Demon, Blade

Family: Demons

Medium fiend (demon), chaotic evil

STR	DEX	CON	INT	WIS	CHA
23 (+6)	17 (+3)	25 (+7)	15 (+2)	20 (+5)	15 (+2)

Armor Class 18 (natural armor)
Hit Points 114 (10d8 + 70)
Speed 30 ft., fly 30 ft.
Saving Throws Dexterity +8, Constitution +12, Wisdom +10
Damage Resistances cold, fire, lightning; bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing from nonmagical attacks
Damage Immunities poison
Condition Immunities charmed, frightened, poisoned
Senses truesight 120 ft., passive Perception 15
Languages Abyssal, telepathy 120 ft.
Challenge 13 (10,000 XP)

Special Traits

• Magic Resistance. The blade demon has advantage on saving throws against spells and other magical effects.
• Magic Weapons. The blade demon’s attacks are magical.

Actions

• Multiattack. The blade demon makes two scythe hands attacks and then uses either its braid flail or wounding wings.
• Braid Flail. Melee Weapon Attack: +11 to hit, reach 10 ft., one target. Hit: 16 (3d6 + 6) piercing damage.
• Scythe Hands. Melee Weapon Attack: +11 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 16 (3d6 + 6) slashing damage, plus 13 (2d12) force damage (this damage type can be changed by sense weakness, see below).
• Wounding Wings. Melee Weapon Attack: +11 to hit, reach 10 ft., one target. Hit: 6 (1d6 + 3) slashing damage, plus the creature takes an additional 3 (1d6) damage at the end of each of its turns until it spends an action binding the wound or receives magical healing.
• Sense Weakness. The blade demon spends its action studying a creature. It learns that creature’s vulnerabilities, resistances and immunities, if any. It can then change the damage type for its scythe hands additional damage from force damage to another type.
• Summon (1/day). Roll 1d6. On a 1-5, that many dretches appear at the end of the blade demon’s turn. On a 6, a single hezrou appears instead.

Tactics

Blade demons always, unless ordered to attack immediately, spend the first round of any conflict studying their opponent, judging their weakness and adapting their weaponry accordingly. Each scythe hand does an additional damage type that the demon can control and can even have two different types, one for each hand. Then, in the next round, they use their scythe hands to best take advantage of that weakness and attack their target.

Blade demons were created for battle and have no pity or fear or mercy. They always choose to attack once their scythe hands have been attuned to their opponent’s vulnerabilities. They never retreat or relent in a pursuit unless ordered to do so by their commander or summoner. In a hard-pressed battle, they will summon lesser demons as disposable allies.

Description

A blade demon is a horror to behold. Its wings are made of human flesh stretched over a skeleton of bones and scythe blades. Its facial visor glows with the heat of freshly forged metal, perpetually searing itself to the flesh of the demon. Blackened stumps at both wrists close around curving blades of dark steel.