premise, and puts the encounter at a better approximation of the power level.

Is it reasonable to add those powers to skirmishers; would it overpower them?

I'd completely redesign, but you're missing the best part about the monster as written.

"Duplicates last until the berbalang reaches 0 hit points, absorbs them, or uses sacrifice. A duplicate must stay within 10 squares of the berbalang at all times or it disappears."

Nor is there any duration limit listed in the glosary entry for conjurations (I note that conjurations are immune to most status effects and ongoing damage, that's a nasty power to give your hypothetical skirmisher builds).

So the main creature creates 3 duplicates, spends a healing surge, and then it can make a fourth. So you can have 4 at once, but wait! There's MORE. The conjurations don't go away on a long rest. So the Berbalang can do this every day and duplicates just accumulate as long as they stay close.

The monster is bad. It's damage is too low, even with 3 duplicates out and using MMI standards its damage is too low, the tactics writeup is impossible (as you point out), the defenses are low for a pre MM3 solo. The duplicates are supposed to cover the main's retreat if it's losing, but the thing gets out of range in a double move (it almost makes it in a single move), and the conjurations act on their own initiative, if the main EVER runs away all conjurations disappear immediately without taking any action.

Your elite with three standard duplicates idea sounds pretty good. Give the duplicates the immunities and vulnerabilities of a conjuration (including going bye bye when the main is killed). Shift the type from Skirmisher to Brute, as you point out, this thing ISN'T a skirmisher. Drop the AC and Reflex by about 1 each, up the claw damage to 3d8+9 and remove the miss line from the sacrifice power and up it's damage to 6d8+9 or so.

Give the PCs some way to figure out that the main one is in charge and that the conjurations are linked to it. Maybe the main uses a minor action to command the conjurations or damage to the main also appears on the conjurations (no extra loss of HP, but it gives them a hint that the boss is the important one).

[Zaq]

Berbalang, which are written up in the MM; I don't know if they were rewritten in the monster vault (can't check atm, will later), but it doesn't strike me as that "classic" a monster, so I doubt it.

Fun fact: the berbalang is, in fact, excerpted on the back cover of the Fiend Folio. The old Fiend Folio. The AD&D one from 1981. That's . . . fairly classic, even if it hasn't received a lot of attention in newer editions.

I've never actually played AD&D, but the monster books are fascinating.

[Epinephrine]

Fun fact: the berbalang is, in fact, excerpted on the back cover of the Fiend Folio. The old Fiend Folio. The AD&D one from 1981. That's . . . fairly classic, even if it hasn't received a lot of attention in newer editions.

I've never actually played AD&D, but the monster books are fascinating.

Hmm, funny, I have the FF on my shelf right here. I always associate it with Githyanki, but you are absolutely right. And man, is it ever wimpy. At least they were consistent with that...