Buy me a coffeeDire Boar (Daeodon)
The back of this horse-sized boar rises in a steep slope. Its tiny red eyes are crusted with filth and its bristly flank crawls with flies.
Whereas the boar is ill-tempered and generally unfriendly, the towering daeodon (known as the dire boar to most commoners and hunters) is legitimately hateful and violent. Although omnivorous like its smaller kin, the daeodon prefers to feed on flesh, and its razor-sharp tusks and keen eyesight make it particularly well suited as a predator.
While the daeodon is primarily a scavenger, it isn’t averse to attacking smaller creatures it encounters while searching for easier meals, or those who stumble unwittingly into its territory. Particularly brave or skilled orcs are fond of using daeodons as mounts, and orc cavalry mounted on dire boars make for a fearsome force indeed. A typical adult daeodon is 10 feet long and 7 feet tall at the shoulder. It weighs approximately 2,000 pounds.
Daeodon
Large beast, unaligned
Armor Class 13 (natural armor)
Hit Points 76 (9d10 + 27)
Speed 40 ft.
| STR | DEX | CON | INT | WIS | CHA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 21 (+5) | 8 (–1) | 16 (+3) | 2 (–4) | 12 (+1) | 6 (–2) |
Senses passive Perception 11
Languages —
Challenge 3 (700 XP)
Proficiency Bonus +2
SPECIAL TRAITS
- Keen Smell. The daeodon has advantage on Wisdom (Perception) checks that rely on smell.
- Relentless (Recharges after a Short or Long Rest). If the daeodon takes 15 damage or less that would reduce it to 0 hp, it is reduced to 1 hp instead.
- Trampling Charge. If the daeodon moves at least 20 feet straight toward a creature and then hits it with a Bite attack on the same turn, that target must succeed on a DC 13 Strength saving throw or be forced prone. If the target is prone, the daeodon can make one Slam attack against it as a bonus action.
ACTIONS
- Multiattack. The daeodon makes one Bite attack and one Slam attack.
- Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +7 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 14 (2d8 + 5) piercing damage, and the target is grappled (escape DC 13). Until this grapple ends, the target is restrained, and the daeodon can’t Bite another target.
- Slam. Melee Weapon Attack: +7 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 10 (2d4 + 5) bludgeoning damage.
- Fierce Call (Recharges after a Short or Long Rest). The daeodon lets out a loud, fearsome call. Each hostile creature within 60 feet of the daeodon must succeed on a DC 13 Wisdom saving throw or drop whatever it is holding and become frightened for 1 minute. While frightened, a creature must take the Dash action and move away from the daeodon by the safest available route on each of its turns, unless there is nowhere to move. A frightened creature can repeat the saving throw at the end of each of its turns, ending the effect on itself on a success.
ABOUT
The massive warthog has a disturbingly large maw lined with enormous teeth. It snorts and charges. Daeodons are scavengers that range freely in forests and grasslands. Locals refer to them as hell pigs, but they are more closely related to hippopotamuses and possess massive maws.
Unfussy Eaters. Daeodons will eat most anything. While they may be content to graze for fruit and leaves or dig for tubers and grubs, they have the power to crush bone and devour flesh. Most of that is from scavenging kills from others—coming in only after something else has done all the hard work and is too tired to stand up to a hungry daeodon—but they’ve been known to hunt prey themselves.
Temporary Herds. Daeodons live largely solitary lives. They can tolerate one another enough to briefly form small squads and bring down tougher prey. However, they rarely come together unless food is plentiful. They fight among themselves, and the winners garner respect until another can best them.
Rude Neighbors. Isolated towns often face the challenge of keeping daeodons away from their food stores and livestock, for these massive beasts can trample fencing and destroy other obstacles to reach food. Some towns and villages create massive refuse piles well outside of the settlement; by keeping them well stocked, the villages satisfy local daeodons and keep them from the more vital stores.
This has the added benefit of using the daeodons as deterrents from bandits and dangerous predators, though it means the daeodons adopt the area as their territory.
Section 15: Copyright Notice
Tome of Beasts 3 © 2022 Open Design LLC; Authors: Eytan Bernstein, Celeste Conowitch, Benjamin L. Eastman, Robert Fairbanks, Scott Gable, Basheer Ghouse, Richard Green, Jeremy Hochhalter, Jeff Lee, Christopher Lockey, Sarah Madsen, Ben Mcfarland, Jonathan Miley, Kelly Pawlik, Sebastian Rombach, Chelsea Steverson, Brian Suskind, Mike Welham
Boar, Dire (Daeodon) CR 4
XP 1,200
N Large animal
Init +4; Senses low-light vision, scent; Perception +12
DEFENSE
AC 15, touch 9, flat-footed 15 (+6 natural, –1 size)
hp 42 (5d8+20)
Fort +7, Ref +4, Will +2
Defensive Abilities ferocity
OFFENSE
Speed 40 ft.
Melee gore +8 melee (2d6+9)
STATISTICS
Str 23, Dex 10, Con 17, Int 2, Wis 13, Cha 8
Base Atk +3; CMB +10; CMD 20
Feats Improved Initiative, Skill Focus (Perception), Toughness
Skills Perception +12
ECOLOGY
Environment temperate or tropical forests
Organization solitary, pair, or herd (3–8)
Treasure none