Copyright 2008 Wizards of the Coast

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Satyrs were inspired by Greek myth and have been in the game since at least the days of BECMI. Here, they are only on the Monster Manual, but they get an update in Dungeon 196 and become a playable character option in Heroes of the Feywild.

The Lore

According to the MM, satyrs are self-centered, greedy and decadent fey who live to party. They’ll usually behave in a friendly manner to passing strangers and invite them for a spot of good food and drink. If they’re in a good mood, the offer will be genuine. If not, the satyrs will rob and maybe kill their guests once their guard is down. That food and drink doesn’t come cheap, y’know. Conversely, they’re always on the lookout for danger and trickery even while partying their hardest, for such is life in the Feywild.

Heroes of the Feywild, which includes satyrs as a PC option, is a bit softer on them. It says satyrs are by nature both curious and skittish, despite their hedonistic streak. So they’ll tend to investigate things from a distance and rely on their charm magic to defend themselves if it comes to that. A lot of their bad reputation comes from bad encounters between somewhat xenophobic humans and the first satyrs who crossed over from the Feywild.

Even the MM says satyrs are Unaligned despite its unflattering description of them, so the stat blocks in this entry could be used as NPC allies as easily as they could be enemies who do live up to the bad reputation.

A curiosity: all satyrs are male. Their mothers are usually the always-female nymphs, whose sons are satyrs and whose daughters are other nymphs. The raunchiness and propensity for sexual harassment of mythological satyrs has been excised from both depictions, though you could add it back to particularly villainous individuals.

The Numbers

Satyrs are Medium Fey Humanoids with speed 6 and low-light vision. Everything else varies per stat block, and we get two.

Satyr Rake

This is a mobile rogue-type, wearing leather and carrying a short sword and short bow. It’s all about running around the party and setting up sneak attacks with its clever feints.

Rakes are Level 7 Skirmishers with 80 HP. The sword and bow are its basic attacks, and it will prefer the former once the PCs get in melee range. They do extra damage with all attacks if they have combat advantage.

A rake can employ a Feint (melee 1 vs. Reflex; minor action) to make a target grant combat advantage for a turn, so it’s dangerous even without a flanking buddy. It can also make a Harrying Attack (recharge 5-6) which allows it to make two basic attacks and shift 3 squares between them.

Aside from the updated damage, the only difference between the MM and Dungeon versions is that the MM Feint is at-will, and the one from Dungeon recharges when the satyr hits with a basic melee attack. This gives the target a breather from the constant feinting if the satyr misses.

Satyr Piper

A mystically-inclined archer who can produce several mental effects with its music.

Pipers are Level 8 Controllers with the Leader keyword. Their basic melee attack is a gore with their horns, which does some damage and knocks the victim prone so the piper can move away. Their main weapon is the longbow, but they’ll switch to playing the pipes when the enemy gets close enough.

These Wooden Pipes take a standard action to play and can be sustained with further standard actions. Their musical magic works in a close burst 5 and can be either an attack vs. Will that dazes enemies for a turn or one of three effects that grant allies attack and damage bonuses, free shifts, or free saves. I think the piper can select a different effect for a given turn without having to stop the music.

While pipers have to choose between being leaders or combatants, they’re very effective leaders. The beneficial songs work on every ally in the burst at once! A piper accompanying a squad of melee bruisers, or a cluster of artillery monsters, can really increase their threat level.

Sample Encounters and Final Impressions

The sample encounter is level 8 and features a piper, three rakes, and a displacer beast.

Satyrs fit perfectly as those irresponsible fey who like to “tame” fey beasts via charm magic instead of doing it the hard way, so you can justify them having any sort of pet. They also gladly team up with other sapients who have the same tastes (whether for partying or robbery, depending on the satyr).