Editing Succubus (section)

==Succubi in D&D==
Naturally, in [[Dungeons & Dragons]], succubi have been around since the beginning. 

Originally, they were classified as [[Chaotic Evil|Demons]], on their basis of being all about tempting mortals into sins of passion. Since these were the days of [[alignment]]-based grid-filling, naturally, they got a [[Lawful Evil|Devil]] counterpart, the [[Erinyes]]. They also had a half-fiend offspring unique to them; the female [[Alu-Fiend]]s, who served as contrast to the always-male, tanari'ri-fathered [[cambion]]s, though after 2e "cambion" became a more general term for a half-fiend in general.

In [[4e]], [[Tanar'ri|Demons]] and [[Baatezu|Devils]] were separated from their former alignment-based nature. Demons became elemental forces of destruction and madness, whilst Devils became corruptors and soul-harvesting manipulators. For this reason, the succubus moved over to the Devil side, since "seduces mortals into giving up their souls" is closer to the devils' schtick than it is the demons' "destroy everything, drive people insane, let the multiverse burn!" The Erinyes remained in this edition, and was still a devil, but became a ruthlessly disciplined warrior-bitch instead of a seductress, which is fitting since their name comes from the Greek spirits called the Furies who were divine punishment for particularly nasty shit. A dedicated "Ecology of the Succubus" article in [[Dragon Magazine]] #417, prefaced "Fallen Angels", explained that the [[World Axis]] version of the succubus originated as Angels of Love. These Angels were damned by a combination of reverence for [[Asmodeus]] and a deep yearning to be free to spread love as they saw fit, rather than coaxing and manipulating love and passion only as the gods themselves commanded, and when their well-intentioned revolt was punished, their feelings of desire were corrupted into a deep, yawning void in their <s>underwear</s> souls - hence the infamous draining <s>succ</s> kiss of the succubus.

In [[5e]], succubi got separated from the Demon/Devil divide entirely. They're now a [[Neutral Evil]] race of soul-harvesting hedonists who can be found throughout the Lower Planes, happily living alongside demons, devils, [[yugoloth]]s, [[rakshasa]]s or whatever so long as they get to keep getting their rocks off; they are not demons anymore, they are not devils anymore, they are simply non-specific Fiends. Given their alignment-free nature they've become something of a counterpart to the [[angel]]s employed by various Good deities. Eirenyes remain Devil warrior-bitches, which as mentioned above is more in line with their mythological basis.

Whether or not their classic male counterparts the [[Incubus]] were a thing varies from edition to edition, and even sourcebook to sourcebook. Incubi have variously been described as either "exactly like succubi, but male instead of female", "there are no incubi, there are just succubi who prefer to wear male bodies", or "they're an entirely separate species of demon/devil/whatever".

For example, in 3.5 and [[Pathfinder]], succubi who had male identities and preferred male forms existed, but there were also "true" incubi, who were a separate species and described as basically psycho-rapists, since "of course" a fiendish incarnation of male sexuality will be all about forcing itself on others.

In 4th edition, incubi are succubi who followed [[Graz'zt]] to the [[Abyss]] and were corrupted into demons; they're still charmers and manipulators, and in fact this is the one incubus in D&D that isn't about straight up rape, but instead charms and manipulates a victim before killing them, just like a common succubus. 4e incubi are master shapeshifters, capable of becoming a humanoid, a beast, or a self-aware dream as they see fit. They use their dream-form to infiltrate the minds of slumbering victims, tempting and manipulating them, coaxing them into the arms of their humanoid forms, all the while assuming beast form to hunt, terrorize and slaughter freely elsewhere. They serve Graz'zt as scouts, assassins and other agents of disrupting, building clusters of broken-souled, lust-addled victims who will do anything for their master's <s>[[Wand of Wonder]]</s> embrace... and are ultimately consumed when the incubus' hunger for <s>[[Chris-Chan|China]]</s> blood and souls is piqued by their corruption.

In 5e, succubi and incubi are exactly the same, being simply different names for two sexes of the same fiendish race, due to their shape shifting nature making a given one able to shift between the two as they please. They're also neither demon ''nor'' devil, instead being non-specific fiends who can be found throughout the lower planes.

In 3.5, there is a specialized species of "upgraded" succubi called the [[Tanar'ri|lilitu]], and they have their own [[Demon Prince|Demon Queen]], [[Malcanthet]].  The distinguishing feature of lilitu is that their wings are replaced by four stinger-tipped tentacles.  

===Playing Succubi?===
Although many DMs consider succubi to be amongst the most inherently redeemable of fiends - in an age of [[Monstergirls]] and growing up on stories where love redeems, it's not hard to imagine a succubus who doesn't want to hurt her lovers - actually playing them tends to be a no-no. After all, in addition to the long litany of standard powers & resistances that come from being fiends, succubi have powerful level draining and enchantment abilities. Nothing honks a DM off more than a player having an unlimited supply of charm persons. Nonetheless, this did not stop [[Savage Species]] from turning them into a goddamn playable monster class, nor did it stop [[3.5e]] from giving them a level adjustment of +6 for easy conversion into a playable race, and <i>of course</i> [[Planescape: Torment]] allowed a succubus party member.

:'''Medium Outsider (Chaotic, Extraplanar, Evil, Tanar’ri)'''
:'''Hit Dice''': 6d8
:'''Speed''': 30 ft. (6 squares), fly 50 ft. (average)
:'''Natural armor''': +9
:'''Base Attack/Grapple''': +6/+7
:'''Attack''': Claw +7 melee (1d6+1)
:'''Full Attack''': 2 claws +7 melee (1d6+1)
:'''Special Attacks''': Energy drain, spell-like abilities, summon tanar’ri
: '''Spell-Like Abilities''': At-will: charm monster (DC 22), detect good, detect thoughts (DC 20), ethereal jaunt (self plus 50 pounds of objects only), polymorph (humanoid form only, no limit on duration), suggestion (DC 21), greater teleport (self plus 50 pounds of objects only). Caster level 12th. The save DCs are Charisma-based.
:'''Special Qualities''': Damage reduction 10/cold iron or good, darkvision 60 ft., immunity to electricity and poison, resistance to acid 10, cold 10, and fire 10, spell resistance 18, telepathy 100 ft., tongues
:'''Saves''': Fort +6, Ref +6, Will +7
:'''Abilities''': Str 13, Dex 13, Con 13, Int 16, Wis 14, Cha 26
:'''Skills''':
::Bluff +19 (9 levels, +8 cha bonus, +2 from Persuasive)
::Concentration +10 (9 levels, +1 con bonus)
::Diplomacy +12 (4 levels, +8 cha bonus)
::Disguise +17 (9 levels, +8 cha bonus)
::Escape Artist +10 (9 levels, +1 dex bonus)
::Hide +10 (9 levels, +1 dex bonus)
::Intimidate +19 (9 levels, +8 cha bonus, +2 from Persuasive)
::Knowledge (any one) +12 (9 levels, +3 int bonus)
::Listen +19 (9 levels, +2 wis bonus, +8 racial bonus)
::Move Silently +10 (9 levels, +1 dex bonus)
::Search +12 (9 levels, +3 int bonus)
::Spot +19 (9 levels, +2 wis bonus, +8 racial bonus)
::Survival +2 (0 levels, +2 wis bonus) (+4 if following tracks due to having 5 or more levels in Search)
::Use Rope +1 (0 levels, +1 dex bonus) (+3 if binding someone due to having 5 or more levels in Escape Artist)
:'''Feats''': Dodge, Mobility, Persuasive
:'''Level Adjustment''': +6

If a starting ECL of 12 plus class levels is too high for you, then you can play a refluffed [[tiefling]] or a [[Counts as]] tiefling, taking the [[bard]] or [[wizard|enchanter]] class to emphasize your innate mind-whammying mojo and excusing the discrepancy as "you lost most of your fiendish powers when you chose to rise from the pit".

In fairness, that's actually really viable in 5e; tieflings have a +2 to [[Charisma]] anyway, and the racial alternative feature "Devil's Tongue" lets you swap out your fiery SLAs for enchantment ones. Pick up the SCAG for the Winged Tiefling variant, and you're good to go.

That said, if one of your players actually asks to play a succubus then it may be worth doing a background check on them first...

===Gallery===
<gallery>
Succubus ODD6.png|Original D&D
Succubus Monster card.jpg|AD&D Monster Card
Succubus MC8.jpg|2e
Succubus 2e.jpeg|2e, from [[Planescape]].
Succubus Twins.jpg|[[TWINS THEY WERE]] (4e)
5e Succubus.jpg|5e
</gallery>