Library / Bestiary

Rakshasa, Maharaja

CR 20.00 Outsider LE Medium
Impeccably dressed and bedecked in exotic jewelry, this fiend holds an ornate saber in its backward-facing hands.

All rakshasas aspire to power, but there are those for whom this hunger is more than an obsession: It's a birthright. Legends among the rakshasas tell of the maharajas—those rakshasas whose depredations and acts of cruelty have elevated them above others of their kind and allowed them to reincarnate as embodiments of every myth, fable, and cautionary tale involving the beast-headed fiends. Accorded the respect and deference of their lessers, maharajas inspire one emotion within the rakshasa race that few can: fear.

A maharaja rakshasa emerges only after a rakshasa of great power and influence has spent several lives as a member of the samrata, the height of the rakshasa's social-spiritual caste system. When a rakshasa ascends to maharaja status, others of its kind take notice, with rakshasas coming from far and wide to serve even a young maharaja—eager to curry its favor at an early age. The birth of a maharaja denotes that great change is imminent: The maharaja will fulfill some terrible destiny, found a lasting nation of rakshasas, undergo some manner of divine ascension, or defeat some greater foe and commandeer its domain, often splitting the region into large enough chunks for its lieutenants and servants to claim and still have room to expand. It is rare in the extreme for more than a handful of maharajas to emerge in the same century.

So great is a maharaja's power and influence and so long is its life that one can spend most of its time enjoying the luxury of its years of toil. When not manipulating armies or the machinations of lesser rakshasas, it can often be found surrounded by the most beautiful of its servitors—often charmed or dominated humanoids, or, if the maharaja is powerful enough, good-aligned outsiders—lounging in opulence.

The lair of a maharaja is typically a glorious, decadent mansion. After decades or centuries of work, gold filigree decorates the columns, and great friezes embossed with rakshasa myths and folklore decorate the walls. Rather than couches or divans, luxurious pillows stuffed with exotic feathers and crafted from the hides of even rarer creatures serve for furniture, and all about hang the trophies of a centuries-long life of tyranny: the crowns of defeated rulers, the wealth of ruined countries, and the heads of failed lieutenants.

A maharaja's great experience and power, however, does not make it immune to or ignorant of threats. Disloyal servants, powerful kings, ambitious rivals, and meddling adventurers all might step forth to challenge a maharaja's rule. To that end, a maharaja employs devious methods to ensure its own safety, with assassination, false rumors, and illusory doubles serving as useful tools to ferret out threats. Wary of attack and often with wide territories to control, most rakshasa maharajas have several secluded palaces and lavish redoubts, and travel among them endlessly.

STR
27
DEX
28
CON
30
INT
25
WIS
22
CHA
29
HP
310 (20d10+200)
AC
37, touch 24, flat-footed 27 (+4 deflection, +9 Dex, +1 dodge, +13 natural)
Speed
40 ft., fly 30 ft. (good)
Init
+13
Melee
+3 falchion +31/+26/+21/+16 (2d4+15/15-20), 4 bites +23 (1d6+4)
BAB
+20
CMB
+28
CMD
52
Fort
+16
Ref
+21
Will
+18
DR
20/good and piercing
SR
35
Racial Modifiers
+4 Bluff, +8 Disguise, +4 Perception

Weapons: Martial, Simple

detect thoughts (DC 29)

Extra Initiative — When an encounter starts, a maharaja rolls twice for initiative. The maharaja acts normally on the higher of the two initiative counts each round. On the lower initiative count, the maharaja can take a single standard action.

change shape (any humanoid; alter self)

Combat Casting from Feat

<p class="stat-block-1"> You get a +4 bonus on concentration checks made to cast a spell or use a spell-like ability when casting on the defensive or while grappled.</p>

Combat Reflexes from Feat

<p class="stat-block-1"> You may make a number of additional attacks of opportunity per round equal to your Dexterity bonus. With this feat, you may also make attacks of opportunity while flat-footed.</p>

Dodge from Feat

<p class="stat-block-1"> 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.</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>

Mobility from Feat

<p class="stat-block-1"> You get a +4 dodge bonus to Armor Class against attacks of opportunity caused when you move out of or within a threatened area. A condition that makes you lose your Dexterity bonus to Armor Class (if any) also makes you lose dodge bonuses.</p><p class="stat-block-2">Dodge bonuses stack with each other, unlike most types of bonuses.</p>

Quicken Spell from Feat

<p class="stat-block-1"> Casting a quickened spell is a swift action. You can perform another action, even casting another spell, in the same round as you cast a quickened spell. A spell whose casting time is more than 1 round or 1 full-round action cannot be quickened.</p><p class="stat-block-2">A quickened spell uses up a spell slot four levels higher than the spell's actual level. Casting a quickened spell doesn't provoke an attack of opportunity.</p>

Silent Spell from Feat

<p class="stat-block-1"> A silent spell can be cast with no verbal components. Spells without verbal components are not affected. A silent spell uses up a spell slot one level higher than the spell's actual level.</p>

Still Spell from Feat

<p class="stat-block-1"> A stilled spell can be cast with no somatic components. Spells without somatic components are not affected. A stilled spell uses up a spell slot one level higher than the spell's actual level.</p>

Acrobatics +27 (+31 when jumping), Appraise +25, Bluff +35, Diplomacy +30, Disguise +30, Fly +31, Intimidate +30, Knowledge (arcana, history, nobility, religion) +25, Perception +31, Sense Motive +27, Spellcraft +25, Stealth +30

spell-like abilities:
Constant—Comprehend Languages, Constant—Tongues, At will—Clairaudience/Clairvoyance, 1/day—Dominate Monster
spells known:
9th (4/day)—Weird, 8th (6/day)—Shadow Evocation, Greater, 8th (6/day)—Mind Blank, 7th (7/day)—Shadow Conjuration, Greater, 7th (7/day)—Invisibility, Mass, 7th (7/day)—Spell Turning, 6th (7/day)—Dispel Magic, Greater, 6th (7/day)—Suggestion, Mass, 6th (7/day)—True Seeing, 5th (8/day)—Baleful Polymorph, 5th (8/day)—Feeblemind, 5th (8/day)—Mind Fog, 5th (8/day)—Teleport, 4th (8/day)—Charm Monster, 4th (8/day)—Dimension Door, 4th (8/day)—Globe Of Invulnerability, Lesser, 4th (8/day)—Scrying, 3rd (8/day)—Dispel Magic, 3rd (8/day)—Nondetection, 3rd (8/day)—Suggestion, 3rd (8/day)—Vampiric Touch, 2nd (8/day)—Darkness, 2nd (8/day)—Knock, 2nd (8/day)—Misdirection, 2nd (8/day)—Resist Energy, 2nd (8/day)—See Invisibility, 1st (9/day)—Charm Person, 1st (9/day)—Identify, 1st (9/day)—Mage Armor, 1st (9/day)—Magic Missile, 1st (9/day)—Ventriloquism, At will—Arcane Mark, At will—Bleed, At will—Daze, At will—Detect Magic, At will—Ghost Sound, At will—Mage Hand, At will—Message, At will—Prestidigitation, At will—Read Magic
Details
Type
Outsider
Alignment
LE
Size
Medium
Environment
any
Organization
solitary
Treasure
double (+3 falchion, other treasure)
Senses
all-around vision, darkvision 60 ft.; Perception +31
Languages
Abyssal, Common, Infernal, Undercommon; comprehend languages, tongues
Source
Bestiary 3
Sources Used in This Record
53 House/Core
  • Uses feat: Combat Casting (Feat)
    House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
  • Uses feat: Combat Reflexes (Feat)
    House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
  • Uses feat: Dodge (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: Mobility (Feat)
    House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
  • Uses feat: Quicken Spell (Feat)
    House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
  • Uses feat: Silent Spell (Feat)
    House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
  • Uses feat: Still Spell (Feat)
    House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
  • Knows spell: Comprehend Languages (Spell)
    House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
  • Knows spell: Tongues (Spell)
    House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
  • Knows spell: Clairaudience/Clairvoyance (Spell)
    House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
  • Knows spell: Dominate Monster (Spell)
    House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
  • Knows spell: Weird (Spell)
    House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
  • Knows spell: Shadow Evocation, Greater (Spell)
    House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
  • Knows spell: Mind Blank (Spell)
    House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
  • Knows spell: Shadow Conjuration, Greater (Spell)
    House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
  • Knows spell: Invisibility, Mass (Spell)
    House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
  • Knows spell: Spell Turning (Spell)
    House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
  • Knows spell: Dispel Magic, Greater (Spell)
    House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
  • Knows spell: Suggestion, Mass (Spell)
    House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
  • Knows spell: True Seeing (Spell)
    House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
  • Knows spell: Baleful Polymorph (Spell)
    House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
  • Knows spell: Feeblemind (Spell)
    House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
  • Knows spell: Mind Fog (Spell)
    House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
  • Knows spell: Teleport (Spell)
    House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
  • Knows spell: Charm Monster (Spell)
    House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
  • Knows spell: Dimension Door (Spell)
    House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
  • Knows spell: Globe Of Invulnerability, Lesser (Spell)
    House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
  • Knows spell: Scrying (Spell)
    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: Nondetection (Spell)
    House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
  • Knows spell: Suggestion (Spell)
    House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
  • Knows spell: Vampiric Touch (Spell)
    House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
  • Knows spell: Darkness (Spell)
    House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
  • Knows spell: Knock (Spell)
    House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
  • Knows spell: Misdirection (Spell)
    House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
  • Knows spell: Resist Energy (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: Identify (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: Magic Missile (Spell)
    House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
  • Knows spell: Ventriloquism (Spell)
    House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
  • Knows spell: Arcane Mark (Spell)
    House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
  • Knows spell: Bleed (Spell)
    House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
  • Knows spell: Daze (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: Ghost Sound (Spell)
    House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
  • Knows spell: Mage Hand (Spell)
    House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
  • Knows spell: Message (Spell)
    House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
  • Knows spell: Prestidigitation (Spell)
    House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
  • Knows spell: Read Magic (Spell)
    House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
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