Couatl, Xiuh

Family: Couatl

Large celestial, neutral good

Armor Class 16 (scaled hide)
Hit Points 178 (17d10 + 85) Speed 30 ft., fly 90 ft.

STR DEX CON INT WIS CHA
20 (+5) 18 (+4) 21 (+5) 17 (+3) 19 (+4) 20 (+5)

Saving Throws Con +9, Wis +8, Cha +9
Skills Insight +8, Intimidation +9, Perception +8, Survival +8
Damage Resistances radiant
Damage Immunities psychic, bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing damage from nonmagical attacks
Condition Immunities exhausted, poisoned
Senses darkvision 60 ft., passive Perception 18; thoughtsense
Languages Celestial, Common, Draconic, telepathy 100 ft.
Challenge 12 (8,400 XP)

SPECIAL TRAITS

  • Innate Spellcasting. The couatl’s spellcasting ability is Charisma (spell save DC 19). It can innately cast the following spells, requiring no material components:
  • Instrument of Retribution. The xiuh couatl can transform itself into any simple or martial weapon. This is weapon is magical, gaining a +2 bonus on attack and damage rolls, and also deals 3 (1d6) fire damage and 3 (1d6) lightning damage every time it hits. The xiuh couatl has a damage threshold of 10 while in the form of a weapon and retains its own hit points, saving throws, senses, telepathy, resistances, and immunities while in this form. It can resume its natural form as an action.
  • Magic Weapons. The couatl’s weapon attacks are magical.
  • Sacred Poison. The poison damage the xiuh couatl deals with its bite attack or its Poison Breath bypasses any resistance or immunity to poison that fiends have.
  • Shielded Mind. The couatl is immune to scrying and to any effect that would sense its emotions, read its thoughts, or detect its location.
  • Thoughtsense. A xiuh is aware of the location of any hidden or invisible creature within 30 feet of it

ACTIONS

  • Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +9 to hit, reach 10 ft., one target. Hit: 18 (3d8 + 5) piercing damage plus 4 (1d8) fire damage and 4 (1d8) lightning damage. The target also becomes poisoned unless it succeeds on a DC 18 Constitution saving throw and takes 13 (3d8) poison damage, or half as much on a successful save. If the xiuh couatl hits a Medium or smaller target, it can make a constrict attack against that creature as a bonus action.
  • Constrict. Melee Weapon Attack: +8 to hit, reach 10 ft., one Medium or smaller creature. Hit: 13 (2d8 + 4) bludgeoning damage, and the target is grappled (escape DC 17). Until this grapple ends, the target is restrained and the couatl can’t constrict another target.
  • Blazing Breath (Recharge 5-6). The xiuh couatl breaths out a gout of fire and lightning in an 80-foot line that deals 22 (5d8) fire damage and 22 (5d8) lightning damage, or half as much on a successful DC 18 Dexterity saving throw.

ABOUT

These winged serpents are greater cousins of the common couatl, servants of gods of goodness who direct the actions of their lesser kin and serve on more urgent or dangerous tasks. They watch from the shadows and influence them toward good deeds, spreading wisdom, peace, and cooperation with others. They also stand ready to intervene when the forces of evil gather their forces in great strength that overwhelms mortals and their allies alike. They are carnivorous, feeding on birds, mammals, and the occasional evil humanoid, monster, or fiend.

Fiercer than other couatls, xiuh (pronounced “shoo”) are dedicated to seeking out malevolent creatures and offering a final chance at redemption before meting out divine vengeance. Xiuh have dark red scales with orange and golden flecks, and their rainbow-hued wings crackle with arcs of electricity and sparks of flame. They sometimes serve as the patrons of heroes, transforming themselves into powerful weapons for champions of good.

Variants

  • Auwaz. The blue and green scales and feathers of these serpents resemble ocean waters. The smallest of couatls, they are 8 feet long with a 12-foot wingspan. They help those lost at sea find their way to safety, though when they find evil creatures adrift they work to ensure they remain lost and taken by the deep.
  • Chicome. Among the mightiest of their kind, these huge servants have wings and scales of verdant green with a bright red feathered crest. With bodies 40 feet long and a 30-foot wingspan, they leave golden pollen and showers of dew in their wake. These gentle creatures seek to reestablish nature in shattered lands, especially those recently cleansed from the ravages by evil. They may restore natural beauty and settlements as well, using its magic to coax back healthy life and growth.
  • Mix. The dark-scaled mix (pronounced “meesh”) are midnight blue with nacreous flecks of silver and purple and shadowy wings of blue and black feathers. Their bodies are 10 to 15 feet long with wingspans of 10 to 15 feet. They roam widely, seeking out fledgling societies and spreading knowledge, from prosaic skills like farming and medicine to more arcane and esoteric pursuits like the study of magic.
  • Quetz. These iridescent serpents are the high messengers of benevolent deities and are devoted to bringing hope to mortals, aiding them in causes of righteousness. They have bodies 10 to 20 feet long with scales of blue and green, weighing almost a ton, with wings spanning 15 feet, feathered in brilliant rainbow hues.
  • Tletli. With glimmering opalescent scales and burning wings swathed in white-hot fire, the massive tletli are servants of salvation and destruction in equal measure, protecting what must be defended and avenging what cannot. Their bodies are 35 feet long with wingspans of 25 feet, and they are thicker and more muscular than other couatls. Their flames are infused with holy power and sear the eyes and scorch the bodies of the unrighteous and destructive. Redemption may be the path for other couatls but the way of the tletli is the way of judgment and retribution.
Section 15: Copyright Notice

Latin American Monsters (5E) © 2021, Legendary Games; Authors Miguel Colon, Ismael Alvarez, Robert J. Grady, Jason Nelson.

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