Posts

• Jul 28, 2021

  Let's Read the 4e Monster Manual 2: Dragons

  Woohoo, more dragons. The first Monster Manual (and the Vault) focused on chromatic dragons, which are the classic draconic opponents, and now the second one talks about the metallics.

  The earliest metallic dragons were the Golds, who appeared alongside the chromatic set in AD&D 1st Edition and might have been around even earlier than that. Here, we’re going to look at a slightly different set. This is an introductory post, with the next handful of them each covering a different “color” of dragon.

  The Lore

  In editions past, metallic dragons used to be various shades of Good, something which settings like Dragonlance really leaned into. Things are a bit more complex here.

  Metallics still venerate Bahamut in his role as the Platinum Dragon. They’re more likely to interact peacefully with PCs and other sapients, but they can still be quite full of themselves and are very protective of their territory and treasure. If they perceive someone as a threat, they won’t hesitate to crush that someone. And just like you can have friendly chromatics, you can also have villainous metallics.

  In either case they tend to have a scholarly temperament. They prefer lairs that have some cultural or academic significance in addition to the usual requirements of isolation and defensibility and their treasure hoards are curated like museum collections. The typical metallic dragon loves engaging in learned discourse, and has a keen ability to sense lies. They deal very harshly with people who try to fool or, gods forbid, steal from them.

  Like all dragons they see very few other creatures as their peers, but will allow a group of “lessers” to gather around themselves. They tend to see these as students and wards, instead of slaves and worshippers. A metallic dragon is not going to set itself up as a god, but as a university professor.

  This entry has five dragon types: Adamantine, Copper, Gold, Iron and Silver. From what I gather, Adamantine and Iron dragons made it into the main metallic lineup in 4e to replace bronze and brass dragons, which weren’t distinct enough from Copper dragons at a glance. I think I agree with that reasoning. While I’m sure these dragons have their own mechanical distinctions, I sure can’t recall what they were just from looking at their names.

  The Numbers

  As usual for dragons, the ones we get here are all solos, and each has several stat blocks representing different age categories: Young, Adult, Elder and Ancient. Young dragons only have the most basic versions of their powers, and both improve them and gain new ones as they age. Their mechanical design is closer to that of the first Monster Manual than to the one from the Vault.

  All dragons have darkvision, resistance to the same element they breathe, and both combat and overland flight speeds. All of them get a different Breath Weapon, as well as the Bloodied Breath trait and the Frightful Presence attack.

  Bloodied Breath works as usual: when the dragon is first bloodied, its breath weapon recharges and it uses it immediately as a free action. Frightful Presence is a Close Burst 10 vs. Will encounter power that does no damage but stuns for a turn and has a -2 attack penalty (save ends) as an after-effect.

  We’ll begin discussing the dragon types individually in the next few posts.

• Jul 21, 2021

  Let's Read the 4e Monster Manual 2: Djinn

  This is part of a series! Go here to see the other entries.

  Djinns are inspired by the same real world Arabic folklore that inspired efreets, and they’ve been in the game since at least BECMI.

  The Lore

  Djinns are some of the most ancient sapient elementals, on par with efreets (which we saw in the first Monster Manual/Vault Let’s Read). They’re aspected to Air, and in the book’s own words, are “Ingenious Engineers of the Fabulous”.

  Back in the day, the djinn built entire civilizations in the Elemental Chaos. Theirs were shining palaces filled with treasure beyond mortal comprehension, and great gleaming cities built on mobile floating platforms.

  When the Dawn War came, the djinns chose to side with the primordials, which I suppose they saw as the pragmatic choice. After all, their own empire was outside the world, and the stronger primordials looked like they had a better chance of winning. In the end, though, they chose wrong.

  The gods scattered the djinns as punishment for their deeds in the war, and imprisoned many of them in objects such as rings, lamps, or other artifacts. The ones that remained free had their powers severely reduced. Over the ages a lot of those artifacts and a lot of djinn relics made their way to other planes and to the world.

  So yeah, it’s totally possible for a PC to find the proverbial magic lamp. It’s up to the GM whether the magic that binds the djinn inside forces it to serve the bearer, though. If it does, then these relics are super-powerful! Even if the djinn can’t grant wishes like in the stories, it’s still an epic-level creature full of magic powers.

  The djinns who remained free, and those who freed themselves over the ages, mostly busy themselves with roaming the planes looking for the remains of their ancient civilization, with the goal of rebuilding it. I would guess they had some success in that, but that it’s still nowhere up to its former heights of glory.

  The djinns presented here are all Unaligned, which implies that as a people they are mostly interested in picking up the pieces of their civilization than in going a-conquering or enslaving others. They can still get into conflict with PCs who (knowingly or not) keep those pieces from returning to their original owners. Hold on to that lamp for too long and its inhabitant’s friends will show up at your door with some very pointed questions. I can’t say they’d be wrong to do so.

  The Numbers

  Djinns are Large Elemental Humanoids with the Air keyword. They have Blindsight 10, an immunity to disease and poison, Resist 15 Thunder, a ground speed of 6 and a flight speed of 8. The least intelligent djinn in this entry nas an Int of 19, so the ingenious engineers are also geniuses. Their level range covers the early-to-mid Epic tier, making them only slightly weaker than efreets.

  Most djinn powers have an air or storm theme, but they vary per stat block.

  Djinn Thunderer

  

  Thunderers are Level 20 Artillery with 146 HP and all djinn traits. They wield jeweled scepters and strong air magic in combat.

  The Scepter mostly acts as an implement, but can be used as a Reach 2 basic melee attack in a pinch. Their main ranged attack is a Thunderburst (area burst 2 within 20 vs. Fortitude), which does thunder damage and dazes for a turn. Once per encounter they can use Imperious Thunder, which targets Reflex and which has the same area and damage but instead of dazing causes 10 ongoing thunder damage (save ends) even when it misses.

  The thunderer can avoid getting boxed in with Zephyr Step (minor; recharge 6), which allows it to teleport 20 squares. If it takes damage from a critical hit, it will respond with Rage of Storms (close burst 2 vs. Reflex; free action, encounter). This does high thunder damage, pushes hit targets 5 squares, and gives the djinn 1 action point as an effect, which it can use normally later on.

  Djinn Windbow

  

  Windbows are Level 22 Skirmishers with 204 HP and all standard djinn traits. They wield bows that fire arrows made out of wind, and this might lead PCs to think they’re artillery. However, they’re equally good at melee and ranged combat.

  Their basic ranged attack is the Windbow (Ranged 10/20), and their basic melee attack the Slash of Thunder. Both do about the same amount of damage, which is thunder for the Slash and physical for the bow.

  The djinn can cause one of their arrows to turn into a Brutal Zephyr (Ranged 30 vs. Reflex), which does thunder damage and is a bit stronger than the usual attack. If this misses, the windbow gets to choose a different target within 10 squares of the original one and re-roll the attack against them.

  If damaged by a critical hit they can use Blowback, which works exactly like the Thunderer’s Rage of Storms.

  Djinn Stormsword

  

  Stormswords fight with scimitars and train to form whirlwinds that pull enemies towards their blades. They’re Level 24 Soldiers with 222 HP and all standard djinn traits, plus Resist 15 Lightning.

  Their Scimitars are Reach 2, high-crit weapons that mark for a turn on a hit. Their printed critical damage is 9d10+33, and it would be even higher with a math fix. They can also use a technique named Whirlwind Dervish (close burst 2 vs. AC; encounter) which does heavy thunder and lightning damage and recharges when they’re critically hit.

  Stormswords can drag targets into range with Come To Me (Ranged 5 vs. Fortitude; minor action), which does no damage but pulls the targets 5 squares. They can sometimes intensify that into a Spinning Vortex (Ranged 5 vs. Reflex; recharge 6), which does heavy cold and thunder damage, and immobilizes (save ends).

  Djinn Skylord

  

  Skylords are djinn spell-casters, specializing in sky- and weather-themed magic. They’re Level 25 Controllers with the Leader keyword and 236 HP along with all standard djinn traits.

  Their main weapon/implement is the Storm Staff (reach 2 vs. AC), which does physical damage and allows the djinn to shift 2 squares or make an extra recharge roll for Storm Shout. This, in turn, is a Close Blast 5 vs. Will that does heavy thunder damage, pushes 3 squares, and knocks prone. It recharges on a 5-6.

  The skylord’s main ranged attack is Mystic Hail (ranged 20 vs. Will), which does psychic damage and makes the target grant combat advantage to the djinn. This lasts until the target spends a standard action clearing their head, which is a heavier cost than having to roll a save. This works as a nice setup for Sandstorm (Close Burst 5 vs. Will), which does heavy physical damage and creates a zone. Allies inside the zone gain concealment, and enemies starting their turns inside are dazed for a turn. This can be sustained with a minor action. And finally, the djinn can also use a minor action (1/round) to use Elemental Command (ranged 10), which always hits, does no damage, and slides the target 1 square.

  Sample Encounters and Final Impressions

  Djinns are said to mostly hang out with their own kind, and the two sample encounters (level 22 and 26) bear this out. They’re assorted djinn parties, likely journeying after relics of their old empire. The first one has a couple of rimefire griffon pets, the second has 2 storm gorgons.

  Djinns are cool, and I like that they’re presented as not necessarily hostile. Unlike in previous edition they’re not in an eternal war against the efreets, though I imagine they don’t often have friendly interactions all that often either. It might also be interesting to take a page from Middle Eastern folklore here and say that many djinn in the present are devout worshippers of the gods.

• Jul 21, 2021

  Let's Read the 4e Monster Manual 2: Direguard

  

  This post is part of a series! Go here to see the other entries.

  I had never heard of direguards before, but some quick googling tells me they first appeared in the Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting for AD&D 2nd Edition.

  The Lore

  A direguard is a skeletal undead created by a specific ritual often known by liches and death knights. The ritual requires willing subjects, who retain their minds, combat skills, and powers. This comes at a price, however: in the book’s own words, they must “meet a quota of killing”, or they’ll be destroyed. I don’t know if this is a one time thing or if it’s more like “kill X people every month”. And of course they’re bound to the will of their creator.

  Their FR lore is all tangled up with the whole Bane/Cyric situation.

  The Numbers

  Direguards are Medium Natural Humanoids with the Undead keyword. They have darkvision and truesight 10, and are immune to disease and poison. The rest of their traits varies per stat block.

  Direguard Deathbringer

  Deathbringers are Level 8 Elite Artillery with the Leader keyword and 134 HP. They have a ground speed of 7 and project a Command Aura (4) that grants a +2 attack bonus to all allies inside. They can also issue a Vile Command (close blast 3; recharge 5-6) that allows all affected allies to shift 2 squares and make a basic attack as a free action.

  They fire Force Blasts (Ranged 15 vs. Reflex) that do force damage and push the target 3 squares. On a miss, they do no damage but slow the target for a turn. Frightful Force (recharge 4-6) allows them to fire three such blasts against different targets in a single action.

  If forced into melee, the deathbringer’s Blazing Bone Claws do force damage as well. And when they’re first bloodied, they summon some Force Armor around themselves that grants a +4 bonus to AC and Reflex until they’re hit by an attack.

  I’d say deathbringers are at home just behind the front line, or further back along with a cluster of artillery enemies with ranged basic attacks.

  Direguard Assassin

  Assassins are Level 11 Skirmishers with 111 HP. They’re made of shadow as much as they are made of bone, and fight with swords made of force magic. Their ground speed is 8.

  That Force Blade deals force damage, as expected, and once per encounter they can fling Dire Blades to do the same amount of damage in a Close Burst 1. Mobile Assault gives them a +2 attack bonus if they move at least 4 squares before attacking, and Mist Walk allows them to shift 2 squares and gain Insubstantial and Phasing for a turn when missed by a melee attack.

  Final Impressions

  There are no sample encounters here! I guess they could only spare one page for direguards, so there was no room.

  I don’t care for the FR bits of their lore, but Deathbringers work nicely as commanders of mindless undead, and Assassins are good elite troops for someone like a skull lord to order around.

• Jul 21, 2021

  Let's Read the 4e Monster Manual 2: Dimensional Marauder

  

  This post is part of a series! Go here to see the other entries.

  Dimensional marauders are a 3.x creation. I definitely remember that image, though I don’t remember if they had a different name back then. It was probably something like “Ethereal Marauder”, but 4e doesn’t have an ethereal plane anymore.

  The Lore

  These creatures are plane-hopping predators who travel the planes and the world in search of easy prey. And that’s all the book has to say about them.

  Let’s allow ourselves to speculate a bit. Dimensional marauders “travel the planes”, and I guess that means they don’t have a fixed territory and follow sources of food instead. If you look at their stat block you’ll see their level is a lot lower than that of almost any creature they’re likely to find in the planes. This means they’re opportunistic, looking for creatures that have already been weakened by some other hazard or who are busy fighting someone else. Then they jump in and take a bite. If the meal is still kicking, they might run away, otherwise they stay and finish it off.

  Evolutionary pressure has given then a rudimentary sapience, which aids them in evaluating the strength of potential prey. It also often leads marauders to the conclusion that the easiest prey can be found in the world, near population centers filled with juicy non-combatants whom they might even be able to beat in a fair fight. Not that they’ll fight fair.

  The Numbers

  Dimensional Marauders are Medium Aberrant Magical Beasts, and Level 4 Lurkers with 45 HP. They have low-light vision, a ground speed of 7 and a teleport speed of 3.

  Their basic attack is a bite with that cool triangular jaw. They can also use their standard action to assume a Planephase Form, partially shifting to some other plane. This gives them the Insubstantial and Phasing qualities for a turn, or until they miss with an attack. They can also sustain this with a minor action, but it ends immediately when they take psychic damage.

  While in this state, the marauder can use a Reality Warp attack (melee 1 vs. Reflex), which does light physical damage, teleports the target 3 squares, and teleports the marauder itself to a square adjacent to the target. It will use this to isolate its chosen victim.

  If the marauder is hit by a melee attack, it can use Planar Evasion (recharge 4-6) as a reaction, teleporting 3 squares.

  I see them mostly staying in planephase form and using Reality Warp to isolate a PC, which they’ll begin biting for more damage once they’re far away. The book tactics start them out entirely physical and has them planephase after hit for the first time in combat, but there’s no reason for them not to planephase before the fight even starts.

  Sample Encounter and Final Impressions

  Sometimes, a group of sapients will convince a marauder to work with them. Mostly, though, they just opportunistically jump into ongoing fights to take a bite out of whoever seems weakest.

  The sample encounter could represent either of these situations. It’s level 3, with 2 marauders, 2 ettercap fang guards, and 1 gnome arcanist.

  I think the illustration is very cool and memorable, but I only found the creature itself interesting because of all the aprocryphal lore I came up with in this post. Mechanically, I almost think it would work better as a Controller, since its abilities are more about knocking PCs out of position than dealing increased damage. If you give it some bonus sneak attack damage, it does work as a Lurker.

• Jul 11, 2021

  Let's Read the 4e Monster Manual 2: Devils, Part 2

  This is part of a series! Go here to see the other entries.

  Continuing our slog through the Devils entry, let’s look at the next batch.

  Infernal Armor Animus

  

  We’ve talked a lot about devils always trying to acquire souls by hook or by crook, but what do they use them for? Here we have a concrete example of one of the many products in Hell’s catalogs.

  These monsters are made by binding the soul of a mortal within a suit of infernal armor, which is animated by the process. The animated armor has its own mind - the soul is just the power source. The animus understands Common and Supernal, and at Int 8 it’s smart enough to understand the orders of its infernal masters. When it’s destroyed in combat, it releases the trapped soul, which will usually be consumed by a nearby devil for a quick performance boost.

  The Numbers

  Animi are Medium Elemental Animates with the Devil and Undead keywords - the only non-humanoid devils in the MM2. They’re also Level 3 Minion Soldiers, which means they appear in the “bargain bin” section of the catalog and will be found fairly early in a zero-to-hero campaign with devils as the main antagonists. They have darkvision, Resist Fire 5, and a ground speed of 6.

  These things project a Bloodlust aura (2) that gives nonminion devils within a +1 to damage rolls. Multiple auras are cumulative, so I imagine animi keep a tight formation around their boss.

  They wield shields and shortswords in combat, and the sword attack is nothing special. When they’re destroyed, Essence Transference triggers and heals the nearest non-minion devil within 15 squares for 15 HP.

  Sample Encounter and Impressions

  The sample encounter is Level 5: 8 animi, 2 spined devils, 1 tiefling heretic.

  Look at that healing value for Essence Transference! This tells me infernal animi aren’t used as dumb muscle - that’s the job of legion devils. Instead they’re ambulatory snacks just waiting for the PCs to unwrap them and feed them to their master. They might be able to get a hit or two in before that happens, but that’s just a bonus. Kill them before damaging their masters.

  Misfortune Devil

  

  Valued members of the acquisitions department, misfortune devils collect souls by tempting mortals into taking ever-larger risks, which ultimately culminate in the mortal dying and the devil owning their soul. It helps that they know a lot of probability-warping magic to speed the process along.

  I imagine that there are many strategically-placed tomes out in the world that teach a ritual to summon one of these and describe it as a “wise advisor” who will always have the summoner’s best interest at heart. Satisfaction guaranteed (and never mind the fine print)!

  Misfortune devils can also choose prospective victims on their own inititive. If the victim in question is someone who knows better than to listen to a devil, they can use innocuous-looking underlings to make contact, or disguise themselves with magic rituals. And finally, they can also be attached as support spellcasters to a unit of devils out on some mission of a more military nature.

  The Numbers

  These Medium devils are Level 15 Artillery with 115 HP. They have darkvision and truesight 10, ground and fly speeds of 6, and interestingly enough no elemental resistances.

  They attack at range with a Ray of Distortion (ranged 20 vs. Reflex), which does high physical damage - unusual for an at-will attack. The catch is that the target of this attack can choose to take only 5 damage instead, and have the original damage re-rolled and applied to their ally with the most HP. How close-knit is your party, really?

  If an enemy manages to get close, they can fight back with a Lucky Maneuver (melee 1 vs. Will; basic) that does light psychic damage and allows the misfortune devil to teleport 4 squares. If someone does manage to hit them with a melee or ranged attack, they ran react with Roll the Bones (interrupt; encounter) to have the attack target another creature of their choice that’s within 5 squares.

  Sample Encounter and Impressions

  The sample encounter is one of those “attached to a unit” situations: Level 13, 2 erinyes, 5 legion devils, and 2 misfortune devils. Almost identical to the one listed for erinyes, only it’s misfortune instead of chain devils following along.

  These creatures are surprisingly fun, and might cause some intra-party friction among the PCs. With the interrupt ability it’s clear that it’s the misfortune devil causing a friendly fire incident, but the Ray of Distortion requires a conscious decision by the first target to work its special magic. Do you want to betray your beefy friend in order to avoid pain? C’mon, do it! What’s the worst thing that could happen?

  Shocktroop Devil

  

  For when a phalanx of bearded devils just isn’t shock-troop enough for the job. These Large winged devils perform a function a lot like that of mortal cavalry: units of them charge into enemy lines to break up tough formations, cause havoc, and slay as many as they can.

  Shocktroop devils fly really fast and can’t be dismounted since they don’t have mounts, but much like mortal cavalry they can end up losing momentum if they stay mired in the melee for too long. If that happens they’ll attempt to retreat, and will be back to fight once they’ve recovered.

  The Numbers

  These are Level 16 Soldiers with 155 HP. They have darkvision, a ground speed of 6, and a fly speed of 8. They lack any elemental resistances, which I think must be an error of some sort. I’d expect them to have 15 or 20 fire resistance. They wear plate and wield a sword and shield.

  In any case, they’re protected by Asmodeus’s Shield, a passive trait that gives them +2 to all defenses against divine powers while they’re unbloodied, and a -2 penalty to the same while bloodied. “Divine powers” means anything that’s not a basic weapon attack from any of the classes with the divine power source: clerics, paladins, avengers, invokers… I’d say it also covers any attacks by angels and the like.

  Their basic attack is a sword and shield combination which, as a basic attack, can be used in a charge. It deals physical damage and triggers a secondary attack vs. Fortitude. A hit on that one pushes the target 2 squares and dazes them for a turn.

  Once in the fray, they can increase their rythm and perform a Shocktroop Attack, which allows them to make three Sword and Shield attacks in a single action, each against a different target. This encounter power recharges whenever the shocktroop devil has full HP, which means they can use this every turn until they’re damaged.

  Sample Encounter and Impressions

  The sample encounter is level 16: 1 bone devil, 1 misfortune devil, and 3 shocktroop devils. A command squad of sorts.

  I’ll admit, the basic concept behind shocktroop devils seemed so bland when I first read through this book that I never took a good look at its stat block until now. It turns out they can be a lot of fun, and the designers managed to really capture that “cavalry” feeling with them.

  The recharge condition on Shocktroop Attack means these monsters are more dangerous when deployed in groups as part of an encounter. The natural instinct of 4e players to focus-fire on a single monster at a time will work against them here, because it might keep the shocktroops they ignore at full HP for longer, allowing them to attack lots and lots and lots of times.

  For extra Fun(TM), add a unit of leveled-up Infernal Armor Animi to your shock-troop devil vanguard.

  Withering Devil

  

  Like Misfortune Devils, Withering Devils are soul collectors and members of the acquisitions department. However, they use a different strategy: their powers bend mortal minds towards apathy and depression, eroding their ability to care for their fellow sapients or for much of anything else.

  In combat this translates into spells that slow enemies down and make them less effective, but these fiends are much more dangerous on a narrative scale. They can cause entire societies to succumb to plague, famine, and strife by targetting the people whose job was to prevent this and turning them into lazy shadows of their former selves. “Just open the economy up already, fighting this plague is too hard, I’m sure everything will work out”.

  Though their natural appearance is horrible, they are adept at disguising themselves as mortals, either with magic or with heavy cloaks in dark rooms.

  The Numbers

  These Medium devils are Level 14 Controllers with 138 HP. They have Darkvision, Resist Fire 15, and a ground speed of 6. The illustration gives them wings but they don’t fly, presumably because it’s too much of a bother.

  Withering devils project an Aura of Weariness (3) that weakens all enemies inside. Their basic melee attack is with the Staff of Weariness, which has no funky riders despite the awesome name. At range they shoot Draining Rays (ranged 20 vs. Reflex) that do psychic damage and immobilize for a turn. As a minor action they can use a Gaze of Apathy (ranged 10 vs. Will; recharge 5-6) which does no damage but slows (save ends).

  Sample Encounters and Impressions

  Wow, I bet these things are really annoying to fight if positioned just behind a line of beefy front-liners so that their weakness aura affects the PCs.

  The sample encounters do just that, either using bearded and legion devils as the front-line, or attaching the devil to a mixed-party of yuan-ti.

  Conclusion

  That’s it for the devils in this book, but we’re not out of the D’s yet.

subscribe via RSS