[Deathjack is one of the BBEGs of the Iron Kingdoms setting, and made a huge impression on me when I first read the Monsternomicon many years ago. This version draws from both the 3.0 and 5e renditions, as well as adding a few new thematic abilities, and is between them in CR.]
Deathjack
CR 20 CE Construct
This mechanical giant is larger than a wagon and stands stooped under the weight of its immense shoulders, which are fitted with two black chimneys near the neck and two distorted humanoid skulls as pauldrons. Its claws are enormous, as are its horns, and in its belly is a grate containing behind it a furnace with eerie green flames.
Deathjack is a single-minded engine of destruction, powered by a strange artifact and by burning souls for fuel. Deathjack is a bogey, a thing of ill omen blamed for mysterious disappearances in lands where its legend is known. Deathjack will sometimes work alongside the armies of undead tyrants or death cults, but demands a high price in souls for its service. Any creature that attempts to magically control Deathjack becomes the next body thrown into its internal furnace.
Deathjack opens combat with a charge, lowering its horns and goring like a bull. Its main weapons are its claws, which it uses to grab creatures and throw them into the soul furnace in its belly. Creatures in the soul furnace have their life stripped from them even as they burn alive, and this soul energy can be used by Deathjack to heal itself or render its natural weapons even more lethal. Deathjack radiates an aura of hatred that shatters teamwork, can smite goodly creatures, and use number of spell-like abilities centered on death and destruction. When Deathjack has won a combat, it uses its spell-like abilities to animate its victims as undead and sends them in random directions to cause terror and death.
Deathjack wears the Skulls of Hate on its shoulders, a set of magical pauldrons that push the living to violent evil and turn any construct equipped with them into the new Deathjack. Who created the Skulls of Hate is mysterious, with a cult of a death god, the nightshades, a renegade necromancer or singularly powerful lich all floated as hypotheses. If Deathjack knows its own origins or ultimate master, it does not say. In fact, Deathjack rarely says anything to the living except to pronounce their doom, spoken through the Skulls of Hate.
Skulls of Hate (major artifact)
The Skulls of Hate are an intelligent magic item consisting of a pair of black pauldrons in the shape of distorted human skulls, eyes glowing with green flames. A creature wearing the Skulls of Hate (in the shoulders slot), gains its Charisma bonus as a profane bonus to saving throws, and can smite good as an antipaladin of its Hit Dice (max 20th level) once per day. The Skulls of Hate are chaotic evil, can speak Abyssal and Common, have darkvision 60 ft. and lifesense, and have Int 14, Wis 21, Cha 23. The special purpose of the Skulls of Hate is to slay all living creatures. The Skulls of Hate have an Ego score of 30; any creature that fails its saving throw against the Skulls of Hate’s Ego score is forced to seek out a construct and equip it with the Skulls of Hate, whereupon it transforms immediately into the new Deathjack.
The Skulls of Hate can only be destroyed by a good aligned deity of love or peace.
Deathjack CR 20
XP 307,200
CE Huge construct (tsukumogami)
Init +5; Senses darkvision 60 ft., lifesense 60 ft., Perception +20
Aura hatred (30 ft., DC 30)
Defense
AC 36, touch 9, flat-footed 35 (-2 size, +1 Dex, +27 natural)
hp 362 (28d10+168 plus 40)
Fort +17, Ref +18, Will +24
DR 15/good; Immune construct traits; Resist cold 20, fire 20; SR 30
Defensive Abilities profane ward, soul powered; Weakness haunted
Offense
Speed 30 ft.
Melee 2 claws +34 (4d10+8/19-20 plus grab), gore +34 (4d12+8)
Space 15 ft.; Reach 15 ft.
Special Attacks armored stomach, necrovent, powerful charge (gore, 8d12+16 plus trip), soul furnace, smite good (7/day, +6 to attack and AC, +20 to damage), swallow whole (AC 31, 72 hp, 8d6 fire and 2 negative levels)
Spell-like Abilities CL 20th, concentration +26 (+30 casting defensively)
At will—animate dead, cause fear (DC 17), death knell (DC 18), rage, shatter (DC 18)
3/day—create undead, enervation, harm (DC 22), inflict critical wounds (DC 20), slay living (DC 21), shout (DC 21), quickened true strike
1/day—create greater undead, destruction (DC 23), disintegrate (DC 23), earthquake, implosion (DC 25), wail of the banshee (DC 25)
Statistics
Str 26, Dex 13, Con -, Int 14, Wis 21, Cha 23
Base Atk +28; CMB +38; CMD 49
Feats Cleave, Combat Casting, Combat Reflexes, Critical Focus, Exhausting Critical, Fatiguing Critical, Great Cleave, Great Fortitude, Improved Critical (claw), Improved Initiative, Iron Will, Lightning Reflexes, Power Attack, Quicken SLA (true strike)
Skills Climb +12, Intimidate +24, Knowledge (arcana, religion) +20, Perception +23, Sense Motive +23, Survival +23
Languages Abyssal, Common
Ecology
Environment any land
Organization unique
Treasure special (Skulls of Hate)
Special Abilities
Armored Stomach (Ex) Deathjack’s stomach gains its full natural armor bonus to AC and has twice the hit points as
normal. However, because it must be opened and closed again every time a creature is thrown into the soul furnace, a creature already swallowed when Deathjack uses its swallow whole ability can make a CMB check against Deathjack’s CMD to slip out of its stomach by readying an action. If a creature cuts its way out of Deathjack’s stomach, Deathjack cannot use swallow whole until it has healed back to full hit points.
Aura of Hatred (Su) All creatures within 30 feet of Deathjack must succeed a DC 30 Will save or be unable to treat any creatures as allies. They cannot provide flanking, use or benefit from teamwork feats or aid another actions, or allow allied creatures to move through their space. Any spell or effect that requires a willing target fails if used on an affected creature, and other beneficial spells still must succeed an attack roll and require affected creatures to make a saving throw. This effect lasts as long as the creature remains in the aura of hatred. Creatures that succeed their saves are immune to Deathjack’s aura of hatred for the next 24 hours, and creatures who failed their saves must make another saving throw if they leave Deathjack’s aura and enter it again later. The save DC is Charisma based.
Haunted (Ex) Deathjack is treated as both an undead and construct for the purposes of spells and effects. It is healed by negative energy and harmed by positive energy.
Necrovent (Su) As a swift action, Deathjack can vent necromantic smoke from its smokestacks in a 30 foot radius. All creatures in the area take 8d6 points of fire damage (Reflex DC 30 halves) and 1 negative level (Fortitude DC 30 negates). The smoke remains in that radius for 2d4 rounds, blocking vision as per a fog cloud spell and dealing 2d6 points of fire damage every round to creatures who begin their turns in or move through the smoke (Will DC 30 halves). Deathjack can use this ability 3 times per day, and must wait 1d4 rounds between uses. The save DC is Charisma based.
Profane Ward (Su) Deathjack gains a profane bonus to its saving throws equal to its Charisma score.
Smite Good (Ex) Deathjack can smite good as a 20th level antipaladin.
Soul Furnace (Su) Any negative level dealt by Deathjack’s swallow whole ability adds a point to his soul furnace. Deathjack can spend one or more points from its soul furnace as a swift action, to a maximum of its Charisma modifier (+6). A point spent can be used either to deal 1d10 negative energy damage with a natural weapon or heal Deathjack of 1d10 points of damage. Deathjack’s soul furnace can store a number of soul points equal to its Hit Dice at a time (28), and when Deathjack is encountered, it typically has 1d4+6 soul points. Unused charges dissipate within 24 hours.
Soul Powered (Ex) Deathjack adds its Charisma modifier to its Hit Dice as hit points, as if it were undead.
Deathjack aka Death Wraith aka Wacky Waving Arms Deathjack. Built this guy in commission Years ago. Was given to someone else to paint and it and the commissioner pretty much quit Warmachine so the painter had little motivation to finish it and it just sat in limbo until another local player found out about it, acquired the rights to it from original owner, and had it moved to a different painter.
