Garuda

Medium celestial, chaotic good

Armor Class 17 (natural armor)
Hit Points 228 (24d8 + 120)
Speed 30 ft., fly 60 ft.

STR	DEX	CON	INT	WIS	CHA
16 (+3)	21 (+5)	20 (+5)	17 (+3)	14 (+2)	19 (+4)

Saving Throws Dex +9, Cha +8
Skills Insight +10, Intimidation +12, Stealth +13
Senses darkvision 60 ft., passive Perception 12
Languages Common, Auran, Garuda
Challenge 11 (7,200 XP)

SPECIAL TRAITS

• Innate Spellcasting. The garuda’s spell casting ability is Charisma (spell save DC 16). It can innately cast the following spells, requiring no material components:
  • At will: detect magic, light
  • 3/day each: alter self, see invisibility
  • 1/day each: blink, haste
• Naga Bane. The garuda has advantage on all attack rolls against nagas as well as saving throws against their spells and abilities.

ACTIONS

• Multiattack. The garuda makes one bite attack, two claw attacks, two talon attacks, and two wing attacks, or two shocking arrow attacks.
• Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +7 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 14 (2d10 + 3) piercing damage.
• Claw. Melee Weapon Attack: +7 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 7 (1d8 + 3) slashing damage.
• Talon. Melee Weapon Attack: +7 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 7 (1d8 + 3) slashing damage.
• Wing. Melee Weapon Attack: +7 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 7 (1d8 + 3) bludgeoning damage.
• Shocking Arrow. Ranged Weapon Attack: +9 to hit, 100/400 ft. range, one target. Hit: 18 (3d8 + 5) piercing damage plus 16 (3d10) lightning damage.
• Powerful Gale (Reset 5-6). The garuda beats its wings and summons powerful winds. Each creature within 20 feet of the garuda must succeed a DC 17 Dexterity saving throw or take 21 (3d10 + 5) bludgeoning damage and be forced prone.
• Sacred Nectar (3/Day). The garuda can create an ounce of amrita. Drinking the amrita heals 17 (3d8 + 4) damage. The amrita lasts 24 hours, after which it becomes sweet, nonmagical nectar.

ABOUT

Garudas are noble, birdlike creatures that inhabit rugged hills. While they remain detached from humanoid societies, they are impetuous and gallant, often serving as protectors of nearby communities. Most garudas stand around 6 feet tall with a wingspan of 15 feet and weigh approximately 150 pounds.

Garudas originated in the Positive Plane as a winged race called the jyoti, infused with the light and energy of raw primal radiance. At some point in the distant past, they discovered a portal to the Material Plane and a rift developed between the more impetuous and curious jyoti who wished to explore this strange new world and those who sought only to seal the rifts that they felt infected their paradisical existence and keep their plane pure. Those that emigrated to the Material Plane renamed themselves garudas and adapted their magical powers to the skies of their new earthly home.

Jyoti. Enigmatic and swift to anger, the jyoti who remained in the Positive Plane are xenophobic in the extreme. Those encountering them sometimes assume that the jyoti are inherently good because their home plane is the source of all life, but those beliefs are quite in error, for the jyoti react to all other races with wary suspicion at best, and usually assume the worst and attack before they can themselves be attacked. They guard their crystalline cities from all intrusion, especially by creatures from other planes and servants of the gods. They have been known to hold dangerous artifacts in their vaults on behalf of desperate visitors , though in the case of holy or unholy artifacts, the jyoti are more likely to destroy the artifacts as soon as possible. Jyoti loathe natives of the Shadow Plane and the Negative Energy Plane in particular, slaying them with their crystal-tipped spears whenever encountered, though with pity in their actions toward undead.