Favored Spawn of Kyuss
While the spawn of Kyuss are bearers and victims of their master's corruption, those who garner the demigod's favor are blessed by worms. Former fanatics, crazed visionaries, and purposefully sacrificed beasts, these favored spawn of Kyuss wreak his terrible will with an array of corruptive abilities. Found either alone or enslaved to the service of mad prophets, favored spawn take a vast array of forms and imply the demigod of worm's direct interest. In recent years appearances of the favored spawn have risen, evidencing the impending Age of Worms.
Creating a Favored Spawn of Kyuss
"Favored Spawn of Kyuss" (known simply as the "favored" to cultists of Kyuss) is an inherited template that can be added to any living, corporeal creature. A favored spawn uses all the base creature's statistics and special abilities except as noted here.
Size and Type: The creature's type changes to undead. Do not recalculate Hit Dice, base attack bonus, or saves. Size is unchanged.
Special Attacks: A favored spawn retains all the special attacks of the base creature and also gains the following special attacks.
Create Spawn (Su): Once per round as a free action, a favored spawn of Kyuss can transfer a worm from its own body to that of an opponent. It can do this whenever it hits with a natural attack or an unarmed attack, but it can also make the transfer by means of a successful melee touch attack or a ranged touch attack, hurling a worm at a foe from a distance of up to 10 feet.
Each worm is a Fine vermin with AC 10 and 1 hit point. It can be killed with normal damage or by the touch of silver. On the spawn's next action, the worm burrows into its host's flesh. A creature with a natural armor bonus of +5 or better is immune to this burrowing effect. The worm makes its way toward the host's brain, dealing 1 point of damage per round for 1d4+1 rounds. At the end of that period, it reaches the brain. While the worm is inside a victim, a remove curse or remove disease effect destroys it, and a dispel evil or neutralize poison effect delays its progress for 10d6 minutes. A successful DC 20 Heal check extracts the worm and kills it.
Once the worm reaches the brain, it deals 1d2 points of Intelligence damage per round until it either is killed (by remove curse or remove disease) or slays its host (death occurs at o Intelligence). A Small, Medium, or Large creature slain by a worm rises as a new spawn of Kyuss (not a favored spawn) 1d6+4 rounds later; a Tiny or smaller creature quickly putrefies, and a Huge or larger creature becomes a normal zombie of the appropriate size. Newly created spawn are not under the control of their creator, but they usually follow whatever favored spawn of Kyuss created them.
If a creature is infested with multiple worms, a single remove curse or remove disease destroys all the worms infesting the creature at once.
A favored spawn attacking a helpless opponent may use its foul embrace ability instead of this ability.
Fear Aura (Su): A spawn of Kyuss continuously radiates a fear effect. This ability functions like a fear spell (caster level 7th, Will save DC 14 + the favored spawn's Charisma modifier), except that it affects all creatures within a 40-foot radius. Any creature that makes a successful saving throw against the effect cannot be affected again by the fear aura of that favored spawn of Kyuss for 24 hours.
Foul Embrace (Su): By pressing its face against a helpless victim, the favored spawn of Kyuss can infest the victim with a rain of 2d6 worms. This ability is treated the same as the create spawn ability, but a victim slain by the resulting infestation rises as a favored spawn of Kyuss rather than a normal zombie.
Kyuss' Gift (Su): Any creature hit by a favored spawn of Kyuss' natural attack or unarmed attack must succeed at a DC ia Fortitude save or contract this supernatural disease. The incubation period is 1 day, and the disease deals 1d6 points of Constitution damage and 1d4 points of Wisdom damage. These effects manifest as rotting flesh and dementia. An affected creature gets only half the benefits of natural and magical healing, though a remove disease effect removes the affliction.
In addition to the previously described abilities, a favored spawn with 10 HD or more gains one of the following additional special attacks as a gift from Kyuss himself. Saving throws against these effects are against a DC of 10 + half the favored Spawn's Hit Dice + the favored spawn's Charisma modifier.
Infested Skin (Su): The favored spawn of Kyuss is so infested with worms that any creature that strikes it with an unarmed strike, natural weapon, or light weapon must make a Reflex save or a Kyuss worm is transferred to the attacker's body. Any creature that shares the same square as the favored spawn (such as might occur during a grapple, bull rush, or Tumble check) must make a Reflex save to avoid the same fate.
Noxious Breath (Su): Once every 1d4 rounds, as a standard action, the favored spawn of Kyuss can exhale nauseating vapor from its mouth in a 15-foot cone. All creatures in this area must make a Fortitude save or be nauseated for 1d4 rounds.
Wormburst (Su): Once per day as a standard action, the favored spawn of Kyuss can expel a 10-foot-radius burst of worms from its body. All creatures in this area of effect must make a Reflex save or become infested by 1d6 Kyuss worms.
Special Qualities: A favored spawn retains all the special qualities of the base creature and gains the following.
Damage Reduction (Ex): A favored spawn of Kyuss gains damage reduction 5/silver. If the favored spawn has 10 or more Hit Dice, this increases to damage reduction 10/silver.
Fast Healing (Ex): A favored spawn of Kyuss has fast healing 5.
Turn Resistance (Ex): A favored spawn of Kyuss has turn resistance +3.
Abilities: Increase from the base creature as follows: Str +4, Int +2, Wis +2, Cha +2. Favored spawn are undead and as such do not have a Constitution score.
Feats: A favored spawn of Kyuss gains Improved Unarmed Strike as a bonus feat.
Challenge Rating: +2 (for creatures with 9 HD or less) or +3 (for creatures with 10 HD or more).
Alignment: Always chaotic evil.