Nimmurian Manscorpion
by Jamie BatySCMC
Large Monstrous Humanoid
Hit Dice: 6d8+9 (36 hp)
Initiative: +0
Speed: 20 ft. (4 squares) in half-plate armour; base speed 30 ft.
Armour Class: 19 (-1 size, +3 natural, +7 half-plate armour), touch 9, flat-footed 19
Base Attack/Grapple: +6/+14
Attack: Large glaive +9 melee (2d8 +6)
Full Attack: Large glaive +9/+4 melee (2d8 +6) and sting +4 melee (1d4 +2 plus poison) or 2 claw +9 melee (1d4 +4) and sting +4 melee (1d4 +2 plus poison)
Space/Reach: 10 ft. /5 ft.
Special Attacks: Poison
Special Qualities: Darkvision 60ft., Idu's Curse
Saves: Fort +3, Ref +5, Will +4
Abilities: Str 18, Dex 13, Con 13, Int 8, Wis 9, Cha 6
Skills: Hide -5, Intimidate +4, Listen +0, Move Silently -5, Spot +0, Survival +0
Feats: Cleave, Power Attack, Toughness
Environment: Any non-aquatic Temperate and Warm
Organisation: Solitary, Pair, Company (2-5), or Squad (5-20)
Challenge Rating: 3
Treasure: Standard
Alignment: Usually neutral evil
Advancement: 7-12 HD (Large) or by character class
Level Adjustment: +3
These part-human, part-scorpion creatures are sophisticated and civilised, while still cruel and self-serving. Welcomed by the original Nimmurians (winged minotaurs called enduks), the manscorpions betrayed their trust, drove them out, and assumed their cultural identity.
A manscorpion has a human torso and a bony-plated arachnoid body with eight legs and a long tail tipped with a wicked stinger. Its hands have two thick fingers and a thumb. Originally dark-skinned and hairless, the Nimmurian manscorpions were cursed by Idu (an Immortal) to burn in sunlight. Due to a long sojourn underground, they have become translucent, making their internal organs visible. They cover their bodies with make-up, both to cover the awful sight and to protect them from the sun's rays. When outside, all manscorpions wear masks with terrible grimaces. These cover their faces and provide protective dark lenses for their sensitive eyes.
Nimmurian manscorpions are organised and efficient. Most manscorpions, even those ostensibly living on the surface, have underground lairs to which they retreat.
Greedy, treacherous, and self-serving, the leaders of the various dominions constantly seek ways to weaken their rivals. They hate all other life and seek to dominate and subjugate other creatures. Enduks are particularly mistreated.
Nimmurian manscorpions have two Immortal patrons: Atzanteotl the corrupter of civilisations, who seeks to destroy all surface life; and Nin-Hurabi (Nyx) the lady of darkness, who wants undead to take over the world.
Manscorpions eat practically any meat, including carrion. No normal creature preys on them.
Nimmurian manscorpions speak Nimmurian, Common, and Terran. They may also know Herathian, Verden, and other local languages.
Combat
Nimmurian manscorpions are very dangerous foes. They like to ambush foes and then engage in melee combat. They prefer pole-arm weapons to all others, attacking one foe with its weapon and another with its stinger.
They are proficient with simple weapons, as well as glaives, guisarmes, halberds, lances, pole-axes and ranseurs (as well as other pole-arm weapons at DM's discretion). They are proficient with light, medium and heavy armours, as well as with all shields, excluding tower shields.
Poison (Ex): A creature stung by the Nimmurian manscorpion's stinger must make a Fort save vs DC 14 (Con based) or suffer 1d4 Str primary damage and 1d4 Con secondary damage.
Idu's Curse (Ex): Nimmurian manscorpions are extremely vulnerable to sunlight. A Nimmurian manscorpion caught in direct sunlight is shaken and suffers 1d6+2 damage per round exposed. Any Nimmurian manscorpion left in direct sunlight for more than ten minutes bursts into flames and is immediately killed. Reflected sunlight (moonlight or mirror reflections) inflicts 1d3 points of damage per round of exposure.
The effects of this curse can be temporarily alleviated if the Nimmurian manscorpion spends at least 30 minutes applying special make-up to its body. The effects of the make-up last for 24 hrs before it must be reapplied. Brief exposure to water can partially remove the make-up, and a dousing in water will remove it completely. Treat partial makeup as the same as being exposed to reflected sunlight.
Skills: Nimmurian manscorpions have a +4 racial bonus to all Intimidate skill checks.
The Red Curse
Any manscorpions who wander into the cursed lands are susceptible to the Red Curse. They acquire Legacies and require cinnabryl.
Nimmurian Manscorpions As Characters
A Nimmurian manscorpion's favoured class in fighter. Their societies also produce a great number of barbarians and rangers. Clerics are fairly common, although monks, druids and paladins are extremely rare. Wizards and sorcerers are not unheard of, though sorcerers are more common of the two. Rogues and bards are very uncommon, and viewed poorly. Nimmurian manscorpion clerics usually worship Atzanteotl or Nin-Hurabi (Nyx). Those that do not follow a specific Immortal may choose two of the following domains : Death, Destruction, or War.
Nimmurian manscorpion characters possess the following racial traits:
• +8 Strength, +2 Dexterity, +2 Constitution, -2 Intelligence, -2 Wisdom, -4 Charisma.
• Large size. -1 penalty to Armour Class, -1 penalty on attack rolls, -4 penalty on Hide checks, +4 bonus on grapple checks, lifting and carrying limits double those of Medium characters.
• Space/Reach: 10 feet/5 feet.
• Base land speed is 30 feet.
• Darkvision out to 60 feet.
• Racial Hit Dice: A Nimmurian manscorpion begins with six levels of monstrous humanoid, which provide 6d8 Hit Dice, a base attack bonus of +6 and base saving throw bonuses of Fort +2, Ref +5, and Will +5.
• Racial Skills: A Nimmurian manscorpion's monstrous humanoid levels give it skill points equal to 9 × (2 + Int modifier). Its class skills are Hide, Move Silently, Spot, Intimidate, Listen and Survival
• Racial Feats: A Nimmurian manscorpion's monstrous humanoid levels give it three feats.
• +3natural armour bonus.
• Special Attacks (see above): Poison
• Special Qualities (see above): Idu's Curse
• +4 racial bonus to all Intimidate checks
• Automatic Languages: Nimmurian, Common, Terran. Bonus Languages: Herathian, Verden, other local languages.
• Favoured Class: Fighter.
• Level adjustment +3.