Ogre, Cunning Artisan

Family: Ogre

Large giant, neutral evil

Armor Class 14 (breastplate)
Hit Points 119 (14d10 + 42)
Speed 30 ft.

STR DEX CON INT WIS CHA
18 (+4) 10 (+0) 17 (+3) 16 (+3) 12 (+1) 15 (+2)

Saving Throws Con +6, Int +6, Wis +4
Skills Arcana +8, Deception +5, Perception +4
Senses darkvision 60 ft., passive Perception 14
Languages Common, Giant
Challenge 5 (1,800 XP)
Proficiency Bonus +3

SPECIAL TRAITS

  • Arcane Weapons. The cunning artisan’s weapon attacks are magical. When the ogre hits with any weapon, the weapon deals an extra 1d8 force damage (included in the attack).
  • Artisan’s Prowess. If a magic item requires an action to activate, the cunning artisan can activate it as a bonus action instead.
  • Sense Magic. The cunning artisan senses magic within 120 feet of it at will. This trait otherwise works like the detect magic spell but isn’t itself magical.

ACTIONS

  • Multiattack. The cunning artisan makes two Battleaxe attacks or three Arcane Bolt attacks.
  • Battleaxe. Melee Weapon Attack: +7 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 13 (2d8 + 4) slashing damage, or 15 (2d10 + 4) slashing damage if used with two hands, plus 4 (1d8) force damage.
  • Arcane Bolt. Ranged Spell Attack: +6 to hit, range 60 ft., one target. Hit: 12 (2d8 + 3) force damage.
  • Curse Item (Recharge 5–6). The cunning artisan curses one magic item it can see within 60 feet of it. If the item is being worn or carried by a creature, that creature must succeed on a DC 15 Charisma saving throw to avoid the curse. For 1 minute, the cursed item suffers one of the curses described in the Artisan Curses sidebar, as appropriate for its item type.

ABOUT

This creature has the brutish build of a common ogre, but its clothing and weapons are well-made and maintained. Beneath a heavy brow, small eyes gleam with intelligence.

Cunning artisan ogres exhibit a keen intellect and magical aptitude. They create magic items, weaving subtle curses into their creations. They can sense the auras of enchanted items and can warp those auras to cause malfunctions and misfires.

Magic For a Price. The cunning artisan creates magic items for its own personal use as well as trade. Due to its selfish and suspicious nature, these items are often cursed from the start.

Likewise, any item the ogre trades or gives to another likely has a dormant curse or a command word it can use to deactivate the item, in case relations sour.

Artisan Curses

The cunning artisan can curse any item it creates, placing a dormant curse, a deactivation command word, or an active curse. Choose a curse that best fits the item and the story you want to tell, or use the curses listed here based on the item’s type.

  • Armor The wearer becomes vulnerable to one of the following damage types: bludgeoning, piercing, or slashing.
  • Ring/Rod/Wondrous Item Each round the item is in use in combat or other dangerous circumstance, it has a 25 percent chance of losing all magical properties for 1d4 rounds.
  • Staff/Wand If a target succeeds on a saving throw against the item’s effect, the effect rebounds on the item’s wielder. If there is no saving throw, the effect has a 25 percent chance to rebound.
  • Weapon The weapon’s bonus to hit, if any, becomes a penalty.
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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