Monster Encyclopaedia II: The Dark Bestiary
| Author | J. C. Alvarez |
| Publisher | Mongoose Publishing |
| Publish date | 2005 |
| OGL Section 15 | me2 |
The material below is Open Game Content
Haggard One
Haggard ones are the result of some strange curse; not quite lycanthropes, not quite wights, they have characteristics similar to both of these creatures yet are related to neither. Haggard ones are the doomed shells of creatures that were humanoid once, whose minds have been reduced to an animal state by magic or sheer wretchedness. This has caused their bodies to respond in kind: a typical haggard one appears as a lean, dirty humanoid with vaguely animalistic features such as greyish fur, long teeth (not quite fangs), long nails (not quite claws) and an untamed grizzly mane. They usually appear dressed in the dirty scraps that remain of their original human clothing.
Nobody is quite sure what causes the curse of haggard ones. It may be a supernatural plague, transmitted by unknown means; it may be a specific curse on particularly wicked humanoids; it may simply be the natural result of years of madness or isolation, causing a person to devolve into a gaunt beast.
Haggard ones lose the ability to speak, but they may communicate via grunts and howls.
Sample Haggard One
This example uses a 1st level human warrior as the base creature.
Haggard One, 1st Level Human Warrior
Medium Monstrous Humanoid (Augmented Humanoid)
Hit Dice: 3d8+12 (25 hp)
Initiative: +6
Speed: 30 ft. (6 squares)
AC: 16 (+2 Dex, +4 natural), touch 12, flat-footed 14
Base Attack/Grapple: +3/+7
Attack: Claw +7 melee (1d4+4) or bite +7 melee (1d3+4)
Full Attack: 2 claws +7 melee (1d4+4) and bite +2 melee (1d3+4)
Space/Reach: 5 ft. /5 ft.
Special Attacks: Fear aura
Special Qualities: Darkvision 60 ft., fast healing 5, light sensitivity, scent
Saves: Fort +4, Ref +5, Will +3
Abilities: Str 19, Dex 15, Con 16, Int 3, Wis 11, Cha 4
Skills: Climb +8, Hide +6, Jump +7, Listen +6, Move Silently +6, Spot +6, Swim +7
Feats: Alertness, Improved InitiativeB, Toughness
Environment: Any
Organisation: Solitary
Challenge Rating: 2
Treasure: None
Alignment: Always chaotic evil
Advancement: 4-6 HD (Medium)
Level Adjustment: +2
Stumbling through the graveyard ruins you see a man-like shape with tattered clothes and a completely wild, greying mane. It is not human, though; its hairy pale skin and bestial eyes make it quite clear. As it comes within sight of you, it bares teeth that seem more like fangs and emits a long hungry howl…
Combat
A haggard one attacks without thought or pause, apparently seeking either the sweet respite of death or cruel revenge on the living. Few things can cause a haggard one to flee from combat.
Frightful Presence (Ex): Any intelligent creature coming within 100 feet of a haggard one must succeed on a Will save (DC 8, Charisma based) or become shaken for 1d6 rounds. A creature that succeeds at this save cannot be affected by the same haggard one’s fear aura for the next 24 hours.
Light Sensitivity (Ex): In the presence of bright light (such as a daylight spell or the natural light of day), a haggard one suffers a –2 penalty on all attack rolls, skill checks and saving throws.
Skills: A haggard one gains a +4 racial bonus on all Hide, Listen, Move Silently and Spot checks.
Creating a Haggard One
‘Haggard one’ is an acquired template that can be added to any Medium or Small, normal (non-monstrous) humanoid, heretofore referred to as the ‘base creature’.
A haggard one has all the special abilities and traits of the base creature, except as follows:
Size and Type: The base creature’s type changes to monstrous humanoid. Readjust base attack bonus and base save bonuses accordingly, replacing the corresponding bonuses from any class levels possessed by the base creature. The haggard one retains all its previous skill ranks, though it loses the ability to use any Intelligence- or Charisma- based skill, except for Search and Intimidate.
Change all current and future Hit Dice to d8s.
Hit Dice: The creature immediately gains 2 levels of monstrous humanoid, with the subsequent increase in skill points, base attack bonus and base saves. A haggard one’s class skills are Hide, Listen, Move Silently and Spot.
Speed: Increase to 40 feet if it was less than this. Otherwise same as the base creature.
Armour Class: Increase the base creature’s natural armour bonus by 4.
Attack: A haggard one loses all of its weapon proficiencies but may still wield weapons with the usual penalty. Otherwise it retains all the attacks of the base creature and also gains a bite attack and a claw attack, unless it already had one, in which case it retains the bite and/or claw attacks it had previously.
Full Attack: A haggard one may attack with 2 claws and a bite as a full attack action, if it did not have the ability already. The haggard one’s bite counts as a secondary attack.
Damage: Haggard ones have bite and claw attacks. If the base creature did not have such weapons, use the damages listed on the table below according to the size of the base creature:
Haggard One Natural Weapon Damage
| Base Creature Size | Bite Damage | Claw Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Small | 1d2 | 1d3 |
| Medium | 1d3 | 1d4 |
Special Attacks
A haggard one retains all of the base creature’s special attacks and also gains the following:
Frightful Presence (Ex): Any intelligent creature coming within 100 feet of a haggard one must succeed on a Will save (DC equal to 10 + ½ the haggard one’s total Hit Dice + the haggard one’s Charisma modifier) or become shaken for 1d6 rounds. A creature that succeeds at this save cannot be affected by the same haggard one’s fear aura for the next 24 hours.
Special Qualities
A haggard one retains all special qualities from the base creature, plus it gains the following:
Damage Reduction (Su): Some haggard ones gain damage reduction, depending on their total Hit Dice:
Haggard One Damage Reduction
| Hit Dice | Damage Reduction Amount |
|---|---|
| 1-3 | — |
| 4-7 | 5/silver or magic |
| 8-12 | 10/silver or magic |
| 13+ | 15/silver or magic |
Darkvision (Ex): All haggard ones gain darkvision out to 60 feet.
Fast Healing (Ex): All haggard ones gain fast healing 5.
Light Sensitivity (Ex): Haggard ones become extremely sensitive to bright light. Whenever in the presence of bright light (such as a daylight spell or the natural light of day), a haggard one suffers a –2 penalty on all attack rolls, skill checks and saving throws.
Scent (Ex): All haggard ones gain the scent special quality unless they already had it.
Abilities: Modify from the base creature as follows: Str +6 Dex +4, Con +4, Wis +2, Cha –4 (minimum of 3). Intelligence is reduced to ¼ of its original amount (round down; minimum of 3).
Skills: Haggard ones gain a +4 racial bonus to Hide, Listen, Move Silently and Spot checks. Otherwise same as base creature.
Feats: Haggard ones gain Improved Initiative as a bonus feat, unless they had it already.
Environment: Haggard ones become gloomy, sad creatures; as such, they retire to far and desolate places such as cemeteries, swamps or dead forests.
Organisation: Solitary.
Challenge Rating: As base creature +1.
Treasure: None. Haggard ones throw away all of their possessions.
Alignment: Change to chaotic evil if it was not so already.
Advancement: A haggard one loses the ability to advance in any character class, but it may gain additional Hit Dice up to an amount equal to the base creature’s hit dice +2. Such advancement never affects the haggard one’s size.
Level Adjustment: As base creature +2.
