Why, or Mephitysics
My game went on hiatus for two weeks for the new year and I got bored.
And since I always wanted to see the other mephitis from Planescape that were never updated, I decided someone had to do it.
Basics, or Mephidology
Examining the mephitis back when playing LG while contemplating summoning them, it became obvious that there are really only 4 mephitis - air, earth, fire, and water, with variant breath weapons (of two basic types), spell-like abilities, and fast healing methods covering the rest. Seriously, go double check. See? Identical stat blocks, down to Feats and Skills, except for those three things.
Which means converting the last batch should be pretty easy, right? Just plug and play.
Not exactly. See, those last few remaining mephitis have the most divergent breath weapons, SLAs, and fast healing qualifiers of the lot.
Compounding that, in the conversion to 3E, WotC simplified the Inner Planes, doing away with the para- and quasi-elemental planes, allowing the examples of those to be classified as air, earth, fire, or water. Which mostly works. I mean, a "negative" earth elemental, that is broken down to dust, is sort of airy, while a "negative" water elemental, evaporated to salt, is sort of earthy. And the para-elemental mephitis can be shoehorned one way or the other. But some of them just do not fit.
Anyway, I gave it a shot. All the flavor descriptions are cribbed from the Planescape originals, slightly edited.
Results, or Let's See If This Mephits
Ash Mephit
This winged creature has powdery gray skin and wings, no external ears, and a nasal whining voice.
Use the Air Mephit chassis. Which is technically the Dust Mephit chassis, with 50 ft. fly speed.
Breath Weapon (Su): 10-foot cone of choking ash, damage 1d4, Reflex DC 12 half. Living creatures that fail their saves are tormented by itching skin and burning eyes. This effect imposes a -4 penalty to AC and a -2 penalty on attack rolls for 3 rounds. The save DC is Constitution-based and includes a +1 racial bonus.
Spell-Like Abilities: Once per day it can whine and complain. All creatures within a 10-ft. radius must make a Will Save (DC 17, caster level 6th), or be drawn into a discussion with the mephit. While the mephit can leave, if may continue for up to 6 rounds. Those affected must save again in the 3rd, 4th, and 5th rounds. Those failing wander off, avoiding the mephit. In the 6th round, anyone who fails the save immediately goes into a rage, attacking the others affected by the spell for 1d4+1 rounds. Those who save fall to the ground, helpless for 1d4 rounds, or until attacked or otherwise disturbed. This is a language dependent, mind-affecting, compulsion effect. The save DC is Charisma-based.
Fast Healing (Ex): An ash mephit heals when covered in ash and similar remnants of a burned out fire.
Commentary
The breath weapon is pretty straightforward, though the original had the mephit wheezing its hit points away to use it.
The fast healing is peculiar, but pretty basic.
One big oddity is that an ash mephit is both the fire AND cold subtypes. Yeah. It is the remnants of a fire, so it cannot really burn anymore, but it is also the cold remnants, so it cannot freeze.
The spell-like ability is the big one. The spell it is based on was 5th level back in the day, making it technically too much for a mephit. The effect however is just too delicious not to use. The description above may not be that clear, but the spell could easily be renamed "Internet Troll" and that should tell you everything. The caster starts talking with people, drawing them in. If he continues, they might get confused and leave. If he persists, they eventually either start flaming each other or whine about being suckered in. The mephit version is based on the ash mephit engaging in passive-aggressive whining about how much its life sucks because the multiverse is unfair, rather like Marvin the Depressed Robot from Hitchhiker's Guide.
If people think that is too powerful, then drop it down to a refluffed version of Hideous Laughter, replacing the laughing with whining.
Lightning Mephit
This creature’s torso and limbs are thin, jagged bolts of black lightning. Its hands and feed are oversized, bulbous, and white. Its earless head smells like and ozone and glows.
Use the Air Mephit chassis with fire subtype and a 70 ft. (perfect) fly speed.
Breath Weapon (Su): 30-foot line of electricity, damage 1d8 electricity, Reflex DC 12 half. The save DC is Constitution-based and includes a +1 racial bonus.
Charged (Ex): A lightning mephit’s body carries an electric charge. Any attacks with metal weapons or natural weapons on the mephit causes 1d3 electric damage to the attacker (Fort DC 11 negates). The save is Constitution-based.
Short Circuit (Ex): Dousing a lightning mephit with at least 1 gallon of liquid destroys them in a flash of electricity. This discharge causes 1d6 electric damage in a 5 ft. radius (Fort DC 11 negates). The save is Constitution-based.
Fast Healing (Ex): A lightning mephit heals when exposed to electric damage. Unlike other mephits this is not fast healing. The lightning mephits heals fully and instantly.
Commentary
This is a prime example of not fitting in.
First, it has a line breath weapon. Which is not that bad, but unique.
Next, instead of SLAs it has a damage aura and a non-standard vulnerability. While the vulnerability could be dropped, then we get to the Fast Healing.
It does not actually have a Fast Healing condition. It has a total healing condition. That it can get from other lightning mephitis breathing on it. Or just by rubbing on each other. That is powerful, so the vulnerability is rather needed.
I'm not really sure how to convert this without those two.
Smoke
This winged creature looks like a miniature human with sooty skin. It exhales wisps of reeking smoke with each breath.
Use the Air Mephit Chassis with air and fire subtypes.
Breath Weapon (Su): 10-foot cone of soot, damage 1d4 cold, Reflex DC 12 half. Living creatures that fail their saves are tormented by choking and crying unless they have immunity to fire or are otherwise protected. This effect imposes a –4 penalty to AC and a –2 penalty on attack rolls for 3 rounds. The save DC is Constitution-based and includes a +1 racial bonus.
Fiery Doom (Ex): When a smoke mephit dies, it disappears in a flash of fire. This causes 1 hp of damage in a 10 ft. burst.
Spell-Like Abilities: 1/hour—dancing darkness (caster level 3rd); 1/day—invisibility (caster level 6th). The save DC is Charisma-based.
Fast Healing (Ex): A smoke mephits heals only if it in smoke.
Commentary
Rather straightforward if a bit redundant.
The original version had dancing lights as an SLA. I switched it for the PFRPG dancing darkness as more appropriate. Either can fit.
The Fast Healing is a bit odd, but so are some others.
The exploding bit is from the original, and though marginal makes it distinctive.
Radiant Mephit
This winged creature looks like a miniature human with a silvery body that reflects like a mirror. It has large black eyes, thin prismatic wings, and a wide mouth. Its expressionless face is broken by a sudden fit of crazed giggling.
Use the Air Mephit Chassis with fire subtype.
Breath Weapon (Su): 10-foot cone of brilliant light, damage 1d4 fire, Reflex DC 12 half. Living creatures that fail their saves are tormented by afterimages and seared retinas unless they have immunity to fire or are otherwise protected. This effect imposes a –4 penalty to AC and a –2 penalty on attack rolls for 3 rounds. The save DC is Constitution-based and includes a +1 racial bonus.
Confused (Ex): A radiant mephit is constantly caught up in its own musings. It acts as if permanently confused except it treats a result of 1-10 as act normally, a result of 51-70 as wander off aimlessly, and only attacks enemies on a result of 71-00. If no enemies are present it will act normally. Note that “acting normally” for a radiant mephit is often indistinguishable from babbling incoherently.
Weak Willed (Ex): A radiant mephit’s mind is elsewhere. What is here is vulnerable to mind-affecting effects. It receives no saves against such magics.
Seeing Things (Ex): A radiant mephit is immune to all spells that affect or work through vision.
Spell-Like Abilities: 1/hour—color spray (DC 13; caster level 3rd). The save DC is Charisma-based.
Fast Healing (Ex): A radiant mephits heals only in areas of bright light.
Commentary
And we are back to weirdness.
The original breath weapon was straight up color spray. Yeah. That was not going to work. So I switched to blinding, burning light, and made color spray an SLA.
The fast healing qualifier is an unusual "element" but common enough.
As originally written, radiant mephitis were pretty much permanently stoned on the lights of the quasi-elemental plane of radiance. They are described as more likely to wander off that fight if not actively being attacked. But how to model that? I went with a modified confusion effect.
The other two abilities are again as written, and I think reasonably balance off. You cannot blind or fool a radiant mephit with an illusion, but you can always mind control them. Why you would bother I cannot say, but if you really need a dominated flash light, they are the mephit for you.
Mist
This winged creature looks like a miniature human with pale skin and wisps of vapor rising from its nose, mouth, and ears. It sheds drops of steaming water when it moves.
Use the Fire Mephit chassis with the water subtype.
Breath Weapon (Su): 10-foot cone of steam, damage 1d4 acid, Reflex DC 12 half. Living creatures that fail their saves are tormented by choking and blinded unless they have immunity to fire or are otherwise protected. This effect imposes a –4 penalty to AC and a –2 penalty on attack rolls for 3 rounds. The save DC is Constitution-based and includes a +1 racial bonus.
Fog Sight (Ex): A mist mephit can through any fog or mist.
Spell-Like Abilities:Once per hour a mist mephit can surround itself with a cloud of mist, duplicating the effect of an obscuring mist spell (caster level 3rd). Once per day it can transform itself into mist, duplicating the effect of a gaseous form spell (caster level 6th). The save DCs are Charisma-based.
Fast Healing (Ex): A mist mephit heals only if it is enveloped in mist or fog.
Commentary
Again mostly straightforward.
The breath weapon is a bit of a tweak from the poison gas of the original, but that is how they did green dragon breath.
The fog sight is an unusual addition, but helps make it different from the steam mephit.
Note: Mist and Steam mephitis are both from the quasi-elemental plane of steam and they hate each other.
Mineral Mephit
This winged creature looks like a shining, glittering, mostly hairless dwarf.
Use the Earth Mephit chassis.
Breath Weapon (Su): 10-foot cone of mineral particles, damage 1d4, Reflex DC 13 half. Living creatures that fail their saves are tormented by itching skin and burning eyes. This effect imposes a –4 penalty to AC and a –2 penalty on attack rolls for 3 rounds. The save DC is Constitution-based and includes a +1 racial bonus.
Spell-Like Abilities: Once per hour a mineral mephit can move through stone up to 1 ft. thick for 3 rounds as if it had the earth glide ability of an earth elemental. This ability is the equivalent of a 2nd-level spell. Once per day it can refract light through its form, duplicating the effects of a rainbow beam spell (caster level 6th).
Fast Healing (Ex): A mineral mephit heals only if in contact with stone. It can also consume gems and jewelry, healing 1 hp for every 10 gp consumed.
Commentary
As written, the breath weapon was glitterdust. As with the radiant mephit, that was not going to work, so it got converted to a cloud of itchy mineral powder.
The mineral mephit had no SLAs. It did have the walk through walls, as if insubstantial, with no limit, but that seemed too much to me. I downgraded that to a short duration earth glide, and added the rainbow blast for some flashy damage (it is in the Spell Compendium). It could be dropped, but then the limited earth glide should be at will.
Finally the fast healing is straightforward - except for it eating your treasure. That could be deleted, but it also provides an opportunity for a PC to get his loot eaten if he gets careless with an improved familiar.
Gratuitous Pedantic Tweaks
Dust Mephit should trade Terran for Auran, as it is from the quasi-elemental plane of dust, between earth and negative energy. I'm sure that contributes to its existential angst with the air subtype.
Ice Mephit should add the water subtype and Aquan; it is a combination of air and water elemental.
Magma Mephit should have the earth subtype and Terran; it is a combination of earth and fire elemental.
Steam Mephit should trade the fire subtype and Ignan for the water subtype and Aquan. It is from the quasi-elemental plane of steam, between water and positive energy. If fire immunity is needed it could keep the fire subtype which would explain why it is so ornery having mist mephits around.
Ooze Mephit should add the earth subtype and Terran; it is a combination of earth and water elemental.
Salt Mephit should trade Aquan for Terran, as it is from the quasi-elemental plane of salt, between water and negative energy.
