A Bad Day for Trolls is coming from Run Amok Games soon (check out the Upcoming tab above), and I wanted to show off one of the enemies that that the troll "heroes" will face. In this adventure, the PCs all play trolls, and I needed an enemy that would put a bit of a scare into them. I decided that an acid-flinging sorcerer would do, but I didn't want to wholly build one from the ground up. I took the draconic sorcerer from the Pathfinder RPG NPC Codex and made a few key edits: I changed the dragon type, the race (as it needed to be a hobgoblin), and a few spell selections to work better with the other enemies appearing in that encounter. Here it is: a hobgoblin sorcerer ready to menace your own mid-level to high-level Pathfinder PCs!

Hobgoblin Sorcerer CR 12

XP 19,200

Male hobgoblin sorcerer 13

LE Medium humanoid (goblinoid)

Init +7; Senses darkvision 60 ft.; Perception +8

Defense

AC 23, touch 16, flat-footed 19 (+4 armor, +2 deflection, +3 Dex, +1 dodge, +3 natural)

hp 161 (13d6+113)

Fort +12, Ref +12, Will +10

Resist acid 10

Offense

Speed 30 ft.

Melee 2 claws +7 (1d4+1 plus 1d6 acid) or masterwork morningstar +8/+3 (1d8+1)

Ranged masterwork javelin +10/+5 (1d6+1)

Special Attacks claws (1d4+1 plus 1d6 acid, treated as magic weapons, 8 rounds/day), breath weapon (60-foot line, 13d6 acid, DC 21, 1/day)

Sorcerer Spells Known (CL 13th; concentration +18)

   6th (4/day)—acid fog, chain lightning (DC 23), form of the dragon I

   5th (7/day)—cone of cold (DC 22), dismissal (DC 20), feeblemind (DC 20), spell resistance

   4th (7/day)—black tentacles, dimension door, fear (DC 19), fire shield, ice storm

   3rd (7/day)—fireball (DC 20), fly, haste, lightning bolt (DC 20), slow (DC 18)

   2nd (7/day)—acid arrow, elemental touchAPG (DC 19), false life, gust of wind (DC 19), resist energy, scorching ray

   1st (8/day)—grease (DC 16), mage armor, magic missile, ray of enfeeblement (DC 16), shocking grasp, vanishAPG

   0 (at will)—acid splash, bleed (DC 15), detect magic, flare (DC 17), light, mage hand, mending, ray of frost, read magic

Bloodline draconic (black)

Tactics

Before Combat The hobgoblin sorcerer cast bear's endurance, false life, and mage armor before beginning his assault. If he expects to face multiple spellcasters, he also casts spell resistance.

During Combat The sorcerer prefers to cast his acid spells, particularly acid fog, and he saves his breath weapon until his foes are lined up so he can catch as many as possible in its effect. He casts haste to bolster his allies and attempts to keep his allies between himself and his enemies as much as possible. If cornered, he uses spells like fly and vanish to reach a place of safety and begin his bombardment anew.

Morale Though stubborn, the hobgoblin sorcerer is not eager to die in combat. If reduced below 50 hit points, he casts dimension door and flees.

Base Statistics Without his spells, the hobgoblin sorcerer's statistics are AC 19, touch 16, flat-footed 15; hp 146; Fort +10; Con 16.

Statistics

Str 12, Dex 16, Con 20, Int 10, Wis 8, Cha 21

Base Atk +6; CMB +7; CMD 23

Feats Combat Casting, Dodge, Eschew Materials, Greater Spell Focus (evocation), Improved Initiative, Lightning Reflexes, Maximize Spell, Mobility, Spell Focus (evocation), Toughness

Skills Intimidate +21, Knowledge (arcana) +9, Perception +8, Spellcraft +4, Stealth +7; Racial Modifiers +4 Stealth

Languages Common, Goblin

SQ bloodline arcana (acid spells deal +1 damage per die)

Combat Gear acid (2), antitoxin (2), potions of cure serious wounds (2), wand of vampiric touch (10 charges); Other Gear masterwork morningstar, masterwork javelin, amulet of natural armor +1, cloak of resistance +3, headband of alluring charisma +4, ring of protection +2, bag of holding (type I), platinum bracelet engraved with carvings of cavorting dragons worth 120 gp