Are the normal variety of creatures in the Monster Vault not doing it for you? Don’t want to wait for Monster Vault 2? Do you want something that’s just a little more? More feral? More fey?
Well, you’re in luck! Here comes the fey-touched template! Stick this template on all of your favorite critters and forest beasties while driving home the influence the shadow fey have on the Margreve and all that dwell within it.
| Your extended guide to travel in the ancient wood, The Old Margreve, is now on sale in the Kobold Press store! |
What are the Fey-Touched?
The fey-touched are creatures who have been directly exposed to capricious magic, usually by shadow fey and more rarely by fey lords and ladies. They look largely like their normal counterparts, but they become more volatile in temperament and prone to extreme displays of instinct and emotion.
The shadow fey love to influence animals for sport, often spurring a newly fey-touched beast into terrorizing a logging camp or bothering a caravan traversing the Margreve. Less frequently, a fey-touched creature will be manifested to protect an important location, person, or relic within the old wood. Some creatures within the Margreve continue to bear a distant connection to the shadow fey generations later, such as some native griffons with sable plumage and indomitable spirit.
This template can be applied to any Beast or Monstrosity. When a creature becomes fey-touched, it retains its statistics, except as described here. A creature that could change its shape loses that capability.
Common Characteristics. Fey-touched creatures and their appearances vary widely, though all tend to take on a darker coloration in their hair, feathers, fur, skin, and scales. A key feature among all fey-touched is a primeval set of horns. Influenced by the magic of the shadow fey, all fey-touched grow a new set of sturdy, sharp horns that can inflict grievous injury.
Fey-Touched Statistics
Make the following adjustments to the creature’s statistics.
Type. The fey-touched creature’s type changes to Fey. Spells and abilities that affect Fey now affect the creature.
Hit Points. The fey-touched creature’s hit points are reduced by 10 percent (rounded up).
Senses. The fey-touched creature has darkvision 60 ft. If it already had darkvision, the range increases to 120 ft.
Languages. The fey-touched creature understands Umbral but can’t speak.
Fey-Touched Traits
The creature gains the following traits.
Fey Resilience. The fey-touched creature is resistant to the charmed and unconscious conditions.
Fey-Touched Actions and Bonus Actions
The creature gains the following actions.
ACTIONS
Multiattack. If the fey-touched creature has a multiattack, it can substitute its Gore for one of its attacks. If it doesn’t have a multiattack, it gains one that allows it to attack once with one of its natural weapons and once with its Gore.
Gore. The fey-touched creature grows horns that it can use to gore targets. It is considered proficient with its Gore attack and uses STR or DEX for attack and damage rolls, whichever is higher. The Gore deals 1d4 piercing damage if the fey-touched creature is Tiny, 1d6 if it’s Small, 1d8 if it’s Medium, 2d8 if it’s Large, 2d10 if it’s Huge, and 3d12 if it’s Gargantuan.
BONUS ACTIONS
Shadow Traveler (2/Day). While in shadows, dim light, or darkness, the fey-touched creature disappears into the darkness and reappears in an unoccupied space it can see within 30 feet. A tendril of inky smoke appears at the origin and destination when it uses this bonus action.
Example Creature: Fey-Touched Steel Adder
The steel-grey scales on this ebon serpent’s spine appear in a pattern that looks like an array of swords arranged tip to hilt, running from the serpent’s snout down to the end of its tail.
The steel adder is a cantankerous and territorial snake that inhabits the deeper regions of the Margreve where few travelers dare to tread. Bigger than the tsuchinoko (the other noteworthy venomous snake native to the area) and packing an even more potent venom, the steel adder is tenacious and deadly when hunting or defending its clutch, always six eggs laid every six years.
When a steel adder hatches, it has just six blade-like markings on its back. As it grows and sheds its skin, new and longer blade makings come forth. According to the Old Ways, the blade-like markings on a steel adder’s back are said to foretell a warrior’s death. If you’re bitten by the steel adder and the number of battles you’ve been in is fewer than the swords on the snake’s back, your demise is surely upon you.
STEEL ADDER, FEY TOUCHED CR 1
Small Fey
Armor Class 13
Hit Points 36
Speed 30 ft., climb 5 ft., swim 30 ft.
Perception 13 Stealth 16
Resistant Fey Resilience
Senses darkvision 60 ft., keensense 10 ft.
Languages understands Umbral but can’t speak
| STR | DEX | CON | INT | WIS | CHA |
| +0 | +3 | +1 | −4 | +1 | −3 |
Fey Resilience. The fey-touched steel adder is resistant to the charmed and unconscious conditions.
Heightened Smell. The fey-touched steel adder’s Perception is 18 when perceiving by smell.
ACTIONS
Multiattack. The fey-touched steel adder makes a Venomous Bite attack and a Gore attack.
Venomous Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +5 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 3 (1d4 + 1) piercing damage and the target must make a DC 14 CON save, taking 11 (3d6) poison damage on a failed save, or half as much damage on a successful one.
Gore. Melee Weapon Attack: +5 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 4 (1d6 + 1) piercingdamage.
BONUS ACTIONS
Shadow Traveler (2/Day). While in shadows, dim light, or darkness, the fey-touched creature disappears into the darkness and reappears in an unoccupied space it can see within 30 feet. A tendril of inky smoke appears at the origin and destination when it uses this bonus action.
REACTIONS
Reflexive Nip. When a creature the fey-touched steel adder can see hits it with a melee attack while within 5 feet of it, the steel adder can make a quick nip at the creature. The attacker must succeed on a DC 14 CON save or be poisoned until the end of its next turn.