All Creatures
Abilities | Monsters | NPCs
All | Families | Templates
A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z

There is a Legacy version here.

Hesperid

Hesperides are nymphs of sunset, guardians of the colorful golden hues of the setting sun. They live on remote islands, isolated coastal cliffsides, and hidden valleys, all places where the sunset's golden glow can have the strongest effect. Hesperides manipulate sunlight with dancelike motions, allowing them to create graceful ribbons of light at close range and searing rays at a distance. Due to their connection to the beauty of the daily cycle of the setting sun, hesperides take a deep satisfaction from methodical routine that can feel alien to wilder, more chaotic fey.

Recall Knowledge - Fey (Nature): DC 26
Unspecific Lore: DC 24
Specific Lore: DC 21

Elite | Normal | Weak
Proficiency without Level

Changes from being Weak are marked in red below.
NOTE: The -2 damage penalty to non-strike offensive abilities (-4 if the ability is limited, such as spells) is NOT factored in.

Weak HesperidCreature 8

Medium Fey Light Nymph
Source Monster Core 2 pg. 236
Perception +17; low-light vision
Languages Common, Fey, Utopian
Skills Acrobatics +17, Athletics +9, Deception +17, Diplomacy +19, Intimidation +17, Nature +17, Performance +19, Society +15, Stealth +15
Str +0, Dex +6, Con +4, Int +4, Wis +4, Cha +6

AC 25; Fort +13, Ref +19, Will +17
HP 155; Weaknesses cold iron 10
Sunset Dependent A hesperid is mystically bonded to a single remote location with a good view of the sunset—usually an island, coastal cliff, or valley. If they aren't at that location and able to see the sky at sunset on any given day, they become drained 1, increasing the value by 1 for each missed sunset and reducing by 1 only when they see a sunset. A hesperid can perform a 24-hour ritual to bond to a new location.

Speed 30 feet, fly 60 feet
Melee [one-action] sunset ribbon +19 [+15/+11] (agile, finesse), Damage 2d10-2+6 slashing plus 1d6 fire and 1d6 vitalityRanged [one-action] sunset ray +19 [+14/+9] (magical, range increment 60 feet), Damage 2d12-2+6 fire plus 1d6 vitalityPrimal Innate Spells DC 26, attack +18 (-4 dmg); 5th heal, holy light; 2nd revealing light; Cantrips (5th) light
Create Golden Apple [two-actions] (primal) While the hesperid is within their bonded location, they can spin golden light around an object they're holding or touching 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's bonded location or when the hesperid Dismisses the effect.

All Monsters in "Nymph"

Name	Level
Dryad	3
Dryad Queen	13
Hesperid	9
Hesperid Queen	19
Lampad	5
Lampad Queen	15
Naiad	1
Naiad Queen	7
Hora	6
Hora Queen	13

Nymph

Source Monster Core pg. 244 ^1.1
Nymphs are a family of fey who have a deep association with the natural world. They often take the form of beautiful humanoids with elven features that match their abodes. The most common of their kind are the dryads: spirits who 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, often a single tree or pond. But, in the case of nymph queens, they can watch over whole forests or massive bodies of water.

Nymph Queens

Nymph queens are powerful nymphs who 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.

Tied to the Land A nymph queen is intrinsically tied to a specific region. As long as the queen is healthy, the environment is exceptionally resilient, allowing the nymph queen to automatically attempt to counteract any spell that would harm the environment (such as the blight ritual), using her spell DC with a counteract rank equal to the highest-rank 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.
Nymph's Beauty (aura, emotion, 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.
Change Shape [one-action] (polymorph, primal) 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, mental, primal, visual) The nymph queen focuses her beauty upon a target, who must attempt a save against her nymph's beauty aura. If the creature fails and was already affected by the aura, it takes 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, mental, primal) The nymph queen inspires a single intelligent creature by giving that creature a token of her favor, typically a lock of her hair, though it can be some other significant object as well. As long as the creature carries her token and remains in good standing with her, the creature gains a +1 status bonus to all Crafting checks, Performance checks, and Will saves.
If the nymph grants her token to a bard, and she's the bard's muse, the queen chooses one additional benefit granted by her token: a +1 status bonus to all Lore checks, a +2 status bonus to Performance checks when determining the effects of compositions, a +4 status bonus to untrained skill checks, or a +2 status bonus to Will saves against fey.

Artistic Treasures

Nymphs favor art over any other types of material possession, often collecting the finest pieces they can and endeavoring to create their own. 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.

Dual Guardians

While all nymphs protect areas of natural beauty, hesperides often guard other unusual treasures of a more literal variety, sometimes including items long thought lost. Their steady temperaments and timeless loyalty ensure that they can be trusted to keep whatever they’re protecting safe from harm.

Harmonious Landscapes

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.

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.

Other Nymphs

Naiads and dryads are the most well-known nymphs, but others exist as well. Hesperides, for example, are warders 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.