Brass Bastion
Level 14Attacks
Abilities
When a brass bastion is destroyed, its body explodes in a flurry of elemental flame and superheated brass, dealing 4d6 piercing 4d6 fire to creatures in a 20-foot area (DC 34 reflex save).
The brass bastion exhales superheated smoke and cinders in a 10-foot area centered on a corner of its space. The smoke persists for 1 round. Any creature in the area (or that later enters the area) takes 15d6 fire damage (DC 34 reflex save); on a critical failure, the creature catches fire, taking 2d6 persistent fire damage as well. All creatures in the smoke become Concealed, and all creatures outside the smoke become concealed to creatures within it. The brass bastion can't Breathe Smoke again
Metal weapons wielded by a brass bastion superheat, dealing 1d10 additional fire damage (included in its statistics).
Brass bastions are formidable sentinels crafted from elemental fire and extraplanar brass. While they can be shaped into many forms, most depict muscular warriors with curving horns and stern or taunting expressions. Within each brass shell is a raging inferno—the source of its ceaseless heat.
Though ifrits originally created brass bastions to act as servants and guards, the knowledge of how to craft them has spread throughout the Plane of Fire. They can even be found on the Plane of Earth thanks to interplanar trade. In Medina Mudii'a, brass bastions walk the streets, tend shops, and stand guard. Bespoke brass bastions are passed down as family heirlooms or gifted to business partners and allies. Scions of the wealthiest ifrit lineages never travel without a train of brass bastions clad in family livery. Destroying a rival ifrit's brass bastion is a quick way to erode their political status, though anyone caught performing such sabotage faces swift retribution.
Most brass bastions prominently display the sigil of their owner or maker, though magical methods can also determine who crafted a specific construct. Brass bastions forged by favored artisans are a status symbol in many ifrit communities. Ifrits consider a brass bastion crafted by a non-ifrit to be inherently inferior, barely worth the cost of its materials. Brass bastions obey magical programming imprinted at the time of their creation or follow commands from their owners. Most can't speak, but a few have magical voices and can parrot simple phrases, recite poetry, or tell bedtime stories at the crafter's fancy.
Brass Scraps
On the Plane of Fire, destroyed brass bastions are sold as scrap to enterprising ifrits, who reforge the remains into new brass bastions. Many ifrits pay more for the remains of a brass bastion crafted by their rivals yet react violently when offered brass bastion remains they originally created. Thus, identifying a brass bastion's original crafter is a valued skill. Few non-ifrits dare trade in brass bastion scraps, save in extralegal markets.