Monster Identification, please

[Jay R]

In a game of 3.5E, we've just bumped into a nine-foot-tall goat-headed, bat-winged creature, probably chaotic, and possibly an Outsider. He's leading a village of goblins.

Any idea what it might be? The party is mostly 12th level.

[JonU]

I don't have any idea, but why don't you guys figure it out in game? Do some knowledge checks or some investigating to figure it out. Getting outside help would kind of cheapen the challenge I would think.

[Jay R]

I plan to. But I don't know 3.5 well, so I don't know what's considered common knowledge.

[nedz]

I don't have any idea, but why don't you guys figure it out in game? Do some knowledge checks or some investigating to figure it out. Getting outside help would kind of cheapen the challenge I would think.

This

Also it could be something your DM made up, described creatively, or just plain changed the appearance of to confound book diving.

I once described some ****-a-trice as Wild Chickens leaving the party to wonder who had carved all the life like statues in the area. :smallcool:

[Telonius]

"Half-Fiend Satyr" would be the only thing I could think of, and that's not a perfect fit.

[ComaVision]

Sounds like a classic Demon image. Could very well be a reskinned Demon, or the DM's own creation.

Either way, I don't make any allowance for "common knowledge" where monsters are concerned in my game. If the character has never seen a goblin and doesn't have the relevant Knowledge check, I'll describe in a small, hunched creature with green skin, yellow eyes, and slits where a nose would be. (You would be amazed at how often a basic description gets the party guessing something completely wrong.)

[AlanBruce]

Your description screams "demon", but if your party is 12th level, I am guessing you have a bard or mage or someone with ranks in Knowledge (The Planes) that can guess what it is?

Also, how much have you actually "bumped" into it? Some sneaky caster using an illusion to coerce the goblins to serve him may not be out of place, depending on how useful the goblins are.

I would go with a Knowledge (The Planes) check, followed by casting Detect Magic while invisible, just to make sure if the first roll doesn't give me anything.

[Flickerdart]

Could be an Ibexian with the Demon Wings graft and Deformity (Tall).

[Crake]

Could be an Ibexian with the Demon Wings graft and Deformity (Tall).

Or possibly just an advanced half fiend ibexian? They become large at 7-9HD. A 9HD Ibixian would be CR5, with the half fiend template, that would make it CR7. A bit low for a 12th level party, though it might have some class levels tacked on as well, perhaps a few levels in barbarian?

[Jay R]

The illusionist guess was a good one. The first one of these we faced was an illusion.

The second was not. The description turned out to be wrong, too. It has a goat head, bat-like wings, and a scorpion's tail.

I still don't know what it was, but we chased it off.

[nedz]

The second was not. The description turned out to be wrong, too. It has a goat head, bat-like wings, and a scorpion's tail.

That sounds like a Vorpel pruned Chimera.

[Urpriest]

The illusionist guess was a good one. The first one of these we faced was an illusion.

The second was not. The description turned out to be wrong, too. It has a goat head, bat-like wings, and a scorpion's tail.

I still don't know what it was, but we chased it off.

That actually just sounds like a really lazy description of a Pit Fiend, though that's probably not what it is.