Bulette, Red

Family: Bulette

Huge monstrosity, unaligned

Armor Class 18 (natural armor)
Hit Points 135 (10d12 + 70)
Speed 40 ft., burrow 80 ft.

STR DEX CON INT WIS CHA
20 (+5) 12 (+1) 24 (+7) 3 (-4) 10 (+0) 5 (-3)

Saving Throws Dexterity +6, Constitution +11, Wisdom +4
Skills Perception +4
Damage Immunities fire
Senses blindsight 60 ft., darkvision 60 ft., passive Perception 14
Languages
Challenge 12 (8,400 XP)

Special Traits

  • Metalsense. The red bulette is aware of all metals within 60 feet of it.
  • Mineral Rich. If a red bulette is killed, its planar connection is immediately severed. Over the course of 4 to 6 hours, its body will cool to the ambient temperature of the environment. While the vast majority of its body will cool into a basalt-like stone, its digestive track will solidify into roughly 1,000 lbs. of an alloy admixture of every mineral substance it has consumed. Depending upon its recent feeding habits, this substance is the equivalent of metal-rich ore of many types in combination, and can be smelted back down into standard and precious metals by experts knowledgeable in such methods. Additionally, a few diamonds will be found in what was the red bulette’s gizzard.
  • Planar Connection. Because their arcane natures link red bulettes to the Elemental Plane of Fire, they also simultaneously exist there as insubstantial and barely visible shadows of themselves.
  • Tunneler. The bulette can burrow through solid rock at its burrow speed leaving a 10-foot-diameter tunnel in its wake.
  • Vanishing Act. Red bulettes avoid overland movement, preferring to swim through earth and bedrock. If confronted above ground, they will reflexively increase their body temperatures enough to simply melt their way down into the ground and vanish. If threatened by a much larger creature, they simply dive underground and “swim” away. However, if they are threatened by any creature that wears or is carrying refined metals, they will instinctively return and attempt to ambush with a bite/swallow attack from underground.

Actions

  • Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +9 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 31 (4d12 + 5) piercing damage plus 7 (2d6) fire damage, and the target is grappled (escape DC 15). Until this grapple ends, the target is restrained, and the bulette can’t bite another target.
  • Swallow. The bulette makes one bite attack against a Medium or smaller target it is grappling. If the attack hits, the target is also swallowed, and the grapple ends. While swallowed, the target is blinded and restrained, it has total cover against attacks and other effects outside the bulette, and it takes 21 (6d6) fire damage at the start of each of the bulette’s turns. A bulette can have three Medium or smaller creatures swallowed at the same time.
  • Death From Below (Recharge 5-6). If the bulette burrows at least 20 feet as part of its movement, it can then use this action to surface from underground in a space that contains one or more creatures. Each of those creatures must succeed on a DC 16 Strength or Dexterity saving throw (target’s choice) or be knocked prone and splashed with globules of molten rock, taking 18 (2d12 + 5) bludgeoning damage plus 14 (4d6) fire damage. On a successful save, the creature takes only half damage, isn’t knocked prone, and is pushed 5 feet out of the bulette’s space into an unoccupied space of the creature’s choice. If no unoccupied space is within range, the creature falls prone in the bulette’s space.

About

The red bulette spends the majority of its time underground, feeding on the rare minerals and rocks found there. With a skin temperature that varies between 500-1200ºF, the red bulette moves through bedrock and earth by swimming through it at its full movement rate. While not necessarily carnivorous, they are attracted to all refined metals and will happily swallow a warrior for the metal content of its weapons and armor.

Red bulettes like rare metals (refined or raw ore) best of all. This makes the mere sighting of one in the wild a real and present threat to any local treasure vaults or royal economies.

Section 15: Copyright Notice

Tome of Horrors © 2018, Frog God Games, LLC; Authors: Kevin Baase, Erica Balsley, John “Pexx” Barnhouse, Christopher Bishop, Casey Christofferson, Jim Collura, Andrea Costantini, Jayson ‘Rocky' Gardner, Zach Glazar, Meghan Greene, Scott Greene, Lance Hawvermale, Travis Hawvermale, Ian S. Johnston, Bill Kenower, Patrick Lawinger, Rhiannon Louve, Ian McGarty, Edwin Nagy, James Patterson, Nathan Paul, Patrick N. Pilgrim, Clark Peterson, Anthony Pryor, Greg Ragland, Robert Schwalb, G. Scott Swift, Greg A. Vaughan, and Bill Webb

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