Bar'mini (3.5e NPC)
| Female rakshasa cleric 7 | |
| LE Medium outsider (native) | |
| Init/Senses | +2/darkvision 60 ft.; Listen +19, Spot +17 |
| Languages | Common, Abyssal, Infernal, Undercommon |
| AC | 29, touch 12, flat-footed 27; +1 dodge from Dodge (+2 Dex, +8 armor, +9 natural) |
| hp | 105 (14 HD) |
| Fort/Ref/Will | +13/+11/+15 |
| Speed | 30 ft. in full plate (6 squares), base speed 40 ft. |
| Melee | +2 dispellingMIC kukri +15/+10/+5 (1d4+3/18-20) and bite +8 (1d6) or |
| Melee | 2 claws +13 (1d4+1) and bite +8 (1d6) |
| Ranged | +2 shocking burst composite shortbow +16/+11/+6 (1d6+3/×3 plus 1d6 electricity plus 2d10 electricity on a critical hit) |
| Base Atk/Grp | +12/+13 |
| Atk Options | +1 caster level to healing spells |
| Special Actions | spells, turn undead |
| Spells Prepared | (CL 14th): 7th—regeneration (D), resurrection ×2 (all DC 22) 3rd—bestow curse, contagion, invisibility purge, nondetection (D), searing light, speak with dead (all DC 18) 2nd—aid, bull's strength, darkness, death knell, enthrall, hold person, invisibility (D) (all DC 17) |
| Abilities | Str 12, Dex 14, Con 16, Int 13, Wis 20, Cha 18 |
| SQ | detect thoughts, change shape, damage reduction 15/good and piercing, spell resistance 34, domains (healing and trickery), spontaneous casting (cure spells) |
| Feats | Alertness, Combat Casting, Dodge, Lightning Reflexes, Spell Penetration |
| Skills | Bluff +20, Concentration +15, Diplomacy +10, Disguise +20 (+22 acting), Intimidate +8, Listen +19, Move Silently +15, Perform (oratory) +15, Sense Motive +17, Spellcraft +13, Spot +17 |
| Possessions | boots of levitation, mithral masterwork full plate |
| Detect Thoughts (Su) | Bar'mini can continuously use detect thoughts as the spell (caster level 18th; Will DC 16 negates). She can suppress or resume this ability as a free action. The save DC is Charisma-based. |
| Change Shape (Su) | Bar'mini can assume any humanoid form, or revert to her own form, as a standard action. In humanoid form, Bar'mini loses her claw and bite attacks. Bar'mini remains in one form until she chooses to assume a new one. A change in form cannot be dispelled, but Bar'mini reverts to her natural form when killed. A true seeing spell reveals her natural form. |
| Spells | Bar'mini casts spells as a 14th-level cleric. |
| Skills | Bar'mini has a +4 racial bonus on Bluff and Disguise checks. When using change shape, Bar'mini gains an additional +10 circumstance bonus on Disguise checks. If reading an opponent’s mind, her circumstance bonus on Bluff and Disguise checks increases by a further +4. |
| Spontaneous Casting | Bar'mini can "lose" any prepared spell that is not a domain spell in order to cast any cure spell of the same spell level or lower. |
History
 |
|---|
| At home, Bar'mini dresses more casually. |
Bar'mini was born blessed by Ravush the Furless, one of the many bastard sons of the rakshasa deity Ravanna. Instead of the sorcerous prowess exhibited by most rakshasa, Bar'mini was born capable of powerful healing magic. Like many rakshasa before her, she wasn't pleased with just her natural powers, and began to further train herself in the clerical arts. Eventually she became a healer of renown, and since most evil outsiders are incapable of channeling positive energy, she became a sought-after mercenary. Eventually, she even attracted the personal attention of Ravush, the giver of her powers.
Ravush the Furless is considered a hideous sight by most rakshasa due to the minor deity's lack of fur: he has the appearance of a sphynx cat. But Bar'mini didn't look for beauty in a mate - she looked for power, and charisma, and influence, all of which Ravush had by the wagonload. The two got tangled into a cat-and-mouse relationship, chasing after each other's affection in turn, their courting and lovemaking becoming things of legend. But the bastards sons of Ravanna are fickle and bore easily, and all the beauty and harsh allure of Bar'mini could not stop the godling from leaving her. She wasn't about to accept that.
Bar'mini hunted down the son of Ravanna and engaged in a terrible battle with him. Bar'mini's many minions fought the fierce godling while Bar'mini weaved terrible spells on the god. In the end, the very divine power Ravush had blessed Bar'mini with was his downfall, as he could no longer withdraw his gift. Bar'mini chained Ravush the Furless to the bedrock of her tower-fortress, Kaan'ta of Thorns, and began to experiment with the torturous techniques that she would later become famous for. Ravush has now withered in the tower for centuries, tortured to death and resurrected again and again.
Appearance and beliefs
Bar'mini is a fairly average specimen of her race: she's 6' 0'' and weighs 160 lb., and has the head of a lioness and the reversed hands typical of a rakshasa woman. Bar'mini enjoys enhancing her appearance through various means: whether in her true form or an assumed shape, Bar'mini wears the most expensive clothes and the finest make-up. When traveling in possibly dangerous territory, Bar'mini wears her intricate mithral full plate, which is adorned with gilded lioness motifs. Her disguise self spell allows her to fine-tune her appearance further according to knowledge gleaned with detect thoughts, so as to always appear as the very height of beauty.
Bar'mini is a cruel, capricious creature, and absolutely can't take a slight. Ravush is not the only being languishing in Kaan'ta: thousands of people are tortured in the basements of her tower-fortress, some for offenses as minor as failing to meet her eye, or indeed looking her in the eye unwarranted. She enjoys shows of submission and groveling, and invariably accepts only those minions who submit themselves completely to her. Normally she's bombastic and extravagant in her gestures and speech, but when angry, she becomes cold and subdued.
Followers and allies
Bar'mini has many servants but few allies, thanks to her dominating nature and hazardous personality. Most of the staff of Kaan'ta are humanoid slaves of various walks of life: Bar'mini especially tries to subjugate arcane spellcasters to supplement her might. As is common for her race, Bar'mini can't stand other rakshasa, but she does employ a few of them as assassins and enforcers, after having been completely broken through torture personally applied by Bar'mini. Some of them are mighty rajahs, which Bar'mini particularly enjoys humiliating, although they've been fitted with antimagic collars to suppress any chance of rebellion.
The many demonologists that dwell in Kaan'ta of Thorns ensure that Bar'mini also has access to legions of both demons and devils, which are her bodyguards of choice when away from the tower - her resurrection spell is of no use in intense melee, so using living underlings as bodyguards would serve no point. Bar'mini's ability to resurrect minions means that her living followers are devoted to her and try to keep in her good graces: their lives may depend on it. Although she is fabulously rich, she doesn't waste the expensive diamonds required for the spell unless the follower is worth it.
Recent activity and plans
 |
|---|
| Kaan'ta of Thorns is a great lair created by joint efforts of architectural marvel and arcane might. |
Bar'mini's life has been an endless quest for ever-greater power. Like all her kind, Bar'mini enjoys power, especially power over others, and has used every trick in the book to achieve it. She's dominated kings through displays of magic, tricked races to her servitude, and backstabbed those more powerful than her to surpass them and gain their fortunes. She will not stop until her power equals or surpasses that of the greatest fiends and deities. Perhaps one day she can be a god: a god of ambition and cruelty.
On the other hand, Bar'mini searches for a lover. Some are foolish enough to snicker about such a mundane goal, but they risk spending an eternity in the jails of Kaan'ta. The temperamental rakshasa still desires a mate to equal her violent courtship of Ravush the Furless, and more than a few great entities have stepped up to the task. Those who fail to please her thoroughly - and until now all have failed - better get used to pain and darkness. Some examples of aspirants include a sadomasochistic pit fiend (her tastes proved to be too spicy), a solar of Kord (who tried and failed to convert her) and an old blue dragon (try not to picture it). Bar'mini's search of mate is utterly secondary to her quest for power and influence, and is indeed a part of it: she doesn't seek love, but a challenge, a worthy equal she can break and bend to her will.
Combat
Bar'mini has no fear of combat, but usually doesn't need to join it: she's got slaves and minions to spare, and why risk your life when someone else can do it for you? Besides, if a living minion dies, she can always resurrect them later. If forced into combat, either when traveling or in her tower-fortress, Bar'mini is invariably attended by several humanoid spellcasters, as well as abyssal and infernal minions. She also has a penchant for strange creatures from across the plains, which she keeps as dangerous pets in Kaan'ta: expect to face some of these as well.
Bar'mini is a support caster, using her powerful healing spells (remember that she channels positive energy, even though her alignment would suggest otherwise) and support spells like invisibility purge and spell immunity to keep her side on top of things. She also dominates foes with spells like greater command and symbol of fear solely for the enjoyment it brings her.
If forced into melee combat, which she avoids like the plague, she'll lash out with slay living, although spells like blade barrier and invisibility mean that she's incredibly hard to approach. The towering demons and devils by her side don't make things easier. For all her negative features, Bar'mini is a stout-hearted rakshasa and thoroughly confident in her superiority, so when faced in Kaan'ta she doesn't run. Either the invaders go down or she does.
Back to Main Page → 3.5e Homebrew → NPCs → CR 17
Back to Main Page → 3.5e Homebrew → NPCs → ECL 17