The Haunted Manor
Welcome to Masters and Minions, where I strive to provide you with new and interesting NPCs and encounters. In honor of undead week I’ve come up with another encounter involving Samuel, the young sorcerer ghost first featured in The Ogre and the Mage. Samuel sends the PCs a letter stating that they are entitled to a piece of land if they stay in the manor on that land for two consecutive days and nights. The letter includes directions to the manor.
Samuel has spent weeks preparing the manor for the PCs, cleaning the place up and casting many phantom trap spells and even placing a couple real traps, like a modified fireball placed on a barrel of salt. For this, use the fireball CR 5 in the Pathfinder Core Rules; in addition, targets have to make a secondary Fortitude save (same DC as the Reflex) or be nauseated for 1 minute by the pain of salt in their wounds.
Samuel uses his illusions and his telekinesis ability to mess with the PCs heads; he only directly attacks them if they attack him first. Samuel also poses as different ghosts by changing his appearance with disguise self.
Samuel CR 9*
Young male human ghost aristocrat 1/sorcerer (arcane bloodline) 7
CN Small undead (augmented humanoid, incorporeal)
Init +8; Senses darkvision 60 ft; Perception +12
Defense
AC 22, touch 22, flat-footed 17 (+4 Dex, +1 dodge, +6 deflection, +1 size)
hp 80 (8 HD; 1d8+7d6+48)
Fort +8, Ref +6, Will +7
Defensive Abilities Arcane bond (bonded amulet), channel resistance +4, incorporeal, rejuvenation; Immune undead traits
Offense
Speed fly 20 ft (perfect)
Melee corrupting touch +8 (9d6, Fort. DC 20 half)
Special Attacks Malevolence (DC 20), Spells, Telekinesis
Sorcerer Spells Know (CL 7, +13 ranged touch)
3rd (5/day)—Dispel Magic, Major Image, Lightning Bolt
2nd (8/day)—Acid Arrow, Invisibility, Magic Mouth, Phantom Trap
1st (8/day)—Burning Hands (DC 18), Disguise Self, Identify, Mage Armor, Silent Image, Ventriloquism
0—Arcane Mark, Dancing Lights, Detect Magic, Ghost Sound, Mage Hand, Prestidigitation, Touch of Fatigue
Bloodline arcane
Statistics
Str —, Dex 18, Con —, Int 13, Wis 10, Cha 23
Base Atk +3; CMB +2; CMD 23
Feats Alertness, Combat Casting, Dodge, Eschew Materials, Improved Initiative, Silent Spell, Still Spell
Skills Bluff +17, Disguise +13, Fly +9, Knowledge(arcane) +12, Perception +12, Sense Motive +6, Stealth +16, Spellcraft +12; Racial Modifiers +8 Perception, +8 Stealth
Languages Common, Elven
Equipment Incorporeal copy of a wand of unseen servant (CL: 5) (20 charges left), Incorporeal Bonded Hand of Glory
Hook “Oh that looks fun, let me try.” (Right before Samuel possesses someone)
*Samuel’s CR did not receive the normal decrease for being a young creature because as a ghost he is unaffected by most, if not all, of the drawbacks.