Draft:Haunt
A haunt is an initially invisible undead creature whose melee attacks can poison you. Its visible symbol is a grey h. Unlike a ghost, it is vulnerable to ordinary physical damage and fights directly in melee.
| Level | HP | Attack strength | Armor class | Base damage | Kill XP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 | 50 | 15 | 5 | 20 | 150 |
Generation
Each of the four lesser-undead sites in Rampart's cemetery chooses equally between a haunt and a ghost. Cemetery haunts begin asleep and nonhostile despite their invisibility. Elsewhere, haunts are normally hostile and occur in sufficiently strong random-monster pools, wilderness encounters, the Astral Plane and summons.
A haunt named ... can be a deceased historical adventurer whose recorded level was 3 through 6. That construction replaces several ordinary haunt properties, including its status flags and melee style; do not use this table as its full description.
Attacks and remains
An ordinary haunt has two center attacks in its tactical sequence. Each successful hit inflicts ordinary damage and has a 40% chance to add 20 poison strength. Poison immunity stops the poison but does not stop the preceding physical damage.
Its surprise ability can reveal it after attacking and cause a victim without Alertness or Truesight to lose an action. This is an ability checked during monster activity, not an automatic penalty every time you approach an unseen haunt.
Haunts are immune to poison, fear and sleep. Their conversation is threatening rather than a healing or hint service. The dessicated corpse is poisonous food and has no alchemical transformation; its appearance does not make it safe to eat after winning the fight.
Strategy
Keep a cemetery haunt peaceful when possible. An apparently vacant corridor may contain one, and walking into its position can begin a confrontation. Truesight helps distinguish empty space from a creature you would otherwise miss.
Ordinary physical attacks work against a haunt's innate defenses. If you must fight, poison protection and enough room to retreat are more useful than fear or sleep effects. The city's healers do not cure poison, so their proximity is not a complete recovery plan.
Do not rely on surrender to a hostile haunt: the generic surrender process can take your cash and best item, strengthen it, and still leave an evil-speaking opponent attacking. Avoid provoking a peaceful one merely to test whether it will accept a bargain.