Buy me a coffeeTupilaq, The Spirit of Vengeful Craft
“Discover the Bone-Chilling Mystery of the Inuit Tupilaq: A Cursed Creature of Vengeance!”
Tupilaqs are grotesque and otherworldly in design, embodying a mix of human and animal traits. Typically carved from materials such as bone, ivory, stone, or driftwood, their forms feature exaggerated, nightmarish characteristics—elongated limbs, gnarled hands, snarling mouths filled with jagged teeth, and hollow, haunting eyes. They may also incorporate skeletal elements or resemble amalgamations of creatures, with fins, horns, wings, or talon-like appendages. The rough, primitive carvings often evoke a visceral sense of unease, emphasizing their role as malevolent entities.
Behavior
Once animated through shamanistic rituals, tupilaqs were believed to act as vengeful spirits or supernatural assassins. They were imbued with life by invoking powerful spells and the spirits of the natural world. Tupilaqs behaved as relentless hunters, seeking out their intended victim with eerie precision. However, they were not autonomous beings; their actions were tethered to the shaman’s will and the potency of the ritual.
Habitat
Tupilaqs have no natural habitat, as they were magical constructs rather than living creatures. In their symbolic or spiritual form, they were said to lurk in the icy wilderness of the Arctic, hidden within glaciers, dark caves, or beneath the surface of frozen waters. Modern representations are often associated with Greenland and other Inuit-inhabited regions.
Modus Operandi
The tupilaq’s creation involved secretive and forbidden rituals performed by a shaman. The process included crafting the figure, imbuing it with malevolent spiritual energy, and sending it toward its target. Once unleashed, the tupilaq would use its supernatural powers to track and torment its victim, often exploiting fear and psychological distress before delivering a fatal blow. However, a key risk in deploying a tupilaq was the possibility of karmic backlash: if the target possessed stronger spiritual protection, the tupilaq could reverse its course, returning to destroy its creator.
Motivation
Tupilaqs had no motivations of their own, acting solely as instruments of vengeance for the shaman or individual who summoned them. Their “motivation” was to fulfill the curse or purpose imbued in them. However, in a cultural sense, the tupilaq also served as a symbolic warning of the dangers of misusing spiritual power or tampering with forbidden knowledge.
Tupilaq 5e
Tupilaq Pathfinder
Tupilaq
Small Construct, Neutral Evil
Armor Class: 16 (natural armor)
Hit Points: 75 (10d6 + 30)
Speed: 30 ft., swim 30 ft.
| STR | DEX | CON | INT | WIS | CHA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 14 (+2) | 16 (+3) | 16 (+3) | 10 (+0) | 12 (+1) | 8 (-1) |
Saving Throws: Con +5, Wis +3
Skills: Perception +3, Stealth +6
Damage Resistances: Cold, Necrotic; Bludgeoning, Piercing, and Slashing from Nonmagical Attacks
Damage Immunities: Poison
Condition Immunities: Charmed, Exhaustion, Frightened, Paralyzed, Poisoned
Senses: Darkvision 60 ft., Passive Perception 13
Languages: Understands the languages of its creator but cannot speak
Challenge: 4 (1,100 XP)
Traits
Constructed Resilience.
The Tupilaq does not require air, food, drink, or sleep.
Dark Spirit Animus.
The Tupilaq is animated by the vengeful spirits bound within it. When the Tupilaq is reduced to 0 hit points, it explodes in a 10-foot radius of necrotic energy. Each creature in the area must make a DC 13 Constitution saving throw, taking 10 (3d6) necrotic damage on a failed save, or half as much on a success.
Arctic Camouflage.
In snowy or icy environments, the Tupilaq has advantage on Dexterity (Stealth) checks.
Hunter’s Instinct.
The Tupilaq has advantage on attack rolls against a creature it has marked with its Vengeful Curse ability.
Actions
Multiattack.
The Tupilaq makes two melee attacks.
Claw.
Melee Weapon Attack: +5 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target.
Hit: 9 (2d6 + 2) slashing damage.
Frostfang Bite.
Melee Weapon Attack: +5 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target.
Hit: 13 (3d6 + 2) cold damage, and the target’s speed is reduced by 10 feet until the end of its next turn.
Vengeful Curse (Recharge 5–6).
The Tupilaq marks one creature it can see within 60 feet as its prey. The mark lasts for 1 hour or until the target dies. While marked, the target has disadvantage on saving throws against the Tupilaq’s spells and abilities, and the Tupilaq has advantage on attack rolls against the target. Only one creature can be marked at a time.
Spirit Bolt (Recharge 6).
Ranged Spell Attack: +4 to hit, range 30 ft., one target.
Hit: 14 (4d6) necrotic damage, and the target must succeed on a DC 13 Wisdom saving throw or be frightened 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.
Legendary Actions
The Tupilaq can take 1 legendary action, choosing from the options below. Only one legendary action can be used at a time, and only at the end of another creature’s turn. The Tupilaq regains its legendary action at the start of its turn.
- Vanishing Mist (Costs 1 Action). The Tupilaq emits a burst of mist, becoming heavily obscured until the start of its next turn. It can then move up to half its speed without provoking opportunity attacks.
Tactics
- Stealth and Ambush: The Tupilaq relies on its Arctic Camouflage to sneak up on enemies.
- Cursed Hunting: It uses Vengeful Curse to focus on a single foe, prioritizing isolated or vulnerable targets.
- Frost Control: It uses Frostfang Bite to slow down opponents, making it easier to keep pace in combat.
- Hit-and-Fade: The Tupilaq takes advantage of its Vanishing Mist to disengage or reposition for another strike.
- Necrotic Explosion: When cornered, it attempts to move into the midst of enemies, ensuring its Dark Spirit Animus inflicts maximum damage upon destruction.
Description
The small yet terrifying Tupilaq embodies the vengeful spirit of Inuit folklore, crafted from bones and driftwood and animated with dark shamanistic magic. Though diminutive in size, its deadly tactics, unrelenting focus, and chilling presence make it a formidable foe, especially in the icy wilderness it calls home.
Tupilaq
This small humanoid figure grinds and clatters as it moves, its body carved from bones decorated with fine scrimshaw.
Tupilaqs are small constructs crafted out of whale bones and whale teeth for the sole purpose of murdering the creator’s enemies. A tupilaq’s appearance can vary based on its construction, but all have prominent jaws and a small body with hands and feet fit for swimming. A tupilaq usually stands 3 feet tall and weighs only 30 pounds.
Tupilaqs must be created in secrecy – if any other person discovers the tupilaq is being created, the attempt to build the construct immediately fails. As part of its creation, the creator invites or lures a host spirit to possess the tupilaq. Most often, the animus of a tupilaq is that of a dead child or other small humanoid, and the parity of size between the new vessel and the spirit’s previous body is what gives the creature a speed and agility on land and in water that is atypical for most constructs. This trapped spirit is also what makes a tupilaq so savage and murderous.
| Tupilaq CR 7 |
| XP 3,200 N Small construct Init +4; Senses Darkvision 60 ft., Low-Light Vision; Perception +0 |
| DEFENSE |
| AC 20, touch 15, flat-footed 16 (+4 Dexterity, +5 natural, +1 size) hp 59 (9d10+10) Fort +3, Ref +7, Will +3 DR 10/bludgeoning; Immune construct traits |
| OFFENSE |
| Speed 30 ft., Swim 60 ft. Melee bite +15 (1d8+10/19-20 plus grab), 2 claws +15 (1d4+5) Special Attacks seek target, shearing jaws Spell-Like Abilities (CL 7th; Concentration +4) 3/day – invisibility |
| STATISTICS |
| Strength 21, Dexterity 18, Constitution -, Intelligence -, Wisdom 11, Charisma 5 Base Atk +9; CMB +13 (+17 grapple); CMD 27 Skills Swim +13 SQ scrimshaw magic |
| SPECIAL ABILITIES |
| Scrimshaw Magic (Sp) When a tupilaq is created, its creator can inscribe a single spell he knows (as long as that spell is no higher than 2nd level and requires no material components) into the tupilaq as a complex scrimshaw design. The tupilaq gains the ability to use that spell as a spell-like ability (CL 7th) three times per day. The tupilaq’s creator can inscribe a new spell onto the tupilaq if he wishes, replacing the previous scrimshaw. Inscribing a new scrimshaw requires 24 hours of work and an expenditure of 500 gp in materials. The tupilaq presented here utilizes invisibility in this manner. Erase can destroy a tupilaq’s scrimshaw if it fails a Fortitude save against the spell. If a tupilaq’s scrimshaw is removed in this manner, it loses access to the spell as a spell-like ability, and seeks out its creator to attack and kill him. The tupilaq’s creator becomes the target of the tupilaq’s seek target ability in this case. If a tupilaq’s creator is already dead, the tupilaq instead seeks out the nearest living creature and attacks this new target on sight, continuing this spree of murder until it is itself destroyed. Seek Target (Su) A tupilaq’s creator can place a drop of blood, lock of hair, or other portion of a creature’s body in the tupilaq’s maw as a standard action. From that point on, the tupilaq constantly knows what direction that creature is located in, and gains a +20 insight bonus on all Perception checks made to locate the creature. A new target cannot be assigned to a tupilaq in this manner until its previous target is dead. Shearing Jaws (Ex) All tupilaqs are crafted with oversized jaws capable of tearing and pulling. A tupilaq applies twice its Strength modifier to damage with a successful bite attack and threatens a critical hit on a roll of 19-20. A tupilaq is treated as Large for all checks made to move a grappled opponent. |
| ECOLOGY |
| Environment any Organization solitary Treasure none |
CONSTRUCTION REQUIREMENTS
Tupilaq
A tupilaq is built from 30 pounds of whale bones, bound together with sinew. When the creature’s creation is complete, the sinew falls away and the bones fuse together to create the animated creature.
CL 8th; Price 21,000 gp
Craft Construct, geas/quest, keen edge, locate creature, creator must be caster level 8th, creation must be done in complete secrecy;
Skill Craft (scrimshaw) DC 20; Cost 10,500 gp
Section 15: Copyright Notice – Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Bestiary 3 Pathfinder
Roleplaying Game Bestiary 3, © 2011, Paizo Publishing, LLC; Authors Jesse Benner, Jason Bulmahn, Adam Daigle, James Jacobs, Michael Kenway, Rob McCreary, Patrick Renie, Chris Sims, F. Wesley Schneider, James L. Sutter, and Russ Taylor, based on material by Jonathan Tweet, Monte Cook, and Skip Williams.