Medium construct (automaton), lawful evil
Armor Class 17 (natural armor)
Hit Points 32 (5d8 + 10)
Speed 20 ft.
Proficiency Bonus +2
Proficiency Bonus +3 (5th Edition Advanced Mode)
| STR | DEX | CON | INT | WIS | CHA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 14 (+2) | 12 (+1) | 14 (+2) | 5 (-3) | 10 (+0) | 3 (-4) |
Damage Immunities fire, piercing, poison, slashing
Condition Immunities charmed, exhaustion, frightened, paralyzed, petrified, poisoned
Senses passive Perception 10
Languages –
Challenge 1 (200 XP)
ACTIONS
- Multiattack. The ferragan makes three attacks: one with its pincer, one with its batterer and one with its fire jet.
- Pincer. Melee Weapon Attack: +4 to hit, reach 10 ft., one target. Hit: 4 (1d3 + 2) piercing damage and the target is grappled (escape DC 12). Until this grapple ends, the target is restrained.
- Batterer. Melee Weapon Attack: +4 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 4 (1d4 + 2) bludgeoning damage.
- Fire Jet (recharge 5-6). This narrow flame is similar to a cutting torch, and can be used only against grappled targets for 2d6 fire damage.
5th Edition Advanced Mode
Limiting the power of a character and making the overall difficulty of the game harder, does not reduce the creativity, indeed it does quite the opposite.
The Game Master has the option to use any and all of the instances proposed in this guide, or just some of them according to their preference.
It is the lack of something that move and motivate characters, not the abundance of it
DESCRIPTION
The Automaton Ferragan is a type of construct created by Trobriand, the Metal Mage, a powerful wizard who specialized in metal magic. The Ferragan resembles a large, crablike creature with six legs and two manipulative appendages. One of the appendages is a grasping arm with three large, strong fingers that look like a crab’s claws. The other is a shaping arm similar to a large hammer or mallet with a large, rounded head for pounding. The small, flat head of this creature contains three eyes set forward in a triangular pattern, and a thin nozzle where the mouth would be on a living creature. The Ferragan is about 5 to 7 feet long and weighs about 500 pounds. The Ferragan is covered with scales made of iron, steel, or other metals, and has a pair of glowing eyes that can emit beams of energy.
The Ferragan is programmed to obey Trobriand’s commands and serve as his guardian or scout. The Ferragan can communicate with Trobriand through a telepathic link, but cannot speak or understand any other language. The Ferragan is also a workhorse, whose job is to repair other metal creatures and to make simple spare parts for them. It also seeks out and stores any and all raw materials that can be used for automaton assembly. When it finds a source of metal (raw ore, a sword, or a suit of plate armor, for example), it attempts to collect it and bring it home for sorting and storage. It is intelligent enough to follow simple directions and to learn that certain creatures or objects are not raw materials.
COMBAT
The Automaton Ferragan is a formidable opponent in combat, as it can fly, breathe fire, shoot rays from its eyes, and attack with its appendages. The fire breath is a cone of flames that can ignite flammable objects and damage creatures within its range. The eye rays are beams of force, heat, or electricity that can target one or more creatures at a time. The Ferragan can also bite and claw with its metallic jaws and talons. The grasping arm can grab victims with the pincer and hold them in place. The shaping arm can slam them with the batterer. An opponent can attempt to escape the pincer arm. If a target is grappled by the pincer, the Ferragan attacks with the batterer every round. The Ferragan then attacks with the fire jet from the nozzle on its head. This is a narrow flame similar to a cutting torch, and can be used only against grappled targets.
The Ferragan is immune to most forms of damage, except for acid and electricity, which can corrode or short-circuit its metal body. The Ferragan is also vulnerable to spells that affect metal, such as heat metal or rusting grasp.
HABITAT / SOCIETY
The Automaton Ferragan does not have a natural habitat, as it is an artificial creation. It usually resides in Trobriand’s laboratory, workshop, or fortress, where it guards his secrets and treasures. The Ferragan does not interact with other creatures, except for Trobriand and his other automatons.
When he originally created the ferragans, Trobriand felt that they could take over the manufacture of simple parts for him, freeing him to devote himself to more creative work. However, they were more trouble than they were worth, as they constantly took valuable metal objects (like iron bands of Bilarro) to use for spare material. Rather than improve their intelligence and repeat an earlier failure with the silversann (see below), Trobriand banished all of his ferragans, both working and broken-down models.
Ferragans are mechanics. They create spare parts for any automatons that have been damaged in accidents or battles, and gather raw materials. They do not attack new arrivals to take metal from them, but they defend themselves to the best of their abilities from persons who physically object to having their armor or weapons stolen.
They stop fighting when they get the metal they seek, and scurry away to sort and store it for later use. Ferragans do obey the silversanns and carry out any commands to the best of their understanding (admittedly not very great, but they do their best). They can also send out alarm signals to the thanatars for aid in obtaining metals though the thanatars respond to the ferragans’ signals only 50% of the time.
ECOLOGY
The Automaton Ferragan does not have any ecological role, as it is not a living being. It does not need to eat, drink, sleep, or breathe. It does not reproduce or age. It does not have any natural enemies or allies. It does not affect the environment or the balance of nature. The only purpose of the Ferragan is to serve Trobriand and his interests.
Ferragans do not eat or drink, though their internal manufacturing processes leave many by-products in their habitats. Smoke and welding fumes are thick in the air around them, and living creatures engaging in strenuous activity (i.e., combat) around them must roll DC 12 Constitution saving throw each round or suffer disadvantage on attack rolls and skill checks until they rest for 1 minute. This effect ceases after leaving the ferragans’ area. Like all of Trobriand’s automatons, ferragans must obey commands from Trobriand’s Master Ring.