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Mythic Rules

Source Mythic Adventures pg. 4
Legend speaks of the coming of great heroes. As the darkness gathers and the forces of the underworld rise to swallow the land of the living, a few brave souls will hear the call to greatness. Their deeds will become the stories of our time, and their victories will be celebrated for centuries to come. Even now, they walk among us— unaware of the destiny that awaits them. The moment is almost here. Their hour is at hand.

What is Mythic?

Source Mythic Adventures pg. 4
Everyone knows the story of the blacksmith’s son who, after taking up arms to defend his village, continues on to become a renowned adventurer. And of the young elf who spends years studying musty tomes and practicing simple spells before she heads out into the world to seek ancient lore. These are the stories of everyday adventurers, risen from the ranks of the common folk to make a name for themselves in places harsh and unforgiving.

But these are not the only stories of heroism. Some adventurers are beyond exemplary—their stories forge the greatest sagas of history, and their every deed births a legend. From the children of gods, blessed with the divine spark, to the lucky heroes born under auspicious stars, these characters are destined to greatness. They are mythic: possessed of unparalleled heroism and capable of astounding acts.

To be mythic means to draw upon a power that few even dare to understand, and even fewer hope to wield. An air of destiny surrounds mythic characters, and each choice they make shapes the world at large. Their story is intertwined with the great events of the day, and their actions are central to the outcomes. Mythic characters are more resilient and powerful than others, and as a result are awe-inspiring in ways their non-mythic counterparts could never match. Other adventurers might balk at taking on a dragon that plagues a village, but mythic heroes would not only take on the dragon, but also clear the entire region of threats.

Ultimately, the story of mythic heroes is defined by the challenges they face. The GM has a number of new and awe-inspiring tools with which to confront mythic player characters, ranging from immense and deadly mythic monsters to vile and cunning mythic villains. Mythic monsters are unique creatures or remnants of a bygone age when such terrifying beasts ruled over the land. They now dwell in the lost places of the world, waiting for their time to bring great terror. Mythic villains have many of the powers of mythic characters, but they use their abilities selfishly—to subjugate kingdoms, slaughter the innocent, and bring ruin to the world. Unless heroes rise to stop them, mythic villains can cause destruction and chaos on an unimaginable scale.

Even with such great power, mythic characters are not invulnerable, just more able to deal with the dangers of the world around them. If a mythic character dies, her loss is a great tragedy to the world, as the light of one of its true champions has been extinguished. This is what makes a mythic story exciting: these heroes might fall, just as non-mythic heroes might succumb to lesser threats. And when they do succeed, their victory often comes at a high cost, and usually leaves them scarred.

The rules in this book give players and GMs the tools they need to run mythic adventures. The mythic rules add to the base rules of the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, either as part of an adventure in which the PCs attain mythic power for a limited time, or as the backbone of an entire campaign charting the legend of a group of mythic characters.

What Makes Mythic Adventures Different

Source Mythic Adventures pg. 5
In a world of might and sorcery, with dragons and elves, what does it mean to be “mythic?” Being mythic means possessing a degree of might unusual even in a fantasy world. Scenes turn more dramatic, the enemies are more lethal, and the consequences of the heroes’ actions make a far-ranging impact. Being mythic means invoking a sense of wonder and awe even in those already accustomed to the strange and unusual.

The way this book portrays the mythic narrative isn’t solely about stories at 20th level and monsters with high Challenge Ratings—it’s about the surprising and unfamiliar regardless of power and scale. Even 1st-level characters could be imbued with mythic power and become forces to be reckoned with. Similarly, lesser monsters such as ogres and skeletons that become mythic transform into terrifying foes with unknown powers, changing the nature of the story you’re playing—and startling those accustomed to their non-mythic ilk.

Not only the characters take on unexpected forms in mythic adventures; the setting does as well. The vistas are more dramatic, featuring flying islands and keeps that float in raging volcanoes. The colors are brighter, the sounds are more mysterious, and all of the other stimuli are sharper and more vibrant. Where the non-mythic hero would encounter a crumbling keep filled with familiar monsters, a mythic hero faces a towering citadel that builds itself from the bones of would-be invaders and is inhabited by cruel and malign creatures of nearly god-like power.

Besides the setting, the challenges that face mythic characters are far more harrowing than usual. Enhanced abilities allow mythic characters to take on threats beyond the reach of those without such power. They can face with ease foes both powerful and numerous. The real challenge is when they take on mythic creatures that possess the same resilient nature and abilities similar in potency to those they themselves rely on. When a mythic hero comes face to face with a mythic monster, the battle is truly legendary.

Finally, mythic adventures feature difficult choices and far-reaching consequences. As the characters progress through the story, they’re tasked with taking on challenges that seem impossible even to them, and might be tempted to wander from their path. As mythic heroes, they’re the first to respond to cataclysmic events, just as they’re the last bastion to stem the tide of evil and darkness that threatens to wash over the world. Their successes and failures leave marks on the world for centuries to come.

Mythic versus Non-Mythic

Source Mythic Adventures pg. 5
As you make your way through this book, you will see a number of abilities, feats, spells, magic items, and monsters refer to “mythic” versus “non-mythic” creatures and sources. For the purposes of the rules that follow, a creature is mythic if it has a mythic tier or mythic rank. Any mythic creature is considered a mythic source. The term “mythic source” can also apply to an attack, feat, spell, magic item, or other effect that originates from a mythic source.

Creatures are non-mythic if they don’t have any mythic ranks or tiers. Any non-mythic creature is a non-mythic source, as is any attack or effect originating from a non-mythic source.

Glossary

Source Mythic Adventures pg. 7
Mythic Adventures uses several terms that are new to the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, or that previously existed but were rarely used. These terms are worth reviewing before continuing on with the rest of this book.

Ascension: The moment of ascension is the moment when a normal character becomes a mythic character. This event is usually a critical moment in the story that helps to define the mythic character’s origin and the source of her power. Once a character has undergone ascension, she gains her first mythic tier and can select a mythic path.

Boon: When a mythic character completes a particularly difficult task, the GM might reward that character with a boon. A boon represents having earned the favor of the source of the character’s power. Once acquired, a boon allows the character to draw upon mythic power one additional time that day. A mythic character might be rewarded with a boon several times in a single session, but no more than once per encounter.

DR/Epic: A type of damage reduction, DR/epic can be overcome only by a weapon with an enhancement bonus of +6 or greater (Pathfinder RPG Bestiary 299). Weapons with special abilities also count as epic for the purposes of overcoming damage reduction if the total bonus value of all of their abilities (including the enhancement bonus) is +6 or greater.

Mythic: With abilities seemingly beyond the those of ordinary mortals, a mythic character or mythic monster becomes part of a story that plays out on a greater scale than ordinary people can understand. An attack, spell, or other effect is considered mythic if it originates from a mythic source, such as a character or creature with a mythic tier or rank. (See Mythic versus Non-Mythic.)

Mythic Path: (Often referred to just as a “path.”) The theme of a character’s mythic abilities is determined by her mythic path—archmage, champion, guardian, hierophant, marshal, or trickster. Each path has a number of special abilities associated with it that the character can select as she advances in tier.

Mythic Power: Each mythic character can call upon this base mythic ability to influence destiny and fuel other abilities. At its most basic, mythic power is needed to use the surge ability, but it can also be called upon to use a number of other mythic abilities.

Mythic Rank: (Often referred to just as a “rank.”) Similar to tiers, mythic ranks are used to describe the approximate mythic power possessed by a monster. All creatures with a mythic rank are considered mythic for the purposes of feats, spells, magic items, and other abilities. Mythic ranks range from 1 to 10.

Mythic Tier: (Often referred to just as a “tier.”) Mythic characters advance in power by gaining tiers, each of which grants new abilities. Attaining a new mythic tier requires completing difficult trials within the campaign’s story rather than accumulating experience points. Mythic tiers range from 1 to 10. Characters who achieve 10th tier are at the height of mythic power, and are in some respects akin to minor deities.

Mythic Trial: (Often referred to just as a “trial.”) A trial is a difficult task that awaits mythic heroes. It usually represents the culmination of part of the heroes’ story, marking it as an important point in their legend. A mythic character has to complete one or more trials in order to reach a new mythic tier. Trials and mythic path advancement are separate from XP and character level advancement, and are based on grand achievements within the story rather than individual encounters.

Non-Mythic: Any attack, spell, or effect originating from a character or creature without any mythic abilities is non-mythic. This term can also refer to a character without a mythic tier or a creature without a mythic rank.(See Mythic versus Non-Mythic.)

Surge: Surge is a basic ability that each mythic character receives. It allows her to roll a die and add the result to a d20 roll, influencing the outcome after the results are revealed.

Mythic Heroes

Source Mythic Adventures pg. 10
Mythic heroes are set apart from their contemporaries, capable of amazing feats of courage in the face of overwhelming odds. In spite of this, they’re still similar in many ways to other adventurers. They have hit points, an Armor Class, and saving throws—in fact, most of their statistics are comparable to non-mythic characters of an equal level. Where mythic characters differ is in the special abilities they gain from mythic paths—collections of similar abilities that they can choose to represent their mythic power. These abilities enhance mythic characters both in and out of battle, allowing them to take part in extraordinary, larger-than-life adventures.

Creating a Mythic Character

Source Mythic Adventures pg. 10
Unlike normal characters, those with mythic power have greater ties to the world around them and a greater place in legend. A skilled fighter might impact the history of a region, but a mythic champion can change its fate, and his every move is chronicled and recorded. Because of this greater impact on the campaign world, creating a mythic character requires you to work with the GM to find your place in the story and determine the source of your power.

To create a mythic character, start by creating a normal character using the standard rules found in the Pathfinder RPG Core Rulebook. Despite their incredible abilities, mythic characters start with the same class features and abilities as normal ones.

The process by which your character becomes mythic is determined by the shape of the overall campaign. Generally, characters become mythic in one of two ways—either the GM decides to make the characters mythic as one part of the campaign, or their ascension and subsequent deeds are the central focus of the story from nearly the very beginning. Whichever path is chosen influences how you create your mythic character.

If mythic power is added to your character as part of a larger campaign (possibly only for a short period of time), that story defines the source of your newfound power, which is likely the same for all of the PCs. While you might not make all of the decisions about that power’s origins and nature, you will still be able to customize your character by selecting your mythic path and abilities.

If mythic power will instead be a central theme of the entire campaign, each PC might have a different, individual source of power. In such a campaign, you should work with your GM to determine the source of your mythic power. This could be anything from contact with an ancient artifact to gaining the sponsorship of a deity. The GM might ask for all of the PCs to share some aspects of their power—such as its source—to give them a common bond, or you might come together as part of a larger destiny, a gathering of great heroes to accomplish truly legendary deeds.

In either case, there will be a moment in the campaign when you gain mythic power (or when it manifests, in the case of mythic power that has been latent in you since birth). This critical part of the story is called the moment of ascension. Depending on the style of the campaign, this could occur very early in the story or much later in your character’s career, as part of larger plotline. From this moment onward, your character is mythic, and gains a mythic path and a variety of mythic abilities.

Mythic Ascension

Source Mythic Adventures pg. 10
The moment a character gains her first mythic tier is called the moment of ascension (or simply ascension) and is usually concurrent with an extraordinary event. Generally speaking, the GM determines this event, which has many implications on the story of the character. Ascension determines the source of a mythic character’s power, and though this doesn’t affect the types of abilities she gains, it can influence future choices and roleplaying decisions.

The GM is free to invent any sort of event to serve as the moment of ascension, as required by the needs of the campaign. Chapter 4 includes more information for GMs to consider when designing the moment of ascension. The following ideas represent some of the most common means of ascension.

Artifact: The character comes into contact with an unstable artifact that unleashes some of its power into her, granting her mythic power. The mythic character might need to protect the artifact, as it is the source of her power.

Fated: The character was born under an auspicious sign, such as a planetary conjunction or lunar eclipse, and as such was destined to greatness. The moment of ascension comes when those circumstances repeat themselves and the character gains mythic power.

Godling: The mythic character is the child of a god, typically born from the union of that deity and a mortal. The moment of ascension is when the character learns of her true heritage or is visited by her divine parent (or an agent of that deity).

Granted: A divine agent or other incredibly powerful being calls upon the character to act as its representative. This role gives the character mythic power, but possibly only while serving the interests of this benefactor and while holding to that patron’s tenets.

Passed On: The character is present at the death of a powerful—perhaps even mythic—creature. In its final moments, it passes on its power to the character, granting mythic abilities. Alternatively, its power might not be given voluntarily, but rather taken by the PCs when they slaying a mythic creature. These methods could even be the way that all mythic power is gained in a campaign.

Selecting a Path

Source Mythic Adventures pg. 11
Once you gain mythic power, you select a mythic path, which is much like an additional class. It determines the majority of your mythic abilities. But instead of gaining levels in a mythic path, you gain tiers that grant additional abilities and bonuses. Gaining a tier in a path doesn’t replace gaining experience and character levels. You still receive experience points for defeating challenges, but these apply only to your class levels. You gain additional mythic tiers by completing a number of trials; see Gaining Tiers.

Each path grants a number of specific abilities. In addition, all mythic characters have certain mythic abilities in common (see Table 1–1). As soon as your mythic character achieves a new tier, you must select all of the new powers that come with that tier.

Mythic Paths

Source Mythic Adventures pg. 11
Every mythic character belongs to a mythic path. Each path represents a journey into legend, and each tier in that path grants abilities and features related to that pursuit. Upon achieving his 1st mythic tier, a character must choose one mythic path to follow. Characters can choose from the following mythic paths.

Archmage: A master of arcane magic, the archmage casts powerful spells with great skill and ease, and shapes reality at whim. The powers of the archmage allow her to alter her spells, penetrate foes’ defenses, and master nearly any subject. While many of the archmage’s abilities are most valuable to a character with a high Intelligence score, those with high Charisma scores will also find a wide variety of powerful options. The path of the archmage is suitable for arcane spellcasters.

Champion: Unparalleled in combat, the champion stands triumphant on the battlefield, surrounded by bruised and broken foes. The abilities of the champion allow him to deliver strikes more accurately, perform astounding combat maneuvers, and move effortlessly around the battlefield. Characters with a high Strength score will find this path extremely useful, as will those with a high Constitution score. The path of the champion is suitable for characters who rely on martial arms and combat maneuvers.

Guardian: None can get past the impervious guardian—those who threaten this devout hero’s charges are doomed to fail. The powers of the guardian allow her to hold her ground, protect her allies, prevent enemies from moving past her, and survive hits that would defeat lesser heroes. Characters that have a high Constitution score and frequently find themselves in the middle of combat gain valuable powers by becoming a guardian. The path of the guardian is suitable for those who routinely sustain massive amounts of damage.

Hierophant: Drawing on power that goes beyond the gods, the hierophant is an inviolate vessel for the divine. The abilities of the hierophant allow him to enhance the power of his spells, heal others with greater potency, and commune with the gods. Most characters that become hierophants have a high Wisdom score, although many also have an above-average Charisma score. The path of the hierophant is suitable for divine spellcasters.

Marshal: Inspiration and courage make the marshal the greatest leader, capable of leading troops to victory over any challenge. The powers of the marshal allow her to inspire others, which grants bonuses and additional opportunities to all of her comrades. Characters with a high Charisma score and an above-average Intelligence score will gain a variety of useful abilities by becoming marshals. The path of the marshal is suitable for those who continually aid others.

Trickster: Skill, training, and savvy make the trickster the master of the impossible—defying unbeatable obstacles and traps, tricking the wise, and hitting otherwise unattainable targets. The trickster’s abilities allow him to change his appearance, manipulate others, and strike with deadly accuracy. Characters with high Dexterity and Charisma scores have a lot to gain from becoming tricksters. The path of the trickster is suitable for those who rely on subterfuge and cunning.

Base Mythic Abilities

Source Mythic Adventures pg. 12
Every mythic PC gains a number of base abilities common to all mythic characters, in addition to the special abilities granted by each mythic path. These abilities are gained based on the character’s mythic tier.

Table 1—1: Base Mythic Abilities

Mythic Tier	Ability Score	Mythic Feat	Base Mythic Abilities
1st	—	1st	Hard to kill, mythic power, surge +1d6
2nd	1st	—	Amazing initiative
3rd	—	2nd	Recuperation
4th	2nd	—	Surge +1d8
5th	—	3rd	Mythic saves
6th	3rd	—	Force of will
7th	—	4th	Surge +1d10
8th	4th	—	Unstoppable
9th	—	5th	Immortal
10th	5th	—	Legendary hero, surge +1d12

Ability Score: Upon reaching the 2nd mythic tier, an ability score of your choice permanently increases by 2. At 4th, 6th, 8th, and 10th tiers, another ability score of your choice permanently increases by 2; this can be an ability score you’ve already increased or a different ability score.

Mythic Feat: Select one mythic feat or non-mythic feat as a bonus feat. You must qualify for this feat normally. You gain another mythic feat at 3rd tier, and again every 2 tiers thereafter.

Hard to Kill (Ex): Whenever you’re below 0 hit points, you automatically stabilize without needing to attempt a Constitution check. If you have an ability that allows you to act while below 0 hit points, you still lose hit points for taking actions, as specified by that ability. Bleed damage still causes you to lose hit points when below 0 hit points. In addition, you don’t die until your total number of negative hit points is equal to or greater than double your Constitution score.

Mythic Power (Su): Mythic characters can draw upon a wellspring of power to accomplish amazing deeds and cheat fate. This power is used by a number of different abilities. Each day, you can expend an amount of mythic power equal to 3 plus double your mythic tier (5/day at 1st tier, 7/day at 2nd, etc.). This amount is your maximum amount of mythic power. If an ability allows you to regain uses of your mythic power, you can never have more than this amount.

Surge (Su): You can call upon your mythic power to overcome difficult challenges. You can expend one use of mythic power to increase any d20 roll you just made by rolling 1d6 and adding it to the result. Using this ability is an immediate action taken after the result of the original roll is revealed. This can change the outcome of the roll. The bonus die gained by using this ability increases to 1d8 at 4th tier, 1d10 at 7th tier, and 1d12 at 10th tier.

Amazing Initiative (Ex): At 2nd tier, you gain a bonus on initiative checks equal to your mythic tier. In addition, as a free action on your turn, you can expend one use of mythic power to take an additional standard action during that turn. This additional standard action can’t be used to cast a spell. You can’t gain an extra action in this way more than once per round.

Recuperation (Ex): At 3rd tier, you are restored to full hit points after 8 hours of rest so long as you aren’t dead. In addition, by expending one use of mythic power and resting for 1 hour, you regain a number of hit points equal to half your full hit points (up to a maximum of your full hit points) and regain the use of any class features that are limited to a certain number of uses per day (such as barbarian rage, bardic performance, spells per day, and so on). This rest is treated as 8 hours of sleep for such abilities. This rest doesn’t refresh uses of mythic power or any mythic abilities that are limited to a number of times per day.

Mythic Saving Throws (Ex): At 5th tier, whenever you succeed at a saving throw against a spell or special ability, you suffer no effects as long as that ability didn’t come from a mythic source (such as a creature with a mythic tier or mythic ranks). If you fail a saving throw that results from a mythic source, you take the full effects as normal.

Force of Will (Ex): At 7th tier, you can exert your will to force events to unfold as you would like. As an immediate action, you can expend one use of mythic power to reroll a d20 roll you just made, or force any non-mythic creature to reroll a d20 roll it just made. You can use this ability after the results are revealed. Whoever rerolls a roll must take the result of the second roll, even if it is lower.

Unstoppable (Ex): At 8th tier, you can expend one use of mythic power as a free action to immediately end any one of the following conditions currently affecting you: bleed, blind, confused, cowering, dazed, dazzled, deafened, entangled, exhausted, fascinated, fatigued, frightened, nauseated, panicked, paralyzed, shaken, sickened, staggered, or stunned. All other conditions and effects remain, even those resulting from the same spell or effect that caused the selected condition. You can use this ability at the start of your turn even if a condition would prevent you from acting.

Immortal (Su): At 9th tier, if you are killed, you return to life 24 hours later, regardless of the condition of your body or the means by which you were killed. When you return to life, you aren’t treated as if you had rested, and don’t regain the use of abilities that recharge with rest until you next rest. This ability doesn’t apply if you’re killed by a coup de grace or critical hit performed by either a mythic creature (or creature of even greater power) or a non-mythic creature wielding a weapon capable of bypassing epic damage reduction. At 10th tier, you can be killed only by a coup de grace or critical hit made with an artifact.

Legendary Hero (Su): At 10th tier, you have reached the height of mortal power. You regain uses of your mythic power at the rate of one use per hour, in addition to completely refreshing your uses each day.

Gaining Tiers

Source Mythic Adventures pg. 13
A character’s mythic power is classified by tier, with a 1st-tier mythic character already being significantly more powerful than a non-mythic character of the same level and a 10th-tier mythic character possessing nearly godlike puissance. Mythic tiers are similar to levels in a class or prestige class in that the powers gained at each tier are added to all those that came before, but tiers are gained in a different manner from levels. A character gains a new mythic tier by completing a number of trials that occur during play. A trial is a difficult task that adds to the legend and story of your character. Achieving a new mythic tier occurs independently of experience point progression (though you will also gain experience points for the various encounters you complete as you progress through your trials).

Trials are moments in the story when you must rise above the deeds of lesser heroes. These moments become critical junctures in your legend. The GM decides what qualifies as a trial, and it’s up to you to complete it as you would other adventures. You might not even know you are attempting a trial until it is completed and the GM informs you to note it on your mythic character sheet (see page 248), though you’ll likely get an inkling when you find yourself facing a particularly challenging foe or attempting something that most would find impossible.

The number of trials required to attain each new tier appears on Table 1–2: Mythic Trials per Tier. For example, suppose a 5th-level fighter discovers her mythic heritage and becomes a 1st-tier champion. Over a number of sessions, she earns enough experience points to gain her 6th level of fighter. During this time, she doesn’t complete a trial, so she doesn’t advance to the next tier of the champion path. During the next session, however, she engages in a climactic battle against a mythic troll that has plagued the town for years; by defeating the troll, she completes her trial, allowing her to become a 2nd-tier champion. To reach 3rd tier, she will need to accomplish two more trials. A mythic character can’t gain more than 10 tiers.

Note that the number of trials needed to achieve the next tier might vary from the number listed on Table 1–2. The GM can reduce or increase this number as needed to suit the campaign—refer to the Mythic Trials section for more guidance.

Table 1–2: Mythic Trials per Tier

Tier	Trials
1st*	—
2nd	1
3rd	2
4th	2
5th	3
6th	3
7th	4
8th	4
9th	5
10th	5

* The first tier is gained at the moment of ascension.

Mythic Feats

Source Mythic Adventures pg. 54
Mythic characters and monsters gain mythic feats as they gain tiers or ranks. These feats can be selected only as part of mythic advancement (see Table 1–1), not as part of a character’s normal advancement or in place of any other bonus feat.

Most mythic feats require a non-mythic feat as a prerequisite. These mythic feats enhance the benefits of their prerequisite feats, making them truly awe-inspiring. If a character doesn’t possess any of the necessary prerequisite feats when she gains a mythic feat, she can wait to select a mythic feat until the next time she gains a tier or level.

A value in a mythic feat based on a fraction of your tier (such as a +1 bonus for every 3 tiers you possess) always has a minimum of 1.

This chapter includes some non-mythic feats. These grant a character who hasn’t had a moment of ascension a measure of mythic might, and remain relevant if that character later becomes mythic.

Mythic Feats Only characters with mythic tiers or creatures with mythic ranks can take these feats. If a creature becomes non-mythic, it no longer gains the benefit of these feats, but it doesn’t lose them permanently. If the creature becomes mythic again, it regains the use of all the mythic feats it once had. Many mythic feats enhance non-mythic feats with the same name. When a creature has a mythic version of a feat, that feat is denoted with a superscript “M” in the feat line of its stat block.

See here for the list of mythic feats

Mythic Spells

Source Mythic Adventures pg. 78
Mythic spells draw upon the caster’s mythic power to create more powerful magical effects— mythic fireball sets affected creatures on fire, mythic mage armor can negate critical hits, and so on. These spells aren’t separate spells you gain as a spell known from your spellcasting class, but rather mythically charged versions of spells you already know.

Learning Mythic Spells: To learn a mythic spell, you must either select the mythic spellcasting universal path ability (see page 50) or the Mythic Spell Lore feat. In doing so, you unlock the secret of using your mythic power to amplify non-mythic spells you choose.

Casting Mythic Spells: If you know the mythic version of a spell, any time you cast the spell, you may expend one use of mythic power to convert the spell into its mythic version as you cast it. This doesn’t change the level of the spell slot you use to cast the spell.

If you’re a caster who prepares spells (such as a cleric or wizard), you never have to prepare the mythic version of a spell—if you prepare the non-mythic version, you may cast it as the mythic version by expending one use of mythic power. Unless otherwise specified, casting the mythic version of a spell doesn’t take any longer than casting the non-mythic version.

Effects of Mythic Spells: Unless otherwise specified, a mythic spell works just like the non-mythic version of the spell. For example, zombies created by both animate dead and mythic animate dead count toward the spell’s HD limit of how many undead you can control at one time, and a chaotic creature is immune to mythic chaos hammer in the same way it’s immune to chaos hammer.

Unless a mythic spell’s description says it improves, replaces, or upgrades an effect of the non-mythic spell, or says that it creates an effect instead of the non-mythic spell’s effect, it retains all the effects of the non-mythic spell in addition to the effects of the mythic version. For example, the mythic blasphemy spell has penalties for creatures that fail their saves; because the description doesn’t indicate that these penalties replace those of non-mythic blasphemy, the penalties are in addition to the non-mythic spell’s effects.

Augmented Mythic Spells: An augmented version of a mythic spell has the same effect as the mythic spell, plus additional benefits, options, or an increased effect. Some augmented effects require you to have a minimum tier in order to cast it as an augmented mythic spell. If so, the tier requirement for the augmented effects is listed in parentheses in the entry. For example, “Augmented (4th)” means you must have at least 4 mythic tiers to use this option. If you know a mythic spell, you automatically know how to cast the augmented version of that mythic spell upon reaching the required tier.

Casting the augmented version of a mythic spell requires you to expend more uses of mythic power when you cast it. The number of additional uses required for the augmented version is listed in the spell’s augmented entry and includes the one use of mythic power necessary to cast the mythic version of the spell. When you cast a spell, you must decide whether you want to cast the non-mythic version, the mythic version, or the augmented mythic version, and expend the appropriate number of uses of mythic power. You can’t cast the non-mythic version of the spell and later expend one use of mythic power to change it to the mythic version, nor can you cast the base mythic version of a spell and later in the duration expend the difference in mythic power to change it to the augmented version.

Example: You’re a 9th-level wizard/6th-tier archmage who knows mythic animate dead and has animate dead prepared. Casting animate dead works as normal and requires no uses of mythic power. Casting mythic animate dead requires you to expend one use of mythic power when you cast your prepared animate dead. Casting the augmented version of mythic animate dead requires you to expend two (not three) uses of mythic power when you cast your prepared animate dead spell.

Mythic Spells in Magic Items: Mythic spells can’t be crafted into magic items unless the item is an artifact (for example, you can’t brew a potion of mythic cure light wounds).

Mythic Spells in Stat Blocks: In a creature stat block, a superscript “M” indicates the creature knows the mythic version of the spell.

Potent: Any spell you cast as a mythic spell can also be cast in a potent form that is harder to resist. By expending one additional use of mythic power, you increase the spell’s save DC by 2 and gain a +2 bonus on your caster level check to overcome spell resistance.

Resilient: Any spell you cast as a mythic spell can also be cast in a resilient form that is harder to dispel or counterspell. Expend one additional use of mythic power; any check attempted in order to dispel the spell then takes a –4 penalty, and the spell can’t be countered unless the opposing caster also expends a use of mythic power to overcome your spell’s resilience (in which case the normal rules for counterspelling apply).

You may combine the potent and resilient forms of a spell; to do so, you must expend a total of two additional uses of mythic power. You can cast potent and resilient forms of augmented mythic spells in the same manner.

Tiers in Mythic Spell Descriptions: Unless otherwise stated, any reference to tier in a mythic spell description refers to the tier of the creature casting the spell. Whenever a mythic spell refers to half your tier, the minimum is 1 (meaning you still get a benefit at 1st tier).

Running a Mythic Game

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Running a mythic game has many similarities to running other games. The PCs still go on adventures, fight monsters, discover treasure, and gain experience. The difference is that mythic games have an added level of drama, theater, and tension. Compared to non-mythic parties of the same character level, a mythic party’s adventures feature incredibly difficult foes and far greater challenges. Of course, there are also splendorous rewards for the bold mythic adventurer (see Mythic Magic Items).

This chapter gives guidelines for running a mythic campaign, including a discussion of what makes a game mythic, types of mythic games, rules for adjudicating the difficulty of encounters, and guidelines for advancing play and fulfilling trials.

Making a Mythic Atmosphere

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For a game to feel mythic, it must evoke wonder and awe in the GM and the players. It represents a power shrouded in mystery and beyond the reach of mortals. When characters encounter the mythic, they should feel as though they’ve just received a glimpse into an unseen world, promising so much more if they’re bold enough to explore its wonders and face its dangers. A mythic atmosphere involves legends coming to life, and the characters will have a part to play in shaping these myths. If they succeed, they’ll be the subject of tales and epic ballads for generations to come.

Running a mythic game requires more than just allowing the players to have mythic power and face off against mythic foes. While that is certainly part of it, creating a mythic atmosphere is just as important. The world itself and the structure of the story need to change to make room for the mythic to exist alongside the normal. This change doesn’t require you to reinvent the world, but mythic creatures and their environments should feel as if they are part of the world; they may be hidden, but they should still be tied to the mundane events and lands around them.

Contrasting the mythic with the normal world is crucial to conveying an atmosphere of legend and mystery. The extraordinary only seems that way if it’s in sharp contrast with the mundane. For example, a flying castle with a 1,000-foot-tall tower at its heart, drifting through the air on a thunderous storm cloud, is certainly a dramatic sight, but only when compared to the pastoral farmland and grime-covered town in its shadow. Picture the same floating castle in a world of towering volcanoes, and 500-foot-tall fortresses and the castle just becomes another extreme element in a world of extremes. If your game is set on Golarion (or some other established world), inserting contrasting mythic elements is easy, since the world already has a specific feel. Making your game mythic simply requires you to push beyond the boundaries of the setting, identifying hidden places where mythic elements have always dwelled, waiting to be discovered.

Different Scales of Mythic Campaigns

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The mythic rules can be used in a number of ways to add truly fantastic elements to your game, from simply including a mythic foe at the end of an adventure to allowing the PCs to play mythic characters for their entire adventuring careers, taking on other mythic foes and rivaling the power of the gods. Ultimately, it’s up to the GM to decide how much influence these rules have on the campaign and world as a whole. The following types of scale are provided to give GMs an easy guideline for incorporating mythic rules into their games.

Rare: At this scale, mythic creatures live only in remote parts of the world, content to be bygones of a lost age. People speak of them in stories, but none have actually encountered them. The PCs are not themselves mythic in this type of campaign, but throughout their travels, they may be up against a mythic creature at the conclusion of a noteworthy quest. Alternatively, a mythic creature might be forced into the world to terrorize the land, driving the PCs to find a way to deal with such a powerful threat.

Limited: At the limited scale, the PCs get a taste of mythic power through some extraordinary event, albeit only for a short time. For the duration of an adventure or short campaign arc, they can wield this power to further their goals. Unfortunately, it’s fleeting, and they soon become normal once again, perhaps with a few remnants of power they might call on in a future time of need. Perhaps their power will return at a later date—possibly even regularly according to some mysterious cycle, allowing them to plan out when they take on more difficult challenges coinciding with their resurgence of power.

Uncommon: Mythic creatures and characters are uncommon in this scale of game, but not wholly resigned to the whispers of legend. The PCs also get mythic power, but their advancement in tier is slow. The GM can control this by limiting the number of trials that are presented. Likewise, mythic foes are still not pervasive, but are found with some regularity—leading secret cabals, harassing quiet villages on the edge of civilization, and dwelling in the dark places of the world.

Common: In the common scale, mythic characters and monsters are an everyday part of life. This doesn’t mean that every town has a group of mythic heroes defending it, but that such characters are known to exist and their deeds are common knowledge. Nobles, priests, and other powerful people call upon the PCs for help against those dangerous monsters and villains others are powerless to fight. In this type of campaign, the PCs begin play with mythic power and see it grow as they gain levels, roughly at the rate of one mythic tier per two character levels.

Mythic Story Structure

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Campaigns and adventures come in many forms, taking shape organically with the whims of the players and the needs of the Game Master, but the key to running a successful mythic campaign or adventure involves a little more planning. The following structure is a guide to help GMs in planning out their mythic experience, regardless of length. This formula can work for a single session, where the PCs gain mythic power at the beginning and lose it by the end. Or you can apply it to an entire campaign, where the PCs gain mythic power early on and retire after of dozens of adventures.

Many mythic stories follow a common narrative structure (see The Monomyth under Mythic Themes). This structure is divided into five parts: the contact, the awakening, the journey, the return, and the life after. In the contact, the PCs encounter a threat too great for them to handle. In the awakening, they’re granted mythic power to handle this threat. In the journey, the heroes quest to increase that power and gain what they need to vanquish that threat. In the return, they finally encounter the threats as equals (or near-equals) and have the opportunity to forever right the world. In the life after, the mythic heroes deal with the aftermath of their trials, and either become normal characters once again or hold onto their new power.

This structure isn’t set in stone. GMs should improvise details to suit the campaign. The steps represent story ideas that might reveal themselves in one or more encounters.

The Importance of Failure

In a mythic game, failure can play an important role in motivating the characters. Failure doesn’t need to mean death, but instead that the PCs’ efforts aren’t enough to solve all problems before them. They might win the battle, but find that around them the town was destroyed, or someone close to them died during the conflict. This failure is a story opportunity—it can be used as motivation to continue on their journey, even against loss and extreme adversity. This also illustrates that the PCs’ enemies have power similar to theirs, and that challenges ahead will test the heroes’ limits and resolve.

Starting Off Mythic

A key part of the mythic narrative is that the characters don’t start out as mythic heroes. Even if they gain their powers during the opening scenes of their first adventure, each character has an ordinary life before their ascension. This helps to ground them in the world and gives them a framework by which they can understand the magnitude of this change within them. That’s not to say the seed of mythic power couldn’t have been a part of them since birth, but such latent power should be hidden from them until the appropriate time.

Contact

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At the start of the campaign, the PCs should be normal adventurers, developing and advancing without the aid of mythic power. This gives them a chance to experience life as mundane heroes, struggling to earn enough gold to keep themselves fed and allowing them to explore the normal world around them.

When the PCs first come in contact with something truly wondrous, the mythic campaign starts in earnest. They learn that there’s much more to the world around them than they first realized. This can take the form of some great, emerging danger that the PCs cannot hope to defeat as they currently are. Perhaps an incredibly powerful dragon threatens the land, a long-dead god returns to the world, or the fearsome tarrasque reawakens. The PCs are drawn into this story as their lives are forever changed by this unchallengeable threat. These low-level characters should not combat such a beast, but they might be in a town ravaged by the threat, leaving them with no choice but to flee along with everyone else or perish. After that event, they’re linked to the threat, but right now have no means of dealing with it.

Awakening

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The next step is for the PCs to receive the aid they need, in the form of mythic power. The actual means by which the PCs receive this power may vary (see Mythic Themes), even between PCs in the same game. By the end of this part of the story, the PCs have had their moment of ascension, whether together or separately, and are now mythic. They are not yet ready to face their primary challenge, but the first steps down the path to victory should be revealed at this point.

Often, the source of this power gives them a clue to their journey. For example, the tarrasque is tearing through the countryside, devouring entire towns. The PCs are forced to flee into a secluded valley near where the beast was slumbering, only to find that the valley contains an ancient seal recently broken. A guardian spirit explains to them that it has failed in its duty to keep the beast contained, and beseeches the PCs to intervene if they are brave enough. Giving the last of its strength, the spirit imbues the PCs with mythic power. As the spirit fades away, it tells them to seek out a legendary blade capable of ending the tarrasque.

After receiving aid, the PCs are ready to begin their journey, but first they must leave their old world behind. Make this a painful choice for them, as the PCs must leave loved ones and comfort to venture into the unknown and ready themselves against true danger. This is a good time to present their first major challenge, so they can fully grasp the power they now command. The GM should also mark this point with some sort of loss or setback, to emphasize the gravity of the situation and the need for the PCs to undertake their quest. In the example above, the PCs might leave the valley only to find that their hometown is completely gone, devoured by the tarrasque. Before the PCs have a chance to mourn, they're beset by a group of cultists who helped to weaken the seal. After a deadly fight, the PCs see that they must leave to retrieve the blade if they're going to save other towns from this horrible fate.

Journey

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The second part of the mythic structure is the journey. This part of the story can be nearly any length, from composing the middle of one session to encompassing dozens of sessions. The PCs, now enhanced with mythic power, must contend with various trials and dangers. Although these tests can take many different forms, there are some common types.

One type of test is that of the heart, compelling the PCs to struggle for something they care about other than themselves. These tests provide the PCs with a goal other than their own well-being and power. There should be something threatened if they fail, which serves to give the PCs resolve, a reason to carry on. As they visit a city in the path of the monster, the PCs might encounter people who remind them of home, or of friends lost. Or they could find a child in the clutches of a enemy, only to learn that he’s the key to their diabolical plan, and the PCs must succeed if they’re to save him in time. If the threat is powerful enough, the PCs may even come to learn that their own survival is secondary their quest’s completion.

Temptation is another type of test, one that has different twists. Some temptations are obvious, and you expect the heroes to refuse, such as discovering a bucolic valley where they could forgo their journey and retire in peace, or a dubious stranger offering them a shortcut through a cursed forest. Such temptations are important to a mythic tale because refusal defines the characters and shows us their limits. Then there are the subtle temptations, ones that heroes might actually consider—either because the price seems small (or even nonexistent) compared to the gain or because the source seems trustworthy: taking food from an evil witch after starving for days, or choosing to give up a child they’re protecting in exchange for an entire city’s safety. Keep in mind that forces of good and evil are equally likely to test the heroes, to either reveal their mettle or lead them down the path of corruption. In any case, the PCs might be tempted a number of times along their journey and they must find the resolve to carry on and stay on the path.

The PCs will eventually come to a point where they must confront the source of their own power, which provides another form of test. During their travels, they learn more and more about that source, ultimately revealing the truth about its nature. This might lead to a confrontation with the source of their power, after which the PCs feel they are equals to this source rather than its servants. For example, the PCs might learn their power comes from a divine source, and that deity is using them for its own ends. At great risk, they confront an aspect of the god to find answers. At the conclusion of the conflict, the PCs realize that while they’re only a piece of the god’s grand scheme, they’re no mere pawns. Just as the god is using them to achieve her ends, they’re using the god to achieve theirs.

At the end of their journey, the PCs find their ultimate goal just within reach. Achieving this should be their most difficult test yet. Some foes are there to cull the unworthy, while others are agents of evil set to destroy the PCs. This last step in the journey should include a reward the likes of which the PCs have never seen, the culmination of their entire journey. With our earlier example, the PCs arrive at the resting place of the legendary sword capable of ending the tarrasque. Retrieving the sword from its ancient tomb is no easy task though, as the weapon is guarded by a host of mythic monsters and deadly traps. With the sword in hand, they must return to defeat the danger.

Return

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The trip back can be just as perilous as the journey to achieve their goal. The heroes are at the height of their power, but they are now beset on all sides by those who would see them fail. Their enemies should be aware of this quest, and go to any means to put an end to the PCs. The mythic characters have the tools necessary, however, to brush aside such lesser threats and travel back to the beginning of their journey. This gives them a chance to fully appreciate their power, and use it to defeat foes that would have been truly dangerous not long ago.

During the journey back, the PCs can take a different path than before. They might travel the planes, use a magic carpet, or use some other wondrous means to expedite their trip. Or they simply take a more direct route, no longer needing to roam about the land searching for clues. They might receive aid from their patron should they get lost or need help tracking down the monster that started their journey. Regardless of their method of travel, they should get a sense that they are leaving the mythical world behind, returning to the mundane. They are returning home changed and ready to take on the challenge that awaits them.

At the conclusion of the mythic game, the heroes face their ultimate foe. This final encounter will be their greatest challenge, one that might even claim their lives. By now, if properly motivated, the PCs will make the sacrifice gladly to end the threat. When the conflict is over and the threat has been dealt with, the PCs’ journey is finally complete.

Life Afterward

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The GM and players must decide what happens to the PCs’ power, once all is well again. Do they transcend ordinary life to continue down the path of a mythic hero, to go on other journeys, facing even greater threats? Do they find their mythic power fleeting, leaving them with the difficult task of returning to a mundane life? Many of these decisions will be guided by the needs of the story and your campaign.

If this was only a short mythic session, in which the PCs gained and lost mythic power in a single evening, the transition will be simpler than if it was at the end of an arc lasting for many months. If mythic power was a central theme of the entire campaign, this might be the logical end to it. The next campaign might take place in the same world, years or even generations later, where the player’s previous characters have faded into legend and their new characters grew up hearing tales of those mythic heroes.

Elements of a Mythic Adventure

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Beyond the story, there are a wide variety of elements you can add to give your campaign a mythic feel. These elements are different ways of looking at various parts of an adventure. A mythic adventure should contain some of these, though not necessarily all at once.

Cunning Foes: The enemies mythic characters face should be cunning and devious in their plans. Unlike normal monsters that tend to wait around to be fought, a cunning foe is proactive in its efforts to defeat the PCs. Such enemies use the environment to their benefit, utilize their abilities to the fullest, and have at least one contingency plan. Cunning foes frequently escape a losing battle to regroup and prepare another attack. After the PCs’ first encounter with a cunning enemy, their foe learns from that experience and uses new tricks and tactics to neutralize the PCs’ strengths. The foe might even do research or conduct reconnaissance before the fight, pitting the PCs against her minions while she watches silently, noting the PCs’ capabilities.

Hard Consequences: With all the incredible power at characters’ fingertips, it’s easy to forget that the heroes are still people—complicated and flawed. Mythic heroes suffer or witness dramatic consequences in stories all the time, and it’s those moments that define a hero and help us connect with her. There are different ways to bring about consequences. Failure is one option, whether it is failing a combat or skill check or to failing to make the right decision (see The Importance of Failure under Mythic Story Structure). There are other ways to bring about consequences, though, such as having something unforeseen happen because of the PCs’ actions. Imagine watching the countryside burn because you used a mythic fireball to defeat a foe. And there is always the classic story moment of presenting a hard choice, where no option is without cost. It’s through suffering and reacting to such consequences that the true nature of these mythic heroes emerges.

Impressive Settings: The world of mythic adventures is enormous and dramatic. While a large keep is certainly impressive, one with a 200-foot-tall tower at its heart is more suitably awe-inspiring. This applies to natural environments as well, such as an entire forest with plants five times the normal size, waterfalls more than 100 feet high, or an immense volcano erupting at its heart. This might also take the form of a location with supernatural effects, such as a lake that is perfectly calm even when disturbed, or a swamp that is preternaturally dark. These places should appeal to all the senses, making them vibrant and memorable.

Legendary Creatures: Some creatures the PCs face should be legends in their own rights. While those that are drawn from ancient myth (such as the minotaur and the medusa), are likely candidates, any monster can fit into this category given the proper backstory. A random encounter with a dire wolf in the wilderness isn’t especially legendary, but if the PCs visit the nearby town first and learn that there’s a feral monster that’s been feeding on townsfolk for a decade, and there are many local myths about the beast, that same encounter gains a legendary quality. Defeating such foes adds to the mythic characters’ story, making these moments important to a mythic adventure.

Otherworldly Influence: Whether from artifacts, ancient magic, or the gods, mythic power is beyond that of the mortal realm. When the PCs gain such power, they attract the attention of mysterious forces that seek to control or otherwise influence them. This can take many forms, from a deity speaking to them through a cryptic seer, a strange sign from the stars, or gifts left in a tranquil glade to aid the heroes on their journey. Not all such influences will be beneficial—the PCs might be hammered by powerful storms, led astray by a constantly changing map, or attacked by agents of an evil power. The PCs should feel like their quest has caught the attention of powerful forces, even if they do not understand their sources or motives.

Powerful Enemies: Foes should have powers and abilities far beyond those the PCs normally expect to face. Through their mythic abilities, the PCs have the tools to defeat these challenges, but such foes are powerful and dangerous nonetheless—more than capable of bringing pain to the world if not defeated. Battles with powerful foes make it clear that the PCs truly need their mythic power to survive. Of course, not every fight should be against a powerful foe; lesser foes give the PCs a chance to show off their talents.

Supernatural Events: Strange and wonderful events surround mythic characters, events that twist and alter the world around them. Such events might be local (a perpetual blizzard in a small valley) or they might cover a vast area (a gloom that covers the sun). These supernatural events are in some way tied to the story of the characters. Perhaps the blizzard is the sign of a mystical frozen water elemental seer who is trying to get the heroes’ attention. Or the gloom covering the sun is caused by a mythic demon seeking to bring ruin to the surface world.

The World's Reaction

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Amazing powers and impressive foes are only part of a mythic story. The world’s reaction to such heroes is also a significant part of making a campaign actually feel mythic. The NPCs encountered in a mythic game should have a sense—possibly vague, possibly unmistakable— that the PCs are marked with grandeur.

When portraying the PCs’ mythic origins and powers, the GM has a few options. The mythic nature could be apparent to everyone in some visible way, like a glowing brand or faint aura. This could be always visible, or manifest only as a character uses mythic power. Alternatively its nature could be subtle and felt rather than seen. Of course, it could start as something subtle at lower tiers, and become more pronounced as a mythic character progresses. Regardless of what direction you take, the people in the world should not mistake mythic characters for normal people.

The way that common people talk to these heroes needs to be different from the way they would talk to other characters. Mythic PCs should never be “tasked” or “ordered” to do anything (except perhaps by a demanding foe in a momentary position of power). Beings, even rulers or powerful planar allies, should address the mythic characters as peers or possibly entreat them as supplicants.

Likewise, when NPCs are in the presence of such greatness, they should not waste time asking for trivial favors. That’s what normal low-level adventurers are for. Even a 1st-level/1st-tier character is worthy of respect. That doesn’t mean you have to throw away the quests you’ve planned, but you should present them to the PCs (and players) as something worth a mythic character’s time and energy.

The true powers in the world, whether the raw power of angels and demons or the political power of kingdoms and churches, recognize the potential in the mythic heroes. Wise ones know to be polite to low-tier heroes today, because in the future they will be formidable allies or devastating foes.

On the flip side, mythic power is an alienating force. Very few people have it, and many of those who do are threats, not friends. So the people the heroes encounter will look at them with reverence, fear, or even resentment, but never with familiarity and ease. In some ways, mythic characters are the ultimate outsiders, saving a world that they don’t quite fit in anymore.

Mythic Themes

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Mythic adventures can gain their legendary powers in a variety of ways, from a gift from the gods, to the influence of ancient magic thought lost to the world, to traveling to a distant land filled with power. Such themes describe the source of mythic power in a given campaign and give general guidelines about how it functions. Some campaigns will focus on one theme to tell a mythic story, and others will include multiple themes—although the GM should be careful when using more than one theme, as this might muddle the story behind such power. In some cases, merging various themes will make more dramatic sense than using one theme alone.

The following themes are just a few types that the GM can work into the world when introducing the mythic rules into her campaign. These are generally compatible with any type of mythic game. Each one includes the following sections.

Description: This gives a basic overview of the theme.

Scope: This describes how much of an impact the mythic elements have on the campaign, indicating how those elements change the tone of the game.

Ascension: This includes some sample ways the PCs might become mythic using this theme.

Story: This describes the types of adventures and campaigns that work well with this mythic theme.

Challenges: This lists some types of mythic challenges relating to this theme that the PCs will likely face.

Ending: This describes a few ways the campaign might reach its mythic climax.

The Monomyth

The structure of a mythic game is drawn from the concept of the “monomyth,” outlined in Joseph Campbell’s book, The Hero with a Thousand Faces. This pattern is found throughout countless modern and ancient mythological tales, from the Bible to The Lord of the Rings. You won’t have to search hard to find examples in books and films. Game Masters are encouraged to read up on the monomyth in more detail, as well as examine other stories and media that use this pervasive narrative structure.

Eldritch Magic

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An ancient artifact, forgotten spell, or fantastic magical event grants the PCs mythic powers. Regardless of its particular source, this power comes from the very fabric of magic itself, a power few dare to harness.

Scope: While the scope of a campaign featuring eldritch magic can be broad, since this power comes from a particular item or event, the powers should be tied to it. Perhaps the ancients created a sacred seal to be broken if certain signs presented themselves, such as a week of a blood-red moon or three comets in the sky at the same time. In this way, the mythic rules have an impact on the entire setting, but their direct influence can be limited by the source of the power.

Ascension: Rumors persist of books that, once read, unlock potential hidden deep within the mind and body. An ancient seer possesses these volumes and offers the heroes a chance to read one that will grant them mythic power, but only if they will defeat a creature terrorizing the city.

While exploring a long-forgotten valley, the PCs encounter a strange stone monument with an ancient spell carved upon it. They discover that this is a relic from a bygone age of magic, and that it grants mythic power. Unfortunately, they aren’t the only ones who’ve found it, and now this power has been loosed upon the world.

Deep inside a forgotten dungeon, the PCs discover a room sealed by a series of complicated mundane and powerful arcane locks. Promises of great treasure led the PCs to this spot. As they break the seal on the door, a blast of arcane energy emanates from the door, knocking out the heroes and imbuing them with mythic powers. While the heroes are stunned, a creature bashes through the doors with such force that it breaks the hinges and escapes. When the PCs come to, a guardian spirit waits over them, imploring them to recapture the monstrosity they unleashed.

The PCs realize that each of them inherited a curved piece of metal inscribed with symbols in an archaic script. By placing the pieces together, they form a circle. When the circle is complete, the PCs each feel energy pulse through them that causes them to ascend.

Story: Adventures using this theme are always tied to the source of power, either by those who wield it or those who seek to steal such power away for themselves. The PCs are drawn into this struggle and must prevent such power from falling into the wrong hands… possibly even realizing that those hands are their own.

Ancient artifacts and items from distant planes carry secrets and abilities rarely accessible to those living today. Interacting with such items is dangerous, and will forever change the wielder in unforeseen ways. These items find their ways into the collections of great and long-living creatures, such as dragons and liches, or are buried in the most remote areas beyond the known world. Not only will interacting with these items change a character, but the power released is a beacon for frightening entities linked into that same source.

Some of these items are part of a set or pieces of a larger item. Collecting the various pieces will increase the PCs’ powers and give them further insight into the world of mythic creatures that surrounds them. But such items are jealously guarded, and it may cost the PCs even more than they expect to attain this greater power.

Challenges: The PCs must face off against foes who have harnessed the same power they have, or who seek to take it from them. If the PCs’ power stems from an event, perhaps they are not the only ones to gain power in this way. If their power comes from an artifact, perhaps there are other relics granting power to their enemies. In either case, the PCs must deal with foes who not only understand their power (possibly better than the PCs do), but wield it as well.

Ending: The heroes take on an ancient mythic creature, the very one that has been placing challenges before them. It does this not to defeat the PCs, but to force them to gain more power—power it seeks to rip from them. This foe has designs upon the power that the PCs possess and wishes to either take it all for itself or remove the threat of that power from the world.

Legendary Encounter

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After the heroes achieve a monumental task thought to be too much for them, the essence of the mythic world bows to their achievement and fills them. This could come from destroying a plane-shattering artifact, defeating a legendary monster, or surviving a deadly journey to a wondrous location.

Scope: The scope of this campaign can be quite farranging. The experience that grants the heroes mythic powers could occur anywhere in the campaign world (though that could be merely one of many such moments happening all around the world). Events related to the experience could send the heroes to distant lands—perhaps the heroes gain their powers from destroying an evil artifact, and learn of other such artifacts hidden in dungeons around the world.

Ascension: An NPC begs the heroes to destroy an artifact that’s corrupting the land. After a deadly adventure, the PCs finally manage to destroy the object, but in doing so release a wave of energy that grants them mythic power.

Reports of an ancient dragon ravaging an entire valley reach the heroes’ ears. When they battle the beast, they find themselves vastly outmatched, but through cunning and luck, they manage to slay the dragon. Upon its death, its blood washes over them, infusing them with mythic power.

While traveling overland, the heroes become lost in a wild storm. For hours, they’re battered by sheets of rain, and surrounded by unnaturally thick mist that refuses to be dispersed. When the storm lifts, the heroes find themselves on the rim of an ancient, enchanted valley—one told of in many tales but few people believed to truly exist.

Story: Any sort of adventure could appeal to parties of legendary origin. The nature of their mythic powers could inspire certain storylines, such as recovering pieces of an artifact or hunting down the source of a pack of mythic monsters. The heroes may realize that if their experience granted them power, it could do the same for others, including those with sinister or chaotic motives. The mythic power in the heroes’ bodies seems attuned to other such sources of power, and the main campaign arc involves the heroes tracking down these sources and keeping them from becoming tools of evil.

Challenges: Since many different experiences, objects, and places in the world can be sources of mythic power, mythic villains and monsters could appear frequently. If the PCs destroyed an artifact or killed an ancient beast to gain their power, others may seek revenge for that act.

Ending: At the end of their journey, the heroes should come full circle, perhaps even returning to the place where they first gained their mythic power. They might have to face off against the villain that precipitated their journey, or maybe even the source of their power itself. In the end, they should feel like their legend has closure, even if they keep their mythic power.

Lost Inheritance

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Mythic power comes from a lost age when mythic creatures and characters were common. That power has faded from this world, but once an age, when the time is right, mythic power returns for a short time.

Scope: In this theme, mythic power is a rarity, held only by a few who often hide from the world and those who would seek to take it from them. To widen the scope, mythic power might be returning to the world, heralded by some grand conjunction of events.

Ascension: A celestial event marks the return of mythic power to the world. Possibly by accident, the PCs are standing in just the right place at the time of this omen, and are imbued with such power. The PCs are not alone, however—others were also at different places of power at the same time.

At the conclusion of an adventure, the PCs learn that their births had been carefully arranged over the past 100 years in an attempt to recreate a powerful, mythic lineage long thought to be lost. With this discovery, they also find the means to unlocking their potential.

Exploring a fabled lost city, the PCs learn its inhabitants held power far beyond that of their modern cousins. The secret to this magic came from a special ritual that could only be performed once every 1,000 years, but it came at a terrible price and with a great deal of risk. The next ritual is fast approaching, presenting an opportunity for the PCs to become mythic if they choose to pursue this dangerous path.

Story: With these adventures, mythic power itself is the story. They contain a great deal of mystery, as there are few in the world who know about mythic power and what perils come along with wielding it. The PCs travel around the world, seeking knowledge of its origins, what caused its downfall, and how it can be used. Of course, others have also learned about this power, and they intend to use it for nefarious ends.

Challenges: The PCs aren’t the only ones to gain mythic power from this source. Perhaps there are others of this bloodline, or other creatures that discover a way to awaken power within them. Most mysterious, however, are creatures from the lost age, returned to the world to take back what they see as rightfully theirs—whether that’s the mythic power or the whole world.

Ending: As events draw to a conclusion, the PCs must choose whether this power remains in the world. Keeping it for themselves means the power can be taken by other villains, and the heroes will need to keep constant vigil for the sake of their mythic nature. Or they can let this power fade away, even knowing there are other threats out there that could use their mythic talents. Alternatively, there may be no choice in the matter; the power has returned and the PCs must find a way to deal with it. In any case, the villains that seek to abuse this power must be stopped, no matter the cost.

Planar Might

Source Mythic Adventures pg. 126
Upon traveling to another plane, the PCs acquire mythic power. These powers might last only as long as the PCs are on this plane, or the PCs may be forever transformed by the visit.

Scope: This might only apply to one plane of existence, with the power fading immediately when the heroes leave and resurging the moment they return. The scope can be extended by making the campaign about a group of planes somehow mythically connected. Or the powers last beyond the visit, but fade over time, requiring return trips for the heroes so they may drink from the mythic wellspring and renew their powers.

Ascension: Before a powerful wizard ally can complete an important ritual to save the country, a strange creature steps through a nearby mirror and steals him away. The mirror portal remains open behind it, allowing the PCs to follow. They emerge onto an unknown plane, and the physics of this place are nothing like those of home. As a result, the PCs now have access to a wide range of abilities they once considered unthinkable.

A messenger of the gods appears to the PCs, asking them to deliver a relic to a plane where even the gods fear to tread. It gives them each a blessing that, upon entering this fearsome plane, provides protections through ascension.

Found guilty of high treason for a crime they didn’t commit, the PCs are sentenced by a tribunal to wander the endless planes, wearing the “collars of judgment,” until they prove themselves worthy to return. They now jump from plane to plane, attempting to defeat other threats to their homeland. The collars around their necks give them access to mythic powers and transport them to their next labor when they finish their current one. Hopefully their last will be against the one who framed them.

Story: While some planes function much like the Material Plane—in that they have gravity, breathable air, etc.—other planes have truly alien environs. Several of the latter augment those who enter to allow them to survive; this power sometimes lasts only while a visitor is on that plane, while other times it’s permanent. (Some believe this augmentation occurs when latent abilities that reside in all life forms are triggered.) In other instances, special items or rituals grant these powers during travel through specific planes.

Challenges: The planes are full of unpredictable oddities and surreal monsters. Many of these creatures are incredibly powerful without being mythic at all, making them more than a match for the PCs. Despite their power, the PCs must tread lightly in the presence of archangels and demon princes. Ultimately, they will have to face such beings, even if they start by challenging their minions and other, lesser agents.

Ending: At the end of their journey, the heroes must ultimately face some sort of gatekeeper that keeps them from going home. This creature might literally be preventing their travel, or it might be so great a threat that it must be defeated before the heroes can return to their ordinary lives. Even if the PCs traveled to the plane accidentally, there should be some incredibly powerful force standing in the way of their return to normal life.

Power of the Gods

Source Mythic Adventures pg. 126
A god grants the heroes mythic powers, either in response to deeds they have accomplished or in anticipation of deeds they have yet to perform. In this theme, mythic power is the provenance of the gods and only divine agents may wield such power.

Scope: Since the heroes’ mythic powers come from a specific deity, their activities may occur in places where the deity is popularly worshiped or challenged. The heroes could function as champions of the deity, protecting lands their god has deemed only for the righteous. They could also be emissaries, traveling to distant lands where their god is unknown. A campaign could even take place in lands where worship of the heroes’ god is strictly outlawed by the ruling religion.

In any case, the scope is somewhat defined by the gods’ wishes, for what they give they can just as easily take away. (Or perhaps they can only bestow mythic powers, and are incapable of removing them, making ascending mortals a risky proposition.)

Ascension: The PCs are actually children of a god, the result of a pairing with a mortal. This is unknown to them until the appointed hour, when their divine heritage manifests. Using this hook, it’s possible that all of the PCs are related, even if they don’t realize it at first (each having been raised by a mortal surrogate parent).

During a vicious battle at an especially holy site, one of the heroes is slain. As her companions use resurrection magic to bring her back from the dead, the spell expands in a glowing aura that imbues all the heroes, including the newly risen one, with mythic powers.

The heroes fight bravely to defend or restore a site of worship. When the last enemy is slain and the site is reconsecrated, the heroes are filled with a sense of divine gratitude and blessed with mythic powers.

Story: In this theme, the gods take a much more active role in the world. They may be only able to act indirectly, and need heroes like the PCs to carry out their will. Or there are too many threats for even the gods to face, so they need champions to fight on other fronts.

A party with several members dedicated to the same god lends itself naturally to such a story. These heroes receive occasional divine communications from their patron through dreams, omens, or visitations. While they may go on adventures unrelated to their deity, the overall arc of the campaign is guided by their faith and culminates in a battle against an enemy of their patron.

In a party of mixed faiths, the story could center on discovering the identity of the mysterious benefactor who gifted the PCs with mythic powers. Dreams and omens could still trigger adventures, but these are muddled and cloudy. In the end, the heroes could find their power came from one particular patron, or from an alliance of deities who have joined together against a particularly formidable villain.

Challenges: Rival gods can imbue their own champions with power, or create mythic monsters to oppose the heroes. While not every adventure needs to contain a mythic challenge, the major villains and ultimate challenge should be mythic in nature and diametrically opposed to the PCs’ patrons.

Ending: The final stage of the journey for the heroes should center on the goals of their patron deity. A rival deity almost always opposes the goals, and will stop at nothing to see the PCs fail. The PCs might have to face off against a powerful agent of that rival or maybe even against some sort of avatar of the divine being itself. At the loftiest heights of power, the PCs might be tasked with going to the rivals’ home realm and fighting the angry god directly. They might not survive such an encounter, but with the backing of their patron, they might still accomplish their goal—and their heroism may become a religious story to be told down through the ages.

Stolen Might

Source Mythic Adventures pg. 127
The PCs gain mythic power by taking it from another mythic creature, either by force, happenstance, or through some more elaborate ritual or ceremony. In this theme, the amount of mythic power is finite; to gain more, one must take it from another.

Scope: The amount of mythic power in the world is limited, but the actual amount can vary depending on the needs of the campaign. Maybe there are many mythic beings scattered throughout the world, some secret and others overt about their mythic nature. Or there are few such people in the world, but each one is a force to be reckoned with. Regardless, there are those with power who forever crave more, while others are merely content to possess what power they have and to use it wisely. The PCs must decide how to handle their power, whether or not to seek out more, and how to deal with those who come to take theirs away.

Ascension: After the heroes defeat a particularly powerful foe, a storm of lightning emerges from his body, washing over the PCs and granting them mythic power. They quickly learn that to gain additional tiers, they must defeat other mythic foes and harvest power from them.

The PCs are summoned to a lonely mountaintop where an ancient monk awaits. Before succumbing to old age, the monk grants them the mythic power that he’s held for many years, entrusting them to guard it and carry on his legacy.

A strange messenger from a mysterious cult approaches the PCs and offers them membership. They’re brought to a strange ritual and infused with mythic power stolen from a bound captive. They soon learn that the cult they have joined is in an eternal struggle with their rivals, both sides playing a centuries-long game of stealing power from the other using this ancient ritual.

After some chance omen, the PCs wake up with mythic power. They discover that this very power means they’re now a part of a secret world, one where other mythic beings now hunt them down to kill them for what they possess. It’s through a chance meeting with a friendly mythic character that the PCs understand what has befallen them.

Story: The PCs might go on plenty of regular adventures in this theme, but every encounter they have with a mythic creature or character is fraught with peril. These rivals might seek to steal their power, or help explain how their power might be used. The PCs will have to decide if taking it is something they can morally accept. If gaining mythic power requires the death of others who possess it, the power itself becomes a sort of curse, with villains around every corner seeking to end the PCs’ lives and steal their mythic spark.

Challenges: Mythic foes will be relatively uncommon in this theme, because each successful encounter with one causes the PCs to increase in power. As they gain tiers, the PCs might discover that slaying a being of lesser tier is not enough to advance their power. Or perhaps the highest tiers are only possible to those willing to kill a great many mythic creatures, collecting all that power into one body. The PCs must constantly be vigilant for other mythic foes, both above them in power and below.

Ending: Ultimately, the PCs will reach the 10th tier and be left with no more to gain. From this lofty perch, they must defend themselves from all mythic threats seeking to steal what they have earned. Alternatively, those who reach that height of power might find there is only one more step to take—stealing more power from a deity or other source of immense power. Or there may be a grand reward awaiting those who capture all the mythic power in the world.

Designing Encounters

Source Mythic Adventures pg. 128
Designing a mythic encounter is a lot like designing an encounter in any other adventure. During play, the PCs will face a variety of challenges: monsters, NPCs, traps, and more. The difference is that during a mythic adventure, the challenges are far deadlier. It’s important to stress to the players, through the encounters that they face, that these are dangers beyond what they might normally expect in the game. Much of this comes through the design of the encounters, which can vary greatly depending on the PCs and how you want to challenge them. In the most basic terms, the mythic rules can be used in one of two ways: to challenge normal PCs and to challenge mythic PCs.

Encounters for Normal PCs: If the PCs aren’t mythic, then these rules can be used to present challenges of an unexpected nature. Mythic creatures and villains are more powerful than their normal counterparts, making encounters significantly more dangerous. See Adjusting CR and Level below.

Normal PCs should be rewarded with experience points and treasure based on this adjusted CR. This means the PCs will face creatures that would normally be below them in terms of their original CRs, but whose strange abilities make them true threats. Such encounters should generally be at least challenging in relation to the PCs’ Average Party Level (APL; see Table 12–1).

For example, a group of four 6th-level PCs is exploring an ancient crypt filled with undead. As they face a variety of normal undead foes, they also begin to discover a far greater evil dwelling within, sealed away centuries ago by a holy brotherhood. Upon breaching the final chamber, they face a pair of mythic mummies crackling with dark magic. The pair of mythic mummies has an adjusted CR of 8, making it a deadly threat to the 6th-level PCs.

Encounters for Mythic PCs: Mythic adventurers are ready for challenges beyond those normally expected for characters of their level. (See Adjusting CR and Level below.) When designing encounters to challenge these characters, roughly one-third of the encounters should use their adjusted APL, one-third should use the characters’ original APL, and the remaining should fall somewhere between those two values.

Of course, individual encounters can vary from these numbers as normal (such as a challenging encounter versus an easy encounter, as noted on Table 12–1). When facing a mythic foe, add half its mythic rank to its original CR to determine the foe’s adjusted CR (as above).

For example, when designing challenges for a group of four 12th-level, 6th-tier mythic PCs, approximately onethird of the encounters they face should be CR 12, one-third should be CR 15, and the remaining encounters should be CR 13 or 14. That means some of their encounters are rather easy (allowing them to dominate foes using their mythic power), some are of average difficulty, and some truly push them to their limits. The challenging encounters should be against other mythic foes, forcing the PCs to confront enemies with similar power.

Adjusting CR and Level

Having mythic tiers changes the effective level of the character for the purposes of determining what threats they can face and what treasures they should earn. Likewise, having mythic tiers or ranks changes the effective CR of the foes heroes must contend with.

To adjust a character’s level, add half his tier (minimum 1) to his total character level. So a 10th-level/5th-tier character is effectively a 12th-level character for challenge and reward purposes, and a 20th-level/10th-tier character is effectively a 25th-level character for those purposes.

To adjust a foe’s CR, add half its tier or rank (minimum 1) to its CR. So a 2nd-rank minotaur is effectively a CR 6 monster, while a 6th-tier champion pit fiend would be CR 23. For the monsters presented in Chapter 6, this calculation has already been made

Rewarding Mythic Characters

Source Mythic Adventures pg. 129
Mythic characters should be rewarded with experience points and treasure based on the higher overall CR of the encounters they face. In general, this means mythic characters will earn experience points and treasure at a faster rate than their normal counterparts. As a result, the GM is encouraged to use the medium or even slow experience point and treasure value progressions for such characters (see Table 3–1Table 12–5

Mythic Trials

Source Mythic Adventures pg. 129
The saga of mythic heroes is filled with wild adventures, deadly foes, and mysterious forces. For most, their journey is defined by such moments. These trials are the peaks of the story, turning points at which one wrong move or costly mistake might cause the entire quest to fail. In the game, these events denote the stages of the mythic character’s journey. Think of trials as an important plot point, one that is intrinsically tied to the legend of the characters.

Mythic characters advance in two ways: they gain character levels by accumulating experience points, and they gain tiers by accomplishing a number of trials (see Table 1–2: Mythic Trials per Tier). These trials are the true tales of mythic heroism, representing the culmination of an entire adventure or campaign arc in which the PCs overcome a terrifying challenge or achieve some fantastic victory. The trial can be anything the GM imagines, but it’s not accomplished until some major goal is completed—be it to defeat a monster, save a town, or recover an artifact. So while an entire adventure might be a trial, it does not count toward advancement until the heroes complete it.

The rate at which these trials are accomplished determines how quickly the PCs gain mythic tiers. As a guideline, the PCs should face a number of trials equal to the amount needed to gain a tier in the time it takes for them to gain two character levels. This should keep the character’s mythic tier roughly equal to 1/2 the character’s overall level. (Of course, the GM can alter this rate to suit the campaign.) That means if the PCs attain their first mythic tier at 1st level, they should probably face only a single greater trial by the time they reach 4th level, so that they reach 2nd tier at that time. Conversely, higher-level characters that gain mythic power later in their careers might face a number of trials in quick succession to gain tiers quickly, or they might even start with multiple tiers right away to get them closer to the average. Table 1–2 lists the number of trials a character must overcome to gain a new tier, but this number is subject to GM discretion and the needs of the story.

A GM might instead decide that every time the PCs complete a trial, they gain a tier. In this case, such trials are far less common. Alternatively, a GM might double the number of trials needed, and in turn make them more common. Either way, the rate of tier progression shouldn’t feel much different from what would normally happen.

When designing a trial, GMs should keep the following points in mind. Trials represent important stories in the legend of mythic characters. Unlike an anecdote about particularly nasty fight or dangerous trap, trials are lengthy tales of multiple dangerous encounters, against mythic foes and unimaginable adversity. A trial should be the culmination of an entire adventure or a short series of adventures.

In addition, each trial should include at least three of the elements noted in Elements of a Mythic Adventure. These elements define a trial as mythic and help the players understand that they’re approaching a vital stage of their journey without directly telling them that a trial is forthcoming.

Sample Trials

Source Mythic Adventures pg. 130
The following trials should give GMs ideas of the various challenges mythic characters need to face to gain tiers. Use these as is or as inspiration for designing your own. Some of these suggest a mythic origin as well, but can be reworked for other mythic characters. Note that some of these are larger in scope and might represent an entire campaign arc. At the GM’s discretion, such longer events might represent several trials.

A Noble’s Mind Overthrown: A great king or emperor succumbs to a strange madness, either from some unforeseen disease or a villain’s magical corruption. In the ensuing mania, the ruler declares war on followers of the major religions, hitherto great supporters of the crown and a boon to the common people. Not wanting to provoke outright war between the crown and the faiths, the mythic characters are charged by their patron to discover the cure for their monarch’s besieged mind.

Abyssal Parasite: A powerful interaction of multiple mythic spells destroyed the body of a powerful demon, but in its place created a vengeful spirit neither dead nor alive. The spirit is capable of possessing others and infusing its host with demonic powers, using this as an opportunity to gather evil allies and gain strength. A celestial being that opposes demonkind calls the upon PCs to stop the vile being. They must then track the demon spirit as it moves from victim to victim, until the heroes can eradicate the demonic shade.

Aftermath: The kingdom has been ravaged by a terrible battle with an invading force. The king’s armies suffered a pyrrhic victory—the realm is all but destroyed. The PCs must help restore the domain to its former glory by rooting out remaining enemies, tending to the suffering people, rebuilding the cities, striking deals with neighboring nations for aid, and protecting the kingdom against further attack by emboldened foes.

First Steps: The PCs are normal adventurers who come to the aid of a strange creature beset by vicious enemies. Unfortunately, by the time the PCs fend off the attackers, the gravely wounded creature is drawing its last breaths. Just before dying, it bestows mythic power upon the heroes and entrusts them with a quest that it was not able to complete. With their new abilities, the PCs can finish the mission, avenge their fallen benefactor, and take their first steps into a larger world of challenges and foes greater than they ever knew existed.

For Those Who Must Follow: The PCs are heroes in the days before a coming apocalypse at the hands of a dark divine or even extraterrestrial power. Unlike a campaign where the PCs must stop a cataclysm, in this trial they have no hope of averting the impending disaster. Instead, they must draw on mythic power to lay a foundation for future heroes to save the world. Their adventures will lead them to create secret repositories containing knowledge and small slivers of their own mythic power. While doing this they also attempt to form deep alliances with disparate groups the world over, laying the groundwork for the heroes that will one day rise and change the fate of a world that they themselves had not time enough to save.

Into the Abyss: The PCs go on a quest to the Abyss, and must endure a harrowing expedition through the infinite layers of that chaotic evil realm. They’re tasked to rescue an important mortal sold into demonic slavery, retrieve a soul that was condemned to the Abyss by mistake, or topple a particularly destructive demon lord. Whatever the reason, the adventurers face challenges that push their new abilities to the limit.

Lost Souls: The souls of the dead are not reaching their final destinations, but are instead trapped in a state of waiting. The PCs must discover what is powerful enough to interfere with this cosmic process—and for what dark purpose. Worse, the denied souls are being twisted into monstrous forms, causing pockets of corruption and instability, and presenting other threats to the world. The PCs struggle to unravel the mystery and defeat the furtive villain behind it all.

Mirror through the Multiverse: A sudden magical event, like an arcane earthquake, shreds the barrier between parallel worlds. The divine powers of each realm perceive the others as threats and seek to do away with the rival “mockeries” of their own world through their ascended champions. The PCs are selected on behalf of their world’s pantheon of gods while searching out their opponents, some of whom might be eerily similar to them. GMs can offer players the choice of vanquishing their opponents or of allying with them in a joint effort to stop this cosmic bout.

Proving Grounds of the Great Beyond: The PCs are captured and taken to a grand arena where they must fight against other legendary creatures for the amusement of powerful planar entities. Each round of the competition proves more deadly than the last, as it becomes clear that only one team will survive this tournament. If the PCs are victorious, a great boon might be bestowed upon them, so when the chance to escape presents itself, they must decide whether or not to continue.

Redemption: Pursuing a once-strong champion of goodness like a fallen angel or an antipaladin, the PCs use mythic power not to oppose their enemy but to discover the source of his defection in the hopes of turning him back to the light. Or they must cleanse a relic that’s been polluted by some festering malignancy. The corruption is so deep-seated that the PCs must journey to a distant place of renown that can be reached only by heroes wielding the strongest of mythic powers.

Revenge Unyielding: Some legendary warrior or powerful monster returns, like a dragon or giant once imprisoned in stasis, petrified, or under an enchanted sleep. Finding its world gone and all of its family and kin perished at the hands of heroes long since past, its mind collapses into madness. The creature vows revenge on all its foes’ descendants, or perhaps even the entire world, and slaughters in blind rage. The heroes must find a way to stay the avenger’s madness or put the tormented soul to rest.

The Culling Plague: A rare disease has stricken one of the great races of the world. Giants, dragons, even outsiders might be victim to this debilitating plague. The oldest members of the afflicted species beseech the adventurers to stem this horrible contagion. Such a quest could take the PCs to far-flung parts of the world (and perhaps even beyond) searching for rare ingredients to concoct a cure. Alternatively, a sickness that strikes a species spread across the spectrum of good and evil, like outsiders or dragons, might make the PCs unlikely peace brokers between angels and devils or chromatic and metallic dragonkind while trying to find the cure.

The Giving Rain: The flensed flesh of a deity executed for unknowable crimes falls in a gory rain across the land. The areas with the highest concentration exhibit bizarre, troubling effects. The PCs, being close to one such place, gain mythic powers. Drawn to other epicenters as if pulled by the godflesh, the heroes must deal with the changes wrought by the storm. This includes putting down monsters that have likewise gained strange new abilities, hunting down masses of godflesh that are hidden deep underground or atop the highest peaks, and restoring peace to kingdoms that have gone to war over possession of these divine blessings.

The Old Guard: The PCs inherit a grand duty from a group of aging heroes with a sacred and momentous charge. This might be guarding a rift in the multiverse, manning the prison of a dreaded lich or even an elder god, or preserving the first teachings of arcane magic or a hallowed fighting style. The aging guardians deputize the PCs and charge them with a sacred quest to find others able to wield mythic power and take over for the august veterans when their time has come, or grant the PCs a chance to become the new guardians themselves. In the latter case, the older heroes direct the PCs toward quests and accomplishments that will increase their mythic power to the levels needed to replace the retiring guardians. Perhaps the PCs don’t even realize they’re being vetted for this crucial role as they undergo their adventures.

To Challenge a God: An evil deity and its minions are making a play for ultimate power in the mortal realms. Other gods, prevented from interfering in the matter by a divine compact, task the characters to oppose the usurper. The PCs must disrupt the schemes of the deity’s minions and work their way up through the ranks, breaking the chain one link at a time, until they finally confront the ambitious god.

Uniting the Armies: War rages across the land. Disparate humanoid and monstrous races fight with one another, oblivious to a rising threat that will soon endanger them all—and that might have orchestrated their conflicts in the first place to keep their armies occupied. The heroes alone learn the truth and must use their mythic powers to unite the warring groups—but doing so means facing a series of challenges of diplomacy, intrigue, and brute force. Only by banding together will the land be able to fight off their immense foe in the ultimate battle.

Mythic Boons

Source Mythic Adventures pg. 132
Mythic boons are special rewards given for moments of dramatic achievement. Mythic PCs should repeatedly act in a heroic fashion, charging boldly into danger with confidence, and they should be rewarded for accomplishing such astonishing feats of daring, luck, and courage. Awarding mythic boons is one way for the GM to encourage the players to push their characters to their limits.

Granting a boon is simple: when the PCs accomplish an astounding feat of bravery, cunning, or luck, they should regain one use of their mythic power (but may not exceed their total uses). This can represent different things depending on the origin: the divine smiling upon the PCs, eldritch energy surging within, or even a character’s pride made manifest as actual power.

When rewarding boons, the GM should reward all the PCs involved in that moment and keep these rewards balanced across the whole group. For example, if a barbarian champion charges forward and slays a powerful villain with a lucky critical hit with his axe, you might reward the barbarian, but don’t neglect the rogue trickster flanking the villain with the barbarian and the bard marshal granting bonuses on the attack roll with his bardic performance as well. A character should get a boon no more than once per encounter, but the GM might waive this guideline in special circumstances.

Included below are example moments worthy of a boon. This is not an exhaustive list, as any situation can result in an extraordinary outcome. These should not be automatic; if a character is built to perform critical hits, he shouldn’t be rewarded every time he scores three or more in one combat, but only when he does so in extreme circumstances.

Many of these boons require the character to perform the task against a mythic foe, but a suitably challenging normal foe might qualify as well, as determined by the GM. Unless otherwise specified, these moments must take place within the same encounter— the indestructible boon moment doesn’t count if you survive two critical hits in one combat and one in the next, for instance.

Assassinate: With just a single melee or ranged attack, the character defeats a mythic creature that has its full hit point total.

Behind Me: The PCs defeat at least four or more creatures, but only one (or none) of the PCs takes any damage during the battle.

Bloodless Victory: The PCs defeat a mythic foe by dealing nonlethal damage only.

Calm Down: The character ends or prevents a combat against a mythic foe with a single skill check, most likely Diplomacy or Bluff.

Cling to Life: The character survives a single attack that deals massive damage to her (damage equal to or greater than half her maximum hit point total, minimum 50) and exceeds the DC of the subsequent Fortitude saving throw by 5 or more.

Close Call: The character defeats a creature that has him entangled, grappled, or swallowed whole. Counter Caster: The character counterspells three or more spells from a single enemy spellcaster.

Critical Chain: Without failing any attack rolls, the character scores three critical hits in a row.

Deadly Dance: In 1 round, the character provokes four or more attacks of opportunity, but none of them hit.

Death’s Door: The character confirms a critical hit against a mythic foe while at 0 or fewer hit points.

Deep Breath: The character defeats a mythic foe entirely while underwater, without the aid of any spells or abilities that allow the character to breathe.

Desperate Measures: The character starts a combat against a mythic foe without any uses of mythic power remaining (or confidence).

Distant Crit: The character scores a critical hit using a ranged weapon against a target who is in the maximum range increment for the weapon.

Final Gift: While at 0 hit points, the character uses a spell, item, or special ability to heal an ally instead of herself, causing her to fall unconscious and gain the dying condition.

First to Fall: The character defeats a mythic foe at the beginning of combat, before any other creature has a chance to act.

Indestructible: The character survives taking three critical hits.

Maneuver Display: The character successfully performs at least four different combat maneuvers.

Mass Obliteration: Using only one spell, the character defeats six or more creatures, ending the encounter.

Massive Attack: The character makes a single attack against a mythic creature that deals massive damage (equal to or greater than half its total hit points, minimum 50).

Massive Swing: The character deals damage to five or more creatures in a single round with melee or ranged attacks.

Master Healer: Using only a single spell, item, or ability, the character heals a dying creature to full hit points.

Mythic Challenge: In one day, the group defeats a number of mythic creatures with a combined total mythic tier equal to or greater than 3 × the highest mythic tier among the characters in the party.

Outrageous Lie: Using Bluff, the character convinces a creature of a nearly impossible lie (–20 modifier to the check).

Overkill: The character uses a catapult, ballista, or ram to deal massive damage to a mythic creature (equal to or greater than half the creature’s total hit points, minimum 50).

Performance Victory: The character uses bardic performance to inspire its allies for 8 or more rounds.

Pinpoint: The character makes three successful attacks against a creature that has total concealment from him.

Push On: The group overcomes six or more encounters without resting or regaining any abilities.

Resilient Caster: After sustaining a critical hit while casting a spell, the character succeeds at the concentration check and defeats a foe with that spell.

Return to Sender: The creature catches an arrow or other projectile from a ranged attack and uses it to make a successful hit on the attacker within 1 round.

Savant: The character succeeds at a skill check with a DC of 20 or higher when he rolled a natural 5 or lower.

School Display: The character casts at least one spell from each school of magic (not counting spells that are two or more levels below the highest level of spell he can cast).

Shield Ally: Using path abilities, the character prevents an ally from taking any damage from an attack at least three times.

Skill Supremacy: The character exceeds the DC of a skill check by 20 or more.

Solo Warrior: The character defeats a mythic creature without assistance from any allies, including animal companions, cohorts, etc.

Swift Doom: The character defeats a mythic creature with a single spell on the first round of combat, before it has a chance to act.

Swift Victory: The group defeats an encounter in a single round.

Tumbler: In 1 round, the character uses Acrobatics to move through the threatened areas of at least five foes without provoking any attacks of opportunity.

Undead Bane: With a single use of channel energy, the character defeats eight or more undead creatures or four or more mythic undead.

Unstoppable: The character suffers the effects of at least three of the following conditions at the same time while in combat with a mythic foe: blinded, confused, deafened, disabled, exhausted, frightened, nauseated, paralyzed, pinned, and stunned.

Wild Warrior: While using wild shape or some other polymorph effect, the character defeats a mythic foe.

Wrestler: The character reverses a grapple against a foe and pins that foe on the following turn.

Recurring Mythic Villains

Source Mythic Adventures pg. 133
Recurring villains are a staple of fantasy fiction and with a little careful planning you can make your mythic villains memorable opponents your players to remember and talk about for years to come. With the heroes possessing extraordinary power, the villains that defy them should also possess a measure of that power. A memorable, iconic villain will bump elbows with the PCs over and over again. Such a villain builds tension—for even as the PCs foil her plans, they’re kept frustrated by failing to permanently stop this fiend. Creating such nasty villains is challenging as heroes grow stronger and get better at killing off persistent foes. To ensure the mythic villain survives, make use of noncombat encounters, ensure your villain always has an escape plan, and don’t be afraid to reintroduce her after the players think she’s had been finished off.

Noncombat encounters help players develop a connection between their PCs and the villain in a way that doesn’t risk the villain’s life (or the PCs’). Early on, she can appear as a harmless or even helpful NPC. Or, if the PCs have already fought the villain, she can leave notes or use magic to taunt them. Various mythic powers, the Disguise skill, or even simple magic like disguise self, glibness, or nondetection can be used to help a villain blend in and rub elbows with the heroes all while seeming innocuous. Later, once the villain is revealed, she can work behind the scenes, using minions and other allies to accomplish her ends, all the while making it plain to the PCs that she’s continuing to thwart them.

In a world where powerful creatures are hunting you, paranoia and the willingness to abandon plans and allies are key to survival. If you want your villain to fight the players, plan an early exit. It’s okay for a villain to flee even if she might win a confrontation, as her plans are a long game and require that she survive to see them through. There are many spells, mythic powers, and class abilities that give the villain the ability to get away in a hurry. She should use more mundane escape methods when possible, concealing her iconic escapes as much as possible so they’re more difficult for the PCs to counter.

Should the villain be killed, don’t be afraid to have her revisit your campaign for a little posthumous mockery and mayhem. There are many ways to reintroduce a dead villain—sometimes it’s as simple as having a minion cast raise dead or resurrection, but there are other, more sophisticated options. You can introduce a new recurring villain who tracks down one of the PCs’ dead foes and brings him to some semblance of life in the form of an undead minion or possessed item, or who uses speak with dead to learn the deceased foe’s secrets.

Mythic Flaws

Source Mythic Adventures pg. 134
Mythic heroes, for all their might, are still people with troubles and flaws. Many such legendary beings have equally legendary flaws that are ultimately their undoing. Because of the heroes’ great power, these failings and weaknesses are also often dramatic, and if their enemies learn of these flaws, they will seek to exploit them.

The following mythic flaws are optional rules the GM may want to include in a mythic campaign in order to reflect heroes of old. They force characters to suffer a particular ailment in certain situations, one that they can’t mitigate or work off over time—a flaw truly a part of their mythic nature.

Flaws don’t provide great benefits to the characters— including them is purely for dramatic purposes, not to create an optimal character. The GM should carefully weigh whether or not to include them in the game, and decide if their addition is a benefit to the story as a whole and (more importantly) something the players will enjoy playing.

If you decide to include mythic flaws in the game, they are gained at the same time the character gains mythic power, during the moment of ascension. You can select these flaws yourself, making them an aspect of the theme used to grant the PCs mythic power, or you can allow the PCs to select them, integrating the flaws into their backstories. The following mythic flaws are examples of the types of flaws you could include in your game.

Dependency: There is only one food or drink that can nourish your hero, and without it your powers fade. Select one specific type of food or drink (other than water). If you don’t ingest that food or drink at least once per day, you begin to lose your mythic powers. After the first day of absence, you can no longer regain uses of mythic power. After the second day, you lose all the powers and abilities granted by your mythic path. After the third day, you lose all of your mythic abilities, with the exception of ability score increases, bonus hit points, and bonus mythic feats. These powers and abilities are immediately restored as soon as you consume that food or drink.

Elemental Vulnerability: One element above all others has an adverse effect on your power and is capable of harming you like no other. Select either acid, cold, electricity, or fire. You take double the amount of damage whenever that damage is of the selected type. You never benefit from resistance or immunity to that element. When an effect of that type is used against you, it is always treated as though it’s from a mythic source.

Furious Rage: Your rage is a beast, one that you can barely control. Whenever you are hit by a critical hit or demoralized by the Intimidate skill, you go into an uncontrollable rage. This functions like the barbarian’s rage class feature, but you don’t gain a bonus to your Strength or Constitution score (even if you have the rage class feature). This limits the actions you can perform and gives you a –2 penalty to Armor Class. The rage lasts for a number of rounds equal to 1d4 plus your mythic tier, but you aren’t fatigued after this duration expires. If you have the rage class feature, this does not count toward your uses of that feature. If you are raging when this flaw is triggered, that rage immediately ends and this effect begins.

Hubris: You are first, best, and above all others. Your power is unrivaled and you know it. You receive a +4 morale bonus on saving throws against fear. Whenever you succeed at a saving throw against an effect that would have caused you to gain the shaken, frightened, or panicked condition, you instead gain the staggered condition for a duration equal to the duration of the effect that you saved against, as you spend part of each round boasting about your prowess. If you instead fail a saving throw against such an effect, that effect’s duration is doubled as you’re also confronted with doubt or shame.

Material Weakness: There is one material that can penetrate even your toughest defenses. Select cold iron, silver, or wood. Weapons made primarily from that material automatically confirm all critical hits against you and the critical multiplier is increased by 1 (to a maximum of ×4). If you have damage reduction, weapons made primarily of that type always bypass that reduction.

Mercurial Mind: The power that you wield speaks to you, and it befuddles your mind at critical moments. Whenever you’re hit by a critical hit or fail a saving throw against a mind-affecting spell or special ability, you also gain the confused condition for 1d4 rounds.

School Aversion: Despite your power, there is one type of magic that is foretold to be your undoing. Those that wield it are of great danger to you. Select one school of magic (except divination). Whenever you attempt a saving throw against a spell or effect of that school, you take a –4 penalty on the saving throw. The effects of such spells (if harmful) last twice as long if you fail the saving throw. In addition, all spells and effects of that school used against you are always treated as though they’re from a mythic source. You also may not benefit from spells and effects from the selected school, subject to GM discretion.

Weapon Weakness: The prophecies say that one weapon will be your doom. Select one group of weapons from the list of fighter weapons. Weapons from the selected group gain a +4 bonus on attack and damage rolls against you. If a weapon from the selected group scores a critical hit against you, the critical multiplier is increased by 1 (to a maximum of ×4). If you have damage reduction, weapons from that group always bypass that reduction.

Ideas for Mythic Adventures

Source Mythic Adventures pg. 135
Creating an adventure that feels mythic can be a daunting task, as there are a lot of factors to consider. The following ideas give you something to work with when designing your campaign. Each idea includes a basic synopsis of the plot, a list of some of the challenges the heroes could face, a look at the primary adversary, and ideas for further adventures. Some of these ideas imply the heroes’ mythic origin, but they can easily be tailored for PCs who have already gone on other mythic adventures.

Moments of Powerlessness

Many stories in novels, comic books, television shows, and movies involve powerful characters losing their abilities for a short time. It’s tempting for many GMs to make that a part of a mythic campaign. While you can certainly use such a plot device in your game, the loss of power must be handled carefully to avoid turning an otherwise fun string of adventures into something no one wants to play anymore. Here are a few tips to make this idea work in a fun way.

To start with, this is only a good option when the characters are in the middle tiers (between 4th and 7th tier). If the heroes are of a lower tier, they haven’t used their mythic power enough to make the powerlessness storyline interesting. If they’re of a higher tier, the gulf between their mythic story and the story being told now is so great that it may break the flow of the story.

Powerlessness arcs should last no more than a couple sessions, lest the temporary loss of power start to seem like a permanent disability.

Causes of the PCs’ powerlessness need to be explainable— and either the characters know about it beforehand or someone informs them of the cause after they’ve lost their powers. It could be an event that comes to pass, like a lunar eclipse or a great volcano’s eruption disrupting the flow of power in the world. Or a foe might enact a ritual to nullify the heroes’ power. The PCs might even be responsible for their own loss of power, especially if the divine being who granted the powers doesn’t approve of their recent activities.

Solutions to the PCs’ plight should make sense from a story perspective. Events pass, reinstating the PCs’ mythic power (in which case, the PCs need merely to wait, and possibly fight to survive until then). The foe’s rituals are undone by the temporarily normal PCs. Or penance can be granted as the PCs show that they’re still worthy.

Drama happens between the cause and solution: foes that should have been easy before become challenges again, and those the heroes have angered can now retaliate, whether they are monstrous foes or slighted townsfolk. The rewards acquired during this time should reflect the difficulty of the challenges the PCs face.

Mythic Magic Items

Source Mythic Adventures pg. 140
Just as their non-mythic counterparts, mythic characters use magic to aid them in their daring quests, but they can utilize some magic items in more powerful ways. In addition, mythic characters encounter artifacts somewhat more often, as such legendary items are often intertwined in their sagas.

Magic Items

Source Mythic Adventures pg. 142
Though most items associated with mythic characters and monsters are artifacts in their own right, lesser magic items still help mythic creatures with their powers or aid normal creatures in resisting the power of mythic foes.

Legendary Items

Source Mythic Adventures pg. 169
Mythic heroes are known for their trials and the incredible deeds they accomplish during those trials. These trials are often acts of great courage or defiance in the face of insurmountable adversity. Many legendary magic items become so intrinsically tied to a hero’s trials that it’s hard to separate the legend of the hero from the legend of the item.

Legendary items often start out as simple magic items, but can grow in power to become artifacts in their own right. Even long after their creators pass away, they influence events, becoming instrumental in the creation of future legends.

Becoming Legendary

Source Mythic Adventures pg. 169
Legendary items are magic items that transcend mere magic and become tied to mythic destiny. Though all are powerful, some become even greater magical objects—minor and major artifacts.

Paralleling the trajectory of a mythic character, a legendary item begins as a normal magic item that ascends to something greater. Typically this ascension occurs when a character first takes the legendary item universal path ability, but this isn’t always the case. Deities, the servants of deities, peculiar chance, magical experimentation, and destiny can serve as catalysts for legendary item ascension. Such items can be bestowed upon the worthy or found by the lucky.

Legendary items are always non-consumable magic items, and are typically magic weapons, magic armor, or magic items that take up an item slot (though there are a few legendary items that don’t take up slots). Even vehicles and siege weapons can become legendary items.

Legendary Artifacts

Source Mythic Adventures pg. 169
When a magic item ascends to legendary status, it gains the suite of base legendary abilities and can have up to three additional legendary abilities. By selecting the legendary item universal path ability more than once, a mythic creature can transform a normal legendary item into either a minor artifact (if the character chooses it a second time) or a major artifact (if the character chooses it a third time). A minor artifact legendary item can have up to six additional legendary abilities, and gains the difficult to destroy ability (see below). A major artifact legendary item can have up to 10 additional legendary abilities and gains the difficult to destroy ability. Difficult to Destroy: An artifact can’t be destroyed by normal means. Though a minor artifact has hit points and can be broken, it can’t be destroyed by taking additional hit point damage. A major artifact is immune to hit point damage and can’t gain the broken condition. Instead of being destroyed by taking hit point damage, both minor and major artifacts are instead destroyed when a creature successfully performs a very specific and often difficult task. The GM gets to determine what action is necessary to destroy the artifact, and should look to other artifacts’ destruction entries for inspiration.

Base Legendary Abilities

Source Mythic Adventures pg. 169
Base legendary abilities affect the item’s bearer, whether the item is wielded, worn, carried, or otherwise used. All legendary items have the following abilities, which don’t count against the maximum number of legendary abilities an item can have or the maximum number of abilities the item’s bearer can use.

Mythic Bond: A legendary item is typically bonded to a single mythic creature. Others can pick up and use a legendary item for its basic functions (like hitting a foe with a legendary mace), but only the creature bonded to the item can utilize it fully.

A mythic creature can be bonded to only one legendary item at a time. If a mythic creature is already bonded to a legendary item, she can’t become bonded to another item until the previous bond is broken. Likewise, a legendary item that is already bonded to a mythic creature can’t be bonded to another until the former bond is broken.

Creatures that aren’t bonded to the legendary item can typically use all of its special abilities that aren’t legendary item abilities. Such creatures can also use the item’s legendary surge base legendary ability, but only by using the item’s reservoir of legendary power. They can’t use any other legendary item abilities requiring an expenditure of legendary power, though some legendary item abilities (such as intelligence) are persistent abilities, which means they continue to function whether the user is bonded to the item or not.

A mythic creature bonded to a legendary item can use a number of that item’s legendary abilities equal to or less than her tier. If the legendary item has more legendary abilities than the bonded creature has tiers, the creature can select which abilities it gains access to when it first wields, wears, or possesses the item, but must select all of the persistent abilities first, after which it can select nonpersistent abilities. For example, if a legendary item has the intelligence ability along with other non-persistent abilities, a 1st-tier character can’t manifest any of its powers other than intelligence until she gains another tier.

If the bonded creature has taken the legendary item universal path ability a sufficient number of times, she can add legendary abilities to the item.

Lastly, a bonded creature can expend uses of her mythic power to activate an item’s legendary abilities that otherwise require uses of legendary power. One use of the creature’s mythic power counts as one use of the item’s legendary power.

A mythic creature becomes bonded with an item either when she makes the item ascend using the legendary item universal path ability, or when she completes a trial while wielding, wearing, or carrying the item. The nature of the trial needed to bond with a legendary item and any other prerequisites for bonding are determined by the GM.

The bond between a mythic creature and a legendary item can be broken in the following ways. If the bonded creature dies, the bond is broken. If that creature comes back to life, the bond is typically not reinstated unless the item has the eternal bond ability. The bonded creature can also relinquish the bond. Doing so requires a special ritual that takes 24 hours to perform, though the GM might add other requirements. If the bonded creature becomes non-mythic, the bond is broken. Lastly, the bond is broken if a legendary item gains the broken condition.

Legendary Power: All legendary items contain a pool of power—at least two uses that recharge each day. This power is called legendary power, and it works differently than mythic power. Any creature bearing the item can expend the items uses of legendary power, whether or not that creature is mythic. These uses of legendary power can be expended only to activate the legendary item’s abilities. If the item’s bearer isn’t bonded to the item, she can expend the item’s legendary power only to use its legendary surge ability

Legendary Surge: All legendary items have a legendary surge ability, similar to a mythic character’s surge ability. It can be used only on specific rolls or checks based on the nature or purpose of the legendary item.

The legendary surge ability allows the bearer to add the result of a d6 to the appropriate type of roll or check. A mythic bearer can use her surge die type in place of the d6. If she’s bonded to the item, she can increase that die type by one step.

A legendary item’s nature or purpose determines the rolls its legendary surge ability modifies. The following are rolls that legendary surge ability typically modifies based on item type, but these are merely guidelines. A GM who creates a legendary item can alter this ability based on the item’s history or nature.

Armor: Saving throws

Belt: Strength- and Dexterity-based skill checks, and Constitution checks

Body: Strength- and Dexterity-based skill checks, and Constitution checks

Chest: Strength- and Dexterity-based skill checks and Constitution checks

Eyes: Intelligence-, Wisdom-, and Charisma-based skill checks

Feet: Dexterity-based skill checks, initiative checks, and Reflex saving throws

Hands: Attack rolls and combat maneuvers checks

Head: Intelligence-, Wisdom-, and Charisma-based skill checks

Headband: Intelligence-, Wisdom-, and Charisma-based skill checks

Neck: Saving throws

Ring: Either saving throws or both concentration checks and caster level checks

Rod: Concentration checks and caster level checks

Shield: Saving throws

Shoulders: Saving throws

Staff: Concentration checks and caster level checks

Weapons: Attack rolls and combat maneuver checks made while using the weapon

Wrists: Saving throws or ranged attack rolls

Legendary Item Abilities

Source Mythic Adventures pg. 171
When a mythic creature creates a legendary item (using the legendary item universal path ability), the item can have up to three additional abilities, but no more than the number of tiers possessed by the creature bonded to it. This maximum increases to six if the bonded creature selects the legendary item universal path ability twice, and then to 10 if the bonded creature selects the ability three times (again, the maximum cannot exceed the bonded creature's number of tiers). These abilities are added at the rate of one per day. Once selected, these abilities cannot be changed.

If a mythic creature bonds to an existing legendary item, it can use a number of the item's existing abilities equal to its tier, but cannot add abilities unless it possesses the legendary item universal path ability (subject to the limitations of that ability).

The following legendary abilities can be added to a legendary item.

Adroit: Choose a single skill that can be augmented by the item's legendary surge. As a swift action, the item's bonded creature can expend one use of legendary power to gain a +20 insight bonus on the next check she attempts with that skill before the end of her turn. The item must have a legendary surge that augments skill checks to have this ability.

Dedicated Bond: An item with this ability can't be used by anyone not bonded with it. Such creatures can't use the item's non-mythic special abilities, its legendary power, or its legendary surge. Furthermore, using a special ritual that takes 10 minutes to perform, the bonded creature can sequester the item in a solid object at least twice as large as the item (such as putting a sword in a stone or an oak tree). The item becomes impossible to remove by any creature not bonded to it unless by means of a wish or miracle cast by a mythic creature of higher tier than the bonded creature. If the bonded creature is at least 8th tier, she can instead perform this sequestering ritual and transfer the bond to another mythic creature she designates upon completing the ritual.

An item must be a minor or major artifact to have this ability. This is a persistent ability.

Eternal Bond: When this ability is taken, the item becomes intimately tied to the creature that gave it this ability. This item can't be bonded to another creature as long as the creature that gave it this ability is alive and mythic. If the creature that gave it this ability dies or becomes nonmythic, this item can be bonded to another creature, but that creature doesn't gain the benefit of this ability. If the creature who placed the eternal bond comes back to life or becomes mythic again, and this item is bonded to another, the bond reverts back to the eternally bonded creature at any time the eternally bonded creature wishes. Reinstating a bond in this way is a free action. If this item is broken, the bond is temporarily severed, but is reinstated when the item is repaired. Lastly, the bonded creature can't use the special ritual to relinquish the bond (see Mythic Bond).

An item must be a minor or major artifact to have this ability. This is a persistent ability.

Everlasting: This ability grants its bearer limited immortality. While in contact with this item, the bonded creature doesn't age; doesn't need to eat, drink, or breathe; and doesn't suffer any ill effects from extreme heat or extreme cold.

An item must be a major artifact to have this ability. This is a persistent ability.

Flexible Bond: The bonded creature can lend this item out with full utility to other creatures. As a standard action, the bonded creature can grant a temporary bond to a number of creatures equal to or less than her mythic tier. These creatures can be mythic or non-mythic. A creature with a temporary bond can fully utilize all of the item's legendary abilities, and if that creature has mythic power, he can expend it to use the item's legendary abilities that require legendary power use (including its legendary surge). This temporary bond ends either when the bonded creature wills it—a mental command requiring no action, which can be done at any time while she is conscious—or when the bond is broken between this item and its bonded creature.

Foe-Biting: When this item deals damage, its user can use mythic power to double the total amount of damage it deals. If the attack is a normal attack, the bearer can expend one use of legendary power to double the total amount of damage. If the attack is a confirmed critical hit, the bearer must instead expend two uses of legendary power to double the total damage. Damage from weapon special abilities (such as flaming) and precision-based damage are also doubled.

This ability can be applied only to weapons. An item must be a minor or major artifact to have this ability.

Intelligent: A legendary item with this ability becomes an intelligent magic item. When this ability is first selected, the legendary item starts with base Intelligence, Wisdom, and Charisma scores of 10. The item gains speech as a supernatural ability. It can speak Common plus a number of additional languages based on its Intelligence score. The additional languages can be any that the bonded creature wants, except for secret languages (such as Druidic). The item gains senses with a range of 30 feet. Furthermore, this item always has the alignment of the bonded creature who first selected this ability.

An intelligent legendary item has an Ego score, just like a non-mythic intelligent item, but it can never become dominant in its relationship with its bonded creature as long as the bonded creature's alignment corresponds to the item's (using the normal rules for intelligent items).

This is a persistent ability. An intelligent legendary item gains a +4 bonus to its Ego when interacting with non-mythic wielders.

You can select this ability more than once. Each time you do, you can increase its ability scores (to a maximum of 20 each) and select one of the following special abilities. You can increase all three of its ability scores by 2 points, or one of these ability scores by 4 points and one other ability score by 2 points.

The special abilities are listed below. Some have another ability as a prerequisite.

Animate: This item can sprout limbs and move with a speed of 10 feet.

Blindsense: This item gains blindsense with the same range as its other senses. The item must have the darkvision ability to have this ability.

Darkvision: This item gains darkvision with the same range as its other senses.

Expanded Senses (60 ft.): The range of this item's senses increases to 60 feet.

Expanded Senses (120 ft.): The range of this item's senses increases to 120 feet. The item must have expanded senses (60 ft.) to have this ability.

Fly: The item gains a fly speed of 30 feet with average maneuverability. The item must have the animate ability to have this ability.

Read Languages: This item can read script in any language regardless of its known languages.

Read Magic: This item can read magical writing and scrolls as if using read magic. This ability doesn't allow the item to activate scrolls or other spell-completion items. The item can suppress and resume this ability as a free action.

Shape Change: The item can change its shape into one other form of the same size.

Skill Ranks: This item gains 10 ranks in one skill. This must be an Intelligence-, Wisdom-, or Charisma-based skill, unless the item has the animate ability (allowing it to choose Acrobatics) or the fly ability (allowing it to choose Fly).

Spellcasting: This item allows its bearer to cast a limited number of spells as spell-like abilities. This ability can be taken more than once. Each time it's taken, the bonded creature gains 5 points to spend on selecting what spells the item can cast. A spell costs a number of points equal to its level (minimum 1). The bearer can then activate the item to use each spell-like ability once per day. By spending double the cost, the bearer can use each spell-like ability three times per day. All spells must come from the same class's spell list. No spell can have a level higher than the bonded creature's tier. The caster level for these spells is equal to double the bonded creature's tier. The save DC for these spells is equal to 10 + the spell level + the bonded creature's tier.

Telepathy: This item can hold private mental conversations with its bearer, regardless of whether they share a known language. The item must be in physical contact with a creature to communicate this way.

Teleport: Once per day, the item can teleport as the spell. It must have either the spellcasting ability or the fly ability to have this ability.

Legendary Fortification

Legendary Fortification: When a critical hit or sneak attack is scored against a creature wearing an item with this ability, the wearer can expend one use of legendary power to negate the critical hit or sneak attack and instead take normal damage.

Only armor, shields, and worn items can have this ability.

Metamagician: This ability allows a spellcaster to apply a metamagic feat she knows to a spell as she casts it. She must expend a number of uses of legendary power equal to the increase of spell level the metamagic feat usually applies (minimum 1). This metamagic feat is applied spontaneously and without changing the casting time. This ability can be placed only on a head, headband, staff, ring, or rod legendary item.

Perfect Surge: This item's legendary surge can apply to any d20 roll. The surge adds a further +2 bonus when applied to one of the types of rolls initially chosen for it. A legendary item must be a major artifact to have this ability.

Powerful: An item with this ability has two additional uses of legendary power per day. This ability can be taken up to three times. The item must be a minor or major artifact to take this a second time, and a major artifact to take this a third time. This is a persistent ability.

Rejuvenating: The bearer of this item can expend uses of legendary power to rejuvenate her body. As a standard action, she can expend one use of legendary power to heal herself of 10 points of damage per mythic tier she possesses. Alternatively, as a standard action she can expend two uses of legendary power to remove a single condition affecting her.

A legendary item must be a minor or major artifact to have this ability.

Returning: The creature bonded to this item can expend one use of mythic power to teleport the item to her waiting hand, as if using teleport object. The item must be on the same plane as the bonded creature for this ability to function. This ability can be taken a second time, allowing the item to cross planes to return to the bonded creature. The item must be a major artifact to take this ability again.

Undetectable: This grants its bonded user the ability to become utterly undetectable while invisible. While invisible and in physical contact with this item, the bonded creature can't be detected or scryed by any method.

Unstoppable Strike: This weapon bypasses all armor. The wielder can expend one use of legendary power when attacking to make the attack against touch AC. If she instead expends two uses of legendary power, the weapon also bypasses any deflection bonus to AC the target has.

An item must be a weapon and be a minor or major artifact to have this ability.

Unyielding: A legendary item with this ability has double the hardness of a typical item of its type and triple the hit points. Furthermore, it's immune to all attempts to sunder it made by non-mythic creatures. This is a persistent ability.

Upgradable: This ability grants the bonded creature the ability to more easily increase the non-mythic magical power of the legendary item. If the base magic item has a version with a higher bonus or greater version (such as a +1 longsword, a +2 light steel shield, a cloak of protection +3, an amulet of might fists +4, or a minor ring of inner fortitude), the bonded creature can improve it by performing a special ritual. She must spend a number of gold pieces equal to half the difference between the cost of the legendary item's current, non-mythic base item and the greater version she wishes to upgrade the item into. For example, she would pay 3,000 gp to upgrade a +1 longsword into a +2 longsword.

This ritual takes 8 hours. When it's completed, the bonded creature transmutes the item's base version into the desired version. When upgraded in this fashion, the legendary item retains all legendary item abilities it had before the transmutation.

Mythic Monsters

Source Mythic Adventures pg. 174
Just as mythic heroes can call upon power beyond reckoning, mythic monsters are greater than others of their kind. Some are empowered by deities or great magic and sent into the world to sow ruin and reap destruction. Others are instead relics of a bygone age when the power of creation itself flowed through the veins of every living being. Though not necessarily malevolent, these ancient creatures are a force to be respected and feared.

The rules in this book assume monsters that wield mythic power are rare in the world. Such creatures fall into one of two categories: powerful versions of existing monsters and entirely new breeds of monsters. You can easily create the first type of monster by using one of the mythic simple templates presented in this section. Creating the second type of monster is more complicated, and requires adding the mythic subtype and custom abilities appropriate to the creature, with more powerful monsters gaining more abilities than weaker monsters.

This chapter includes over 40 example creatures— mythic versions of cyclopes, demons, dragons, elementals, giants, medusas, and other creatures of legend—each of which represents an ancient predecessor or powerful evolution of the non-mythic version found in the Pathfinder RPG Bestiary. Following these example monsters, this chapter continues with information on the mythic simple templates and mythic subtype, advice on how to create and balance new mythic monsters, and several new universal monster rules used by the monsters in this chapter.

You can find all of the mythic monsters here.

Mythic Monster Origins

Source Mythic Adventures pg. 176
Depending on your campaign, a mythic monster might be unique—the only one of a kind in the entire world or on all the planes—rare, or even relatively common. The following are some examples of how frequently mythic monsters could appear in a particular campaign.

Some say there is only one mythic red dragon—the oldest living ancestor of all red dragons—and it sleeps for centuries at a time.
A deadly pack of mythic trolls might rule over a hidden realm under the earth. Non-mythic trolls are the least of their kind, cast out because of their inborn weakness.
There may be only two mythic medusas, both mourning their third sister who was slain by a hero centuries ago. They now breed giant snakes (with a mythic simple template) to send after the hero’s descendants.
A demon lord might imbue some of its servants with mythic power, making them captains and generals over the armies it’s amassing to invade the mortal world.

How prevalent you want mythic creatures to be in your campaign is up to you, and their mythic abilities can be permanent or temporary.

Mythic Rank

Source Mythic Adventures pg. 176
A monster’s mythic rank (MR) is a game statistic for monsters that’s roughly equivalent to a mythic tier— monsters with only a little mythic power are 1st rank, and the greatest mythic monsters are 10th rank. Unlike PCs, monsters usually start with a specific mythic rank and that rank never changes. For example, a mythic troll is 2nd rank and is always going to be 2nd rank, unless the GM has a reason for its rank to increase—like if a tribe of trolls has an artifact that grants the trolls mythic power, and the longer it takes the PCs to deal with them, the more powerful the artifact makes these monsters.

In terms of power, mythic ranks and mythic tiers are similar, but not exactly the same. For any ability, spell, magic item, or other rule that requires a mythic tier or interfaces with the tier rules, a monster’s mythic rank counts as its tier. For example, a sword that gains additional abilities when wielded by a character of 3rd tier or higher gains those bonuses when wielded by a monster of 3rd rank or higher. A few mythic monsters have mythic tier abilities identical to those available to PCs; a monster’s mythic rank counts as its tier for any effects dependent on tier. For example, a monster with the parry spell guardian path ability (see page 30) uses its mythic rank to determine the level of spells it can parry with that ability.

It is possible for a low-CR creature to have a high mythic rank, or for a high-CR creature to have a low mythic rank. For a typical monster that’s acquired mythic power, its rank is equal to half its original CR. For example, a CR 4 owlbear that becomes a mythic creature should be 2nd rank. To determine a mythic monster’s final CR, add half its mythic rank to its original CR. For example, a 2nd rank mythic owlbear’s final CR is 5 (2 × 1/2 + 4). See Designing Encounters for more details. All the monsters presented in this chapter use this typical MR value.

A creature shouldn’t have both a mythic tier and a mythic rank. For example, a mythic creature that gains the vampire template has a mythic tier, and a non-mythic creature that gains the mythic vampire template has a mythic rank, but a mythic creature that becomes a mythic vampire loses its tier and gains ranks instead, as explained in the mythic vampire template. Mythic templates and other effects that grant a creature a mythic rank should include information about what happens when a mythic creature gains that template or effect.

Reading a Mythic Monster Stat Block

Source Mythic Adventures pg. 176
Mythic monster stat blocks work just like non-mythic monster stat blocks, but have a few additional pieces of information. The differences are summarized in the following section.

Name, CR, and MR: The monster’s name is presented first, along with its challenge rating (CR), its mythic rank (MR), and three icons you can use to quickly identify the creature’s role in the game. The monster’s CR already factors in the CR increase it gets for having mythic ranks.

Init and Senses: Several mythic monsters have the Mythic Improved Initiative feat, which allows the creature to expend one use of mythic power to treat its initiative roll as a 20. Because you rarely check the Feats entry for a monster when rolling initiative, it would be easy to forget that ability when using the monster. As a reminder of this ability, a monster with that feat has a superscript “M” after its initiative modifier. The listed initiative modifier already includes the additional bonus from the Mythic Improved Initiative feat.

Feats: The creature’s feats are listed here. If a monster has a mythic feat from Chapter 2, that feat is identified with a superscript “M,” such as “Improved Initiative^M” rather than “Mythic Improved Initiative.” Most mythic feats improve non-mythic feats, and have the non-mythic feat as a prerequisite. In these cases, the non-mythic feat isn’t listed along with the mythic feat—the superscript “M” indicates the creature has the mythic and non-mythic versions of that feat.

Special Attacks: All of the monsters presented in this chapter have the mythic subtype, which grants them the mythic power universal monster ability, allows them to expend uses of mythic power to add surge dice to d20 rolls, and may add other abilities as well. When running a monster with mythic power, always remember that it can use the surge ability—especially because some mythic creatures don’t use mythic power for anything else, so that ability is necessary for the monster to keep up with and challenge mythic PCs. (Plus, part of the fun of using mythic rules is getting to use mythic surges, and the GM should get to do that, too.)

Environment: The mythic monsters presented here list the same environment as the non-mythic version of the creature—by default, mythic trolls prefer cold mountains like common trolls do, and mythic owlbears prefer temperate forests like common owlbears do. Of course, you can change the environment of a mythic monster to anything appropriate for your campaign, especially if the mythic monster is unique. For example, if you want the one mythic hydra in your world to live in the desert instead of in marshes like non-mythic hydras, that change serves to make the mythic hydra even more unusual and iconic.

Organization: The mythic monsters presented here list the same information on organization as the nonmythic versions of the creatures. These stat blocks make no assumptions about the uniqueness or rarity of these mythic monsters in your campaign. This allows you to adapt existing encounters in printed adventures to a mythic campaign by replacing one, some, or all nonmythic creatures in a specific encounter with their mythic equivalents. For example, to challenge a group of mythic PCs in an adventure featuring an encounter with six trolls, you could replace any number of those trolls with mythic trolls—perhaps just the leader is a mythic troll, creating a slightly more difficult encounter, or perhaps all of them are mythic, resulting in a much harder challenge.

Treasure: Most of the mythic monsters presented here use the same treasure notation as their non-mythic counterparts. For example, trolls have standard treasure, so mythic trolls also have standard treasure. However, a mythic monster’s CR will be higher than its non-mythic equivalent, so when awarding treasure you should account for the CR increase and adjust the monster’s treasure accordingly. A mythic troll encountered with non-mythic trolls should have slightly better treasure because of its higher CR ( just as a f iendish troll encountered with a gang of normal trolls should have better treasure). If a monster normally has NPC-type treasure (like an ogre does), the mythic version of that monster usually has better treasure than its non-mythic counterparts, since its CR is higher.

Mythic monsters—especially intelligent ones—may be more likely to use magical treasures found in their lairs, perhaps out of some instinctive cunning about the item or because the item was given to the monster by the entity that granted the monster its mythic power. For example, a mythic hydra with an amulet of mighty fists +1 in its treasure hoard could be a sacred guardian created by the god of snakes, and the amulet could have been granted to the hydra by the god, giving the creature the full benefit of the item.

Special Abilities: These monsters include descriptions of the non-mythic monster’s special abilities, so you don’t need to reference the non-mythic monster in another book to use the mythic monster. In some cases, these descriptions are simplif ied or shortened to make room for the mythic monster’s new abilities. If you have questions about how a monster’s special ability works, refer to the full text of the non-mythic monster’s original description in the Bestiary.

Description: Rather than repeating information about the original, non-mythic monster, this section presents information on the mythic version of the monster, such as suggesting how its origin or its role in the game differs from that of a non-mythic creature of its type. Unless otherwise stated, a mythic monster lives and acts very much like its non-mythic counterpart.

Mythic Monster Advancement

Source Mythic Adventures pg. 224
This section addresses how to turn a non-mythic monster into a mythic monster and how to create an entirely new mythic creature. Just as characters’ abilities depend on their mythic tier, monsters’ abilities depend on their mythic rank (MR), with a higher rank meaning a creature has additional mythic abilities.

Mythic Simple Templates

Source Mythic Adventures pg. 224
The following simple templates can be used to turn any monster into a mythic creature. A creature given one of these templates counts as a mythic creature for the purposes of spells, abilities, and magic items even though it doesn't have the mythic subtype (see page 226). Note that because it doesn't have the mythic subtype, it doesn't gain the many benefits of having the mythic subtype—the creature only gains the benefits described in the simple template.

Mythic Bonus Hit Points

A creature with one of the mythic templates listed below gains additional hit points according to its Hit Die type. A creature with d6 Hit Dice gains 6 hit points per mythic rank, a creature with d8 Hit Dice gains 8 hit points per rank, and a creature with d10 or d12 Hit Dice gains 10 hit points per rank.

Agile (MR 1, CR +1)

Creatures with the agile template are quick and deadly, moving faster than their normal counterparts and striking with incredible speed and agility. An agile creature's quick and rebuild rules are the same.

Rebuild Rules: Init +20 bonus; AC +2 dodge bonus; hp mythic bonus hit points; Defensive Abilities evasion (as the rogue class feature); Speed +30 feet for all movement types (up to double the creature's base movement speed); Special Attacks dual initiative.

Arcane (MR 1 or 2 , CR +1)

Creatures with the arcane template are infused with arcane power, capable of casting a limited number of arcane spells. If the creature has 11 or more Hit Dice, this simple template grants a mythic rank of 2 instead of 1. An arcane creature's quick and rebuild rules are the same.

Rebuild Rules: AC +2 deflection bonus; hp mythic bonus hit points; SR gains SR equal to its new CR + 11; Special Attacks mythic magic, simple arcane casting.

Divine (MR 1 or 2 , CR +1)

Creatures with the divine template can call upon the power of the gods, allowing them to cast a limited number of divine spells. If the creature has 11 or more Hit Dice, this simple template grants a mythic rank of 2 instead of 1. A divine creature's quick and rebuild rules are the same.

Rebuild Rules: Aura aura of grace (creature and all allies within 10 feet receive a +2 sacred bonus on saving throws—or a profane bonus if the templated creature is evil); AC +2 deflection bonus; hp mythic bonus hit points; Special Attacks mythic magic, simple divine spellcasting.

Invincible (MR 1 or 2, CR +1)

Creatures with the invincible template are incredibly difficult to harm. They can withstand immense punishment and continue to fight. If the creature has 11 or more Hit Dice, this simple template grants a mythic rank of 2 instead of 1. An invincible creature's quick and rebuild rules are the same.

Rebuild Rules: AC increase natural armor bonus by 2 (or 4 if the creature has 11 or more Hit Dice); hp mythic bonus hit points; Defensive Abilities gains DR and resistance to all types of energy as per Table 6–3, as well as block attacks and second save.

Table 6-3: Invincible Template Defenses

Hit Dice	Energy Resistance	DR
1-4	5	-
5-10	10	5/Epic
11+	15	10/Epic

Savage (MR 1 or 2, CR +1)

Creatures with the savage template are untamed, primordial versions of their non-mythic cousins. Their claws are sharper, their fangs larger, and their hides thicker. If the creature has 11 or more Hit Dice, this simple template grants a mythic rank of 2 instead of 1. A savage creature's quick and rebuild rules are the same.

Rebuild Rules: AC increase natural armor bonus by 2; hp mythic bonus hit points; Defensive Abilities gains DR and resistance to all types of energy as per Table 6–4; Special Attacks all attacks gain bleed 1 (this stacks with itself ), feral savagery (full attack).

Table 6-4: Savage Template Defenses

Hit Dice	Energy Resistance	DR
1-4	5	-
5-10	10	5/Epic
11+	15	10/Epic

Building a Mythic Creature

Source Mythic Adventures pg. 224
In addition to using a mythic simple template, there are two ways to create a new mythic monster. The first is to take an existing monster, give it the mythic subtype, and add abilities as described in that subtype. The second method is to create an entirely new monster with the mythic subtype and incorporate additional abilities into the final monster. Both methods are described beginning on page 225.

Modify an Existing Monster

Source Mythic Adventures pg. 225
Making a mythic monster out of an ordinary monster is fairly straightforward—just follow these steps.

Step 1—Determine its mythic rank (MR). Divide your monster’s CR by 2 to get its approximate mythic rank. If the result is not a whole number, it just means you have some flexibility in choosing the MR. For example, if your monster is a CR 7 chimera, half of 7 is 3.5, which means you can try it at MR 3 or MR 4. It’s easier to start with a lower MR—you can always increase the MR later if you need the monster to be a little more powerful.

Step 2—Add the mythic subtype. The mythic subtype is described on page 226. The modifications to the creature’s ability scores, hit points, and other game statistics depend on your monster’s MR.

Step 3—Add additional mythic abilities. As described in the mythic subtype, the monster gains a number of mythic abilities equal to its MR + 1.

Step 4—Evaluate the monster at its final CR. Your monster’s final CR is its initial CR + 1/2 its MR (round down; minimum 1). Use Table 6–8: Monster Statistics by CR to evaluate whether the monster’s abilities are appropriately challenging for its final CR. If a creature’s mythic abilities complement its non-mythic abilities particularly well, that mythic creature may be too powerful for its final CR. If a creature’s mythic abilities don’t interact with its non-mythic abilities, that creature may be too weak for its final CR. If either of these situations occur, make adjustments to the creature so it better fits the intended CR.

If the creature is too weak and you rounded the creature’s MR down in Step 1, you can round up instead (adjusting the modifiers from the mythic subtype). If the creature is too strong and you rounded the creature’s MR up in Step 1, you can round down instead (adjusting the modifiers from the mythic subtype).

Once the creature’s abilities and statistics fit its CR, you’re done.

Create a New Monster

Source Mythic Adventures pg. 225
Creating a new mythic monster is especially challenging because you’re basically creating a monster with two CRs— an initial CR, which determines its appropriate mythic rank and thus how many mythic abilities it gets, and its final CR, which determines appropriate values for its AC, hit points, damage per round, and so on. Though it’s possible to create the monster all at once with a particular CR and MR in mind, it’s generally easier to build it in several steps (some of which are very similar to the steps for modifying an existing monster).

Step 1—Estimate its final CR. Knowing the intended CR of your new monster is critical. This target helps determine the starting power level for your monster in the later steps, and means you won’t have to reconfigure your monster if it’s too weak or too powerful. For example, you might want a CR 7 mythic monster to challenge a 5th-level mythic party.

Step 2—Determine its mythic rank (MR). Divide your final CR by 2.5 to get the approximate mythic rank of your monster. If the result is not a whole number, it just means you have some flexibility in choosing the MR. For example, if your final CR is 7, dividing that by 2.5 is 2.8, so your monster could be 2nd rank or 3rd rank. It’s generally easier to start with a lower MR—you can always increase the MR later if you need the monster to be a little more powerful.

Step 3—Determine its initial CR. Subtract half the MR from the final CR to get the initial CR. If the final CR is 7 and the MR is 2, half of 2 is 1, so the initial CR is 7 – 1 = 6.

Step 4—Build a new monster for that initial CR. This is identical to the process for creating a non-mythic monster. Follow the guidelines in the Pathfinder RPG Bestiary, creating a creature balanced for its CR, or starting with a base creature known to be appropriate for its CR and altering that monster to suit your purposes. The next three steps make the creature mythic.

Step 5—Add the mythic subtype. The mythic subtype is described on page 226. The modifications to the creature’s ability scores, hit points, and so on depend on its MR.

Step 6—Add additional mythic abilities. As described in the mythic subtype, the monster gains a number of mythic abilities equal to its MR + 1.

Step 7—Evaluate the monster at its final CR. Your monster’s final CR is its initial CR + 1/2 its MR (which should be close to your estimate from Step 1). If half the MR isn’t an even number, round down to get the monster’s final CR. Use Table 6–8: Monster Statistics by CR to evaluate whether the monster’s abilities are appropriately challenging for its final CR. If a creature’s mythic abilities complement its non-mythic abilities particularly well, that mythic creature may be too powerful for its final CR. If a creature’s mythic abilities don’t interact with its non-mythic abilities, that creature may be too weak for its final CR. If either of these situations occur, make adjustments to the monster so it better fits the intended CR.

If the monster is too weak and the MR from Step 2 isn’t a whole number, increase the monster’s MR by 1 (adjusting the modifiers from the mythic subtype). If the monster is too strong and you have to round down to get its final CR, compare the monster to the statistics for the next highest CR. Once the monster’s abilities and statistics fit its CR, you’re done.

Mythic Subtype

Source Mythic Adventures pg. 226
A creature with this subtype is infused with mythic power and is capable of terrible and awe-inspiring feats. Creatures with the mythic subtype gain the following abilities.

Mythic Rank: A creature with the mythic subtype gains 1 to 10 mythic ranks, representing its overall mythic power. Its rank is generally equal to 1/2 its original CR.

Natural Armor Bonus: Add the creature’s mythic rank to its natural armor bonus. A creature without natural armor has an effective natural armor bonus of +0.

Bonus Hit Points: A creature with d6 Hit Dice gains 6 hit points per mythic rank, a creature with d8 Hit Dice gains 8 hit points per rank, and a creature with d10 or d12 Hit Dice gains 10 hit points per rank. Note that this is the same number of bonus hit points the creature would gain if it had a mythic simple template.

Damage Reduction: A creature with 5 to 10 Hit Dice gains DR 5/epic. A creature with 11 or more Hit Dice gains DR 10/epic.

If the creature already has damage reduction, it adds epic to the qualities needed to bypass that reduction. If the damage reduction granted from this subtype has a larger numerical value than the creature’s original damage reduction, increase the creature’s original damage reduction to the amount of the epic DR. For example, a monster with DR 5/bludgeoning that gains DR 10/epic from the mythic subtype gains DR 10/bludgeoning and epic.

Spell Resistance: If the creature has spell resistance, add its mythic rank to its spell resistance.

Mythic Power: The creature gains the mythic power and surge universal monster abilities. The monster’s surge die depends on its rank, as summarized in Table 6–5: Mythic Subtype Abilities.

Ability Bonus: At 2nd rank and every 2 ranks thereafter, the monster gains a permanent +2 bonus to an ability score. If it has multiple bonuses, it can apply them to the same ability score or to different ability scores.

Mythic Feats: At 1st rank and every 2 ranks thereafter, the monster gains a mythic feat. It must meet all of the prerequisites for this feat.

Additional Mythic Abilities: The monster gains a number of mythic abilities equal to its MR + 1. Such abilities can be drawn from the mythic path abilities in Chapter 1 or the mythic abilities listed with the monsters in this chapter, or it can be a new ability you create by taking inspiration from those abilities. These abilities should be thematically appropriate for the creature.

Some new monster abilities are especially powerful; at the GM’s discretion, they can count as two abilities toward this total. For example, the mythic fire giant’s fire vortex ability could count as two mythic abilities. In place of a mythic ability, the monster may gain a universal monster ability, such as rend or pounce, either from an existing Bestiary or from this book.

CR: When you’re finished adding abilities to the monster, add 1/2 the monster’s mythic rank to its CR to determine its new CR. Evaluate the monster at its new CR using Table 6–8: Monster Statistics by CR to make sure it falls within the expected values for its new CR.

XP: Change the creature’s XP award to match its new CR.

Table 6-5: Mythic Subtype Abilities

Mythic Rank	Ability Bonus	Mythic Feat	Surge Die Type
1st	-	1st	1d6
2nd	1st	-	1d6
3rd	-	2nd	1d6
4th	2nd	-	1d8
5th	-	3rd	1d8
6th	3rd	-	1d8
7th	-	4th	1d10
8th	4th	-	1d10
9th	-	5th	1d10
10th	5th	-	1d12

New Universal Monster Rules

Source Mythic Adventures pg. 226
Like the universal monster rules in the Bestiary, the following rules are referenced (but not repeated) in mythic monster stat blocks. Each rule includes a format guide for how it appears in a monster's listing and its location in the stat block.

Block Attacks (Ex): Once per round, when the creature is hit by a melee or ranged attack, it can attempt a melee attack using its highest attack bonus. If this result exceeds the result from the attack against it, the creature is unaffected by the attack (as if the attack had missed).
Format: block attacks; Location: Defensive Abilities.

Dragon Blood (Su): The mythic dragon's blood and other fluids are infused with acid, cold, electricity, or fire, matching the dragon's breath weapon energy type. Every time the dragon is damaged by a piercing or slashing weapon, the attacking creature takes energy damage according to Table 6–6: Dragon Blood Damage (or double damage if the attack is a critical hit). Using a reach weapon does not endanger the attacker in this way. If the dragon has the swallow whole ability, it adds this damage to its swallow whole damage.

Table 6-6: Dragon Blood Damage

Dragon Size	Points of Energy Damage
Medium or smaller	1d4
Large	1d6
Huge	1d8
Gargantuan	2d6
Colossal	2d8

Format: dragon blood (2d6 fire); Location: Defensive Abilities.

Dragon Cantrips (Su): If the mythic dragon is able to cast arcane spells, it automatically knows all cantrips for its equivalent spellcasting class and can cast them at will.
Format: dragon cantrips; Location: SQ.

Dragon Fury (Su): If a mythic dragon confirms a critical hit with a natural weapon, it adds its dragon blood damage to the damage dealt by the natural attack.
Format: dragon fury (1d6 fire); Location: Special Attacks.

Dual Initiative (Ex): The monster gets two turns each round, one on its initiative count and another on its initiative count – 20. For example, if the monster's initiative is 23, for its first turn it could make a full attack (and take a 5 foot step) at initiative 23, and for its second turn at initiative 3 it could take a move action and cast a spell. This allows the monster to perform two actions per round that normally take an entire round, such as using a summon monster spell. For the purposes of spells and effects that have a duration of a round or longer or trigger at the beginning of the creature's round or the start of its turn such as saving throws against ongoing effects or taking bleed damage), only the monster's first turn each round counts toward such durations.
Format: +21/+1; Location: Initiative.

Feral Savagery (Su): Under the circumstances listed in the monster's stat block—such as when it makes a full attack or a rend attack—it can immediately attempt an additional attack against an opponent. This attack is made using the creature's full base attack bonus, plus any modifiers appropriate to the situation. This additional attack doesn't stack with similar means of gaining additional attacks, such as the haste spell or a speed weapon. This ability doesn't grant an extra action, so you can't use it to cast a second spell or otherwise take an extra action in the round.
Format: feral savagery (full attack); Location: special attacks.

Fortification (Ex): The monster has an 50% chance to treat any critical hit or sneak attack as a normal hit, as if wearing moderate fortification armor.
Format: fortification (50%); Location: Defensive Abilities.

Greensight (Su): The monster can see through thick plant matter as though it were transparent, usually with a range of 60 feet. Leaves, vines, greenery, and undergrowth offer no concealment to the monster's sight, though solid wood still blocks its line of sight.
Format: greensight 60 ft.; Location: Senses.

Lingering Breath (Su): The creature can expend one use of mythic power as a free action when it uses its breath weapon to make the area radiate energy damage (of the same type as the breath weapon) for 1 round per mythic rank. Any creature in, entering, or passing through the breath weapon's area during this duration takes damage according to the creature's size. This ability has no effect on breath weapons that do not deal energy damage.
Format: lingering breath (2d6 fire, 5 rounds); Location: Special Attacks.

Table 6-7: Lingering Breath Damage

Creature Size	Points of Energy Damage
Medium or smaller	2d4
Large	2d6
Huge	2d8
Gargantuan	4d6
Colossal	4d8

Mistsight (Ex): The monster can see through fog, mist, and murky water as if they were perfectly clear, ignoring the miss chance for these obstructions, up to its normal range of vision.
Format: mistsight; Location: Senses.

Mythic Magic (Su): Up to three times per day, when the creature casts a spell, it can cast the mythic version instead (as with all mythic spells, the creature must expend mythic power to cast a mythic spell in this way).
Format: mythic magic 3/day; Location: Special Attacks.

Mythic Power (Su): The mythic monster can draw upon a wellspring of power to accomplish amazing deeds and cheat fate. Each day, it can expend a number of uses of mythic power equal to its mythic rank. This amount is its maximum amount of mythic power. If an ability allows it to regain mythic power, it can never gain more than this amount. The monster automatically has the surge ability, and can use this mythic power to activate it. It may have other abilities that rely on mythic power.
Format: mythic power (3/day, surge +1d6); Location: Special Attacks.

Poisonous Blood (Ex): Any creature that confirms a critical hit against the monster with a piercing or slashing melee weapon is sprayed with poison. (Melee weapons with reach don't endanger their users in this way.) The type of poison depends on the monster. Unless otherwise stated, this poison uses the poison's normal DC, though some monsters might have a poison DC that's Constitution-based.
Format: poisonous blood (dragon bile); Location: Defensive Abilities.

Powerful Blows (Ex): The specified attack adds 1-1/2 times the creature's Strength bonus on damage rolls instead of its normal Strength bonus or half its Strength bonus.
Format: powerful blows (slam); Location: SQ.

Sand Glide (Ex): This ability functions like the earth elemental's earth glide ability, but works only on sand, dirt, and other fine-grained solid matter. The creature's speed using sand glide as the same as its base speed.
Format: sand glide; Location: Speed.

Second Save (Ex): Whenever the creature fails a saving throw against an effect with a duration greater than 1 round, it can keep trying to shake off the effect. At the start of its turn, if it's still affected, it can attempt the save one more time as a free action. If this save succeeds, the effect affects the creature as if it had succeeded at its initial saving throw. If the effect already allows another saving throw on a later turn to break the effect (such as for hold monster), this ability is in addition to the extra saving throw from the effect.
Format: second save; Location: after saving throws.

Simple Arcane Spellcasting: The creature gains the ability to cast spells from the sorcerer/wizard spell list. Select a number of spells with total spell levels equal to twice the creature's CR. No spell for this ability should have a level higher than 1 + 1/2 the creature's CR. A 0-level spell counts as 1/2 spell level toward this total. The creature can cast each of these spells once per day. Its caster level is equal to its Hit Dice. It uses the higher of its Intelligence or Charisma modifiers to determine its spell DCs.
Format: simple arcane spellcasting; Location: Special Attacks.

Simple Divine Spellcasting: The creature gains the ability to cast spells from the cleric or druid spell list. Select a number of spells with total spell levels equal to twice the creature's CR. No spell for this ability should have a level higher than 1 + 1/2 the creature's CR. A 0-level spell counts as 1/2 spell level toward this total. The creature can cast each of these spells once per day. Its caster level is equal to its Hit Dice. It uses its Wisdom or Charisma (whichever is higher) to determine its spell DCs.
Format: simple divine spellcasting; Location: Special Attacks.

Smother (Ex): If the creature's grappled opponent is holding its breath, the monster can force that opponent to expel or consume some of its breath, or can otherwise reduce the time remaining until the target has to attempt checks to avoid suffocation.

If the monster succeeds at a grapple check against the opponent, the remaining duration for which the opponent can hold its breath decreases by 1d6 rounds. If this reduces the remaining time that the creature can hold its breath to 0 rounds or fewer, the DCs of its suffocation checks increase by 5. For example, if the monster is grappling a creature that has 10 rounds remaining before it has to attempt suffocation checks, a successful grapple check reduces that duration by 1d6 rounds.

If the monster has another ability (such as constrict) that harms the opponent when it succeeds at a grapple check, it can automatically use the smother ability when it succeeds at the grapple check to use the other ability.
Format: smother; Location: Special Attacks.

Steal (Ex): The creature can attempt a steal combat maneuver against its opponent as a free action without provoking attacks of opportunity if it hits with the specified attack.
Format: steal; Location: individual attacks.

Surge (Su): The monster can call upon its mythic power to overcome difficult challenges. It can expend one use of mythic power to increase any d20 roll it just made by rolling 1d6 and adding it to the result. Using this ability is an immediate action taken after the original roll is made and the results are revealed. The bonus die gained by using this ability increases to 1d8 at 4th rank, 1d10 at 7th rank, and 1d12 at 10th rank. The monster can use this ability even if it's mindless or of animal-level intelligence.

Surge doesn't have a separate entry in the monster stat block—the surge die is listed in the mythic power ability.

X-Ray Vision (Su): The monster can see through solid matter as if wearing a ring of x-ray vision. This is as exhausting as if the monster were actually using the ring.
Format: x-ray vision; Location: Senses.

Evaluating Monster Statistics

Source Mythic Adventures pg. 228
Table 6–8: Monster Statistics by CR is an expansion of the table of the same name on page 291 of the Bestiary, listing approximate statistics for monsters up to CR 30 (the information for CR 1–20 is identical to that presented in the Bestiary). These values are rough guidelines. You’ll notice that many of the existing monsters in this book don’t follow these guidelines exactly. Most monsters excel in one of these areas (usually in the amount of damage dealt), but lag in one or two other areas to balance them out. For example, a monster might have higher damage than what’s listed in the table, but have a lower AC and hit points. The entries on the table are as follows.

Table 6-8: Monster Statistics by CR

					Average Damage
CR	Hit Points	Armor Class	High Attack	Low Attack	High	Low	Primary Ability DC	Secondary Ability DC	Good Save	Poor Save
1/2	10	11	1	0	4	3	11	8	3	0
1	15	12	2	1	7	5	12	9	4	1
2	20	14	4	3	10	7	13	9	5	1
3	30	15	6	4	13	9	14	10	6	2
4	40	17	8	6	16	12	15	10	7	3
5	55	18	10	7	20	15	15	11	8	4
6	70	19	12	8	25	18	16	11	9	5
7	85	20	13	10	30	22	17	12	10	6
8	100	21	15	11	35	26	18	12	11	7
9	115	23	17	12	40	30	18	13	12	8
10	130	24	18	13	45	33	19	13	13	9
11	145	25	19	14	50	37	20	14	14	10
12	160	27	21	15	55	41	21	15	15	11
13	180	28	22	16	60	45	21	15	16	12
14	200	29	23	17	65	48	22	16	17	12
15	220	30	24	18	70	52	23	16	18	13
16	240	31	26	19	80	60	24	17	19	14
17	270	32	27	20	90	67	24	18	20	15
18	300	33	28	21	100	75	25	18	20	16
19	330	34	29	22	110	82	26	19	21	16
20	370	36	30	23	120	90	27	20	22	17
21	400	37	31	24	130	98	27	20	23	18
22	440	39	32	25	140	105	28	21	23	18
23	480	40	33	26	150	113	29	22	24	19
24	520	42	35	27	165	124	30	23	25	20
25	560	43	36	28	180	135	30	24	26	21
26	600	44	37	29	195	145	31	25	27	22
27	640	45	38	30	210	155	32	26	28	23
28	680	46	39	31	225	165	33	27	29	24
29	720	47	40	32	240	175	34	28	30	25
30	760	48	41	33	255	185	35	29	31	26

CR: This is the approximate CR of the monster. This number might change as the design progresses.

Hit Points: This is the approximate hit point total for the monster. A creature with a particularly high AC, especially large saving throw bonuses, or a number of resistances might have a lower number. Outsiders and constructs typically have lower hit point totals.

Armor Class: This is the average AC for a creature of this CR. When it comes time to design the creature’s protections, keep this number in mind. Creatures whose hit point totals are above average typically have lower AC to compensate.

High Attack: This is the average total attack bonus for a creature of this CR that is primarily a melee or ranged combatant. Creatures with a higher than normal average damage typically have a lower attack value to compensate.

Low Attack: This is the average total attack bonus for a creature of this CR that doesn’t rely upon melee or ranged attacks to deal damage. This includes most creatures that mainly use spells and spell-like abilities in combat.

Average Damage: This is the average amount of damage dealt by a creature of this CR if all of its attacks are successful. To determine a creature’s average damage, add the average value for all of the damage dice rolled (as determined by Table 1–5: Average Die Results on page 293 of the Bestiary) to the damage modifier for each attack.

A creature that relies on melee or ranged weapons in combat should have average damage within the range of high and low damage.

A creature with higher than normal attack bonuses often deals less damage, and a creature with lower than normal attack bonuses often deals more damage.

Primary Ability DC: This is the average difficulty class (DC) for any spells, spell-like abilities, and special abilities (such as breath weapons) possessed by a creature of this CR that relies on such attacks in combat. If an ability is particularly powerful, it might have a lower DC to compensate for that.

Secondary Ability DC: This is the average DC for spells and special abilities for a creature that does not rely on such attacks in combat. Generally, an ability’s DC should not be lower than this number.

Good Save: This is the average saving throw bonus for a creature of this CR, if the saving throw is one of the creature’s good saving throws.

Poor Save: This is the average saving throw bonus for a creature of this CR, if the saving throw is one of the creature’s poor saving throws.

Archives of Nethys