A lich but not a lich

[Ranting Fool]

"You may have killed THIS body but I'll be BACK! MUHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA"

Are there any creatures/templates/abilities that act like a Lich's phylactery other then something like Craft contingent?

[Emperor Tippy]

Clone, Stasis Clone, Astral Seed, and Mind Seed can all do the same thing to a greater or lesser extent.

[holywhippet]

I've often thought clone might be a good plot trick for a DM to pull out. The party defeats a lich and destroys the phylactory but it still has a clone that was made before the lich transformation. The former lich starts popping up around the party getting to know them better and they have no idea it's really the lich they thought they'd killed.

The odd weakenss of the lich is the hunter of the dead class which has an ability to kill any undead permanently if they strike it down in melee or using spells. By RAW, that undead is gone for good.

[OldTrees1]

The Undead:
Ghost 3 (http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/sp/20040117a), Lich, Graveknight[PF], Vampire

[Jack_Simth]

As to the OP:
A Ghost (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/monsters/ghost.htm) can do it (Rejuvination special quality). A Psion can do it (helps to have a Bard cohort - Inspire Greatness (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/classes/bard.htm#inspireGreatness) can potentially offset the levels lost to Astral Seed (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/psionic/powers/astralSeed.htm)). The Ghost of a Psion can really confuse people - if the Ghost Psion uses True Mind Switch (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/psionic/powers/mindSwitchTrue.htm) on something alive, about the only way to keep them dead is to kill them in an antimagic field. If the Ghost uses True Mind Switch on an Unbodied, all bets are off.

I've often thought clone might be a good plot trick for a DM to pull out. The party defeats a lich and destroys the phylactory but it still has a clone that was made before the lich transformation. The former lich starts popping up around the party getting to know them better and they have no idea it's really the lich they thought they'd killed.

With a little work, the lich could use the clone spell to come back as a lich. Polymorph into something alive (Spark of Life may also work), remove chunk of flesh, cast Clone spell. When the Polymorph expires... Undead Clone!


The odd weakenss of the lich is the hunter of the dead class which has an ability to kill any undead permanently if they strike it down in melee or using spells. By RAW, that undead is gone for good.
Yes, but it's a PrC mostly only ever taken for flavour. It's not a great one otherwise.

[herrhauptmann]

The necro spell "Hide Life" acts sort of like a phylactery. In that you're sort of screwed if it gets destroyed.

On the other hand, you don't do the multiple body thing like a real lich.

[Jack_Simth]

The necro spell "Hide Life" acts sort of like a phylactery. In that you're sort of screwed if it gets destroyed.Well, it's costly, but "If the hidden body part is ever destroyed, the spell is broken and your life force returns to your body if you would not otherwise be dead." You score yourself a Regenerate and just cast Hide Life again.

However... the spell doesn't really address what happens if, say, your body gets Disintegrated. So... you remain a pile of dust that leaves you staggered?

[Fouredged Sword]

In pathfinder, I build a level 17ish lifeleech sadist vitalist who abused network True Mindswitch to clone himself into multiple bodies. If you failed his very high save to avoid his collective, you became his slave, no save. He could also replace your mind with his, again, no save.

Then he built a network of networks, The party would kill one or two, even 10-20 of him, but he kept coming back, and he had a new face. All the copies maintained telepathic connections to each other, even across the planes. Even killing the original body did nothing, as all the copies where are real as he was.

He was nasty.

[Emperor Tippy]

Well, it's costly, but "If the hidden body part is ever destroyed, the spell is broken and your life force returns to your body if you would not otherwise be dead." You score yourself a Regenerate and just cast Hide Life again.

However... the spell doesn't really address what happens if, say, your body gets Disintegrated. So... you remain a pile of dust that leaves you staggered?

I envision it as the body being turned to dust and then seeming to swirl around and flow back together and you are however far into the negatives the Disintegrate would have left you normally.

The real fun though is to get Hide Life from a Psion or any other way that lets you totally ignore the material component. This makes it so that there is no finger to destroy, and thus you can't be killed by anything that Hide Life protects against as it can't be ended.

[Thanatosia]

The Magic Jar spell is another quick and dirty way to achieve this kind of affect. PCs kill what they thought was the big bad, but really it was just possessed by the Big Bad who slunk back to his original body from his gem after his assumed body was destroyed (or he could then move on to try to possess one of the party members or one of their followers). Since Magic Jar is only a 5th level spell, you can use this even in pretty low-mid level campaigns, and it's core so it doesn't feel as unfair to your players as some wierd out of left field homebrewed/3rd party power.

[Rift_Wolf]

If I was an evil overlord, I'd Polymorph hundreds of people to look like me and give them free castles.
Worked for Bowser.

[Rubik]

A dvati who keeps one body on his own personal demiplane and has access to various sorts of resurrection magic, such as Revivify or Psionic Revivify to bring his other half back to life immediately if it ever dies. Also, grab a scroll of Shapechange, turn into a pudding with the split ability, and then slice and dice. When Shapechange ends, suddenly you have multiple extra bodies, all sharing the same soul.

Also, Contingency and various lower level resurrection spells.

[Jack_Simth]

I envision it as the body being turned to dust and then seeming to swirl around and flow back together and you are however far into the negatives the Disintegrate would have left you normally.

That's one way to envision it. However, nothing about the Hide Life spell prevents your body from being destroyed, nor rebuilds your body in the event that it is destroyed. You turn into a pile of dust, and can only take one standard or move action each round. Theoretically, you're not otherwise inconvenienced, however.


The real fun though is to get Hide Life from a Psion or any other way that lets you totally ignore the material component. This makes it so that there is no finger to destroy, and thus you can't be killed by anything that Hide Life protects against as it can't be ended.
Problem: The material component is the sickle, not the body part.

[Anxe]

A Curst from Forgotten Realms can also come back.

[ShurikVch]

Grim Psion (https://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/psm/20030628b)

[Ranting Fool]

If I was an evil overlord, I'd Polymorph hundreds of people to look like me and give them free castles.
Worked for Bowser.

:smallbiggrin: Awesome

[blelliot]

Bonus points if the bad guy sings this (https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=time+is+on+my+side+rolling+st ones&sm=3)
Even more bonus points if anyone gets the reference.

[Rijan_Sai]

Bonus points if the bad guy sings this (https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=time+is+on+my+side+rolling+st ones&sm=3)
Even more bonus points if anyone gets the reference.

"...Now you always sayin'
that you want to be free!
But I'll come running back!
Yes! I'll come running back,
to you~u~u!"

Greatest use of that song, ever!

[herrhauptmann]

Bonus points if the bad guy sings this (https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=time+is+on+my+side+rolling+st ones&sm=3)
Even more bonus points if anyone gets the reference.

Only if you're using Souljar.
Without a material component/focus.