Iron Maiden

IRON MAIDEN

Torture Device
The iron maiden is a torture device used in many areas of Esau, consisting of a solid iron cabinet with a hinged front and spike-covered interior, sufficiently tall to enclose a humanoid creature, or smaller.

The Torturer/NPC will attempt to grab their opponent creature to throw them into the Iron Maiden - then slam it shut - causing 5d20 piercing damage, and trapping him or her therein until released.

This requires a grabble check and/or a shove - which indicates that the grab and hurl score were successful. Another successful "HIT" score - this time at +5, to slam the device shut.

Grapple

When you want to grab a creature or wrestle with it, you can use the Attack action to make a special melee attack, a grapple.
* Grappling uses the “Attack” action, and is not its own action
* It is a “special melee attack” which means that it’s done in melee - so a person cannot grapple from 30 feet away - since it’s an attack it interacts with other rules that care about attacks, such as the Barbarian’s Rage and the Invisibility spell.
* Because grappling is done with the Attack action, a person cannot grapple as an Opportunity Attack.
* A person needs at least one free hand to grapple.
* If a person is able to make multiple attacks with the Attack action, this attack replaces one of them.
* A creature holding another moves at half speed while grappling, but can drag and shove the creature along with them.
A grappled creature's speed becomes 0, and it can't benefit from any bonus to its speed.

While grappled, a PC can use their action to try escaping. Make a Strength (Athletics) or Dexterity (Acrobatics) check, and the creature grappling the PC makes a Strength (Athletics) check to try and hold on. If their check is higher, the PC will escape! If their check is higher, nothing happens, and the PC is still grappled.

* Very import for martial characters likely to rely on grappling, this means that if you have Extra Attack you can grapple and still make other attacks using the same Attack action.

Shove

Shove does two distinct things. It can either be used to knock a target prone or to push a target away.
When a creature uses the attack action on their turn, they can use one of their attacks to Shove a creature that is no more than one size larger than them.
* Shoving is a melee attack that does no damage.

Whether a Shove is successful is determined by a contested check. the creature doing the shove rolls a Strength (Athletics) and their target rolls a choice of Strength (Athletics) or Dexterity (Acrobatics).
As with all contested checks, a draw results in the status quo - the target not being shoved - so the creature shoving roll must be higher than the target’s roll for the Shove to be successful.
If the Shove is successful, they can choose to either knock the target prone or push the target away by 5ft.

CONDITIONS: the creature are a medium-sized humanoid within 40 feet from the iron maiden.

STAGES

1. On their turn "The Torturer" announces a grapple attempt VS PC
2. PC gets to roll against the grapple - assuming no special grapple feats by "The Torturer"
3. If the roll is unsuccessful, "The Torturer" makes a melee touch attack to grapple the PC
4. If "The Torturer" hits, they grapple the PC - they can move at half speed closer to the Iron Maiden
5. Once within 5ft, "The Torturer" can then use another attack/move action to use the "shove" to move the victim into the Iron Maiden
6. Then close the door doing damage
7. PC can do an dex save - DC of 15+

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Golem, Iron Maiden

A horrific torture device, the iron maiden stands ready for its next victim - only this golem does not stand patiently. It begins to clomp forward - it's doors slowly swinging open as if hungry for a new soul to torture.

CR 9
XP 6,400
AC = 25
HP = 96 (12d10+30)
Large Construct
Init +0
Senses low-light vision, darkvision 60 ft.
Perception +2
touch 9, flat-footed 25 (+16 natural, –1 size)
STR = +4
CON = +4
DEX = -2
INT = +4
WIS = +1
CHA = -4

Immune: Construct traits
Weaknesses vulnerability to rust

OFFENSE
Speed 25 ft.
Melee = 2 slams +19 (2d10+8 plus grab)
Space = 10 ft.
Reach = 10 ft.
Special = Attacks animated host, bladed lid, steal essence

SPECIAL ABILITIES
Animated Host
Once a victim trapped within an iron maiden has died, it reanimates as a zombie in the next round - as if by an animate dead spell.
It cannot escape, however, and serves only to fuel the iron maiden and provide it with skills and abilities. While it is trapped, the zombie cannot be attacked, damaged, turned, rebuked, or commanded, and it doesn’t suffer any damage from the spiked doors. If the doors of the golem is somehow forced open, the zombie has the normal abilities of a Medium zombie. The victim of an iron maiden golem must be alive when it is placed inside and the lid is closed or the golem’s animate host ability fails.

Bladed Lid
A living creature inside an iron maiden when the doors are closed is pierced by twenty dagger–like blades, dealing a total of 5D20 points of piercing damage each round.
The doors automatically seals with an arcane lock spell with a caster level equal to that of the iron maiden golem’s creator (14th level usually).
The doors can be forced open with a successful Strength check (DC 34) or by casting dispel magic. (The knock spell has no effect on the doors.) The check DC is Strength–based and includes a +10 bonus from the arcane lock spell.
Because of the shape of the iron maiden, only a Medium humanoid can be sealed inside.

Immunity to Magic
An iron maiden golem is immune to any spell or spell–like ability that allows spell resistance. In addition, certain spells and effects function differently against the creature.
A magical attack that deals lightning damage slows an iron maiden golem (as the slow spell) for 3 rounds, with no saving throw.
A magical attack that deals fire damage breaks any slow effect on the iron maiden golem and heals.
1 point of damage for each 3 points of damage the attack would otherwise deal. If the amount of healing would cause the golem to exceed its full normal hit points, it gains any excess as temporary hit points.

Steal Essence
An iron maiden golem that has created a host using its animate host ability gains 10 temporary hit points, uses its own base attack bonus or the host’s (whichever is higher), and can make normal use of the victim’s skills, feats, and non–magical class abilities.
The golem must substitute its own ability scores when determining its total skill bonuses - therefore it cannot use skills requiring Constitution or Intelligence, and since it cannot speak, many Charisma skills are severely limited. Likewise, the Iron maiden golem must meet the requirements for any feat in order to make use of that feat (thus feats such as Dodge and Combat Expertise are unavailable to the golem).
An iron maiden cannot use any divine spells or divinely granted special abilities, since the host within is no longer able to receive such abilities from her deity. An iron maiden likewise cannot use any arcane spells as its inherent magic immunity disrupts any attempt to do so.

Vulnerability to Rust
An iron maiden golem is affected normally by rust attacks, such as that of a rust monster or a rusting grasp spell.


NOTES:
An iron maiden golem is a variation of the iron golem.
Like the torture device that is its namesake, an iron maiden golem is a hollow structure with several dagger-like blades on the inside of the lid. The golem itself has the appearance of a tall, well-muscled male or female warrior. When a living creature is placed into the iron maiden and the lid is closed the blades impale the unfortunate victim, causing an agonizing death. Unlike the coffin-like torture device, however, an iron maiden golem has articulated arms and legs, and is capable of moving under its own power.

Although standard iron golems have a breath weapon, an iron maiden does not; it has the ability to usurp the essence of any humanoid being enclosed within, however. The corpse of the unfortunate victim trapped in the iron maiden golem is transformed into an Undead being similar to a zombie. The iron maiden, with a victim trapped inside, can then utilize some of that victim’s skills, feats, or combat capabilities. A trapped victim decays at an accelerated rate, so at least once a month an iron maiden golem must be given a fresh victim or it reverts to its normal capabilities.

An iron maiden golem without a victim attacks by slamming opponents with its heavy doors. When a victim is trapped within, it fights in a style relevant to the victim.