Temple of the Rising Attendants (3.5e Creature)

This page showcases the many inhabitants and underlings of Torg Cudean, the high minister of the Aurites in Redford. They are commonly found in the Temple of the Rising and in smaller Aurite churches. The stats presented here are for male humans, but the church does contain dwarves and even the rare woman (although the religion is quite misogynistic) - change the stat block as necessary.

Clerical Bodyguard

Size/Type:	Medium Humanoid (Human), 1st-level Fighter
Hit Dice:	1d10+2 (7 hp)
Initiative:	+4
Speed:	20 ft. (4 squares) in splint mail, base speed 30 ft.
Armor Class:	17 (+6 splint mail, +1 light wooden shield), touch 10, flat-footed 17
Base Attack/Grapple:	+1/+4
Attack:	Longsword +4 melee (1d8+3/19-20); or spear +4 melee (1d8+3/×3); or scimitar +4 melee (1d6+3/18-20)
Full Attack:	Longsword +4 melee (1d8+3/19-20); or spear +4 melee (1d8+3/×3); or scimitar +4 melee (1d6+3/18-20)
Space/Reach:	5 ft./5 ft.
Special Attacks:	—
Special Qualities:	—
Saves:	Fort +4, Ref +0, Will +1
Abilities:	Str 16, Dex 10, Con 14, Int 9, Wis 12, Cha 12
Skills:	Intimidate +5
Feats:	Combat Reflexes, Improved Initiative, Vexing Flanker
Environment:	Any
Organization:	Any
Challenge Rating:	1
Treasure:	None
Alignment:	Lawful Neutral
Advancement:	—
Level Adjustment:	—

All you need to serve the church is a strong arm and a thick brain.

Even though the man before you is dressed in the white and gold of Aurite priests, the bulging muscles in his neck and hands make it obvious he's not of priestly persuasion. The longsword he wields is another hint, and when he moves, a heavy armor is outlined on the white of his robes.

Torg Cudean is a paranoid man preparing for war, and thus, the ranks of the Temple's inhabitants have begun to include more an more warriors, soldiers and even outright brutes. They share their leader's blind obedience of Auri (or at least a version Torg feeds them) and attend the priests and clerics of the church as if they were touched by the divine.

Combat

Clerical bodyguards are simple warriors: they charge into the fray, pummel the foe as best they can, and trust in Auri and the clerics to keep them alive. They are gifted at overpowering foes through superior numbers, though, and will cleverly flank an opponent.

Priest

Size/Type:	Medium Humanoid (Human), 2nd-level Cleric
Hit Dice:	2d8+4 (13 hp)
Initiative:	+1
Speed:	20 ft. (4 squares) in breastplate, base speed 30 ft.
Armor Class:	16 (+1 Dex, +5 breastplate), touch 11, flat-footed 15
Base Attack/Grapple:	+1/+2
Attack:	Light mace +2 melee (1d6+1)
Full Attack:	Light mace +2 melee (1d6+1)
Space/Reach:	5 ft./5 ft.
Special Attacks:	Spells
Special Qualities:	Domains (Sun)
Saves:	Fort +5, Ref +1, Will +6
Abilities:	Str 12, Dex 12, Con 14, Int 9, Wis 16, Cha 10
Skills:	Heal +8
Feats:	Combat Casting, Dodge
Environment:	Any
Organization:	Any
Challenge Rating:	2
Treasure:	None
Alignment:	Lawful Neutral
Advancement:	—
Level Adjustment:	—

A white-robed figure has his hands pressed together so tightly his knuckles have whitened. His lips mumble words of frantic prayer without seize, and when his eyes catch yours, all you can see in them is madness.

While the priests of the Temple of the Rising are ecclesiastical workers first and foremost, their god-given gifts mean they can hold their own in a fight. The priests attend the temple in its day-to-day life: they gather alms, preach to commoners, maintain the building and of course train both their body and their mind. The priests are almost invariably drawn to the personal cult of Torg and will happily give their lives to him.

Combat

Priests start fights by buffing their companions with bless, followed by magic weapon if there's time. They then reduce the effectiveness of opponents with bane and try to make weaker opponents turn their tails and run with cause fear. If they run out of effective spells, they will face the opponent in grim melee, but it's always a last resort.

Cleric Spells Prepared: 0: guidance, light, mending, purify food and drink; 1st: bane, bless, cause fear, magic weapon

Knight of Auri

Size/Type:	Medium Humanoid (Human), 3rd-level Knight
Hit Dice:	3d12+6 (25 hp)
Initiative:	+2
Speed:	20 ft. (4 squares) in full plate, base speed 30 ft.
Armor Class:	19 (+1 Dex, +8 full plate), touch 11, flat-footed 18
Base Attack/Grapple:	+3/+6
Attack:	Greatsword +7 melee (2d6+4) or longbow +5 ranged (1d8/×3)
Full Attack:	Greatsword +7 melee (2d6+4) or longbow +5 ranged (1d8/×3)
Space/Reach:	5 ft./5 ft.
Special Attacks:	Knight's challenge, bulwark of defense
Special Qualities:	Knight's code
Saves:	Fort +5, Ref +3, Will +6
Abilities:	Str 16, Dex 14, Con 15, Int 10, Wis 14, Cha 15
Skills:	Intimidate +8, Knowledge (nobility and royalty) +6
Feats:	Combat Expertize, Lightning Reflexes, Weapon Focus (greatsword)
Environment:	Any
Organization:	Any
Challenge Rating:	3
Treasure:	None
Alignment:	Lawful Good
Advancement:	—
Level Adjustment:	—

Ah, the young - so easy to corrupt.

Gleaming mail covers the entirety of the towering, white-caped knight approaching you. He wields a greatsword two-thirds of his own height, the hilt of which has been fashioned into the shape of a caricature sun. "May Auri have mercy on you," he speaks in a voice surprisingly soft for someone so massive, then raises his sword into position.

The knights of Auri are some of the most fanatical followers of Torg Cudean. Dressed in white capes adorned with a gleaming sun-symbol and wearing full plates that cover their entire bodies from head to toe, the knights are a fearsome tool in Torg's arsenal. Torg prefers to train young men, around the age of 16, to serve as his knights, as they are the easiest to mold into fanatical followers.

Combat

Having little to fear from ordinary opponents, a knight of Auri wades into melee, trusting his high AC to keep him safe. Repeated greatsword blows make short work of opponents, especially after a well-placed knight's challenge. They position themselves to hinder opposing movement as much as possible. While the knights are some of Torg's most powerful warriors, they are honorable and dutiful, meaning they never attack surrendering foes and usually prefer melee combatants over frailer spellcasters and archers.

Knight's Challenge (Ex): A knight may issue a knight's challenge three times per day. See Player's Handbook II for details.

Knight's Code (Ex): The knights of Auri are sworn to defend Torg Cudean and to protect the Temple of the Rising and the church of Auri from harm, which they unerringly do. The code they live by is different from an average knight's code, however: they may kill their opponents, and striking flat-footed foes is not forbidden to them. They nonetheless fight with more honor than their non-knight comrades.

Bulwark of Defense (Ex): An opponent that begins its turn in a knight's threatened area treats all the squares he threatens as difficult terrain.

Minister

Size/Type:	Medium Humanoid (Human), 4th-level Cleric
Hit Dice:	4d8+8 (26 hp)
Initiative:	+1
Speed:	20 ft. (4 squares) in breastplate, base speed 30 ft.
Armor Class:	16 (+1 Dex, +5 breastplate), touch 11, flat-footed 15
Base Attack/Grapple:	+3/+4
Attack:	Heavy mace +4 melee (1d8+1)
Full Attack:	Heavy mace +4 melee (1d8+1)
Space/Reach:	5 ft./5 ft.
Special Attacks:	Spells
Special Qualities:	Domains (Sun)
Saves:	Fort +6, Ref +4, Will +8
Abilities:	Str 12, Dex 12, Con 14, Int 9, Wis 18, Cha 10
Skills:	Heal +10
Feats:	Combat Casting, Dodge, Lightning Reflexes
Environment:	Any
Organization:	Any
Challenge Rating:	4
Treasure:	None
Alignment:	Lawful Neutral
Advancement:	—
Level Adjustment:	—

Unlike the lesser priests of Auri you've faced before, this man gazes at you with a serious expression and doesn't constantly mutter prayers. He holds his mace, its head a bronze sun, with veiny fingers, and it seems his advanced age has robbed him neither of his strength nor his wisdom. Only his eyes, filled with the kind of fanaticism that gets innocent women burned at the stake, betray his madness.

Ministers are some of the highest-ranked members of the Aurite church, ranking only beneath high ministers (of which there is currently only one). In practice, Torg Cudean is held light years ahead of his peers, but the ministers nonetheless command incredible respect. They can be distinguished from normal priests from the golden chain around their neck (worth 100 gp) and from their often older age: Torg wants the wisdom of age backing him up.

Combat

Ministers are not melee combatants, but they're more than capable of supporting their companions and wrecking foes with powerful spells. If given the chance, they start by buffing their companions with bull's strength and bless, then work a number on foes with hold person (directed at a melee combatant), sound burst (directed at groups of spellcasters) and heat metal (often on the armor of a particularly problematic foe). While ministers appear more lucid and in control than other Aurites, they are every bit as fanatical as the rest of them and will fight to the death if they believe Torg would want it.

Cleric Spells Prepared: 0: guidance, light, mending ×2, purify food and drink; 1st: bane, bless, cause fear, entropic shield, magic weapon; 2nd: heat metal, bull's strength, hold person, sound burst

Flagellant

Size/Type:	Medium Humanoid (Human), 2nd-level Warrior
Hit Dice:	2d8+4 (13 hp)
Initiative:	+2
Speed:	30 ft. (6 squares)
Armor Class:	12 (+2 Dex), touch 12, flat-footed 10
Base Attack/Grapple:	+2/+4
Attack:	Flail +4 melee (1d8+3)
Full Attack:	Flail +4 melee (1d8+3)
Space/Reach:	5 ft./5 ft.
Special Attacks:	Blood frenzy
Special Qualities:	—
Saves:	Fort +5, Ref +2, Will -1
Abilities:	Str 15, Dex 14, Con 15, Int 7, Wis 8, Cha 7
Skills:	Intimidate +3
Feats:	Diehard, Endurance
Environment:	Any
Organization:	Any
Challenge Rating:	1
Treasure:	None
Alignment:	Chaotic Neutral
Advancement:	—
Level Adjustment:	—

Too much blind faith can make a monster of anyone.

Skin torn to shreds, fingernails ripped out, lacerations criss-crossing the body - how is this man alive? Beady eyes stare at you through mottled hair and clotted blood, while cracked lips whisper words of religious adoration. You're afraid that the wicked flail that the flagellant used on himself just moments ago is about to be turned on you.

An incredibly secretive feature of the Temple of the Rising are its flagellants: men who turn to self-mutilation to prove their loyalty, to test their faith and to absolve their (real or imagined) sins. The flagellants keep to the Blessings' Hall, where they practice their ugly art, but can be coaxed to fight foes quite easily. After all, sometimes it's nice that someone else does the hurting.

Combat

Flagellants are not intelligent combatants, to say the least. They approach, they maul foes, they (or the opponent) dies - simple as that. They fly into a blood frenzy at the earliest possibility, and when reduced to between -1 and -9 hit points, will continue the assault until they bleed out.

Blood Frenzy (Ex): Once per day a flagellant that takes damage in combat can fly into a frenzy in the following round, maiming foes madly until either it or its opponent is dead. It gains +2 Constitution and +2 Strength, and takes a -2 penalty to Armor Class. A flagellant cannot end its frenzy voluntarily.

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