A single red eye glowered in the shadow of a green helm, peering over a shield as its owner lifted its other arm. Although diminutive, the figure was armed with a cannon in its remaining limb. A light began to glow at the end of its cannon as it took aim at the ranger. She ducked behind the wall, which took the brunt of the blast, leaving behind a dark scorch mark. As she took cover, the barbarian charged forth with a roar, bringing his axe overhead. His footsteps thundered across the strange metal floor of the place they had invaded, coming to a halt as he stopped in front of its strange guardian and transferred the momentum into his axe. The blow was caught on the creature’s shield and its glowing eye swiveled to the more present threat, its weapon following suit. While the barbarian struggled to wrench his axe free from the shield, a light gathered in the dark barrel once more.
This was a request that I was happy to take a crack at though I’m not too familiar with Megaman. The name is apparently a little inaccurate, but I do love designing sniper type creatures, so I took the opportunity to do so here. He sticks with a lower level, but is still a technologically advanced machine. As is typical for a sniper type creature, his ranged weapon has a high attack bonus but only moderate damage – unless it manages to crit with its integrated musket. It is much less versed in the use of its shield, using a low attack bonus and only moderate damage. It can also Push with its shield, knocking enemies back so that it can put some distance between it and its enemies and can then take a shot without incurring a Reactive Strike. These Integrated Armaments are an important factor in its design, letting it reload despite its lack of available hands.
It can do a regular reload, but why should it when it can use Rearming Shield, letting it m both Raise a Shield and Interact to reload as a single action. This is akin to some of the reload features found among the various gunslinger classes, and once it has a shield raised, it does have Shield Block some damage since its health is a low value - which actually ended up getting it oneshot in the Monster Mash. This single action reload can be used in conjunction with the likes of Nice Shootin'. This is a very simple ability and is based on the fact that the sniper joe will sometimes fire three quick blasts in a row before resetting. It doesn't quite get that fast but is a step towards doing so. Alternatively, it can take the time to line up the shot with Charged Shot to unleash a more powerful blow, based on the classic charged shot of Megaman thematically and the likes of Megaton Strike mechanically. Getting a crit on this is brutal and it led to one of the PCs getting oneshot in the Monster Mash - so the sniper joe gave as good as it got. Rounding out its arsenal is Lead the Target, which is an ability I've built before on the quillshot and something I definitely want to use for an original monster. Just need to figure out which one. This is a highly thematic feature, a classic sniper sort of idea where it lines up a shot and tracks an enemy, looking for the opportunity to take its shot. This Strike is made at an extreme bonus, but it requires the enemy to move so Recalling Knowledge is highly effective against this ability. It also has to choose between using this readied Strike or its Shield Block so after it uses this ability, it can be a great opportunity to wail on it.
Pathfinder 2e:
Blue's D&D Version:
ENCOUNTER HOOKS
Shot in the Dark: Centuries ago, a spacefaring ship crashed into the world and a wizard built his lair around. He spent decades figuring out the ship and its inhabitants - a cadre of robots. He harnessed them, using them to guard and police his dungeon. Sniper joes serve as shock troops with the dungeon, which has been built to accommodate their range. They line up behind cover in long rooms, taking shots while the heroes try to close the distance. The wizard may have built the spaceship into his dungeon, allowing the heroes to explore a high-tech hovel.
This cybernetic sniper shoots from the safety of its shield, striking at stragglers with shocking certainty.
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