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alpaca-clouds · 1 year

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Fluffcember Day 08: By Your Side

Today's prompt for Fluffcember was Fairy Lights.

Fandom: Z/X Ignition

Characters: Ayase & Sieger

Genre: Fluff & Humor

Length: 857 words

[Ao3 Link]

It was a surprisingly cold winter day – especially if you wore a short skirt with nothing but thin tights underneath. Because of this Ayase sighed with relief, as the hot water of the shower ran over her. She would've liked to take a bath, but found herself unable to relax this evening. And a bath without relaxation was just wasted water. Still, she allowed herself to soak in the warmth of the shower for a few minutes, until the entire bath room had fogged up. Only then she left the shower, drying herself of, before binding her towel around her torso.

It had been another exhausting day. Some Z/X from the red world had entered the city and she and Sieger had helped fighting them of. Thus, she was just looking forward to a bit of down time. Maybe she could read for a while.

Of course Sieger could not help himself, as she entered their small living room this way. “Oh, I like this view,” he quipped, coming closer, his movement very much those of a cat. He made a try of rubbing his head against her nude thighs, but she easily evaded this “attack”.

“Not now, Sieger,” she muttered, as she went for the bedroom. She was quick enough to close the door before Sieger could enter behind her. It was almost like a game by now, with the winged panther again and again try to ogle at her.

It did not take her long to change into some comfy white pajamas. She sighed, considering to leave the door closed. But if there was an incident, she would quickly regret it. After all, Sieger would do everything to defend her, until her revenge was done.

She opened the door, allowing him in, as he gave her the side eye. “You're no fun,” he complained, as he jumped onto the bed.

“Sieger,” she groaned. Staring angrily at him he did the best of a shrug as his anatomy allowed.

“I mean, we could just cuddle up for warmth,” he offered, as she sighed.

She climbed into bed herself, wanting to turn on the bedside lamp, before remembering something else. There were those fairy lights Azumi had gotten for her. A sweet and still somewhat childish gift, but turning the lights on, Ayase found she liked the soft shimmer. In fact, she remembered something this from her childhood. It was a really vague memory, as it had happened, before the Black Spots had appeared and her world had been torn apart. But yes, she did remember it. There had been a thread of lights just like this above her childhood bed. Her father would turn it on, whenever he read stories to her in the evening.

A strange memory. It felt so far removed from her life was it was now. Her life was… No, really, it was not that bad, was it? She might not have family any longer, but she had friends. Heck, she had Sieger, who was standing by the bed, his giant head bedded on the mattress by her feet. He was staring at her with the gaze of a puppy silently begging to be cuddled up to.

Only that a puppy would not make any sexual innuendos about it.

Shaking her head, Ayase got out the book she was currently reading. It was non-fiction, as she found herself struggling to get lost in fictional worlds. Instead she was reading this: an analysis about symbolism in European fairy tales. Funnily enough the next chapter was about the sexual subtext of the “big bad wolf”, who according to the book had been a metaphor for adult men harassing young women and girls.

Raising one eyebrow, she looked over at Sieger. Really, he should maybe be a wolf in form. That might fit him better. Though frankly, while he was always leering and always making improper comments, he had never used his strength, that far exceeded her own, to try anything else.

Really, she had to wonder, what was going on in that giant cat head. After all he made no secret out of his plan to kill her once everything else was said and done.

And yet… he had so far saved her life countless times.

Noticing her gaze his eyes shifted into her direction. He pulled back his ears a bit, as if trying to look cuter. Something that didn't really work with the body of an 800 pound murder machine.

She sighed. “Fine,” she muttered. “But you can't get underneath the cover.”

He chuckled. “Small steps.” With a grin showing all those deadly fangs, he once more jumped onto the bed, backing the mattress shift under his weight. Taking position on the side of the wall, he curled up, just like a cat would do.

Shaking her head, Ayase focused onto her book. And yet, somehow, she found herself shifting to lean against Sieger. Because through all of his deadliness, he still did have indeed a very soft and warm fur.

Another chuckle. “I knew you could not resist me.”

Still focused on her book, she elbowed him. “Just shut up.”

#fluffcember #fluff #humorous #slice of life #z/x #zillions of enemy x #Kamiyugi Ayase #Sieger

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pathfinderunlocked · 1 year

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Vampire Blood Mage - CR8 Undead

Vampires with blood magic are a great combination.

Artwork by Zaza on Twitter. From Z/X Zillions of Enemy X, copyright Nippon Ichi.

I wanted a blood mage vampire to use as a miniboss. There’s a blood mage wizard archetype in Pathfinder, but it’s only interesting for the player who has it, and doesn’t work well if you try to give it to enemies. An enemy spending HP to apply metamagic isn’t something that players can really interact with. I wanted to make something that actually changed how players approached the fight. As a result, many of this creature’s abilities manipulate the PCs’ blood, not its own blood.

Blood mage vampires were humanoid spellcasters in life with some affinity for blood magic; often a bloodrager, sorcerer, or blood mage wizard. A blood mage vampire is sometimes formed when a vampire attempts to turn such a spellcaster into a vampire, but the process goes haywire, draining the original vampire into a withered husk as its evil life force is absorbed into the newly created vampire. While other vampires often manipulate the minds of their prey, a blood mage vampire’s special power gives it a degree of control over living creatures’ bodies instead.

Although conceptually a half-elf variant vampire, this creature doesn’t actually have any of the class levels it had in life, and is instead built as a unique creature, the same way that a standard vampire spawn is. It lacks several typical vampire abilities, including fast healing and gaseous form (although it still enters a gaseous form if reduced to 0 hit points).

Vampire Blood Mage - CR 8

XP 4,800 CE Medium undead (augmented humanoid, elf, human) Init +7 Senses darkvision 60 ft., scent 60 ft. (living creatures only); Perception +19

DEFENSE

AC 19, touch 13, flat-footed 16 (+3 Dex, +2 natural, +4 shield) hp 94 (8d6+64) plus 18 temp Fort +9, Ref +5, Will +8 Defensive Abilities channel resistance +4, vampiric escape DR 10/magic and silver Immune undead traits Resist cold 10, electricity 10 Weaknesses vampire weaknesses

OFFENSE

Speed 30 ft.; Fly 30 ft. (average) Melee bite +8 (1d6+2 plus energy drain), wing +3 (1d4+1 plus energy drain) Special Attacks blood drain, children of the night, create spawn, energy drain (1 level, DC 21)

Spell-Like Abilities (CL 8th; concentration +15) Constant—blood armor, shield 1/day—blood biography (DC 19), blood kinesis (DC 23, CMD +15; see text) 3/day—manipulate blood globules (see text), vampiric touch (touch +6), waves of blood (DC 20, CMD +15) 5/day—draw blood (DC 19; see text) At will—darkness, detect magic, dispel magic, light, mage hand, maximized false life (already cast), message, read magic

STATISTICS

Str 15, Dex 16, Con —, Int 21, Wis 10, Cha 24 Base Atk +6; CMB +8; CMD 21 Feats Hover, Improved Initiative, Iron Will, Spell Focus (Necromancy) Skills Bluff +26, Fly +14, Knowledge (arcana, religion) +16, Knowledge (history, local) +13, Perception +19, Sense Motive +8, Spellcraft +16, Stealth +11, Use Magic Device +15; Racial Modifiers +8 Bluff, +8 Perception, +8 Sense Motive, +8 Stealth Languages Abyssal, Common, Draconic SQ change shape (dire bat or wolf, beast shape II), shadowless Gear headband of alluring charisma +4

SPECIAL ABILITIES

Vampire Weaknesses Vampires cannot tolerate the strong odor of garlic and will not enter an area laced with it. Similarly, they recoil from mirrors or strongly presented holy symbols. These things don’t harm the vampire—they merely keep it at bay. A recoiling vampire must stay at least 5 feet away from the mirror or holy symbol and cannot touch or make melee attacks against that creature. Holding a vampire at bay takes a standard action. After 1 round, a vampire can overcome its revulsion of the object and function normally each round it makes a DC 25 Will save.

Vampires cannot enter a private home or dwelling unless invited in by someone with the authority to do so.

Reducing a vampire’s hit points to 0 or lower incapacitates it but doesn’t always destroy it (see vampiric escape). However, certain attacks can slay vampires. Exposing any vampire to direct sunlight staggers it on the first round of exposure and destroys it utterly on the second consecutive round of exposure if it does not escape. Each round of immersion in running water inflicts damage on a vampire equal to one-third of its maximum hit points—a vampire reduced to 0 hit points in this manner is destroyed. Driving a wooden stake through a helpless vampire’s heart instantly slays it (this is a full-round action). However, it returns to life if the stake is removed, unless the head is also severed and anointed with holy water.

Vampiric Escape (Su) If reduced to 0 hit points in combat, a blood mage vampire assumes gaseous form (caster level 5th) and attempts to escape. In gaseous form, it has a fly speed of 20 feet with perfect maneuverability. It must reach its coffin home within 2 hours or be utterly destroyed. (It can normally travel up to 9 miles in 2 hours.) Additional damage dealt to a vampire forced into gaseous form has no effect. Once at rest, the blood mage vampire is helpless. It regains 1 hit point after 1 hour, then is no longer helpless.

Blood Drain (Su) A blood mage vampire can suck blood from a grappled opponent (including one grappled by its Blood Kinesis spell); if the blood mage vampire establishes or maintains a pin, it drains blood, dealing 1d4 points of Constitution damage. The blood mage vampire heals 10 hit points or gains 10 temporary hit points for 1 hour (up to a maximum number of temporary hit points equal to its full normal hit points) each round it drains blood.

Change Shape (Su) A blood mage vampire can use change shape to assume the form of a dire bat or wolf, as beast shape II.

Children of the Night (Su) Once per day, a blood mage vampire can call forth 1d6+1 rat swarms, 1d4+1 bat swarms, or 2d6 wolves as a standard action. These creatures arrive in 2d6 rounds and serve the blood mage vampire for up to 1 hour.

Create Spawn (Su) A blood mage vampire can create spawn out of those it slays with blood drain or energy drain, provided that the slain creature is a humanoid. The victim rises from death as a normal vampire or vampire spawn in 1d4 days (the blood mage vampire’s choice). This vampire or vampire spawn is under the command of the blood mage vampire that created it, and remains enslaved until its master’s destruction. A blood mage vampire may have only a single vampire or vampire spawn enslaved in this way; any additional slave it creates becomes a free-willed undead. A vampire may free an enslaved vampire or vampire spawn in order to enslave a new slave, but once freed, a vampire or vampire spawn cannot be enslaved again.

Energy Drain (Su) A creature hit by a blood mage vampire’s bite gains one negative level. This ability only triggers once per round, regardless of the number of attacks a blood mage vampire makes.

Shadowless (Ex) A blood mage vampire casts no shadows and shows no reflection in a mirror.

Draw Blood (Sp) Five times per day as a standard action, as a spell-like ability, a blood mage vampire can drain blood out of any number of targets within 30 feet that have taken slashing or piercing damage in the past 24 hours and not healed that damage yet. This deals 2d8 damage to each such target, and causes them to begin bleeding for 1d8 bleed damage. A successful Fortitude save (DC 19) halves the damage and negates the bleed effect.

For each target that takes damage in this way, a globule of blood flies into the air and begins to spin around the blood mage vampire. A blood mage vampire can have any number of blood globules at a time. These globules last for 1 minute.

This spell has no effect on creatures that don’t have blood. This is considered a 3rd-level necromancy spell. Spell resistance applies.

Manipulate Blood Globules (Sp) Three times per day as a standard action, as a spell-like ability, a blood mage vampire can drink any number of blood globules created by the Draw Blood spell to heal itself for 1d6 hit points per globule, and simultaneously launch any number of the globules that it doesn’t drink at targets within close range (45 ft.). Each globule launched in this way becomes one missile and deals 1d4+1 piercing damage, striking unerringly unless the target has total cover or total concealment. This effect counts as Magic Missile for the purposes of abilities like the Shield spell that interact with Magic Missile.

Alternately, as a swift action, as a spell-like ability, a blood mage vampire can drink or launch a single blood globule.

This is considered a 2nd-level necromancy spell. Spell resistance applies.

Blood Kinesis (Sp) Once per day as a standard action, as a spell-like ability with a duration of concentration, a blood mage vampire can take control of a living target’s blood, gaining control over the target’s body (but not its mind). On the initial casting, the target receives a Fortitude saving throw (DC 23) to resist control. If the target succeeds on the initial save, it suffers no effects and the spell ends. If the target fails on the save, it is paralyzed for the duration of the spell.

Each round while concentrating on the spell, the blood mage vampire can choose to either make a combat maneuver check to reposition or grapple the target (including pinning or damaging the target if it is already grappled), or force the target to take a standard action of the blood mage vampire’s choice. If the blood mage vampire makes a combat maneuver check, its CMB is +16 (its caster level plus its Charisma modifier). If the blood mage vampire forces the target to take a standard action, the action must be a purely physical one that involves no mental actions, since the blood mage vampire can only control the target’s body and not its mind, and the target receives another Fortitude save to resist performing the action (DC 23).

This spell has no effect on creatures that don’t have blood. This is considered a 5th-level necromancy spell. Spell resistance applies.

Maximized False Life (Sp) When a blood mage vampire casts false life as a spell-like ability, it can maximize the effect as if with the Maximize Spell metamagic, without increasing the casting time (typically granting 18 temp hp)

Steal Healing (Su) As an immediate action, when a creature within 30 feet of it receives any amount of healing, a blood mage vampire can attempt to steal that healing. Unless the creature being healed succeeds on a DC 23 Fortitude save, the blood mage vampire is healed instead of the creature. Although a blood mage vampire is normally harmed by positive energy, it is nevertheless healed when using this ability to steal healing that comes from positive energy..

#D&D #pathfinder 1e #undead #augmented humanoid #human #elf

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