The_Ferg
2006-12-12, 11:27 PM
By Alex Beffrey and D.S. Ferguson
BLANK
Medium Aberration
Hit Dice: 5d8+15 (40 hp)
Initiative: +1
Speed: 30 ft
Armor Class: 14 (+1 Dex, +3 natural)
Base Attack/Grapple: +5/+9 (or +17, see text)
Attack: Slam +5 melee (1d4)
Full Attack: Slam +5 melee (1d4)
Space/Reach: 5 ft / 5 ft
Special Attacks: Absorb Soul
Special Qualities: Soulless, soul sense, limited physical senses, ethereal properties, retain essence, DR 5/magic
Saves: Fort +4, Ref +1, Will +10
Abilities: Str 10, Dex 12, Con 16, Int 14, Wis 23, Cha —
Skills: Concentration +12, Heal +15, Jump +9, Tumble +10
Feats: Improved Grapple, Ability Focus: Absorb Soul
Environment: Any
Organization: Single, group (2-3), or in accord with one ghost
Challenge Rating: 6
Treasure: None
Alignment: Neutral Evil
Advancement: See text
Level Adjustment: —
This creature appears as a featureless human, one without eyes, ears, a mouth, a nose, or hair, and seems, for all its inability of expression, to convey a horrid sense of emptiness.
The blank is one of the creatures created before humanoids that, not being decided by the gods as adequate, were left without a soul to inhabit its otherwise human-like body. These creatures are intelligent enough to realize that they are without souls, but lack the self identity necessary to realize that they are incapable of holding them.
Their goal is therefore to take souls from their humanoid successors. The tragedy of this is that even if successful in obtaining a soul from a humanoid, they are incapable of holding it for long and go back to their soulless state.
COMBAT
Blank strategy includes appearing quickly on an unsuspecting and typically alone target to obtain his soul. It makes full use of its ethereal nature by becoming invisible and walking through barriers.
Absorb Soul (Ex): If the blank is touched in any way (by making a melee touch attack against its target or by being attacked in melee, etc.) it as a free action initiates a soul grapple. The Will save DC is the blank’s soul grapple check. Alternatively, a grapple check using the target’s Wisdom modifier instead of her Strength modifier can be used against the attempt. Size bonuses are not added to this check. A normal blank with no additional bonuses receives a +17 to this grapple check. The blank may choose not to use this ability.
During the soul grapple, neither the target nor the blank may take any other action and after one touch act has been started. If the touch act is started by the target attacking the blank (in melee), the target immediately stops all action as soon as the weapon hits. The weapon still does damage, but no further action by the target may be taken. If anything breaks the concentration of the blank, it must make a Concentration check similar to that of a spellcaster. Breaking the concentration of the target does not end the soul grapple, but instead gives the blank an automatic success.
If the blank wins the soul grapple check (and the soul pin on the next round), the soul of the target is absorbed into the blank. The blank assumes the features and abilities of the target (though none of her equipment), including spells, special abilities, and the target’s strength, dexterity, constitution, and charisma scores instead of its own scores. The target’s body becomes lifeless and featureless.
The soul remains with the blank for 1d6+1 days or until its body is killed, at which point the soul returns to the original body unless that body is dead, in which case the soul takes on the ghost template. The target’s body does not die from any natural causes during this time, but only from damage done to it. All spell effects or poison effects or other timed durations stop until the soul returns and then resume until their durations expire. During the time of catatonia, the body may only be killed by causing damage to it. Returning the soul to the body is difficult, but may be done by either casting heal on the body, casting a wish or miracle spell, or by killing the blank.
Soulless (Ex): Blanks are soulless and thus immune to any soul draining spells (such as many necromancy spells).
Soul Sense (Ex): Blanks can sense a soul and how much life energy a soul has (essentially the target’s HD and current hit points) from up to 120 feet away, no matter what physical barriers may be in the way.
Limited Physical Senses: Blanks lack the sight, hearing, smell, and taste senses, mostly on account of missing eyes, ears, a nose, and a mouth. They are still capable of feeling. They are also, on account of lack of faculty, incapable of speech but understand telepathic speech. Blanks are thus immune to vocally dependent spells, such as charm person, command, and suggestion, but not immune to hold person or dominate person.
Ethereal Properties (Su): Blanks have no planar home and transiently move between the material and ethereal planes in their wanderings. They can shift between these two planes at will as a standard action if they are without a soul and may move through physical barriers at half speed. If one obtains a soul, it loses this ability while it has a soul.
Retain Essence (Ex): After a soul has left a blank, it still retains some of its abilities. Some abilities or spells that are not physically dependent (excluding spell components) are retained by the blank and usable at its discretion. This ability is used at the discretion of the DM.
BLANK
Medium Aberration
Hit Dice: 5d8+15 (40 hp)
Initiative: +1
Speed: 30 ft
Armor Class: 14 (+1 Dex, +3 natural)
Base Attack/Grapple: +5/+9 (or +17, see text)
Attack: Slam +5 melee (1d4)
Full Attack: Slam +5 melee (1d4)
Space/Reach: 5 ft / 5 ft
Special Attacks: Absorb Soul
Special Qualities: Soulless, soul sense, limited physical senses, ethereal properties, retain essence, DR 5/magic
Saves: Fort +4, Ref +1, Will +10
Abilities: Str 10, Dex 12, Con 16, Int 14, Wis 23, Cha —
Skills: Concentration +12, Heal +15, Jump +9, Tumble +10
Feats: Improved Grapple, Ability Focus: Absorb Soul
Environment: Any
Organization: Single, group (2-3), or in accord with one ghost
Challenge Rating: 6
Treasure: None
Alignment: Neutral Evil
Advancement: See text
Level Adjustment: —
This creature appears as a featureless human, one without eyes, ears, a mouth, a nose, or hair, and seems, for all its inability of expression, to convey a horrid sense of emptiness.
The blank is one of the creatures created before humanoids that, not being decided by the gods as adequate, were left without a soul to inhabit its otherwise human-like body. These creatures are intelligent enough to realize that they are without souls, but lack the self identity necessary to realize that they are incapable of holding them.
Their goal is therefore to take souls from their humanoid successors. The tragedy of this is that even if successful in obtaining a soul from a humanoid, they are incapable of holding it for long and go back to their soulless state.
COMBAT
Blank strategy includes appearing quickly on an unsuspecting and typically alone target to obtain his soul. It makes full use of its ethereal nature by becoming invisible and walking through barriers.
Absorb Soul (Ex): If the blank is touched in any way (by making a melee touch attack against its target or by being attacked in melee, etc.) it as a free action initiates a soul grapple. The Will save DC is the blank’s soul grapple check. Alternatively, a grapple check using the target’s Wisdom modifier instead of her Strength modifier can be used against the attempt. Size bonuses are not added to this check. A normal blank with no additional bonuses receives a +17 to this grapple check. The blank may choose not to use this ability.
During the soul grapple, neither the target nor the blank may take any other action and after one touch act has been started. If the touch act is started by the target attacking the blank (in melee), the target immediately stops all action as soon as the weapon hits. The weapon still does damage, but no further action by the target may be taken. If anything breaks the concentration of the blank, it must make a Concentration check similar to that of a spellcaster. Breaking the concentration of the target does not end the soul grapple, but instead gives the blank an automatic success.
If the blank wins the soul grapple check (and the soul pin on the next round), the soul of the target is absorbed into the blank. The blank assumes the features and abilities of the target (though none of her equipment), including spells, special abilities, and the target’s strength, dexterity, constitution, and charisma scores instead of its own scores. The target’s body becomes lifeless and featureless.
The soul remains with the blank for 1d6+1 days or until its body is killed, at which point the soul returns to the original body unless that body is dead, in which case the soul takes on the ghost template. The target’s body does not die from any natural causes during this time, but only from damage done to it. All spell effects or poison effects or other timed durations stop until the soul returns and then resume until their durations expire. During the time of catatonia, the body may only be killed by causing damage to it. Returning the soul to the body is difficult, but may be done by either casting heal on the body, casting a wish or miracle spell, or by killing the blank.
Soulless (Ex): Blanks are soulless and thus immune to any soul draining spells (such as many necromancy spells).
Soul Sense (Ex): Blanks can sense a soul and how much life energy a soul has (essentially the target’s HD and current hit points) from up to 120 feet away, no matter what physical barriers may be in the way.
Limited Physical Senses: Blanks lack the sight, hearing, smell, and taste senses, mostly on account of missing eyes, ears, a nose, and a mouth. They are still capable of feeling. They are also, on account of lack of faculty, incapable of speech but understand telepathic speech. Blanks are thus immune to vocally dependent spells, such as charm person, command, and suggestion, but not immune to hold person or dominate person.
Ethereal Properties (Su): Blanks have no planar home and transiently move between the material and ethereal planes in their wanderings. They can shift between these two planes at will as a standard action if they are without a soul and may move through physical barriers at half speed. If one obtains a soul, it loses this ability while it has a soul.
Retain Essence (Ex): After a soul has left a blank, it still retains some of its abilities. Some abilities or spells that are not physically dependent (excluding spell components) are retained by the blank and usable at its discretion. This ability is used at the discretion of the DM.