#gillmen

(art by xiaofanchuanart on DeviantArt)

It’s a fun trope that’s seen a lot of traction these days, the hero with an entity bound inside them, granting them power at the cost of having a volatile roommate inside their head.

While said entities are traditionally malevolent, not all of them are evil or demonic in nature. Some might be eldritch entities beyond the concept of good and evil, have almost mortal motivations, or even be outright benevolent. However, their behavior is not always in line with the character’s desires or methods, leading to conflict occasionally or often, depending.

Additionally, there is the question of how the entity ended up bound to the hero in the first place. Perhaps it was a willing pact between two entities, or a forcible one where one or both had no say in the matter, such as an offered bargain with a fey, or being dragged onto an altar for a foul ritual, or being bonded by pure accident.

An interesting aspect of this archetype is that it can be thematically involved as much as you like with your base class, either being entirely separate, or flavored as being the reason you have the abilities of the class in question in the first place, such as a witch whose pact is with an entity that is also partially possessing them, or a sorcerer or psychic channeling the power of the bound entity as their own.

Additionally, the archetype also does suggest that your GM might allow you to take one of the pact feats from the pactbinder archetype for even more thematic powers.

On that note, since the exact nature of the living vessel is left vague, you should work with your GM to possibly modify the feats of the class, or even homebrew new ones that fit with the bound entity. For example, Exude Abyssal Corruption might deal fire damage instead if the entity is a devil rather than a demon.

With all this in mind, this archetype offers plenty of leeway to grant new powers or reflavor old powers to be the results of another entity within themselves, with all the quirks and roleplaying opportunities that represents.

The base dedication of the archetype grants the bond with the entity, which must be regularly appeased (the specifics being worked out between you and the GM). If not appeased so, the entity becomes irate (granting greater penalties) and can only be appeased by being granted full control for a day, letting it pursue it’s own agendas. However, the entity comes through for you in emergencies, taking over when the hero would fall unconscious to keep them in the fight a little longer, albeit under their control.

Oftentimes, the entity transforms a limb of it’s host, or extrudes one through their body to grant them a physical attack that they can manifest.

Living Vessels can sometimes tap into the life force of the entity to heal their wounds, but some of the entity’s psyche comes with it, blurring the line between the two until assuaged. The specifics are vague and can range from roleplaying changes to priority shifts or even GM control after repeated uses.

Some bound to demons might ooze with demonic corruption, infusing their attacks and touch with poison.

Those with a fey bond might benefit from illusions that make it difficult for foes to target the real vessel.

Meanwhile, eldritch bondmates may aid in grappling foes with their unknowable limbs, assaulting them both physically and mentally.

The most powerful, through either mastering their control of the entity or coming to a true understanding, may truly merge with the entity and temporarily take on a hybrid form blending the two together, improving their combat prowess and bolstering various generic abilities associated with the archetype.

Finally, don’t forget that your GM might let you take a pact feat from Pactbinder or a modification of such.

For all it’s flexible abilities, this archetype is pretty unintrusive, but it can grant anything from the basic ability to keep standing in an emergency with buffs with a cost, to a natural attack for emergencies, healing, and of course a powerful battle form alongside whatever flavorful abilities you choose to take based on the entity’s nature. In this way, it can provide some useful abilities without inhibiting your main class, making it useful for pretty much all of them.

No matter if you using this archetype to emulate older 1st edition entities like medium or shaman spirits, the alternate self of the abomination psychic discipline, or want to do something entirely new, the dynamic between the character and the entity can be as varied as any other relationship. Perhaps they are truly monstrous and demand horrible acts to be placated, or maybe they’re a playful trickster, a misunderstood grump, or something else. Creativity is absolutely your friend here.

When the angel Lowentiel fell, it was not arrogance or disobedience  that brought him low, but a thirst for justice that had forgotten mercy. And so rather than join the ranks of the Erinyes, he had to be sealed away lest he tear his way through Hell on his bloody quest. However, while his name is striken from records and his true self locked away, there are those who find his name on their lips when vengeance and punishment are on their minds…. Who can invite a measure of the fallen demigod angel into themselves.

If there is anything the azarketi, or gillfolk know too much about, it is the eldritch horrors that sleep beneath the sea awaiting the proper alignment of the stars. However, despite being better informed of the danger than most, some are still seduced by the tales of those that invite the dreaming minds of such horrors into themselves, all for power.

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With ice powers!

From Dragon 244# article proposing multiple new flying races

Kiiratam 

Ashiera: dragonfly-winged creature-from-the-black-lagoon things. Fainil (Night Flyers): a drow/tanar'ri bat-winged cambion type. I like the drow having a bunch of cambionspawn with distinct phenotypes. Masgai: Insectoids that fly without wings because of ancient descent from the Plane of Elemental Air.  Telvar: bird-winged and -faced mountain barbarians. I've always remembered them as more specific avariel, but checking the article shows that they're not actually elves. Go figure. Xakhun: drow/wood elf sky pirates. They're more a variant than a full race, since they're wood elves + 10% MR and no drow sunlight vulnerability. But the article does have three kits specifically for them. For when you need airships in the drow invasion force.

Masgai are the most sinister neutral antagonists I’ve seen. They basically seek to ensnare every planet they can into their empire, but despite their short lifespan they play the long game and usually set themselves up as revered protectors to the point power is given to them by the grateful. Despite their disdain for unnecessary  conflict, the military runs all society. 

Considering how  in real life ant colonies tend to peacefully divy up territory, an expansionist but mostly nonviolent insectoid race makes sense.

Also I now want a race variant that are-flight adapted but are born without wings and must craft them through various possible means.

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