Black Shuck

Large fiend, chaotic evil

Armor Class 17 (natural armor)
Hit Points 157 (15d10 + 75)
Speed 50 ft.

STR	DEX	CON	INT	WIS	CHA
19 (+4)	16 (+3)	21 (+5)	14 (+2)	17 (+3)	15 (+2)

Saving Throws Str +8, Dex +7, Con +9, Wis +7
Skills Athletics +8, Stealth +11, Survival +7
Damage Resistances cold, fire, lightning
Damage Immunities necrotic, poison; bludgeoning, piercing or slashing damage from nonmagical attacks not made with silvered weapons
Condition Immunities charmed, frightened
Senses darkvision 90 ft., truesight 60 ft., passive Perception 13
Languages understands Abyssal and Common but can’t speak
Challenge 11 (7,200 XP)
Proficiency Bonus +4

SPECIAL TRAITS

• Blood Frenzy. The black shuck has advantage on attack rolls against any creature that doesn’t have all its hp.
• Keen Hearing and Smell. The black shuck has advantage on Wisdom (Perception) checks that rely on hearing or smell.
• Water Walker. The black shuck can move across the surface of water as if it were harmless, solid ground. This trait otherwise works like the water walk spell.

ACTIONS

• Multiattack. The black shuck makes three Bite attacks and can use Curse of the Grave or Fearsome Howl, if available. If at least two Bite attacks hit a Medium or smaller target, the black shuck sinks in its teeth, shaking its head violently, and the target must succeed on a DC 17 Strength saving throw or take 7 (2d6) slashing damage and be thrown up to 15 feet in a random direction and knocked prone.
• Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +8 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 13 (2d8 + 4) piercing damage and 10 (3d6) necrotic damage.
• Curse of the Grave. The black shuck glares at one creature it can see within 30 feet of it. The target must succeed on a DC 17 Wisdom saving throw or be cursed. A cursed creature has disadvantage on the next two death saving throws it makes in the next 7 days. The curse lasts until the cursed creature has made two death saving throws, until 7 days have passed, or until it is lifted by a remove curse spell or similar magic.
• Fearsome Howl (Recharge 5–6). The black shuck howls a haunting tune. Each creature within 60 feet of the black shuck that can hear the howl must succeed on a DC 17 Wisdom saving throw or become frightened until the end of its next turn. A frightened creature that is concentrating on a spell must succeed on a DC 17 Constitution saving throw or it loses concentration.

BONUS ACTIONS

• Mist Stalker. While in an area of dim light, fog, or mist, the black shuck takes the Hide action.

ABOUT

A gravelly growl reverberates from the throat of a large, shaggy black wolf. A single, glowing eye dominates its face. This fiendish black, shaggy, wolf-like creature is the size of a horse with a single, large eye that glows like molten iron.

Pastoral Prowler. Haunting country byways and back roads, black shucks are credited with countless murders, missing wayfarers, and the wholesale slaughter of entire caravans and patrols. Black shucks hide in the cover of fog and stride quietly across ponds, creeks, and other fog-shrouded bodies of water to ambush weary travelers stopping for a drink.

Unpredictable Predilections. A black shuck toys with its victims as often as it murders them, but this enigmatic entity is reported to show random kindness toward lost children, guiding them home.

Grim rituals can summon a black shuck to terrorize individuals, or even whole families, compelling it to haunt and beleaguer them and their household, sometimes for generations.