Mechanoid Emulator

Medium construct (titanspawn), neutral evil

STR	DEX	CON	INT	WIS	CHA
19 (+4)	10 (+0)	17 (+3)	16 (+3)	11 (+0)	12 (+1)

Armor Class 15 (natural armor)
Hit Points 82 (11d8 + 33)
Speed 30 ft.
Skills Deception +7, Insight +3, Perception +3
Damage Resistances necrotic, psychic; bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing from nonmagical attacks that aren’t adamantine
Damage Immunities poison
Condition Immunities charmed, exhaustion, frightened, paralyzed, petrified, poisoned
Senses darkvision 60 ft., passive Perception 13
Languages Titan Speech, plus any three other tongues
Challenge 5 (1,800 XP)

Special Traits

• Emulation. A mechanoid emulator can assume the form and identity of any Small or Medium humanoid or beast. It does this by flaying the hide and soft tissue off a freshly killed creature of the correct type and then donning the flesh, in a process requiring 1 hour, reorienting its metallic frame to become the endoskeleton. At the end of the hour, the mechanoid emulator looks exactly like the creature whose skin it now wears. Its statistics, other than its size, are the same in each form. While the emulator wears a creature’s skin, it has advantage on Charisma (Deception) checks to maintain its guise. The stolen skin is also sustained by the magic that animates the mechanoid emulator itself, and thus it benefits from the emulator’s Regeneration while it is worn, keeping the skin fresh and intact indefinitely. However, if the emulator is reduced to half its maximum hit points or fewer while emulating a living creature, the fleshy disguise is destroyed and falls away, revealing the emulator’s true form.
• Immutable Form. The mechanoid emulator is immune to any spell or effect that would alter its form.
• Regeneration. The mechanoid emulator regains 5 hit points at the start of its turn. If the emulator takes acid or fire damage, this trait doesn’t function at the start of the emulator’s next turn. The emulator is destroyed only if it starts its turn with 0 hit points and doesn’t regenerate.
• Tool Mastery. The mechanoid emulator is proficient with all types of armor, shields, simple and martial weapons, and with all artisan’s tools, musical instruments, and vehicles.

Actions

• Multiattack. The mechanoid emulator makes three melee attacks.
• Claw (Construct Form Only). Melee Weapon Attack: +7 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 11 (2d6 + 4) slashing damage.
• Slam (Construct Form Only). Melee Weapon Attack: +7 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 11 (2d6 + 4) bludgeoning damage.
• Spike (Construct Form Only). Melee Weapon Attack: +7 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 11 (2d6 + 4) piercing damage.
• Greatsword. Melee Weapon Attack: +7 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 11 (2d6 + 4) slashing damage.
• Javelin. Ranged Weapon Attack: +7 to hit, range 30/120 ft., one target. Hit: 7 (1d6 + 4) piercing damage.

Tactics

A mechanoid emulator is straightforward in combat, using the best weapon available to it at the time. Emulators are intelligent, though, and if they feel they are outmatched or in danger of being revealed or defeated, they are more than willing to withdraw or retreat so that they can continue their malevolent plots, perhaps elsewhere.

Description

A mechanoid emulator, or “skeletal host,” appears in its natural form as a strangely geometric construct composed of a number of random materials in all manner of shapes, sizes, and positions. It might best be described as an ever-shifting assortment of gears, rods, wires, mesh, chains, pulleys, and other unidentifiable machinery. However, most mechanoid emulators wear skin (and possibly clothing and armor) stolen from other creatures in order to disguise their true nature. Only in combat does the disguise sometimes tear away, revealing the inhuman construct beneath.

Solitary, Cunning Infiltrators. Mechanoid emulators are not mindless constructs, for they possess a vicious will and purpose of their own (or rather, that of their creator). It is rare to encounter an emulator in its true form, for they prefer to assume the identity of living creatures and move among them. If an emulator is careful, it can remain in one disguise for years. Emulators despise “shambling meat,” as they call humanoids and other living creatures. They use their influence to cause the greatest harm to the greatest number of people possible once they have reached a position of power. Several notorious villains in the hide a metallic secret beneath their stolen skins. On rare occasions, a small group of them work together for mutual benefit.

Masters of Tools. Mechanoid emulators are adept at using the natural weapons of their assumed form and are also proficient with manufactured weapons and most sorts of tools. If a host’s true nature becomes known, the kid gloves – and the skin – generally come off, revealing the deadly clawed appendages of the construct beneath.