Converting Monsters from Polyhedron Magazine

[Cleon]

Well, we thought we were punning on the cacodaemon monster and spell, so it makes the most sense to rename both spell and monster to that (see posts 963, 966, & 968). I prefer to have a single spell of the form cocoadaemon/chocodeva, so there is a single spell that can have either good or evil descriptor according to which construct you summon. Presumably characters of a given good/evil alignment only summon the appropriate construct.

Boost Cha to 13 and make the save Cha-based?

A cocoadaemon/chocodeva spell and Charisma 13 is fine by me. Shall I update?

Oh, aid is basically bless plus cure light wounds, almost. Sure.

I'm fine with letting anyone get the benefit, but I also agree that non-allies risk the sickening.

I'm not sure about if someone eats the whole thing. Maybe it extends the duration? I definitely think there should be a max total number of eaters/total duration.

Perhaps something like this:

Chocolaty Goodness (Su): A chocodeva can voluntarily destroy itself for its allies. Up to X creatures can eat a bite of a chocodeva to receive the effects of an aid spell for X hours. The duration stacks if a creature eats more than one bite. However, only creatures designated by the chocodeva before its destruction can eat it without risking the effects of its Sickeningly Sweet quality (see below).

Looks a good start.

We need to specify how much damage the chocodeva takes choco-aiding someone, and how difficult that damage is to cure. If it can aid someone for X hours at the cost of a single HP damage it'd seem unbalanced, especially if it can be healed by a low-level spell.

I suggest making it "starvation" type damage, which is very difficult to cure, and have the chocodeva regain it by resting and eating the finest chocolate!

Come to think of it, maybe that should be just how these creatures heal any damage. As constructs they don't heal normally.

 

[freyar]

Please do update, always helps.

I've been going with the idea that the chocodeva has to sacrifice itself, ie, die, for the beneficial effects to work. I take it you don't like that. But I suppose we could have a bite be 1d6 hp of damage even for "nonlethal biters" like humans. Then it will roughly feed 4 people if it starts out fully healed.

I do like the idea of healing by eating chocolate!

 

[Cleon]

Please do update, always helps.

Okay then.

Updating Cocoadaemon Working Draft.

Updating Chocodeva Working Draft.

I revised the Chocolaty Goodness and Sickeningly Sweet abilities to tidy up some loose ends. I made them both cumulative, and gave a damage value to match the Cocoadaemon's Fattening.

Chocolaty Goodness (Su?): Any living creature that takes a good-sized bite out of a chocodeva receives the effects of an aid spell for 1 hour. The duration stacks if a creature eats more than one bite. The chocodeva takes damage equal to the creature's bite attack (without any Strength modifier) or, if the creature does not have bite as a natural weapon, lethal damage equal to an unarmed strike (1d2 for a Small creature, 1d3 for Medium).

However, if the chocodeva disapproves of the creature that bites it, the creature must save against the effects of its Sickeningly Sweet quality (see below) or be sickened and gain no benefit from Chocolaty Goodness.

Sickeningly Sweet (Su?): Any creature that eats (or makes a successful bite attack against) a chocodeva without its permission must succeed at a DC 12 Fortitude save or be sickened for 1 hour. The duration is cumulative for multiple bites. A creature affected by sickening sweetness loses any Chocolaty Goodness benefits (see above) it may have received. The save DC is Charisma-based.

I've been going with the idea that the chocodeva has to sacrifice itself, ie, die, for the beneficial effects to work. I take it you don't like that. But I suppose we could have a bite be 1d6 hp of damage even for "nonlethal biters" like humans. Then it will roughly feed 4 people if it starts out fully healed.

It's currently equal to unarmed strike, which means a single cocoademon is enough for 16 creatures up to Small size (an ounce or two apiece?), 8 Medium-sized creatures, 6 Large, 4 Huge and so on.

That seems a bit high, now you mention it. Maybe I should set it at a base of 1d6 for Medium "biters" (or bite damage if higher)?

Chocolaty Goodness 2 (Su?): Any living creature that takes a good-sized bite out of a chocodeva receives the effects of an aid spell (caster level X?) for 1 hour. The duration stacks if a creature eats more than one bite. The chocodeva takes 1d6 damage or the creature's bite attack dice without any Strength modifier, if that is higher. However, if the chocodeva disapproves of the creature that bites it, the creature must succeed at a DC12 Fortitude save against the chocodeva's Sickeningly Sweet quality (see below) or be sickened and gain no benefit from Chocolaty Goodness.

I do like the idea of healing by eating chocolate!

Yes, we should write something up.

 

[freyar]

Well, part of me likes the unarmed strike solution, but I agree that the 1d6 bite damage makes the numbers work better. Hmmm. It's not really a normal unarmed strike, and chocolate is more bitable than a normal creature, so let's just go with take 2 there. Yes, I agree with Su on both of these.

We should make the same change to the damage in Delicious Temptation for the daemon.


Chocolate Healing (Ex): A cocoadaemon or chocodeva which eats X ounces of chocolate heals 1d8? hp.

 

[Cleon]

Well, part of me likes the unarmed strike solution, but I agree that the 1d6 bite damage makes the numbers work better. Hmmm. It's not really a normal unarmed strike, and chocolate is more bitable than a normal creature, so let's just go with take 2 there. Yes, I agree with Su on both of these.

So do I.

Updating Chocodeva Working Draft.

We should make the same change to the damage in Delicious Temptation for the daemon.

I disagree. The cocoadaemon is being attacked, so it's getting its attacker's Strength bonus. It's not as "sacrificial" as the 'deva.

Also cocoadaemons are made of nasty, hard chocolate that's more difficult to take bites out of.

Chocolate Healing (Ex): A cocoadaemon or chocodeva which eats X ounces of chocolate heals 1d8? hp.

That would let it heal as many times as it likes, giving the Chef effectively unlimited aid uses just from having a few tons of chocolate.

I was thinking more if it eats chocolate it get to heal at the same rate as a living creature's normal healing. Maybe if the chocolate is specially prepared and presented - a Craft (cookery) check? - while the chocospirit is in a kitchen it's the equivalent of Long-Term Care with the Heal skill (e.g. twice the normal healing rate).

 

[freyar]

Then let's just be slightly redundant and specify that the cocoadaemon takes 1d3+Str damage from Medium unarmed bites, etc.

Hmmm.
Chocolate Healing (Ex): A cocoadaemon or chocodeva which eats X ounces of chocolate heals hp damage as a living creature for the following 24 hours. If the chocolate was specially prepared (the chef succeeded at a DC 15 Profession (cooking) check), the construct heals at twice the normal rate.

 

[Cleon]

Then let's just be slightly redundant and specify that the cocoadaemon takes 1d3+Str damage from Medium unarmed bites, etc.

As you like.

Updating Cocoadaemon Working Draft.

Chocolate Healing (Ex): A cocoadaemon or chocodeva which eats X ounces of chocolate heals hp damage as a living creature for the following 24 hours. If the chocolate was specially prepared (the chef succeeded at a DC 15 Profession (cooking) check), the construct heals at twice the normal rate.

I'd prefer to quote the "Long-Term Care" option and "natural healing", since those are the terms used in SRD healing. It also also need to include how is affects healing spells.

Chocolate Healing (Ex): A cocoadaemon or chocodeva which eats X ounces of the finest chocolate (cost X) it gains natural healing for the following 24 hours, allowing it to recover from its injuries as it if were a living creature. Furthermore, specially prepared chocolate remedies can provide a cocoadaemon with first aid, long term care and wound treatment as per the Heal spell, except they require Profession (cooking) checks instead of Heal checks and expend Y worth of chocolate products per application.

For the cure spells, I'd add either:

Chocolate healing does not allow a cocoadaemon to benefit from curative magic, such as a cure light wounds spell. it only grants "natural healing" for the duration.

During the period of chocolate healing, the cocoadaemon can also benefit from curative magic such as a cure light wounds spell as if it were a living creature.

Depending on whether we want them to get cure spell or not. I'm currently leaning towards not.

 

[freyar]

I can go with that. There's a "Heal spell" that should be "Heal skill," but otherwise this is pretty good. I also lean toward no cure spells. A good day's meals at an inn is 5sp and common is 3sp, so how about 3sp for natural healing and 5sp per day for long term care.

 

[Cleon]

I can go with that. There's a "Heal spell" that should be "Heal skill," but otherwise this is pretty good. I also lean toward no cure spells. A good day's meals at an inn is 5sp and common is 3sp, so how about 3sp for natural healing and 5sp per day for long term care.

Seems a bit cheap. A healer's kit is 50 gp for 10 uses, or 5 gp per use.

Admittedly, that includes a +2 circumstance bonus, but it suggests we should be aiming for a "gold piece" scale.

Perhaps 1 gp for natural healing and 2 gp for long term care?

 

[freyar]

Fair enough. I'm arbitrarily picking 8 oz of chocolate, but I don't mind adjusting that.

Chocolate Healing (Ex): A cocoadaemon or chocodeva which eats 8 ounces of the finest chocolate (cost 1gp) it gains natural healing for the following 24 hours, allowing it to recover from its injuries as it if were a living creature. Furthermore, specially prepared chocolate remedies can provide a cocoadaemon with first aid, long term care and wound treatment as per the Heal spell, except they require Profession (cooking) checks instead of Heal checks and expend 2 gp worth of chocolate products per application. Chocolate healing does not allow a cocoadaemon/chocodeva to benefit from curative magic, such as a cure light wounds spell. It only grants "natural healing" for the duration.