General Rules: Monsters - Genie: Dao

Genie: Dao (as adapted from the Manual of the Planes)
Large Outsider (Earth, Evil)

Hit Dice: 8d8+16 (52 hit points)
Initiative: +0
Speed: 20 feet
Armor Class: 17 (-1 size, +8 natural)
BAB/Grapple: +8/+18
Attack: Slam +13 melee (1d8 + 9, bludgeoning, 20 x2)

Full Attack: Slam +13/+8 melee (1d8 + 9, bludgeoning, 20 x2)

Space/Reach: 5 feet by 5 feet/10 feet
Special Attacks: Spell-like abilities, earth mastery, push

Special Qualities: Darkvision 60 feet, acid immunity, change shape, plane shift, telepathy

Saves: Fortitude +8, Reflex +6, Will +8
Abilities: Str 22, Int 11, Wis 15, Dex 11, Con 14, Cha 15

Skills: Appraise +11, Bluff +7, Craft: Gemcutting +11, Craft: Any +11, Diplomacy +6, Intimidate +15, Knowledge: the Planes +6, Sense Motive +13, Spellcraft +11, Spot +13

Feats: Cleave, Improved Sunder, Power Attack
Environment: Any land and underground
Organization: Solitary, company (2 - 4), or band (6 - 15)
Challenge Rating: 7
Treasure: Standard coins, double goods, standard items
Alignment: Always neutral evil
Advancement: 9 - 12 Hit Dice (Large), 13 - 24 Hit Dice (Huge)
Level Adjustment: N/A

Genies who wield the power of Earth, dao often run Gem-mining operations on the Three Worlds or the Elemental Plane of Earth. They love to barter for power and wealth, but are apt to discount lesser creatures as mere resources to be exploited, then thrown away.

Resembling muscular humans in flowing silk robes, dao are almost always festooned with jewelry. Their natural forms are too tall to pass for human, but like most other genies, they employ their change shape ability to appear as a normal human or dwarf when it suits them.

In their natural form, dao are generally humanlike, but betray some hint of their true nature. Dao are often stocky and muscular. Like all other genies, all dao are masters of illusion magic, so their appearance can rarely be taken at face value.

Dao are eager traders of gems and gold. Many dao live in a great underground complex on the Elemental Plane of Earth called the great dismal delve, where they force elemental slaves to toil in their gem mines. The Delve is the size of a continent and racked with frequent quakes, which dao find entertaining. Elsewhere, bands of dao organize themselves in vast underground mazeworks led by a strongman who rules with a stony fist overt he other dao and whatever slaves do their mining for them. They have an inquisitive temperament, though, often leaving their vast elemental palaces to get caught up in the many agendas and conflicts of the Three Worlds.

Dao speak Aquan, Terran, and one of the common languages of the Three Worlds.

Combat
With their wide array of spell-like abilities, dao have a number of ways they can approach a fight. They tend to consider combat as a puzzle, trying different techniques and probing for weaknesses. In a fight, a dao rearranges the battlefield to suit it. Using wall of stone, passwall, and transmute rock to mud, it divides its foes, seals off (or creates) escape routes, and prevents its enemies from maneuvering effectively. Then it eagerly puts its strength to the test, wading into the thick of a melee with both fists flailing.

Plane Shift (Sp): A dao can enter any of the Elemental Planes, the Astral Plane, of one of the Three Worlds. This ability transports the dao and up to six other creatures, provided they all link hands with the dao. It is otherwise similar to the spell of the same name.

Telepathy (Su): A dao can communicate telepathically with any creature within 100 feet that has a language.

Acid Immunity (Ex): Dao are immune to damage from all forms of acid.

Change Shape (Su): A dao can assume the form of any Small, Medium, or Large humanoid or giant.

Spell-Like Abilities: Dao all have the following spell-like abilities. All of these abilities are as the spells cast by a 19^th-level sorcerer (save DC 12 + spell level):

• At will - Detect good, detect magic, gaseous form, invisibility, misdirection, passwall, persistent image, wall of stone.
• Three times per day - Move earth, transmute rock to mud.
• Once per day - grant up to three limited wishes (to nongenies only).

Earth Mastery (Ex): A dao gains a +1 bonus on attack and damage rolls if both it and its foe touch the ground. If an opponent is airborne or waterborne the dao suffers a -4 penalty on attack and damage rolls. (These modifiers are not included in the statistics block).

Push (Ex): A dao can start a bull rush maneuver without provoking an attack of opportunity. The combat modifiers given in Earth Mastery, above, also apply to the dao's opposed Strength checks.

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