Crysmal

**Initiative**: +2

**Senses**: Darkvision 60ft, Crystal Sense, Perception +10

**Powerfield:** Natural Field (3 Churchill), Temp HP 3, FH 1

**HP**: 32

**DR** 5 / Bashing; **Immune** Cold, Fire; **Resist** Electricity 10

**Fort**: +7 **Ref**: +8 **Will**: +2

**Attack** (melee): Sting +7 (2D6+5 Kinetic (Piercing), Wound)

**Attack** (ranged): Laser point +7 (1D6+3 Energy (Fire), 40ft)

**Special attack:** Shard Spike (3D6+3 Kinetic (Piercing), 60ft, 5ft AoE for 1D6+3 damage)

**Spell-like abilities:** (CL 4th, Concentration +6)

At will --

*Detect Magic*, *Ghost Sound*, *Psychokinetic Hand, Holographic Image (Tier 1)*

*Invisibility*

3/day --

*Dimension Door, Sanctuary* (DC 14), *Touch of Idocy* (DC 14)

#### ***Statistics***

STR +2 DEX +2 CON +1 INT -2 WIS +1 CHA +2

**Feats**: Great Fortitude, Lightning Reflexes, Skill Focus (Perception)

**Skill:** Acrobatics +8 , Athletics +8, Perception +10, Stealth +8 (+10 in rocky areas); **Racial modifiers** +2 Stealth in rocky areas

#### ***Special Abilities***

**Crystal Sense** (Sp): A crysmal can sense the presence of precious gems and other crystalline formations within 30 feet as if they were using the scent ability.

**Sharp Spike** (Ex): Once per day, a crysmal can detach its tail spike completely and throw it, shattering as it hits. When a crysmal uses this ability, it can no longer use its laser point ranged attack and its melee attack damage drops to 1D6+5. The spike deals 3D6+3 points of piercing damage to the primary target, and all targets within 5 feet also take 1D6+5 damage as it shatters on impact. The spike will regrow after about 24 hours or if the crysmal eats at least 1 pound worth of crystalline formations.

### Description

Crysmals look like a scorpion made of reflective crystals. About 2 feet tall with the tail and 3 feet long, they are not very large or threatening on their own. A simple elemental being, the crysmal lives for a single purpose: to reproduce. While it seems similar to most natural animals, the only way a crysmal can create a new life is to consume and gather a large number of gemstones and crystals, around 10 pounds worth of them, which they then fashion into a smaller "shardling" (apply the Young simple template from ***Pathfinder Bestiary*** to represent a shardling). Those shardlings further eat more crystalline formations and gems over the course of the next few months, which allows them to grow to their full potential. Sadly, crysmals are not intelligent enough to realise that most other species, especially in the Prime Material plane, view those same gems and crystals as precious resources, commodities or even tools. They are known to steal crates of laser focusing crystals and even attack mines to take off with their diamond drill bits.

Crysmals were regarded as little more then pests and nuisance by the Shaitan for the longest time, but they recently realized that they can be used as a type of bloodhound to track deposits of precious gems, which they then give a part of to their pets so they can realize their purpose. Many shaitan nowadays own a crysmal or two as pets, much like Terrans do with cats and dogs.

### Tactics

Crysmals have evolved a bit over time to better accommodate more "modern" preys. As they craft new members of their species, they implant them with a laser focusing crystal in their tail which they can use to fire simple laser beams to defend themselves, but that is not all. They are also given a simple powerfield generators built form crystalline structures they feed upon. But other then these simple evolutionary traits, crysmals remain more of an annoyance then a threat.

The crysmal will use their magical abilities to distract whoever they are stalking to grab at their gems and crystals. Crysmals would much rather not endanger themselves too much and will avoid long confrontation if possible. If cornered, they will fight as hard as possible, using their shard spike ability as a last resort to create distance between them and their opponents.

When employed as bloodhounds by Shaitans, crysmals are a bit more aggressive as they know they have the backup of genies and other earth elementals.

## Solar Crysmal

Solarian weapon crystals are powerful tools used by these warrior-monks, but should one of them fall in the claws of a crysmal it can turn into something wonderful. The most basic effect is that it grants the damage bonus from the solarian weapon crystal to all the attacks of the crysmal, along with the critical effect being added to the melee attack of the crysmal (this replaces the Wound critical effect). The crysmal also gains a +1 Enhancement bonus to both its AC as it develops a solar armour similar to the solarian ability.

At this point, the crysmal will not behave differently then usual, but it gains the ability to reproduce the ability of the solarian weapon crystal by consuming a gem worth at least the same amount as the original solarian crystal, or a number of gems which equals this amount. Once it is reproduced, the crysmal can implant this power into a shardling it creates.

Those shardlings behave normally, but grow larger and more powerful then their creator. They are CR 4 Medium Outsiders, have 44 hit points and a 6 Churchill powerfield (Temp HP 6, FH 2), and deal D8 damage instead of D6 on all their attacks, with an attack roll of +8. They share the ability to reproduce the power of a solarian weapon crystal, and are much more intelligent then their forefather, with an INT modifier of +0 (INT 10). This is generally seen as the next evolutionary step for the normal crysmals.

Shaitan have reported on a single Solar Crysmal which was much larger, standing about 9 feet tall and 14 feet long which they found in the depths of a cave in the Plane of Earth, but this is an unsubstantiated rumour at this point.