D&D 5E Epic Monsters: Four Horsemen – Famine

D&D 5E – Epic Monsters: Four Horsemen – Famine | EN World | Dungeons & Dragons | Tabletop Roleplaying Games

With the lands already suffering from Strife and War it was only a matter of time before the terrible consequences of such violence: Famine!

When He broke the third seal, I heard the third living creature saying, “Come.” I looked, and behold, a black horse; and he who sat on it had a pair of scales in his hand. And I heard something like a voice in the center of the four living creatures saying, “A quart of wheat for a denarius, and three quarts of barley for a denarius; but do not damage the oil and the wine.”​

—Revelation 6:5–6​

Whenever swords are made from plowshares fields go untilled and starvation inevitably follows—this is where the third herald comes into play. Famine spreads suffering far and wide, depriving the masses of sustenance and forcing deprivation everywhere. Economies collapse as food markets go astray, and further violence erupts when people are driven to take desperate acts in order to survive.

Design Notes: While it’s certainly capable of some trickery and intrigue, with Famine’s build the focus is on decay so all the poison, disease, and most of the necrotic magic has a place in its statistics. With how O5E handles resisting poisons that also makes a lot of sense for theming starvation effects. Good luck to the dwarf-less party that takes this monster on. Even if all the adventurers are stout folk they probably want to have at least a few greater restorations at hand or they’re likely in for a bad time—Famine can survive the hits and put a reckless party’s tank out of commission with exhaustion. Let’s do the numbers! The DMG places Famine at 25.33 and the Blog of Holding at 21.66, averaging out to 23 and a half.

Four Horsemen – Famine​

Medium monstrosity, neutral evil
Armor Class 19 (natural armor)
Hit Points 345 (30d8+210)
Speed 30 ft.

STR​	DEX​	CON​	INT​	WIS​	CHA​
21 (+5)​	18 (+4)​	24 (+7)​	15 (+2)​	24 (+7)​	17 (+3)​

Saving Throws Int +9, Cha +10
Skills Insight +14, Nature +16, Perception +14, Persuasion +17
Damage Resistances cold; bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing
Damage Immunities necrotic, poison; bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing from nonmagical weapons
Condition Immunities charmed, disease, frightened, poisoned
Senses darkvision 120 ft., truesight 60 ft., passive Perception 24
Languages all
Challenge 23 (50,000 XP)

Ageless. Famine cannot suffer from frailty of old age, die from old age, or be aged magically.

Innate Spellcasting. Famine’s innate spellcasting ability is Wisdom (spell save DC 22, +14 to hit with spell attacks). Famine can innately cast the following spells, requiring no material components:

At will: blight, cloudkill, contagion, control water, detect poison and disease, fly, move earth, phantom steed​

3/day each: control weather, detect thoughts, insect plague, mirage arcana, plane shift​

Legendary Resistance (3/Day). If Famine fails a saving throw, it can choose to succeed instead.

Magic Resistance. Famine has advantage on saving throws made against spells and other magical effects.

Magic Weapons. Famine’s weapon attacks are magical.

Shapechanger. Famine can use a bonus action to polymorph into a Small, Medium, or Large beast or humanoid it has seen, or back into its true form. Its statistics, other than its size and the ability to breathe water, are the same in each form. Any equipment it is wearing or carrying isn’t transformed. It reverts to its true form if it dies.

ACTIONS
Multiattack. Famine uses its Frightful Presence and attacks twice.

Withering Touch. Melee Spell Attack: +14 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 51 (8d10+7) necrotic damage. If the target is a creature and takes more than 50 necrotic damage, it makes a DC 22 Constitution saving throw or gains one level of exhaustion.

Sap Vitality. Ranged Spell Attack: +14 to hit, range 50/200 ft., one creature. Hit: The target gains one level of exhaustion. At the end of its next turn, if the target is still alive it can make a DC 22 Constitution saving throw to immediately recover from the last level of exhaustion inflicted by Sap Vitality.

Frightful Presence. Each creature of Famine’s choice that is within 120 feet of it and aware of it must succeed on a DC 22 Wisdom saving throw or become frightened for 1 minute. A creature can repeat the saving throw at the end of each of its turns, ending the effect on itself on a success. If a creature’s saving throw is successful or the effect ends for it, the creature is immune to Famine’s Frightful Presence for the next 24 hours.

LEGENDARY ACTIONS
Famine can take 3 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. Famine regains spent legendary actions at the start of its turn.

Decrepit Pod. Famine conjures a decrepit pod of plant seeds in its hands and throws them at a square within 30 feet. When it hits the decrepit pod spreads into a 20-foot-radius sphere of pollen that hangs in the air for 1 minute or until a wind of moderate or greater speed (at least 10 miles per hour) disperses it. The sphere spreads around corners and its area is heavily obscured.

When a creature other than Famine starts its turn inside of the pollen or first enters into the pollen on a turn, the creature makes a DC 22 Constitution saving throw or has disadvantage on attack rolls and ability checks for 1 round. In addition, any food in the area spoils, and any nonmagical plants in the area that aren’t creatures wither and die.

Cast Spell (Costs 2 Actions). Famine casts a spell.

Scales of Starvation (Costs 2 Actions). Foul energies roil out of Famine in a 40-foot radius. Each creature in the area must make a DC 22 Constitution saving throw, taking 28 (10d6) poison damage on a failed save, or half as much damage on a successful one. A creature that takes 25 or more poison damage repeats the saving throw or gains one level of exhaustion. Any plant creatures take double damage. Nonmagical plants in the area wither and die, and food in the area spoils.

Four Horsemen – Famine

Originally Posted by Kain Darkwind of the Dicefreaks d20 Community.
On this Thread

Four Horsemen – Famine
Medium outsider (Cosmic, Daemon, Evil)
Hit Dice	30d8 + 300 (540 hp)
Initiative	+13
Speed	45 ft.
Armor Class	46 (+13 Dexterity, +8 insight, +15 natural), touch 31, flat-footed 25
Base Attack/Grapple	+30/+39
Attack	The Ebon Scales +41 melee (1d10 + 13 /19-20/x2 and 1 negative level)
Full Attack	The Ebon Scales +43/+37/+33/+27 melee (1d10 + 13 /19-20/x2 and 1 negative level)
Space/Reach	5 ft. /5 ft.
Special Attacks	Aura of Hunger, Hand of Famine, spell-like abilities
Special Qualities	Damage reduction 30/epic, good and mithril, Darkvision, immunity to acid and poison, regeneration 10, resistance to cold 20, electricity 20 and fire 20, Rider of the Black Horse, Spell Resistance 41, telepathy 500 ft.
Saves	Fort +27, Ref +30, Will +25
Abilities	Strength 28, Dexterity 37, Constitution 31, Intelligence 27, Wisdom 24, Charisma 30
Skills	Appraise +41, Balance +46, Concentration +43, Diplomacy +14, Hide +46, Intimidate +43, Knowledge (Geography) +41, Knowledge (history) +41, Knowledge (religion) +43, Listen +23, Move Silently +36, Ride (Dexterity)+49, Search +20, Sense Motive +46, Spellcraft +41, Spot +46, Survival +31 (+33 tracking)
Feats	Combat Expertise, Combat Reflexes, Improved Critical (heavy flail), Monkey Grip, Mounted Combat, Power Attack, Quicken Spell-Like Ability (x2), Ride-By Attack, Spirited Charge, Violate Spell-Like Ability
Climate/Terrain	An evil-aligned plane
Organization	Solitary (unique)
Challenge Rating	29
Treasure	Triple Standard
Alignment	Neutral Evil

Aura of Hunger (Su): Those within 1000 feet of Famine must make a Fortitude save (DC 37) or fall under the effects of extreme hunger. They suffer 10d6 points of nonlethal damage, and become exhausted. They must begin making Constitution checks against further starvation every hour as if they had gone a week with no food. Those who fall unconscious from the nonlethal damage take 1 point of Constitution damage every hour until they are healed. The nonlethal damage dealt by the Aura of Hunger is the same as that dealt by starvation, and can only be healed once the character is given food.

The effects of Aura of Hunger continue to persist even after the character is no longer within the Aura. A character that makes his save against Aura of Hunger is immune to its effects until he leaves the area of the aura.

Hand of Famine (Su): With a touch, Famine may bestow her terrible curse upon a victim. An unwilling being gets a Fortitude save (DC 37) to resist. The being no longer requires food nor water to sustain its life. However, this comes with a price. Every creature that comes into physical contact with the victim suffers 1d6 points of Constitution drain (no save). The victim can inflict this upon others with a successful touch attack. These are stored by the victim as temporary Constitution, and disappear at a rate of 1 per hour. If the pool reaches 0 points of Constitution, the victim suffers 1 point of damage to a random ability score every hour until he has replenished the pool. In addition, all food within 60 feet of the victim turns rotten and lacking any nourishment. Consuming it requires a Fortitude save (DC 12) to avoid being poisoned. (1 Constitution/1d4 Constitution) A miracle cast by a spellcaster that can beat Famine at an opposed caster level check (35th level) removes the curse from the victim, but does not restore any lost mental ability scores. A separate casting of miracle must be used to restore each point of mental ability drain. miracle always requires an experience point cost when used to counteract the effects of the Hand of Famine.

Spell-like Abilities: Always active- deathwatch, see invisibility;

at will- blasphemy (DC 27), greater dispel magic, greater teleport, polymorph any object (DC 28, objects only), ray of enfeeblement, ray of exhaustion, unholy aura (DC 28), unholy blight (DC 24), vampiric touch, waves of fatigue;

8/day – Befoul* (DC 28), Despoil* (DC 29), energy drain, eyebite (DC 25), horrid wilting (DC 28), waves of exhaustion.

Caster level 24th

Cosmic Entity: Famine is only entitled to defensive rank checks. Famine has a +4 bonus on rank checks. Any other Rider within 1 mile of Famine grants him an additional +4 to his rank checks. This is cumulative.

Regeneration (Ex): Good aligned mithril weapons and spells with the Healing descriptor inflict normal damage upon Famine.

Rider of the Black Horse (Ex): While within one mile of another Rider of the Apocalypse, Famine gains a +4 morale bonus to the DCs of his special attacks and spell-like abilities. This bonus is cumulative, so he would gain a +12 morale bonus should all 4 riders be within one mile of each other.

Possessions:

Famine wields The Ebon Scales, which function as a +4 cold iron heavy flail of lifestealing. Those slain by The Ebon Scales rise again as Ghouls (or Ghasts if the slain had 4 or more HD) within 1 minute of their death. The Ghouls will not attack Famine, but neither are they under his control.