Clockwork Swarm

A mass of tiny insect-like mechanical creatures surges closer.

Clockwork Swarm (CR 4)

Tiny Construct (Swarm)
Alignment: Neutral
Initiative: +2
Senses: Darkvision 60 feet, Low-Light Vision; Perception +1

Speed: 40 feet
Space: 10 feet

Defense

Armor Class: 18, touch 14, flat-footed 14 (+2 Dex, +4 natural, +2 size)
Hit Points: 42 (4d10+20) self-repair 3 (acid, cold, fire)
Saving Throws: Fort +1, Ref +3, Will +2
Immunity: construct traits, swarm traits
Weaknesses: swarm traits

Offense

Melee: swarm (1d6)
Reach: 0 feet

Special Attacks: Distraction (DC 12)

Statistics

Str	Dex	Con	Int	Wis	Cha
14 (+2)	15 (+2)	-	-	13 (+1)	12 (+1)

Base Attack Bonus: +4
CMB -
CMD -

Feats:

Skills: Stealth +2 (+6 when not moving)

• Racial Modifiers: +4 Stealth when not moving

Languages:

Special Abilities

Self-Repair (Ex)

A clockwork swarm regains 3 hit points per round. Damage dealt from acid, cold, or fire effects cannot be self-repaired. If a clockwork swarm takes damage from an area attack, it is unable to repair itself for 1d6 rounds following the attack. If reduced to 0 or less hit points, it regains 1 hit point per round (but still cannot repair damage caused by acid, cold, or fire effects) until it has at least 1 hit point (at which time it begins to self-repair at its normal rate of 3 hit points per round).

Ecology

Environment: Any
Organization: squad (2-4 swarms)
Treasure: none


Clockwork swarms are a collection of tiny, insect-like clockworks that work together as a single creature. An individual member of the swarm poses little threat. Yet when acting in concert, a swarm poses a deadly threat to adventurers. Much like the clockwork warrior, the clockwork swarm forms a fighting frame from random pieces of trash, debris, and other cast-offs. The swarm, however, is much more capable of adapting to new situations and surviving combat. Unless the individual components of the swarm are destroyed, it simply reforms and continues its attack.

Area of effect attacks, such as burning oil, fireball, or lightning bolt are the most effective means of destroying the swarm. A clockwork swarm typically appears as a ramshackle collection of spare parts and garbage draped in a thick, web-like substance and arranged in a vaguely humanoid form.

A swarm prefers to lie in wait and strike from ambush, collecting innocuous looking piles of debris that adventurers overlook as harmless but that the swarm is capable of quickly forming into a combat-worthy frame. If the swarm attempts to assemble itself from a pile of debris, assume that the swarm starts the round with -10 hit points and self-repairs from there.