SYSTEM REFERENCE DOCUMENT 3.5

ARCHON

Archons are celestials from a lawful good-aligned plane.

Archons speak Celestial, Infernal, and Draconic, but can speak with almost any creature because of their tongues ability.

COMBAT

Archons generally prefer to meet a foe head-on if it is prudent to do so, but if outmatched, they do what they can to even the odds (usually by employing hit-and run tactics or standing off and engaging a foe with magic before moving into melee).

Archon Traits: An archon possesses the following traits (unless otherwise noted in a creature’s entry).

• Darkvision out to 60 feet and low-light vision.
• Aura of Menace (Su): A righteous aura surrounds archons that fight or get angry. Any hostile creature within a 20-foot radius of an archon must succeed on a Will save to resist its effects. The save DC varies with the type of archon, is Charisma-based, and includes a +2 racial bonus. Those who fail take a –2 penalty on attacks, AC, and saves for 24 hours or until they successfully hit the archon that generated the aura. A creature that has resisted or broken the effect cannot be affected again by the same archon’s aura for 24 hours.
• Immunity to electricity and petrification.
• +4 racial bonus on saves against poison.
• Magic Circle against Evil (Su): A magic circle against evil effect always surrounds an archon (caster level equals the archon’s Hit Dice). (The defensive benefits from the circle are not included in an archon’s statistics block.)
• Teleport (Su): Archons can use greater teleport at will, as the spell (caster level 14th), except that the creature can transport only itself and up to 50 pounds of objects.
• Tongues (Su): All archons can speak with any creature that has a language, as though using a tongues spell (caster level 14th). This ability is always active.

LANTERN ARCHON

Lantern archons appear as floating balls of light that glow about as brightly as a torch. Only their destruction can extinguish the glow, though they can try to hide it.

Combat

A lantern archon has little reason to get within melee range. It usually hovers just close enough to bring the enemy within its aura of menace, then blasts away with its light rays. Lantern archons prefer to concentrate on a single opponent, seeking to reduce enemy numbers quickly.

Aura of Menace (Su): Will DC 12 negates.

Light Ray (Ex): A lantern archon’s light rays have a range of 30 feet. This attack overcomes damage reduction of any type.

Spell-Like Abilities: At will—aid, detect evil, continual flame. Caster level 3rd.

HOUND ARCHON

Hound archons look like well-muscled humans with canine heads.

COMBAT

Hound archons prefer to attack with their natural weapons but occasionally use greatswords.

A hound archon’s natural weapons, as well as any weapons it wields, are treated as good-aligned and lawful-aligned for the purpose of overcoming damage reduction.

Spell-Like Abilities: At will—aid, continual flame, detect evil, message. Caster level 6th.

Aura of Menace (Su): Will DC 16 negates.

Change Shape (Su): A hound archon can assume any canine form of Small to Large size. While in canine form, the hound archon loses its bite, slam, and greatsword attacks, but gains the bite attack of the form it chooses. For the purposes of this ability, canines include any doglike or wolflike animal of the animal type.

Skills: *While in canine form, a hound archon gains a +4 circumstance bonus on Hide and Survival checks.

HOUND ARCHON HERO

The hound archon hero is a mighty champion of justice, devoted to the pursuit and destruction of evil in all its forms.

COMBAT

Hound archon heroes have over time developed a love for their weapons. They prefer to use their holy greatswords over their bite and slam attacks.

Spell-Like Abilities: At will—aid, continual flame, detect evil, message. Caster level 6th.

Aura of Menace (Su): The save DC for the hound archon hero's aura of menace (DC 18) is adjusted for its higher Charisma score.

Smite Evil (Su): Three times per day a hound archon hero can make a normal melee attack with a +3 bonus that deals an extra 11 points of damage against an evil foe.

Change Shape (Su): A hound archon hero can assume any canine form of Small to Large size. While in canine form, the hound archon loses its bite, slam, and greatsword attacks, but gains the bite attack of the form it chooses. For the purposes of this ability, canines include any doglike or wolflike animal of the animal type.

Skills: *While in canine form, a hound archon hero gains a +4 circumstance bonus on Hide and Survival checks.

Paladin Abilities: Aura of courage, aura of good, detect evil, divine grace, divine health, lay on hands (33 points/day), remove disease 2/week, special mount (juvenile bronze dragon).

Typical Paladin Spells Prepared (2/2; save DC 12 + spell level): 1st- divine favor, protection from evil; 2nd-bull's strength, eagle's splendor.

Possessions: +3 full plate armor, +2 cold iron greatsword.

HOUND ARCHON HERO MOUNTS

In the course of their adventures, many hound archon heroes befriend bronze dragons, which may come to serve as their mounts. The relationship between these mounts and their celestial riders goes beyond even the special bond between paladin and mount. The dragon and the archon are naturally allies and friends, as can be expected of two powerful servants of cosmic justice. The juvenile bronze dragon mount gains 2 additional HD, 4 points of Strength, an additional 4 points of natural armor, improved evasion, and +10 feet to speed in all its movement forms. The dragon cannot, however, command other creatures of its type as other kinds of paladin mounts can.

HOUND ARCHONS AS CHARACTERS

Hound archon characters possess the following racial traits.

• +4 Strength, +2 Constitution, +2 Wisdom, +2 Charisma.
• Medium size.
• A hound archon's base land speed is 40 feet.
• Racial Hit Dice: A hound archon begins with six levels of outsider, which provide 6d8 Hit Dice, a base attack bonus of +6, and base saving throw bonuses of Fort +5, Ref +5, and Will +5.
• Racial Skills: A hound archon's outsider levels give it skill points equal to 9 × (8 + Int modifier). Its class skills are Concentration, Hide, Jump, Listen, Move Silently, Sense Motive, Spot, and Survival.
• Racial Feats: A hound archon's outsider levels give it three feats.
• +9 natural armor bonus.
• Natural Weapons: Bite (1d8) and slam (1d4).
• Archon Traits: Darkvision 60 ft., low-light vision, aura of menace (Will DC 15 + character's Cha modifier), immunity to electricity and petrification, +4 racial bonus on saves against poison, magic circle against evil, teleport, tongues.
• Special Attacks: Spell-like abilities.
• Special Qualities: Change shape, damage reduction 10/evil, scent, spell resistance equal to 16 + class levels.
• Automatic Languages: Celestial. Bonus Languages: Common, Draconic, Infernal.
• Favored class: Ranger.
• Level adjustment +5.

TRUMPET ARCHON

Each Trumpet Archon carries a gleaming silver trumpet about 6 feet long.

COMBAT

A trumpet archon usually disdains physical combat, preferring to obliterate foes with spells quickly and return to its duties. If forced into an extended battle, it sounds its trumpet and attacks with a vengeance.

A trumpet archon’s natural weapons, as well as any weapons it wields, are treated as good-aligned and lawful-aligned for the purpose of overcoming damage reduction.

Spell-Like Abilities: At will—detect evil, continual flame, message. Caster level 12th.

Aura of Menace (Su): Will DC 21 negates.

Spells: Trumpet archons can cast divine spells as 14th-level clerics. A trumpet archon has access to two of the following domains: Air, Destruction, Good, Law, or War (plus any others from its deity). The save DCs are Wisdom-based.

Typical Cleric Spells Prepared (6/7/7/6/5/4/4/3; DC 13 + spell level): 0—detect magic, light, purify food and drink, read magic, resistance (2); 1st—bless (2), divine favor (2), protection from chaos*, sanctuary, shield of faith; 2nd—aid*, bull’s strength (2), consecrate, lesser restoration, owl’s wisdom (2); 3rd—daylight, invisibility purge, magic circle against chaos*, magic vestment, protection from energy (2); 4th— dismissal, divine power, holy smite*, neutralize poison, spell immunity; 5th—dispel evil*, mass cure light wounds, plane shift, raise dead; 6th— blade barrier*, banishment, heal, undeath to death; 7th—dictum*, holy word, mass cure serious wounds.

*Domain spell. Domains: Good and Law.

Trumpet (Su): An archon’s trumpet produces music of utter clarity, piercing beauty, and, if the trumpet archon wills it, paralyzing awe. All creatures except archons within 100 feet of the blast must succeed on a DC 19 Fortitude save or be paralyzed for 1d4 rounds. The save DC is Charisma-based. The archon can also command its trumpet to become a +4 greatsword as a free action.

If a trumpet is ever stolen, it becomes a chunk of useless metal until the owner can recover it. Woe betide any thief caught with one.

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