Treasure of Chimera Cove pg. 30
Acquired/Inherited Template Acquired
Simple Template No
Usable with Summons Yes
This creature stares with cold, black eyes, its bluish-green skin slick with moisture and stinking of brine and the muck of the tidal flats. Its hands and feet are webbed, and its facial features are blunted by the smooth, frog-like skin that covers them. It makes no sound as it marches out of the shallows, water and seaweed streaming from its unkempt hair and barnacle-encrusted armor. It merely approaches with cold menace, sword raised and sharp beneath a crusting of salt.
During the troubled times following Andoran’s break with Cheliax, Chelish necromancers created the sea-sworn to fill the need for ruthless and overpowering marines who would serve the navy tirelessly. “Volunteered” by their captains, these sailors and warriors were forced to undergo hideous rites culminating in their dying and being reborn as undead monstrosities uniquely suited to making war at sea. Powerful swimmers without the need to breathe or eat, and nearly impossible to destroy in their natural element, these crack teams were the bane of Andoren ships, with just a handful of the fast-healing horrors capable of overrunning the mightiest frigates. Concerned that such effective troops might reach too far, the Chelish government ordered them anchored to their role with the “curse of the sea-sworn,” rendering them incapable of abandoning their ships or the sea. As further protection, the Chelish leaders frequently placed geas spells on the sea-sworn leaders, tasking them with policing their own and making sure that the undead sailors never strove to become more than what they were intended as: cold, heartless tools of Chelish ambition.
Creating a Sea-Sworn“Sea-sworn” is an acquired template that can be added to any corporeal creature that does not possess the aquatic sub-type. A sea-sworn uses all of the base creature’s statistics except as noted here.
Size and Type: The creature’s type changes to undead and it gains the augmented and aquatic sub-types. It retains any other subtypes except alignment subtypes. Do not recalculate base attack bonus, saves, or skill points. Size is unchanged.
Hit Dice: Increase all current and future Hit Dice to d12s.
Armor Class: The base creature’s natural armor bonus improves by +3. Sea-sworn often wear the armor they wore in life.
Defensive Abilities: A sea-sworn retains the base creature’s defensive abilities and gains damage reduction.
Damage Reduction (Ex): A sea-sworn has damage reduction 5/piercing. Their skin is incredibly tough, but deep stabs allow their salt water essence to seep out.
Weaknesses: A sea-sworn retains the base creature’s weaknesses and gains the curse of the sea-sworn.
Curse of the Sea-Sworn (Ex): Sea-sworn function normally whenever in contact with salt water or aboard a vessel floating (or sunken) in salt water. A sea-sworn taken outside these conditions by any means quickly withers away, taking 2d6 points of damage per round.
Speed: The creature gains a swim speed equal to its land speed, or retains its original swim speed if it is faster than its land speed.
Attacks: A sea-sworn retains all the natural weapons, manufactured weapon attacks, and weapon proficiencies of the base creature. A sea-sworn also gains a slam attack that also inflicts its drowning touch.
Damage: Natural and manufactured weapons deal damage normally. A slam attack deals damage depending on the sea-sworn’s size. (Use the base creature’s slam damage if it’s better.)
Special Attacks: A sea-sworn retains the base creature’s special attacks and also gains the following.
Drowning Touch (Ex): The touch of a sea-sworn causes the lungs of a living creature to fill with salt water dealing 1 point of Constitution damage. Creatures with the aquatic or water sub-types, creatures that do not need to breathe, and creatures which can breathe water are all immune to this special attack.
Special Qualities: A sea-sworn loses most special qualities of the base creature. It retains any extraordinary special qualities that improve its melee or ranged attacks. A sea-sworn gains the following special quality.
Fast Healing (Ex): A sea-sworn gains fast healing 2 whenever it is immersed in salt water to a depth of at least one-quarter of the creature’s height.
Abilities: A sea-sworn’s Strength score increases by +4, it has no Constitution score, and its Charisma score decreases by 2.
Feats: Same as the base creature.
Skills: A sea-sworn has a +8 racial bonus on any Swim check to perform some special action or avoid a hazard. It can always choose to take 10 on a Swim check, even if distracted or endangered. It can use the run action while swimming, provided it swims in a straight line. Otherwise same as the base creature.
Environment: In contact with salt water or aboard a vessel in salt water.
Challenge Rating: As base creature +1.
Treasure: None.
Alignment: Usually neutral evil.
Level Adjustment: —| Sea-Sworn Size | Slam Damage | | Fine | 1 | | Diminutive | 1d2 | | Tiny | 1d3 | | Small | 1d4 | | Medium | 1d6 | | Large | 1d8 | | Huge | 2d6 | | Gargantuan | 2d8 | | Colossal | 4d6 |
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