Library / Bestiary

Sargassum Fiend

CR 9.00 Plant N Large
This shifting mass of green seaweed transforms from the shape of a humanoid back to a patch of algae, continually changing.

A sargassum fiend is a free-floating mass of intelligent seaweed capable of luring its victims to their deaths via a powerful hallucinogenic pheromone. Once the sargassum fiend lures prey within striking distance, it grabs the entranced creature and attempts to crush it to death. Experienced sailors tell tales of entire crews jumping overboard to swim out to a murderous field of the sea plants.

The strange pheromone produced by a sargassum fiend can be harvested from the numerous bulbs that grow within the fiend's body, but these bulbs rot quickly once harvested. A fresh bulb lasts for 1 hour before becoming useless; until that point it can be crushed as a standard action to produce a mirage effect as detailed above. A single sargassum fiend generally has 1d6 bulbs of musk when slain—harvesting one requires a DC 29 Survival check. To date, no alchemical or magical process has successfully preserved this musk.

Sargassum fiends usually reach sizes up to 10 feet in diameter before splitting, their means of asexual reproduction. Mutations have been known to exist, however, and sea-faring scholars have recorded individual sargassum fiends reaching masses of truly enormous size, up to Colossal. Such enormous sargassum fiends can be created by advancing their Hit Dice by a minimum of 5 HD per size increase step.

STR
25
DEX
14
CON
20
INT
2
WIS
11
CHA
15
HP
123 (13d8+65)
AC
24, touch 12, flat-footed 21 (+2 Dex, +1 dodge, +12 natural, -1 size)
Speed
20 ft., climb 20 ft., swim 40 ft.
Init
+6
Melee
2 slams +16 (2d8+7 plus grab)
Space
10 ft.
Reach
10 ft.
BAB
+9
CMB
+17 (+25 grapple)
CMD
30 (can't be tripped)
Fort
+15
Ref
+8
Will
+4
DR
5/slashing

constrict (2d8+10)

Grab — A sargassum fiend can grab Huge or smaller foes, and has a +8 racial bonus on grapple checks rather than the normal +4 bonus most creatures with grab possess.

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>

Great Fortitude from Feat

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

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

Lightning Reflexes from Feat

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

Stealthy from Feat

<p class="stat-block-1"> You get a +2 bonus on all Escape Artist and Stealth skill checks. If you have 10 or more ranks in one of these skills, the bonus increases to +4 for that skill.</p>

Weapon Focus from Feat

<p class="stat-block-1"> You gain a +1 bonus on all attack rolls you make using the selected weapon.</p>

Climb +19, Escape Artist +4, Perception +11, Stealth +7, Swim +15

Details
Type
Plant
Alignment
N
Size
Large
Environment
any oceans
Organization
solitary, pair, or bed (3-8)
Treasure
incidental (1d6 sargassum fiend bulbs, other treasure)
Senses
blindsense 60 ft., tremorsense 120 ft.; Perception +11
Source
Bestiary 3
Sources Used in This Record
7 House/Core
  • Uses feat: Dodge (Feat)
    House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
  • Uses feat: Great Fortitude (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: Lightning Reflexes (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: Stealthy (Feat)
    House/Core — covered by the site's Section 15.
  • Uses feat: Weapon Focus (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.