Pathfinder Monster: Warpstar

To complement the recently released interview from the Here Be Monsters contest, I wanted to take another pass at the Warpstar following the feedback from the judges and voters.

I knew going in that making the warpstar an ooze was going to present some challenges in meeting the stat-by-CR guidelines, but conceptually it worked really well. Defensively, I compared to existing oozes and other monsters in the CR 7-8 range to come to reasonable numbers, and the inclusion of DR is the only reason I feel it's adequate in this department. Offensively, the engulf and distortion aura abilities were really the heart of the design as a mostly-passive force of destruction, and so I elected to make the DCs relatively high, compensating by making the slam attack quite weak. Based on several test battles with the level 7 PFS pregenerated characters, I'm fairly confident I have the CR right, though I will admit the danger of an encounter with a warpstar is proportional to its starting distance from the player characters.

I was kicking myself when I read Mikko's comment on when Nova triggers--I originally wrote it to trigger at 0 hp, but wound up changing it to match existing similar abilities.

The bonus type for Repulsion is, as SKR pointed out, borderline. There is an armor in the Technology Guide that provides a gravity-themed force effect armor bonus, but personally I'm with him that gravity shouldn't effect incorporeal creatures in any way. I originally selected deflection because it would apply against magical touch attacks, completely forgetting about the interaction with incorporeal creatures. A shield bonus is probably more appropriate, but this leaves the warpstar with little to no defense against spellcasters. To compensate, I've added minor universal energy resistance, which should increase its overall survivability (addressing the concern of several of the judges) and making it a challenge for both magical and mundane characters.

I'll admit temporal anomaly could have been written more clearly. It was one of those cases where it made perfect sense to me because I knew what the intention was, but lacked some helpful details for someone new to it. Hopefully the new version is a little clearer.

As for the dashes...let's just say I learned more than I thought there was to know about dashes and leave it at that.

A sphere of swirling debris floats in the air, bits of the ground below slowly floating up to meet it.

Warpstar CR 7
XP 3,200
N Large ooze
Init +0; Senses blindsight 60 ft.; Perception –5
Aura distortion field (10 ft., DC 20)

DEFENSE
AC 9, touch 9, flat-footed 9 (–1 size)
hp 104 (11d8+55)
Fort +8, Ref +3, Will –2
DR 5/—; Immune ooze traits Resist acid 5, cold 5, electricity 5, fire 5, sonic 5

OFFENSE
Speed fly 30 ft. (perfect)
Melee slam +13 (1d8+9)
Space 10 ft.; Reach 5 ft.
Special Attacks engulf (DC 21, 1d6 bludgeoning)

STATISTICS
Str 22, Dex 11, Con 20, Int —, Wis 1, Cha 1
Base Atk +8; CMB +15; CMD 25
Skills Fly +8
SQ no breath, nova, warp reality

ECOLOGY
Environment any
Organization solitary
Treasure standard

SPECIAL ABILITIES
Distortion Field (Su) A warpstar is surrounded by an aura which slowly disintegrates nearby objects and creatures. Creatures within 10 feet of a warpstar take 2d6 damage at the start of their turn unless they make a DC 20 Fortitude save. Any creature reduced to 0 or fewer hit points by this effect is entirely disintegrated, as if by the disintegrate spell. The save DC is Constitution-based.

Nova (Su) When reduced to 0 hp or below, a warpstar collapses in on itself, forming a brightly glowing sphere about six inches across that cannot be moved or destroyed. One round later, it explodes, dealing 4d6 points of fire damage plus medium radiation to all creatures within 30 feet (Reflex DC 20 halves). The save DC is Constitution-based.

Warp Reality (Su) A warpstar is constantly manipulating reality in its surroundings. At the start of the warpstar’s turn as a free action, the warpstar activates one of the following abilities, chosen at random.

Gravity Well: The warpstar makes a combat maneuver check against all creatures within 30 feet. If it beats the CMD of a creature with this check, that creature is pulled 10 feet closer to the warpstar. If this causes the creature to move into a square occupied by the warpstar, the warpstar can attempt to engulf that creature as a free action. Unattended objects of size Medium or smaller are automatically pulled towards the warpstar.

Radiation Burst: The warpstar releases a burst of harmful energy, exposing all creatures within 30 feet to low radiation.

Repulsion: The warpstar is surrounded by unpredictable gravitational fluctuations. It receives a +8 shield bonus to AC for 1 round.

Temporal Anomaly: The warpstar creates a 15-foot-radius sphere of accelerated time centered at its current location. Creatures inside the sphere each take a turn in normal initiative order, starting with the remainder of the warpstar's turn, while only a split second passes for those outside the sphere. The temporal anomaly lasts for 1 round of apparent time, after which the warpstar takes another turn. Creatures inside the sphere cannot affect those outside (as time stop), but can interact with other creatures inside the sphere normally. Creatures affected by the anomaly cannot leave the sphere for the duration of the effect.

Warpstars are anomalies in the fabric of the universe, the mere presence of which plays havoc with matter, gravity, and time in the vicinity. They exert a constant gentle pull on the surrounding area, which coupled with their distortion aura allows them to passively consume nearby matter. Warpstars do not discriminate among targets, as they are capable of digesting nearly anything in their high-pressure core.

If attacked, warpstars will usually attempt to engulf the aggressors, only using their slam attack if a particular creature proves difficult.

Matter trapped in a warpstar is slowly crushed and drawn towards its core, where it is gradually converted into energy for the warpstar’s use. A few rare materials such as adamantine and diamond can withstand this process, and it is not uncommon for a warpstar gorged on organic matter to actually produce small diamonds in the course of digesting its meal. Such materials are not destroyed by the warpstar’s nova, making them a tempting target for treasure hunters and powerful spellcasters.

A typical warpstar is about 8 feet across and can weigh thousands of pounds, dependent on how much matter it has consumed. If left unchecked, the warpstar can grow to larger sizes, with a corresponding increase to its influence on its surroundings. This process can be rapidly accelerated on the rare occasion that two warpstars encounter each other, as they will usually merge to form a single massive specimen.