Absorber Imp

The Absorber Imp with DCC stats and familiar rules. The guest art is by +Noah Stevens - check out his blog The Hapless Henchman!

Artwork by Noah Stevens

An Absorber Imp is a very small demon, typically about one foot tall, with a pitch black hide, a set of leathery wings, often strangely colored eyes and a head like a miniature dragon. They possess child-like intelligence but cannot speak. Their reflexes are quick, they can sense magic and they are able to fly for short periods of time.

Absorber Imps are often used by more powerful demons as retainers, and fulfill simple tasks and services for them. Still, it is possible to encounter an Absorber Imp on its own, if it was lost, trapped, abandoned, or on a mission for or even fleeing from its master. It is very rare to face two or more Absorber Imps in the same place. They don't work well with each other.

Like a lot of imps, they are not truly evil but mischievous in nature and love to play pranks or otherwise annoy their chosen victims. These pranks are never intended to be life-threatening but can sometimes be dangerous. The favorite victims of Absorber Imps are those gifted with magic powers, because they feed on magical energies.

It is not known whether their name originally stemmed from their skin's property of absorbing all light or from their more fantastic ability to absorb pure magic power. These imps can absorb any magical spell or effect in their vicinity, regardless of the intended target, area of effect or power. The original magic effect is cancelled completely and is instead stored inside the imp. The imp can store the magic of up to three spells or other magic effects at the same time for as long as it wishes, potentially forever, but it can also unleash its powers whenever it wants to. Absorber Imps can also decide to devour a magic power that they previously stored. This destroys the magic completely.

When the Absorber Imp releases stored magic, it can choose all variable aspects of its effects, like targets, as if it were the original caster of the spell, or the original user of a magic scroll or wand. If the imp has already currently stored three magical powers, it can choose to absorb a new magic effect and release one of its stored ones as one action.

Absorber Imps are immune to magic weapons and can absorb magical effects of magic weapons hitting them, including all damage, like they can absorb other magic. They can release the stored effects from magic weapons by hitting the intended target with their otherwise not overly dangerous claws.

Due to their abilities to store spells and sense magic, Absorber Imps are rare but highly priced familiars for witches, warlocks and dark mages. Although not easy, they can be befriended, especially if they are well fed with magical energy. An Absorber Imp familiar is a double-edged sword, though, because no matter how well trained, they will never stop playing pranks.

Absorber Imps can be bound into shards of obsidian, if one knows the required ritual. They will stay bound until the word of release is spoken or the obsidian is shattered. Furthermore, magic effects or damage originating from magical obsidian objects or obsidian weapons cannot be absorbed and fully affects the imps. Any damage received from obsidian weapons is a perilous and grave incident for an Absorber Imp and one of the only sure ways to permanently destroy them instead of just sending them back to their shadow realm. For these reasons, most of them are afraid or even repelled by obsidian objects of any kind.

The Absorber Imp's eyes change with the kind of magic powers it has currently stored. An absorbed fireball might turn its eyes into a fiery inferno, a friendship enchantment can make them seem trustworthy and a portal spell might transform their eyes into actual windows into time and space. Often, but not necessarily always, the eyes adjust to the most powerful magic that is currently stored. Pitch black eyes can be a tell for an Absorber Imp with no stored magic whatsoever, or an alarming signal for devastating black magic.

Absorber Imp: Init +3; Atk Claws +1 melee (1d4 + potentially stored magic attack ability); AC 14; HD 2d8; MV 20’, fly 20’; Act 1d20; SP absorb magic, release magic, vulnerable to obsidian (double damage), immune to magic, invulnerable to magic weapons; SV Fort +2, Ref +3, Will +2; AL C.

Absorber Imps as familiars

Optionally, a Judge may allow a player character with the Find Familiar spell to bond with an Absorber Imp if the rolled familiar type is demonic or if an the imp is encountered by a neutral or chaotic spellcaster without a familiar (but the spell must be known). The Absorber Imp will have the abilities and stats described above instead of the usual demonic familiar traits. As a familiar, it can freely absorb spells from its wizard, but can only absorb spells from other casters up to it’s wizard’s caster level per hour (e.g. the familiar of a 5th level wizard could absorb one 3rd level and one 2nd level spell in the same hour). In the case of absorbed magical creature abilities, substitute the creature’s hit dice for spell level. The imp’s immunity to magic and magic weapons remains intact. Absorber Imps’ familiar personality trait is always prankful.