Today we've started the Carrion Crown AP! It starts with a funeral so you know it can only get better from there! @artofianblackburn is playing Volkauth, a half-orc paladin/slayer, oathbound to rid the world of the undead.
Look at my cool stuuuuffff! @artofianblackburn made a starting set of props for me! I've got a fab box (that I'll probably make into a dice tray), a whole wax seal and wand of cure light wounds, a fancy pencil, and a super glowy pendant of Ashava! (Also I'd forgotten to share my painted mini)
[This came to me during conversation tonight. I have a habit of making “elementals” out of things which aren’t elemental at all, like haggis - because the standard four aren’t elements anyway {outside of Aristotelianism and derived alchemy, anyway}.]
Elemental, Capitalism
As you look through the company’s ledgers, you notice that the spaces between lines and letters provide the outline to a pair of menacing eyes, which move across the page towards you.
Economentals are a type of elemental which are not composed of matter drawn from another plane of existence, but the economics of any given reality. The most common (and perhaps only) one of these is the capitalism elemental.
Capitalism elementals are cruel, hungry monsters made out of living capitalism. That is, they are malign intelligences which are somehow attached to or arise from profit-oriented market exchanges which a private entity claiming ownership of a means of production conducts. Stalls on a village’s market square and mulitinational conglomerates alike can host capitalism elementals, so long as they are capitalist undertakings and that the business in question has somehow become an entity independent of its owners and operators. As such, capitalism elementals feel neither sympathy nor loyalty towards those who work for their associated companies; they are parasites seeking only to grow, which they do as their companies increase in profits. To this end, capitalism elementals happily feed on the vitality and time of the people employed to their companies while shaping the rest of their environment to their immediate benefit, even at the expense of long-term sustainability. However, capitalism elementals do not exist for the sake of destruction: their goal of growth requires stable social structures to exist. They are simply too selfish to concern themselves with the well-beings of others and often too foolish to do so when they should for their own sake. As a capitalism elemental grows larger, so too does its company’s ability to destroy; though larger elementals are less foolhardy than smaller ones, they are also more removed from the concerns and needs of people, so are ultimately more destructive.
Capitalism elementals are naturally invisible, incorporeal, and usually amorphous. A see invisibility spell will show the vague outline of the economental and a pair of malefic eyes, while a true seeing spell will also show symbols of the company itself - a mascot, a corporate logo, a cloud of share quotes moving rapidly in every direction, even images of the business’s current transactions. Most of the time, though, a capitalism elemental merges with its business’s physical assets if it can; in this form, lines and gaps in the assets form the outline of the creature’s eyes.
Scholars disagree about how capitalism elementals arise. Some suggest that they are the egregores of their associated businesses, arguing that other economic systems seem to align with other kinds of spirits - even that there are no other forms of economental besides the capitalism elemental. Opponents of this theory note that egregores arise from and are attached to groups of people, whereas capitalism elementals can come from very small businesses which have changed hands numerous times and have no concern for anyone associated with the business. Other scholars suspect that capitalism elementals are fiends of avarice which have somehow degraded from sowers of temptation, losing much of their personalities and powers while becoming attached to businesses. How such would happen, they can only speculate. Rumors from certain cults suggest that they are but fragments of something fouler and more powerful.
[N.B.: Below the cut are stats for Pathfinder first edition. I hate Pathfinder 2e, so if you want stats for that, you’ll have to convert. Stats for Dungeons & Dragons 5e will follow in a reply]
Pathfinder 1e
Capitalism Elemental
Languages Any languages the company uses in the course of its business.
Ecology
Environment Any urban
Organization Solitary
Treasure See below.
Special Abilities
Business Acumen (Ex) Capitalism elementals treat Appraise, Diplomacy, and any skills associated with their business's trade as class skills.
Business World (Su) Creatures who enter the capitalism elemental's aura (30 ft. x the elemental’s hit dice) must succeed at a Will save or become fatigued for as long as they remain within the aura’s area of effect. A creature who enters the aura and leaves must make the saving throw again upon reentry. Employees of the economental's business suffer the effects of this aura regardless of distance from the economental, so long as they are on the same plane and are on the clock (if wage-slaves, though many will be fatigued from the work itself) or are conducting business (if salaried). A capitalism elemental can suppress or resume this aura as a free action and can select targets it does or does not affect. This is a mind-affecting, compulsion, morale effect. The save DC is 10 + 1/2 the elemental’s hit dice + its Charisma modifier.
As long as another creature is affected by this ability, the capitalism elemental gets Fast Healing (the amount is listed in the table).
Company Dependent (Ex)¹ A capitalism elemental's size and hit dice are determined by the profits and power its associated company holds: a bank serving a small village might be Medium, for example, while a multinational conglomerate may reach huge size. Elder capitalism elementals are exceedingly rare and are generally the product of companies which have grown tremendously but have had the foresight to entrench themselves in their respective societies as almost utilities or cultural institutions (e.g., The Walt Disney Company).
A capitalism elemental is destroyed if its company goes out of business.
Capitalism elementals whose businesses merge fuse together (derive new stats from the new company), whereas those who expand/downsize through an acquisition readjust their stats according to their new assets.
Iconoclasm (Su)² Destruction of emblems of the capitalism elemental’s company) deals damage to the capitalism elemental equal to the damage dealt to the object, regardless of the distance between the two or if they are on the same plane of existence. Destruction of emblems of capitalism itself (such as punch clocks) works the same, save that this must be done within line of sight of the capitalism elemental, on the same plane, and be aware of the capitalism elemental’s existence and presence. In either case, the creature destroying the item must be doing so intentionally to hurt the elemental.
Natural Invisibility (Ex) This works as greater invisibility. As this ability is inherent, it is not subject to effects that remove invisibility, such as faerie fire, glitterdust, or invisibility purge, though spells which reveal invisible creatures, such as see invisibility still work as normal.
Time is Money (Su)³ When a capitalism elemental deals damage with its touch attack to a creature, that creature must make a Fortitude save or be staggered for 1 round. The save DC is 10 + 1/2 the capitalism elemental’s hit dice + its Charisma modifier. A capitalism elemental can forego delivering this condition and instead render the creature touched unable to use magic of any kind (spells, spell-like abilities, supernatural abilities, psionics, etc.) for 1 round, but the saving throw becomes Willpower instead of a Fortitude.
A capitalism elemental can affect any person employed to its company with this ability at any time (but can only affect one employee per turn) without making a touch attack regardless of distance, so long as the employee and the economental are on the same plane of existence.
Small Capitalism Elemental CR 1
XP 400
LE Small Outsider (elemental, evil, incorporeal, lawful)
Init +2; Senses Darkvision 60 ft.; Perception -3
Aura Business World (60 ft., Will DC 12)
Defense
AC 14 touch 14, flat-footed 12 (+2 Dex, +1 Size, +1 Deflection)
hp 15 (2d10+4); fast healing 2 (while another creature is affected by the capitalism elemental’s Business World aura)
Fort +5 Ref +2 Will +0
Defensive Abilities Incorporeal, Natural Invisibility
Immune Elemental traits
Weaknesses Iconoclasm
Offense
Speed Fly 30 ft. (perfect)
Melee Incorporeal Touch +4 (1d3 + Time is Money)
Special Attacks Time is Money (Fort/Will DC 12)
Statistics
Str --, Dex 15, Con 14, Int 11, Wis 4, Cha 13
Base Atk +2; CMB +3; CMD 14
Feats Associate,ᴮ Persuasive
Skills Appraise +8, Bluff +6, Craft (any one) +5,¹ Diplomacy +8, Intimidate +5, Sense Motive +2
Languages Common (any its business uses)
SQ Business Acumen, Company Dependent
Medium Capitalism Elemental CR 3
XP 800
LE Medium Outsider (elemental, evil, incorporeal, lawful)
Init +2; Senses Darkvision 60 ft.; Perception -3
Aura Business World (120 ft., Will DC 15)
Defense
AC 15 touch 15, flat-footed 13 (+2 Dex, +3 Deflection)
hp 34 (4d10+12); fast healing 4 (while another creature is affected by the capitalism elemental’s Business World aura)
Fort +7 Ref +4 Will +1
Defensive Abilities Incorporeal, Natural Invisibility
Immune Elemental traits
Weaknesses Iconoclasm
Offense
Speed Fly 30 ft. (perfect)
Melee Incorporeal Touch +7 (1d4 + Time is Money)
Special Attacks Time is Money (Fort/Will DC 15)
Statistics
Str --, Dex 17, Con 16, Int 11, Wis 4, Cha 17
Base Atk +4; CMB +7; CMD 20
Feats Associate,ᴮ Persuasive, Skill Focus (Appraise)
Skills Appraise +10, Bluff +10, Craft (any one) +7,¹ Diplomacy +12, Intimidate +9, Sense Motive +4
Languages Common (any its business uses)
SQ Business Acumen, Company Dependent
Large Capitalism Elemental CR 5
XP 1,600
LE Large Outsider (elemental, evil, incorporeal, lawful)
Init +4; Senses Darkvision 60 ft.; Perception +0
Aura Business World (240 ft., Will DC 19)
Defense
AC 18 touch 18, flat-footed 14 (+4 Dex, -1 Size, +5 Deflection)
hp 76 (8d10+32); fast healing 8 (while another creature is affected by the capitalism elemental’s Business World aura)
Fort +10 Ref +6 Will +4
Defensive Abilities Incorporeal, Natural Invisibility
DR 5/–; Immune Elemental traits
Weaknesses Iconoclasm
Offense
Speed Fly 30 ft. (perfect)
Melee Incorporeal Touch +9 (1d6 + Time is Money)
Special Attacks Time is Money (Fort/Will DC 19)
Statistics
Str --, Dex 19, Con 18, Int 11, Wis 6, Cha 21
Base Atk +6/+1; CMB +11; CMD 20
Feats Alertness, Associate,ᴮ Breadth of Experience, Persuasive, Skill Focus (Appraise)
Skills Appraise +14, Bluff +16, Craft (any one) +11,¹ Diplomacy +18, Intimidate +15, Knowledge (any) +2, Perception +0, Sense Motive +9
Languages Common (any its business uses)
SQ Business Acumen, Company Dependent
Huge Capitalism Elemental CR 7
XP 3,200
LE Huge Outsider (elemental, evil, incorporeal, lawful)
Init +5; Senses Darkvision 60 ft.; Perception +0
Aura Business World (300 ft., Will DC 22)
Defense
AC 20 touch 20, flat-footed 15 (+5 Dex, -2 Size, +7 Deflection)
hp 105 (10d10+50); fast healing 10 (while another creature is affected by the capitalism elemental’s Business World aura)
Fort +12 Ref +8 Will +5
Defensive Abilities Incorporeal, Natural Invisibility
DR 5/–; Immune Elemental traits
Weaknesses Iconoclasm
Offense
Speed Fly 30 ft. (perfect)
Melee Incorporeal Touch +13 (1d8 + Time is Money)
Special Attacks Time is Money (Fort/Will DC 22)
Statistics
Str --, Dex 21, Con 20, Int 11, Wis 6, Cha 25
Base Atk +10/+5; CMB +17; CMD 34
Feats Alertness, Associate,ᴮ Breadth of Experience, Master of the Ledger, Persuasive, Skill Focus (Appraise)
Skills Appraise +18, Bluff +20, Craft (any one) +13,¹ Diplomacy +24 (+25 vs. creatures associated with invested markets), Intimidate +21 (+22 vs. creatures associated with invested markets), Knowledge (any) +2, Perception +0, Sense Motive +11 (+15 on hunches for creatures of the same profession)
Languages Common (any its business uses)
SQ Business Acumen, Company Dependent
Greater Capitalism Elemental CR 9
XP 6,400
LE Huge Outsider (elemental, evil, incorporeal, lawful)
Init +6; Senses Darkvision 60 ft.; Perception +1
Aura Business World (390 ft., Will DC 25)
Defense
AC 23 touch 23, flat-footed 17 (+6 Dex, -2 Size, +9 Deflection)
hp 136 (13d10+65); fast healing 13 (while another creature is affected by the capitalism elemental’s Business World aura)
Fort +13 Ref +10 Will +7
Defensive Abilities Incorporeal, Natural Invisibility
DR 10/–; Immune Elemental traits
Weaknesses Iconoclasm
Offense
Speed Fly 30 ft. (perfect)
Melee Incorporeal Touch +13 (1d8 + Time is Money)
Special Attacks Time is Money (Fort/Will DC 25)
Statistics
Str --, Dex 23, Con 20, Int 11, Wis 8, Cha 29
Base Atk +13/+8/+3; CMB +21; CMD 40
Feats Alertness, Associate,ᴮ Breadth of Experience, Master of the Ledger, Persuasive, Persuasive Bribery, Rhetorical Flourish, Skill Focus (Appraise)
Skills Appraise +21, Bluff +25, Craft (any one) +16,¹ Diplomacy +29 (+30 vs. creatures associated with invested markets, +31 when bribing, +32 for both), Intimidate +26 (+27 vs. creatures associated with invested markets), Knowledge (any) +2, Perception +1, Sense Motive +17 (+21 on hunches for creatures of the same profession)
Languages Common (any its business uses)
SQ Business Acumen, Company Dependent
Elder Capitalism Elemental CR 11
XP 12,800
LE Huge Outsider (elemental, evil, incorporeal, lawful)
Init +6; Senses Darkvision 60 ft.; Perception +2
Aura Business World (480 ft., Will DC 28)
Defense
AC 24, touch 24, flat-footed 18 (+6 Dex, -2 Size, +10 Deflection)
hp 168 (16d10+80); fast healing 16 (while another creature is affected by the capitalism elemental’s Business World aura)
Fort +15, Ref +11, Will +10
Defensive Abilities Incorporeal, Natural Invisibility
DR 10/–; Immune Elemental traits
Weaknesses Iconoclasm
Offense
Speed Fly 30 ft. (perfect)
Melee Incorporeal Touch +20 (1d8 + Time is Money)
Special Attacks Time is Money (Fort/Will DC 28)
Statistics
Str --, Dex 23, Con 20, Int 11, Wis 10, Cha 31
Base Atk +16/+11/+6/+1; CMB +24; CMD 54
Feats Alertness, Associate,ᴮ Breadth of Experience, Master of the Ledger, Nerve-Wracking Negotiator (Will DC 26), Persuasive, Persuasive Bribery, Rhetorical Flourish, Skill Focus (Appraise)
Skills Appraise +24, Bluff +29, Craft (any one) +19,* Diplomacy +31 (+32 vs. creatures associated with invested markets, +33 when bribing, +34 for both), Intimidate +31 (+27 vs. creatures associated with invested markets), Knowledge (any) +2, Perception +2, Sense Motive +21 (+25 on hunches for creatures of the same profession)
Languages Common (any its business uses)
SQ Business Acumen, Company Dependent
Footnotes
*This is the main skill related to the business’s trade (goods, services, etc.). Replace with Profession, Perform, or another skill as needed - or divide the ranks up if you need multiple skills (only the Greater Capitalism Elemental has an odd number of ranks). Profession goes off of Wisdom, so all Capitalism Elementals except the Elder take a penalty on it, but Breadth of Experience gives a +2 on all Profession checks and Master of the Ledger gives an additional +2 to a single Profession.
¹ This is partially inspired by the Dryad’s Tree Dependent ability. However, altering that ability to work within a meaningful range of something as nebulous as certain businesses (e.g., Amazon) proved onerous, so I skipped that part. If you think it would make more sense, the issue comes from the scale and type of business. A fruit stand would work just like a Dryad’s tree (300 yards), maybe, but that ignores any of the business conducted away from the fruit stand itself. Since a Dryad is anchored to a physical object, it makes sense for it to have a limited range, but a capitalism elemental is not, ergo I dropped it.
² This ability is a major weakness to the capitalism elemental, which I think is significant enough to counterbalance some of its more dire issues. Capitalism elementals are unlikely to enter combat in the first place and highly unlikely to let anyone know that they are doing so in the first place, since they are invisible and incorporeal. Unlike many elementals, they don’t have an obvious weakness to a specific damage type and their immunity to non-magical physical damage makes them especially challenging.
³ This ability is modeled off of the Ice Elemental’s Numbing Cold special attack. The loss of casting for a round is a nod to banality in Changeling: the Dreaming and similar ideas.
