Library / Bestiary

Linnorm, Cairn

CR 18.00 Dragon CE Gargantuan
Pallid and horribly gaunt, this enormous but emaciated dragonlike creature has two forearms and no wings.

Cairn linnorms prefer to dwell in necropolises, amid reaches of burial mounds, or in caverns below the scorched earth of legendary battlefields. These linnorms particularly relish the flavor of undead flesh—while they cannot consume incorporeal undead, regions they haunt are typically barren of corporeal undead not canny enough to avoid the cairn linnorm's ravenous appetite. An incredibly powerful undead creature might use a cairn linnorm as a guardian, manipulating the dragon while it selects a cairn or tomb well within the linnorm's territory. While cairn linnorms will not hesitate to feed on undead creatures they encounter, some ancient superstition shared by all of their kind prevents them from actually entering a tomb or other enclosed burial site unless granted permission by the tomb's undead denizens or a priest devoted to the religion associated with the site. Likewise, a cairn linnorm somehow caught within a tomb large enough to contain it prefers not to leave without securing similar permission to do so. These limitations are purely psychological, and if pressed (such as by an enemy seeking to use a tomb entrance as a defense), a cairn linnorm can break such restrictions.

A cairn linnorm is 60 feet long and weighs 12,000 pounds.

STR
37
DEX
24
CON
26
INT
5
WIS
20
CHA
27
HP
290 (20d12+160); regeneration 10 (cold iron)
AC
35, touch 13, flat-footed 28 (+7 Dex, +22 natural, -4 size)
Speed
40 ft., climb 40 ft., fly 100 ft. (average)
Init
+11
Melee
bite +29 (3d8+13/19-20 plus poison), 2 claws +29 (2d6+13), tail +24 (3d6+6 plus grab)
Space
20 ft.
Reach
20 ft.
BAB
+20
CMB
+37 (+41 grapple)
CMD
54 (can't be tripped)
Fort
+20
Ref
+21
Will
+17
DR
15/cold iron
SR
29
Defensive Abilities
freedom of movement
Racial Modifiers
Acrobatics (+4 when jumping), +8 Stealth

Breath Weapon — Once every 1d4 rounds as a standard action, a cairn linnorm can expel a 60-foot cone of acidic bile, dealing 18d8 points of acid damage to all creatures struck. In addition, this bile is infused with negative energy, and inflicts 1d4 negative levels on all creatures struck by it. A successful DC 28 Reflex save halves the damage and completely negates the negative levels. The save DC is Constitution-based.

constrict (tail, 2d6+19)

Death Curse — Curse of Decay: save Will DC 28; effect the creature takes 1 point of Constitution damage per day, and ages at an accelerated rate of 1 year per day, eventually incurring all of the penalties of old age but none of the benefits.

Blind-Fight from Feat

<p class="stat-block-1"> In melee, every time you miss because of concealment (see Combat), you can reroll your miss chance percentile roll one time to see if you actually hit.</p><p class="stat-block-2">An invisible attacker gets no advantages related to hitting you in melee. That is, you don't lose your Dexterity bonus to Armor Class, and the attacker doesn't get the usual +2 bonus for being invisible. The invisible attacker's bonuses do still apply for ranged attacks, however.</p><p class="stat-block-2">You do not need to make Acrobatics skill checks to move at full speed while blinded.</p>

Cleave from Feat

<p class="stat-block-1"> As a standard action, you can make a single attack at your full base attack bonus against a foe within reach. If you hit, you deal damage normally and can make an additional attack (using your full base attack bonus) against a foe that is adjacent to the first and also within reach. You can only make one additional attack per round with this feat. When you use this feat, you take a &ndash;2 penalty to your Armor Class until your next turn.</p>

Great Cleave from Feat

<p class="stat-block-1"> As a standard action, you can make a single attack at your full base attack bonus against a foe within reach. If you hit, you deal damage normally and can make an additional attack (using your full base attack bonus) against a foe that is adjacent to the previous foe and also within reach. If you hit, you can continue to make attacks against foes adjacent to the previous foe, so long as they are within your reach. You cannot attack an individual foe more than once during this attack action. When you use this feat, you take a &ndash;2 penalty to your Armor Class until your next turn.</p>

Improved Critical from Feat

<p class="stat-block-1"> When using the weapon you selected, your threat range is doubled.</p>

<p class="stat-block-1"> You get a +4 bonus on initiative checks.</p>

<p class="stat-block-1"> When you use the attack action, you can make one attack at your highest base attack bonus that deals additional damage. Roll the weapon's damage dice for the attack three times and add the results together before adding bonuses from Strength, weapon special abilities (such as <i>flaming</i>), precision based damage, and other damage bonuses. These extra weapon damage dice are not multiplied on a critical hit, but are added to the total.</p>

Lightning Reflexes from Feat

<p class="stat-block-1"> You get a +2 bonus on all Reflex saving throws.</p>

Power Attack from Feat

<p class="stat-block-1"> You can choose to take a &ndash;1 penalty on all melee attack rolls and combat maneuver checks to gain a +2 bonus on all melee damage rolls. This bonus to damage is increased by half (+50%) if you are making an attack with a two-handed weapon, a one handed weapon using two hands, or a primary natural weapon that adds 1-1/2 times your Strength modifier on damage rolls. This bonus to damage is halved (&ndash;50%) if you are making an attack with an off-hand weapon or secondary natural weapon. When your base attack bonus reaches +4, and every 4 points thereafter, the penalty increases by &ndash;1 and the bonus to damage increases by +2. You must choose to use this feat before making an attack roll, and its effects last until your next turn. The bonus damage does not apply to touch attacks or effects that do not deal hit point damage.</p>

Skill Focus from Feat

<p class="stat-block-1"> You get a +3 bonus on all checks involving the chosen skill. If you have 10 or more ranks in that skill, this bonus increases to +6.</p>

Vital Strike from Feat

<p class="stat-block-1"> When you use the attack action, you can make one attack at your highest base attack bonus that deals additional damage. Roll the weapon's damage dice for the attack twice and add the results together before adding bonuses from Strength, weapon abilities (such as <i>flaming</i>), precision based damage, and other damage bonuses. These extra weapon damage dice are not multiplied on a critical hit, but are added to the total.</p>

Climb +33, Fly +13, Perception +24, Stealth +26, Swim +28

Details
Type
Dragon
Alignment
CE
Size
Gargantuan
Environment
cold hills
Organization
solitary
Treasure
triple
Senses
darkvision 60 ft., low-light vision, scent, true seeing; Perception +24
Languages
Aklo, Draconic, Sylvan
Source
Bestiary 3
Sources Used in This Record
10 House/Core
  • Uses feat: Blind-Fight (Feat)
    House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
  • Uses feat: Cleave (Feat)
    House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
  • Uses feat: Great Cleave (Feat)
    House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
  • Uses feat: Improved Critical (Feat)
    House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
  • Uses feat: Improved Initiative (Feat)
    House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
  • Uses feat: Improved Vital Strike (Feat)
    House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
  • Uses feat: Lightning Reflexes (Feat)
    House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
  • Uses feat: Power Attack (Feat)
    House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
  • Uses feat: Skill Focus (Feat)
    House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
  • Uses feat: Vital Strike (Feat)
    House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
OGL 1.0a Notice. Pathfinder-derived Open Game Content on this page is used under the Open Game License v1.0a and Section 15 notice.