Procut

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Outsider (Evil, Law)
Hit Dice: 1d4+4
Initiative: +1 (+1 Dex)
Speed: 30 ft [or fly 30 ft (perfect)]
Armor Class: 11 (+1 Dex)
Base Attack/Grapple: 0
Attack: 0
Full Attack: weapon +1 [or touch +1]
Space/Reach: 5 ft x 5 ft / 5 ft
Special Attacks: Spell-like Abilities, Spells, Energy Drain0
Special Qualities: Incorporate, Polymorph Self, SR 0 [13], Immunities0
Saves: Fort +1, Ref +1, Will +3
Abilities: Str 12, Dex 12, Con 12, Int 13, Wis 12, Cha 150
Skills: Concentration +5, Spellcraft +5, Listen +3, Search +3, Gather Information +4, Disguise +4, Scry +5, Sense Motive +3, Knowledge (arcana) +50
Feats: Toughness, Combat Casting0
 
Environment: Any
Organization: Solitary or Team (2-8)
Challenge Rating: 3
Treasure: as NPC
Alignment: Lawful Evil
Advancement: by character class
Level Adjustment: 0
Procuts are devils that are often used by the Baatezu as spies and special agents. They are dependable because they never break a contract that they voluntarily agreed to using their real names. If a procut uses an alias, it will not consider itself bound by any agreements. It is unclear what the procuts really gain from serving the Baatezu, but presumably it has something to do with the prospect of immortality and unholy power. A natural procut lifespan is about 200 years.Appearance: A procut looks almost human, but has no hair, red skin and three small horns equally spaced around the top of the head (one on each side in the front, and one in the back). Normally, a procut will use its polymorph self ability to appear as another type of humanoid, such as a human. 90% are male.0CombatA procut prefers to avoid combat, but if pressed will use spells and special abilities. It can also attack with a weapon.Polymorph Self (su): As the spell, but only medium sized humanoid forms as possible, and the effect lasts until the procut cancels it. It can be used twice per day.Incorporate (su): At will, the procut can become incorporeal. This does not make any items carried incorporeal, so they will fall to the ground. Any polymorph self in effect ends. It gains the usual properties of incorporeal creatures, a flying movement rate of 30 ft. (perfect), Spell Resistance 13, and an Energy Drain touch attack. While incorporeal the procut doesn't need air, food, or water. Becoming incorporeal is a standard action. The procut can also become corporeal again as a standard action, as long as it is not overlapping with a solid object. Incorporeal: While incorporeal, only harmed by +1 or better magic weapons, or magic, with a 50% chance to ignore any damage from a corporeal source. It can pass through solid objects at will, and its own attacks pass through armor. It always moves silently.Energy drain (su): While incorporeal, a procut can use a touch attack that deals one negative level. The Fortitude save to remove the negative level has a DC of 12. The procut gains 5 temporary hit points for each negative level inflicted, which dissappear 1 hour later. A procut is not above preparing for a major combat by gaining temporary hit points from easy targets in advance. A character slain by this attack does not rise as an undead, but can only be returned to life with a wish, a miracle, divine intervention, or a true resurrection spell, because the victim's soul is sent to Baator.Spell-like abilities: A procut can use the following, once each per day, as the spells cast by a 7th level sorcerer (save DC 12 + spell level): bestow curse, curse water, death knell, deathwatch, detect chaos, detect magic, dispel magic, greater scrying, mind blank, prestidigitation, undetectable alignmentImmunities: A procut is immune to disease, energy drain, and poison.Feats: A procut gains toughness as a bonus feat.Skills: A procut gains skill points as an outsider, (+8 + Int modifier) per level.0Habitat/SocietyAll procuts have the potential to be sorcerers, and most are. The above statistics are for one of first level. The favored class for procuts is sorcerer. Many procuts pick up a level or two of rogue in the course of their missions.0EcologyNone0
Smeazel's picture
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Joined: 2004-11-02
Re: Procut

Yikes! It can turn immaterial (during which time it gains spell resistance and an energy drain ability!), has a number of useful spells it casts as a 7th-level sorcerer, has the ability to polymorph itself (admittedly limited—enough so it might as well (and probably should) be change self instead of polymorph)... and despite all that it has one hit die and a level adjustment of zero!? This monster is seriously unbalanced. (The CR may be too low, too, despite the single hit die, but that's the least of its problems; honestly, no one-hit-die monster should have these kinds of abilities, and pretty much any monster with these kinds of abilities should have a level adjustment greater than 0!)

Other notes:

  • Size is missing—based on the description, and since they polymorph to medium-size creatures, I assume they're medium-sized in their natural form as well, but it never says so.
  • Odd that, among all the hodgepodge of abilities and immunities it has, it has none of the typical devil traits.
  • "weapon +1"? Monster entries generally specify a weapon—it's understood that it's meant as a sample, and that the DM can give the monster a different weapon if he wants to.
  • Quote:
    Skills: A procut gains skill points as an outsider, (+8 + Int modifier) per level.
    What—you mean instead of the skill points it would usually get by class? Why? There's a reason different classes get different numbers of skill points per level—again, balance. And given that sorcerers, this monster's favored class, are supposed to get only two skill points per level... well, honestly, that makes this monster even more horribly unbalanced than it already was. You're eventually giving a procut sorcerer six bonus skill points per level... that's huge.

There are some good ideas here—I like the incorporate ability (though not the name), although it doesn't belong on a one-hit-die monster. But as it is, this monster is seriously broken. If the intent was for the procut to be a viable low-level PC race... well, I'm afraid it just isn't; it has way too many powerful abilities. Mainly, I'd suggest giving it more hit dice; with those abilities, it should probably be at least 7 HD. And probably at least +4 for a Level Adjustment.

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