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Formian Warrior

CR 3.00 Monstrous Humanoid LN Medium HD 4

Armored from head to toe in gleaming black-and-red chitin, this insectile warrior's tail ends in a wickedly barbed stinger.

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Description

Composing the fighting caste of the hive, formian warriors grow from grubs hatched in the flesh of carnivores and similar fierce creatures. All are sterile females, although in rare circumstances they spontaneously become fertile after the death of their queen. In the rigid hierarchy of the formian hive, they rank above the worker caste and below all others. Allowed independent initiative to better hone their battle skills, formian warriors have more latitude in following commands than many other formians. Owing to this latitude, formian warriors are more likely to chafe under hive strictures than workers and taskmasters.

All formian warriors ultimately answer to the myrmarch caste and, through them, to the queen. Beneath this layer of command, the warriors have a command structure of their own. Formian warriors advance in rank through a complicated formula that references their achievements in battle, personal prowess, and years of service to the hive.

Formian warriors engrave their chitin with insignia depicting their rank and notable deeds. A disgraced warrior has her markings gouged out and her stinger torn away.

Formian warriors stand 7 feet tall and weigh 200 pounds. Their carapaces resemble suits of armor as much as insects' exoskeletons but cannot be enhanced with magic as if they were armor. The striped patterns of a formian warrior vary from individual to individual, although formians belonging to the same hive usually bear similar markings.

Warriors mature quickly and have short life spans, becoming too infirm to fight around 15 years of age. Old warriors are expected to end their lives for the good of the hive, either by taking on a fatal mission or through voluntary starvation. A few of the most exceptional warriors receive permission to live out their remaining years as teachers and drill instructors, passing their skills on to new generations of formian warriors.

Combat Stats

30 (4d10+8)

17, touch 13, flat-footed 14 (+3 Dex, +4 natural)

Init

+3 (+7 with hive mind)

Speed

40 ft.

Fort

Ref

Will

BAB

CMB

+6 (+10 grapple)

CMD

19 (23 vs. trip)

Melee: sting +6 (1d4+2 plus poison), 2 claws +6 (1d4+2 plus grab)
Ranged: javelin +7 (1d6+2 plus poison)

Ability Scores

str

dex

con

int

wis

cha

Proficiencies

Weapons: Simple

Special Attacks

Deadly Grasp — When a formian warrior has a foe grappled, it deals sting damage when it succeeds at a grapple check to damage its opponent.

Poison — Javelin or sting—injury; save Fort DC 14; frequency 1/round for 6 rounds; effect 1d2 Dex; cure 1 save.

Special Qualities

Coordinate — Once a formian warrior has acted in a combat, all allied formians within the hive mind are no longer considered flat-footed. When a formian warrior attacks a creature in melee, allied formians gain a +2 insight bonus on melee attack rolls against that creature until the start of the warrior's next turn.

formian traits

Feats

Skill Focus (Acrobatics), Step Up

Special Abilities

Universal Monster Rules

Grab (claws) Ex from Universal Monster Rule

If a creature with this special attack hits with the indicated attack (usually a claw or bite attack), it deals normal damage and attempts to start a grapple as a free action without provoking an attack of opportunity. The creature has the option to conduct the grapple normally, or simply to use the part of its body it used in the grab to hold the opponent. If it chooses to do the latter, it takes a –20 penalty on its combat maneuver check to make and maintain the grapple, but does not gain the grappled condition itself. A successful hold does not deal any extra damage unless the creature also has the constrict special attack. If the creature does not constrict, each successful grapple check it makes during successive rounds automatically deals the damage indicated for the attack that established the hold. Otherwise, it deals constriction damage as well (the amount is given in the creature's descriptive text). Creatures with grab receive a +4 bonus on combat maneuver checks made to start and maintain a grapple. Unless otherwise noted, grab works only against opponents no larger than the same size category as the creature. If the creature can use grab on sizes other than the default, this is noted in the creature's Special Attacks line.

Poison (sting) Ex from Universal Monster Rule

A creature with this ability can poison those it attacks. The effects of the poison, including its save, frequency, and cure, are included in the creature's description. The saving throw to resist a poison is usually a Fort save (DC 10 + 1/2 the poisoning creature's racial HD + the creature's Con modifier; the exact DC is given in the creature's descriptive text). Poisons can be removed through neutralize poison and similar effects.

Special Abilities

Coordinate from text

Once a formian warrior has acted in a combat, all allied formians within the hive mind are no longer considered flat-footed. When a formian warrior attacks a creature in melee, allied formians gain a +2 insight bonus on melee attack rolls against that creature until the start of the warrior's next turn.

Deadly Grasp from text

When a formian warrior has a foe grappled, it deals sting damage when it succeeds at a grapple check to damage its opponent.

Formian Traits from text

Feats, Traits & Items

Skill Focus (Acrobatics) from Feat

You get a +3 bonus on all checks involving the chosen skill. If you have 10 or more ranks in that skill, this bonus increases to +6.

Calculated: +3 Skill Bonus

Step Up from Feat

Whenever an adjacent foe attempts to take a 5-foot step away from you, you may also make a 5-foot step as an immediate action so long as you end up adjacent to the foe that triggered this ability. If you take this step, you cannot take a 5-foot step during your next turn. If you take an action to move during your next turn, subtract 5 feet from your total movement.

Skills

Acrobatics +10 (+14 when jumping), Climb +8, Intimidate +8, Perception +7 (+11 with hive mind), Stealth +7

Details

Type: Monstrous Humanoid
Alignment: LN
Size: Medium
Environment: warm or temperate land or underground
Organization: solitary, pair, band (5–8 plus 3–15 workers and 1 taskmaster), or patrol (3–12)
Treasure: standard (6 javelins, other treasure)
Senses: blindsense 30 ft., darkvision 60 ft., hive mind; Perception +7 (+11 with hive mind)
Languages: Common; telepathy 60 ft.
Source: Bestiary 4

Rules