Psionic lich.
Psionic liches are undead psionics users—usually psions, but sometimes psionic monsters—who have interred their mentality into the necrotic tissue of their once-living bodies, thus preserving their existence indefinitely.
A psionic lich appears in some ways as it did in life: Its flesh remains pliant, soft, and warm to the touch. However, it has no heart, and no blood flows through its veins—it is psionic power that animates the flesh. If you cut a psionic lich, its veins are empty of blood, though stray sparks of power flash briefly. Its eyes are always completely silvered and glowing with a faint radiance. A psionic lich wears clothing for simple modesty or disguise, not to protect it from the environment. Thus, many wear only simple leggings, tunics, and sandals, if that. Psionic liches speak Common plus any other languages they knew in life.
Creating a Psionic Lich[]
Lich from Forgotten Realms.
“Psionic Lich” is an acquired template that can be added to any living creature (referred to hereafter as the base creature), provided it can create the required phylactery. A psionic lich retains all the base creature's statistics and special abilities except as noted here.
CR: Same as the base creature + 2.
Alignment: Any evil.
Type: The creature's type changes to psionic and undead. Do not recalculate BAB, saves, or skill ranks.
Senses: A psionic lich gains darkvision 60 ft.
Armor Class: A psionic lich has a +5 natural armor bonus or the base creature's natural armor bonus, whichever is better.
Hit Dice: Change all of the creature's racial Hit Dice to d12s. All Hit Dice derived from class levels remain unchanged. As undead, liches use their Charisma modifiers to determine bonus hit points (instead of Constitution).
Defensive Abilities: A psionic lich gains channel resistance +4, DR 15/bludgeoning and psionics, and immunity to cold and electricity (in addition to those granted by its undead traits). The lich also gains the following defensive ability.
- Rejuvenation (Su): When a lich is destroyed, its phylactery (which is generally hidden by the lich in a safe place far from where it chooses to dwell) immediately begins to rebuild the undead spellcaster's body nearby. This process takes 1d10 days—if the body is destroyed before that time passes, the phylactery merely starts the process anew. After this time passes, the lich wakens fully healed (albeit without any gear it left behind on its old body), usually with a burning need for revenge against those who previously destroyed it.
Melee Attack: A psionic lich has a touch attack that it can use once per round as a natural weapon. A lich fighting without weapons uses its natural weapons (if it has any) in addition to its touch attack (which is treated as a primary natural weapon that replaces one claw or slam attack, if the creature has any). A lich armed with a weapon uses its weapons normally, and can use its touch attack as a secondary natural weapon.
Damage: A psionic lich's touch attack uses negative energy to deal 1d8 points of damage to living creatures + 1 point of damage per 2 Hit Dice possessed by the lich. As negative energy, this damage can be used to heal undead creatures. A lich can take a full-round action to infuse itself with this energy, healing damage as if it had used its touch attack against itself.
Powers: The psionic lich can manifest any power it could manifest while alive.
Special Attacks: A lich gains the two special attacks described below. Save DCs are equal to 10 + 1/2 lich's HD + lich's Cha modifier unless otherwise noted.
- Arcane Spell Bane (Su): The bane of arcane magic, the mere presence of a psionic lich interferes with arcane spellcasting. Any arcane spell cast within 30 feet of a psionic lich requires a successful Concentration check, or the spell is lost. The Concentration check is against a DC of 10 + half the lich’s HD + the lich’s Charisma modifier. Even if the standard option of psionics and magic affecting each other is being used, this effect interferes only with arcane spells (not psionics, other spell-like abilities, divine spells, etc.).
- Fear Aura (Su): Creatures of less than 5 HD in a 60-foot radius that look at the lich must succeed on a Will save or become frightened. Creatures with 5 HD or more must succeed at a Will save or be shaken for a number of rounds equal to the lich's Hit Dice. A creature that successfully saves cannot be affected again by the same lich's aura for 24 hours. This is a mind-affecting fear effect.
- Paralyzing Touch (Su): Any living creature a psionic lich hits with its touch attack must succeed on a Fortitude save or be permanently paralyzed. Remove paralysis or any spell that can remove a curse can free the victim (see the bestow curse spell description, with a DC equal to the lich's save DC). The effect cannot be dispelled. Anyone paralyzed by a lich seems dead, though a DC 20 Perception check or a DC 15 Heal check reveals that the victim is still alive.
Abilities: Int +2, Wis +2, Cha +2. Being undead, a lich has no Constitution score.
- Power Point Boost (Ex): When first transforming itself into a psionic lich, the character receives a one-time addition of power points to its power point total equal to its current total manifester level. Thus, a 12th-level psion who becomes a psionic lich has an additional 12 power points more than it otherwise would have had.
Skills: Liches have a +8 racial bonus on Perception, Sense Motive, and Stealth checks. A lich always treats Climb, Disguise, Fly, Intimidate, Knowledge (arcana), Knowledge (religion), Perception, Sense Motive, Spellcraft, and Stealth as class skills. Otherwise, skills are the same as the base creature.
Psionic Lich Characters[]
Characters can undertake the process of becoming a psionic lich only through their own free will. Following the transformation, the lich retains all the class abilities it had in life.
The Psionic Lich’s Phylactery[]
An integral part of becoming a lich is creating a psionic phylactery in which the creature affixes its life force to the mortal coil. Unless the phylactery is located and destroyed, a psionic lich reappears 1d10 days after its apparent death in an area adjacent to its phylactery.
Each psionic lich must make its own phylactery, which requires the Craft Universal Item feat. The character must be a psion of at least 11th level (or be able to manifest at least one 6th-level power and have at least 11 HD). The phylactery costs 120,000 gp and 4,800 XP to create and has a manifester level equal to that of its creator at the time of creation. Psionic phylacteries often take the form of costly gemstones set into rings, amulets, or other adornments. A close look at such items reveals an inner glow, and phylacteries always detect as psionic powers in operation. The gemstone is Fine and has a hardness rating of 20, 40 hit points, and a break DC of 40.
OGL Section 15 -- Copyright Notice[]
Hyperconscious: Explorations in Psionics Copyright 2004 Bruce R. Cordell. All rights reserved.
If Thoughts Could Kill Copyright 2001–2004 Bruce R. Cordell. All rights reserved.
Mindscapes Copyright 2003–2004 Bruce R. Cordell. All rights reserved.