Noble Stag

Large magical beast, unaligned

Armor Class: 15
Hit Points 45 (6d10+12)
Speed: 50 ft., fly 50 ft.

STR DEX CON INT WIS CHA
17 (+3) 15 (+2) 15 (+2) 7 (-2) 10 (0) 7 (-2)

Skills: Athletics +5, Insight +8, Perception +8
Senses: darkvision 60 ft., passive Perception 18
Condition Immunities: charmed, paralyzed, restrained
Languages: telepathic communication
Challenge: 3 (700 XP)

Special Traits

  • Limited Telepathy: Noble stags are intelligent creatures, and even possess a limited telepathic ability which allows them to detect and read the thoughts and motives of those near them. This gives them a natural bonus to insight and perception, and allows them to communicate telepathically with any intelligent creature they can see, who can also see them.
  • Multiattack: The noble stag attacks twice each round-once with its clawed feet and once with its horns (gore).
  • Plane Shift: Despite their physical presence in the wild, and regardless of how rooted they may be in the world of mortals, noble stags can travel freely into the fey realms as well. In game terms this means they can plane shift (only themselves and only to and from the ‘fey realms’) as a bonus action.

Actions

  • Claws. Melee Weapon Attack: +5 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 7 (1d10+2) slashing damage.
  • Gore. Melee Weapon Attack: +5 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 8 (1d12+2) slashing damage.

About

Noble stags have a head and body similar to that of an antlered elk or deer, but with wings and legs like those of a giant eagle. They tend to make their nests atop high cliffs or boulder formations, though they sometimes nest amid the larger branches of particularly enormous trees.

Noble stags are forest spirits, living in peace within forests which have been untainted with evil. As a result, woodsmen, druids, and rangers often view the sighting of a noble stag as a sign of luck and good fortune. Although they have strong ties to the fey realms, and are natural beasts imbued with mystical power, noble stags nevertheless feed on a diet of grasses, bark, and roots. Noble stags are neither carnivorous nor naturally aggressive. They fight only if injured or ensnared, but struggle until exhausted or dead before permitting themselves to be captured. They fiercely protect their nests from invasion, and fight to protect their eggs or hatchlings if the male cannot successfully lure hunters away before the nest is discovered.

Arcane Value of a Noble Stag

The feathers and antlers of a noble stag can be used to enhance spells or increase weapon damage. The corpse of a male noble stag produces 1d100 usable feathers. The feathers can be used in two ways. Firstly, when used as a component in a feather fall spell, the feather of the noble stag doubles the normal duration of the spell, regardless of the caster’s level. The feather loses its potency after one use. Secondly, if fashioned into a writing quill and used to scribe a fly spell, the noble stag’s feather enhances the normal potency of the spell to function as though the spell had been cast using a spell slot one higher than was actually spent. The feather loses this magical property once the fly spell has been inscribed.

The antlers of a noble stag can be used to increase the potency of any weapons that spend time in the air. If fashioned into arrowheads, darts, or javelin tips, they increase the damage die of such weapons by one level (1d6 becomes a 1d8, etc.). A dozen arrowheads, darts, or javelin tips can be fashioned from each antler.

The heart of a noble stag contains the essence of its supernatural wisdom and intelligence. By eating the heart, a character gains one of the following abilities: 25% chance of detect thoughts (as per the spell), 25% chance of clairvoyance (as per the spell), 25% chance of detect evil (as per the spell), or 25% chance of wisdom (as per the potion). The ability can be used 1/short or long rest.

Section 15: Copyright Notice

Familiars & Companions, Copyright 2017, Troll Lord Games; Author Casey Christofferson, Justin Bacon, Tommy Ruteledge, Josh Hubbel, Lance Hawvermile, Luke Johnson, Stephen Vogel and Dave Zenz.