Elemental Monolith

Like their lesser kin, elemental monoliths are living incarnations of the elemental forces that compose the multiverse. They are so powerful that only the mightiest of summoning spells can draw them to the Material Plane and compel their service, and even then the caster dare not take his attention from the monolith’s control for even a moment.

Monoliths are great rulers and princes among their kind, obeyed by even the elder elementals. Only the primal elementals are more powerful.

Combat

Each type of monolith has its own varied combat tactics and abilities, but all share the same elemental qualities.

Air Monolith

This towering creature seems to be a shapeless cloud ringed by powerful currents of air. Distortions in the vapor and wind seem to suggest two eyes and a ragged mouth.

Lords of the Elemental Plane of Air, air monoliths seldom leave their home plane unless summoned. They speak Auran, and though they are much less taciturn than other elementals, they still choose their words with care. The voice of an air monolith sounds like the roaring of a tremendous windstorm.

Combat

Air monoliths fight much like other air elementals, but are far stronger.

Air Mastery (Ex): Airborne creatures take a –⁠2 penalty on attack rolls and damage rolls against an air monolith.

Whirlwind (Su): An air monolith can transform itself into a whirlwind at will as a standard action and remain in that form indefinitely. In this form, the monolith can move through the air or along a surface at its fly speed.

The whirlwind is 10 feet wide at the base, up to 50 feet wide at the top, and up to 80 feet tall. The monolith controls the exact height, but it must be at least 20 feet.

The air monolith’s movement while in whirlwind form does not provoke attacks of opportunity, even if the monolith enters the space another creature occupies. Another creature might be caught in the whirlwind if it touches or enters the whirlwind, or if the monolith moves into or through the creature’s space.

Huge or smaller creatures take damage when caught in a whirlwind and may be lifted into the air. An affected creature must succeed on a DC 39 Reflex save when it comes into contact with the whirlwind or take 4d6 points of damage. It must also succeed on a second DC 39 Reflex save or be picked up bodily and held suspended in the powerful winds, automatically taking the indicated damage each round. A creature that can fly is allowed a Reflex save each round to escape the whirlwind. The creature still takes damage but can leave if the save is successful. The save DC is Strength-based.

A creature trapped in a whirlwind cannot move except to go where the air monolith carries it or to escape the whirlwind. It can otherwise act normally, but must succeed on a Concentration check (DC 20 + spell level) to cast a spell. Creatures caught in a whirlwind take a –⁠4 penalty to Dexterity and a –⁠2 penalty on attack rolls. A monolith can have only as many creatures trapped inside a whirlwind at one time as will fit inside the whirlwind’s volume.

An air monolith can eject any carried creatures whenever it wishes, depositing them wherever the whirlwind happens to be. A summoned monolith always ejects trapped creatures before returning to its home plane.

If the whirlwind’s base touches the ground, it creates a swirling cloud of debris. This cloud is centered on the air monolith and has a diameter equal to half the monolith’s height. The cloud obscures all vision, including darkvision, beyond 5 feet. Creatures 5 feet away have concealment, while those farther away have total concealment. Those caught in the cloud must succeed on a Concentration check (DC 15 + spell level) to cast a spell.

An air monolith in whirlwind form cannot make slam attacks and does not threaten the area around it.

Earth Monolith

A great, moving heap of earth and rock the size of a small tower lumbers forward on crude, stumplike legs. Two clublike arms studded with jagged stone hang from its shoulders, and its head is a blunt, featureless mass of earth.

Masters of the Elemental Plane of Earth, earth monoliths do not normally leave their home plane unless summoned. They are composed of whatever dirt, soil, stone, or rock from which they were conjured, and they speak Terran with voices like the grinding of stone on stone. As leaders of their kind, they are less sullen and silent than other elementals, but have little interest in communicating with creatures other than their own elemental kind.

Combat

Earth monoliths are nearly unstoppable, using their great strength to crush and destroy their foes. Like other earth elementals, earth monoliths travel through solid ground or rock as easily as humanoids walk on the earth’s surface. They cannot swim, though, and must either walk around a body of water or travel through the ground beneath it.

Earth Mastery (Ex): An earth monolith gains a +2 bonus on attack rolls and damage rolls if both it and its foe are touching the ground. If an opponent is airborne or waterborne, the monolith takes a –⁠4 penalty on attack rolls and damage rolls.

Push (Ex): An earth monolith can start a bull rush without provoking attacks of opportunity. The combat modifiers given in Earth Mastery also apply to the monolith’s opposed Strength checks.

Earth Glide (Ex): An earth monolith can glide through stone, dirt, or almost any other sort of earth except metal as easily as a fish swims through water. Its burrowing leaves behind no tunnel or hole, nor does it create any ripple or other signs of its presence. A move earth spell cast on an area containing a burrowing earth monolith flings the creature back 30 feet, stunning it for 1 round unless it succeeds on a DC 15 Fortitude save.

Fire Monolith

A tremendous inferno approaches, slithering and bounding like a splashing stream of molten metal. From moment to moment, eyelike openings in the blazing flames seem to form and disappear, and its brilliant tendrils resemble long, slender limbs.

Leaders of the fire elementals, fire monoliths are normally encountered away from the Elemental Plane of Fire only when summoned by powerful spellcasters. They are creatures of living flame, hostile to most other forms of life. Fire monoliths speak Ignan, and their voices sound like the roaring of an inferno, but even though they are stronger-willed and more intelligent than most of their kin, they rarely have much to say to residents of the Material Plane.

Combat

Fire monoliths combine great physical power with incredible quickness and the ability to set their foes ablaze. Like other fire elementals, fire monoliths cannot enter water or any other nonflammable liquid, and so cannot cross water unless they can step or jump over it.

Burn (Ex): A fire monolith’s slam attack deals bludgeoning damage plus fire damage because of the creature’s flaming body. Anyone hit by a fire monolith’s slam attack must succeed on a DC 34 Reflex save or catch on fire. The flame burns for 1d4 rounds. Unless it is still in contact with the fire monolith, a burning creature can take a move action to put out the flames. The save DC is Constitution-based.

Creatures that hit a fire monolith with natural weapons or unarmed attacks take fire damage as though hit by the monolith’s attack, and also catch on fire unless they succeed on a DC 34 Reflex save.

Water Monolith

A volume of animated water the size of a large inn rises up in a crude humanoid shape. Its limbs are thick tendrils of water that loosely resemble arms, its body reshaping itself to flow across the ground without breaking up or losing its form.

Like the other elemental monoliths, water monoliths are the chieftains and leaders of their kind. Generally unwilling to leave the Elemental Plane of Water, they can be summoned only with the most powerful of spells, and though they speak Aquan, water monoliths rarely deign to speak to creatures other than other water elementals. Their voices sound like the crashing of surf in a wild storm, and they are noticeably more intelligent and strong-willed than most of their kind.

Combat

Water monoliths are almost as strong as earth monoliths, but they are much quicker and more agile. They prefer to fight in water, where they can disappear beneath the waves and outmaneuver their foes, but in any instance a water monolith cannot venture more than 300 feet from the body of water from which it was conjured.

Drench (Ex): A water monolith’s touch puts out torches, campfires, exposed lanterns, and other open flames of nonmagical origin of they are Huge or smaller. The creature can dispel magical fire it touches, as if using greater dispel magic (caster level 20th).

Vortex (Su): A water monolith can transform itself into a whirlpool at will as a standard action, provided it is underwater. It can remain in that form as long as it likes. In vortex form, a monolith can move through the water or along the bottom at its swim speed.

The vortex is 10 feet wide at the base, up to 50 feet wide at the top, and up to 80 feet tall. The monolith controls the exact height, but it must be at least 20 feet.

A water monolith’s movement while in vortex form does not provoke attacks of opportunity, even if the monolith enters the space another creature occupies. Another creature might be caught in the vortex if it touches or enters the vortex, or if the monolith moves into or through the creature’s space.

Huge or smaller creatures take damage when caught in a vortex and may be swept up by it. An affected creature must succeed on a DC 42 Reflex save when it comes into contact with a vortex or take 4d6 points of damage. It must also succeed on a second DC 42 Reflex save or be picked up bodily and held suspended in the powerful currents, automatically taking the indicated damage each round. An affected creature is allowed a Reflex save each round to escape the vortex. The creature still takes damage, but can leave if the save is successful. The save DC is Strength-based.

A creature trapped in a vortex cannot move except to go where the water monolith carries it or to escape the vortex. It can otherwise act normally, but must make a Concentration check (DC 20 + spell level) to cast a spell. Creatures caught in the vortex take a –4 penalty to Dexterity and a –2 penalty on attack rolls. A monolith can have only as many creatures trapped inside the vortex at one time as will fit inside the vortex’s volume.

A water monolith can eject any carried creatures whenever it wishes, depositing them wherever the vortex happens to be. A summoned monolith always ejects trapped creatures before returning to its home plane.

If the vortex’s base touches the surface beneath a body of water, it creates a swirling cloud of debris. This cloud is centered on the elemental and has a diameter equal to half the vortex’s height. The cloud obscures all vision, including darkvision, beyond 5 feet. Creatures 5 feet away have concealment, while those farther away have total concealment. Those caught in the cloud must make a Concentration check (DC 15 + spell level) to cast a spell.

A water monolith in vortex form cannot make slam attacks and does not threaten the area around it.

Water Mastery (Ex): A water monolith gains a +2 bonus on attack rolls and damage rolls if both it and its opponent are touching water. If the opponent or the elemental are touching the ground, the monolith takes a –⁠4 penalty on attack rolls and damage rolls.

A water monolith can easily affect the movement of ships in any squares it threatens as a full-round action, overturning any craft up to 180 feet long, or halting and holding motionless a ship as long as 360 feet. Larger ships can be reduced to half speed for as long as they remain threatened by the monolith.

Skills: A water monolith has a +8 racial bonus on any Swim check to perform some special action or avoid a hazard. It can always choose to take 10 on a Swim check, even if distracted or endangered. It can use the run action while swimming, provided it swims in a straight line.