Nightshade, Nightcrawler
Description
Although the nightcrawler might appear to be little more than an immense and frightening vermin, with its centipede-like body and numerous glowing eyes, it is actually incredibly intelligent. When not cleansing the deep caverns of life, the nightcrawler spends its time plotting how best to carry out its own private stages of the overall nightshade plan to expunge life from all worlds, conferring with its undead minions and, when necessary, observing living creatures from afar while invisible to learn about hidden enclaves that its depredations might otherwise have missed.
It would be one thing if the nightcrawlers remained in the deep caverns, for these regions are rife with foul life the world is better off without. Yet unfortunately for those who dwell upon the surface, nightcrawlers often crawl up through the tunnels to bring their devastation to the night above. Although they always retreat underground before the first tentative rays of dawn color the eastern skies, they can spread an incredible amount of ruin in the span of a few short hours each night.
A nightcrawler is 60 feet long and weighs 10,000 pounds.
Combat Stats
- Melee
- bite +32 (4d10+18/19-20 plus 4d6 cold and grab), sting +32 (4d6+18/19-20 plus 4d6 cold and poison)
- Space
- 20 ft.
- Reach
- 20 ft.
- DR
- 15/good and silver
- SR
- 29
- Aura
- desecrating aura (30 ft.)
- Racial Modifiers
- +8 Stealth in dim light and darkness
Ability Scores
Proficiencies
Weapons: Simple
Special Attacks
channel negative energy (9d6, DC 31, 9/day)
Energy Drain — A creature that has been swallowed whole by a nightcrawler gains 1 negative level each round.
swallow whole (4d10+22 bludgeoning plus energy drain, AC 23, 31 hp)
Feats
Combat Expertise, Command Undead, Critical Focus, Greater Vital Strike, Improved Critical (sting), Improved Critical (sting), Improved Initiative, Improved Vital Strike, Iron Will, Power Attack, Quicken Spell-Like Ability (cone of cold), Staggering Critical, Vital Strike
Special Abilities
Universal Monster Rules
Special Abilities
Feats, Traits & Items
You can choose to take a –1 penalty on melee attack rolls and combat maneuver checks to gain a +1 dodge bonus to your Armor Class. When your base attack bonus reaches +4, and every +4 thereafter, the penalty increases by –1 and the dodge bonus increases by +1. You can only choose to use this feat when you declare that you are making an attack or a full-attack action with a melee weapon. The effects of this feat last until your next turn.
As a standard action, you can use one of your uses of channel negative energy to enslave undead within 30 feet. Undead receive a Will save to negate the effect. The DC for this Will save is equal to 10 + 1/2 your cleric level + your Charisma modifier. Undead that fail their saves fall under your control, obeying your commands to the best of their ability, as if under the effects of control undead. Intelligent undead receive a new saving throw each day to resist your command. You can control any number of undead, so long as their total Hit Dice do not exceed your cleric level. If you use channel energy in this way, it has no other effect (it does not heal or harm nearby creatures). If an undead creature is under the control of another creature, you must make an opposed Charisma check whenever your orders conflict.
You receive a +4 circumstance bonus on attack rolls made to confirm critical hits.
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 four times and add the results together before adding bonuses from Strength, weapon abilities (such as flaming), 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.
When using the weapon you selected, your threat range is doubled.
When using the weapon you selected, your threat range is doubled.
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 flaming), 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.
You can choose to take a –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 (–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 –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.
Choose one of the creature's spell-like abilities, subject to the restrictions described in this feat. The creature can use the chosen spell-like ability as a quickened spell-like ability three times per day (or less, if the ability is normally usable only once or twice per day).
Using a quickened spell-like ability is a swift action that does not provoke an attack of opportunity. The creature can perform another action—including the use of another spell-like ability (but not another swift action)—in the same round that it uses a quickened spell-like ability. The creature may use only one quickened spell-like ability per round.
The creature can only select a spell-like ability duplicating a spell with a level less than or equal to 1/2 its caster level (round down) – 4. For a summary, see the table below.
A spell-like ability that duplicates a spell with a casting time greater than 1 full round cannot be quickened.
Whenever you score a critical hit, your opponent becomes staggered for 1d4+1 rounds. A successful Fortitude save reduces the duration to 1 round. The DC of this Fortitude save is equal to 10 + your base attack bonus. The effects of this feat do not stack. Additional hits instead add to the duration.
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 flaming), 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.
Skills
Intimidate +34, Knowledge (arcana) +33, Knowledge (planes) +30, Knowledge (religion) +33, Perception +33, Sense Motive +33, Spellcraft +33, Stealth +16 (+24 in darkness), Swim +40
Spells
- Type
- Undead
- Alignment
- CE
- Size
- Gargantuan
- Environment
- any (Negative Energy Plane)
- Organization
- solitary or pair
- Treasure
- standard
- Senses
- darksense, darkvision 120 ft., detect magic, low-light vision, tremorsense 120 ft.; Perception +33
- Aura
- desecrating aura (30 ft.)
- Languages
- Abyssal, Common, Infernal; telepathy 100 ft.
- Source
- Bestiary 2