Gumienniki

These stooped creatures resemble elderly humans with cranberry-colored skin and bright, glowing eyes. They dress in loosely-woven clothing made from hay and foul leather strips.

Small fiend (shapechanger), neutral evil

Armor Class 13
Hit Points 22 (5d6+5)
Speed 30 ft.

STR DEX CON INT WIS CHA
12 (+1) 16 (+3) 13 (+1) 14 (+2) 10 (+0) 12 (+1)

Skills Acrobatics +5, Stealth +5
Damage Resistances cold, fire, lightning
Damage Immunities poison
Condition Immunities poisoned
Senses darkvision 60 ft., passive Perception 10
Languages Abyssal, Common, Infernal
Challenge 1 (200 XP)

Special Traits

  • Shapechanger. As a bonus action, the gumienniki can change its form into a Tiny housecat, or back into its true form. Its statistics, other than its size, are the same in each form except it loses its flaming hand scythe attack when in cat form.
  • Through Grass and Sheaves. The gumienniki’s speed is doubled when traveling over grassy areas or through planted crops.

Actions

  • Flaming Hand Scythe. Melee Weapon Attack: +5 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 5 (1d4 + 3) slashing damage and 7 (2d6) fire damage.
  • Fiendish Blink (1/day). The gumienniki flashes its glowing eyes, illuminating a 15-foot cone. Each creature in that area that can see the gumienniki must succeed on a DC 12 Constitution saving throw or be blinded for 1 minute.

Reactions

  • Taunting Cackle. When the gumienniki is missed by an attack, it can taunt the attacker. The attacking creature must succeed on a DC 12 Wisdom saving throw or have disadvantage on its next attack roll or saving throw.

About

Bargainers. Gumienniki strike fiendish bargains with willing farmers. They offer to protect silos and storehouses from vermin, thieves, and fire in return for a steady supply of livestock. Most of these bargains end poorly for the farmer, who soon discovers that the gumienniki doesn’t discriminate when it’s hungry.

Slip in by Moonlight. The gumienniki travel from the Lower Planes to the Material Plane whenever the moon is full.

They delight in sacrificing captured humanoids or livestock in starlight, and the harvest moon is of particular importance to them. During the harvest moon, gumienniki are said to sprout flaming wings, which allow them to fly.

Servants of the Harvest. The gumienniki sometimes ally themselves with dark fertility cults in hidden groves, bringing blood sacrifices directly from their protected farmers to an altar. The farmers themselves may eventually be brought into the cult. The gumienniki may ally with a pack of roggenwolf or rattok demons to starve entire villages. In a few cases, they become servants to vampires, spying on a village in their cat form and reporting any effort to resist the vampire’s rule.

Section 15: Copyright Notice

Creature Codex. © 2018 Open Design LLC; Authors Wolfgang Baur, Dan Dillon, Richard Green, James Haeck, Chris Harris, Jeremy Hochhalter, James Introcaso, Chris Lockey, Shawn Merwin, and Jon Sawatsky.

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