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Penanggalen

CR 5.00 Undead NE Medium

A pale face framed by glossy black hair hangs in the air, trailing viscera from the ragged stump of its neck like a grisly tail.

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Description

The hideous penanggalen is one of the most horrific vampiric monstrosities. By day, a penanggalen appears to be a normal humanoid, but at night or when provoked, the creature's head rips free from the rest of her body, coils of viscera and entrails dangling from her throat as she launches into the air, seeking blood to sate her unholy thirst.

Unlike most undead, the penanggalen is more akin to the lich in that she willfully abandons both her mortality and morality to become a hideous undead monster. While penanggalens are traditionally female spellcasters, any creature capable of performing the vile ritual of transformation can become one.

Similar to a lich, a creature works toward becoming a penanggalen. More than one such transformation ritual exists, but all require heinous acts that symbolize the casting aside of kindness, benevolence, and any semblance of feelings other than cruelty. Many of these rituals call for the repeated consumption of blood, bile, tears, and other fluids drawn from captured and tortured innocents.

A penanggalen keeps a vat of vinegar in her lair. When returning from a night of feeding, a penanggalen's organs are swollen with blood. In order to fit back into her body, the penanggalen must soak for 1 hour in this vat of vinegar. Once reduced, a penanggalen slides back into her body. If a penanggalen is slain away from her body, the body rapidly deteriorates into foul-smelling grit.

The penanggalen presented above was a witch in life. The witch class is presented in full in the Advanced Player's Guide.

Ability Scores

STR

DEX

CON

INT

WIS

CHA

Combat Stats

HP: 45 (5d6+25); fast healing 5
AC: 21, touch 15, flat-footed 16 (+4 Dex, +1 dodge, +6 natural)
Speed: fly 60 ft. (good)
Init: +4
Melee: bite +6 (1d6+4 plus disease), slam +6 (1d4+4 plus grab and wither)
BAB: +2
CMB: +6 (+10 grapple)
CMD: 21
Fort: +4
Ref: +5
Will: +7
DR: 5/silver and slashing
Defensive Abilities: channel resistance +4
Racial Modifiers: +8 Bluff, +8 Fly, +8 Knowledge (arcana), +8 Perception, +8 Sense Motive, +8 Stealth

Proficiencies

Weapons: Simple

Special Attacks

blood drain (1d4 Constitution)

create spawn

disease (filth fever, DC 15)

hexes (cackle, evil eye, misfortune)

Special Qualities

separate

witch's familiar (centipede)

Feats

Dodge, Eschew Materials, Spell Focus (enchantment), Toughness

Special Abilities

Dodge from Feat

You gain a +1 dodge bonus to your AC. A condition that makes you lose your Dex bonus to AC also makes you lose the benefits of this feat.

Eschew Materials from Feat

You can cast any spell with a material component costing 1 gp or less without needing that component. The casting of the spell still provokes attacks of opportunity as normal. If the spell requires a material component that costs more than 1 gp, you must have the material component on hand to cast the spell, as normal.

Spell Focus from Feat

Add +1 to the Difficulty Class for all saving throws against spells from the school of magic you select.

Toughness from Feat

You gain +3 hit points. For every Hit Die you possess beyond 3, you gain an additional +1 hit point. If you have more than 3 Hit Dice, you gain +1 hit points whenever you gain a Hit Die (such as when you gain a level).

Skills

Bluff +11, Fly +20, Knowledge (arcana) +19, Knowledge (nature) +7, Perception +16, Sense Motive +14, Spellcraft +11, Stealth +20, Use Magic Device +11

Spells

witch spells prepared:

3rd—Dispel Magic, 3rd—Stinking Cloud, 2nd—Glitterdust, 2nd—Hold Person, 2nd—See Invisibility, 1st—Charm Person, 1st—Command, 1st—Mage Armor, 1st—Obscuring Mist, At will—Dancing Lights, At will—Detect Magic, At will—Read Magic, At will—Touch Of Fatigue

Details

Type: Undead
Alignment: NE
Size: Medium
Environment: any
Organization: solitary
Treasure: NPC gear
Senses: darkvision 60 ft.; Perception +16
Languages: Common, Draconic, Gnoll, Infernal
Source: Bestiary 3

Sources Used in This Record

17 House/Core

Uses feat: Dodge (Feat)

House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
Uses feat: Eschew Materials (Feat)

House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
Uses feat: Spell Focus (Feat)

House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
Uses feat: Toughness (Feat)

House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
Knows spell: Dispel Magic (Spell)

House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
Knows spell: Stinking Cloud (Spell)

House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
Knows spell: Glitterdust (Spell)

House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
Knows spell: Hold Person (Spell)

House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
Knows spell: See Invisibility (Spell)

House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
Knows spell: Charm Person (Spell)

House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
Knows spell: Command (Spell)

House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
Knows spell: Mage Armor (Spell)

House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
Knows spell: Obscuring Mist (Spell)

House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
Knows spell: Dancing Lights (Spell)

House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
Knows spell: Detect Magic (Spell)

House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
Knows spell: Read Magic (Spell)

House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
Knows spell: Touch Of Fatigue (Spell)

House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.

Rules