Effigy (CR 17)

Medium Undead (Fire and Incorporeal)
Alignment: Always chaotic evil
Initiative: +6 (+2 Dex, +4 Improved Initiative); Senses: darkvision (60-foot range), Listen +35, and Spot +35


AC: 20 (+2 Dex, +3 deflection, +5 natural), touch 15, flat-footed 18
Hit Dice: 27d12 (175 hp)
Fort +11, Ref +13, Will +20
Speed: Fly 60 ft. (perfect)
Space: 5 ft./5 ft.
Base Attack +13; Grapple -
Attack: Incorporeal touch 16 melee
Full Attack: 2 incorporeal touches +16 melee touch
Damage: Incorporeal touch 1d6/19-20 plus 2d6 fire plus energy drain plus infuse
Special Attacks/Actions: Energy drain, infuse
Abilities: Str -, Dex 15, Con -, Int 16, Wis 17, Cha 17
Special Qualities: Fire subtype, incorporeal subtype, SR 28, undead traits
Feats: Alertness; Blind-fight; Combat Expertise; Great Fortitude; Improved Critical (incorporeal touch); Improved Initiative; Iron Will; Lightning Reflexes; Run; Weapon Focus (incorporeal touch)
Skills: Balance +4, Escape Artist +32, Hide +32, Intimidate +33, Jump +2, Listen +35, Search +33, Spot +35, and Tumble +32
Advancement: 28-54 MD (Medium-size)
Climate/Terrain: Any land and underground
Organization: Solitary, pair, or brood (3-5)
Treasure/Possessions: None

Source: Monster Manual II

Energy Drain (Su): Any living creature struck by an effigy's incorporeal touch attack must succeed at a Fortitude saving throw (DC 26) or gain two negative levels. For each negative level bestowed, the effigy heals 5 points of damage. If the amount of healing is more than the damage the creature has taken, it gains any excess as temporary hit points. If the negative level has not been removed (with a spell such as restoration) before 24 hours have passed, the afflicted opponent must succeed at a Fortitude save (DC 26) to remove it. Failure means opponents level (or Hit Dice) is reduced by one.

Infuse (Su): When an effigy hits a humanoid or monstrous humanoid that is no more than two size categories larger than itself with its incorporeal touch attack, the opponent must make a successful Will save (DC 26) or become infused with the effigy's spirit. The effects of infusion on the opponent are similar to those of magic jar spell, except as noted here. Upon infusion, the effigy gains control of the infused creature. While infused, it uses the body's physical ability scores but its own mental ability scores. It also uses whatever attack forms the subject has available. Such attacks still do 2d6 points of additional fire damage, but they do not bestow negative levels. An infused effigy automatically deals fire damage and inflicts energy drain on its host body each round. The subject dies upon reaching -10 hit points or dropping below 1st level. At that point, the body becomes a flaming corpse. Each round after infusion occurs, the subject must make an opposed Wisdom check against the effigy. Success casts the effigy out, forcing it to retreat 30 feet. Thereafter, it may not attempt to infuse the same target again for 1 round per point of difference between the check results. A failed save leaves the effigy in control of the body If an effigy is turned while infused in a host, it abandons the body to flee.

Fire Subtype (Ex): An effigy is immune to fire damage but takes double damage from cold unless a saving throw for half damage is allowed. In that case, it takes half damage on a success and double damage on a failure.

An effigy seeks to join its undead force with the body of a living host, which it then burns out from within. It need not be joined with a body to attack, but it often keeps its most recent body's ashes animated within its fiery heart.

An effigy is an envious undead that hates living creatures and lusts after the life energy they possess. It seeks to possess a living creature and take over its life, but it cannot maintain its usurped body for long. Eventually the fires of its own raw hatred literally immolate the body it has possessed.

An effigy appears as a translucent humanoid shape composed of multicolored flame. Its eyes glow white within the flickering fires of its insubstantial body, but it has no other discernible facial features.

Fire Subtype

A creature with the fire subtype has immunity to fire. It has vulnerability to cold, which means it takes half again as much (+50%) damage as normal from cold, regardless of whether a saving throw is allowed, or if the save is a success or failure.

Incorporeal Subtype

Some creatures are incorporeal by nature, while others (such as those that become ghosts) can acquire the incorporeal subtype. An incorporeal creature has no physical body. It can be harmed only by other incorporeal creatures, magic weapons or creatures that strike as magic weapons, and spells, spell-like abilities, or supernatural abilities. It has immunity to all nonmagical attack forms. Even when hit by spells, including touch spells or magic weapons, it has a 50% chance to ignore any damage from a corporeal source (except for positive energy, negative energy, force effects such as magic missile, or attacks made with ghost touch weapons). Non-damaging spell attacks affect incorporeal creatures normally unless they require corporeal targets to function (such as the spell implosion) or they create a corporeal effect that incorporeal creatures would normally ignore (such as a web or wall of stone spell). Although it is not a magical attack, a hit with holy water has a 50% chance of affecting an incorporeal undead creature.

An incorporeal creature's natural weapons affect both in incorporeal and corporeal targets, and pass through (ignore) corporeal natural armor, armor, and shields, although deflection bonuses and force effects (such as mage armor) work normally against it. Attacks made by an incorporeal creature with a nonmagical melee weapon have no effect on corporeal targets, and any melee attack an incorporeal creature makes with a magic weapon against a corporeal target has a 50% miss chance except for attacks it makes with a ghost touch weapon, which are made normally (no miss chance).

Any equipment worn or carried by an incorporeal creature is also incorporeal as long as it remains in the creature's possession. An object that the creature relinquishes loses its incorporeal quality (and the creature loses the ability to manipulate the object). If an incorporeal creature uses a thrown weapon or a ranged weapon, the projectile becomes corporeal as soon as it is fired and can affect a corporeal target normally (no miss chance). Magic items possessed by an incorporeal creature work normally with respect to their effects on the creature or another target. Similarly, spells cast by an incorporeal creature affect corporeal creatures normally.

An incorporeal creature has no natural armor bonus but has a deflection bonus equal to its Charisma bonus (always at least +1, even if the creature's Charisma score does not normally provide a bonus).

An incorporeal creature can enter or pass through solid object but must remain adjacent to the object's exterior, and so cannot pass entirely through an object whose space is larger than its own. It can sense the presence of creatures or objects a square adjacent to its current location, but enemies have total concealment from an incorporeal creature that is inside an object. In order to see clearly and attack normally, a incorporeal creature must emerge. An incorporeal creature inside an object has total cover, but when it attacks a creature outside the object it only has cover, so a creature outside with a readied action could strike at it as it attacks. An incorporeal creature cannot pass through a force effect.

Incorporeal creatures pass through and operate in water as easily as they do in air. Incorporeal creatures cannot fall or take falling damage. Incorporeal creature cannot make trip or grapple attacks against corporeal creatures, nor can they be tripped or grappled by such creatures. In fact, they cannot take any physical action that would move or manipulate a corporeal being or its equipment, nor are they subject to such actions. Incorporeal creatures have no weight and do not set off traps that are triggered by weight.

An incorporeal creature moves silently and cannot be heard with Listen checks if it doesn't wish to be. It has no Strength score, so its Dexterity modifier applies to both its melee attacks and its ranged attacks. Non-visual senses, such as scent and blindsight, are either ineffective or only partly effective with regard to incorporeal creatures. Incorporeal creatures have an innate sense of direction and can move at full speed even when they cannot see.