Feargaunt

Large aberration, chaotic evil

Armor Class 13
Hit Points 120 (16d10+32)
Speed 10 ft., fly 40 ft. (can hover)

STR	DEX	CON	INT	WIS	CHA
10 (+0)	17 (+3)	15 (+2)	12 (+1)	15 (+2)	18 (+4)

Saves Dex +6, Con +5, Wis +5
Skills Insight +5, Perception +5, Stealth +9
Damage Resistances bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing from nonmagical attacks; acid, cold, fire, lightning, thunder
Condition Immunities charmed, exhaustion, frightened, grappled, paralyzed, petrified, poisoned, prone, restrained
Senses darkvision 60 ft., passive Perception 15
Languages Common (can’t speak); telepathy 100 ft.
Challenge 9 (5,000 XP)

SPECIAL TRAITS

• Nightmare Aura. A feargaunt is cloaked in a 60-foot-radius aura of fear, which manifests as darkened shadows, subtle rot, and skewed perspective. The first time a creature ends its turn within the aura, it must succeed at a DC 16 Wisdom save or be frightened for as long as it stays within the aura and until the end of its next turn. Creatures within the aura who are frightened by the aura automatically fail attempts to do impossible feats in a dreamscape. The feargaunt can suppress or reactivate this aura as a bonus action. If the creature succeeds at the saving throw, it cannot be affected again by the aura for another 24 hours.

ACTIONS

• Tormenting Touch. Melee Weapon Attack: +6 to hit, reach 10 ft., one target. Hit: 66 (12d10) necrotic damage. If the target is frightened, the feargaunt deals an additional 9 (2d8) psychic damage.
• Confusion (Rechage 5-6). The feargaunt spell assaults and twists creatures’ minds, spawning delusions and provoking uncontrolled action. Each creature in a 30-foot-radius sphere centered on a point within 90 feet must succeed on a DC 16 Wisdom saving throw or be affected. An affected target can’t take reactions and must roll a d10 at the start of each of its turns to determine its behavior for that turn.
• Haunt (3/Day). The feargaunt touches a sleeping creature and enters its dreams. While in a creature’s dreams, the feargaunt is aware of its surroundings but can’t take actions or move. The target must make a DC 16 Wisdom saving throw; on a success, the feargaunt is unable to enter its dreams. Otherwise, the feargaunt appears in the target’s dreams and can converse with the target as long as it remains asleep, to a maximum of 8 hours.. The feargaunt can also shape the environment of the dream, creating landscapes, objects, and other images. The feargaunt can emerge at any time, ending the effect early. The target recalls the dream perfectly upon waking. Echoes of the phantasmal monstrosity spawn a nightmare that lasts the duration of the target’s sleep and prevents the target from gaining any benefit from that rest. In addition, when the target wakes up, it takes 10 (3d6) psychic damage.
• Never Far Behind. The feargaunt teleports adjacent to a creature frightened by its nightmare aura or that is damaged by its tormenting touch. This ability functions only if the feargaunt and the creature are both in the Dimension of Dreams.
• Phantasmal Killer (Recharge 5-6). The feargaunt taps into the nightmares of a creature you can see within 120 ft. and create an illusory manifestation of its deepest fears, visible only to that creature. The target must make a DC 16 Wisdom saving throw. On a failed save, the target becomes frightened for 1 minute. At the end of each of the target’s turns, the target must succeed on another Wisdom saving throw or take 45 (9d10) psychic damage. On a successful save, the effect ends.

ABOUT

Feargaunts are vivid nightmares emerging from the Dimension of Dreams, drawing substance and purpose from the fears of sleeping victims. They shift their forms and the dreamscapes around them, corrupting simple fright into agonizing experiences that can kill their victims.

Feargaunts often allow victims to believe they have escaped, only to attack anew from an unexpected direction. No matter how fast or how far victims flee, they can never truly leave the feargaunt behind. Anywhere a feargaunt steps takes on a darker, more frightening cast. Shadows become impenetrable hiding places for things that lurk out of sight, familiar locations take on ominous twists that lead those who thought they knew their way astray, and comforting faces become masks for monstrous, sadistic enemies.

d10	Behavior
1	The creature uses all its movement to move in a random direction. To determine the direction, roll a d8 and assign a direction to each die face. The creature doesn’t take an action this turn.
2-6	The creature doesn’t move or take actions this turn.
7-8	The creature uses its action to make a melee attack against a randomly determined creature within its reach. If there is no creature within its reach, the creature does nothing this turn.
9-10	The creature can act and move normally. At the end of each of its turns, an affected target can make a new saving throw. If it succeeds, the effect ends for that target.