Imp

Imp (CR 3)

Lawful Evil - Small - Outsider (Devil)

Lore:	Know (Planes)
7		23
Basic DC		Full DC

Initiative

7

Perception:
15	+5
Passive	Active

Ambush:

9+

on a d20

Senses:

• Standard Senses
• Darkvision 20 ft.

Movement Types:

• Walk 30 ft.
• Vaulting 30 ft.

Defense

AC

18

Man Def

16

Monster Health
51	25	4
Hit Points	Bloodied	Hit Dice

Saving Throws
Fort:	+1
Refl:	+6
Will:	+6

Strong Against:

• ER 4/Common (Acid,  Cold,  Fire,  Lightning,  Sonic)

Weak Against:

Offense

Size:	Small
5 ft.		5 ft.
Space		Reach

To-Hit

+6

Man Off

+4

Action

0

Points

Standard Attack (Melee):

• 1x Hellspike +6 (1d8+1/19-20 x2)
  as Piercing (physical, common)

Full Attack (Melee):

• 3x Hellspike +6 (1d8+1/19-20 x2)
  as Piercing (physical, common)

Standard Attack (Ranged):

• 2x Infernal Bolt +10 vs. AC (always hits on a 17+ on the die) (1d8/19-20 x2)
  as Fire (energy, common)
  (Increment: 25 ft.; Max Range: 125 ft.)

Full Attack (Ranged):

Siege Damage: Not siege capable

Statistics

12

STR

15

DEX

11

CON

20

INT

14

WIS

16

CHA

Skills:

• Barter: 5
• Bluff: 5
• Diplomacy: 5
• Intimidate: 5
• Perception: 5
• Sense Motive: 5
• All other skills: 0 (no ranks)

Languages: Common, Strix, Infernal

Feats:

• Weapon Focus (EFFECT: +1 bonus on attack rolls with two weapons you choose and are proficient in, one melee, one ranged.)
• Far Shot (EFFECT: Decrease ranged penalties by half)

Special Abilities

Fundamental Evil (Ex) Always On

Devils are just screwed into the universe a little tighter than most things, because they are fundamentally evil. Because of this, there is a maximum amount of damage that devils can take from any single attack, ability, or effect. No single attack, ability, or effect made against this devil can ever inflict more than 9 points of damage to it. Any damage in excess of this number is ignored. This power is always on, and it is absolute: It applies to all forms of energy and physical damage, whether from weapons, properties, items, spells, abilities, feats, or anything else. The only thing that bypasses this ability is Primal damage, which is quite difficult to obtain.

Damning Rebuke (Su) Immediate Action

As an immediate action, when an attack, ability, or effect would deal more damage to the devil than its Fundamental Evil ability would allow (and thus, is reduced by the Fundamental Evil ability), the devil may reflect a portion of that damage onto an enemy creature within 20 feet of their space. When they do so, that targer suffers 1d4 points of damage of the same type as that dealt by the attack that triggered this ability. There is no to-hit roll or saving throw for this damage.

Signed in Blood (Su) Swift Action 1/Enc

Once per encounter, as a swift action, an imp can choose one enemy creature within 20 feet of their space, and offer them a contract. The terms of the contract are that the target will become Jinxed if they deal damage to that imp before the start of its next turn. There is no to-hit roll or saving throw against this effect. Note that imps are intelligent, and will frequently coordinate with its peers in an encounter to target the same creature, or a small subset of creatures, to limit the flexibility of those enemies during the next round. This can make a tank's job quite difficult, for example, or make that wizard who favors area of effect spells reconsider their usual course of action.

Imp

Imps are the basest form of proper devils. While some might wonder whether bedeviled souls, consigned to a Hell plane, could be considered devils, they are not devils. Souls consigned to Hell planes, called Lemures, are primarily used to fuel rituals and abilities of devils, rather than turning into devils themselves. Regardless, imps are the least powerful, and most common, form of actual devil.

Imps are small creatures with leathery skin, which is often of a reddish hue, but can also be grey, brown, blue, or green. They have thin, leathery wings that grant them a feeble and unstable form of limited flight. Their faces are quite varied, ranging from eerily human-looking to having prodigeous noses and chins, almost appearing snout-like. Their limbs are skinny, with little muscle tone, and their chests and bellies are often emaciated, as though they are on the brink of starvation.

Imps are most often used as messengers, but in mortal planes, they are often viewed as debt collectors of a sort. While imps, like all devils, are empowered to grant minor boons via contracts (in exchange for something completely reasonable-sounding), they are usually sent in to "remind" some being of the terms of a contract that they have already signed. Such reminders can be straightforward verbal warnings, or they can come in the form of torments and pranks, such as all of the food the contracted being suddenly turning rotten just before they put it into their mouth, or having their teeth fall out during important conversations. You know, minor stuff. Imps are great at these sorts of things.

Combat Tactics

Imps have a great deal of self-importance, and will rarely engage in melee combat unless they find they have no choice but to do so. While they are not weak in melee, per se, their ranged attacks and their ability to reflect damage and curse foes from range all make them better when fighting at a distance from their foes. If imps had more social clout in their hell dimensions, they might use hellhounds or other 'front line' creatures to screen for them while they made a nuisance of themselves from the back, but this is rarely the case. The more important devils use the imps as debt collectors and knee-breakers, and rarely give them much allowance for bringing their own gang of heavies to help them out.

Out of Combat

Imps have a variety of abilities that they can only use outside of combat. Perhaps the most profound of these is the ability to become Faded, vanishing from the memories of those who just encountered them. This ability is immediately ended if an encounter begins, even during an ambush that the imps initiated.

Imps can also inflict a wide variety of curses on people, that range in nastiness from always losing one's keys to projectile vomiting whenever you speak to the person you love the most. While these sort of "pranks" could be used to just inflict terror and anxiety in those the imps interact with, as lawful beings, the imps nearly always limit their torments to those who have somehow come close to violating the terms of an established contract. As a result, few people even know just how terrifying imps can be, which is why they are often represented as pitiful, almost comical figures in most of the lore. In truth, they are far from that.

Humanoid Guise Devils can magically disguise themselves as humanoids, either of medium or small size, to easily blend into civilized areas. This disguise functions as the Least Polymorph spell, and can only be exposed via True Seeing, though a detect magic would reveal that the devil has a faint aura of transmutation on it. Devils tend to prefer an appearance which isn't too far removed from their natural appearance, though this is not an actual limitation on their ability. For example, bearded devils prefer races like dwarves, who have swarthy skin tones and favor beards, while Ice Devils prefer races like Barani, with fair complexions and gem-tone eye colors.

Deals Up to once per week, an imp may bestow the benefits of a Limited Wish spell on a creature with whom they have successfully sealed a deal. The deal must be sealed with a signed contract. These deals usually appear quite favorable to the creature making them, often with a price that seems too good to be true. However, deals with devils always have a price much higher than anyone can suspect. If a creature manages to get ahold of its contract and destroy it, the deal becomes unsealed, removing the benefits of the Limited Wish but also canceling out the price of the bargain.

In addition to the listed effects of a limited wish, a devil's deal may also grant:

• a Lifestyle valued at approximately the devil's listed treasure value per month (rounded down)
• a single grant of wealth, up to double the devil's listed treasure value
• a single magic item worth up to double the devil's listed treasure value (no artifacts, though cursed and intelligent items are quite possible)
• a "permanent" diplomatic status of "helpful" with any one individual in the settlement in which the devil resides (permanent until it's not, anyway). This can be anyone, even an emperor.
• Other favors as the GM desires, but with approximate values, if applicable, of around double the devil's listed treasure value.

Deals should only apply to the individual who actually signed them. The price of the deal should be vague, at best (a favor in the future, a few years of your life essence, etc.) and rarely collected on the spot. Instead, creatures who make the deal should be left to wonder exactly what they've gotten themselves into, and then, hopefully, get lost in the wonder of their new-found awesome gift. GMs are encouraged to make the deals very tempting, and simultaneously, extremely creepy. Remember that the price is always higher than the signing creature can imagine.

If a character decides to make a skill check to try to decipher the legal language of the contract, provide them the following information:

• A Hard DC for this campaign level: the timing of when the devil's price will be collected isn't specified, and could be used in a very harmful way, if timed with malice.
• An Impossible DC for this campaign level: there are clauses in the contract making it possible for the devil to add new clauses in the future without the signatory's knowledge, but with assumed consent.

Devils which are confronted on these specifics will not change their contract, but will try to use bluff or diplomacy to assure the creature that they are honest dealers, and would never break their word or be so callous as to create an unfair deal.

Note that devils will make any excuse to make a contract, hoping to trick people into signing. It is not uncommon, for example, for a devil to hire adventurers to perform some quest, asking them to sign a contract which stipulates the goals of the quest, and the payment the devil will provide upon completion. These contracts are just as binding, and just as malignant as the "I want a pony" type contracts above.

Rewards

XP: 800

Treasure: Sellable Goods worth 813 gp.

Weight: 30 lbs.     Volume: 1.2 cu. ft.

Optional Treasure Rules: Roll a d20 on Table 1 below once per encounter (NOT per creature). Any items discovered are in addition to the normal treasure for the encounter.

Table 1: Remnant(s) Found
1 - 10	Nothing Found
11 - 14	1 Languid Remnant (tier 1)
15 - 17	1 Pale Remnant (tier 2)
18 - 19	1 Bright Remnant (tier 3)
20	Roll on Table 2
###	Nothing to see here!
###	Or here. Move along.

Table 2: Remnant(s) Found
1 - 5	3 Languid Remnants (tier 1)
6 - 10	3 Pale Remnants (tier 2)
11 - 14	1 Intense Remnant (tier 4)
15 - 17	1 Blazing Remnant (tier 5)
18 - 19	1 Vital Remnant (tier 6)
20	Roll on Table 3
###	Or here. Move along.

Table 3: Remnant(s) Found
1 - 5	3 Bright Remnants (tier 3)
6 - 8	3 Intense Remnants (tier 4)
9 - 11	3 Blazing Remnants (tier 5)
12 - 14	3 Vital Remnants (tier 6)
15 - 17	1 Prime Remnant (tier 7)
18 - 19	1 Mythic Remnant (tier 8)
20	1 Empyrean Remnant (tier 9)