Mythic Monsters-Obayifo

This is part of the A-Z Blog Challenge. Herein I will be presenting a new monster that hopefully has not been seen before in any RPG game. These will be drawn from stories and mythologies found in a variety of real-world cultures.


Obayifo

The field was withered; its plants meager and barely standing. The priest ran his hand across the tops of the plants and they snapped to the ground. This was why they had been brought in, to find the cause. At first they had thought a few prayers and sacrifices to the local gods would suffice, but soon they determined this was not a natural plague. This was the work of an evil creature and they had chosen this night to hunt it down.
It was into their third hour of the night that the farmer approached the party. He raised his hand in greeting and they responded likewise; they remembered him from the village meeting where the problem was presented to them. It was not until the farmer was close that they realized something was wrong, unnatural. The farmer went to speak and light escaped his mouth. The creature had been found, or more precisely it had found them. They raised their weapons and battle was joined.

This is a powerful undead vampiric creature with ties to West Africa. It is also known as the Asiman. It has a form, that of the body it had while still alive, but in reality it is a ball of blue light now. In this form of light it can inhabit other bodies, even animals. Conceivably it could take over another form for extended periods of time, especially if it no longer has access to its first body. However, they have a natural preference for their original body.

Fortuantely, there are three tell-tale signs a body is inhabited by an Obayifo. The foremost means is that their light escapes from the host body, usually from various orifices. This is really easy to see at night. Second is that the Obayifo has trouble adapting to the new body and its eyes shift around a lot. Third is an intense obsession with food; they eat as much as possible in their new body.

The Obayifo has an insatiable need for liquids that form a part of life. They get the most nourishment from blood, which they can drain at a distance, but they also will drain different fluids from other things, such as plantlife; they have been known to drain the juice from entire crops.

Abilities
-Dominate: The creature is able to gain control of a person’s body for a short time; until the target makes a saving throw vs. the attack.
-Drain: This is a ranged attack that drains fluids from its target. While the Obayifo does not gain an increase in power from this, its target is weakened because of it.
-Ball: Its natural form is a ball of light. In this form it gains damage resistance and speed, but it loses its other attacks. This is usually a defensive measure.

Adventures
-People have begun disappearing from town. At least one per night, sometimes more. A few instances there were witnesses close to the time of the disappearance but the person acted normal. Investigation reveals the missing people simply walked off. An Obayifo has recently found an abandoned ruin and is kidnapping people by the simple expedient of taking over their bodies and walking to the ruin. Once there he imprisons them so he can eat them later; he has combined his obsession with food and his need for bodily fluids together by eating the people and draining them as well. He is building a larder of food.

- Animals in the area have become rabid. There have been several attacks in the region, several had led to deaths. Worse, while there were animal bite and claw marks, the victims had also been drained of their life essence, leaving withered husks behind. The party has been hired to solve this problem. In reality, this all the work of an Obayifo taking the bodies of the local animals. Soon after the party begins their investigation it will alter its tactics and start using human forms instead.

-Will-o-wisps have been seen in the area. When the party goes to deal with them they will be surprised when they learn they are really dealing with some unusual vampires.