Neuros, the Brain Between Worlds

Gargantuan aberration, neutral

Armor Class 21 (natural armor)
Hit Points 420 (24d20 + 168)
Speed 5 ft., fly 90 ft.

STR DEX CON INT WIS CHA
23 (+6) 8 (-1) 24 (+7) 20 (+5) 14 (+2) 24 (+7)

Saving Throws Intelligence+11
Skills Arcana +11, Insight +8, Perception +8, Persuasion +13
Damage Resistances acid, cold, fire, lightning, necrotic, psychic, thunder
Condition Immunities frightened, prone
Senses blindsight 300 ft., darkvision 600 ft., passive Perception 18
Languages telepathy within line of sight
Challenge 18 (20,000 XP)

Special Traits

  • Colossal Creature. Kaiju are creatures far larger than the scale of others. Conventional weapons, even highly-enchanted ones, lack the mass to deal serious wounds to a kaiju. The same is true for all but the mightiest spells. When a creature of Huge size or smaller deals damage to a kaiju with a weapon or feature, or with a spell of 8th level or lower, it deals half damage, which can be reduced further by resistance or saving throws. Siege weapons and creatures with the Siege Monster trait are treated like Gargantuan creatures. Gargantuan creatures and 9th-level spells (including lower-level spells cast with 9th-level slots) deal normal damage, which can be reduced further by resistance or saving throws. Kaiju deal double damage to objects and structures. They ignore normal difficult terrain, and treat thick forests, settlements, or mountains as difficult rather than impassable terrain.
  • Legendary Resistance (3/Day). If Neuros, the Brain Between Worlds fails a saving throw, it can choose to succeed instead.
  • Adaptation. Neuros, the Brain Between Worlds can adapt its form in response to a wide variety of situations. As a bonus action, it can gain one of the following traits, maintaining up to two of them simultaneously.
    • It gains immunity against a single damage type. It can choose this adaptation up to two times.
    • It changes the damage type of its slam attack to piercing, psychic, or slashing.
    • It deals an additional 1d8 damage with its slam attack.
    • It imposes disadvantage on all attack rolls against it.
    • It makes an opportunity attack whenever a creature within its reach moves 5 ft. or more.
  • Innate Spellcasting (Psionics). Neuros, the Brain Between Worlds’s innate spellcasting ability is Intelligence (spell save DC 17). It can innately cast the following spells, requiring no components:
  • Starflight. Neuros, the Brain Between Worlds can survive the void of outer space, but as it cannot reach very great speeds, it takes vast amounts of time to travel between worlds. Creatures that it has engulfed are protected from the void of outer space, but continue to suffer the effects of aging.

Actions

  • Multiattack. Neuros, the Brain Between Worlds makes five slam attacks. It can replace any number of these slam attacks with constrict attacks, but can’t constrict the same creature more than once per turn.
  • Slam. Melee Weapon Attack: +12 to hit, reach 40 ft., one target. Hit: 19 (3d8 + 6) bludgeoning damage, and the target is grappled (escape DC 17). Neuros, the Brain Between Worlds can grapple up to five creatures simultaneously, but not more than one creature with the Colossal Creatures trait.
  • Crush. While Neuros, the Brain Between Worlds has a creature grappled, it can force the creature to make a DC 17 Strength saving throw. On a failure, the creature suffers 16 (3d6 + 6) bludgeoning damage.
  • Engulf. Neuros, the Brain Between Worlds moves up to its speed. While doing so, it can enter Gargantuan or smaller creatures’ spaces (but not creatures with the Colossal Creatures trait). Whenever it enters a creature’s space, the creature must make a DC 17 Dexterity saving throw. On a successful save, the creature can choose to be pushed 5 feet back or to the side of Neuros, the Brain Between Worlds. A creature that chooses not to be pushed suffers the consequences of a failed saving throw. On a failed save, it enters the creature’s space, and the creature takes 14 (4d6) acid damage, is paralyzed until the end of its next turn, and is engulfed. The engulfed creature can’t breathe, is restrained, and takes 21 (6d6) acid damage at the start of each of the cube’s turns. When Neuros, the Brain Between Worlds moves, the engulfed creature moves with it. An engulfed creature can try to escape by taking an action to make a DC 17 Strength check. On a success, the creature escapes and enters a space of its choice within 5 feet of Neuros, the Brain Between Worlds.

Legendary Actions

Neuros, the Brain Between Worlds can take 3 legendary actions, choosing from the options below. Only one legendary action can be used at a time and only at the end of another creature’s turn. Neuros, the Brain Between Worlds regains spent legendary actions at the start of its turn.

  • Slam. Neuros, the Brain Between Worlds makes one slam attack.
  • Crush. Neuros, the Brain Between Worlds constricts one grappled creature.
  • Recover. Neuros, the Brain Between Worlds regains 75 hit points. Once it uses this ability, it cannot do so again until the end of its next turn. It cannot use this ability if it has suffered acid damage since the beginning of its previous turn.

About

There are a lot of strange things out in the cosmos beyond this world, but Neuros, the Brain Between Worlds, is among the strangest. It travels between planets – and even the vast distances between stars – but it does not attain the relativistic speeds that other spacefaring kaiju do. That, and it’s a stupendously large brain.

Driven by Curiosity. Neuros, the Brain Between Worlds has no need to cut a swath of destruction across the galaxy, nor to rule over other creatures. When it arrives at a new world, it observes and makes telepathic contact with whatever it meets. Its disturbing form often sets off unnecessary conflict, while its phenomenal power and adaptability end such clashes decisively.

Traveling Companion. When Neuros, the Brain Between Worlds decides to leave a planet or a star system, it seeks out one or more sentient creatures to join in its journey. Even the most long-lived mortal is unlikely to survive to its destination, though it is not always forthcoming on that point. Spaceflight inside its form is initially disturbing, but once one is used to it, not an unpleasant way to live out one’s days. Neuros, the Brain Between Worlds only takes willing passengers.

Section 15: Copyright Notice

Kaiju Codex. © copyright 2015 Rite Publishing Steven D. Russell; Authors Elaine Betts and Justin P. Sluder

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