Welcome to Frightful Fridays! A-Z! temporarily in its correct day slot. Sadly, this is the last Friday of April, and I only have 3 monsters left to go for the month. Today's entry calls back to the dark tendril I posted a few months back with an even more terrifying emissary of the mysterious entity that brings forth these creatures. The leviathan worm can call forth a more powerful version of the black tentacles spell, which comprises half today's extra feature (the other half is an even more potent version of the spell).
That's all for today, but I'll be back tomorrow with monster "X". As always, thank you for reading!
This great, gray worm stands taller than most structures and waves numerous tentacles about; the stench coming off the creature is overwhelming.
Worm, Leviathan CR 20
XP 307,200
NE Colossal Outsider (evil, extraplanar)
Init -2; Senses darkvision 120 ft.; Perception +38
Aura stench (DC 32, 10 minutes)
Defense
AC 36, touch 0, flat-footed 36 (-2 Dex, -8 size, +36 natural)
hp 387 (31d10+217); regeneration 20
Fort +24, Ref +8, Will +21
DR 15/cold iron and epic; Immune ability damage, acid, cold, electricity, mind-affecting effects, paralysis, petrification, poison, polymorph, sonic
Offense
Speed 80 ft., burrow 40 ft.
Melee bite +37 (4d6+14/19–20 plus grab), 4 tentacles +32 (2d8+7 plus grab and 1d6 Con drain)
Space 30 ft.; Reach 30 ft. (40 ft. with tentacle)
Special Attacks constrict (tentacle, 2d8+14 plus 1d6 Con drain), swallow whole (4d6+21 plus 4d6 acid, AC 28, hp 38), trample (3d6+21, DC 39)
Spell-Like Abilities (CL 31st; concentration +34)
At Will—quickened black tentacles
3/day—improved black tentacles
Statistics
Str 38, Dex 7, Con 24, Int 23, Wis 18, Cha 17
Base Atk +31; CMB +53 (+57 grapple, +57 sunder); CMD 61 (63 vs. sunder, can't be tripped)
Feats Blind-Fight, Cleave, Cleaving Finish, Critical Focus, Deadly Finish, Exhausting Critical, Great Cleave, Greater Blind-Fight, Greater Sunder, Improved Blind-Fight, Improved Cleaving Finish, Improved Critical (Bite), Improved Sunder, Power Attack, Quicken Spell-Like Ability (black tentacles), Tiring Critical
Skills Bluff +37, Heal +35, Intimidate +37, Knowledge (arcana) +40, Knowledge (dungeoneering) +40, Knowledge (planes) +40, Perception +38, Sense Motive +38, Spellcraft +40, Stealth -18, Survival +35, Swim +45, Use Magic Device +34
Languages Abyssal, Aklo, Aquan, Celestial, Draconic, Ignan, Infernal, Terran; telepathy 180 ft.
SQ foul corpse, no breath
Ecology
Environment any
Organization solitary or mass (1 leviathan worm plus 3–8 dark tendrils)
Treasure double
Special Abilities
Constitution Drain (Su) When a leviathan worm hits or constricts with its tentacle, it potentially drains Constitution; if the victim succeeds at a DC 32 Fortitude save he avoids the Con drain. A leviathan worm gains no temporary hit points from the drain.
Foul Corpse (Ex) A dead leviathan worm disperses diseases and toxins into the air as it decomposes. Once per day, every creature within 200 feet of the worm is targeted by greater contagion (DC 18) and poison (DC 17). This recurs for 10 days, unless the corpse takes 5 times it Constitution score in fire damage, which fully destroys the corpse.
Regeneration (Ex) Nothing bypasses a leviathan worm’s regeneration. The creature continues to regenerate until it reaches negative hit points equal to or greater than 5 times its Constitution score.
The same entity that extrudes dark tendrils as a means to gauge its opposition’s power also sends leviathan worms to soften up that opposition. Unlike a dark tendril, a leviathan worm is an autonomous, self-aware creature that employs its own tactics to achieve its master’s dark goals. A leviathan worm measures 30 feet long, is 20-feet in diameter, and weighs 7 tons.
While a leviathan worm has no ability to creep up on a settlement, its array of attacks and powers renders a stealthy approach moot. If the worm desires a less direct approach, it will burrow deep underneath the target location and tunnel up when it is ready to attack; still, the rumbling of earth presages a leviathan worm’s approach. Like the related dark tendril, a leviathan worm can use black tentacles and a stronger version of the spell to do some of its dirty work, but the creature has no problem wading in and attacking directly. As an intelligent, albeit malevolent, creature, a leviathan worm will respond to attempts at diplomacy, but the end result of negotiations usually falls along the lines of the creature allowing a settlement’s populace to flee before it devastates the location. The worm is supremely confident in its abilities and will never retreat from a battle; however, it may attempt to “play dead” when reduced below 0 hit points to allow its regeneration to bring it back to adequate health. A defeated leviathan worm is almost as bad as a live one, as the decomposing corpse releases a number of foul diseases and toxins in the air.
--------------------
Improved Black Tentacles
School conjuration (creation) [acid, cold, electricity or fire—see below]; Level sorcerer/wizard 6
Casting Time 1 standard action
Components V, S, M (octopus or squid tentacle)
Range medium (100 ft. + 10 ft./level)
Area 30-ft.-radius spread
Duration 1 round/level (D)
Saving Throw none; Spell Resistance no
This spell works similarly to black tentacles by creating a mass of rubbery, black tentacles that rise up from the floor. The tentacles make a combat maneuver check to grapple each creature within the spell’s area at the beginning of your turn and when you complete the spell. A creature entering the area is also affected. The tentacles’ CMB equals your caster level +8 (as its Strength bonus) +2 (as its size bonus). When a tentacle grapples a foe or maintains a grapple, it deals 2d6+8 points of damage, plus 1d6 points of energy damage (energy type chosen when you cast the spell), to the foe, who also gains the grappled condition. The improved black tentacles spell receives a +10 bonus to maintain a grapple, and the spell can pin a grappled foe. The CMD for this spell is equal to 15 + its CMB.
Greater Black Tentacles
School conjuration (creation) [acid, cold, electricity or fire]; Level sorcerer/wizard 8
Casting Time 1 standard action
Components V, S, M (octopus or squid tentacle)
Range long (400 ft. + 40 ft./level)
Area 40-ft.-radius spread
Duration 1 round/level (D)
Saving Throw none; Spell Resistance no
This spell has the same effects as improved black tentacles with the following exceptions: the Strength bonus increases to +16, the size bonus increases to +4, damage increases to 3d6+16 plus 2d6 energy damage, and CMD equals 20 + its CMB. Additionally, the spell can manifest at any point, not just on the ground, as the tentacles emerge from and anchor to an extradimensional space.
