JackMage666
2007-07-13, 02:44 AM
So, here's the deal. We're playing an Evil Campaign soon, and the most vile, evil thing I could think of is an intelligent giant mosquito. Luckily, D&D already has that - almost. I present you, the Awakened Stirge
Awakened Stirge
Occasionally, for whatever odd reason, a caster can have a Stirge as a familiar. While this practice is strange at best, it can cause a few mishaps in the Stirge community. Following it's natural tendencies to mate with other Stirges, a Wizard or Sorcerer's Stirge may do just that, imparting on the offspring some of it's intelligence. Oftentimes, the Stirge has no idea that other Stirges cannot think, but eventually comes to terms with it. Many lead swarms of other Stirges, for whatever reason. Some attempt to forge links with casters, just like at least one of their parents did. Others simply fly about the earth, feeding on hardly sentient beings for sustinence. For any of these cases, survival is still the main issue to the Stirge, and it will do whatever it takes to do so.
Awakened Stirge Racial Traits
---Magical Beast
---Str -8, Dex +8, Int -4, Wis +2, Cha -4. Awakened Stirges physically resemple the nonintelligent members of their race. They lack the intellegence of even humans, but maintain a remarkable degree of intelligence based on other Stirges.
---Tiny size. +2 bonus to Armor Class, +2 bonus to attack rolls, +8 bonus to Hide checks, -8 penalty on grapple checks, lifting and carrying capacity limits to 1/2 those of Medium characters.
---An Awakened Stirge's base land speed is 10 feet. It also has a fly speed of 40 feet (average).
---Darkvision out 60 ft.
---Low-light vision.
---Racial Feats: Awakened Stirges gain Weapon Finesse as a bonus feat.
---Special Attacks: Attach, Blood Drain* (See MM pg 237)
---Special Qualities: Pincer Grasp (See below)
---Automatic Language: Common. Bonus Languages: Draconic, Sylvan, Undercommon. Awakened Stirges cannot speak, but can understand any language he knows. An exception to this rule is any caster with a Stirge Familiar can speak to the Awakened Stirge so long as his familair has the 'Speak with Master' trait.
---Level Adjustment +1
*An Awakened Stirge must consume 4 points on Con using Blood Drain per day, or begin to suffer from Starvation (see pg 304 of the DMG). No other food or drink is required.
Pincer Grasp (Ex): Due to their naturally high Dexterity and basic Intelligence, an Awakened Stirge can use his Pincers much like a set of tiny hands.
His pincers allow him to be treated as a Tiny humanoid for the purposed of what he may weild as weapons. However, since the pincers are connected, he may not do two things at once with them.
For example, he may weild a tiny spear in his pincers, but he may not weild a tiny shortsword and a shield. He may weild a tiny longsword as a two-handed weapon, but he may not weild it as a one handed weapon.
Also, he may weild a light weapon or a rapier in his pincers, but they still do not gain a benefit from being held two-handed.
This ability also allows the Awakened Stirge to manipulate objects. He may Open Locks and Disable Devices as well as a tiny humanoid, and may even write with a pen if he spends enough time doing so. In this way, an Awakened Stirge can communicate effectively with other sentient creatures (if they spend the time to read it and do not attack the Stirge, of course.)
Awakened Stirge
Occasionally, for whatever odd reason, a caster can have a Stirge as a familiar. While this practice is strange at best, it can cause a few mishaps in the Stirge community. Following it's natural tendencies to mate with other Stirges, a Wizard or Sorcerer's Stirge may do just that, imparting on the offspring some of it's intelligence. Oftentimes, the Stirge has no idea that other Stirges cannot think, but eventually comes to terms with it. Many lead swarms of other Stirges, for whatever reason. Some attempt to forge links with casters, just like at least one of their parents did. Others simply fly about the earth, feeding on hardly sentient beings for sustinence. For any of these cases, survival is still the main issue to the Stirge, and it will do whatever it takes to do so.
Awakened Stirge Racial Traits
---Magical Beast
---Str -8, Dex +8, Int -4, Wis +2, Cha -4. Awakened Stirges physically resemple the nonintelligent members of their race. They lack the intellegence of even humans, but maintain a remarkable degree of intelligence based on other Stirges.
---Tiny size. +2 bonus to Armor Class, +2 bonus to attack rolls, +8 bonus to Hide checks, -8 penalty on grapple checks, lifting and carrying capacity limits to 1/2 those of Medium characters.
---An Awakened Stirge's base land speed is 10 feet. It also has a fly speed of 40 feet (average).
---Darkvision out 60 ft.
---Low-light vision.
---Racial Feats: Awakened Stirges gain Weapon Finesse as a bonus feat.
---Special Attacks: Attach, Blood Drain* (See MM pg 237)
---Special Qualities: Pincer Grasp (See below)
---Automatic Language: Common. Bonus Languages: Draconic, Sylvan, Undercommon. Awakened Stirges cannot speak, but can understand any language he knows. An exception to this rule is any caster with a Stirge Familiar can speak to the Awakened Stirge so long as his familair has the 'Speak with Master' trait.
---Level Adjustment +1
*An Awakened Stirge must consume 4 points on Con using Blood Drain per day, or begin to suffer from Starvation (see pg 304 of the DMG). No other food or drink is required.
Pincer Grasp (Ex): Due to their naturally high Dexterity and basic Intelligence, an Awakened Stirge can use his Pincers much like a set of tiny hands.
His pincers allow him to be treated as a Tiny humanoid for the purposed of what he may weild as weapons. However, since the pincers are connected, he may not do two things at once with them.
For example, he may weild a tiny spear in his pincers, but he may not weild a tiny shortsword and a shield. He may weild a tiny longsword as a two-handed weapon, but he may not weild it as a one handed weapon.
Also, he may weild a light weapon or a rapier in his pincers, but they still do not gain a benefit from being held two-handed.
This ability also allows the Awakened Stirge to manipulate objects. He may Open Locks and Disable Devices as well as a tiny humanoid, and may even write with a pen if he spends enough time doing so. In this way, an Awakened Stirge can communicate effectively with other sentient creatures (if they spend the time to read it and do not attack the Stirge, of course.)