The Training Dummy
Alright folks—though I hate to admit it, it’s time to wrap up Martial Action Week 2014. It’s been fun, and I’m glad we got a chance to show you some of the great stuff you can get up to with A Necromancer’s Grimoire: The Book of Martial Action II. Today’s monster is something every great fighter needs to face down at some point in their careers: the dreaded training dummy. Unlike a normal training dummy, however, ours is animated with special magic that not only gives it the ability to hit back, but also special defenses which make you beat it in a certain way.
Training Dummy
These dummies come in a wide variety of forms and designs, but most are Medium humanoids and like this one are quite unadorned, made of featureless wood and iron. It shambles forward with relative harmlessness, swinging slowly and gently threatening you with nothing more than a harsh lesson should you fail to kill it.
TRAINING DUMMY CR 1
XP 300
N Medium construct
Init +0; Senses darkvision 60 ft., low-light vision; Perception +0
DEFENSE
AC 15, touch 10, flat-footed 15 (+5 natural)
hp 25 (1d10+20)
Fort +0, Ref +0, Will +0
Defensive Abilities construct traits, resilient, training aid
OFFENSE
Speed 30 ft.
Melee 2 slams +3 (1d4+2 nonlethal damage)
STATISTICS
Str 14, Dex 10, Con -, Int 1, Wis 10, Cha 10
Base Atk +1; CMB +3; CMD 13
Feats Power Attack
Skills Escape Artist +1
Languages none (understands Common)
SQ command responsive
ECOLOGY
Environment urban
Organization solitary, pair, or classroom (10-30)
Treasure none
SPECIAL ABILITIES
Command Responsive (Ex): A training dummy is designed to be a training aid, not a treasure guardian or assault weapon, and as such can be commanded to cease its attack by anyone. In order to do this, the commanding creature must ask the training dummy to stop (or start) attacking them and succeed on an opposed Charisma check.
Resilient (Ex): A training dummy is much more difficult to destroy than a common construct, as it would be difficult to replace them each time one was defeated. When a training dummy is reduced to 0 hit points or fewer, it is not destroyed. Instead, it falls inert until restored above 0 hit points. A training dummy which is reduced below -50 hit points is completely destroyed.
Training Aid (Ex): A training dummy is designed to help train in the use of techniques and is protected by an intense magic which reduces all damage dealt to it to 1, except damage dealt by attacks made as part of, or modified by, a technique feat. This includes both weapon damage and hit point damage dealt by spells.
Ecology
The training dummy is a basic construct inlaid with powerful enchantments in order to instruct young warriors in the ways of combat artistry. While various schools and academies claim to have been the originators of these dummies, their wide use and long tradition makes any of these claims as likely as the next. The most commonly accepted theory is that the legendary academies of the graceful swallow created these strange devices, though this is also unproven.
A training dummy is a barely intelligent construct empowered with just enough intellect to allow it to take orders and prevent it from accidently killing trainees. Very rarely, however, these training dummies develop a more advanced intellect and go rogue. Such terrible devices are hunted down by martial adepts at all costs, for even the creature’s mediocre offensive abilities could pose a real threat to civilians and even untrained warriors, due to their potent defensive magic.