Buy me a coffeeDeep One
“Unveiling the Terrifying Secrets of Lovecraft’s Deep Ones – Aquatic Horrors Beyond Imagination!”
Appearance: Deep Ones are grotesque aquatic humanoid creatures, their bodies resembling a twisted fusion of human and fish features. Their webbed hands end in clawed fingers, and their fish-like eyes gleam with an unsettling intelligence. Slimy, scaled skin covers their bodies, and gill slits adorn their necks, allowing them to breathe underwater.
Behavior: Deep Ones are mysterious and enigmatic, dwelling in underwater cities hidden from human eyes. They are known for their strange rituals and a connection to eldritch powers. Despite their seemingly alien nature, some legends suggest that they have a sinister interest in human affairs, occasionally interbreeding with humans to create hybrid offspring.
Habitat: Preferring the depths of the ocean, they build cities beneath the waves. These underwater settlements are shrouded in mystery, and their locations are closely guarded secrets. They venture to the surface only for specific purposes, often tied to their inscrutable agendas.
Modus Operandi: They are adept at employing stealth and subterfuge. They may subtly influence coastal communities or strike uneasy bargains with desperate individuals, all while maintaining a veil of secrecy. They are known to be servants of cosmic entities, and their actions often align with otherworldly schemes.
Motivation: The motivations of Deep Ones are rooted in their allegiance to ancient, cosmic forces. They seek to fulfill the wishes of their eldritch masters, which may involve influencing human affairs or conducting dark rituals to further their cryptic goals. The mysteries surrounding their motivations add to the unsettling aura that surrounds these aquatic horrors.
Deep One
Deep One Pathfinder
Deep One
Medium humanoid (aquatic), chaotic evil
Armor Class 12 (natural armor)
Hit Points 52 (8d8 + 16)
Speed 30 ft., swim 40 ft.
| STR | DEX | CON | INT | WIS | CHA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 16 (+3) | 12 (+1) | 14 (+2) | 10 (+0) | 12 (+1) | 8 (-1) |
Skills Perception +3
Damage Resistances cold
Condition Immunities sleep
Senses darkvision 60 ft., passive Perception 13
Languages Deep Speech
Amphibious. It can breathe air and water.
Multiattack. It makes two attacks: one with its bite and one with its claws.
Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +5 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 7 (1d8 + 3) piercing damage.
Claws. Melee Weapon Attack: +5 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 6 (1d6 + 3) slashing damage.
Deep Madness. Creatures that start their turn within 30 feet of the Deep One must succeed on a DC 13 Wisdom saving throw or be frightened until the start of their next turn.
Actions
Constricting Embrace. Melee Weapon Attack: +5 to hit, reach 5 ft., one Medium or smaller creature. Hit: The target is grappled (escape DC 13). Until this grapple ends, the target is restrained, and the Deep One can’t constrict another target.
Deep Whispers. It utters unnatural whispers. Each creature within 30 feet of it that can hear the whispers must succeed on a DC 13 Wisdom saving throw or take 13 (3d6 + 3) psychic damage and be stunned until the end of its next turn.
Reactions
Aquatic Dodge. When a Deep One is subjected to an effect that allows it to make a Dexterity saving throw to take only half damage, it instead takes no damage if it succeeds on the saving throw, and only half damage if it fails.
Legendary Actions
The Deep One can take 2 legendary actions, choosing from the options below. Only one legendary action option can be used at a time and only at the end of another creature’s turn. The Deep One regains spent legendary actions at the start of its turn.
Attack. The Deep One makes one claw attack.
Chilling Gaze (Costs 2 Actions). The Deep One fixes its gaze on a creature it can see within 30 feet. The target must succeed on a DC 13 Constitution saving throw or take 21 (6d6) cold damage and be paralyzed for 1 minute. The target can repeat the saving throw at the end of each of its turns, ending the effect on itself on a success.
This Deep One stat block is inspired by Lovecraftian lore, incorporating traits that reflect the mysterious and unsettling nature of these aquatic creatures. Feel free to adjust the statistics based on your campaign needs!
This lumbering creature’s gray-green hide glistens with moisture, and saliva dribbles from its fishlike maw.
Deep One CR 1
XP 400
CE Medium monstrous humanoid (aquatic, deep one)
Init –1; Senses darkvision 60 ft., low-light vision; Perception +7
DEFENSE
AC 12, touch 9, flat-footed 12 (–1 Dex, +3 natural)
hp 17 (2d10+6)
Fort +5, Ref +2, Will +5
Defensive Abilities deep dweller, immortal; Resist cold 5
OFFENSE
Speed 20 ft., swim 40 ft.
Melee 2 claws +5 (1d4+3)
STATISTICS
Str 17, Dex 9, Con 16, Int 12, Wis 15, Cha 10
Base Atk +2; CMB +5; CMD 14
Feats Great Fortitude
Skills Intimidate +5, Knowledge (religion) +6, Perception +7, Stealth +4 (+8 underwater), Survival +7, Swim +16; Racial Modifiers +4 Stealthunderwater
Languages Aklo, Common
SQ amphibious, devoted, item use
SPECIAL ABILITIES
Deep Dweller (Ex)
They are immune to damage from water pressure; their bodies are capable of instantly adjusting to different water depths or even the surface with ease.
Devoted (Ex)
They are fanatically religious, be it to the worship of a Great Old One, an elder deep one, or some other divinity. A deep one gains one bonus skill rank per Hit Die that must be placed in Knowledge (religion), and this skill is a class skill for all deep ones.
Immortal (Ex)
It does not age. Barring death from violence, disease, or misadventure, a deep one can live forever. Deep ones are immune to effects that cause magical aging.
Item Use (Su)
They can activate spell-trigger items like staves and wands as if it were a spellcaster of the appropriate class.
ECOLOGY
Environment any water
Organization solitary, gang (2–5), cult (6–12), or shoal (13+)
Treasure standard (wand of protection from good [5 charges], other treasure)
Deep ones are as at ease dwelling in the most remote of ocean trenches as they are in the shallows that hug secluded shorelines, although their favorite haunts combine the two. The largest deep one cities are located at places not far off shore, but nestled in vast submerged canyons unusually close to those coastlines. This proximity allows them to pursue one of their favorite goals—commingling with and corrupting surface-dwelling humanoids.
Unlike skum, a similar aquatic race that reproduces with surface dwellers, deep ones do so not out of a biological need but as a way to spread their blasphemous religion above the ocean waves. The hybrid children of deep ones and humans form a race of their own. These offspring typically live near others of their kind, assuming positions of leadership in their small towns.
They usually worship the alien entities known as the Outer Gods or the Great Old Ones, with Cthulhu the foremost among them. Deep one settlements that contain a deep one elder instead typically venerate that powerful deep one, who in turn serves one of the eldritch gods. Many deep ones gain levels as clerics, inciting religious fervor in their kinfolk and promoting their chosen deities as the greatest among the Outer Gods. Those few who instead choose to take up a less focused devotional path, such as that of an oracle, still venerate the Old Ones as a whole.
They prefer to fight with their claws. If they do resort to manufactured weapons, they prefer piercing ones, as these function best underwater. They can also use wands and staves; deep ones who pursue the study of more powerful magic often learn to create magic items for their weaker kinfolk to wield.
A deep one typically stands about 7 feet tall, but its hunched gait and lumbering stance can make it appear shorter when it shambles ashore. An average deep one weighs 300 pounds.
Section 15: Copyright Notice
Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Bestiary 5 © 2015, Paizo Inc.; Authors: Dennis Baker, Jesse Benner, John Bennett, Logan Bonner, Creighton Broadhurst, Robert Brookes, Benjamin Bruck, Jason Bulmahn, Adam Daigle, Thurston Hillman, Eric Hindley, Joe Homes, James Jacobs, Amanda Hamon Kunz, Ben McFarland, Jason Nelson, Thom Phillips, Stephen Radney-MacFarland, Alistair Rigg, Alex Riggs, David N. Ross, Wes Schneider, David Schwartz, Mark Seifter, Mike Shel, James L. Sutter, and Linda Zayas-Palmer.