Abysswalker Derro

Family: Derro

Small humanoid (derro), chaotic evil

Armor Class 16 (breastplate)
Hit Points 112 (15d6 + 60)
Speed 25 ft.

STR DEX CON INT WIS CHA
11 (+0) 18 (+4) 18 (+4) 10 (+0) 7 (–2) 17 (+3)

Saving Throws Str +3, Wis +1, Cha +6
Skills Perception +1, Stealth +7
Damage Resistances cold, fire, lightning
Damage Immunities poison
Condition Immunities poisoned
Senses darkvision 120 ft., passive Perception 11
Languages Abyssal, Common, Dwarvish, Undercommon
Challenge 6 (2,300 XP)
Proficiency Bonus +3

SPECIAL TRAITS

  • Insanity. The abysswalker has advantage on saving throws against being charmed or frightened.
  • Poisonous Vapors. When a creature enters a space within 5 feet of the abysswalker or starts its turn there, that creature must make a DC 15 Constitution saving throw. On a failure, the creature takes 13 (2d12) poison damage and is poisoned until the start of its next turn. On a success, the creature takes half the damage and isn’t poisoned.
  • Sunlight Sensitivity. While in sunlight, the abysswalker has disadvantage on attack rolls, as well as on Wisdom (Perception) checks that rely on sight.

ACTIONS

  • Multiattack. The abysswalker makes one Bite attack, one Claw attack, and one Scimitar attack, or it makes one Bite attack and two Scimitar attacks.
  • Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +7 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 6 (1d4 + 4) piercing and 5 (2d4) poison damage.
  • Claw. Melee Weapon Attack: +7 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 11 (2d6 + 4) bludgeoning, and the target is grappled (escape DC 15) if it is a Medium or smaller creature. Until this grapple ends, the target is restrained, and the abysswalker can’t make Claw attacks against other targets.
  • Scimitar. Melee Weapon Attack: +7 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 7 (1d6 + 4) slashing damage.

REACTIONS

  • Voice of Authority (Recharge 5–6). When a creature hits the hellforged with an attack, the hellforged shrieks a one-word command. The attacker must succeed on a DC 15 Wisdom saving throw or carry out this command on its next turn. This reaction works like the command spell, except the attacker doesn’t have to understand the hellforged’s language. The hellforged must see the attacker and be able to speak to use this reaction.

ABOUT

A cloud of noxious, green vapors wafting from cracks in this dwarf ’s ashen skin. One hand clutches a wicked blade, while the other is a monstrous, crab-like claw. The demented nature of the derro often leads them on wild journeys. Some journey farther than others, finding ways to slip into chaotic and evil planes of existence or jaunt into distant, alien realms. Most never return, but those that do are changed by their experiences. The darkness that lurks in the hearts of derro becomes a transformative power, causing perverse metamorphoses of the flesh and stoking an unholy lust for power.

Grim Transfiguration. The longer a creature from the Material Plane navigates the darker planes of existence or the depths of the Void, the more likely it is to fall prey to insidious, magical corruption. The derro, already tormented creatures, are more vulnerable to such transformative corruption but also more likely to survive it. These derro are collectively known as “planewarped.” Walkers of the Abyss. Transformed by the primordial and erratic evil where demons are spawned, abysswalkers are the most erratic in form. They can sport a variety of corrupted shapes, and no two look exactly alike. They are often driven by mad ambitions to reveal the unseen and transcend mortality. They are found both serving and served by demons, often seeking no less than the toppling of universal order.

Infernal Sojourners. On rare occasions, a derro travels to Hell. Rarer still, the derro’s chaotic mind is enraptured with the plane’s philosophy of order and dominion. The journey becomes a crucible in which the derro’s mind is forged into a much more rigorous instrument, if no less insane for it. A hellforged derro still suffers insanity, but it is the insanity of a rigid mind. Such derro seek total control over every aspect of what goes on around them, an impossible task that these derro take to with fervent vigor.

Demented Void Travelers. Some far-wandering derro seek out the darkness of the Void, traveling deep into the black reaches between the stars and returning alive but not unchanged. Having seen the awesome terror that exists there, a voidwarped derro has opened its heart to embrace this vision. Voidwarped derro frequently act as prophets or harbingers for the elder things that lurk in the Void, paving the way for their coming and the eventual unraveling of all things. Floating in a nimbus of writhing shadow, the voidwarped speaks its revelations to any within earshot, often with devastating effects on the mortal psyche.

Section 15: Copyright Notice

Tome of Beasts 3 © 2022 Open Design LLC; Authors: Eytan Bernstein, Celeste Conowitch, Benjamin L. Eastman, Robert Fairbanks, Scott Gable, Basheer Ghouse, Richard Green, Jeremy Hochhalter, Jeff Lee, Christopher Lockey, Sarah Madsen, Ben Mcfarland, Jonathan Miley, Kelly Pawlik, Sebastian Rombach, Chelsea Steverson, Brian Suskind, Mike Welham

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