Create a Simulacrum of Baba Yaga?

[Oryan77]

Is there any chance someone could stat out a 3.5e Simulacrum (3.5 PHB spell) version of this Baba Yaga that appeared in an old Creature Catalogue? The spell says to reduce the creature by half it's HD, but I have no idea how to actually convert this since it doesn't seem to have actual class levels.

I'm not knowledgeable enough at building creatures either. So I'm not sure where to begin. I'm hoping to reduce this down to the equivalent of a CR 12 creature. Any help would be appreciated, thanks.

Baba Yaga
Medium Outsider (Evil, Native)
Hit Dice: 30d8+240 (375 hp)
Initiative: +11
Speed: 30 ft. (6 squares)
Armor Class: 42 (+7 Dex, +7 natural, +10 deflection, +8 insight), touch 35, flat-footed 35
Base Attack/Grapple: +30/+39
Attack: Claw +39 melee (1d8+9/19-20)
Full Attack: 2 claws +39 melee (1d8+9/19-20) and bite +34 melee (2d6+4)
Space/Reach: 5 ft./5 ft.
Special Attacks: Aura of horror, consume spirits, deadly rending, spell-like abilities, spells
Special Qualities: Change shape, damage reduction 15/magic (15/magic and non-metal within her hut), darkvision 120 ft., immunity to mind-affecting spells and abilities, magical aging effects, and necromantic effects, knowledgeable, resistance to cold 10 and fire 10, regeneration 3, scent, "sniff out knowledge", spell resistance 41, tongues
Saves: Fort +25, Ref +24, Will +27
Abilities: Str 29, Dex 24, Con 26, Int 32, Wis 30, Cha 27
Skills: Bluff +41, Concentration +41, Decipher Script +44, Diplomacy +45, Disguise +41 (+43 acting), Hide +40, Intimidate +43, Knowledge (arcana) +44, Knowledge (local) +44, Knowledge (nature) +46, Knowledge (the planes) +44, Listen +43, Move Silently +40, Search +44, Sense Motive +43, Spellcraft +46 (+48 scrolls), Spot +43, Survival +43 (+45 following tracks, +45 on other planes), Use Magic Device +41 (+45 scrolls)
Feats: Brew Potion [B], Empower Spell, Extend Spell, Heighten Spell, Improved Critical (claw), Improved Initiative [B], Improved Metamagic, Improved Spell Capacity (x2), Intensify Spell, Maximize Spell, Power Attack, Quicken Spell
Environment: Temperate and cold forests
Organization: Solitary
Challenge Rating: 25
Treasure: Double standard
Alignment: Always neutral evil
Advancement: -
Level Adjustment: -

This hideous old woman walks crouched over. Her nearly skeletal limbs are gray-brown and tatooed with runes, and her gnarled hands end in iron claws. Cold black eyes sit above her long, warty nose, and her chin juts out beneath a mouth full of pointed teeth.

Baba Yaga is the most famous of witches. Rumored to be the mother of Iggwilv, her power rivals that of many archfiends and demigods. She is said to be related to both hags and fiends.

Baba Yaga preys on humanoid men, eating as many as ten per day. She ranges wide in her predations, traveling in her Dancing Hut. She sometimes wanders the planes to meet with fiendish allies or to search for powerful artifacts.

Although evil and known to feed on men, many sages and heroes seek her out for her great knowledge. She will accept audience with those who remain polite, and may even be helpful, requiring the requestors to accept a geas for a nearly impossible quest in return for her information.

Baba Yaga never harms children or particularly weak non-evil creatures (1 HD or less), fearing retribution from good-aligned deities. She sometimes takes children in as servants, often rewarding them with great gifts.

Most evil creatures fear Baba Yaga's power, and fiends generally fulfill her commands quickly in order to be free from her.

Baba Yaga stands 5 feet tall and weighs 100 pounds.

Baba Yaga speaks Abyssal, Common, Draconic, Infernal, and Sylvan, but can speak with almost any creature because of her tongues ability.

Combat

Baba Yaga relies heavily on protective spells, and generally has used divinations before combat to best prepare for that battle. She summons fiends to her aid, knowing they fear and respect her. Baba Yaga prefers to attack weaker creatures with her claws and teeth.

Aura of Horror (Su): Baba Yaga can radiate a 15-foot-radius fear aura as a free action. A creature in the area must succeed on a DC 33 Will save or be affected as though by a fear spell (caster level 20th). A creature that successfully saves cannot be affected again by Baba Yaga's aura for 24 hours. The save DC is Charisma-based.

Change Shape (Su): Baba Yaga can assume the form of any Small, Medium, or Large animal or humanoid.

Consume Spirits (Su): When Baba Yaga slays a humanoid opponent, she can devour its life force, as a full-round action. This prevents any form of raising or resurrection that requires part of the corpse. There is a 50% chance that a wish, miracle, or true resurrection spell can restore a consumed victim to life. Check once for each destroyed creature. If the check fails, the creature cannot be brought back to life by mortal magic.

Baba Yaga heals 10 hit points per Hit Die of the creature whose spirit she consumes.

Deadly Rending (Ex): If Baba Yaga hits with both claw attacks and her bite attack, she latches onto the opponent’s body and tears the flesh. This attack automatically deals an additional 4d6+13 points of damage. Additionally, the victim must succeed on a DC 34 Fortitude save or die. This is a death effect. The save DC is Strength-based.

Knowledgeable (Ex): Baba Yaga makes Knowledge checks for any Knowledge skills as if she had a minimum of 10 ranks in that skill. To surpass the 10-rank minimum, she must assign more than 10 ranks to the skill as normal.

Regeneration (Ex): Fire and acid deal normal damage to Baba Yaga. If Baba Yaga loses a limb or body part, the lost portion regrows in 3d6 minutes. She can reattach the severed member instantly by holding it to the stump.

Sniff Out Knowledge (Su): If Baba Yaga successfully detects a creature via her scent ability, she gains a +10 circumstance bonus on Knowledge checks made to identify monsters and their special powers or vulnerabilities. She may also discern the creature's nationality if she succeeds on a Knowledge (local) check (DC equals 10 + creature's HD). With a standard action, she may discern a creatures alignment as if using detect chaos/evil/good/law.

Spell-Like Abilities: At will--comprehend languages, detect magic, discern lies (DC 22), read magic. Caster level 20th. The save DCs are Charisma-based.

Spells: Baba Yaga casts spells a 25th level wizard. Baba Yaga can also add spells found on scrolls, or other sources, containing divine spells to her arcane spellbook. Baba Yaga can learn and thus prepare divine spells in this fashion as if they were on the sorcerer/wizard spell list at the same level.

Typical Wizard Spells Prepared (CL 25th, save DC 18 + spell level)
0-- arcane mark, ghost sound, mending, prestidigitation
1st-- deathwatch, expeditious retreat, mage armor, pass without trace, shield, unseen servant, ventriloquism
2nd-- death knell, desecrate, misdirection, spectral hand, tree shape, undetectable alignment, warp wood
3rd-- bestow curse, deeper darkness, diminish plants, dominate animal, haste, maximized ray of enfeeblement, nondetection
4th-- blight, extended fly, freedom of movement, giant vermin, quickened true strike, rusting grasp
5th-- commune with nature, extended greater invisibility, insect plague, maximized lightning bolt, quickened scorching ray, true seeing
6th-- geas, greater dispel magic, liveoak, maximized enervation, quickened bestow curse, word of recall
7th-- blasphemy, control weather, creeping doom, empowered quickened vampiric touch, heightened dominate person, plane shift
8th-- control plants, greater prying eyes, intensified scorching ray, moment of prescience, unholy aura
9th-- foresight, quickened greater dispel magic, shambler, weird, wail of the banshee
10th -- heightened bestow curse, quickened greater teleport
11th -- empowered maximized horrid wilting, intensified cloudkill

Tongues (Su): Baba Yaga can speak with any creature that has a language, as though using a tongues spell (caster level 20th). This ability is always active.

Skills: Baba Yaga has a +4 racial bonus on Listen and Spot checks.

[Silvercrys]

Is there any chance someone could stat out a 3.5e Simulacrum (3.5 PHB spell) version of this Baba Yaga that appeared in an old Creature Catalogue? The spell says to reduce the creature by half it's HD, but I have no idea how to actually convert this since it doesn't seem to have actual class levels.

I'm not knowledgeable enough at building creatures either. So I'm not sure where to begin. I'm hoping to reduce this down to the equivalent of a CR 12 creature. Any help would be appreciated, thanks.

Baba Yaga
Medium Outsider (Evil, Native)
Hit Dice: 30d8+240 (375 hp)
Initiative: +11
Speed: 30 ft. (6 squares)
Armor Class: 42 (+7 Dex, +7 natural, +10 deflection, +8 insight), touch 35, flat-footed 35
Base Attack/Grapple: +30/+39
Attack: Claw +39 melee (1d8+9/19-20)
Full Attack: 2 claws +39 melee (1d8+9/19-20) and bite +34 melee (2d6+4)
Space/Reach: 5 ft./5 ft.
Special Attacks: Aura of horror, consume spirits, deadly rending, spell-like abilities, spells
Special Qualities: Change shape, damage reduction 15/magic (15/magic and non-metal within her hut), darkvision 120 ft., immunity to mind-affecting spells and abilities, magical aging effects, and necromantic effects, knowledgeable, resistance to cold 10 and fire 10, regeneration 3, scent, "sniff out knowledge", spell resistance 41, tongues
Saves: Fort +25, Ref +24, Will +27
Abilities: Str 29, Dex 24, Con 26, Int 32, Wis 30, Cha 27
Skills: Bluff +41, Concentration +41, Decipher Script +44, Diplomacy +45, Disguise +41 (+43 acting), Hide +40, Intimidate +43, Knowledge (arcana) +44, Knowledge (local) +44, Knowledge (nature) +46, Knowledge (the planes) +44, Listen +43, Move Silently +40, Search +44, Sense Motive +43, Spellcraft +46 (+48 scrolls), Spot +43, Survival +43 (+45 following tracks, +45 on other planes), Use Magic Device +41 (+45 scrolls)
Feats: Brew Potion [B], Empower Spell, Extend Spell, Heighten Spell, Improved Critical (claw), Improved Initiative [B], Improved Metamagic, Improved Spell Capacity (x2), Intensify Spell, Maximize Spell, Power Attack, Quicken Spell
Environment: Temperate and cold forests
Organization: Solitary
Challenge Rating: 25
Treasure: Double standard
Alignment: Always neutral evil
Advancement: -
Level Adjustment: -

This hideous old woman walks crouched over. Her nearly skeletal limbs are gray-brown and tatooed with runes, and her gnarled hands end in iron claws. Cold black eyes sit above her long, warty nose, and her chin juts out beneath a mouth full of pointed teeth.

Baba Yaga is the most famous of witches. Rumored to be the mother of Iggwilv, her power rivals that of many archfiends and demigods. She is said to be related to both hags and fiends.

Baba Yaga preys on humanoid men, eating as many as ten per day. She ranges wide in her predations, traveling in her Dancing Hut. She sometimes wanders the planes to meet with fiendish allies or to search for powerful artifacts.

Although evil and known to feed on men, many sages and heroes seek her out for her great knowledge. She will accept audience with those who remain polite, and may even be helpful, requiring the requestors to accept a geas for a nearly impossible quest in return for her information.

Baba Yaga never harms children or particularly weak non-evil creatures (1 HD or less), fearing retribution from good-aligned deities. She sometimes takes children in as servants, often rewarding them with great gifts.

Most evil creatures fear Baba Yaga's power, and fiends generally fulfill her commands quickly in order to be free from her.

Baba Yaga stands 5 feet tall and weighs 100 pounds.

Baba Yaga speaks Abyssal, Common, Draconic, Infernal, and Sylvan, but can speak with almost any creature because of her tongues ability.

Combat

Baba Yaga relies heavily on protective spells, and generally has used divinations before combat to best prepare for that battle. She summons fiends to her aid, knowing they fear and respect her. Baba Yaga prefers to attack weaker creatures with her claws and teeth.

Aura of Horror (Su): Baba Yaga can radiate a 15-foot-radius fear aura as a free action. A creature in the area must succeed on a DC 33 Will save or be affected as though by a fear spell (caster level 20th). A creature that successfully saves cannot be affected again by Baba Yaga's aura for 24 hours. The save DC is Charisma-based.

Change Shape (Su): Baba Yaga can assume the form of any Small, Medium, or Large animal or humanoid.

Consume Spirits (Su): When Baba Yaga slays a humanoid opponent, she can devour its life force, as a full-round action. This prevents any form of raising or resurrection that requires part of the corpse. There is a 50% chance that a wish, miracle, or true resurrection spell can restore a consumed victim to life. Check once for each destroyed creature. If the check fails, the creature cannot be brought back to life by mortal magic.

Baba Yaga heals 10 hit points per Hit Die of the creature whose spirit she consumes.

Deadly Rending (Ex): If Baba Yaga hits with both claw attacks and her bite attack, she latches onto the opponent’s body and tears the flesh. This attack automatically deals an additional 4d6+13 points of damage. Additionally, the victim must succeed on a DC 34 Fortitude save or die. This is a death effect. The save DC is Strength-based.

Knowledgeable (Ex): Baba Yaga makes Knowledge checks for any Knowledge skills as if she had a minimum of 10 ranks in that skill. To surpass the 10-rank minimum, she must assign more than 10 ranks to the skill as normal.

Regeneration (Ex): Fire and acid deal normal damage to Baba Yaga. If Baba Yaga loses a limb or body part, the lost portion regrows in 3d6 minutes. She can reattach the severed member instantly by holding it to the stump.

Sniff Out Knowledge (Su): If Baba Yaga successfully detects a creature via her scent ability, she gains a +10 circumstance bonus on Knowledge checks made to identify monsters and their special powers or vulnerabilities. She may also discern the creature's nationality if she succeeds on a Knowledge (local) check (DC equals 10 + creature's HD). With a standard action, she may discern a creatures alignment as if using detect chaos/evil/good/law.

Spell-Like Abilities: At will--comprehend languages, detect magic, discern lies (DC 22), read magic. Caster level 20th. The save DCs are Charisma-based.

Spells: Baba Yaga casts spells a 25th level wizard. Baba Yaga can also add spells found on scrolls, or other sources, containing divine spells to her arcane spellbook. Baba Yaga can learn and thus prepare divine spells in this fashion as if they were on the sorcerer/wizard spell list at the same level.

Typical Wizard Spells Prepared (CL 25th, save DC 18 + spell level)
0-- arcane mark, ghost sound, mending, prestidigitation
1st-- deathwatch, expeditious retreat, mage armor, pass without trace, shield, unseen servant, ventriloquism
2nd-- death knell, desecrate, misdirection, spectral hand, tree shape, undetectable alignment, warp wood
3rd-- bestow curse, deeper darkness, diminish plants, dominate animal, haste, maximized ray of enfeeblement, nondetection
4th-- blight, extended fly, freedom of movement, giant vermin, quickened true strike, rusting grasp
5th-- commune with nature, extended greater invisibility, insect plague, maximized lightning bolt, quickened scorching ray, true seeing
6th-- geas, greater dispel magic, liveoak, maximized enervation, quickened bestow curse, word of recall
7th-- blasphemy, control weather, creeping doom, empowered quickened vampiric touch, heightened dominate person, plane shift
8th-- control plants, greater prying eyes, intensified scorching ray, moment of prescience, unholy aura
9th-- foresight, quickened greater dispel magic, shambler, weird, wail of the banshee
10th -- heightened bestow curse, quickened greater teleport
11th -- empowered maximized horrid wilting, intensified cloudkill

Tongues (Su): Baba Yaga can speak with any creature that has a language, as though using a tongues spell (caster level 20th). This ability is always active.

Skills: Baba Yaga has a +4 racial bonus on Listen and Spot checks.Easy-peasy. Well, relatively. Hit dice are roughly the same thing as class levels for monsters, and this thing has 30d8 of them (+240 from its Con score).

I'll lay out the directions but I'm on mobile/away from books so don't really want to rewrite the stat block, heh.

What you do is...

Halve the creature's HP. 374/2=187

Recalculate ability score increases; between 15 and 30 HD there are 4 ability increases, at 16, 20, 24, and 28. So remove 4 points of ability scores (looks like Int -2, Wis -1, Str -1?) and then go through the whole stat block subtracting 1 from its affected statistics (saving throws for its monster abilities don't change with my score changes, I think, so probably just Int and Wis based skills). I picked the scores I did because they are its highest three scores and I wanted to roughly preserve the ability distribution it started with.

Find out what Base Attack progression it gets from hit dice. It's in the monster manual (or the SRD) under "types"; outsiders have full base attack, so you subtract 15 from all of the attacks in its stat block.

Then you find out which are its good saves from hit dice and recalculate those; it looks like it has all good saves, so subtract 7 from those (good saves increase by 1 every two levels, so reducing hit dice by 15 reduces good saves by 14/2=7).

Subtracting 15 from all of its skill checks is the easiest way to recalculate those, but technically you should find out how many skill points it gets each level and remove 15 times that number of skill ranks, trying to maintain the same distribution of skill ranks it already has and making sure it never has more than HD+3 skill ranks in a skill, same as PCs. You'll have to subtract it's ability modifiers (as well as the +4 racial bonus at the end of its stat block) from each skill to find out how many skill ranks it currently has.

It casts as a level 25 Wizard; simplest thing to do with that is assume it started learning Wizard spells after it already had 5 hit dice and just give it casting as a Wizard 10 instead.

Recalculate its feats; it should only have 6 instead of 10. Take away its Epic feats like Improved Spell Capacity and Improved Metamagic first, and don't take away any feats marked "[B]" because those are monster bonus feats (it should have 6 non-bonus feats when you're done).

Reduce the caster level of its spell-like and supernatural abilities either by 15 or cap it at 15. I believe subtracting 15 makes the most sense, and remove any abilities that have a caster level of 0 until the creature has a caster level of at least 1, but by RAW you're supposed to just cap it (I think?). None of them deal damage it looks like so no need to recalculate that from the caster level reduction (if it has a Fireball SLA that deals 20d6 damage, damage has to be recalculated based on its new caster level for the SLA). Mostly just changes how hard it is to dispel (or how easily it pierces spell resistance if your PCs have that).

Its save DCs for Deadly Rending and Aura of Horror are 10+1/2 HD+Ability Mod. So basically you subtract 7 from those (14/2=7) and they hit 27 and 26, respectively. Same with Discern Lies and any other save DCs in its stat block (besides its Wizard spell DCs, those you just reduce by 1 for the lower Intelligence because they're based on the spell level of the spell not the creature's hit dice).

Its Spell Resistance is reduced by 15 (11+HD=26). Gonna be pretty hard to affect it with spells at level 12 unless you have Spell Penetration.

Think that just leaves its Knowledgeable ability. Technically it keeps it as written because it isn't explicitly based on any of its affected statistics, though you might assume that it's meant to be 1/2 HD - 5 or 1/3 HD or even HD-20 and remove the ability from the Simulacrum entirely.

That should be everything, hopefully I didn't miss something. You'll have to compare it to other monsters to get a fair CR for it, though. It has two pretty nasty abilities with high save DCs.

It's probably closest to a medium CR dragon with less hit points, I think. An Adult Green Dragon has CR 13 and a Frightful Presence DC of 23, but it also has around 40 more HP and AC 27. The Babalacrum's AC is astronomical, though, and since I can't figure out where it gets its insight and deflection bonuses from those aren't reduced by hit dice. They were probably slapped on to make the creature harder to hit at CR 30 but there's no special quality or magic item granting them in its stat block.

You could probably drop its ability scores a bunch, like, -6 to all scores at least to reduce the save DCs and attack rolls/damage by another 3 points and give it 45 fewer HP (careful with the Bite attack because it gets 1.5*Str mod on damage so just recalculate it from 0). Cut the weird AC bonuses in half so it has AC 30 (might have mathed that badly, sorry) and call it a tough CR 11 based on the Green Dragon I looked at or a "fair" CR 12. It has a bit higher AC but almost a hundred less HP; a lucky crit is going to splatter this thing in short order if your PCs are optimized at all, but it will probably massacre them if they're all playing 3/4 base attack classes with low HP that have a hard time hitting stuff like Monk and Rogue, because of its AC.

But again, I'm AFB and just checked it against one of the SRD dragons real fast, you should do a more robust comparison using several creatures before assigning CR.

Also, small note, when I was halving stuff I subtracted one before halving to simulate rounding down, so if you see me go "1/2 HD = 14/2 = 7" and you were all "but it has 15 HD", that's why.

Kind of curious how the encounter goes, I've never tried simulacra of epic monsters as high level standard ones. Good luck!

[Oryan77]

This is so helpful! Thank you so much for taking the time to write this up. I never would have gotten this done correctly by my own. Much appreciated!

[Oryan77]

Would anyone mind reviewing this for me to point out any mistakes I've made or changes I should make? Is this fair for a CR 12 creature? If not, how could I adjust it?

Also, the original stat block in my first post shows that the DC for the Wizard spells is 18+ spell level. That's seems based off of the Cha stat which would be a sorcerer, not wizard. Is that a mistake and it should have been 21+ spell level? So in my Simulacrum, it would be 20+ spell level?



Baba Yaga Simulacrum
Medium Outsider (Evil, Native)
Hit Dice: 15d8+120 (187 hp)
Initiative: +11
Speed: 30 ft. (6 squares)
Armor Class: 24 (+7 Dex, +7 natural), touch 17, flat-footed 17
Base Attack/Grapple: +15/+24
Attack: Claw +24 melee (1d8+9/19-20)
Full Attack: 2 claws +24 melee (1d8+9/19-20) and bite +19 melee (2d6+4)
Space/Reach: 5 ft./5 ft.
Special Attacks: Aura of horror, consume spirits, deadly rending, spell-like abilities, spells
Special Qualities: Change shape, damage reduction 15/magic (15/magic and non-metal within her hut), darkvision 120 ft., immunity to mind-affecting spells and abilities, magical aging effects, and necromantic effects, knowledgeable, resistance to cold 10 and fire 10, regeneration 3, scent, "sniff out knowledge", spell resistance 26, tongues
Saves: Fort +18, Ref +17, Will +20
Abilities: Str 28, Dex 24, Con 26, Int 30, Wis 29, Cha 27
Skills: Bluff +26, Concentration +26, Decipher Script +29, Diplomacy +30, Disguise +26 (+28 acting), Hide +25, Intimidate +28, Knowledge (arcana) +29, Knowledge (local) +29, Knowledge (nature) +31, Knowledge (the planes) +31, Listen +28, Move Silently +25, Search +29, Sense Motive +28, Spellcraft +31 (+33 scrolls), Spot +28, Survival +28 (+30 following tracks, +30 on other planes), Use Magic Device +26 (+30 scrolls)
Feats: Brew Potion [B], Empower Spell, Extend Spell, Heighten Spell, Improved Critical (claw), Improved Initiative [B], Maximize Spell, Quicken Spell
Environment: Temperate and cold forests
Organization: Solitary
Challenge Rating: 12
Treasure: None
Alignment: Always neutral evil
Advancement: -
Level Adjustment: -

Baba Yaga speaks Abyssal, Common, Draconic, Infernal, and Sylvan, but can speak with almost any creature because of her tongues ability.

Combat

Aura of Horror (Su): Baba Yaga can radiate a 15-foot-radius fear aura as a free action. A creature in the area must succeed on a DC 26 Will save or be affected as though by a fear spell (caster level 15th). A creature that successfully saves cannot be affected again by Baba Yaga's aura for 24 hours. The save DC is Charisma-based.

Change Shape (Su): Baba Yaga can assume the form of any Small, Medium, or Large animal or humanoid.

Consume Spirits (Su): When Baba Yaga slays a humanoid opponent, she can devour its life force, as a full-round action. This prevents any form of raising or resurrection that requires part of the corpse. There is a 50% chance that a wish, miracle, or true resurrection spell can restore a consumed victim to life. Check once for each destroyed creature. If the check fails, the creature cannot be brought back to life by mortal magic.

Baba Yaga heals 10 hit points per Hit Die of the creature whose spirit she consumes.

Deadly Rending (Ex): If Baba Yaga hits with both claw attacks and her bite attack, she latches onto the opponent’s body and tears the flesh. This attack automatically deals an additional 4d6+13 points of damage. Additionally, the victim must succeed on a DC 27 Fortitude save or die. This is a death effect. The save DC is Strength-based.

Knowledgeable (Ex): Baba Yaga makes Knowledge checks for any Knowledge skills as if she had a minimum of 10 ranks in that skill. To surpass the 10-rank minimum, she must assign more than 10 ranks to the skill as normal.

Regeneration (Ex): Fire and acid deal normal damage to Baba Yaga. If Baba Yaga loses a limb or body part, the lost portion regrows in 3d6 minutes. She can reattach the severed member instantly by holding it to the stump.

Sniff Out Knowledge (Su): If Baba Yaga successfully detects a creature via her scent ability, she gains a +10 circumstance bonus on Knowledge checks made to identify monsters and their special powers or vulnerabilities. She may also discern the creature's nationality if she succeeds on a Knowledge (local) check (DC equals 10 + creature's HD). With a standard action, she may discern a creatures alignment as if using detect chaos/evil/good/law.

Spell-Like Abilities: At will--comprehend languages, detect magic, discern lies (DC 15), read magic. Caster level 15th. The save DCs are Charisma-based.

Spells: Baba Yaga casts spells a 10th level wizard. Baba Yaga can also add spells found on scrolls, or other sources, containing divine spells to her arcane spellbook. Baba Yaga can learn and thus prepare divine spells in this fashion as if they were on the sorcerer/wizard spell list at the same level.

Typical Wizard Spells Prepared (CL 10th, save DC 20 + spell level)
0-- arcane mark, ghost sound, mending, prestidigitation
1st-- deathwatch, expeditious retreat, mage armor, pass without trace, shield, unseen servant, ventriloquism
2nd-- death knell, desecrate, misdirection, spectral hand, tree shape, undetectable alignment, warp wood
3rd-- bestow curse, deeper darkness, dominate animal, haste, maximized ray of enfeeblement, nondetection
4th-- blight, extended fly, freedom of movement, quickened true strike, rusting grasp
5th-- extended greater invisibility, insect plague, maximized lightning bolt, true seeing

Tongues (Su): Baba Yaga can speak with any creature that has a language, as though using a tongues spell (caster level 15th). This ability is always active.

Skills: Baba Yaga has a +4 racial bonus on Listen and Spot checks.

[Silvercrys]

Skimmed the stat block, looks good to me. It says "casts as a Wizard" so I would assume 18+level is the incorrect save DC for the spells, yeah. Oh, should double check its bonus spells though, it might have lost some from losing Int.

I think if you drop the ability scores a bit you'll have a fair encounter; the Babalacrum should be a caster, not a frontline HP sack like a dragon, so use spells (Mirror Image, Blink, Mage Armor, etc.) and minions to keep it alive and/or give it a belt that increases its Con as part of its treasure. Main thing is the save DC on its abilities is still too high because of its inflated ability scores; I'd be worried about killing someone with it at level 12 as-is (though I expect a party of level 12s could probably kill it without the AC buffs too, so if your party is cool with a potential character death being followed by resurrection you can probably use it as-is and give them xp for a CR 13 or 14 encounter).

Like, just for reference, a 12th level character with a good Fort save has a +8 base save + Con mod and maybe a +3 Cloak of Resistance. If that character has an 18 Con they still fail the save on Deadly Rend on a 12 or lower, so anyone with a bad con, no cloak, or bad Fort save will die ~75% of the time they take a full attack.

[ShurikVch]

Question: canonically, Baba Yaga (https://ghwiki.greyparticle.com/index.php/Baba_Yaga) is a Quasi-deity (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/divine/divineRanksAndPowers.htm#rank0)
Your variant is, clearly, not (say, lacking certain immunities (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/divine/divineRanksAndPowers.htm#transmutation))
Is it deliberately?

[Oryan77]

Main thing is the save DC on its abilities is still too high because of its inflated ability scores;

What would you suggest I change the ability scores to in order to balance it out more? I definitely want it to be on a more fair playing field for a CR 12 because it WILL have a couple of minions protecting it. On the flip side, I wouldn't want to make the ability scores too low where the saves will always be saved. Your input on this would be appreciated. :smallbiggrin:


Question: canonically, Baba Yaga (https://ghwiki.greyparticle.com/index.php/Baba_Yaga) is a Quasi-deity (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/divine/divineRanksAndPowers.htm#rank0)
Your variant is, clearly, not (say, lacking certain immunities (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/divine/divineRanksAndPowers.htm#transmutation))
Is it deliberately?

I'm not sure about this. I got this from the old Creature Catalogue 3.5e conversion that was posted over on ENWorld years ago. I'm just using that as a baseline to convert this Simulacrum version of Baba Yaga for a 3.5e Dancing Hut module I wrote for our campaign.

[Silvercrys]

What would you suggest I change the ability scores to in order to balance it out more? I definitely want it to be on a more fair playing field for a CR 12 because it WILL have a couple of minions protecting it. On the flip side, I wouldn't want to make the ability scores too low where the saves will always be saved. Your input on this would be appreciated. :smallbiggrin:Honestly? Dropping them by 8 probably isn't a miss; that reduces the saves to around what a Dragon's Frightful Presence at that CR is (At CR 12, Mature Adult White Dragons have Frightful Presence DC 21 and Breath Weapon DC 25, Adult Brass has Presence DC 21 and Breath 23, etc.)

That's going to tank the Babalacrum's HP, so I'd give it a Belt of Con +4 or at least reinstate some of its AC bonuses if you want it to live more than one round. But its save DCs go down to 23 or die instead of 27 which is... Better. Of course, you could leave it as is and just note that it only engages in melee as a last resort, leaving it as a nasty surprise but giving the party a chance to drop it before it starts killing them. Or remove Deadly Rend and just give it regular plain old Rend.

Creating/adjusting monsters is more art than science, I'm mostly guessing based on what I think the capabilities of a party of level 12 characters are and other CR 12 monsters, heh.