Design Day: Tanaya, The Damned Queen

Welcome to my first Design Day! Here, I’ll be posting something design-centered every Tuesday and Thursday, whether that means an NPC, a monster, a spell, a magic item or anything else I can think of. The point of these is to present you with something you can enjoy and maybe use in your home game. And I can’t lie: it’s also good practice for myself.

Today, we’re going to go deeper into the White Hand, the organization I presented on Flavor Friday, and we’ll be examining one of its key members.

Tanaya, The Damned Queen                                                                                   CR 11

Female human vampire antipaladin 9

CE medium undead (augmented humanoid)

Init +5; Senses darkvision 60 ft; Perception +21

DEFENSE

AC 30, touch 13, flat-footed 28

(+11 armor, +1 dex, +1 dodge, +6 natural armor, +1 deflection)
HP 126 (9d10+72); fast healing 5
Fort +14, Ref +12, Will +16
Defensive Abilities channel resistance +4; DR 10/magic and silver; Immune undead traits; Resistance cold 10, electricity 10

Weakneses vampire weaknesses

OFFENSE

Spd 20 feet

Melee Dread +19/+14 (2d6+14, 17-20 plus 1d4 bleed) or Slam +17 (1d4+12 plus energy drain)

Ranged Mwk Composite Longbow (+5 strength) +11 (1d8+5, x3)

Special Attacks blood drain, children of the night, create spawn, dominate (DC 20), energy drain (2 levels, DC 20), smite good 3/day, touch of corruption 4d6 10/day, channel negative energy, fiendish boon (+2 weapon) 2/day, power attack

Spells (CL 6^th, concentration +12)

2^nd – desecrate, hold person, invisibility

1^st – cause fear, command, doom, protection from good

STATISTICS

Str 26, Dex 13, Con —, Int 12, Wis 14, Cha 22

Base Atk +9; CMB +17; CMD 28

Feats Alertness*, Combat Reflexes*, Dodge*, Improved Initiative*, Lightning Reflexes*, Toughness*, Improved Unarmed Strike, Improved Grapple, Power Attack, Blind-Fight, Command Undead, Improved Critical (Greatsword)

Skills bluff +26, perception +21, sense motive +22, stealth +8

Languages common, aklo

SQ change shape, gaseous form, shadowless, spider-climb, aura of evil, detect good, unholy resilience, aura of cowardice, cruelties (shaken, staggered, frightened), plague bringer, aura of despair

Gear belt of giant strength+2, headband of alluring charisma +2, cloak of resistance +2, Dread (+2 Greatsword), +2 glamered full-plate, ring of protection +1

The Vampire Queen, in all her sleek and sexy glory.

Tanaya is one of the Archlords of the White Hand, answering only to the Hand himself. She wears her glamered full plate and uses it to make her look as if she is wearing a tight, black dress embroidered with gold and bones. Tanaya lives in a mansion that sits within an abandoned city whose people she slaughtered and transformed into undead, and she keeps four vampire-spawn slaves to serve her and bring her fresh victims. She also keeps two “children” by her side at all times, both strong dhampir clerics that she sired herself. They manage her sizable personal horde of zombies and skeletons.

Tanaya believes that, when The Raising comes to pass, she will become true nobility within the Risen World, and so she furthers the cause.

Looking at her stat block, you may have noticed that she wields a signature weapon called Dread. Well, who would I be if I didn’t give you the statistics for her blade, as well as the lady herself?

Dread

Aura strong evocation; CL 12th

Slot none; Price 12,000 gp; Weight 8 lbs.

DESCRIPTION

This +2 greatsword is forged from silver and bone, and hardened in the black fires of undeath. It was crafted specifically for Tanaya, the Damned Queen. Whenever the wielder succeeds on a critical hit against a living creature with this blade, it deals 1d4 points of bleed damage.

CONSTRUCTION

Requirements Craft Magic Arms and Armor, bleed, vampiric touch; Cost 6,000 gp.

…

Okay! So there’s my first design day! On Thursday, I’ll present the leader of the White Hand himself, a being known only as The Hand.

-Chris