New vestiges from D&D lore [PEACH]

[Hashmalum]

So I haven't played 3.5E for a while, but recently I became obsessed with Binder for some reason, and I came up with a bunch of new vestiges. I'll post 3 to start with, and then I'll post more as I finish them if there's any interest. Most of my vestiges are NPCs from well-known adventures from past editions of D&D, although there are also some from the Ars Goetia and some warped versions of real world mythological figures. Besides critique of my work, I'd also appreciate it if anyone has a list of other peoples' homebrewed vestiges that are generally considered good, both in flavor and mechanics.


Cimeries, the Questing Marquis
Once a paladin, then an undead treasure hunter, Cimeries lends his summoner his prowess at the arts of rhetoric, combat and treasure hunting.

Vestige Level: 6th
Binding DC: DC 25
Special Requirement: Yes

Legend: Cimeries was once a mighty paladin, whose heroic deeds eventually earned him the title of marquis. His battles against the undead in particular were legendary, and as a result he acquired an archenemy: a notorious necromancer. Eventually, his archenemy defeated him, but rather than kill him, he decided on a novel form of torture instead: the necromancer stole Cimeries' soul and hid it in a golden circlet, rendering him undead and unable to rest in peace until the circlet was recovered. However, the circlet was cursed to teleport away whenever Cimeries came close to it.

Stripped of his paladin abilities and shunned as a creature of the night, Cimeries had no purpose in existence except to undo and avenge the wrong that was done to him. He devoted his unlife to hunting down the circlet, and became very good at tracking it down. Eventually, he somehow cornered it, and it vanished into the only place it had to go: nowhere. Cimeries followed it, becoming a vestige.

Special Requirement: Cimeries empathizes with those who have had something precious to them stolen. In order to bind Cimeries, you must have had something precious to you stolen away (not destroyed) by another and never returned. A kidnapped loved one counts, but something abstract like "my sense of safety" does not; it must be something that can be taken back. Furthermore, Cimeries hates Acererak, Kas, Sakatha, and Tenebrous and will not answer your call if you are bound to those vestiges, nor will they answer your call if you are bound to Cimeries.

Manifestation: A black horse rides into Cimeries' seal. On its back is a figure clad head-to-toe in full plate mail and carrying a shield; the shield bears a heraldic crest and the symbol of a Lawful Good religion. The mail-clad figure dismounts and bows to his summoner; he then raises his visor, revealing the face of a skull wearing a golden circlet. The skull-faced figure then speaks, in a bold yet courteous manner, greeting the binder, introducing himself, and requesting that the binder do likewise.

Sign: The skin on your head pales, shrinks, and becomes taut, making your skull prominent. You can still be recognized as yourself, but appear cadaverously ill.

Influence: You become obsessive about finding hidden treasure. If you overcome an opponent or encounter a trap, you must search that opponent and/or location at least once.

Granted Abilities: Cimeries grants you his combat prowess, ability to find things, increased ability to persuade others, and knowledge of nobility.

Art of Rhetoric: You may reroll a failed Diplomacy check. You may only use this ability once per 5 rounds.

Cimeries' Skill: You gain the base attack bonus of a fighter of your character level, potentially giving you more iterative attacks.

Cimeries' Strength: You gain a +6 enhancement bonus to Strength and one temporary hit point per effective binder level.

Forever Searching: You gain a +12 competence bonus to Search checks; furthermore, you receive an automatic Search check for finding hidden doors when coming within 5 feet of them, like an elf. If you already have this ability, you gain an additional +1 to Search checks to find hidden doors.

Marquis' Knowledge: You gain a +12 competence bonus to Knowledge (nobility and royalty) and may make Knowledge (nobility and royalty) skill checks untrained.

Treasure Quest: You gain the benefit of find the path, except that it tells you how to get to the locale where a specific object known to you can be found. This ability is useless with regards to finding the object within the locale; other abilities, such as locate object or Andromalius' locate item ability, will be needed for that. You may only use this ability once per hour.


Desayeus, the God Who Was Banned
Desayeus was once a god who defied a cosmic ban and paid the ultimate price. Those who bind him gain his defiance, his weapons of light, and the ability to strengthen and protect souls.

Vestige Level: 6th
Binding DC: 26
Special Requirement: Yes

Legend: There exist commandments handed down since time immemorial of uncertain origin that even gods fear to disobey. One such commandment is the Ban of the Unborn: a decree that in order to protect the free will of mortals, no god may influence the ultimate source of mortal souls. Desayeus was a god who did not fear the Ban of the Unborn, which he considered to be a mere myth. When Desayeus tried to take the protection of unborn souls as part of his portfolio, he was struck down, stripped of divinity, and imprisoned for all time by a group of other gods who feared that Desayeus' folly would bring down the wrath of the Ban of the Unborn upon all the gods.

After an age-long imprisonment, there came to be a growing plague of soulless births on the material plane, caused by the dragon Ashardalon taking up residence in the Bastion of Souls. An artifact belonging to Desayeus was necessary to solving the problem, but Desayeus refused to give it up. So a group of mortal adventures breached Desayeus' prison and struck him down, taking the artifact by force. Desayeus fought to his last breath, but when he finally perished, his remains were nowhere to be found. Some say that the Ban of Unborn was responsible for his final fate, ultimately banning him from the cosmos and dooming him to existence as a vestige.

Special Requirement: Desayeus hates Ashardalon and will not answer your call if your are bound to him at the time of his summoning. Likewise, Ashardalon cannot be bound if you are already binding Desayeus.

Manifestation: A faint white light begins to glow in Desayeus' seal. As the light becomes stronger, it begins to take form: a huge, classically handsome male whose body is strangely covered with small, seemingly randomly-attached wings with rainbow-colored feathers. Binder scholars believe that these wings are the remains of his lillend faithful, who followed him first into exile and then into death. Desayeus' head is lowered and he lays, slumping, on the ground in a position of exhaustion and despair. When at last he raises his head and opens his eyes to regard his summoner, he speaks in a pleasing voice with a weary tone, asking why he has been summoned.

Sign: Your entire body emits a faint, pale glow. This isn't enough to see in darkness to an appreciable degree (although it does make you visible in the dark). Worn clothing blocks the glow of the covered parts of the body, but unless you are bundled up from head to toe, Desayeus' sign will be visible whenever you are in dim light or darkness.

Influence: Under Desayeus' influence, you ignore others' attempts to tell you not to do things. Also, you must express skepticism of legendary or mythical commandments, warnings, and dangers.

Granted Abilities: Desayeus lends you his stubbornness, the properties of his weapon, and abilities related to his former portfolio.

Brilliant Energy: As a free action, you may bestow or remove the brilliant energy special ability to any weapon you wield, including natural weapons. If the weapon leaves your hands, the property fades in one round.

Font of Souls: By touch, you may bestow a positive level upon a living creature or construct. This positive level either cancels out the target's most recently gained negative level, or grants a +1 bonus to attack rolls, saving throws, ability checks, and skill checks as well as 5 temporary hit points and a +1 bonus to character level for purposes of abilities used by the target. (The positive level from this effect does not last long enough to bestow additional spell slots.) This effect lasts 1 minute per effective binder level and does not stack with itself, although the temporary hit points from this ability stack with other sources of temporary hit points. If the target would gain a negative level while under this effect, the positive level effect is canceled instead.

Guardian of Souls: You may bestow an effect equal to the spell death ward to a living creature by touch.

Headstrong: You are immune to compulsions. Moreover, against anyone who uses a compulsion effect on you, you gain a bonus to attack rolls, damage, and saving throws of +1 per 4 effective binder levels for 1 minute.


Keraptis, the Living Spell
A powerful evil wizard once created a copy of himself as a living spell in his search for immortality. Now, that copy has become a vestige with the power to grant arcane spellcasting and infect other spellcasters.

Vestige Level: 5th
Binding DC: DC 25
Special Requirement: Yes

Legend: Long ago in a distant land, a powerful wizard named Keraptis became obsessed with immortality. He took up residence in a dungeon beneath a smoldering volcano, where his experiments into the nature of life created many strange fungal monsters. However, none of these brought him the immortality that he sought. At one point in his search for immortality, he hit upon the radical concept of turning himself into a living spell and living on forever in the minds of others. His preliminary research was successful; he created a number of spell scrolls that contained living spells that contained partial copies of his personality and knowledge. However, even as he was on the verge of complete success, he became afraid of the idea of undergoing such a radical transformation and abandoned his research. The scrolls with the living spells were hidden away and forgotten.

Keraptis eventually heard rumors of a mysterious, shadowy plane of existence where immortality could be found, and turned all his efforts to penetrating this plane. He was successful in opening a planar portal, and stepped through it and out of all human knowledge. Meanwhile, the dungeon in which his servants lived gradually fell into disorder. Eventually, the hidden cache where the living spells were stored was breached, and the scrolls read by no less than four spellcasters. The result was disastrous, as there were suddenly four powerful wizards each of whom considered himself to be the real Keraptis. The four each quickly accumulated followers from among the dungeon's inhabitants, and began to war with each other.

This did not suit the wizard's remaining faithful servants, and an efreet organized a resistance against the impostors. The efreet correctly believed that the real Keraptis had to be summoned from another plane to put an end to his false copies. With the aid of some interloping adventurers, the summons was successful. A safety measure in the living spells caused them to be evicted from their host minds once the real Keraptis returned to the material plane, and the crisis was over. However, no god has prepared an afterlife for living spells, and so the evicted living spells drifted outside the cosmos and coalesced into a vestige.

Special Requirement: You must be literate in at least one language and have an Intelligence of 11 or better to host Keraptis; if you are not, it will not answer your call.

Manifestation: An ancient scroll appears in Keraptis' seal. The scroll is sealed with a pale wax seal bearing the imprint of an ancient bearded face (said to be that of Keraptis's original mortal body). The seal splits in a puff of white smoke, and the scroll opens, revealing an unreadable arcane-looking text; the letters of this text change shape and move even as they are read. Suddenly, the text rearranges itself into a message in a language that the binder knows, asking who it is that wishes to host the glory that is Keraptis, the Living Spell.

Sign: Random arcane glyphs appear beneath your skin on one location on your body of your choosing.

Influence: You become paranoid that others are impersonating you and scheming to replace you. This makes you strangely insecure in your own identity, which you must announce to everyone that you meet.

Granted Abilities: Keraptis grants you his spellcasting, the ability to scribe spells, the ability to infect others' minds via scribed spells, and concentration.

Concentration: You gain a +12 competence bonus to Concentration checks.

Infectious Personality: When you scribe a scroll or spell in a spellbook, you may choose to make it an infectious scroll or infectious scribed spell for no extra cost. An infectious scroll or spell causes any creature that reads and understands it to become infected with a fragment of your personality, becoming dominated as the spell dominate person if it fails a Will save.

You are aware whenever someone becomes infected, learning their name, race, occupation, and general location. You may only have one such infected victim at any one time; if an additional subject becomes infected while you already have an infected victim, you may choose whether to release the original and gain the new subject, or keep the original and release the new subject.

Like all vestige abilities, the effects of this one stop operating when you die or are no longer binding Keraptis; while any scribed scrolls and spells continue to exist, they lose their infectious property.

Keraptis' Spells: When you bind to Keraptis, you gain a number of prepared arcane spells and the ability to cast them as a wizard of your effective binder level. These spells are: magic missile (x3), fireball, dimension door (x2), spell resistance (x2), and wall of force. Note that only the ability to prepare and cast spells without arcane spellcaster class levels is a supernatural ability, not the spells themselves, which are subject to spell resistance, armor failure chance, Concentration checks to avoid being interrupted, etc. Your caster level is equal to your effective binder level.

Scribe Spell: You gain the benefit of the Scribe Scroll feat with regard to Keraptis' spells, or any other spells that you happen to know. You may also scribe Kerpatis' spells in a spellbook as if you were a wizard with class level equal to your effective binder level.

[Hashmalum]

Let's post more vestiges and see what happens!

Dragotha, the Herald of Worms
Dragotha was once one of the most powerful undead dragons to ever exist and the herald to an evil god—the apocalyptic Kyuss, Harbinger of the Age of Worms. He grants the ability to animate and control undead, eyes that can see the invisible, and undying vigor.

Vestige Level: 8th
Binding DC: DC 35
Special Requirement: Yes

Legend: Dragotha's history as a living dragon was already long by the time that binder scholars picked up the thread of his tale with his time as a consort of Tiamat, but of his actions before that, none can say. What is known is that Dragotha attracted Tiamat's wrath by killing another dragon that he felt was a threat to his exalted position and was forced to flee her lair in Avernus in disgrace. During his exile, he traveled to a fell jungle and found a strange monolith writhing with evil energies that he had heard about from his former mistress. The monolith spoke to him, saying that a god was imprisoned within and would grant him eternal life if freed. A pact was struck, and Dragotha relocated the monolith to his lair and freed the dread god Kyuss from his prison.

Shortly afterwards, Tiamat slew her former consort, but due to Dragotha's pact with the evil god, he was brought back as a dracolich. The phylactery holding his spirit remained in the god's possession, leaving Dragotha no choice but to do his bidding. The rise of Kyuss was not without enemies, however, and some of them were able to steal the phylactery. Dragotha fled the final battle, and as a result the god and his other servants were defeated and Kyuss re-imprisoned in the monolith.

Dragotha never did find his phylactery, and he eventually settled down again in a lair near the mountain where the dread wizard Keraptis laired. At some point, Keraptis crafted a mighty magic crown powerful enough to bind Dragotha into an enchanted repose, where he remained for centuries. Alas, foolhardy adventurers eventually entered the lair and broke the enchantment, whereupon Dragotha rewarded them with a quick death and undying servitude.

Once freed, a remnant of his original compulsion led Dragotha to attempt to free Kyuss for a second time. This time however, a group of epic heroes were there to oppose Kyuss and his servants, and they found and destroyed Dragotha's phylactery before destroying his physical form and putting an end to him. Kyuss, too, was slain, but the prophesied Age of Worms that he represented was a power beyond that of the gods and could never truly die, and Dragotha's part in the Age of Worms guaranteed his existence as well. However, all other gods shun the souls of those who serve Kyuss, leaving Dragotha with no final resting place. Thus he passed into the cursed half-existence of the vestige.
Special Requirement: Dragotha hates Keraptis and will not answer your call if your are bound to him at the time of his summoning. Likewise, Keraptis cannot be bound if you are already binding Dragotha.
Manifestation: A shadow passes overhead, and a moment later an enormous red dragon lands with a heavy thud. Only the portion of the dragon that fits within the seal can be seen. The dragon's eyes shine with a putrescent green light, and its skin begins to ripple as moving lumps appear. The lumps burst, revealing the heads of burrowing green worms, which swiftly swarm over the dragon and reduce it to a skeleton. The worms continue to crawl all over the skeletal remains as the worm-covered skeletal dragon speaks and demands to know if the Age of Worms is at hand.
Sign: A small green worm emerges halfway from a place on your body of your choice. If removed, touched with silver or blessed objects, or if you receive a remove disease spell, the worm will die and decay rapidly into nothing, but then another worm will likewise halfway emerge from your flesh in a random location. The emergence of the worm is briefly painful—enough to wake you from normal sleep—but does not inflict any damage.
Influence: You are very arrogant, and underestimate your enemies. You may not retreat until reduced to one eighth or less of your maximum hp.
Granted Abilities:
Control Undead: You can use control undead as the spell, except that undead you control by virtue of your death wind ability count against the Hit Dice limit of this ability's targets (2 HD per effective binder level). You must show Dragotha's sign to use this ability.
Death Wind: You can breathe a 60 foot long cone of tornado-force wind and negative energy that deals 1d6 points of negative energy damage per effective binder level, with a Fort save for half damage. In addition, Large or smaller creatures are blown away while Huge creatures are knocked down (larger creatures are unaffected by the short blast of wind). Flying creatures are treated as one size category smaller than their actual size. Creatures on the ground who are blown away are knocked prone and roll back 1d4×10 feet, taking 1d4 points of nonlethal damage per 10 feet. Flying creatures who are blown away are blown back 2d6×10 feet and take 2d6 nonlethal damage.

Undead are healed instead of harmed by the negative energy damage, although they still suffer the effects of the wind. Creatures slain by the death wind disintegrate and reanimate as wraiths, or dread wraiths if they had more than 16 Hit Dice. Reanimated creatures fall under your control provided that they have no more than twice your effective binder level in Hit Dice. If you currently control more than twice your Hit Dice in undead through this ability and your control undead ability, the least recently controlled undead become uncontrolled until enough Hit Dice remain that you can control the most recently animated undead. You may use this ability only once per day.
Feared By Dragonkind: Any creature of the dragon type must make a Will save in order to attack you. Once a creature makes it save, it is immune to this ability for 24 hours. Creatures immune to fear are not affected by this ability. You must show Dragotha's sign in order to use this ability.
Regeneration: You regenerate 5 hit points per round. You take normal damage from holy-aligned weapons, and spells and effects with the good descriptor.
See Invisible: You see invisible creatures as if they were not invisible.

Tooth of Dragotha: A large draconic fang. You can use control undead 1 time per day. Strong necromancy; CL 13th; Price 32,760 gp.

Ma Yuan, the Killer of the Gods
The colossal four-armed reptilian humanoid that calls itself Ma Yuan, Killer of the Gods is an ancient evil of unknown origin. He grants his summoner immense size, power to overcome the divine, extra arms, and his mastery over all weapons.

Vestige Level: 8th
Binding DC: DC 35
Special Requirement: Yes

Legend: The gods do not speak of Ma Yuan, and the cunning Ma Yuan deflects nearly all questions about himself. What is known is that Ma Yuan has existed since before the earliest mortal races came into existence. The cause of his obsessive hatred of gods isn't known, but over the years, he is recorded as being the cause of death of at least ten minor deities. Observers of these divine battles noted that Ma Yuan carried a strange triangular stone charm around his neck that he could change into any type of weapon imaginable, and that he preferred to use this to create a weapon similar to what his opponent wielded only stronger.

Ma Yuan walked the earth for ages, but only recently has disappeared. Sometime after his last recorded appearance, interplanar travelers to the Abyss claim to have seen Ma Yuan's enormous form in repose, minus his distinctive stone charm, in one of the legendary Wells of Darkness. It is said that those who are imprisoned in the Wells of Darkness are actually just outside the known cosmos, and the ability of binders to bind Ma Yuan lends credibility to that claim.
Special Requirement: You must place the skull of a god inside Ma Yuan's seal. The "god" in question need not have had divine ranks, but it must have called itself a god and been worshipped as a god. If the creature actually had divine ranks, add 4 + the god's former divine rank to your binding check to make a pact with Ma Yuan. Despite Ma Yuan's apparent manifestation, this skull is not actually destroyed and may be used again.
Manifestation: A series of crashing footsteps can be heard, and the skull shakes as if the ground were quaking beneath the impacts. Next, the breathing of some immense being can be heard. Then the scaly, yellow reptilian foot of some colossal creature comes down from above and smashes the skull to powder. The foot lifts and disappears above out of sight, and then an enormous, terrifying head like that of a tyrannosaur suddenly comes down from above, as if some immense being was bending low to gaze at something very near to the ground. The head regards the binder with three red eyes before roaring his demand to know who dares to summon Ma Yuan, Killer of the Gods.
Sign: You grow an extra pair of arms below your existing arms (or, if you didn't have arms to start with, you grow a pair of arms).
Influence: Ma Yuan demands that whenever possible, you defeat a foe with his own favored type of weapon. Furthermore, the wily Ma Yuan insists that you have a strategy for attack, defense, and escape at all times.
Granted Abilities:
Extra Arms: You can use the extra pair of arms provided by Ma Yuan's sign with full proficiency, including wielding weapons with these arms.
Metamorphic Weapon: You can change the form of one of your weapons into another weapon of the same type (melee or projectile) of any single special material that you wish. The weapon retains all of its magical properties that are compatible with its new form (for example, a +1 keen dagger could become an +1 adamant club, since only edged weapons can have the keen property). The weapon reverts to its original form if it leaves your possession for 1 round. For projectile weapons that use ammunition, you may change up to 50 units of the weapon's ammunition at the same time. The changed weapon always counts as a magic weapon for overcoming damage reduction; at 20th effective binding level, it counts as an epic weapon as well.
Overcomer of the Divine: Any divine bonus of a foe that is applied to an attack roll, damage roll, ability check, skill roll, or spell penetration roll with you as the subject is negated. Likewise, any attacks you make ignore any divine bonuses the target may possess to armor class, spell resistance, skill checks, ability checks, or saving throws.
Size of Ma Yuan: Once per hour, you may grow to enormous size, gaining strength to match. This duplicates the effect of the giant size spell (from Complete Arcane).
Weapon Lore: As a free action, you learn the information given by both analyze dweomer and legend lore about any one manufactured weapon that you can see.
Weapon Master: You are considered proficient with all manufactured weapons.

Tooth of Ma Yuan: A tiny shard of an enormous triangular sharp-edged tooth broken off at the base, but nevertheless a full three inches in width and even larger in length. The base of the tooth only just barely fits in the mouth of an ordinary person. You can use girallon's blessing (from Spell Compendium) 3 times per day. Faint transmutation; CL 5th; Price 16,200 gp.

Miska, the Wolf-Spider
Once a powerful general of the forces of Chaos, Miska grants his summoner his charm and his spider abilities.

Vestige Level: 5th
Binding DC: DC 25
Special Requirement: No

Legend: Long, long, ago, in an age of legend, war raged between the forces of Law, led by the Wind Dukes of Aaqa, and the forces of Chaos, led by the Queen of Chaos and her consort, Miska the Wolf-Spider. The war was going poorly for the forces of Law, so they crafted a powerful magical rod to slay Miska and thus rid the queen of her best general. The rod only grievously wounded Miska and was broken into seven parts in the process, which were infected with a portion of Miska's life force and scattered across the planes. The wounded Miska was imprisoned in a cocoon of Law, and the advance of Chaos was broken while the queen searched desperately for the means to free and heal him: the seven parts of the shattered rod.

Ages later, the rod that had passed into legend as the Rod of Seven Parts was recovered and reassembled by mortal adventurers, who were then tricked into using it to heal Miska by returning his life force to him. However, Miska made the mistake of trying to kill his pawns once he was done with them, and a fierce battle raged at the site of Miska's former imprisonment. Eventually, Miska was once again pierced by the Rod, and this time he was permanently slain. But Miska's part in the legend of the Rod had spread across thousands of worlds, and such a legend could never truly die, and so he became a vestige.
Manifestation: An enormous blue-black demonic spider suddenly drops into the summoning circle, as if leaping in from elsewhere. The spider has four red-haired human arms, a head of a handsome human male, and two red wolf heads, one to each side. He looks at the binder and smirks arrogantly. Suddenly, a six foot long tapered rod drops in from above, impaling the spider and pinning it to the ground. The spider screams and twitches as black ichor gushes from the wound and all three of its mouths, but in vain; it crashes to the ground and appears to be dead for a few moments. Eventually, three pairs of eyes open again, and the three heads speak calmly with a pleasing voice, asking who has summoned him.
Sign: You grow red hair on your face and arms and gain a pair of venomous fangs in your mouth.
Influence: Miska requires that you betray and kill your servants, whether they are charmed minions or people you have duped by lying to them, once they are of no further use to you.
Granted Abilities: Miska grants you his charm, his bite, his spider senses, and his ability to move on webs, walls, and ceilings.
Blindsight: The hairs on your arms and face are actually vibratory sensors that detect even the smallest movement of the air around you. You gain blindsight out to 30 feet. You may only use this ability if you show Miska's sign.
Corrupt Charm: You charm any living creature as per charm monster. You may use this ability only every 5 rounds, and may have only one victim charmed at a time; if you charm a new victim, the previous victim is released from the charm.
Spider Climb: You gain a climb speed of 20 feet. You must have your hands free to climb. You need not make Climb checks to traverse vertical or horizontal surfaces, even upside-down. You maintain your Dex bonus to AC and opponents are at no special advantage to hit you, but you may not take the run action while climbing.
Venomous Bite: You gain a venomous bite attack, which deals no extra damage but injects a poison which deals 1d6 initial Dex damage and induces stupor for 1d4 hours if the Fort save is failed as its secondary damage. While in a stupor, creatures may not move, act, or even think, but continue to perceive their environment and can later recall what they perceived. You may only use this ability if you show Miska's sign.
Web Master: You cannot be trapped in webs, whether normal or magically created, and can walk on webs at your normal movement rate.

Tooth of Miska: A huge fang-like tooth more than double the size of a normal tooth. You can use charm monster once per day. Moderate enchantment; CL 7th; Price 10,080 gp.

[Hashmalum]

Amdusias, the Hellish Musician
Amdusias grants her summoner the ability to play music without an instrument, create cacophony and thunder, and warp wood.

Vestige Level: 2nd
Binding DC: DC 20
Special Requirement: No

Legend: What Amdusias was before becoming a vestige isn't known, and she might not know herself. Amdusias has claimed at various times to have been an orcish warsinger, a sage studying supreme harmony, and the queen of hell's musicians. References she has made to introducing cacophony to the Music of Spheres lead certain binder scholars to believe that she cast plane shift with a resonating fork of supreme disharmony, sending her outside the known planes of existence and into a vestige's existence.
Manifestation: Amdusias suddenly appears in the middle of her seal with a musical flourish as a woman with claws instead of hands and feet and the head of a unicorn. The music appears to be coming from a trumpet floating by her side being played by no visible being or force. She strikes a dramatic pose, grins, and asks why she has been summoned.
Sign: You grow a small horn-stub in the middle of your forehead. Loose-fitting headwear can conceal the horn stub with difficulty.
Influence: You tolerate no rivals in your field of expertise. If you have an ally whose area of skill overlaps with others, you insist on having authority over them. Whenever meeting another in your field for the first time, you must verbally put down their skill and brag about your own at least once during your meeting.
Granted Abilities:
Amdusias' Skill: When you bind Amdusias, choose the Perform skill for one type of musical instrument; you gain a competence bonus of 3 + your effective binder level to skill checks involving that skill and may make them untrained.
Cacophonous Assault: You may inflict 1d6 sonic damage per effective binder level in a 10 foot spread centered on you. Targets are entitled to a Reflex save for half damage. You may only use this ability every 5 rounds.
Discordant Counter: You may use your phantom concert ability to play a counter to magical effects that depend on sound. This works like a bard's countersong ability.
Hellish Thunder: You may bestow or remove the thundering quality from any weapon or natural attack you possess as a free action. (Thundering weapons deal an extra 1d8 points of sonic damage on a critical hit, or 2d8 for x3 and 3d8 for x4 critical multipliers. Targets struck by a thundering critical hit must make a Fort save or be permanently deafened. ) Weapons that leave you lose the quality in one round.
Phantom Concert: You may play music without any instrument. This uses the Perform skill for any type of musical instrument of your choice with a +2 circumstance bonus, as if a masterwork instrument were being used.
Warp Wood: You may warp (but not straighten) wood by touch as a warp wood spell. You may only use this ability every 5 rounds.

Tooth of Amdusias: An ordinary-looking molar. You can use sound burst at will. Faint evocation; CL 5th; Price 18,000 gp.

Arktouros, the King Who Waits
Once the legendary founding king of a great nation who protected it even after his apparent death, Arktouros gives his host his shield, the ability to defend others with shield or weapon, and the ability to cause those they protect to forget their presence.

Vestige Level: 5th
Binding DC: 25
Special Requirement: Yes

Legend: Long, long ago, in an unknown land, a mighty but just warrior named Arktouros took up arms to unite the separate tribes of his people under his rule against foreign invaders from across the sea. He succeeded in routing the invaders, but in the climactic battle Arktouros was mortally wounded. He was spirited away by a water fey and never seen again, but before he left, he promised that he would one day return and save his nation when it was great need.

Centuries passed, but need was never great enough to call Arktouros. Over the centuries, many immigrants from a larger, adjacent nation came to settle in the nation that he founded. Eventually, the nation gradually succumbed to cultural assimilation to its neighbor, and the legend was first disbelieved, then later forgotten by the people. Later still, the climate changed catastrophically and the nation's lands became unpeopled as its inhabitants dispersed across the world. Bound to a nation which had ceased to exist, waiting for an event that could never come, Arktouros gradually faded away into the twilight half-existence of the vestige.
Special Requirement: You must wait an abnormally long time after drawing Arktouros's sign before he shows himself and the binding process may begin. The time required to bind Arktouros is extended to a full hour.
Manifestation: Arktouros fades into existence as if he had been there unseen, waiting for centuries. A burly, towering figure taller than a man covered in dusty armor, Arktouros wears a scabbard at his side holding a long sword and carries a great shield; on the shield is the device of an apple and a bear. The shield is dented and bloody but still mighty; the armor, on the other hand, is rent asunder in multiple places, particularly in the chest region. Through the gaps in the armor can be seen a hairy hide like an animal's, and there is a mortal wound in the chest. The exposed hands, too, are hairy and clawed. Arktouros then raises the visor of his helmet with his empty paw, revealing the visage of a great bear. The bear's mouth opens, but from it issues a deep and commanding human voice, asking who the summoner wishes to protect.
Sign: You gain an apparent wound in your chest area, although this wound does not bleed or hamper you in any way.
Influence: When you bind Arktouros, you must choose a particular group or category of people as "your people", and may not change this designation thereafter. You may not threaten, attack, or harm members of this group, even if they attack you or otherwise prove unworthy of your trust. You may not enter combat unless one of "your people" specifically requests your help, or you are personally attacked.
Granted Abilities:
Defensive Strike: You can make an attack of opportunity against an adjacent opponent who attacks a member of your chosen group in melee.
Deflect Attack: You may attempt to parry a melee attack against a member of your chosen group. To attempt this, you must be within 5 feet of that member, aware of the impending attack, not flat-footed, and holding a melee weapon or shield capable of deflecting the attack. If you make a Reflex save of DC 20 + (attacking weapon's enhancement bonus), the attack is prevented. You may use this ability only once per round.
Forgotten Protector: You may cause any number of persons that you have protected since you bound Arktouros that are within 30 feet to forget that you were ever there; they remember being protected, but not by who, and they will not recognize you if they see you again. They are entitled to a Will save to prevent the effect, and no more than 10 minutes worth of memories per effective binder level may be modified. You may only use this ability every 5 rounds.
Patient One:When you choose to ready your action, or delay your action, you gain a luck bonus equal to half your binder level (rounded down to a minimum of +1) to your Armor Class from the time you choose to ready or delay until the time you take action. When you choose to ready your action, or delay your action, you gain the same luck bonus to your attack and weapon damage rolls for the duration of your readied or delayed action.
Shield of Arktouros: As a swift action, you can summon or dismiss a Medium heavy shield (+2 shield bonus, -2 armor check, 15% arcane spell failure chance). You are proficient with this shield and can wield it in one hand without penalty. Your shield's exact bonus and abilities depend on your binder level, according to the following table:

Effective Binder LevelShield Summoned
11th and below+1 heavy steel shield of arrow catching
12th-15th+3 heavy steel shield of arrow catching
16th-19th+3 heavy adamantine shield of arrow catching
20th or higher+3 heavy adamantine shield of arrow catching and invulnerability
The shield disappears (until you summon it again) if it leaves your grasp for more than 1 round.

Tooth of Arktouros: An ordinary canine tooth. You can use shield at will. Faint abjuration; CL 5th; Price 9,000 gp.

Imanol, the Never-Born
Imanol is the spirit of a prophesied demigod who was never born. He gives the power to bring hope and birth, gain a lifetime's worth of strength in and for a moment, and frustrate divinations.

Vestige Level: 7th
Binding DC: 33
Special Requirement: No

Legend: Long ago, in a distant land, a deity of law and good had a chosen people, who worshipped and served him. However, in time they fell away from his teachings, and so he ceased to bless them. As a result, they were conquered by their enemies, and there was much sorrow upon the land. But there was hope; it was prophesied that a virgin would give birth to the god's son, a mighty demigod who would bring righteousness and liberation to the people.

Unfortunately, the god's suffering followers were not the only ones who were aware of the prophecy. The wicked king of the conquering nation had every pregnant woman in the kingdom put to death so that the prophesied savior would never be born. As a result, the prophecy was foiled at the very last possible minute; the demigod's unborn essence was too powerful to disperse and too holy to become undead, yet could never come into the world. And so the unborn demigod became a vestige.
Manifestation: An awe-inspiring harmonic tone can be heard. Above the seal, a golden wheel within a wheel appears, held by the upper bodies of two grief-stricken figures with white feathery wings. A brilliant sphere of white light comes into being in the center of the wheel and grows larger. As it does so, the harmonic tone rises in pitch and a feeling of hopefulness emanates from the sphere. The light pinkens and a large and distorted but still recognizable human fetus develops in the center of it. Suddenly, the tone stops rising and begins to distort, as the fetus shifts and wavers and the light cycles randomly throughout the spectrum. A presence can be felt, emanating a powerful but wordless feeling of frustrated urgent need. Imanol never speaks, but communicates through blunt projected emotions; binding with it is as much will and instinct as anything else.
Sign: You become a child-like version of yourself--smaller with softer-looking features, a larger head and eyes, and no facial or body hair. You are still recognizable.
Influence: You may not harm a pregnant female of any species. You may not take any action that would prevent a creature from being born—whether using contraception, smashing a dragon's egg, or performing surgery to remove an implanted parasitic slaad embryo.
Granted Abilities:
Bringer of Hope: You and all your allies within 60 feet are immune to despair effects and receive a +2 morale bonus to attack rolls, damage rolls, ability checks, and saving throws.
Frustrate Prophecy: You cannot be scried upon, and attempts to divine your future fail. Even powerful divinations concerning you fail; commune, contact other plane, legend lore, vision, and similar spells yields no information about you. Any insight bonus of a foe that is applied to an attack roll, damage roll, ability check, skill roll, or spell penetration roll with you as the subject is negated. Likewise, any attacks you make ignore any insight bonuses the target may possess to armor class, spell resistance, skill checks, ability checks, or saving throws.
Quicken Life: Any skill, feat, spell or ability that you use that brings about birth or permanently creates life is enhanced (resurrecting existing life, however, is not thus enhanced). You receive +4 to relevant skill and ability checks, relevant spells are quickened (with no increase to spell slot used), saving throw DCs increase by +4, and living creatures you create reroll one die of each ability score and one hit die (with the higher result of the two rolls being applied).
The Life That Was Denied: You suddenly begin to age and grow into a larger, stronger version of yourself, only to burn through your entire second adulthood in seconds. For 4 rounds, you gain the effects of +6 Strength and an increase in size category by one (gaining reach if appropriate); on the 5th round, you wither into old age and lose the strength bonus and size increase. After that you return to normal. You may only use this ability if you show Imanol's sign, and then only every 5 rounds. This ability is used as a swift action.

Tooth: A tiny tooth-bud. You can use good hope three times per day. Faint enchantment; CL 5th; Price 16,200 gp.

[Debihuman]

I haven't yet played a binder, but these vestiges look really cool.

Debby

[Hashmalum]

I haven't yet played a binder, but these vestiges look really cool.

DebbyThank you very much! I try.

[Hashmalum]

So I came up with some additional feats for binders that I figured I might as well post here.

Extended Binding [General]
Your pacts with vestiges can last more than 24 hours.
Prerequisites: Expel Vestige.
Benefit: You may choose to bind a vestige as an extended binding. Extended bindings last until the vestige is expelled by means such as the Expel Vestige feat. Any effects that can only be used a limited number of times per binding of a vestige refresh every 24 hours after binding it. If you expel a vestige, you only take the binding check penalties in the Expel Vestige feat description if the vestige has been bound to you for less than 24 hours.
Normal: Bound vestiges expire in 24 hours.
Special: You may take this feat as a binder bonus feat.
Some of the vestige abilities that I've come up with are considerably more useful with this feat and were created with it in mind. In particular, Keraptis' infectious personality and Obligatum's godless mission are near useless without it.

Extra Pact Augmentation [General]
You draw additional strength from the vestiges that you bind.
Prerequisites: Ability to bind 2nd level vestiges, Knowledge (the planes) 4 ranks.
Benefit: You may select an additional ability from the binder's pact augmentation list as long as you are bound to at least one vestige.
Special: You may take this feat as a binder bonus feat. This feat can be taken multiple times. The benefit stacks with itself and with the binder's pact augmentation class feature.

Maximize Supernatural Ability [General]
You can use a supernatural ability to maximum effect.
Prerequisites: 8 HD, supernatural ability.
Benefit: Once per day, you can maximize a supernatural ability. When you use a maximized supernatural ability, all variable, numeric aspects of an ability are maximized. A maximized ability deals maximum damage, cures the maximum number of hit points, affects the maximum number of targets, etc. as appropriate. Saving throws and opposed rolls are not affected, nor are abilities without random variables. You must declare use of this feat before you use the ability. A continuous use ability (such as a gaze attack) can only be maximized for 1 round. Maximizing a supernatural ability does not require a separate action.
Special: This feat can be taken multiple times. Each time it is taken, you can maximize a supernatural ability one extra time per day. You may take this feat as a binder bonus feat.

Practiced Soul Binding [General]
Your soul binding abilities are more powerful.
Prerequisites: Knowledge (the planes) 4 ranks.
Benefit: Your effective binder level increases by 4. This benefit can't increase your binder level to higher than your Hit Dice. However, even if you can't benefit from the full bonus immediately, if you later gain Hit Dice in levels of nonbinding classes, you might be able to apply the rest of the bonus.

This feat does not affect which vestiges you may bind or how many vestiges you may bind. It increases effective binder level only, which helps you succeed on binding checks and increases the damage and other effects of your supernatural abilities.
Special: You may take this feat as a binder bonus feat.
Note: This would have been called Practiced Binder (by analogy with Practiced Spellcaster), but that name was already taken.

Quicken Supernatural Ability [General]
You can use your supernatural abilities with a moment's thought.
Prerequisites: 10 HD, supernatural ability.
Benefit: Once per day, you can quicken a supernatural ability. When you use a quickened supernatural ability, you use it as a swift action. You may not quicken an ability that has an activation time of more than 1 full round.
Normal: Supernatural abilities use a standard action.
Special: This feat can be taken multiple times. Each time it is taken, you can quicken a supernatural ability one extra time per day. You may take this feat as a binder bonus feat.

Versatile Binder [General]
You can bind two weaker vestiges instead of one stronger one.
Prerequisites: Ability to bind 3rd-level vestiges.
Benefit: You may choose to use one (and only one) of your vestige slots to bind two vestiges. The sum of the levels of the two vestiges must be equal to or less than the highest level vestige you can bind, minus one.
Special: You may take this feat as a binder bonus feat.

Versatile Binder is the only one I'm not sure about; balanced feat, or excuse to never unbind Naberius again? You decide.

[Bohandas]

How about Maanzicorian?

[khadgar567]

How about Maanzicorian?
where is it?.

[Debihuman]

Maanzecorian was one of the mindflayers' deities and their originator from 2nd edition AD&D. Never was converted to 3rd edition as far as I know as his status is currently one of the dead gods.

Debby

[khadgar567]

Maanzecorian was one of the mindflayers' deities and their originator from 2nd edition AD&D. Never was converted to 3rd edition as far as I know as his status is currently one of the dead gods.

Debby
aka its a vestige with currently unknown powers.

[JoshuaZ]

These look generally well done. A few comments:

Cimeries' Strength- I would explicitly say that the temporary hitpoints come when you initially bind Cimeries and that if you bind Cimeries again you regain them.

Desayeus- is Guardian of Souls at will?

Keraptis- as written, the Infectious Personality ability isn't great because many binders aren't going to have the ability to make scrolls. I would suggest that while one is bound one should also be treated as having the Scribe Scroll feat, and you gain the ability to scribe or write down in a spellbook any spell that is on the sorcerer/wizard list that is a spell duplicated by a vestige you are bound to.

Miska as written could probably be 4th level rather than 5th. I'm not sure, it might be too strong for 4th level, but it feels a little weak for 5th level.

Amdusias' Skill- suggest that you should be able to apply this to one more instrument for every 5 binder levels you have.

As for the feats:
Extend Vestige seems a bit strong as written. It may make sense to give it a minimum effective binder level as an additional prerequisite?


Versatile Binder seems fine to me- I like the idea, and given that it takes a feat, that seems about right.

[Hashmalum]

These look generally well done.Thank you!


A few comments:

Cimeries' Strength- I would explicitly say that the temporary hitpoints come when you initially bind Cimeries and that if you bind Cimeries again you regain them.

Desayeus- is Guardian of Souls at will?Yes.


Keraptis- as written, the Infectious Personality ability isn't great because many binders aren't going to have the ability to make scrolls. I would suggest that while one is bound one should also be treated as having the Scribe Scroll feat, and you gain the ability to scribe or write down in a spellbook any spell that is on the sorcerer/wizard list that is a spell duplicated by a vestige you are bound to.The scribe spell ability does that, yes. Check it again. Also, do you think it would be excessive to give Keraptis the ability to use scrolls, besides just scribe them? In retrospect, having the latter but not the former just seems odd to me.


Miska as written could probably be 4th level rather than 5th. I'm not sure, it might be too strong for 4th level, but it feels a little weak for 5th level.I'd rather have him at 5th, then; there are more 4th level vestiges than vestiges of any other level. How about adding web every 5 rounds?


Amdusias' Skill- suggest that you should be able to apply this to one more instrument for every 5 binder levels you have.I was worried about making her too strong. But I suppose this wouldn't really change anything...


As for the feats:
Extend Vestige seems a bit strong as written. It may make sense to give it a minimum effective binder level as an additional prerequisite?Yeah, it is pretty useful. Not only can you lock in a good binding check, but you can remove the need to re-bind a vestige if you need to go undercover. And keep vital protections up 24/7. And allow certain vestige effects such as infectious personality to last longer than 24 hours. About the only downside is that you can still only expel one vestige per day with Expel Vestige, so if you bind multiple vestiges as extended bindings you can get stuck. What would you recommend as a good minimum level?


Versatile Binder seems fine to me- I like the idea, and given that it takes a feat, that seems about right.Thanks! I was worried about that one.

Also, thank you again for taking the time to go over all this stuff and offer comments. I appreciate it.

Oh, I forgot to mention something about Keraptis, and that is: by giving binders access to caster level, they can in combination with Astaroth meet the requirements to craft a phylactery and become liches. How do people feel about this? It wasn't actually my intention when making Keraptis, but I think having binder liches is neat.

[Hashmalum]

aka its a vestige with currently unknown powers.Well, not every dead god becomes a vestige. Still, with Primus being a vestige who was a deity killed by the Last Word, there is precedent. Perhaps the Last Word rips its victims right out of reality? That would also give us Bwimb and the other two gods that were Last Worded as vestiges. Anyway, it would likely be a psionic vestige, and I'm not really that familiar with 3.5 psionics. Still I could give it a try. I'll have to read up on Maanzecorian and 3.5 psionics though.

[JoshuaZ]

The scribe spell ability does that, yes. Check it again. Also, do you think it would be excessive to give Keraptis the ability to use scrolls, besides just scribe them? In retrospect, having the latter but not the former just seems odd to me.

Spells duplicated by a binder's abilities are not in general spells known for item creation purposes unless explicitly stated. And yes, the ability to use them is probably a reasonable thing to add.



I'd rather have him at 5th, then; there are more 4th level vestiges than vestiges of any other level. How about adding web every 5 rounds?

Sounds reasonable to me.



Yeah, it is pretty useful. Not only can you lock in a good binding check, but you can remove the need to re-bind a vestige if you need to go undercover. And keep vital protections up 24/7. And allow certain vestige effects such as infectious personality to last longer than 24 hours. About the only downside is that you can still only expel one vestige per day with Expel Vestige, so if you bind multiple vestiges as extended bindings you can get stuck. What would you recommend as a good minimum level?

I'm not sure. Maybe 5th level?

Thanks! I was worried about that one.



Oh, I forgot to mention something about Keraptis, and that is: by giving binders access to caster level, they can in combination with Astaroth meet the requirements to craft a phylactery and become liches. How do people feel about this? It wasn't actually my intention when making Keraptis, but I think having binder liches is neat.

This is neat; however, unless this is specifically stated I could imagine some adjudication headaches (e.g. what happens if you make a phylactery and then cease to be bound to Keraptis).