Ditto
2016-04-21, 01:02 PM
I've just converted my Rise of the Runelords game from 3.5 into 5e, and I'm trying to sort out how I'll be updating the The Scribbler. I have the basic chassis already, but I don't know about modifying the Divine Guardian template (Pathfinder link here) (http://www.d20pfsrd.com/bestiary/monster-listings/templates/divine-guardian-template)
Working through it piece by piece, but a few items don't really seem to gel with 5e mechanics. This will be a base creature of level 12-13. Any comments & suggestions are appreciated!
Challenge Rating: Same as the base creature +1.
Easy enough, check.
Size and Type: Size and type are unchanged, but the creature might gain one or more alignment or elemental subtypes, depending on the alignment and portfolio of the deity that granted it the template. Possible subtypes include air, chaotic, cold, earth, evil, fire, good, lawful, and water. For instance, a lawful good deity’s divine guardian would have the lawful and good subtypes, even if it were actually of some other alignment. Similarly, a neutral god of water and ice would grant its divine guardian the water and cold subtypes.
Irrelevant now, I believe.
Initiative: A divine guardian gains a +4 bonus on initiative rolls.
Let's call it Advantage on Initiative. (Alternately, if we're scaling by level, perhaps add 1/2 Proficiency bonus, min. 1)
Speed: A divine guardian is gifted with incredible speed. Each of its speeds is double the corresponding speed of the base creature. If the base creature flies, the divine guardian’s maneuverability becomes perfect if it was not already. The water subtype, if acquired, grants the creature a swim speed equal to its highest speed.
Keep as is.
Defensive Abilities: A divine guardian gains the following defensive abilities.
Ability Healing (Ex): A divine guardian heals 1 point of ability damage per round in each damaged ability score.
Fast Healing (Ex): A divine guardian has fast healing 5.
Immunity to Mind-Affecting Effects (Su): The divine guardian is immune to all mind-affecting effects.
Immunity to Disease and Poison (Ex): Divine guardians are immune to disease and poison.
These are tricky. Ability damage isn't much of a thing outside of Set-To-Value effects like Feeblemind. Fast Healing is pretty intense... would something like the Barbarian's Rage resistance to basic weapon damage make sense? Too broad and not directly comparable?
The Immunity to Mind-Affecting, Disease, and Poison[-type] are straightforward enough. Should this include Psychic-type damage?
Weaknesses: A divine guardian gains the following weakness.
Bound to the Faith (Ex): A cleric or paladin of the deity that granted the divine guardian its power can rebuke or command the divine guardian as though it had only 1/2 the total Hit Dice (character level) it actually possesses. Establishing command over the divine guardian is performed as described in the Command Undead feat, and uses one of the cleric or paladin's daily channel energy abilities.
Unlikely to come up, but that's more or less fine.
Special Attacks: A divine guardian retains all the base creature’s special attacks and gains those described here.
Dimension Door (Su): At will, a divine guardian can use dimension door as the spell (caster level equals divine guardian’s Hit Dice) to reach any location within its sacred site (see Sacred Site, below).
Spell-Like Abilities: A divine guardian gains spell-like abilities according to its Hit Dice, as indicated on the following table. These abilities are cumulative. Caster level equals divine guardian’s Hit Dice. The save DCs are Charisma-based.
Spell-Like Abilities
Character Level Abilities
1-2 Alarm 3/day, hold portal 1/day
3-4 Arcane lock 1/day, knock 3/day
5-6 Augury 1/day, clairaudience/clairvoyance 1/day
7-8 Dismissal 1/day
9-10 Commune 1/day
11-12 Guards and wards 1/day
13-14 Forbiddance 1/day
15-16 Banishment 1/day
17-18 Repulsion 1/day
19-20 Screen 1/day
21+ Antipathy 1/day
Most of these spells still exist or have a similar effect (2.5 Dismissal is close in spirit to 5e Banishment, etc.).
Special Qualities: A divine guardian retains all the base creature’s special qualities and gains those described here.
Blessed Life (Ex): A divine guardian does not age or breathe. It does not require food, drink, or sleep.
Sacred Site (Ex): Each divine guardian is assigned to guard a specific site sacred to the deity that invested it with power. This area may be a structure, series of structures, or natural site with clearly defined borders. It can be as large as a city, but in most cases it is a single temple complex or a sacred grove. Gods do not waste their powers on places that their worshipers can protect, so most divine guardians keep watch over abandoned burial grounds or lost temples. The divine guardian is charged with protecting the site from harm and preventing incursions by those not of the faith. It must keep its vigil until worshipers return or until the god deems the site no longer worthy of protection.
Should the divine guardian ever move out of the area defined as the holy site, it immediately loses the divine guardian template, and any spellcasting ability the deity might have granted based on its class levels. It cannot regain the template unless it atones for its failure (usually by completing some quest or via an atonement spell) and re-enters the site within 1 week. Otherwise, it loses the template permanently, taking 6d6 points of Constitution drain as the years of lost food, drink, and sleep return to it tenfold. A creature that lacks a Constitution score takes 2d6 points of damage per Hit Die from this process. Even if it survives, the creature can never expect to regain the template.
Not really relevant since this is for an NPC villain, but yes 'If you leave then bad stuff happens to you'.
Abilities: Change from the base creature as follows: Wis +4, Cha +4.
With bounded accuracy math and the limited ways to increase stats, I think +1 to each might be adequate. Maybe a +1 and a +2, distributed as you like.
Skills: A divine guardian gains a +5 racial bonus on Sense Motive, and Perception checks.
Advantage on Insight & Perception checks.
Working through it piece by piece, but a few items don't really seem to gel with 5e mechanics. This will be a base creature of level 12-13. Any comments & suggestions are appreciated!
Challenge Rating: Same as the base creature +1.
Easy enough, check.
Size and Type: Size and type are unchanged, but the creature might gain one or more alignment or elemental subtypes, depending on the alignment and portfolio of the deity that granted it the template. Possible subtypes include air, chaotic, cold, earth, evil, fire, good, lawful, and water. For instance, a lawful good deity’s divine guardian would have the lawful and good subtypes, even if it were actually of some other alignment. Similarly, a neutral god of water and ice would grant its divine guardian the water and cold subtypes.
Irrelevant now, I believe.
Initiative: A divine guardian gains a +4 bonus on initiative rolls.
Let's call it Advantage on Initiative. (Alternately, if we're scaling by level, perhaps add 1/2 Proficiency bonus, min. 1)
Speed: A divine guardian is gifted with incredible speed. Each of its speeds is double the corresponding speed of the base creature. If the base creature flies, the divine guardian’s maneuverability becomes perfect if it was not already. The water subtype, if acquired, grants the creature a swim speed equal to its highest speed.
Keep as is.
Defensive Abilities: A divine guardian gains the following defensive abilities.
Ability Healing (Ex): A divine guardian heals 1 point of ability damage per round in each damaged ability score.
Fast Healing (Ex): A divine guardian has fast healing 5.
Immunity to Mind-Affecting Effects (Su): The divine guardian is immune to all mind-affecting effects.
Immunity to Disease and Poison (Ex): Divine guardians are immune to disease and poison.
These are tricky. Ability damage isn't much of a thing outside of Set-To-Value effects like Feeblemind. Fast Healing is pretty intense... would something like the Barbarian's Rage resistance to basic weapon damage make sense? Too broad and not directly comparable?
The Immunity to Mind-Affecting, Disease, and Poison[-type] are straightforward enough. Should this include Psychic-type damage?
Weaknesses: A divine guardian gains the following weakness.
Bound to the Faith (Ex): A cleric or paladin of the deity that granted the divine guardian its power can rebuke or command the divine guardian as though it had only 1/2 the total Hit Dice (character level) it actually possesses. Establishing command over the divine guardian is performed as described in the Command Undead feat, and uses one of the cleric or paladin's daily channel energy abilities.
Unlikely to come up, but that's more or less fine.
Special Attacks: A divine guardian retains all the base creature’s special attacks and gains those described here.
Dimension Door (Su): At will, a divine guardian can use dimension door as the spell (caster level equals divine guardian’s Hit Dice) to reach any location within its sacred site (see Sacred Site, below).
Spell-Like Abilities: A divine guardian gains spell-like abilities according to its Hit Dice, as indicated on the following table. These abilities are cumulative. Caster level equals divine guardian’s Hit Dice. The save DCs are Charisma-based.
Spell-Like Abilities
Character Level Abilities
1-2 Alarm 3/day, hold portal 1/day
3-4 Arcane lock 1/day, knock 3/day
5-6 Augury 1/day, clairaudience/clairvoyance 1/day
7-8 Dismissal 1/day
9-10 Commune 1/day
11-12 Guards and wards 1/day
13-14 Forbiddance 1/day
15-16 Banishment 1/day
17-18 Repulsion 1/day
19-20 Screen 1/day
21+ Antipathy 1/day
Most of these spells still exist or have a similar effect (2.5 Dismissal is close in spirit to 5e Banishment, etc.).
Special Qualities: A divine guardian retains all the base creature’s special qualities and gains those described here.
Blessed Life (Ex): A divine guardian does not age or breathe. It does not require food, drink, or sleep.
Sacred Site (Ex): Each divine guardian is assigned to guard a specific site sacred to the deity that invested it with power. This area may be a structure, series of structures, or natural site with clearly defined borders. It can be as large as a city, but in most cases it is a single temple complex or a sacred grove. Gods do not waste their powers on places that their worshipers can protect, so most divine guardians keep watch over abandoned burial grounds or lost temples. The divine guardian is charged with protecting the site from harm and preventing incursions by those not of the faith. It must keep its vigil until worshipers return or until the god deems the site no longer worthy of protection.
Should the divine guardian ever move out of the area defined as the holy site, it immediately loses the divine guardian template, and any spellcasting ability the deity might have granted based on its class levels. It cannot regain the template unless it atones for its failure (usually by completing some quest or via an atonement spell) and re-enters the site within 1 week. Otherwise, it loses the template permanently, taking 6d6 points of Constitution drain as the years of lost food, drink, and sleep return to it tenfold. A creature that lacks a Constitution score takes 2d6 points of damage per Hit Die from this process. Even if it survives, the creature can never expect to regain the template.
Not really relevant since this is for an NPC villain, but yes 'If you leave then bad stuff happens to you'.
Abilities: Change from the base creature as follows: Wis +4, Cha +4.
With bounded accuracy math and the limited ways to increase stats, I think +1 to each might be adequate. Maybe a +1 and a +2, distributed as you like.
Skills: A divine guardian gains a +5 racial bonus on Sense Motive, and Perception checks.
Advantage on Insight & Perception checks.