Will-O-Wisp

Will-O-Wisp (CR 5)

Chaotic Evil - Small - Aberration

Faintly glowing lights in the middle of a dark, deadly forest.... It does not seem like simple glowing lights in the distance should be so frightening, but unless you have been lost in the woods, so very alone, and been bedeviled by a pack of Will-O-Wisp's, you have no idea the sheer terror will-o-wisp's evoke in their victims.

Will-O-Wisp's are terrible things, incorporeal fiends whose existence involves the torment and murder of innocents. They lurk in the wilds, attempting to lure the unwary to their death.

If a group of adventurers happens upon a pack of Will-O-Wisps, the encounter is rarely a conclusive one, unless the adventurers were specifically hunting he Wisps and are prepared for their odd and strange powers.

General

Lore Check: Know (Dungeoneering) (Basic: DC 10; Full: DC 25)

Init: +9

Ambush Chance: 10+ on d20 (req's 1 minute prep)

Senses: Standard Senses, Darkvision 60 ft.

Passive Perception: 19 (Spot: +9, req's move action)

Defense

AC: 22

Maneuver Defense (MD): 21

Hit Points: 65     (Bloodied Value: 32)    Hit Dice: 7

Fort: +4    Refl: +4    Will: +5

Special Defenses:

Strong Against:

Weak Against:

Offense

Movement Types: Hover 50 ft.

Space / Reach: 5 ft. / 5 ft.

Standard Attack:

• 1x Shock +10 (1d8+6/19-20 x2) as lightning (energy, common)

Full Attack:

• 3x Shock +10 (1d8+6/19-20 x2) as lightning (energy, common)

Standard Ranged:

• 1x Arcing Shock +10 (1d8+6/19-20 x2) as lightning (energy, common) (Increment: 10 ft.; Max Range: 50 ft.)

Full Ranged:

• 2x Arcing Shock +10 (1d8+6/19-20 x2) as lightning (energy, common) (Increment: 10 ft.; Max Range: 50 ft.)

Maneuver Offense: +9

Siege Damage: Not siege capable

Special Attacks: Spell Resistance, Naturally Invisible, Feed on Fear

Action Points: 0

Statistics

Str: 3    Dex: 19    Con: 14    Int: 15    Wis: 16    Cha: 14

Feats:

Skills:

• Perception +9
• Stealth +9 (+2 when invisible)
• Knowledge (Arcana) +9
• Knowledge (Deep History) +10
• Knowledge (Dungeoneering) +11
• Knowledge (Planes) +10
• All other skills: +4 (no ranks)

Languages: Aklo, Common

Special Abilities

Spell Resistance (Su)

This creature has spell resistance. In order to affect them with a spell or spell-like ability, the caster must first make a Caster Check versus the creature's Maneuver Defense value (15). If the check is successful, the spell or spell-like ability is resolved as normal. If the caster check fails, the spell is cast, but does not affect the creature in any way.

Naturally Invisible (Su)

Will-o-wisps have the ability to extinguish their natural glow as a move action, effectively becoming Invisible, as per the spell. Use of this ability does not provoke attacks of opportunity, nor does it require any concentration. Note that an invisible will-o-wisp becomes visible after attacking. It must spend a move action to become invisible again.

Attacking a Stealthed Enemy

If you know that a stealthed enemy is in a particular square, you may attack him as though he has concealment (50% miss chance). However, in most cases, you don't know (in-game) which square a stealthed creature is in. In most cases, GM's should just disallow attacks when the target's location is unknown. However, area attacks and wild swings may sometimes come up, and the GM should calculate where the target could possibly be, make a roll to see if the right square was chosen and then roll miss chance.

For example, a stealthy enemy is somewhere within an 80' x 80' room, and the insane gnome sorcerer wants to chuck a fireball at them, even though they don't have any real clue where the enemy is. Meta-game, the players can see a miniature on the board and know the enemy is in the northeast corner of the room. However, to simulate uncertainty, the GM could give the gnome a 25% chance to choose the right region of the room (since the fireball is a 40' diameter, and the room has roughly four 40' regions). Obviously, if the room were smaller, or the fireball bigger, the chance of guessing the correct region is improved. All of this is an attempt at ignoring the metagaming knowledge that the enemy is in a particular area, and instead simulate complete uncertainty. Generally speaking, the GM should announce how they're going to determine whether the attack had a valid target, but not reveal whether the check succeeded or not, since the players wouldn't know whether the fireball hit the enemy. If the enemy is later revealed, it may or may not look a bit charred.

Feed on Fear (Su)

The will-o-wisp gains Fast Healing 2 any time there is an enemy within 50 feet of it that is either dying or under the effects of a fear condition.

Combat Tactics

Will-o-wisps prefer to lure prey into hazardous terrain rather than confront them directly. They will try to lure travelers over cliffs, into bogs or quicksand, or into other hazards, and feed on their fear as they die. If the hazard merely injures the prey, they're more than willing to dive in and finish them off.

In direct combat, the will-o-wisp will become invisible and make use of its shock attack. Note that on making this attack, the wisp becomes visible until it uses another move action to become invisible again.

Because of their spell resistance and invisibility, will-o-wisps are very difficult opponents. Furthermore, if they feel over-matched, it is a simple matter for them to flee combat. Will-o-wisps are evil and ageless, and tend to hold grudges against those who manage to chase them off.

Rewards

XP: 1,600

Treasure: Sellable Goods worth 1,625 gp.

Weight: 60 lbs.     Volume: 2.4 cu ft

Optional Treasure Rules: Roll on the following table once per encounter (NOT per creature). Any items discovered are in addition to the normal treasure for the encounter.

Table 1: Roll a d20:

Result	Remnant Found (If Any)
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

Table 2: Roll a d20:

Result	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

Table 3: Roll a d20:

Result	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)