Creature Stats:
Astirax
Small Outsider (Trapped
Spirit, Magic)
Hit Dice: 3d8+6 (19 hp)
Initiative: +2
Speed: Fly 60 ft. (perfect)
AC: 14 (+2 Dex, +2 deflection), touch 14, flat-footed 12
Base Attack Bonus: +3
Grapple: --
Attack: --
Full Attack: --
Space/Reach: 5 ft./5 ft.
Special Attacks: Drain spell energy, possession
Special Qualities: Magic subtype, bodiless, world-sense,
superior invisibility, sense magic, silver vulnerability
Saves: Fort +5, Ref +5, Will +6
Abilities: Str --, Dex 14, Con 15, Int 16, Wis 12, Cha 15
Skills: Hide +8, Intimidate +8, Knowledge (arcana) +7, Knowledge
(local) +7, Knowledge (Shadow) +9, Listen +7, Move Silently +8, Search
+9, Sense Motive +7, Spellcraft +7, Spot +7, Survival +7
Feats: Iron Will,
Track
Climate/Terrain: Any
Organization: Solitary or pack (4-12)
Challenge Rating: 4
Treasure: None
Alignment: Always neutral evil
Advancement: 4-10 HD (Small)
Astiraxes are the bane of spellcasters. The dark god recruited, bred, or created the astiraxes to help his servants find and eradicate any spellcaster that stood against him. To this day, legates are given an astirax as a companion and ally in their task to destroy the last remnants of magic among the subjugated peoples of the world.
Astiraxes are naturally invisible and bodiless spirits. Should one become visible via divination spells, it appears as an apparition of rotting animal flesh. It takes on the appearance of all the animals it has ever possessed, causing an older astirax to look like a cobbled-together, phantom animal golem, made of the rotting flesh of dead animals.
Combat (Bodiless)
Like most spirits, astiraxes are fairly impotent creatures in their natural forms, and so must rely on the host bodies of animals.
Horrid Visage (Su): While astiraxes are normally invisible, their true appearance can be perceived by divination magics. The unwary may have a surprise in store should they go searching for spirits, however; any living creature within 30 feet that can see an astirax's true, invisible form must succeed at a Will save (DC equal to 10 + one-half the astirax's HD + the astirax's Cha modifier) or become frightened and flee for 1d4 rounds. This is a mind-affecting fear effect.
Possession (Su): Animals only, save DC equal to 10 + one-half the astirax's HD + the astirax's Cha modifier). Because astiraxes have no original form other than their bodiless one, creatures possessed by an astirax's malevolence ability never undergo transformation.
Magic Subtype: Unlike other outsiders, astiraxes have no alignment or elemental subtype. Rather, they are formed from the weave of magic that surrounds the world. Therefore, the sensory exception that they may see and hear clearly is channeled magic. Whether enchanted items, existing spell effects, or spells as they are being cast, astiraxes have no penalty to Spot and Listen checks when perceiving magic items and effects in their bodiless forms.
Combat (Taking Form)
Drain Spell Energy (Su): When possessing an animal, the astirax is able to deliver the attack that causes it to be feared by channelers. Whenever an astirax hits any character with the Magecraft feat with the primary attack of its host creature, it immediately drains 1d4 points of spell energy from its victim in addition to normal damage. If this reduces the spell energy of the creature to zero, then any remaining damage is taken as temporary Constitution damage just if the creature had cast a spell. This Constitution dmage follows all the normal rules for spellcasting Constitution dmage, including its inability to be healed by any means other than a full night's rest.
Sense Magic (Su): Astiraxes' essences are formed from the magic of the world itself; when they possess the animals of the world, their connection to both the physical world and the unseen world of magic allows them to sense nearby spell effects almost as if by scent. Spells cast by a channeler, magic items crafted by a channeler at a power nexus, and continuous magic effects from either of those sources can all be detected by an astirax's senses.
The range at which an astirax can sense such effects, while theoretically unlimited, is determined by how powerful the magic is. It sense active spells and magic items at a range of one-half mile per caster level. For instance, a character carrying a +2 lonsword (with a caster level of 6) is detectable at three miles away, while one with a wand of cure light wounds (with a caster level of 5) is detectable at two and a half miles. An astirax can detect the general direction and distance (to one-half mile) of any detected effect.
However, emanations that are near each other create a sort of mystical feedback, amplifying the range at which any emanation can be detected. For each additional emanation within a 5-ft. radius beyond the first, the range at which all emanations within that radius can be detected increases by one-half mil. For instance, if the above character cast a shield spell on himself (with a caster level of 3) and continued to carry the +2 longsword (with a caster level of 6), the longsword would become detectable at three and a half miles and the shield spell, normally detectable at only one and a half miles, would become detectable at two miles.
The ability of legates' astiraxes companions to sense magic improves as the legate advances. This enhanced sense adds a flat 5-mile (at 9th level) or 10-mile (at 15th level)increase to the distance at which any spell effect can be detected. So for instance, a 9th-level legate's astirax companion could detect the above +2 longsword-bearing, shield-casting character at eight and a half miles, while a 15th-level legate's astirax companion could detect the character at 13 and a half miles.
Astiraxes do not need to be concentrating to use this ability, so they automatically become aware of any channeled spell effet within range. If the spell is instantaneous, it registers for only a moment, but long enough for the astirax to detect the general direction and distance (within one-half mile) of the emanation. Astiraxes automatically determine the caster levels of all spell effects that they detect, and may make Spellcraft checks to determine what spell is being cast, identify spells that are already in place, or identify the schools of magic of an effet, all as if they had cast detect magic and were able to see the spellcaster or effect in question.
Once within one-half mile of an effect, an astirax may make Survival checks (DC 30 - 1 per caster level of the effect) to determine the exact direction and estimated distance (within 50 ft.) of each effect.
Spell trigger items such as wands and staffs are considered to have half their normal caster level unless they are being used, since the power stored within is not fully realized until the user activates it. Power nexuses cannot be sensed by an astirax unless they are currently being used by a channeler to create an item or help power a spell. In this case, the nexus radiates at twice the caster level of the item being created or the spell being cast.
Since an astirax is sensing emanations via its spirit self, physical barriers do not block its ability to sense magic. It can sense a spell being cast miles below the surface, although tracking those emanations is made very difficult by the intervening stone. The magic aura sell can be used to mask an item's aura from an asirax's sense magic ability, in which case it gets a Will save to see through the illusion. If it fails this save, it believes the magic (or lack thereof) to be valid until it can examine it within 30 feet, at which time it gains another saving throw.
Silver Vulnerability (Ex): All astiraxes have vulnerability to silver.