The Lifescorned [Template, MitP]

[The Demented One]

Lifescorned Creatures
Lifescorned creatures are the offspring of mages and necromancers who overused necromancy, causing their children to become tainted parodies of life. While not truly undead, they are not actually alive. They exist in a strange place outside the triad of life, death, and undeath. Lifescorned creatures look much like a normal creature of their kind, but they are completely without pigmentation in hair or skin, giving them lily-white skin and pure white hair. Their eyes, however, are pure black.

Creating A Lifescorned Creature
Lifescorned is an inherited template that can be added to any aberration, fey, giant, humanoid, or monstrous humanoid.

Size and Type
Type changes to aberration, and the creature gains the augmented subtype.

Special Attacks
A Lifescorned creature retains all the special attacks of the base creature and also gains the following special attacks.

Dark Gaze (Su)
A Lifescorned creature’s black eyes are unnaturally unnerving. A creature caught in a Lifescorned creature’s gaze must make a Will save, DC 10 + ½ the Lifescorned creature’s HD + the Lifescorned creature’s Cha modifier, or become panicked for 2d4 rounds. Even if it succeeds on its save, it is shaken for 1 round. This is a mind-affecting, fear effect.

Negative Energy Touch (Su)
Once per day, plus an additional time per day per 3 HD, a Lifescorned creature may make a touch attack. A creature hit by the touch attack takes 1d6 points of negative energy damage per 2 HD of the Lifescorned creature, rounded up, with a Will save, DC 10 + ½ the Lifescorned creature’s HD + the Lifescorned creature’s Cha modifier, for half damage. Undead are healed, rather than harmed, by this touch. A Lifescorned creature attempting to use its touch to heal itself automatically makes its save. In addition, despite the fact it has a save for half, it heals full damage, unlike other spells and effects.

Special Qualities
A Lifescorned creature retains all the special qualities of the base creature and also gains the following qualities.

Half-Dead (Ex)
A Lifescorned creature is neither alive nor dead. While not truly undead, it shares many traits with them. A Lifescorned creature is immune to fatigue, exhaustion, poison, sleep, paralysis, stunning, disease, and death attacks. A Lifescorned creature has a 50% chance to ignore the extra damage dealt by critical hits, sneak attacks, and other precision-based damage. A Lifescorned creature is healed by spells and effects that would heal either living creatures or undead creatures, but only if it successfully saves against them. If it fails against either kind of effect, it is damaged as if it were either a living or undead creature, as appropriate for the effect. A Lifescorned creature adds its Cha modifier, rather than its Con modifier, to Concentration checks

Turning Weakness (Su)
A Lifescorned creature can be turned or rebuked as if it were an undead. However, it has turn resistance equal to half its HD.

Abilities
Increase from the base creature as follows: Con -2, Cha +2.

Challenge Rating
Same as base creature +1.

Alignment
Usually Neutral Evil.

Level Adjustment
Same as base creature +1.

[Matthew]

Very nice idea and seems mechanically sound. I wonder whether a +1 LA is enough, though? This seems to be bordering on LA +2 to me.

[Aramil Liadon]

Very neat template, I only wonder if Dark Gaze is a bit over/underpowered (depends on campaign). As I read it, it makes them save or run away every time you lock eyes. How could you go through life if your classmates, teachers, shopkeepers, friends, party members, etc. all ran away whenever you looked at them? But at the same time, in combat it grants a huge advantage (at least until you look back to motion the cleric to heal you).

[Bloodlust]

Very neat class, I only wonder if Dark Gaze is a bit over/underpowered (depends on campaign). As I read it, it makes them save or run away every time you lock eyes. How could you go through life if your classmates, teachers, shopkeepers, friends, party members, etc. all ran away whenever you looked at them? But at the same time, in combat it grants a huge advantage (at least until you look back to motion the cleric to heal you).

I was assuming that it was an ability that was usable at the Lifescorned's discretion. As a side note, do these creatures have souls? Can they become clerics, druids, paladins? Also, have you conidered making this its own race?

[Closet_Skeleton]

Great, more evil pseudo-albinos.

It makes sense and is kind of cool. I could see the Tomb Tainted Soul tree leading to or coming from similar offspring. The "not dead, nor alive or even undead, that category usually explained by being niether dead nor alive" thing is a bit dodgy though as is using the Aberrations type (you could use the Elan race for justifying use of the Aberration type but I hate that as well). This race is still sort of humanoid unless they have additional mutations (possibly interior ones) or otherwise screwed up biology.

[Icewalker]

I like it. Creepy, yet quite interesting, because while they are tainted by evil, I can definitely see clerics or whatever renouncing their heritage. Although that reminds me of the whole stupid Drow thing, and we all want to avoid that.

You said "A Lifescorned creature attempting to use its touch to heal itself automatically makes its save." so if they try to heal themselves they get only half of 1d6 / 2 HD?


Also, while I am voting yes for the template, I'm pretty sure you may have to include examples. But the book may include raw templates as well, that'd be quite cool.

[gooddragon1]

+2 cha? Dead sexy IMO

[Baron Corm]

first of all, dark gaze needs a clause saying "whether or not the creature makes its save, it cannot be affected by dark gaze again for a 24 hour period"

second of all, even with that, the LA should be at the very least +3, due mainly to the ability to heal himself and the 50% fortification and the turn resistance

third of all, there are plenty of "kind of dead but not really undead" templates, and this isn't really necessary

sowwee!

[gooddragon1]

A quick question, if the lifescorned creature was a troll does it keep its regeneration?

EDIT: Answer to my own question: by raw yes, it still has a constitution score, but you know being immune to all forms of damage except by fire and acid and non-damaging attacks at level 8 is a little unbalanced.

[DracoDei]

Creepy, yet quite interesting, because while they are tainted by evil, I can definitely see clerics or whatever renouncing their heritage.

Umm... wouldn't be renouncing anything to be a cleric of Wee Jas, much less Nerrull... or any other deity with the Death domain... and not a few evil deities either.

[Kuma]

Yeah, the abberation subtype doesn't make sense, exactly, but otherwise sound.

[The Demented One]

Yeah, the abberation subtype doesn't make sense, exactly, but otherwise sound.

The thought on that they're neither truly undead or alive, but between, running off of both positive and negative energy. That counts as alien biology enough for me.

[Eighth_Seraph]

...And yet another thread rises from the grave. Y'all pixies need to check the dates on the most recent post before you jump on a thread.

Interesting how it's all D1's stuff being threadomanced, though.

[Zeta Kai]

...And yet another thread rises from the grave.

It only seems appropriate, given TDO's interests. And pixies are like children: they are new to our world, they don't know the rules, & they need to be nurtured so that they grow up to be good-natured titans.

[Eighth_Seraph]

Deep down, though, I kinda like this slew of rule-breaking. It's nostalgic to see the abominable products of a madman's creativity roam the world once more. However, I draw the line at that...womb thing. And the umbilical cord. Those should never have seen the light of day.

*Shudder*

[The Demented One]

...And yet another thread rises from the grave. Y'all pixies need to check the dates on the most recent post before you jump on a thread.

The homebrew thread's kind of grey area there, in that it makes more sense to post stuff in an old thread rather than start a new thread to discuss old homebrew. I can't recall mods ever shutting down a thread for necromancy in homebrew.

Interesting how it's all D1's stuff being threadomanced, though.

The siglink probably helps.

[Zeta Kai]

We should try not to tempt fate, but you are right. I've been guilty of threadomancy myself, from time to time.