Molydeus (CR 19)

Large Outsider (Chaotic, Evil, Extraplanar, and Tanar'ri)
Alignment: Always chaotic evil
Initiative: +10 (+6 Dex, +4 Improved Initiative); Senses: all-around vision, darkvision 60 ft., true seeing, Listen +29, and Spot +29
Languages: Abyssal, Auran, Celestial, Common, Draconic, Ignan, Infernal; telepathy 100 ft.

AC: 40 (-1 size, +6 Dex, +18 natural, +4 armor, +3 deflection), touch 17, flat-footed 33
Hit Dice: 19d8 (275 hp); DR: DR 15/cold iron and good
Fort +21, Ref +17, Will +18
Speed: 40 ft.
Space: 10 ft./10 ft.
Base Attack +19; Grapple +32
Attack: Melee +1 dancing vorpal cold iron greataxe +28/+23/+18/+13 and bite +25 and bite +25 or Melee +1 dancing vorpal cold iron greataxe +28/+23/+18/+13 and 2 claws each +27 and bite +25 and bite +25
Damage: Melee +7 dancing vorpal cold iron greataxe 3d6+14/19-20/x3, bite 2d6+4, bite 1d6+4 plus poison, claws 1d6+9
Special Attacks: piercing strike, snakebite, summon Tanarri, poison, spell-like abilities
Attack Options: Combat expertise, Improved Trip, Improved Disarm
Abilities: Str 28, Dex 22, Con 30, Int 21, Wis 24, Cha 28
Special Qualities: Fast healing 30;Immune electricity, poison, Resist acid 10, cold 10, fire 10; SR 30, evasion
Feats: Combat Expertise; Improved Critical (greataxe); Improved Disarm; Improved Initiative; Improved Trip; Multiattack; Quicken Spell-Like Ability (telekinesis); Track
Skills: Bluff +31, Concentration +32, Diplomacy +35, Forgery +21, Intimidate +33, Knowledge (any one) +27, Knowledge (the planes) +27, Listen +29, Search +27, Sense Motive +29, Spot +29, Survival +29 (+31 to follow tracks), and Use Magic Device +31
Advancement: 20-29 HD (Large); 30-57 HD (Huge)
Climate/Terrain: Any land and underground
Organization: Solitary, see text
Treasure/Possessions: Quad standard, plus +1 dancing vorpal cold iron great axe and hord of blasting

Source: Fiendish Codex I

The fiend stands 12 feet tall and wields a massive greataxe carved with jagged runes and a glittering red ruby set in to the base of its shaft. The demon has crimson skin, clawed hands, and the head of a leering demonic hyena with silver eyes and great slavering fangs. A writhing snake protrudes from the side of the demon's neck, coiling and hissing menacingly.

A molydeus is a powerful tanar'ri that serves as an enforcer for a powerful demon lord.

Spell-Like Abilities (CL 19th): At will - baleful polymorph (DC 24), blasphemy (DC 26), blindness/deafness (DC 20), charm person (DC 20), fear (DC 23), fly, greater dispel magic, invisibility, greater teleport (self plus 50 lb. of objects only), suggestion (DC 22), telekinesis (DC 24), vampiric touch (+27 melee touch) 7/day-dimensional lock, lightning bolt (DC 22) 3/day - quickened telekinesis (DC 24), 1/day - trap the soul (DC 28)

All-Around Vision (Ex): A molydeus's snake head constantly peers in all directions, granting the demon a +4 racial bonus on Search and Spot checks. A molydeus can't be flanked.

Dancing Vorpal Axe (Ex): A molydeus's +1 dancing vorpal cold iron greataxe is an extension of its being. If the molydeus is slain, its axe melts away into ichor. A molydeus whose axe is destroyed can manifest a new one by taking part in an 8-hour ritual on the Woeful Escarand (layer 400), where it uses manes as the raw materials to forge a new axe. Once the new axe is created, the previous axe (or its remains) melts away.

Piercing Strike (Su): A molydeus can strike through many forms of damage reduction with its weapons. The first time it strikes a foe, damage reduction applies normally to the blow. All following strikes automatically ignore damage reduction, save for damage reduction that requires a specific material (such as silver, cold iron, or adamantine) to bypass, epic damage reduction, or damage reduction that doesn't allow any form of bypass (such as that granted to barbarians).

Poison (Su): Snake bite - Injury, Fort DC 29, 2d6 Con drain/2d6 Con drain. A creature reduced to 0 Constitution by this poison immediately transforms into a mane. Only a miracle or wish can reverse this transformation. Molydeus venom is supernaturally potent and can harm creatures normally immune to poison (including those under the effects of spells such as neutralize poison or heroes' feast, but not constructs, oozes, plants, or undead). Against such creatures, its effects are reduced to 1d6 Con for both initial and secondary damage.

Snakebite (Ex): A molydeus's snake head can strike independently of the demon's other actions. It can make a bite attack as a free action once per round while the molydeus takes any other standard or full-round action. The snake head always strikes as a secondary attack.

Summon Tanar'ri (Sp): Once per day, a molydeus can automatically summon 1d6 babaus, 1d4 chasmes, or one marilith. This ability is the equivalent of a 9th-level spell (CL 19th).

True Seeing (Su): A molydeus has a continuous true seeing ability, as the spell (CL 19th). This ability cannot be dispelled.

Strategy And Tactics

A molydeus is one of the most dangerous and ruthless tanar'ri, feared by many even more than the dreaded balor. A molydeus always enters combat with fly and invisibility in effect if it can, and makes sure to place a dimensional lock in the combat arena to prevent creatures from escaping by the use of teleport. A molydeus is fearless in combat, trusting its fast healing, spell resistance, and damage reduction to protect in from anything its enemies might use against it.

Once in melee range, a molydeus activates the dancing quality of its axe, which makes a full attack action. Its snake head bites as well, and it uses a quickened telekinesis to try to disarm any weapons wielded by its enemies (with a preference for disarming cold iron weapons). Over the next three rounds it repeats these actions, adding spell-like abilities (blasphemy, lightning bolt, and baleful polymorph, in that order). Note that a molydeus's Concentration bonus is high enough that it automatically makes any check to use spell-like abilities in combat.

Sample Encounter

A molydeus is almost always encountered alone or with a troupe of weaker demons; it is a rare event in which a molydeus is forced to confront another of its kind. A molydeus encountered away from its home is almost always hunting a particular quarry, be it a rogue demon or a powerful mortal that has insulted a demon lord. Some powerful spellcasters have the hubris to try using gate spells to call a specific molydeus to do their bidding. These spellcasters are well advised to have powerful assistance at hand, for a molydeus does not suffer taking orders from anything other than the demon lords themselves.

Abyssal Bounty Hunter (El 20): Zurhnagori is a grizzled molydeus that has served Graz'zr for centuries. Recently, the Dark Prince betrayed Zuthnagoti and left him to die at the hands of a group of three mariliths in the service of Pale Night. Zuthnagoti survived the battle and fled to the Material Plane through a one-way portal. He emerged in a swampland dominated by a large tribe of lizardfolk. Zuthnagoti has gathered these tribes under his command and plans to use them to wage war against the nearby human nations, hoping to gather enough slaves and resources to return to the Abyss and exact revenge on his former master by pledging his army's service to Orcus or Demogorgon.

Ecology

Sometimes a molydeus is assigned to eliminate a particular threat. More often, however, a molydeus simply wanders the Abyss searching for conscripts, Blood War deserters, or unwelcome intruders, meting out punishment as it sees fir. Molydei serve as generals for demon lords, and on some layers of the Abyss they rule vast nations of demons as if they were themselves lords.

Environment: Molydei are found throughout the Abyss, although they are by no means numerous. A single layer might have one molydeus demon.

Typical Physical Characteristics: A molydeus stands 12 feet tall and weighs 1,500 pounds.

Society

When not hunting rogue demons or other interlopers, a molydeus relaxes at its Abyssal fortress, basking in the glory of its past victories. Other demons fear it, if not for its ability to punch through damage reduction with ease then for the fact that its venom can poison even other demons, The threat of transformation into a mane is one of the few shared fears among demonkind, and no creature causes it more than the molydeus.

Typical Treasure

Molydei collect vast amounts of treasure over their immortal lives. Although much of this treasure is spent on bribes and other forms of upkeep for their Abyssal holdings, they usually keep enough on their person to satisfy their greed and to augment their already impressive abilities. All molydei demons own a +1 dancing vorpal cold iron greataxe. These axes are always set with at least one large ruby worth at least 20,000 gp that the demon uses for its trap the soul spell-like ability. These axes are as much a symbol of their power as they are weapons; a molydeus that loses its axe spares no expense tracking it down and reclaiming it. Since a molydeus generally has quadruple the normal treasure for a creature of its CR, it usually owns additional gear worth a total 80,000 gp and ready cash and art objects at its Abyssal lair worth 20,000 gp.

Standard Treasure: +1 dancing vorpal cold iron great axe, ring of protection +3, ring of evasion, bracers of armor +4, horn of blasting, 1,000 gp in gems.

The molydeus's statistics given above incorporate everything from this list.

Molydeus Lore

Characters with ranks in Knowledge (the planes) can learn more about molydei. When a character makes a successful skill check, the following lore is revealed, including the information from lower DCs.

DCResult
29Molydei are comparable to the balors in power. They police the Abyss, slaughtering troublesome lesser demons. Some serve as generals in Abyssal armies.
34A molydeus fights with a dancing vorpal axe made of cold iron, and its strikes can penetrate most forms of damage reduction.
39A molydeus heals at a phenomenal rate until slain.
44The poison of a molydeus's snake head is virulent enough to harm creatures normally immune to poison. Those slain by this vile poison are transformed into manes.