Troll Bird

Small beast, neutral

Armor Class 11
Hit Points 9 (2d6+2)
Speed; fly 10 ft. 60 ft.

STR	DEX	CON	INT	WIS	CHA
5 (-3)	13 (+1)	12 (+1)	3 (-4)	12 (+1)	6 (-2)

Senses passive Perception 11
Challenge 1/8 (25 XP)

SPECIAL TRAITS

• Captivating Song. All creatures within 200 ft. of a troll bird must make a Charisma save (DC 13) or be affected as if by a slow spell. However, once affected, the creature remains under the effect until they can no longer hear the song or the effect is dispelled. If a creature succeeds on their save, they are immune to this effect for 24 hours. Trolls and trollkin are immune to this particular effect.
• Summon Troll. Any troll within a quarter-mile of the bird, upon hearing its song, will be struck with great hunger. Unless they have an immediate supply of food, they will seek out the source of the sound, associating it with food.

ACTIONS

• Claws. Melee Weapon Attack: +3 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 1 slashing damage.

ABOUT

Troll birds are a large bird whose wingspan is roughly that of a raven’s, about 45-50 inches. They are black with white tail feathers and a distinctive circular patch of red beneath each eye. They have long black beaks and claws. The bird’s middle digit on both feet is particularly long, thickly muscled, and capped with a wickedly curved claw. This claw is used to rend flesh from the dead.

Wide-ranging. Troll birds dwell in most deciduous forests, and some species, slightly smaller, have spread to jungle environs. They are also commonly found in the mountains. Regardless of the wood, dale, or mountain, the bird dwells in the lower branches of trees, along outcroppings of rock, and similar low-hanging roosts watching natural and man-made paths and roads.

Symbiotic with Trolls. They always nest near a troll’s den or lair for they have developed a symbiotic relationship with the troll. They survive on a diet of meat, and though they can eat just about anything, dead or alive, their most favored meat is that of humans, dwarves, and giants. It is for this reason that they primarily dwell along paths and roads. They wait for passing travelers and when they spy them they begin to follow them. The bird is of course too small to hurt or otherwise harm a grown man or dwarf, much less a giant, but they are very vocal and once they have spied a meal they begin following it calling out in their strange sing-song warble. Any troll worth its salt knows the call well and knows that there is a goodly chance a meal is nearby. The bird is almost always near a troll, within a few miles. Regardless of where the troll is if the bird spies a potential meal it begins its call, if the troll is several miles off it begins its call and heads toward the troll in short flights, hoping to summon it.

Scavengers. Troll birds themselves do not attack creatures unless they are prone on the ground and seem lifeless or near death. They do use their captivating song to charm their prey, slowing them down and simultaneously summon a troll to attack their intended meal, so that they can devour the carcass once the troll abandons it.