#chyth king

[thecreaturecodex]

Chyth King

"Kython Slaughterking” by Lars Grant West, © Wizards of the Coast

[The last of the kythons, this art piece didn’t make it into the official web gallery for Book of Vile Darkness. I like how grasshopper-like the textures on the limbs are.]

Chyth King CR 13 NE Aberration This armored giant has four arms and an eyeless head with a serrated beak. Its claws are like the pincers of a lobster or crab. Spines grow along its arms, legs and head, and several smaller appendages twitch along its chest.

Chyth kings are the last line of defense for the queen and colony. They are created from ordinary workers, forced to fight to the death by the virgin queen. The winner devours the corpse of the loser, as well as hormones secreted by the queen, in order to develop into this oversized form, then mates with the queen in order to father the new colony. In addition to regular matings, the chyth king is the record keeper for the hive, recording maps and events in a raised script that can be read by touch.

A chyth king is the physically strongest and fastest of the chyth types. He rarely leaves the colony’s location, but may go on a raid with major workers as a show of power, or as a distraction effort against creatures who do not know that the colony will survive its king. Chyth kings can create an aura by limiting their blindsight—this aura creates a maddening buzz in the heads of other creatures that impedes their abilities and disrupts their spellcasting.

The claws of a chyth king are too clumsy to manipulate objects, but its chest appendages are as dexterous as a human hand. A chyth king stands about twelve feet tall. 

Chyth King    CR 13 XP 25,600 NE Large aberration (chyth) Init +8; Senses blind, blindsight 90 ft., Perception +23 Aura disruption (30 ft., Will DC 23) Defense AC 27, touch 14, flat-footed 22 (-1 size, +4 Dex, +1 dodge, +13 natural) hp 171 (18d8+90) Fort +13, Ref +10, Will +15 Immune acid, cold, gaze attacks, visual spells and effects; Resist electricity 10, fire 10 Offense Speed 40 ft. Melee bite +20 (2d6+8 plus entangling slime), 4 claws +20 (1d8+8/19-20) Space 10 ft.; Reach 10 ft. Special Attacks breath weapon (30 ft. cone, 13d6 acid, Ref DC 24), rend (4 claws, 1d8+12) Statistics Str 27, Dex 18, Con 20, Int 18, Wis 19, Cha 19 Base Atk +13; CMB +22; CMD 37 Feats Cleave, Combat Reflexes, Dodge, Great Fortitude, Improved Critical (claw), Improved Initiative, Power Attack, Stand Still, Stealthy (B), Step Up Skills Acrobatics +23, Climb +27, Escape Artist +29, Intimidate +23, Knowledge (history) +23, Perception +23, Sense Motive +23, Stealth +25, Survival +23 Languages Abyssal, Chyth, Infernal, Undercommon Ecology Environment any land and underground Organization solitary or colony (1 plus 3-20 chyth broodlings, 3-20 minor workers, 3-20 median workers, 1-12 major workers and 1 chyth queen) Treasure standard Special Abilities Disruptive Aura (Su) As a move action, a chyth king can reduce the range of its blindsight by 30 feet in order to create a field that disrupts the minds of non-chyth. All creatures in the aura other than chyth must succeed a DC 23 Will save or take a -4 morale penalty to attack rolls, saving throws and skill checks as long as they are in the aura and for 1 round thereafter. A creature that succeeds this save is immune to the disruptive aura of that chyth king for the next 24 hours. All creatures other than chyth in the aura, whether or not they succeeded the save, must succeed on a DC 23 concentration check whenever they try to cast a spell or the spell is lost. This is a mind-influencing effect, and the save DC is Charisma based. Entangling Slime (Ex) A creature bitten by a chyth king must succeed a DC 24 Reflex save or be coated in slime and entangled for 1 minute. Multiple bites do not increase the penalty, but do increase the duration. A pint of strong alcohol or a universal solvent can remove the slime. The save DC is Constitution based.