Steel Men and other strange creatures (3.5, PEACH)

[afroakuma]

Gornest
Medium Magical Beast (Extraplanar, Lawful)
HD 3d10+6 (22 hp)
Speed 30 ft. (6 squares)
Init: +1
AC 17; touch 11; flat-footed 16 (+6 natural, +1 Dex)
BAB +3; Grp +5
Attack Head butt +6 melee (1d6+3, males only) or gore +6 melee (1d4+3, 19-20/x2, females only)
Full Attack Head butt +6 melee (1d6+3, males only) or gore +6 melee (1d4+3, 19-20/x2, females only)
Space 5 ft.; Reach 5 ft.
Special Attacks Maneuvers, powerful charge
Special Qualities Darkvision 60 ft., electric immunity, low-light vision, mettle, resistance to cold 10, fire 10, and sonic 10, stubborn
Saves Fort +5 Ref +4 Will +4
Abilities Str 15, Dex 13, Con 14, Int 2, Wis 15, Cha 10
Skills Balance +5, Climb +10, Intimidate +6, Listen +8, Sense Motive +6, Spot +8
Feats Alertness^B, Iron Will, Weapon Focus (head butt or gore)
Environment Seven Mounting Heavens of Celestia or Peaceable Kingdoms of Arcadia
Organization Solitary or herd (12-30)
Challenge Rating 3
Treasure None
Alignment Always lawful neutral
Advancement 4-6 HD (Medium); 7-12 HD (Large)

A common livestock animal on Mount Celestia and Arcadia both, gornests superficially resemble somewhat heavyset goats or sheep. Their hair is generally a light shade of brown - ecru, dun, occasionally chestnut or bronze, and only very rarely white or black. Where a goat's beard would be, a gornest has a bony chin spike that hooks downward - more pronounced in males than in females. The pupils of their eyes are diamond-shaped, wider horizontally than vertically, and their irises are normally a deep rich blue. Their hooves are jet-black and all one piece, like those of horses, and their fetlocks are large and pronounced. Most noticeable are the mighty curled horns of gornests, which resemble marble in various hues. Any given herd can be recognized by the distinctive color patterns of members' horns. Both sexes bear these horns, with the males' forming impressive rounded curls that can be used for powerful headbutts, while females' horns curve forward sharply and are used for scraping bark and for goring.

Gornests have complex eusocial behaviors both among themselves and with their natural predators. They are often called "dueling rams" for adults' habits of assuming powerful combat stances to challenge predators one-on-one. A gornest herd generally has between one and four "warriors," skewing about 60% male on average, who look out for predators and will intercept them before they reach the herd. These warriors will issue a signal with a toss of their head to indicate to both herd and predator that the herd has other warriors who can protect them, indicating that the warrior will challenge the predator and either come out on top or as prey. Occasionally, when a herd leans younger and new warriors have not yet been raised to full independence, the warrior will instead signal that the herd is not ready to risk carrying on without them, which is done via a sharp double stomp with a hoof. A predator who does not heed this warning may sometimes be offered an older and infirm member of the herd, who will step up to take over the challenge; equally often, it seems, refusal to heed the warning will be met with immediate attack by the warrior.

Gornests chiefly eat grasses and leaves, occasionally supplementing their diets with fruit, bark, and the odd caterpillar or bee (gornests who find a hive will cheerfully snack on it). They adopt fighting styles reminiscent of those practised by some of the most skilled Material Plane warriors, with warriors tending to favor stances and strikes that can either protect the herd (iron guard's glare) or provide for it (mountain hammer to break trees). Gornests are intractable sticklers for behaving in very specific ways - while local predators such as noctrals and jison have come to learn "the rules," other beasts who come calling are likely to get a fierce reception. They are stubborn to a fault and highly resistant to compulsion; they are also considerably more obnoxious to deal with than other magical beasts (+10 to the DC of any Charisma-based check to influence a gornest). Gornests demonstrate substantial loyalty to their herd, and a warrior will never voluntarily back down from a threat to the herd unless another is ready to take its place. Even then, there must be a good reason (kids to rear as warriors, for example).

Gornest blood evaporates rapidly and dries clear. Properly collected and prepared, it can serve as axiomatic water. As it is hard to keep liquid, a flask of gornest blood lasts at most 1d4+1 days even if sealed airtight. Gornest horns are quite attractive and have been known to fetch high prices on Arcadia and other planes, though some parts of Arcadia discourage the slaying of the beasts for their horns alone (most everywhere on Celestia frowns on the practice). Gornest hair is excellent for fabric and is known to be in use across the Upper Planes. Gornest meat is difficult to prepare well and has been compared to jerky in texture - some also describe it as "salty," "earthy," or "refreshing," and it is particularly prized by dao. Gornests do not speak or understand any language, though they can be interacted with using speak with animals as though they were normal Material Plane beasts.

Gornests are extremely proud and will normally challenge foes one-on-one unless they perceive foul play, which may include attempting to get to the herd without challenging a warrior, ignoring a warrior's signal to stand down, or multiple foes teaming up against a single gornest. More than one would-be poaching crew has foolishly believed gornests will only ever fight solo, only to discover the entire herd charging toward them as they attempt to exploit a numerical advantage that has rather suddenly turned against them. Gornests are very good at self-herding, with the warriors generally steering the herd to and from optimal grazing areas and recognizing where "home" is, a fact that has made gornest domestication quite easy for those who understand how to work with the beasts (and how to let them think they're taking charge).

Maneuvers A gornest is capable of initiating martial maneuvers (IL 3rd). To ready or recover maneuvers, a gornest must spend 5 minutes uninterrupted pacing the ground. A gornest knows and readies a number of maneuvers and stances as though it were a warblade of level equal to its racial hit dice (3rd level for the gornest presented here). Gornests may know and ready maneuvers and stances from the Devoted Spirit, Stone Dragon, or White Raven disciplines. Gornests typically select from the following (selections may vary):

Spoiler: Common gornest maneuvers/stances known

Show

Devoted Spirit
• Crusader's Strike
• Foehammer
• Iron Guard's Glare
• Vanguard Strike

Stone Dragon
• Charging Minotaur
• Mountain Hammer
• Stone Bones
• Stonefoot Stance

White Raven
• Battle Leader's Charge
• Bolstering Voice
• Leading The Attack
• Leading The Charge
• Tactical Strike

Mettle (Ex) If a gornest makes a successful Fortitude or Will saving throw against an attack that normally applies a lesser effect on a successful save, the gornest instead negates the effect completely. An unconscious or sleeping gornest does not benefit from this ability.

Powerful Charge (Ex) A gornest deals 2d6+6 points of damage (male) or 2d4+6 points of damage (female) when it makes a charge.

Stubborn (Ex) A gornest has a +4 bonus to Will saving throws against compulsion effects.

Skills Gornests have a +4 racial bonus to Balance, Intimidate, and Sense Motive checks. They have a +2 racial bonus to Listen and Spot checks. They have a +8 racial bonus to Climb checks.