5e Legend of Legaia

One of my favorite PlayStation 1 games was Legend of Legaia. This RPG follows the adventures of three heroes fighting magical beasts that have been corrupted by a mysterious mist. What made this game so much fun was not just the mechanics (which were pretty brilliant) but also the diverse collection of monsters you had to fight and their sometimes unique attacks. (I'm looking at you Lippians!)

I recently pulled this game down off my shelf to give it another play and thankfully it is just as fun as I remember it being. It got me thinking, though. I love Dungeons and Dragons. I love this game. What could be better than combining the two?

This blog contains three creatures and three spells inspired by Legend of Legaia. I had to fudge some of the creatures' special powers to make them fit more closely into the D&D mechanics but I've kept them as close to the game as possible. I've also included some pictures of the beasties so that you can really get to know them. I hope you enjoy using them as much as I enjoyed converting them (and fighting them in the game). If there's enough interest, I'll do a few more in a future post.

Creatures

I've selected three seru for conversion. I picked these because they are directly related to the spells that I converted. I also think they're an interesting fit for Dungeons and Dragons. Where necessary, I used the Innate Spellcasting feature to cover the seru special powers and selected a spell that was the closest analog. 

Gizam

A gizam is a four-legged, beaked creature that stalks lake shores and river banks in the Feywild. Its head sits atop a long neck. Each of its legs ends in a single, two-foot-long, spear-like claw. Its body is protected by a thin, gray exoskeleton. A gizam will make a shelter by gathering dirt, rocks, rotting vegetation, and other debris into a mound and then burrowing into it.

Watery Hunters. Gizams have an innate ability to control the flow of water. They use it to stun prey they find in the shallows of lakes and rivers or to carry larger prey from deeper waters closer to shore. They then use their beaks or claws to spear their victims. Though they hunt in water they swim only well enough to get themselves back to shore should they accidentally fall in.

Water Element. Though a terrestrial creature, gizams are associated with the element of water. Their chitin is a material component for the Bubble Crush spell.

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Medium monstrosity, unaligned
Armor Class 13 (natural armor)
Hit Points  22 (4d8+4)
Speed  30ft, swim 10ft

STR  14 (+2)
DEX  13 (+1)
CON  12 (+1)
INT  3 (-4)
WIS  10 (+0)
CHA  3 (-4)

Damage Immunities  poison
Condition Immunities  poisoned
Skills  Stealth +4
Senses  blindsight 30ft, passive Perception 10
Languages  --
Challenge  1/2 (100 XP)

Innate Spellcasting. The gizam’s spellcasting ability is Wisdom (spell save DC 10) . The nenoir can innately cast the following spells, requiring no material components:
2/day each: tidal wave (analog for the Water Column power)

Actions
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Multiattack. The gizam makes two attacks: one with its beak and one with its claws.

Beak. Melee Weapon Attack: +4 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 5 (1d6+2) slashing damage.

Claws. Melee Weapon Attack: +4 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 9 (2d6+2) piercing damage.

Nighto

This bizarre creature attaches itself to cavern ceilings in the Underdark. Its delicate, inner body--which is most easily described as an oversized mouth with tiny arms--is encased by a crenulated, purple shell. The nighto has been described as looking like either a top or a nut.

Multi-purpose Shell. The nighto’s thick shell is composed of four hinged parts whose ends form a sharp point when they are closed. In this state, it serves as both a formidable armor and an effective weapon. The shell opens from the top like the petals of an upside down flower, exposing the creature’s body. Even then, however, the nighto can use the serrated edges of its shell as a weapon. The nighto spins violently when it attacks, using either the sharp end of its closed shell as a drill or the serrated edges of its open shell as cutting blades.

The shell can be used to build plate and scale armor (see DMG Armor +1, +2, +3), as well as shields (see DMG Shield +1, +2, +3), though doing so is rather difficult owing to the toughness of the material. In very rare instances, these items retain some of the nighto’s psychic energy, providing resistance to psychic damage. Any item made with the shell tends to be nearly black in color with a purple luster when in bright light.

Finally, the shell is a material component for the Hell’s Music spell.

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Medium monstrosity, unalignedArmor Class  16 (natural armor)
Hit Points  13 (3d8)
Speed  fly 30 ft.

STR  8 (-1)
DEX  14 (+2)
CON  10 (+0)
INT  10 (+0)
WIS  8 (-1)
CHA  8 (-1)

Damage Resistances  psychic
Condition Immunities  charmed
Skills  Stealth +4
Senses  blindsight 120ft., passive Perception 9
Languages  Undercommon
Challenge  1/2 (100 XP)

Limited telepathy. The nighto can magically communicate simple ideas, emotions, and images telepathically with any creature within 100 feet of it that can understand a language.

Actions
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Slam. Melee Weapon Attack: +1 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 6 (3d4-1) bludgeoning damage.

Drill. Melee Weapon Attack: +1 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 9 (3d6-1) piercing damage.

Propeller. Melee Weapon Attack: +1 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 12 (3d8-1) slashing damage.

Zenoir

The zenoir is a creature native to the elemental plane of Fire. It resembles a giant hand where each “finger” is a spiked neck that ends in a dragon-like head. The creature uses two of it five heads to crawl along the ground, usually the ones corresponding to the thumb and pinkie finger but not always. It can also hover for short distances.

Magma Body.  The zenoir has a molten core covered with rocky plates. As it moves, its plates creak and shift, exposing its heated interior so that it gives off a soft yellowish glow. 

Fire Element. The zenoirs are associated with the element of fire. Their armor plating is a material component for the Vertical Hammer spell.

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Medium monstrosity, unaligned
Armor Class 13 (natural armor)
Hit Points 39 (6d8+12) 58
Speed 20 ft., fly 20 ft.

STR  13 (+1)
DEX  10 (+0)
CON  14 (+2)
INT 3 (-4)
WIS  11 (+0)
CHA  6 (-2)

Damage Vulnerabilities  cold
Damage Immunities  fire, poison
Condition Immunities  poisoned
Senses  darkvision 60 ft., passive Perception 10
Languages  --
Challenge  2 (450 XP)

Death Burst. When the zenoir dies, it explodes in a burst of lava. Each creature within 5 feet of it must make a DC 11 Dexterity saving throw, taking 7 (2d6) fire damage on a failed save, or half as much damage on a successful one.

Elemental Nature. A zenoir doesn’t require food, drink, or sleep.

Innate Spellcasting. The zenoir’s spellcasting ability is Wisdom (spell save DC 10). The zenoir can innately cast the following spells, requiring no material components:
2/day each: fireball (analog for the Fire Claw power)

Actions
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Multiattack. The zenoir makes three bite attacks using any three of its five heads.

Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +3 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 2 (1d4+1) piercing damage plus 2 (1d4+1) fire damage.

Spells

I've selected three spells for conversion. I picked these because I like them and I thought they would be interesting to play around with. All of the ra-seru magic in the game potentially penalizes the statistics of the creatures you attack. As with the seru powers above, I've tried to map the penalties to what would be appropriate for D&D.

Bubble Crush

1st-level conjuration

Casting Time 1 action
Range Self (15-foot)
Components V, M (sliver of gizam chitin)
Duration Instantaneous

As you hold your thumb and forefinger together to form a loop and gently blow through the opening, a 15-foot cone of bubbles boil out from your hand. Each creature in the cone must make a Dexterity saving throw. On a failed save, a creature takes 2d4 poison damage and has disadvantage on the next Dexterity saving throw it makes until the end of its next turn, or takes half as much damage and no disadvantage on a successful save.

At Higher Levels: When you cast this spell using a spell slot of 2nd level or higher, the damage increases by 1d4 for each slot level above 1st.

Hell’s Music

1st-level enchantment
Casting Time 1 action
Range 60 ft
Components V, M (sliver of a nighto shell)
Duration Instantaneous

Choose a point that you can see within range. Haunting music fills a 30-foot sphere centered on that point. Each creature in the sphere that can hear must make a Wisdom saving throw. On a failed save, a creature takes 2d4 psychic damage and has disadvantage on the next Wisdom saving throw it makes until the end of its next turn, or takes half as much damage and no disadvantage on a successful save.

At Higher Levels: When you cast this spell using a spell slot of 2nd level or higher, the damage increases by 1d4 for each slot level above 1st.

Vertical Hammer

2nd-level conjuration
Casting Time 1 action
Range 60 feet
Components S, M (sliver of zenoir armor)
Duration instantaneous

You create a two-foot flaming, stone fist and launch it at one creature within range. Make a ranged spell attack against the target. On a hit, the target takes 2d6 bludgeoning damage and it has disadvantage on the next weapon attack roll it makes before the end of its next turn. Hit or miss, the fist explodes. The target and each creature within 5 feet of it must succeed on a Dexterity saving throw or take 2d8 fire damage.

At Higher Levels. When you cast this spell using a spell slot of 3rd level or higher, the fire damage increases by 1d8 for each slot level above 2.

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