Shield Warden, Greater

Greater Shield Warden CR 18

Clad in steel, this imposing creature is surrounded by a number of flying shields.

XP 153,600
LN Large outsider (extraplanar, lawful)
Init +5; Senses darkvision 60 ft.; Perception +25

DEFENSE

AC 36, touch 14, flat-footed 31 (+5 Dex, +15 natural, +7 shield, –1 size)
hp 297 (18d10+198); fast healing 5
Fort +22, Ref +11, Will +15; DR 10/—; Immune mind-affecting effects; SR 29

OFFENSE

Speed 50 ft., fly 100 ft. (average)
Melee +4 heavy steel shield +27 (1d6+12 plus bull rush), +1 light steel shield +27 (1d4+6 plus bull rush)
Special Attacks lend shield
Space 10 ft.; Reach 10 ft. (15 ft. +4 heavy steel shield, +1 light steel shield)
Spell-Like Abilities (CL 18th; concentration +22)

At willdimension door, mage armor, sanctuary (DC 15), shield
5/dayprotection from arrows, protection from energy, shield other
3/daydeflection, dispel magic, dimensional anchor
1/daydimensional lock, guards and wards, mage’s disjunction

STATISTICS

Str 34, Dex 21, Con 32, Int 13, Wis 19, Cha 18
Base Atk +18; CMB +31; CMD 46
Feats Bodyguard, Combat Reflexes, Improved Shield Bash, Power AttackB, Shield Focus, Shield Master, Shield Slam, Stand Still, Two-Weapon Defense, Two-Weapon Fighting
Skills Acrobatics +16, Diplomacy +25, Fly +14, Intimidate +22, Knowledge (engineering) +22, Knowledge (planes) +22, Perception +25, Sense Motive +25
Languages Celestial, Common; truespeech
SQ deflection aura, share defenses, spell hinder

SPECIAL ABILITIES

Deflection Aura (Su)

Allies adjacent to a shield warden gain a +4 deflection bonus to AC (as usual this also applies to combat maneuver defense).

Lend Shield (Ex)

As a standard action, a shield warden can duplicate one of its shields and send it flying to aid an ally.

The target must be within 60 ft. and within line of sight of the shield warden to benefit from this ability. A creature protected by this ability gains a +6 shield bonus to armor class and spell resistance 29. These protections remain in effect for 1 minute. A shield warden can use this ability a number of times per day equal to its Hit Dice.

Share Defenses (Su)

A shield warden can use its mage armor and shield spell-like abilities as if they had a range of close and could target a single creature (instead of a range of personal). A shield warden can do this a number of times per day equal to its Hit Dice, even if it can cast those spell-like abilities more often.

Spell Hinder (Su)

As a free action once per round, a shield warden can target one enemy capable of casting spells within 30 feet and make it more difficult for that creature to cast spells. For 1 minute, the DC to cast spells defensively is increased by +4 any time the creature is within a shield warden’s threatened area.

ECOLOGY

Environment any
Organization solitary, pair, troop (3—12)
Treasure standard (+4 heavy steel shield, +1 light steel shield)

Dedicated to the tenets of defense and protection, shield wardens serve to guard people and places throughout the multiverse. Housed in a fortified demiplane known as the Vault of Indomitable Security, shield wardens constantly train for the inevitable time that they may be called away to serve. These stern outsiders live only to protect and are mercenary in their behavior.

They speak little and express little emotion in their conversations— shield wardens only say as much as is needed to convey their point and often the only time they speak is when asking for their orders or shouting commands on the battlefield. Shield wardens eschew many elements of typical society. They lack any concept of gender and adopt numbers and letter designations instead of names. Each unit in the Vault is assigned a series of letters and each warden then appends a series of numbers after their unit marker.

Shield wardens appear to be created entirely of armor and shields.

It is unknown whether these creatures have anything beneath this metal-clad surface or if they are just layers of metal down to their core. Shield wardens are known to exist in three different categories, though they all answer to the name shield warden.

These outsiders are called to guard particular locations, negotiating their price depending on the risk and length of time of their deployment. Shield wardens are well-suited to serve as guardians and bodyguards for those able to pay for their services, though in some instances they are hired for extraction missions to retrieve someone trapped in dangerous planar and mortal locations. Rarely, shield wardens act on their own volition, reacting to great disturbances that could blossom into catastrophic events.

When called by casters using planar ally, shield wardens typically request payment in the form of donations to military forces or gods whose areas of concern deal with protection and defense. As lawful neutral creatures, shield wardens can be found fighting for the forces of Heaven or for those of Hell. However, shield wardens only barely tolerate highly chaotic creatures and exact a much greater price in order to serve them, sometimes double what they would require from a lawful or neutral client. Once it accepts a mission a shield warden never deviates from its orders, going as far as to sacrifice itself in combat if it means protecting its client.

The two smaller shield wardens stand 8 feet tall and weigh nearly a ton, while the greater shield warden stands 15 ft. tall and weighs upward of three tons.

Section 15: Copyright Notice

Aventyr Bestiary © 2017 AAW GAMES LLC Authors Mike Myler, Jonathan G. Nelson Developers, Michael Allen, Curtis Baum, Wolfgang Baur, Brian Berg, Adam Daigle, Jeffrey Gomez, Joshua Gullion, Jacob Kellogg, Jared Jeanquart, Juan Lucha, Justin Andrew Mason, Jonathan McAnulty, Michael McCarthy, Raven Mimura, Brian Wiborg Monster, Will Myers, Mike Myler, Jason Nelson, Jonathan G. Nelson, Owen K.C. Stephens, Colin Stricklin, Cory Vickruck, Stephen Yeardley Jonathan G. Nelson

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