Innate Spellcasting. The swarm's innate spellcasting ability is Charisma (spell save DC 12, +4 to hit with spell attacks). It can innately cast the following spells, requiring only its pixie dust as a component:
At will: confusion, dancing lights, detect evil and good, detect thoughts, dispel magic, druidcraft, entangle, fly, phantasmal force, polymorph, sleep
Magic Resistance. The swarm has advantage on saving throws against spells and other magical effects.
Swarm. The swarm can occupy another creature's space and vice versa, and the swarm can move through any opening large enough for a Tiny pixie. The swarm can't regain hit points or gain temporary hit points except by reforming. When it dodges, its size becomes Huge until the dodge ends. While the swarm has more than half of its hit points, it has advantage on Wisdom (Perception) checks and disadvantage on Dexterity (Stealth) checks.
Swarm Casting. When the swarm casts a spell, it can choose an additional target within range for the spell, and it can't be counterspelled. Saving throws made to resist such a spell have disadvantage. The swarm can concentrate on up to three spells at once, and it rolls saving throws to maintain concentration for each spell separately, with advantage on the saving throws if it has more than half of its hit points.
Split Off. At the start of each of the swarm's turns, it can choose to split off any number of pixies to act as individual creatures and loses 1 (1d4 – 1) hit point for each pixie that splits off. It can't split off pixies unless it has enough hit points to lose. The pixies are uninjured and appear in the swarm's space. They roll initiative and act as individuals. If the swarm is invisible, so are the pixies upon appearing. Pixies can reform into the swarm over 1 minute while not in combat to add their hit points back to the swarm.
Superior Invisibility. The swarm magically turns invisible until its concentration ends (as if concentrating on a spell). While concentrating on this, it can't concentrate on anything else. Any equipment the swarm wears or carries is invisible with it.
Description
Pixie swarms are capable of weaving their innate pixie magic together into more potent forms. Some can even pass control of a spell from one pixie to another, or use their minds together to concentrate on the same spells for extra magical fortitude.
Because most pixies are pacifists, they don't usually swarm for battle. A swarm of pixies usually means the pixies are dancing, carousing, or any other group activity they find fun and exciting. Of course, that can be nearly just as dangerous as battle, as excited pixies are more likely to try fun tricks with their magic, so getting caught up in a pixie swarm can be marvelous -- or maddening!
Pixies can swarm for battle in a life-or-death situation where there is clearly no escape -- but circumstances so dire almost never befall the hidden pixie communities.
Scamps, Chaotic-Neutral Alternate Pixies
Scamps, a new player character subrace for the Fairy race introduced in The Elements & Beyond, are extremely similar to pixies. They use pixie statistics except that they have proficiency in the Deception skill and they have the following Innate Spellcasting spells instead of the normal pixie spells:
At Will: minor illusion
1/day each: charm person, confusion, dispel magic, enthrall, message, phantasmal force, polymorph, silent image, sleep, telekinesis (sleeping creatures only)
Scamps swarm for similar reasons as pixies, but they are more likely to all agree to play a mean prank on unsuspecting victims with their more potent magic. For a swarm of scamps, use the statistics for a swarm of pixies, but replace the pixie spells with the scamp spells, and give them proficiency in the Deception skill.
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