Drow Strategist
Drow Strategist (CR 14) (Leader Role)
Only rarely are outsiders ever graced with the honor of meeting a Drow Strategist. These smiling and delicate creatures are the driving will behind the utterly murderous Drow style of warfare. Meeting a Drow Strategist is a rare thing, and she will inevitably be escorted by a powerful personal guard, usually composed of Drow males, Driders, or powerful undead she has made herself.
Instead, Drow Strategists will be shadowy figures, never seen directly, only hinted at in coded messages and vicious orders written in a firm but beautiful script. Drow Strategists are in charge of huge amounts of martial power, and spend the large majority of their time in councils of war, plotting and planning attacks, feints, advances, strategic withdrawals, and all manners of maneuver.
It is rare for a Drow Strategist to be on the actual field of battle. She will usually have a Consort assigned to her to serve as her 'eyes in the field' and direct affairs in her name.
To say that a Strategist is ruthless is understating things. She will consider all assets she can control as expendable, and will seek only to use them up in a way that best advances the goals of herself and her House. Some smaller Houses may even be headed by a Strategist, although such things are rare, and such weak Drow Houses are usually soon absorbed by or allied with a Matriarch, as they should be.
In the rare instances when a Strategist is forced into combat, they are terrible foes in their own right, but the real threat is her escort, who will be driven to insanely suicidal heights of effort to destroy her attackers and get her to safety.
Bearding a Drow Strategist in her lair is a very, very dangerous task, but if you can end her ruthless leadership, it is a tremendous victory for the entire world.
General
CR 14 Hit Dice 20
XP 76,800 (Leader role included)
LE Medium Fey
Init +6; Senses Superior Darkvision 120 ft, Perception +25
Defense
AC 36, touch 21, flat-footed 32 (+9 armor, +4 dex, +6 natural, +7 deflection)
hp 630 (Leader role included)
Fort +13, Ref +15, Will +17
Aura Commanding Presence
SR -
Special Defenses -
Immunities -
Weaknesses Vulnerability to Cold Iron
Offense
Speed 40 ft., Climb 40 ft.
Space / Reach: 5 ft. / 5 ft.
Single Melee Leader's Baton +20 (2d8+10/19-20x2) + Bull Rush
Full Melee 3x Leader's Baton +20 (2d8+10/19-20x2) + Bull Rush
Ranged None, but see Darkfire and Terrible Rebuke
Special Attacks Aura of Commanding Presence, Graceful Repose, Terrible Rebuke, Darkfire
Action Points 0
Statistics
Str 12, Dex 18, Con 20, Int 16, Wis 22, Cha 20
Base Atk +14; CMB +23 (+27 with Bull Rush); CMD 31
Feats Improved Bull Rush (included in CMB above)
Skills Bluff +21, Sense Motive +21, Diplomacy +21, Warcraft +23
Languages Common, Undercommon, Awnsheghlien
Special Abilities
- Aura of Commanding Presence (Ex)
All allies of a Drow Strategist are inspired by her cool head, sensible commands, and utterly unflappable demeanor. All allies that are within 100 feet of the Drow Strategist receive +2 to all to-hit rolls and +2 to all damage rolls for each five hit dice they possess, round up, to reflect her cool and devastating leadership. As if that is not enough, once per round as an immediate action, she may grant one of her allies within 100 feet a single standard action. This is resolved as an interrupt, and the ally may use this standard action for any use they wish, such as lowering it to a move action and running out of range of already declared attacks. Leader role mobs are a pain in the neck.
- Graceful Repose (Sp)
-
- Concentration: d20+20 vs a DC of 25
As a standard action, the Strategist may heal herself and all adjacent allies for 4d8+3 hit points.
- Terrible Rebuke (Sp)
-
- Concentration: d20+20 vs a DC of 25
As a standard action, the Strategist may cast Terrible Rebuke. This affects all creatures in a thirty foot diameter area of effect within a range of 300 feet. Terrible Rebuke affects all creatures who are working in opposition to the Strategists will, and thus usually only affects enemies, although given the byzantine nature of Drow society, damage to 'allies' is not impossible. Terrible Rebuke inflicts 3d6+3 points of psychic damage to all affected creatures, and inflicts the Afflicted status condition until the beginning of the Drow Strategist's next turn. Creatures in the area of effect are allowed a Will save versus a DC of 22 to take half damage and negate the Afflicted condition.
- Darkfire (Sp)
-
- Concentration: d20+20 vs a DC of 25
As a standard action, the consort may hurl Darkfire at a creature within 100 feet. This is treated like a ray attack. She must succeed on a ranged touch attack, with a to-hit roll of +15. If she hits, the target takes 7d6+1 points of fire and negative energy damage. Special: If the target of her Darkfire is undead, the Strategist may instead use Darkfire to heal that creature.
Treasure
sell value of approximately 27,500 gp, Leader Role included
Combat Tactics
If a Drow Strategist is drawn into combat, she will assess it. In almost all cases, against a party of player characters, a Drow Strategist will immediately move to sacrifice her minions in as painful a way as possible and flee as fast as she can. Nobody wants to face down a party of player characters, and Drow Strategists are no fools.
If a party manages to run down and corner a Drow Strategist, they are facing a Leader Role monster: HANDLE WITH CARE.
First, a Drow Strategist will get her allies in front of her. She will carefully pick and choose whom to gift her free standard action each round, looking to first disrupt spellcasters and ranged attackers, and then to interfere with the movement of melee characters. She will use her ranged attacks to drive away or into hiding any spellcasters, and if she can land a Terrible Rebuke upon multiple spellcasters, she will.
If she is forced into melee, she will seek to knock back her attackers with her free Bull Rush ability, and work to give her allies as many flanks and attacks of opportunity as she can without exposing herself to more risk. In all cases, the Drow Strategist will treat herself as the most valuable and dangerous asset in the battle, because usually, she is.
NOTE TO REFEREES: Leader monsters are dangerous, and optional. If your players are not capable combatants, think carefully before using a Leader role monster, as they are designed to challenge even the most powerful parties.