B.4 Traits

Amphibious: An amphibious creature can hold its breath ten times longer than normal (see Endurance).

Animal: Animals are simple, mundane mortals. They have flesh, blood, skin, and bones, and their bodies are made from organic matter. They cannot have magical ✨ abilities, and cannot have an Intelligence above -8. The Creature Handling skill is more effective on animals, as indicated in that skill’s description.

Beast: Beasts are more typically more complex than animals, with a maximum Intelligence of -5. Unlike animals, they can have magical ✨ abilities. They have flesh, blood, skin, and bones, and their bodies are made from organic matter. Beasts are typically found in the wilderness, and seem to naturally avoid civilized areas.

Construct: A construct is a creature that is made of nonsapient matter. Its inanimate body is given a semblance of life and sentience by some form of magic. Like other creatures, they can move and follow instructions. However, they lack agency and cannot make the independent decisions. They are mindless, nonliving, and soulless. they do not need to eat, drink, or sleep.

Constructs are not affected by the Medicine skill, and do not normally remove vital wounds when they take a long rest. Instead, their vital wounds must be repaired manually. This functions like like accelerate recovery ability from the Medicine skill, except that it uses an appropriate Craft skill and raw materials appropriate to the construct’s construction.

Fey: Fey are intrinsically magical ✨ creatures that are vulnerable (-4 defenses) to cold iron weapons.

Floating: A floating creature is only affected weakly by gravity. It does not fall while it is able to use a fly speed, and it is unable to glide. This does not increase its height limit for any fly speed it may have. A floating creature above the height limit for its fly speed falls down until its fly speed becomes functional again, which does not cause it to take falling damage. Some creatures can freely choose whether they float, potentially allowing them to glide.

Humanoid: A humanoid is an intelligent creature two arms and two legs. Humanoids can have magical abilities, but are usually not intrinsically magical. They have flesh, blood, skin, and bones, and their bodies are made from organic matter. Most civilized creatures and societies are predominantly humanoid.

Ghost: A ghost is the soul of a deceased creature that lingered after death instead of proceeding to its proper afterlife. Ghosts are incorporeal and impervious (+4 defenses) to Cold and Earth abilities. However, they are vulnerable (-4 defenses) to Fire abilities. Despite being incorporeal, they are affected normally by even mundane Fire effects.

Immortal: An immortal creature can never die of old age. Most immortal creatures can still be killed and need to take actions to sustain their life, such as eating and drinking. Some immortal creatures completely cease aging once they reach maturity, while others continue to grow or change over time without limit.

Incorporeal: An incorporeal creature does not have a physical body. It is both intangible and floating. In addition, it can enter or pass through solid objects. It must remain adjacent to the object’s exterior at all times.

While an incorporeal creature is inside of an object, it can choose whether it is completely enveloped or partially contained. If it is completely enveloped, it does not have line of sight or line of effect outside of the object, limiting its ability to attack. If it is partially contained, it has cover, but can otherwise attack and be attacked normally.

Indwelt: An indwelt is a creature that is made of nonsapient matter. Its inanimate body was awakened to life by connection to an external soul. Unlike constructs, indwelt have agency and true intelligence.

The soul of an indwelt has no connection to the matter that composes its body. This contrasts with undead, which always maintain a connection between a body and its original soul. As a result, an indwelt’s connection to its physical body is weak. If an indwelt is killed, it can be resurrected, but its previous body is not considered its corpse in the same way that a human’s dead body is. This means it cannot be resurrected by magic that uses the corpse of the deceased creature.

Indwelt are alive if their base matter is alive, but not if their base matter is dead or inorganic. If they are alive, they need to eat, drink, and sleep.

Intangible: An intangible creature has a physical body that is gaseous or otherwise difficult to touch. It cannot be touched, and is never considered to be squeezing (-2 Armor and Ref). It is immune to mundane, Creation, and Manifestation abilities. It gains a +5 bonus to Stealth and ignores the effects of abilities that only work if it has a corporeal body. This includes all Brawling abilities, difficult terrain, being detected by tremorsense, setting off pressure plates, and so on. It can move freely through spaces occupied by enemies, but cannot pass through solid objects.

Many intangible creatures have no Strength attribute. If an intangible creature has a Strength attribute, it has some ability to manipulate the physical world despite being intangible. Unless otherwise noted, an intangible creature with a Strength attribute may selectively choose whether it wants to interact with physical objects.

Invisible: An invisible creature or object cannot be seen with light. Creatures unable to see an invisible creature are at least partially unaware (-2 defenses) of its attacks, and they can be fully unaware (-5 defenses) as normal depending on their level of awareness. Attackers suffer a 50% miss chance with targeted attacks even if they know the location of the invisible creature. See Awareness, and Stealth, for how to identify invisible creatures.

Legless: A legless creature has no legs. Legless creatures cannot jump, but they are immune to being prone (half speed, -2 Armor and Ref).

Living: A living thing has life, which means that it can change and adapt over time. Most creatures are living, but animates and undead are not. Since most creatures are living, this trait is normally omitted from monster descriptions.

Mindless: A mindless creature lacks a normal mind. It does not have Intelligence or Willpower attributes, and has no Mental defense. Any attacks against it that would normally use its Mental defense use its Fortitude defense instead. It uses its Strength to determine its magical power instead of its Willpower.

Unlike a simple-minded creature, a mindless creature cannot normally be given instructions or communicated with in any meaningful way. They still act autonomously, but in a way that is entirely instinctual, without the ability to form thoughts or plan ahead. Some magic can influence or control mindless creatures, but that magic works on different principles than ordinary mind-influencing magic. A mindless creature has no soul, so if it dies, it cannot be resurrected. Mindless creatures are immune to Compulsion and Emotion abilities.

Multipedal: A multipedal creature typically uses more than four legs to move. Multipedal creatures gain a +10 foot bonus to their speed and a +5 bonus to the Balance skill.

Nonliving: A nonliving creature or object is neither alive nor undead. It does not need to eat, drink, or sleep.

Planebound: A planebound creature cannot leave a specific plane by any means. Effects which would cause it to leave that plane have no effect on that creature. Most planebound creatures are planeforged creatures from that plane.

Plant: A plant is alive, but it does not have flesh or blood. Plants are vulnerable (-4 defenses) to Fire abilities. Some plants are creatures, but most plants are living objects.

Quadrupedal: A quadrupedal creature typically uses four legs to move. Quadrupedal creatures gain a +10 foot bonus to their speed.

Simple-Minded: A simple-minded creature has an incompletely functioning mind. It can follow simple instructions, but is not fully sentient or capable of complex reasoning. It has no soul, so if it dies, it cannot be resurrected. Simple-minded creatures are immune to Emotion abilities. However, they are vulnerable (-4 defenses) to Compulsion attacks.

Sightless: A sightless creature cannot see, and typically lacks eyes. It is permanently blinded (50% miss chance, -2 defenses). Most sightless creatures have special senses, such as blindsight, that allow them to attack and defend themselves normally.

Soulless: A soulless creature does not have a soul. Although it may have a mind capable of intelligent thought and emotion, its opinions and thinking patterns are utterly fixed, without possibility of change. If it dies, it cannot be resurrected.