#native outsider

[thecreaturecodex]

Kami, Totoro

"Totoro_Night" © deviantArt user MabeNK00, accessed at her gallery here.

[Sponsored by @tanukutie. The idea of doing Totoro as a monster took me back a bit, because My Neighbor Totoro is famously a movie with very little conflict. The closest thing to combat is a scene where a little girl is startled by a goat. But rewatching My Neighbor Totoro for this entry crystallized things in my mind. Totoro lives in a camphor tree, and camphor was one of the resources coveted by the Imperial Japanese war machine. To Western eyes, the original double feature of My Neighbor Totoro/Grave of the Fireflies seems like a cruel joke, but the significance would have been apparent to Japanese audiences. This family gets to live in peace following the war by living their life in an old fashioned way close to nature. The other family doesn't. The plot of My Neighbor Totoro is about the virtue of patience and rest; the plot is about two children waiting for their sick mother to come home from the hospital. And Totoro himself spends a lot of time just chilling.

A monster themed around patience and rest is tricky to do in a combat focused game, but not impossible, and I quite enjoyed the challenge. I don't foresee a lot of parties having to fight a totoro unless they're hella evil, but one could be used to add some whimsy to forest adventuring and provide a useful ally.

My Neighbor Totoro really resonated for me now as someone who is resting (from the trauma of being driven out of my last job for being a trans woman) and waiting (to get a new job). If you would like to help me during my recovery period, please consider joining the Creature Codex Patreon here.]

Kami, Totoro CR 7 CG Outsider (native) This rotund creature is something like a bear, something like an owl, something like a cat and something like a rabbit. It has gray fur, long ears, a stumpy tail and a large mouth with human like teeth. Its eyes are wide-set and round.

Kodamas are the kami of trees as a whole, but special trees may possess special kami. Ancient camphor trees, for example, may be guarded by a totoro. Totoros are peaceful creatures that sleep by day and play and tend to the forest by night. They are typically shy and secretive around humanoids and rarely speak to them, leading those that catch a glimpse of one often thinking they just saw a strange animal. They are more favorably disposed to small children and pleasant fey creatures. These may be invited to play with them and assist them in their duties of ensuring that seeds grow and trees are healthy, especially if they do the totoro a kindness. Totoros often live with several shikigami who act as apprentices, who assume totoro-like appearances and develop into full totoros when another camphor tree in their forest grows old enough.

As camphor trees are very long lived and their wood contains medicinal chemicals, totoros embody the virtues of patience and rest. Totoros live a slow life and encourage others to do the same, and they protect those they are friendly with while they sleep. Those who share in a totoro’s magical dreams heal faster and are guarded against hostile creatures. This is a very useful boon to adventurers traveling through a totoro’s forest, but a party of armed adults is unlikely to learn of a totoro’s presence, let alone befriend one.

Camphor trees make good lumber, and the camphor they produce can be used to make alchemical explosives as well as medicine. Totoros will fight to defend their trees from logging or to protect children under their care, and are extremely distrustful of anyone using alchemist’s fire or gunpowder. A totoro’s claws are typically used for climbing and scratching itches, but they can inflict terrible wounds if necessary. Totoros can also use their strong lungs to push enemies away with powerful sneezes, or magically amplify their shouting to the point of dealing damage. Totoros fight to defend and not to kill, and will not pursue enemies that flee them. When defending their camphor trees, totoros fight to the death.

Although they do not need to eat, totoros enjoy eating, particularly acorns and mushrooms. Many totoros play the ocarina.

Totoro CR 7 XP 3,200 CG Large outsider (kami, native) Init +1; Senses darkvision 60 ft., low-light vision, Perception +16, scent Defense AC 20, touch 10, flat-footed 19 (-1 size, +1 Dex, +10 natural) hp 105 (10d10+50); fast healing 5 Fort +8, Ref +8, Will +10 DR 10/cold iron; Immune bleed, mind-influencing effects, petrifaction, polymorph; Resist acid 10, electricity 10, fire 10; SR 18 Offense Speed 30 ft. Melee 2 claws +14 (1d6+5) Space 10 ft.; Reach 10 ft. Special Attacks shoving sneeze Spell-like Abilities CL 7th, concentration +11 At will—hide campsite (DC 17), invisibility (self only), speak with plants1/day—fly, plant growth, repel vermin, shout (DC 18) Statistics Str 21, Dex 13, Con 21, Int 10, Wis 16, Cha 18 Base Atk +10; CMB +16; CMD 28 Feats Bodyguard, Combat Reflexes, In Harm’s Way, Nature Soul, Stand Still Skills Acrobatics +14 (+26 when jumping), Climb +13, Knowledge (nature) +17, Perception +16, Perform (wind instrument) +12, Stealth +18, Survival +20; Racial Modifiers +12 Acrobatics when jumping, +8 Stealth Languages Common, Senzar, telepathy 100 ft. SQ light sleeper, merge with ward, mighty leaper, pleasant dreams, ward (camphor tree) Ecology Environment warm and temperate forests Organization solitary or mentorship (1 plus 1-4 shikigami) Treasure incidental Special Abilities Light Sleeper (Ex) A totoro does not suffer penalties to Perception checks to hearing while asleep. Mighty Leaper (Ex) A totoro does not take penalties to Acrobatics checks made to jump if it doesn’t get a running start. If it does get a running start, the distance it travels doubles. Pleasant Dreams (Su) By concentrating for 1 hour, a totoro can share pleasant dreams once per day. It can use this ability on itself and a number of creatures equal to its Charisma modifier (4 for the average totoro), and all recipients must be within 10 miles of the totoro’s ward. Creatures in the shared dream can communicate with the totoro and with each other as if per a dream council spell (CL 10th). Creatures subject to the pleasant dreams of a totoro heal double the normal amount from resting, and while asleep are protected from danger as if under a sanctuary spell (CL 10th, DC 19). The save DC is Charisma based. Shoving Sneeze (Ex) As a swift action once every 1d4 rounds, a totoro can sneeze, allowing it to make a bull rush maneuver against a single creature within 5 feet. A totoro does not move along with a creature subject to a bull rush in this manner.

[doomboy911]

Theme Outsider, Native (Slenderman) Prompt List

Creature Codex Art Challenge

Commentary

Well I feel like a putz, I was doing my counting to make sure I was on track and found out that a week ago I missed Native outsiders (an odd notion) so I had to double back and whip up this bad boy. Happy with the palette and the while works well. Wouldn't want to run into this in the woods but I don't go into the woods for this exact reason.

Palette Picked

Marrow4 Palette

Download this palette for free as a PNG, PAl, ASE, TXT, GPL or HEX file.

[bestiarybreakdown]

Janni

Want to introduce players to genies who aren’t the all-powerful wish granters commonly seen post-Disney? The janni’s for you.

Besides some spell-like abilities, including thrice a day invisibility and plane shift, janni have two special abilities. Change Size (Sp) lets them shrink or grow a target, an ability which can function on themselves. The other is defensive, relfectign their origin as a mixture of all four elemental energies. Elemental Endurance (Ex) lets them survive on any elemental plane for 48 hours as if they were native to that plane, though time they spend their over that limit slowly damages them.

Janni are not bound to any elemental plane, formed equally from their energies and native to the material plane. Despite this, they are still genies and you would be best not to forget that. They take insult easily, but they also have a strict sense of honor and hospitality. 

Interestingly, they're actually the closest to the original genie. In the old stories, the genies didn’t have any special magical powers when granting wishes. If you wished for money, they gave it to you from their own fortunes. If you wished for a castle they’d build it themselves, though more powerful genies could do it faster. It wouldn’t be impossible for a janni to offer a wish to adventurers in exchange for a favor, only to surprise them by actually  putting in the work to see it through rather than simply snapping their fingers and having it done.

A janni runs a business at a planar crossroads, offering shelter to beings of all stripes. Daemons, ghouls, adventurers, angels, dimensional shamblers, and more all brush shoulders under its roof, barely kept in check by the strict code of tenancy. Those who break the rules by acting against another occupant or abuse hospitality are quickly evicted as the elemental servants turn on them.

A janni owed a favor and has been ordered to construct a castle. However, progress has been slow and parts of his construction seem to fail, forcing him to regularly restart entire sections. He has become infuriated at this, suspecting sabotage and harboring fears that he was never meant to finish the castle at all. He’ll commission anyone passing by to investigate the matter for him, though he’s careful only to promise vast riches as a reward after how this favor is turning out.

Two janni are in a competition to see who is better. They approach unwitting mortals and ask them to make a wish, then each janni does their best to fulfil it and asks the mortal to judge who did it better. The safest option is to say both did equally well in order to avoid angering one of the volatile outsiders, but this merely delays the problem as they seek out a new judge for their contest.

[enddaysengine]

Ogre Mage (Planescape)

Ogre Mages changed quite a bit in the transition between 3.5 and Pathfinder. At the mechanical level, they went from being giants to native outsiders. At the worldbuilding level, they went from being random monsters to the first of the oni. What does that mean for Planescape?

Mechanically, not that much changes. Oni are technically fiends (and will be getting some coverage in the upcoming hardcover Book of the Damned!), but they are native to the Prime, so I suspect a lot of planar natives will underestimate them.

Two mechanical aspects to keep in mind is that Ogre Mages are constantly able to fly via magic and that their regeneration is overcome by fire and acid, not unlike trolls. For the Elemental Planes, that means that are naturally predisposed to the Elemental Plane of Air and will avoid the Plane of Fire, Quasielemental Plane of Salt, and Paraelemental Plane of Ooze. They are likely also to avoid Gehenna and the "classical" layers of Hell.  

Just because you are lawful, doesn't mean you fight fair. In their ongoing war with the kami, a group of ogre mages has turned to worshiping Magdh, in hopes that allies from the First World can use their mastery of nature to undermine the kami. 

Cirily's Planarists may not be a proper Faction, but they can cause a world of trouble for adventurers not native to Sigil. Desperate primes may find an unlikely ally in Sigil's Ogre Mage population, but they must be cautious. While many of these fiends are willing to do anything to humble Cirily, they also tend to antagonize the Mercykillers, and could inadvertently get their allies caught in the crossfire. 

There are some places that even the fame merchant-king Estavan will not go. Unfortunately for the Planar Trade Consortium, right now the City of Brass is one of those locations. As the cold war between Estavan and Shemeshka the Maurader heats up, the ogre mage is increasingly wary about his safety and looks to recruit the party to serve as his envoys to the court of Grand Sultana Ayasellah Mihelar Khalidlah II. The plum assignment could make them rich, but it is fraught with danger from the Maurader's minions, as well as blackmail and sabotage from Bytopian gnomes looking to drive Estavan out of the Twin Paradises.

[thecreaturecodex]

Nindoru, Guhdggi

Image © Paizo Publishing, accessed at Archives of Nethys here

[I'm going double time with sponsored posts for a few weeks; I have a lot of people who want monsters, and my production schedule still finds 3/week the most comfortable. First up, another nindoru retro-conversion for @justicegundam82. I assume the name rhymes with "budgie". The guhdggi is dramatic evidence of Paizo's philosophy of higher numbers in PF2e than PF1e. I removed the extra damage dealt by its weapons of ruin, and it still has the damage output of a CR 8 monster at a CR 5. I assume the terrible speed is supposed to help mitigate that; I also lowered the AC below CR standard, the same way PF1e does for a lot of animals with high damage outputs. Of all the nindoru, the guhdggi has probably my favorite design; it's so delightfully, creatively wretched.

If you'd like to join @justicegundam82 in sponsoring your own monsters, or just want to help a girl out, consider joining the Creature Codex Patreon here]

Nindoru, Guhdggi CR 5 CE Outsider (native) This horrific creature looks something like a bipedal frog the size of an ogre, with milky eyes and spindly arms. It carries two broken spears which it uses as hiking poles, and a tangled cage made of wicker hangs on its back. Tendrils of black hair dangle from the sides of its mouth, and when it opens its mouth, the thing reveals a humanoid head peering from inside the thing’s throat, nestled amid tangled hair and blood red butterflies.

The guhdggis are the nindoru that represent the cycle of journeys. No journey ever truly begins or ends; a person travels throughout their life both physically and mentally. Guhdggis form from the corrupted souls of pilgrims, those who went on the same journey through multiple lifetimes and eventually became disgusted with the outcome. As if to punish them for rejecting the serenity of travel, guhdggis have twisted legs and walk very slowly, trusting to poles to keep them upright and moving forward.

Because of their shambling gait, guhdggis are envious of those who can travel more freely, and often set up ambushes along roads or near the sites of pilgrimage. The second head inside their mouth can spew a cone of soul butterflies with razor sharp wings, and the hair that grows from it is disturbingly prehensile. A guhdggi usually opens combat by grabbing a weak-looking opponent with their hair and then traps it in the wicker cage they wear on their back. Inside the cage, a creature’s mind is torn apart as the guhdggi reviews the places it’s been, a psychic presentation that ends with the trapped creature’s death or escape. Guhdggis use their walking sticks as spears to impale stronger foes, and use their spell-like abilities to bring enemies down to their lurching speed.

Most guhdggis are filled with wanderlust, and so rarely remain in one place for too long. Their perambulations are faster than their slow gaits would suggest, as they have the magical ability to pick out trails and carve their way through the wilderness. Other nindoru often accompany them on these journeys, looking for new victims to kill and places to despoil. Tangles of cords affix broken tools, items and souvenirs to a guhdggi’s body; a guhdggi can use its ties to ruin to conjure just the right item if they need one. As they are always on the move, guhdggis have little interest in large showy treasure, but they do collect small tokens of the victims they slay.

Guhdggi CR 5 XP 1,600 CE Large outsider (chaos, evil, native, nindoru) Init +6; Senses darkvision 60 ft., Perception +14 Defense AC 16, touch 11, flat-footed 14 (-1 size, +2 Dex, +5 natural) hp 57 (6d10+24) Fort +6, Ref +7, Will+10 DR 5/silver; Immune death effects, energy drain, exhaustion, fatigue; Resist negative 10 Offense Speed 15 ft. Melee +1 spear +10/+5 (1d8+5), +1 spear +10 (1d8+5), hair lash +4 (1d6+2 plus grab) or hair lash +9 (1d6+6 plus grab) Space 10 ft.; Reach 10 ft. Special Attacks belch butterflies, cage foe, ruin wielder, superior two weapon fighting Spell-like Abilities CL 6th, concentration +8 (+12 casting defensively) At will—daze (DC 12), know direction, telekinetic projectile 3/day—decrepit disguise (DC 14), ray of enfeeblement (DC 13), quintessence (DC 14) 1/day—nature’s paths, slow (DC 15) Statistics Str 18, Dex 15, Con 18, Int 15, Wis 20, Cha 15 Base Atk +6; CMB +11 (+15 grapple); CMD 23 Feats Combat Casting, Improved Initiative, Nimble Moves Skills Acrobatics +8 (+2 when jumping), Climb +10, Intimidate +11, Knowledge (arcana, religion) +11, Perception +14, Stealth +11, Survival +14 Languages Aklo, Common, Necril SQ manifest tool, soul shred Ecology Environment any land or underground Organization solitary, pair, party (1-2 plus 2-10 other nindoru) or pilgrimage (3-6) Treasure incidental (2 broken spears) Special Abilities Belch Butterflies (Su) Once every 1d4 rounds, a guhdggi can spray butterflies from its mouth in a 15 foot cone as a standard action. All creatures in the area take 4d6 points of slashing damage and 1d6 bleed; a successful DC 17 Reflex save halves the damage and negates the bleed. Any creature that takes damage from this ability must succeed a DC 17 Fortitude save or be sickened for 1d4 rounds. The save DC is Constitution based. Cage Foe (Ex/Su) By succeeding a combat maneuver check against a Medium or smaller grappled foe, a guhdggi can transfer the foe to the wicker cage it wears on its back. This functions as the swallow whole ability, except that creatures in the cage take 2d6+5 psychic damage per round and can escape with a single combat maneuver or Escape Artist check. The cage has hardness 5 and 11 hp for the purposes of destroying it, and uses the guhdggi’s AC for the purposes of attacking it from the outside. If a creature destroys the guhdggi’s cage, it requires 8 hours work to replace it. Manifest Tool (Su) As a standard action once per hour, a guhdggi can pull whatever tool it needs out of its pack. This functions as a masterwork tool for the guhdggi and a broken tool for any other creature, and the tool remains for 1 minute before crumbling. Ruin Wielder (Su) Any broken weapon wielded by a guhdggi ignores the penalties for being broken. The guhdggi can treat any broken light weapon as a +1 weapon. Soul Shred (Su) Any attempt to return a creature slain by a guhdggi from the dead, or animate it as an undead, must succeed a DC 20 caster level check. If the nindoru that killed that creature is itself slain, this effect no longer functions. Superior Two-Weapon Fighting (Ex) A guhdggi takes no penalties to attack and damage rolls when wielding two weapons. It does not gain additional attacks with the second weapon unless it takes the appropriate feats.

[thecreaturecodex]

Oni, Shujushi

"The Great Sage Who Pacifies Heavens" © Xiaobao Studios, accessed at their ArtStation here

[Sponsored by @mr-w-rambles, who wanted a dwarven oni that targeted ancestral veneration specifically. The name is derived from the Japanese shuju, "dwarf" and shi, "death".

Edit: After talking with the sponsor, I've made a few adjustments. I gave them the ability to change their favored clan by eating another dwarf, which makes his plot work better, and I've also included some references to the conversation about alcohol in the comments. That being said, a shujushi already has a better Fort save than a low-level dwarf would, so it's not that big of a tell.]

If you're interested in sponsoring monsters, want to see my bonus writing, or just want to help a girl out, check out the Creature Codex Patreon here]

Oni, Shujushi CR 9 CE Outsider (native) This stocky humanoid is gray skinned and shaggy, with curved horns like a bull and tusks in their lower jaw. They carry a massive polearm and their hair and beard seem to move on their own accord.

The shujushi are a lineage of oni whose destructive envy is turned towards dwarves. To these highly individualistic and selfish spirits, the community and traditions of the dwarves are disgusting to the highest degree, and they despise dwarven ancestral veneration and deep respect of history. Rather than forming an entirely new body when they materialize, the jealous shujushi possesses the corpse of a dwarf, molding it into an oni. Although shujushi have much less versatile shapeshifting than most other oni, they can mimic the characteristic features of the clan to whom their body belonged to the point where they regularly fool the living members of that clan. If a shujushi desires to prey on another clan, they devour the corpse of one of that clan's members, either freshly slain or by disturbing a tomb instead.

A shujushi’s typical MO is to seek out living members of “their” clan and pose as a relative. If the body they possess dies apart from their clan, they may even pose as their own body, begging off any protests of their death as rumors or lies. If they are accepted by their “family”, they act as cuckoos, stripping resources from their supposed relatives and destroying their reputation with other dwarves or with outsiders. A shujushi especially enjoys climbing the clan's ranks to obtain a position of power, directing the whole clan in destructive ways. If their ruse is seen through, they instead join a rival clan, claiming to be a defector and helping their new allies destroy the clan that rejected them. Shujushi are good but not great mimics of dwarves, which is most notable with their relationship with alcohol. Shujushi have no inherent poison resistance, so those that drink can get drunk faster than their dwarven compatriots, and those that don't drink may also attract suspicion. Dwarven clans that suspect a shujushi is among their ranks may hold drinking contests as a way to strengthen their bonds while ferreting out the impostor.

As fits any good dward, shujushi fight clad in armor and with stout weapons like axes and hammers. Their beards are mobile, even in dwarven form, although they usually keep them still to avoid suspicion—these animate beards help them in grappling, shoving enemies around and preventing the shujushi from being tripped or disarmed. Shujushi are skilled at fighting dwarves, and target dwarven foes above all others if they have a choice. They tend to use their spell-like abilities in combat only if opponents stay out of melee, or in order to cover for an escape from a losing fight. Although they are not undead, shujushi are affected by positive and negative energy as if they are, and the tenuous grasp of their spirit on their dwarven bones may cause them to be stunned if someone attempts to exorcise them.

Shujushi CR 9 XP 6,400 CE Medium outsider (dwarf, native, oni, shapechanger) Init +4; Senses darkvision 60 ft., Perception +15 Defense AC 23, touch 14, flat-footed 19 (+4 Dex, +5 armor, +4 natural) hp 112 (9d10+63); regeneration 5 (fire, positive energy) Fort +10, Ref +10, Will +9 SR 20 Defensive Abilities animate beard, negative energy affinity; Weakness tethered soul Offense Speed 20 ft., slow and steady Melee masterwork dwarven longaxe +16/+11 (1d12+9/19-20x3), gore +10 (1d6+3) or gore +15 (1d6+9) Ranged masterwork light crossbow +14 (1d8/19-20) Space 5 ft.; Reach 5 ft. (10 ft. with dwarven longaxe) Special Attacks kinslayer Spell-like Abilities CL 9th, concentration +11 At will—discern next of kin (DC 13), undetectable alignment 3/day—glyph of warding (DC 15), stone call, suggestion (DC 15) 1/day—spiritual ally, wall of stone Statistics Str 22, Dex 19, Con 25, Int 17, Wis 16, Cha 14 Base Atk +9; CMB +17 (+19 bull rush); CMD 31 (33 vs. bull rush) Feats Combat Reflexes, Deceitful, Improved Bull Rush, Improved Critical (dwarven longaxe), Power Attack Skills Appraise +13, Bluff +14, Disable Device +13, Disguise +14 (+24 as member of specific dwarf clan), Intimidate +12, Knowledge (dungeoneering, history, local) +10, Perception +15, Sense Motive +13, Stealth +13 Languages Common, Dwarven, Undercommon SQ change shape (dwarf, alter self), claim form, family resemblance, martial familiarity, trapfinding Ecology Environment any land or underground Organization solitary or pair Treasure standard (masterwork do-maru, masterwork dwarven longaxe, masterwork light crossbow with 20 bolts, other treasure) Special Abilities Animate Beard (Ex) A shujushi’s mobile facial hair grants it a +2 racial bonus to CMB and CMD checks. Claim Form (Su) The family resemblance and kinslayer abilities of a shujushi function against the clan of the dwarf it most recently consumed. If it has not consumed the corpse of a dwarf, it functions against the clan of the dwarf whose body it was originally formed from. Family Resemblance (Ex) A shujushi gains +10 racial bonus to all Disguise checks made to disguise themselves as members of the dwarf clan to which their claimed form belongs. Kinslayer (Ex) A shujushi gains a +1 racial bonus to attack and damage rolls against dwarves. This bonus increases to +2 against members of the clan to which their claimed form belongs. Martial Familiarity (Ex) Shujushi are proficient in all types of armor and in all exotic weapons with “dwarven” in the name. Slow and Steady (Ex) A shujushi’s move speed is never hindered by armor or encumberance. Tethered Soul (Ex) If a shujushi is subject to a dispel evil or other spell or effect that ends possession, it must succeed a Will saving throw against the spell or effect or be stunned for 1 round. Trapfinding (Ex) A shujushi can use Perception and Disable Device to find and disarm magical traps.

[thecreaturecodex]

Nindoru, Sojiruh

Image © Paizo Publishing, accessed at Archives of Nethys here

[Sponsored by @justicegundam82. This entry comes with a bonus vocab word! If you've ever wondered what those fountains that make the little "donk" sound are that show up in Japanese media, wonder no more!

If you'd like to be like @justicegundam82 and sponsor your own monsters, or just chip in a few bucks to help an unemployed author keep the lights on, check out the Creature Codex Patreon here]

Nindoru, Sojiruh CR 4 CE Outsider (native) This creature resembles a desiccated humanoid corpse, its arms overly long and broken in multiple places. Its head is shrunken in on itself, lips stitched shut with strands of its own hair. Its ribcage is open, and a swarm of red butterflies flutters inside it.

Sojiruh are the most common of the nindoru, outsiders that come about through the corruption of reincarnation and natural cycles. Sojiruh represent the corruption of the cycle of reincarnation itself. The first sojiruh were created when people who had already passed through several cycles of reincarnation turned their back on the goal of enlightenment, but many sojiruh are created from souls wrenched out of place by being killed by other nindoru. Those who follow philosophies of reincarnation and enlightenment view sojiruh as abominations; sojiruh find those who follow such philosophies to be tempting targets.

Sojiruhs can sniff out victims with reincarnated souls and target them first and foremost. Their broken blades deal damage with mental anguish as much as they do with actual sharpened steel. A sojiruh can scream with the voice of its victim, harmonizing with their cries of anguish as it feeds on their fear and life force alike. Sojiruh consider the pairing of fear with life similarly to how mortal gourmets treat a wine paired with a meal, and when they are not actively hunting mortals, may compare tasting notes.

Despite their sewn shut mouth, sojiruh can speak freely with hollow-sounding voices. They stretch their mouths open only to scream. When they do scream, the butterflies in their chest beat their wings frantically, as if to fan the flames of the nindoru’s hunger. Sojiruh and meokdan get along reasonably well, with the weaker meokdan flocking to a sojiruh’s side to scavenge on its victims. Sojiruh are interested in unusual sounds, and their lairs are often decorated with chimes, sōzu fountains, and other noisemakers. They use these in conjunction with their own abilities, using ghost sound and ventriloquism spells to confuse and disorient intruders.

Sojiruh CR 4 XP 1,200 CE Medium outsider (chaos, evil, native, nindoru) Init +3; Senses darkvision 60 ft., Perception +11 Defense AC 19, touch 13, flat-footed 16 (+3 Dex, +2 natural, +4 armor) hp 37 (5d10+10) Fort +5, Ref +7, Will +7 DR 5/silver; Immune death effects, energy drain; Resist negative 10, sonic 10 Defensive Abilities manifest armor Offense Speed 30 ft. Melee broken shortsword +9 (1d6+4 plus 1d6 psychic/19-20) Special Attacks ruin wielder, stolen scream Spell-like Abilities CL 5th, concentration +8 At will—ghost sound (DC 13), telekinetic projectile3/day—cause fear (DC 14), ventriloquism (DC 14) 1/day—decrepit disguise(DC 15), quintessence(DC 15), shatter (DC 15), sound burst (DC 15) Statistics Str 16, Dex 17, Con 15, Int 14, Wis 16, Cha 17 Base Atk +5; CMB +8; CMD 21 Feats Athletic, Combat Expertise, Great Fortitude Skills Acrobatics +8, Climb +13, Intimidate +11, Knowledge (arcana, religion) +10, Perception +11, Stealth +11, Swim +13 Languages Aklo, Common, Necril SQ soul shred Ecology Environment any land or underground Organization solitary, pair or pack (3-8) Treasure incidental (broken shortsword) Special Abilities Manifest Armor (Su) As a standard action, a sojiruh can conjure a suit of armor made of interlocking bones and wicker. This grants it a +4 armor bonus to its AC without imposing any armor check penalties. This armor is treated as having hardness 5 and 5 hp for the purposes of sundering, and is automatically destroyed if the sojiruh takes a critical hit that deals bludgeoning, piercing or slashing damage. Ruin Wielder (Su) Any broken light weapon wielded by a sojiruh ignores the penalties for being broken. A sojiruh treats any broken light weapon as if it were a +1 weapon, and deals an additional 1d6 points of psychic damage on a hit. Soul Shred (Su) Any attempt to return a creature slain by a sojiruh from the dead, or animate it as an undead, must succeed a DC 19 caster level check. If the nindoru that killed that creature is itself slain, this effect no longer functions. Stolen Scream (Su) As a standard action, a sojiruh can target a creature within 30 feet by screaming in its own voice. The affected creature takes 4d6 points of psychic damage and is shaken for 1 minute; a successful DC 15 Will save halves the damage and negates the shaken effect. If a creature fails its save and has past lives (such as a samsaran or someone subject to the reincarnate spell), the sojiruh heals 2d8+5 points of damage. A creature that succeeds this save is immune to the stolen scream of that sojiruh for the next 24 hours. This is a mind-influencing fear effect, and the save DC is Charisma based.

[thecreaturecodex]

Exalted Unicorn

"Heroes of Might and Magic III - Unicorn" © Ubisoft, by Magdalena Katanska, accessed at her ArtStation here

[Sponsored by @thetygre, who wanted to explore how popular culture unicorns have diverged from D&D unicorns. In D&D and Pathfinder, unicorns are fairly low CR; they're intended to be the sort of creatures your PCs can befriend at low levels and maybe even ride if they're lucky at higher levels, who can defend their woods from goblins and ogres but need help from the PCs for more serious threats. This is in contrast to most modern fantasy that treats unicorns seriously, which leans hard into "unicorn as metaphor for Christ" and makes them figures of quasi-divine awe. Think Legend, where slaying a unicorn is enough to throw the balance of the whole world towards the forces of darkness, or The Last Unicorn, which uses its titular unicorn to represent the passing of magic from the world. I didn't want them to be super-powerful, because again, threats to the unicorn are the crux of those stories.

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Exalted Unicorn CR 12 NG Outsider (native) This majestic horse is larger than a normal horse and sturdily built, with cloven hooves, goat-like beard and a long horn growing from its forehead. Its fetlocks, mane, hooves and horn all gleam with gold.

The unicorn is one of the most visible symbols of good among mortal creatures, defending their woodland homes against the forces of evil. A unicorn who performs a great service to the forces of good can be transformed with holy power into an exalted unicorn. Examples of these services include slaying a powerful fiend, serving as the mount to a cleric defending the faith, or protecting holy beings such as angels or agathions. Exalted unicorns closely resemble a typical unicorn, but are slightly larger and their horns and hooves gain a metallic hue. Ordinary unicorns view them as culture heroes and spread word of their deeds among fey courts and elven halls.

Exalted unicorns are incredibly secretive, appearing to mortals only in times of great need. As an embodiment of celestial power in mortal form, the mere presence of an elder unicorn is enough to take the breath away from most creatures, and hardened soldiers have been reduced to reverent tears in their proximity. The very touch of an exalted unicorn burns the flesh of evil creatures, and enemies that take to the air to avoid their powerful charge are blasted with beams of burning sunlight. Exalted unicorns would rather heal than harm, however, and if they are in the presence of allies support them with the healing magic that flows from their horns. They are exceedingly reluctant to be ridden by even the purest of mortals

Just as the horns of lesser unicorns are coveted by the callous and cruel for their healing properties, so too is the horn of an exalted unicorn. An exalted unicorn horn is worth 18,000 gp as a component for crafting magic items related to healing and life. Not only is killing one of these creatures difficult, however, it stains the soul—a creature that slays an exalted unicorn is cursed to be repulsive and alienating to all but evil creatures. This curse is seen as a badge of pride among anti-theist fiends such as asuras and demodands and their followers.

Exalted Unicorn CR 12 XP 19,200 NG Large outsider (good, native) Init +7; Senses darkvision 60 ft., detect evil, low-light vision, Perception +23, scent Aura awe (30 ft., DC 25), magic circle vs. evil (10 ft., DC 25) Defense AC 26, touch 16, flat-footed 19 (-1 size, +7 Dex, +10 natural); +2 deflection vs. evil hp 162 (13d10+71) Fort +15, Ref +15, Will +11; +2 resistance vs. evil DR 10/evil; Immune charm, compulsion, poison; SR 28 (divination only) Defensive Ability death curse, holy skin Offense Speed 60 ft. Melee gore +20 (2d8+8 plus 2d6 good), 2 hooves +18 (1d6+4 plus 2d6 good) Ranged searing ray +19 touch (6d6 radiant) Space 10 ft.; Reach 10 ft. Special Attacks powerful charge (gore, 4d8+16) Spell-like Abilities CL 13th, concentration +22 Constant—detect evil, nondetection At will—daylight, neutralize poison (DC 23), water walk 3/day—greater teleport, mass cure light wounds (DC 24), restoration 1/day—air walk, grove of respite, heal (DC 25) Statistics Str 26, Dex 25, Con 24, Int 15, Wis 25, Cha 29 Base Atk +13; CMB +22 (+24 bull rush); CMD 39 (41 vs. bull rush, 43 vs. trip) Feats Extra Lay On Hands, Greater Mercy, Improved Bull Rush, Multiattack, Power Attack, Reward of Life, Ultimate Mercy Skills Acrobatics +23 (+35 when jumping), Knowledge (nature, planes) +18, Heal +23, Perception +23, Sense Motive +23, Stealth +27, Survival +23 (+29 in forests); Racial Modifiers +8 Stealth, +6 Survival in forests Languages Celestial, Common, Elven, Sylvan SQ blessed strikes, lay on horn (17/day, 6d6; blinded, cursed, diseased, fatigued), wild empathy +28, woodland stride Ecology Environment temperate forests Organization solitary Treasure special (see above) Special Abilities Aura of Awe (Su) All creatures within 30 feet of an exalted unicorn must succeed a DC 25 Will save or be staggered for 1d3 rounds from its majesty. This is a mind-influencing emotion effect. Regardless of whether a creature passes or fails this save, it is immune to that exalted unicorn’s aura of awe for the next 24 hours. Blessed Strikes (Su) An exalted unicorn’s natural weapons are treated as good-aligned magic weapons for the purpose of overcoming damage reduction. In addition, they deal an extra 2d6 damage per hit against creatures with an evil alignment, as if their natural weapons possessed the holy weapon quality. Death Curse (Su) A creature that slays an exalted unicorn is affected by a curse of the outcast spell (no save). The penalties from this curse do not impede the cursed creature’s interactions with evil creatures. This curse is permanent, but can be removed by remove curse or similar effects against DC 25. Holy Skin (Su) An evil creature that touches an exalted unicorn, or hits it with a natural weapon, melee touch attack or unarmed strike, takes 2d6 points of damage Lay On Horn (Su) An exalted unicorn gains the lay on hands and mercy class abilities of a paladin with a level equal to the unicorn’s Hit Dice. Magic Circle Vs. Evil (Su) An exalted unicorn is permanently surrounded by a magic circle against evil as a supernatural ability. It cannot suppress this ability. Searing Ray (Su) As a standard action, an exalted unicorn can fire a beam of light from its horn. Treat this as a ranged touch attack with a range of 200 feet and no range increment that deals 6d6 points of radiant damage. Wild Empathy (Ex) This functions as the druid class ability of the same name, except that the exalted unicorn gains a +6 racial bonus on the check. Woodland Stride (Ex) An exalted unicorn ignores difficult terrain caused by mundane plant growth.