Monday, December 23, 2013

Monster Monday: Krampus, the Christmas Demon

Merry Christmas, everyone!  In the spirit of the season, I have decided to stat up Krampus, the evil being of Germanic Christmas folklore who accompanies Santa and punishes bad little children by beating them with a birch switch, stuffing them in a sack, and carrying them back to his lair to eat them.  Wow, don't be naughty in Germany, kids.  Plus, I have statted up perchten, the minions of Krampus.



As an added Krampusnacht bonus, I am writing this post from Germany!

The following text in gold is available as Open Game Content under the OGL. Open Game Content is (C)2013 Jonah Bomgaars.
~~~~~~~~


A large, hairy, black beast with curved horns, cloven hooves, and a long, lolling tongue stalks forward, wielding a stout birch rod. Chains with jingling silver bells hang from his wrists, and as he turns his gaze toward you, you begin to feel the guilt of all the naughty actions you have performed in the last year. 
Krampus       CR 13
XP 25,600
LE Large fey (devil, evil, lawful)
Init +6; Senses Darkvision 60 ft., low-light vision, see in darkness;
sense children; Perception +32
Aura frightful presence (60 ft., DC 26)
DEFENSE
AC 28, touch 12, flat-footed 25 (-1 size, +2 Dex, +1 Dodge, +16 natural)
hp 165 (22d6+88)
Fort +17, Ref +15, Will +20
DR 10/cold iron or silver; Immune cold, fire, poison
Resist acid 10
OFFENSE
Speed 40 ft.
Melee birch rod +19 (1d8+8), Krampus chain +20 (2d4+9 plus disarm or trip), and tongue +17 touch (grab), or 2 Krampus chains +20 (2d4+9 plus disarm or trip) and tongue +17 touch (grab)
Space 10 ft.; Reach 10 ft. (15 ft. with tongue)
Special Attacks Stow in sack (paralyze DC 25, AC 18, 16 hp)
Spell-Like Abilities (CL 11th)
   at will – see alignment, seek thoughts, teleport
STATISTICS
Str 25, Dex 15, Con 18, Int 11, Wis 20, Cha 19
Base Atk +16; CMB +23; CMD 35
Feats Alertness, Combat Reflexes, Dodge, Double Slice, Improved Initiative, Intimidating Prowess, Iron Will, Mobility, Spring Attack, Stand Still, Two-Weapon Fighting
Skills Acrobatics +15, Climb +20, Escape Artist +15, Handle Animal +13, Intimidate +26, Knowledge (local) +25, Perception +32, Perform (pantomime) +13, Sense Motive +32, Stealth -12
Languages Infernal, Sylvan
SQ Diabolic blood
SPECIAL ABILITIES
Birch Rod (Ex)
In the hands of Krampus, any birch rod functions as a large +1 cruel axiomatic club.  Krampus has a bundle of birch rods hanging below his sack, from which he can re-arm himself as a move action.
Diabolic Blood (Ex)
Krampus' diabolic blood makes him stronger than the average fey, granting him Medium (3/4) Base Attack progression, a good Fortitude save, immunity to fire, and the ability to see in darkness, but also making him vulnerable to silver.  Krampus is considered both a fey a devil for all other purposes, and gains the devil subtype. 
Krampus Chains
Long ago, Krampus was bound by a Fey lord in magical cold iron chains adorned with silver bells.  When Krampus broke free, he decided to use the instruments of his imprisonment to torment others.  They are bound to his wrists with manacles, and he thus cannot be disarmed of them.  The jingle of the bells imposes a -10 penalty on Stealth checks.  They count as both cold iron and silver weapons, and deal bludgeoning damage.  Other than that, they function exactly as Medium-sized +2 spiked chains
Sense Children (Su)
Krampus instantly knows the location of all children within 120 ft.  By concentrating on a single child for one round, he gains knowledge of the child's alignment, and whether he or she is sleeping or awake. 
Stow in Sack (Ex)
If Krampus begins his turn with an opponent grappled (or grabbed with his tongue), he can attempt a new combat maneuver check (as though attempting to pin the opponent).  If he succeeds, Krampus stows his quarry in his magical sack.  The opponent must be a medium or smaller creature.  Being stowed in the sacke causes a creature to become paralyzed unless it makes a DC 25 Fortitude save.  A creature in the sack retains the grappled condition, while Krampus does not.  A stowed, unparalyzed creature can try to cut its way free with any light slashing or piercing weapon, or by attempting to escape the grapple.  Krampus' sack has an AC of 18 and 16 hp.  If Krampus' sack has been cut open, he cannot use this ability again until the sack is repaired.
   Krampus' sack is an extradimensional space similar to a bag of holding III. It can hold up to 8 Small or 4 Medium creatures, and has enough oxygen for than many creatures for 24 hours.  
Tongue (Ex)
Krampus' tongue is a primary attack with 15 foot reach.  Krampus' tongue deals no damage on a hit, but can be used to grab.  Krampus does not gain the grappled condition when using his tongue in this manner.
ECOLOGY
Environment urban, any cold
Organization solitary
Treasure gear

   Krampus is a diabolic fey creature driven by an insatiable desire to punish the wicked, especially wicked children.  For one night of the year, at the onset of winter, Krampus awakens and sets out from his lair on a quest to punish children for their wickedness in the past year.  Those he finds he beats with a birch rod and stuffs in his sack to take back to his lair to eat. 
   Krampus is 9 ft. tall, though he tends to hunch.  He is covered with black hair, has cloven hooves and wickedly-clawed hands, and curved horns on his head.  His mouth is twisted into a smile of pointed teeth, and a long, tapering tongue lolls out of it hungrily. 
   It is said that the jingling of his silver bells awakens the guilt of the past year in the hearts of the naughty, which Krampus then reads with seek thoughts or his Sense Children special ability.  Although he prefers children, Krampus is angered by all naughtiness, and will seek to punish any who he feels are particularly deserving, especially if they stand in his way. 

Percht (minion of Krampus) CR 4
XP 1,200
NE Medium fey (evil)
Init +7; Senses Darkvision 60 ft., low-light vision; Perception +14
DEFENSE
AC 17, touch 13, flat-footed 14 (+3 Dex, +4 natural)
hp 44 (8d6+16)
Fort +6, Ref +8, Will +7
DR 5/cold iron; Immune cold
OFFENSE
Speed 30 ft.
Melee silver bell +8 (1d6+4 plus stun) and claw +8 (1d4+4 plus grab), or two claws +8 (1d4+4 plus grab)
Special Attacks frightful gaze
STATISTICS
Str 18, Dex 16, Con 15, Int 6, Wis 12, Cha 14
Base Atk +4; CMB +8; CMD 21
Feats Alertness, Great Fortitude, Improved Initiative, Intimidating Prowess
Skills Climb +9, Disguise +7, Intimidate +14, Knowledge (local) +5, Perception +14, Sense Motive +14
Languages Sylvan, Infernal
SPECIAL ABILITIES
Frightful Gaze (Su)
Creatures within 30 feet that meet a percht's gaze must succeed on a DC 16 Will save or stand paralyzed with fear for 1 round.  This is a mind-affecting fear paralysis effect.  A creature that successfully saves cannot be affected again by the frightful gaze of that percht for 1 day.  The save DC is Charisma based.  
Silver Bell (Ex)
Perchten wield silver handbells as clubs.  When a blow connects, the ringing of the bell can stun their opponent (DC 12 Fortitude save negates).  The bell loses all such power when not in the hands of a percht. 
ECOLOGY
Environment urban, any cold
Organization solitary, pair, band (3-8)
Treasure none

A percht is a dwarf-sized hairy humanoid covered in shaggy brown, black, or white fur, with a terrifying and grotesque face that strikes terror in the hearts of children. 


   Perchten consider themselves to be the servants of Krampus, though whether Krampus would agree is unknown.  Without any supernatural ability to perceive the wickedness of the naughty, perchten rely on their instincts and their intimidating features to inspire terror.  They fight with their wicked claws and, in some cases, with silver bells which can stun their enemies and make them easier to grab and drag back to their lair.

~~~~~~~~

I chose to make Krampus fey rather than an evil outsider because, while he is certainly demonic, there is something about his character that seems inherently sylvan.  Perhaps it is his hairy goat legs, or his connection to ancient Germanic beliefs.  In any case, I could not imagine him as a full-blown demon or devil - he carries kids back to his lair, not to Hell.  I made him lawful because he is a punisher of wickedness, and evil because, well, he eats children.  

As for the perchten, they originate from Germanic Krampusnacht festivities wherein people dress up in furry costumes with grotesque masks and parade through the streets scaring children.  It only seems fitting that Krampus should get some aid in his one-Krampus-war on naughtiness.  

So, that should be enough to strike fear into the heart of any Christmastime adventuring party.  Perhaps next year, I will have a special, Krampus-centric holiday D&D adventure for you to run for your gaming group!

Merry Christmas,
-your holiday d20 despot.  

No comments:

Post a Comment