Marlissa

For other uses of the word Succubus, see Succubus (disambiguation).

In the Dungeons & Dragons roleplaying game, Marlissa is a Succubus Bard. Marlissa is the creation of the game author Robert Wiese.

The following article is taken from the original source of this work at the Wizards.com site in the External Links below.

The Succubus Bard

Wandering the earth to tempt mortals, Marlissa relishes her duty and enthusiastically performs it. Abnormally beautiful, she adds bardic abilities to her quite formidable natural ones. She spends almost all her time in cities, where mortals live close together and are generally more susceptible to her.

While Marlissa relishes the life energy upon which she feeds, her real purpose is to sway mortal men to evil acts . . . and from there, to a pattern of evil until their souls finally belong to her masters in the Abyss. Thus, she uses her charm powers and stunning looks for these ends first. If a potential victim resists too effectively, she uses her energy drain ability to steal a few levels and moves on to someone more easily tempted. Though capable of fighting quite well herself, Marlissa prefers to charm one or more tough-looking males and use them as her personal escort and guards. She thus wears her rapier mostly for show as part of her role.

Design Notes

Here we offer three versions of Marlissa, for varied Challenge Ratings. Her possessions at 1st level are more valuable than usual for a starting character, but the ring of mind shielding is essential to protecting her secret from nosy adventurers with detection spells. In her more advanced incarnations she owns magic items of a value appropriate for an NPC of those levels.

At CR 16, Marlissa has a 12th-level follower (a cohort) who is devoted to her and her protection. This being is not under any magical compulsion; he is just simply and utterly loyal to her. At the DM's discretion, Marlissa may also have a number of underling followers whom she will set upon any attacking party while she escapes. She moves around frequently and can change her appearance at will, so she does not worry about the negative consequences of any survivors talking. See page 45 of the Dungeon Master's Guide for her followers' levels, using her Leadership score of 19. The specifics of her cohort are left to you, and you should work this follower (possibly as a recurring NPC whose master or employer has remained hidden so far) into your campaign or adventure.

4th Level Succubus Bard

Challenge Rating	13 [9 succubus, +4 bard levels]
Alignment	Chaotic Evil
Strength	13
Dexterity	14
Constitution	13
Intelligence	17
Wisdom	14 [16 with periapt]
Charisma	22

• Languages: Continuous telepathy, continuous tongues effect, Infernal

• Hit Dice: 6d8 [succubus] +4d6 [bard] +10 [Con]

• Hit Points: 53

• Initiative Modifier: +6 (+2 Dex, +4 Improved Initiative)

• Speed: 30 ft., fly 50 ft. (average)

• Armor Class: 21 (+2 Dex, +9 natural)

• Attacks:

• 2 claws +10 melee [+6 succubus, +3 bard, +1 Str] (1d3+1)

OR

• Rapier +7/+2 melee [+6 succubus, +3 bard, +1 Str, +1 masterwork weapon, -4 non-proficient] (1d6+1 [crit 18-20])

OR

• Light crossbow +11 ranged [+6 succubus, +3 bard, +2 Dex] (1d8 [crit 19-20], range increment 80 ft.)

OR

• Whip +11/+6 ranged [+6 succubus, +3 bard, +2 Str] (1d2+1 subdual, range 15 ft. fixed)

• Face/Reach: 5 ft. x 5 ft./5 ft.

• Saving Throws:

Fortitude +8 [+5 succubus, +1 bard, +1 Con, +1cloak of resistance]

Reflex +12 [+5 succubus, +4 bard, +2 Dex, +1cloak of resistance]

Will +13 [+5 succubus, +4 bard, +2 Wis, +1cloak of resistance, +1 from periapt of wisdom +2]

• Skills: [66 succubus + 28 bard]: Bluff + 16 [+6 succubus, +4 bard, +6 Cha], Concentration + 7 [+6 succubus, +1 Con], Disguise +14* [+6 succubus, +3 bard, +6 Cha, * additional +10 when using alternate form ability], Escape Artist +8 [+6 succubus, +2 Dex], Gather Information +10 [+5 bard, +6 Cha], Hide +8 [+6 succubus, +2 Dex], Knowledge (the planes) +9 [+6 succubus, +3 Int], Listen +18 [+6 succubus, +1 bard cc, +2 Wis, +8 racial, +1 periapt], Move Silently +8 [+6 succubus, +2 Dex], Perform +13 [+7 bard, +6 Cha], Ride +8 [+6 succubus, +2 Dex], Search +9 [+6 succubus, +3 Int], Sense Motive +10 [+7 bard, +2 Wis, +1 periapt], Spot +17 [+6 succubus, +2 Wis, +8 racial, +1 periapt]

• Feats: [2 succubus, 1 9th lvl character]: Dodge, Improved Initiative, Mobility

• Special Attacks/Qualities:

• Spell-like abilities (at 12th level sorcerer, save DC 15 + spell level): at will—charm monster, clairaudience/clairvoyance, darkness, desecrate, detect good, detect thoughts, doom, ethereal jaunt (self plus 50 lbs. of objects only), suggestion, teleport without error (self plus 50 lbs. of objects only). 1/day—unholy blight.
• Energy drain (see Monster Manual p. 44)
• Once per day, can attempt to summon a balor with 10% chance of success
• Alternate Form (Su)—can assume any humanoid form from Small to Large size as a standard action. This ability is similar to the polymorph self spell, but only humanoid forms.
• Immune to poison and electricity
• Cold, fire, and acid resistance 20
• Darkvision 60 ft.
• Bardic Music (4/day): inspire courage, countersong, fascinate, inspire competence (see Player's Handbook p. 28)
• Bardic Knowledge (+7 to check) (see Player's Handbook p. 29)
• Bard spells known (cast 3/4/2 per day, save DC 16/17/18): [knows 6/5/4 for 4th lvl bard]

0—daze, detect magic, mage hand, open/close, prestidigitation, resistance

1st—cause fear, cure light wounds, expeditious retreat, mage armor, sleep

2nd—bull's strength, enthrall, invisibility, sound burst

• Equipment: The bonuses for these items are included in the statistics above. [16,000 gp for 10th level character] masterwork rapier [320 gp], ring of mind shielding [8,000 gp], periapt of wisdom +2 [4,000 gp], cloak of resistance +1 [1,000 gp], pipes of the sewers [1,150 gp], three Quaal's feather token—whip [1,500 gp total]

7th Level Succubus Bard

Challenge Rating	16 [9 succubus, +7 bard levels]
Alignment	Chaotic Evil
Strength	13
Dexterity	14
Constitution	13
Intelligence	18
Wisdom	14
Charisma	22

• Languages: Continuous telepathy, continuous tongues effect, Infernal

• Hit Dice: 6d8 [succubus] +7d6 [bard] +13 [Con]

• Hit Points: 68

• Initiative Modifier: +6 (+2 Dex, +4 Improved Initiative)

• Speed: 30 ft., fly 50 ft. (average)

• Armor Class: 21 (+2 Dex, +9 natural)

• Attacks:

• 2 claws +12 melee [+6 succubus, +5 bard, +1 Str] (1d3+1)

OR

• Rapier +9/+4/-1 melee [+6 succubus, +5 bard, +1 Str, +1 masterwork weapon, -4 non-proficient] (1d6+1 [crit 18-20])

OR

• Light crossbow +13 ranged [+6 succubus, +5 bard, +2 Dex] (1d8 [crit 19-20], range increment 80 ft.)

OR

• Whip +13/+8/+3 ranged [+6 succubus, +5 bard, +2 Str] (1d2+1 subdual, range 15 ft. fixed)

• Face/Reach: 5 ft. x 5 ft./5 ft.

• Saving Throws:

Fortitude +12 [+5 succubus, +2 bard, +1 Con, +4cloak of resistance]

Reflex +16 [+5 succubus, +5 bard, +2 Dex, +4cloak of resistance]

Will +16 [+5 succubus, +5 bard, +2 Wis, +4cloak of resistance]

• Skills: [66 succubus + 49 bard]: Bluff + 19 [+6 succubus, +7 bard, +6 Cha], Concentration + 7 [+6 succubus, +1 Con], Disguise +17* [+6 succubus, +6 bard, +6 Cha, * +10 when using alternate form ability], Escape Artist +8 [+6 succubus, +2 Dex], Gather Information +12 [+7 bard, +6 Cha], Hide +8 [+6 succubus, +2 Dex], Knowledge (the planes) +10 [+6 succubus, +4 Int], Knowledge (local) +6 [+2 bard, +4 Int], Knowledge (history) +8 [+4 bard, +4 Int], Listen +18 [+6 succubus, +2, Wis, +1 bard cc, Wis, +8 racial, +1 periapt], Move Silently +8 [+6 succubus, +2 Dex], Perform +16 [+10 bard, +6 Cha], Ride +8 [+6 succubus, +2 Dex], Search +10 [+6 succubus, +4 Int], Sense Motive +10 [+7 bard, +2 Wis, +1 peripat], Spot +17 [+6 succubus, +2 Wis, +8 racial, +1 periapt], Tumble +5 [+3 bard, +2 Dex], Use Magical Device +10 [+4 bard, +6 Cha]

• Feats: [2 succubus, 1 9th and 1 12th lvl character]: Dodge, Improved Initiative, Leadership, Mobility

• Special Attacks/Qualities:

• Spell-like abilities (at 12th level sorcerer, save DC 15 + spell level): at will—charm monster, clairaudience/clairvoyance, darkness, desecrate, detect good, detect thoughts, doom, ethereal jaunt (self plus 50 lbs. of objects only), suggestion, teleport without error (self plus 50 lbs. of objects only). 1/day—unholy blight.
• Energy drain (see Monster Manual p. 44)
• Once per day, can attempt to summon a balor with 10% chance of success
• Alternate Form (Su)—;can assume any humanoid form from Small to Large size as a standard action. This ability is similar to the polymorph self spell, but only humanoid forms.
• Immune to poison and electricity
• Cold, fire, and acid resistance 20
• Darkvision 60 ft.
• Bardic Music (7/day): inspire courage, countersong, fascinate, inspire competence, suggestion (see Player's Handbook p. 28)
• Bardic Knowledge (+11 to check) (see Player's Handbook p. 29)
• Bard spells known (cast 3/5/4/1 per day, save DC 16/17/18/19): [knows 6/8/8/3 for 4th lvl bard]

0 lvl—daze, detect magic, mage hand, open/close, prestidigitation, resistance

1st—cause fear, cure light wounds, expeditious retreat, mage armor, silent image, sleep, unseen servant

2nd—blur, bull's strength, cure moderate wounds, enthrall, hold person, invisibility, see invisibility, sound burst

3rd—displacement, emotion, haste

• Equipment: The bonuses for these items are included in the statistics above. [35,000 gp for 13th level character] masterwork rapier [320 gp], ring of mind shielding [8,000 gp], periapt of wisdom +2 [4,000 gp], cloak of resistance +4 [1,000 gp], pipes of the sewers [1,150 gp], boots of elvenkind [2,000 gp], three Quaal's feather token—whip [1,500 gp total]

External Links

• The original source of this article at Wizards.com