Hello and welcome to a new Frightful Fridays! on an actual Friday! This week's monster comes from the image archive and is one that my friend Patrick pointed out to me. There was a little discussion about what this could be, a griffon-hydra mix, a cerberic creature, etc., and I decided to go with all the above, and throw in the idea that this is a mythic creature. The image just screams mythic to me, and I am happy to have this be the first mythic creature to grace Frightful Fridays. I made sure to include all the mythic rules necessary to run this creature in your game, since not everyone has Paizo's Mythic Adventures.
I hope you enjoy the kerberogryph, and I'll be back next week with a new monster. As always, thanks for reading!
You can find the image for this mythic beastie here.
This three-headed silver-feathered griffon scrutinizes its surroundings carefully, each head looking in a different direction for signs for intruders.
Kerberogryph CR 9/MR 4
XP 6,400
NG Large magical beast (mythic)
Init +3; Senses darkvision 60 ft., low-light vision; Perception +17
Defense
AC 24, touch 12, flat-footed 21 (+3 Dex, +12 natural, –1 size)
hp 124 (8d10+80); fast healing 6
Fort +11, Ref +9, Will +6; second save
Defensive Abilities block attacks, poisonous blood (wyvern poison); DR 5/epic
Offense
Speed 30 ft., fly 80 ft. (good)
Melee 3 bites +14 (1d8+6) and 2 talons +13 (1d6+6)
Space 10 ft., Reach 5 ft. (10 ft. with bites)
Special Attacks breath weapon (30-ft. cone, 8d6 fire damage, Reflex DC 19 half, usable every 1d4 rounds), horrific rend, mythic power (4/day, surge +1d8), pounce, rake (2 claws +13, 1d4+6), rend (2 bites, 1d8+9)
Statistics
Str 23, Dex 17, Con 20, Int 7, Wis 18, Cha 12
Base Atk +8; CMB +15; CMD 28 (32 vs. trip)
Feats Combat Reflexes[M], Intimidating Prowess[M], Skill Focus (Perception), Weapon Focus (bite)
Skills Acrobatics +13, Fly +10, Intimidate +14, Perception +17; Racial Modifiers +4 Acrobatics, +8 Intimidate, +4 Perception
Languages telepathy 1000 ft. (with employer only)
SQ hydra traits, regenerate head
Ecology
Environment any terrestrial
Organization solitary
Treasure twice standard
Special Abilities
Block Attacks (Ex) Once per round, when a kerberogryph is hit by a melee or ranged attack, it can attempt a melee attack using its highest attack bonus. If this result exceed the result from the attack against it, the creature is unaffected by the attack, as if the attack had missed.
Fast Healing (Ex) A kerberogryph's fast healing ability is equal to twice its current number of heads (minimum fast healing 6). This fast healing applies only to damage inflicted on the creature's body.
Horrific Rend (Ex) If a kerberogryph hits an opponent with three or more bite attacks, it deals double damage with its rend.
When a kerberogryph performs a horrific rend, it may expend 1 use of mythic power as a free action to demoralize foes with a +8 circumstance bonus on its Intimidate check, and it is treated as if it possessed the Shatter Defenses feat.
Hydra Traits (Ex) A kerberogryph can be killed by severing all of its heads or slaying its body. Any attack that is not an attempt to sever a head affects the body, including area attacks or attacks that cause piercing or bludgeoning damage. To sever a head, an opponent must make a sunder attempt with a slashing weapon targeting a head. A head is considered a separate weapon with hardness 0 and hit points equal to the kerberogryph's HD. To sever a head, an opponent must inflict enough damage to reduce the head's hit points to 0 or less. Severing a head deals damage to the kerberogryph's body equal to the kerberogryph's current HD. A kerberogryph can't attack with a severed head, but takes no other penalties.
Mythic Combat Reflexes (Ex) A kerberogryph can make any number of additional attacks of opportunity per round. As a swift action, a kerberogryph can expend one use of mythic power to, until the start of its next turn, make attacks of opportunity against foes it has already made attacks of opportunity against this round if they provoke attacks of opportunity from it by moving.
Mythic Intimidating Prowess (Ex) A kerberogryph gains a +4 bonus on Intimidate checks against non-mythic creatures, or +2 against mythic creatures.
Mythic Power (Su) A kerberogryph can draw upon a wellspring of power to accomplish amazing deeds and cheat fate. Each day, it can expend a number of uses of mythic power equal to its mythic rank. The creature has the surge ability and can use this mythic power to activate it.
Poisonous Blood (Ex) Any creature that confirms a critical hit against the kerberogryph with a piercing or slashing melee weapon without reach is sprayed with poison.
Regenerate Head (Ex) When a kerberogryph's head is destroyed, two heads regrow in 1d4 rounds. A kerberogryph cannot have more than twice its original number of heads at any one time. To prevent new heads from growing, at least 10 points of acid or fire damage must be dealt to the stump (a touch attack to hit) before they appear. Acid or fire damage from area attacks can affect stumps and the body simultaneously. A kerberogryph doesn't die from losing its heads until all are cut off and the stumps seared by acid or fire.
If a kerberogryph reaches its maximum number of heads (6 for the typical creature), its maneuverability while flying drops to average.
Second Save (Ex) Whenever a kerberogryph fails a saving throw against an effect with a duration greater than 1 round, it can keep trying to shake of the effect. At the start of its turn, if it's still affected, it can attempt the save one more time as a free action. If this save succeeds, the effect affects the creature as if it had succeeded at its initial saving throw. If the affect already allows another saving throw on a later turn to break the effect (hold monster, gltterdust, etc.), this ability is in addition to the extra saving throw from the effect.
Surge (Su) A kerberogryph can call upon its mythic power to overcome difficult challenges. It can expend one use of mythic power to increase any d20 roll it just made by rolling 1d8 and adding it to the result. Using this ability is an immediate action taken after the original roll is made and the results are revealed.
A kerberogryph is an extremely rare terrestrial creature that combines the traits of a griffon and a hydra, with some draconic traits thrown in for good measure. It serves as a guardian for those powerful enough to perform a ritual, known only to select mages, to call it for that purpose. The summoner who calls a kerberogryph does not gain control of it, but instead must negotiate for its service. A kerberogryph accepts no less than 100 gp, 10 pounds of fresh raw meat, or some combination of the two, per day of service. Once the employer and the kerberogryph have agreed to terms, the creature remains in its assigned location for the duration of its contract. A guardian kerberogryph relishes battle, and since most employers who obtain a kerberogryph's services expect trouble, the creature does not typically spend this time in boredom.
During a kerberogryph's "downtime," it likes to prowl the territory surrounding its lair in search of food. It prefers livestock, particularly horses, but it will eat any animal. During these hunts, it eschews the use of its breath weapon, since it prefers raw meat to cooked flesh.
At least three kerberogryphs exist, one for each alignment along the good-evil axis. They stay neutral with respect to law and chaos, and this reflects in their adherence to a contract while serving as guardians counterbalanced by their sense of freedom when released from duty. A good kerberogryph has silver or gold feathers, a neutral kerberogryph has blue or gray feathers, and an evil kerberogryph has red or black feathers. The kerberogryph summoning ritual calls a kerberogryph with an alignment appropriate to the one performing the ritual.
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