Grendel

Large giant, chaotic evil

Armor Class 15 (natural armor)
Hit Points 114 (12d10+48)
Speed 45 ft.

STR	DEX	CON	INT	WIS	CHA
22 (+6)	15 (+2)	18 (+4)	11 (+0)	14 (+2)	7 (‒2)

Saving Throws Cha +1
Skills Athletics +9, Perception +8, Survival +5 Damage Vulnerabilities thunder
Damage Resistances bludgeoning, piercing, slashing from nonmagical weapons
Damage Immunities acid
Senses blindsight 60 ft., darkvision 120 ft., passive Perception 18
Languages Giant, Olde English
Challenge 9 (5,000 XP)

Special Traits

• Big-Handed Grappling. Grendel has advantage on attack rolls against a creature he is grappling and he can use an action to try to pin a creature he’s grappled. To do so, Grendel makes another grapple check. If he succeeds, the creature is restrained until the grapple ends. Grendel only needs one hand to grapple a creature of Medium size or smaller.
• Leap. Grendel increases the distances of his horizontal jumps by 20 feet and his vertical jumps by 10 feet.
• Superior Hearing. Grendel has advantage on sound-based Wisdom (Perception) checks.
• Toxic Blood. When a creature within 5 feet of Grendel hits him with a melee attack that deals piercing or slashing damage, that creature takes 7 (2d6) acid damage.

Actions

• Multiattack. Grendel attacks three times.
• Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +9 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 15 (2d8+6) piercing damage.
• Claw. Melee Weapon Attack: +9 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 13 (2d6+6) slashing damage.
• Slam. Melee Weapon Attack: +9 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 15 (2d8+6) bludgeoning damage.
• Rock. Ranged Weapon Attack: +9 to hit, range 250/500 ft., one target. Hit: 13 (2d6+6) bludgeoning damage.
• Thrown Object. Ranged Weapon Attack: +9 to hit, range 250/500 ft., multiple targets (determined by object size; make one attack roll per target). Hit: 13 (1d8+9) damage. The damage type depends on the object (bludgeoning, piercing, or slashing) and at 100 pounds and every 100 pounds thereafter, the damage increases by 1d8 (up to a maximum of 10d8 1,000 pounds). A creature thrown at an object bigger than it takes regular damage, but only takes half damage when thrown at another creature.

About

Grendel might be one of the inspirations for the average ogre or giant but he’s definitely something more. In the saga of Beowulf he has tremendously powerful hearing and later on—a good while after he’s already dead—his blood proves corrosive enough to ruin a magical sword. He’s definitely not a match for Beowulf, but he’s certainly no pushover.

Grendel’s story is simple. In many ways, it’s a sad story of a poor creature driven mad by its own keen hearing. Driven to anger by the sounds of singing from King Hrothgar’s mead-hall, he attacked and consumed the revelers. Beowulf came to Hrothgar’s aid, bedded down in the mead-hall, and awaited the monster—who he beat to death with his bare fists, tearing off the creature’s arm in the process!

Beowulf has later encounters with Grendel’s vengeful mother, but that’s another story.