Buy me a coffee“The Reckoning of the Pale Stranger”
“Meet the undead gunslinger driven by eternal vengeance—death can’t stop its thirst for blood!”
The Pale Stranger is a towering, skeletal figure, standing 6-1/2 feet tall, draped in tattered, dust-covered clothing that smells faintly of decay. Its gaunt, ashen face is partially obscured by a wide-brimmed hat, with piercing eyes that burn with an eternal fury.
The desiccated flesh clings to its bones, and its movements are unnervingly smooth for a being so clearly deceased. The twin pistols it wields are almost an extension of its body—crimson-streaked and crackling with unnatural energy. These weapons never run out of ammunition, and they fire with deadly precision, each shot a harbinger of vengeance. The Pale Stranger’s presence exudes an unsettling aura of fear, lingering for a moment after it passes, leaving a chill in the air.
Driven by a singular obsession with vengeance, the Pale Stranger is a relentless hunter, stalking its prey with unwavering determination. When a gunslinger is slain before achieving revenge, or a hated enemy escapes their grasp, the overwhelming wrath animates the body, raising it as this vengeful undead. It is not bound by time, and no place is beyond its reach. Whether in the dusty wastes of a long-forgotten battlefield, or in the abandoned ruins of once-thriving towns, the Pale Stranger moves like a shadow through desolate lands, never resting, always searching.
Its modus operandi is methodical and cold: it tracks its victim without mercy, relying on its supernatural firearms and keen strategic mind to overpower its foes. It opens combat with a fear-inducing aura, sowing dread among its enemies before striking with rapid, accurate shots. Its preferred method of execution is the Stranger’s Shot, a devastating strike that always hits its mark with critical accuracy, often obliterating its target in a single blow. The Pale Stranger never engages in unnecessary conversation or delay—it is a creature of cold efficiency, its sole focus being the completion of its vengeance.
The Pale Stranger’s motivation is simple yet terrifying: the completion of its revenge. Whether it was betrayed, murdered, or simply denied the chance to finish a deadly task, its soul is bound to the idea of settling the score. Once the object of its rage is eliminated, it becomes a wandering force of death, venting its unending fury upon any living creature that crosses its path. There is no peace for this undead gunslinger—only the endless pursuit of retribution, a cycle that will never end until the Pale Stranger itself is destroyed.
Pale Stranger 5e
Pale Stranger Pathfinder
Pale Stranger
Medium undead, chaotic neutral
Armor Class: 17 (natural armor)
Hit Points: 168 (16d8 + 96)
Speed: 30 ft.
| STR | DEX | CON | INT | WIS | CHA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 15 (+2) | 20 (+5) | 22 (+6) | 14 (+2) | 16 (+3) | 18 (+4) |
Saving Throws: Dexterity +9, Wisdom +7, Charisma +8
Skills: Acrobatics +9, Intimidation +8, Perception +7, Stealth +9
Damage Resistances: Necrotic, Poison
Damage Immunities: Psychic
Condition Immunities: Charmed, Frightened, Paralyzed, Poisoned
Senses: Darkvision 120 ft., passive Perception 17
Languages: Common, Infernal, Telepathy 60 ft.
Challenge: 12 (8,400 XP)
Traits
Undead Fortitude
If damage reduces the Pale Stranger to 0 hit points, it must make a Constitution saving throw with a DC of 5 + the damage taken, unless the damage is radiant or from a critical hit. On a success, the Pale Stranger drops to 1 hit point instead.
Vengeful Presence (Recharge 5-6)
As a bonus action, the Pale Stranger can evoke a chilling aura of vengeance. All creatures of its choice within 30 feet must succeed on a DC 16 Wisdom saving throw or become frightened for 1 minute. While frightened, a creature is paralyzed with fear. A frightened creature may attempt the saving throw at the end of each of its turns, ending the effect on itself on a success. The Pale Stranger can use this ability once every 5-6 turns.
Gunslinger’s Precision
The Pale Stranger has honed its pistol skills beyond mortal means. When it makes a ranged attack with a firearm, it can add its Dexterity modifier to the damage roll, and it never suffers disadvantage on attack rolls made in melee.
Stranger’s Luck (Recharge 6)
The Pale Stranger can add a +3 bonus to any attack roll, saving throw, or ability check it makes. It can use this ability once per short or long rest. The Stranger also has advantage on saving throws against effects that would make it incapacitated or prevent it from acting on its turn.
Actions
Multiattack
The it makes two Pistol Attacks or one Pistol Attack and one Stranger’s Shot.
Pistol Attack (Ranged Weapon Attack)
Weapon Attack: +9 to hit, range 30/120 ft., one target.
Hit: 12 (2d6 + 5) piercing damage. The Pale Stranger’s pistols are magical, bypassing resistance to nonmagical damage.
Stranger’s Shot (Recharge 5-6)
The Pale Stranger takes careful aim with one of its pistols. As an action, it can fire a single, powerful shot that always hits as a touch attack regardless of range. The target must make a DC 16 Dexterity saving throw or take 36 (8d6) piercing damage. On a critical hit, the damage increases to 72 (16d6) piercing damage, and the target is also knocked prone. The Pale Stranger cannot use Stranger’s Shot on consecutive turns.
Dual-Wielding Attack
The Pale Stranger can make a second Pistol Attack as part of the same action with no penalty.
Legendary Actions
It can take 3 legendary actions, choosing from the options below. Only one legendary action option can be used at a time, and the Pale Stranger can only take a legendary action at the end of another creature’s turn. The Pale Stranger regains spent legendary actions at the start of its turn.
- Stranger’s Dodge (Costs 1 Action): It moves up to 15 feet without provoking opportunity attacks.
- Quick Draw (Costs 2 Actions): The Pale Stranger draws and fires a pistol as a bonus action. This attack is made with advantage.
- Fear Shot (Costs 3 Actions): It fires a single shot from its pistol, causing the target to make a DC 16 Wisdom saving throw or become frightened for 1 minute. While frightened, a creature cannot take reactions or move closer to the Pale Stranger. The target may repeat the saving throw at the end of its turns to end the effect early.
Reactions
Fateful Strike
When a creature within 60 feet of the Pale Stranger hits it with an attack roll, the Pale Stranger can use its reaction to make a ranged Pistol Attack against the attacker. On a hit, the Pale Stranger’s pistol deals 12 (2d6 + 5) piercing damage and forces the attacker to make a DC 16 Constitution saving throw. On a failed save, the attacker is stunned until the end of its next turn.
Tactics
- Target Priority: It prefers to target the weakest enemies first, using its ranged attacks to pick off foes before they get too close. If there is a particularly powerful or troublesome target, it will use Stranger’s Shot to deal heavy damage and possibly knock them prone.
- Positioning: It uses its Stranger’s Dodge legendary action to move unpredictably, darting from cover to cover. It prefers to fight at range, using Vengeful Presence to keep enemies frightened and disoriented while it picks them off one by one.
- Fear and Fright: The Pale Stranger uses its Vengeful Presence and Fear Shot legendary action strategically, attempting to isolate key enemies or control the battlefield by frightening opponents. Once foes are frightened, it will move in to finish them off with quick, precise pistol shots.
Lair Actions (Optional)
If the Pale Stranger is encountered in its lair (a forgotten, decaying town or ruined battlefield), it can take lair actions on initiative count 20 (losing initiative ties). The Pale Stranger can use one of the following lair actions:
- Eerie Gunfire (Costs 1 Action): It fires a ghostly shot into the air. All creatures within 30 feet of the Pale Stranger must make a DC 16 Wisdom saving throw or suffer disadvantage on attack rolls until the start of the Pale Stranger’s next turn.
- Phantasmal Bounty (Costs 2 Actions): The Pale Stranger creates an illusion of an easy target for its enemies. The Pale Stranger can choose one creature within 60 feet, and that creature must make a DC 16 Wisdom saving throw or be compelled to move towards the Pale Stranger at the start of its next turn.
Environmental Tactics
- Blighted Landscape: The Pale Stranger thrives in desolate environments, such as ruined towns, dry deserts, or forgotten battlegrounds. The winds howl through the empty streets or over barren hills, carrying the faint echo of gunshots. The stranger uses these environments to its advantage, blending into the fog or dust and taking cover behind wreckage or abandoned structures.
Motivation and Combat Style
The Pale Stranger is driven by a deep, unquenchable thirst for vengeance. It seeks out those who have wronged it or those who have wronged others in its presence. Its combat style is methodical, strategic, and precise. It never engages in close combat unless absolutely necessary, preferring to maintain a distance between itself and its enemies. It is relentless, constantly seeking out new victims in a world of decay. The Pale Stranger’s primary goal is to instill fear and hunt down its prey until its vengeance is complete.
Pale Stranger
This nearly skeletal figure wields a pistol in each hand. Its garb is dusty and weathered, and smells of old decay.
Sometimes death itself cannot come between a gunslinger and its final revenge. When a gunslinger is slain by a hated enemy, or murdered before it can achieve vengeance against a hated foe, the anger and wrath can animate its remains as a vengeful undead monstrosity. When a pale stranger first rises, it seeks out the source of its anger to finish the job’ thereafter, it wanders the desolate parts of the world looking for new victims to vent its unending rage upon.
A pale stranger appears much as it did in life, though desiccated and obviously undead. Rare pale strangers have the ability to hide their undead nature and appear as they did in life using veil as a constant spell-like ability (CL equals their CR). These pale strangers are often more powerful and have class levels in gunslinger or ranger, and often attract large groups of adoring bandits and followers who may or may not realize that their murderous idol is in fact an unliving horror. A pale stranger stands 6-1/2 feet tall and weighs 130 pounds.
| Pale Stranger CR 10 |
| XP 9,600 NE Medium undead Init +9; Senses Darkvision 60 ft.; Perception +22 Aura fear (10 ft., DC 21) |
| DEFENSE |
| AC 25, touch 19, flat-footed 19 (+2 armor, +5 Dexterity, +1 Dodge, +3 luck, +4 natural) hp 127 (15d8+60) Fort +9, Ref +10, Will +13 Defensive Abilities Channel Resistance +4; DR 10/bludgeoning and magic; Immune undead traits; SR 21 |
| OFFENSE |
| Speed 30 ft. Ranged +1 pistols +15/+15/+10/+10/+5/+5 (1d8+1/19-20/x4) Special Attacks pistols, stranger’s shot |
| STATISTICS |
| Strength 17, Dexterity 21, Constitution 10, Intelligence 11, Wisdom 18, Charisma 18 Base Atk +11; CMB +14; CMD 30 Feats Deadly Aim, Dodge, Improved Critical (pistol), Improved Initiative, Improved Two-Weapon Fighting, Point-Blank Shot, Precise Shot, Quick Draw, Two-Weapon Fighting Skills Acrobatics +13, Climb +11, Intimidate +22, Perception +22, Ride +15, Stealth +13, Swim +8 Languages Common SQ stranger’s luck |
| SPECIAL ABILITIES |
| Pistols (Su) A pale stranger fights with two pistols. A pistol has a range increment of 20 feet and deals both bludgeoning and piercing damage. At a range of up to 20 feet, a pale stranger’s pistol attacks resolve as touch attacks. While pistols normally consume bullets and black powder when fired, a pale stranger’s pistols supernaturally reload the instant it fires them, allowing the undead to make multiple attacks in a round with the weapons. In addition, any pistol a pale stranger wields functions as a +1 pistol. A pale stranger does not provoke attacks of opportunity when it fires a pistol in melee, and treats pistols as light weapons for the purposes of determining penalties from two-weapon fighting. Further rules for pistols, and firearms in general, can be found in Ultimate Combat. Stranger’s Luck (Su) A pale stranger gains a +3 luck bonus to AC and has no chance of misfire when using firearms. Stranger’s Shot (Ex) As a full-round action, a pale stranger can take careful aim with one of its firearms and take a single, ruinous shot. This single shot always resolves as a touch attack, regardless of the actual range. If the pale stranger threatens a critical hit with this shot, it automatically confirms the critical hit. Regardless of whether the shot is a critical hit or not, it deals +6d6 points of damage. |
| ECOLOGY |
| Environment any Organization solitary Treasure standard (leather armor, 2 pistols, other treasure) |
Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Bestiary 3, © 2011, Paizo Publishing, LLC; Authors Jesse Benner, Jason Bulmahn, Adam Daigle, James Jacobs, Michael Kenway, Rob McCreary, Patrick Renie, Chris Sims, F. Wesley Schneider, James L. Sutter, and Russ Taylor, based on material by Jonathan Tweet, Monte Cook, and Skip Williams.
Plot Hooks
1. The Vengeful Legacy
A long-dead gunslinger has returned from the grave, seeking to avenge a betrayal from years past. The adventurers encounter a small town where rumors abound of a Pale Stranger who has been hunting down former allies who wronged him in life. The Pale Stranger is relentless, and the adventurers must decide whether to protect the remaining targets or confront the vengeful undead themselves. As they investigate, they uncover that the gunslinger’s vengeance may not be the end—something much darker lies behind the resurrection.
2. The Ghost of the Old West
The Pale Stranger haunts an abandoned mining town, where his presence is said to bring bad luck to any who enter. A wealthy benefactor hires the party to retrieve a valuable artifact hidden in the town, but warns them of the Pale Stranger’s curse. However, when they arrive, they realize the stranger is not a simple ghost but a revenant seeking justice, and the treasure they seek may be tied to the dark pact that keeps him bound to this desolate place. To leave with the treasure, they must help him complete his final act of vengeance—or face him as he relentlessly pursues them.
3. Dead Man’s Duel
The Pale Stranger is the subject of an old tale—an invincible gunslinger who is undying and unstoppable. Recently, a well-known hero has come to town, claiming he can rid the world of the Pale Stranger once and for all. However, his challenge has caught the attention of the Pale Stranger, who seeks a final, fateful duel. The adventurers must decide whether to aid the hero in his quest or help the Pale Stranger, whose vengeance may still be just. The clock is ticking, and the duel draws near—if the adventurers intervene, what side will they choose?
4. Echoes of the Past
The Pale Stranger has been slaying enemies in a remote frontier town, but only those with dark pasts. When the party arrives to investigate, they discover a secret society that once betrayed the Pale Stranger when he was alive. Now, his undead form seeks to cleanse the town of their sins. The adventurers are tasked with investigating the mysterious killings, but they soon find themselves caught in the conflict between the Stranger’s thirst for vengeance and the town’s long-buried secrets. Can they stop him before he wipes out the entire town, or will they become part of his eternal hunt?