Friday, March 23, 2018

Frightful Fridays! Cloister Kaida

Hello, and welcome back for another Frightful Fridays! I haven't put together a kaida in quite a while, and this seemed like a good time to revisit the little dragons. Today's kaida is a staunch protector of temples, at least until the temple falls, and then it finds a new, kinda related religion to follow. In addition to being powerful in-house defenders, especially when paired with a high-level cleric, it is possible for a party to pick one up as a temporary companion, especially if its deity deems it necessary to send the dragon out adventuring.

I hope you enjoy the cloister kaida, and I'll see you next week with another monster.


Maddening swirls and emblems of fire cover this flying lizard-like creature. Its eyes glow with otherworldly power.
Cloister Kaida      CR 4
XP 1,200
CE Tiny dragon
Init +3; Senses darkvision 60 ft., low-light vision; Perception +12
DEFENSE
AC 17, touch 15, flat-footed 14 (+3 Dex, +2 natural, +2 size)
hp 37 (5d12+5)
Fort +7, Ref +7, Will +8
Defensive Abilities cloistered; Immune paralysis, sleep; SR 15
OFFENSE
Speed 20 ft., fly 60 ft. (good)
Melee bite +3 (1d44), 2 claws +3 (1d34)
Space 2½ ft.; Reach 0 ft.
Special Attacks channel energy 6/day (DC 15, 3d6)
Spell-Like Abilities (CL 5th; concentration +9)
   3/day—invisibility
Cleric Spells Prepared (CL 5th; concentration +9)
   3rd—bestow curse (DC 17), blindness/deafness (DC 17), fireball[D], magic circle against law[D]
   2nd—align weapon[D] (chaos only), boiling blood[UM] (DC 16), darkness, hold person (DC 16), produce flame[D]
   1st—bane (DC 15), burning hands[D], detect good, murderous command[UM] (DC 15), protection from law[D], shield of faith
   0 (at will)—bleed (DC 14), detect magic, guidance, resistance
D Domain spell; Domains Chaos, Fire
STATISTICS
Str 2, Dex 16, Con 13, Int 10, Wis 19, Cha 17
Base Atk +5; CMB +6; CMD 12 (16 vs. trip)
Feats Great Fortitude, Persuasive, Selective Channeling
Skills Diplomacy +13, Fly +11, Intimidate +13, Knowledge (religion) +16, Perception +12, Sense Motive +12, Use Magic Device +11; Racial Modifiers +8 Knowledge (religion)
Languages Common, Draconic
SQ restore domain spell
ECOLOGY
Environment any (temple devoted to its deity)
Organization solitary, guard (25), legion (618)
Treasure incidental
SPECIAL ABILITIES
Channel Energy (Su) A cloister kaida can channel energy as a 5th-level cleric. It channels positive or negative energy depending on its current alignment and its deity’s alignment (this example kaida channels negative energy). Additionally, it can expend two uses of channel energy to inflict damage to all non-worshippers of its deity or to heal all worshippers of its deity.
Cloistered (Su) While within a temple to its deity, a cloister kaida’s spell resistance increases to 17 against spells cast by divine casters that don’t worship its deity. The kaida does not benefit from spell resistance against spells cast by divine casters that worship its deity.
Restore Domain Spell (Su) As a standard action, a cloister kaida in contact with a divine caster that worships its deity can expend one of its domain spells to restore the same domain spell already cast by the divine caster.
Spells A cloister kaida casts divine spells as a 5th-level cleric. It gains access to two domains appropriate to the deity it worships and the ability to channel energy, but it gains no other cleric abilities. The kaida counts as a holy (or unholy) symbol for purposes of using a focus.

Note: The above is a sample cloister kaida. There are myriad possibilities based on the deities they could follow. Typically, they choose detect spells for at least one opposing alignment and a couple of defensive spells. Their remaining spells are offensive spells appropriate for their deities.

Cloister kaidas, also informally known as temple dragons, are miniature defenders of places of worship devoted to the deities they serve. Their main priority is the protection of the temples’ upper echelons, especially those that receive divine power from their deities. They remain invisible and cast defensive spells, if any, on themselves or their charges, and then use their offensive, non-domain spells on their foes. The kaidas keep their domain spells in reserve, so they can share the spells with more powerful divine casters.

If their place of worship falls while they still live—cloister kaidas have a reasonable sense of self-preservation and are aware of a lost cause—they attempt to relocate to another temple to the same deity, or they find a similarly aligned deity to which they adapt. In this case, the kaidas temporarily lose all cleric-related abilities but can choose a deity within one step of their current alignment. They find secluded places in their new locations and enter chrysalises, from which they emerge after one year. During their metamorphoses, they shed skin embossed with their old holy symbols and adopt the holy symbols appropriate to their new deities on their new skin.

Cloister kaidas live for nearly 500 years, so it is possible for a single kaida to migrate in this way from one alignment extreme to another and back again over the course of its life. The dragons’ longevity also makes it possible for them to be the only living creatures who remember otherwise forgotten religions.

Cloister kaidas sometimes leave their familiar surroundings to undertake missions for their deities. They attach themselves to adventurers who include at least one worshipper of their deities. In rare cases, cloister kaidas discover a predilection for adventuring and remain with a group, provided they have a requisite worshipper. Cloister kaidas usually flee from groups who no longer have worshippers of their deities, but they expend the effort to convert someone from a beloved group if a worshipper in the group died.

A cloister kaida measures 1 foot in length and weighs 15 pounds.

Cloister Kaida Adepts
Cloister kaidas with the advanced creature template or class levels in cleric gain the granted powers from their chosen domains. Their effective cleric level is equal to their Hit Dice plus any cleric levels they possess.