Faradian

Large Monstrous Humanoid

Hit Dice: 9d8+45 (85 hp),dying/dead –6/–21 Initiative: +1 Speed: 30 feet AC: 30 (–1 size,+1 Dexterity,+8 natural,+12 armor),touch 10, flat-footed 29 Base Attack/Grapple: +9/+18 Attack: Large dire masterwork greataxe +15 melee (2d8+11) Full Attack: Large dire masterwork greataxe +15/+10 melee (2d8+11) and bite +15 melee (1d8+2) Face Space/Reach: 10 feet/10 feet (Face/Reach:5 feet by 5 feet/10 feet) Special Attacks: Ensorcel weapon,dazzle,telekinesis Special Qualities: Blindsight 60 feet,immunities,precognitive flashes Saves: Fort +8,Ref+7,Will +13 Abilities: Str 20,Dex 12,Con 21,Int 17,Wis 21,Cha 19 Skills: Climb +13,Craft (weaponsmithing) +8,Intimidate +10,

Jump +10,Knowledge (geography) +9,Knowledge (history) +9, Listen +10,+10,Wilderness Survival +11 Feats: Ambidexterity,Bloody Strike, Exotic Weapon Proficiency (heavy) B , Iron Will B,Two-Weapon Fighting,Weapon

Focus (greataxe),Weapon Specialization (greataxe)

Environment: Any land Organization: Solitary Challenge Rating: 8 Treasure: Double standard Advancement: By character class Level Adjustment: +4

Living by their own strange code,the faradians are as enigmatic as they are fearsome.Nothing is truly black and white in the Lands ofthe Diamond Throne,and the faradians exemplify that truism.These towering warriors are as likely to murder a seemingly innocent person as they are to help someone in distress.

The faradians are not what they once were.Long ago they served as allies and friends ofthe mysterious crystal weavers ofdays past.As such,they were also close companions ofthe grynlocs (see page 46).Despite their great strength,the faradians were farmers and herders living in and around the northern reaches ofthe Elder Mountains.

In those days,the great kingdom ofSennes encompassed much ofwhat was then called Terrakal.Queen Adrilashe decreed that she must have an elite force ofbodyguards and troops.She commanded her allies,the Devanians,to bring the best and the brightest ofthe faradians to her generals, and they complied.The faradians were taught loyalty, prowess,and strategy.They even learned sorcerous tricks from the mages ofSennes,who were at their height at the time.Thanks to their special connection to the akashic memory,the faradians ensured that once they were trained,all other faradians would share their knowledge,as would their future generations.Thus,an elite force offaradian warriors attended the monarch ofSennes and,eventually,Devania. Even as political tides turned and human rulers changed, faradians always served them as faithful warriors.When the dramojh invaded,the faradians held them offlonger than anyone would have thought possible.The dramojh hated them for their power,but even more for their steadfastness and loyalty.Using sorcery,the demon-dragons captured a number offaradians and murdered the rest.

For long years,the dramojh tortured their captives but could not break them.Finally,they used magic to give the naturally blind faradians sight—but no ordinary sight.They cursed the faradians with flashes ofthe future,but only terrible aspects of what would be.They tormented them with the horrors that were,that had been,and that were still to come.No one knows exactly what happened after that,but when the armies ofthe giants,sibeccai,humans,and others arrived at the dramojh gates bringing freedom,the faradians were still in the dramojh prisons.They would speak ofnothing that had happened.

Today,faradians are quite rare.When one sees them,they are usually doing something difficult to understand—they attack individuals seemingly at random,while providing cryptic advice to others.They show up in numbers to help defend a tower against bandit attack,then walk away wordlessly when the same tower is beset by shadow trolls.The truth is,in their ongoing visions offuture horrors,they see things that they know can be changed.Their assistance helps others alter or avoid the terrible events still to come. This knowledge sometimes calls for strange—even violent or evil—acts,from a nonfaradian perspective,but they do not care,and they never explain themselves.Thus,today faradians enjoy a sinister and fearsome reputation.

Tall and muscular,these humanoids stand at least 12 feet tall. They wear massive,gleaming armor covered in spikes and movable,shifting plates (usually a definitive harness with armor spikes).They wield huge dire axes and wear helmets that cover the part oftheir faces where their eyes would be,ifthey had eyes.The helmet always has an opening for the faradian’s mouth,which is large with many pointed teeth.A faradian’s hands and feet are large,too,and it has only four fingers on each hand and four toes on each foot.Its flesh is pale white, almost pink,not that most people ever see faradian flesh.

Faradians speak Common as well as their own language, which is closely related to Grynloc,but much simpler.Though few in number,those who remain appear immortal and ageless.

Combat

Faradians are straightforward but intelligent combatants. They attempt to infuse their weapons with magic before they enter combat,and then blast with their dazzle ability before closing for melee.They rarely use telekinesis in a fight,saving it for more practical purposes.They fight to the death and show no mercy.In battle,they are savage and do anything to emerge victorious.

Ensorcel Weapon (Sp): A faradian can,once per day, grant its weapon a single +1 or +2 magical weapon quality ofits choice for up to 10 rounds.Doing so is a standard action.

Dazzle (Sp): By creating a brilliant flash ofmultiple lights,a faradian calls up an effect similar to that of a dazzlesphere spell three times per day.It is immune to this effect.

Telekinesis (Sp): A faradian can use lesser telekinesis at will and greater telekinesis three times each day.

Immunities: Faradians are immune to gaze attacks,visual effects,illusions,and other attack forms that rely on sight.

Precognitive Flashes (Su): Faradians can see into the future,but they have no control over what they see.What they see is always bad,though not necessarily about them personally.In a given encounter,there is a 25 percent chance that the faradian has seen something ahead of time that pertained to the encounter.In such a case,they gain a +4 insight bonus to attack rolls, saving throws,checks,and Armor Class.They might also (at the DM’s discretion) know an opponent’s weakness,likely tactics,or some other vital bit ofinformation ahead oftime.

Faradian Characters

Faradians are warmains or,more rarely,champions. Faradian champions are always champions of light or freedom.

Faradian Encounter (EL 10)

The PCs are on a mission involving a visit to a woman who lives alone in a tower in a small town.When two faradians suddenly appear,seemingly from nowhere,and prevent them from entering the tower,the characters can ask for explanations all they want,but they won’t get one.Ifthey leave and come back later,the faradians do not stop them.Ifthey fight,the faradians fight to the death to keep them from going in.

Inside,they find the woman dead.They discover that she was a powerful witch performing a dangerous experiment on a dramojh artifact.The experiment went awry,unleashing an infectious,corruptive power.The witch is dead,but had the PCs been there,during the explosion they would have carried the tainted energy with them,corrupting the entire town (and perhaps worse).As it is,since no one else was present,the corruptive power simply faded.