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Archives of Nethys

Archives of Nethys

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PFS StandardHesperid Queen

Hesperid queens rule over isolated regions soaked in the light of sunset. They guard countless treasures and secrets, though for those who approach them with respect and offer an intriguing bargain, they're willing to part with knowledge or items beyond those secrets or valuables they've sworn to keep to themselves.

Hesperid queens are relatively likely to have powerful objects under their protection, such as ancient relics or artifacts. As such, they're keenly aware of the danger posed by unscrupulous treasure hunters seeking to obtain these items at any cost, and they use their incredible minds to set up devious countermeasures to protect their wards, even in the event of their own deaths.

Recall Knowledge - Fey (Nature): DC 41
Unspecific Lore: DC 39
Specific Lore: DC 36

Elite | Normal | Weak
Proficiency without Level

Hesperid QueenCreature 19

Legacy Content

Uncommon LN Medium Fey Light Nymph 
Source Bestiary 3 pg. 191
Perception +34; low-light vision
Languages Celestial, Common, Draconic, Sylvan, Utopian
Skills Acrobatics +32, Arcana +30, Athletics +28, Deception +37, Diplomacy +39, Intimidation +37, Nature +32, Performance +35, Society +30, Stealth +32
Str +5, Dex +9, Con +6, Int +7, Wis +7, Cha +10
Tied to the Land A hesperid queen is intrinsically tied to an isolated region such as an island or island chain, a remote coast, or a secluded valley. As long as the queen is healthy, the environment is exceptionally resilient, allowing the hesperid queen to automatically attempt to counteract spells and rituals that would harm the environment, such as blight, with a +37 counteract modifier and a counteract level of 10. When the hesperid queen becomes physically or psychologically unhealthy, however, their warded region eventually becomes twisted or unhealthy as well. In that case, restoring the hesperid queen swiftly heals the entire region.
AC 45; Fort +31, Ref +36, Will +34
HP 306; Weaknesses cold iron 15
Nymph's Beauty (aura, emotion, enchantment, incapacitation, mental, primal, visual) 30 feet. Creatures that start their turn in the aura must succeed at a DC 38 Will save or be transfixed in awe, causing them to be stunned for 1 round.
Speed 30 feet, fly 90 feet
Melee [one-action] sunset ribbon +36 [+32/+28] (agile, finesse), Damage 4d10+13 slashing plus 1d6 fire and 1d6 positiveRanged [one-action] sunset ray +36 [+31/+26] (magical, range increment 120 feet), Damage 4d12+13 fire plus 1d6 positivePrimal Prepared Spells DC 44; 10th primal phenomenon; 9th meteor swarm, storm of vengeance, sunburst; 8th punishing winds, stoneskin, wind walk; 7th energy aegis, regenerate, volcanic eruption; 6th dispel magic, slow, true seeing; 5th control water, death ward, hallucinatory terrain; 4th freedom of movement, resist energy, solid fog; 3rd earthbind, haste, meld into stone; 2nd animal messenger, glitterdust, water breathing; 1st feather fall, gust of wind, pass without trace; Cantrips (10th) detect magic, electric arc, guidance, prestidigitation, read aura
Primal Innate Spells DC 44, attack +36; 10th faerie fire, heal, illusory disguise (×3), searing light; Cantrips (10th) dancing lights, light
Change Shape [one-action] (polymorph, primal, transmutation) Hesperid queens can transform between their original form, which looks much like a typical nymph of their kind, and any Small or Medium humanoid form, typically choosing a version of their natural form that more closely resembles a humanoid.Create Golden Apple [two-actions] (primal, transmutation) While the hesperid queen is within their bonded location, they can spin golden light around an object they're holding of up to 20 cubic feet in volume and up to 80 Bulk. Doing so condenses the object into a magic apple made of golden light with light Bulk. The golden apple reverts back to its original shape after a full day away from the hesperid queen's bonded location, or when the hesperid queen spends a single action (which has the concentrate trait) to end the effect.Focus Beauty [one-action] (emotion, enchantment, incapacitation, mental, primal, visual) The hesperid queen focuses their beauty upon a target within their aura. The creature must attempt a Will save. On a failure, it is affected as if by the queen's beauty aura; a target that wasn't already affected by the aura becomes overwhelmed with visions of bliss and beauty. The creature departs from the hesperid queen's domain as quickly and efficiently as it can for 1 hour, after which time it forgets ever reaching the hesperid queen's domain, how it did so, and everything that happened while it was within the domain.Inspiration [three-actions] (emotion, enchantment, mental, primal) A hesperid queen can inspire a single intelligent creature by giving that creature a token of their favor, typically a lock of their hair. As long as the creature carries the token and remains in good standing with the hesperid queen, the creature gains a +1 status bonus to all Crafting checks, Performance checks, and Will saves.
If a hesperid queen grants their Inspiration to a bard and they are that bard's muse, the bard gains an additional benefit depending on their muse theme: for lore muse, the bard also gains a +1 status bonus to all Lore checks; for maestro muse, the status bonus to Performance checks increases to +2 for the purpose of determining the effects of compositions; for polymath muse, the bard gains a +4 status bonus to untrained skill checks; and for all other muses, the Will save bonus increases to +2 against fey.

Sidebar - Related Creatures Draconic Rapport

Hesperid queens and gold dragons have an unusual affinity, sometimes working together to guard treasure. The queen might guard such valuables as part of their ward, even as the dragon sees them as their hoard. The competing viewpoints don't bother either party, and such alliances can last millennia.

All Monsters in "Nymph"

NameLevel
Dryad3
Dryad Queen (Hamadryad)13
Hesperid9
Hesperid Queen19
Lampad5
Lampad Queen15
Naiad1
Naiad Queen7
Hora6
Hora Queen13

Nymph

Source Bestiary pg. 246
Nymphs are a family of fey that take the form of beautiful humanoids with elven features and have a deep association with the natural world. The most common of their kind are the dryads, which are spirits that embody great trees, but many other kinds of nymphs exist, including naiads, who watch over bodies of water. All nymphs are guardians of some element of nature, typically a specific tree or pond, or even—in the case of nymph queens—whole forests or massive bodies of water.

Nymph Queens

Nymph queens are powerful nymphs that rule over entire regions of untouched wilderness, not just single trees or ponds. Every variety of nymph can have a queen. Naiad queens are among the most prominent, and more often interact with nearby mortals. Thus, some scholars refer to naiad queens as simply “nymphs.”

Nymph Queen Abilities

A nymph queen is 6 to 10 levels higher than an ordinary nymph of the same type, with enhanced numerical statistics and improved Strikes to match. A nymph queen’s ward is a significant region, and she strengthens and vivifies this territory with her presence. Nymph queens are not dependent on their wards and lose the corresponding ability (such as a dryad’s tree dependent ability); instead, they gain the tied to the land ability, as described below. A nymph queen also gains the nymph’s beauty aura and the Focus Beauty action, which have varying effects based on the queen’s original type. She gains the Inspiration ability, allowing her to bestow a gift of inspiration on those who catch her fancy, and the Change Shape ability to change her form. Finally, she gains primal prepared spells as a druid of her level.

Change Shape [one-action] (polymorph, primal, transmutation) Nymph queens can transform between their original form, which looks much like a typical nymph of their kind, and any Small or Medium humanoid form, typically choosing a more humanoid-looking version of their natural form.
Focus Beauty [one-action] (emotion, enchantment, mental, primal, visual) The nymph queen focuses her beauty upon a target within her aura. The creature must attempt a Will save. On a failure, it is affected as if by the nymph queen’s nymph’s beauty aura; if it was already affected by the aura, it suffers a greater effect described in the nymph queen’s entry. A nymph queen can Focus Beauty on a given creature only once per turn.
Inspiration [three-actions] (emotion, enchantment, mental, primal) A nymph queen can inspire a single intelligent creature by giving that creature a token of her favor, typically a lock of her hair. As long as the creature carries her token and remains in good standing with the nymph queen, the creature gains a +1 status bonus to all Crafting checks, Performance checks, and Will saves.
If a nymph queen grants her Inspiration to a bard and the nymph queen is that bard’s muse, the bard gains an additional benefit depending on their muse theme: for lore muse, the bard also gains a +1 status bonus to all Lore checks; for maestro muse, the status bonus to Performance checks increases to +2 for the purpose of determining the effects of compositions; for polymath muse, the bard gains a +4 status bonus to untrained skill checks; and for all other muses, the Will save bonus increases to +2 against fey.
Nymph’s Beauty (aura, emotion, enchantment, mental, primal, visual) 30 feet. Creatures that start their turn in the aura must succeed at a Will save or suffer an effect described in the nymph queen’s entry.
Tied to the Land A nymph queen is intrinsically tied to a specific region, such as a forest for a dryad queen. As long as the queen is healthy, the environment is exceptionally resilient, allowing the nymph queen to automatically attempt to counteract spells and rituals such as blight that would harm the environment, using her Spell DC with a counteract level equal to the highest-level druid spell she can cast. When the nymph queen becomes physically or psychologically unhealthy, however, her warded region eventually becomes twisted or unhealthy as well. In that case, restoring the nymph queen swiftly heals the entire region.

Sidebar - Additional Lore Inspirations for Art

Nymphs are living manifestations of beauty and grace, and as such they are often the subjects of art—sculpture and paintings in particular. Promising a nymph to immortalize them in a work of art can be an excellent way to secure that nymph’s favor, but one should take care to ensure that the nymph admires and is proud of the artistic effort’s final result, lest the nymph be insulted and lash out with her powerful magic.

Sidebar - Locations Nymph Locations

Nymphs tend to be closely associated with specific areas of natural splendor and beauty—woodlands for dryads, rivers for naiads. Areas where nymphs dwell always look more pristine, breathtaking, and scenic than they would otherwise.

Sidebar - Advice and Rules Nymph Queens

The abilities shared by all nymph queens, including the abilities Change Shape, Focus Beauty, and Inspiration, are described in the Nymph creature family page. Hora queens are more likely to use these abilities freely during the season in which they flourish

Sidebar - Treasure and Rewards Nymph Treasures

Nymphs sometimes carry magical trinkets or wear enchanted clothing or jewelry, but the greatest treasure a nymph queen can share is often her inspiration to those seeking a muse.

Sidebar - Related Creatures Other Nymphs

Naiads and dryads are the most well-known nymphs, but others exist as well. Hesperides, for example, are wards of the sunset and golden light and can be encountered dwelling on coastal cliffsides or remote islands. Lampads, on the other hand, are dark, moody nymphs found in wondrous, crystal-lined caverns deep underground.