Rain Linnorm

Gargantuan dragon (linnorm), chaotic evil

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Armor Class 22 (natural armor)

Hit Points 545 (34d20 + 204)

Speed 50 ft., swim 60 ft., fly 80 ft. (hover)

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STR	DEX	CON	INT	WIS	CHA
31 (+10)	14 (+2)	23 (+6)	18 (+4)	21 (+5)	24 (+7)

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Saving Throws Dex +9, Con +13, Wis +12, Cha +14
Skills Perception +19, Insight +12, Nature +11, Intimidation +14
Damage Resistances lightning, thunder; bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing from nonmagical attacks
Damage Immunities acid, cold
Condition Immunities frightened, paralyzed, stunned
Senses truesight 120 ft., passive Perception 29
Languages Draconic, Primordial; telepathy 120 ft.
Challenge 24 (62,000 XP) Proficiency Bonus +7

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Lore

Among the elder linnorms, the Rain Linnorm is a herald of unending deluge and divine wrath. Said to have been born from the tears of the first drowned world, it embodies the relentless power of rainfall and the slow, inevitable reclamation of land by water. Sailors and coastal tribes speak its name in dread, for where the Rain Linnorm passes, floods consume the earth, rivers overflow their banks, and kingdoms vanish beneath gray horizons.

Unlike chromatic or metallic dragons, the Rain Linnorm is not bound by greed or order. It exists as a force of retribution—ancient, mournful, and merciless. To it, civilization is an insult to the purity of the sea and sky. Scholars of the north claim each linnorm remembers the age before land rose from the oceans, when the world was young and whole beneath the waters.

Legends hold that the death of a Rain Linnorm does not bring peace. Instead, the storm lingers for generations, its death curse manifesting as endless rainfall that swallows the dead wyrm’s domain.

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Traits

Innate Spellcasting (Stormborn).
The Rain Linnorm’s innate spellcasting ability is Charisma (spell save DC 22). It can cast the following spells innately, requiring no material components:

• At will: control water, detect magic, gust of wind, water breathing
• 3/day each: call lightning (8th-level), sleet storm, wall of water
• 1/day each: tsunami, storm of vengeance, chain lightning

Amphibious.
The linnorm can breathe both air and water.

Aura of Unending Rain.
The linnorm is surrounded by storm clouds and rain in a 1-mile radius. Light within this area is dim, and nonmagical flames are extinguished. Terrain becomes difficult for creatures that cannot swim as flooding and mud hamper movement.

Magic Resistance.
The linnorm has advantage on saving throws against spells and other magical effects.

Magic Weapons.
The linnorm’s weapon attacks are magical.

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Actions

Multiattack.
The Rain Linnorm makes three attacks: one with its bite, one with its claws, and one with its tail.

Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +17 to hit, reach 15 ft., one target.
Hit: 39 (5d12 + 10) piercing damage plus 11 (2d10) acid damage.

Claws. Melee Weapon Attack: +17 to hit, reach 10 ft., one target.
Hit: 27 (4d8 + 10) slashing damage.

Tail. Melee Weapon Attack: +17 to hit, reach 20 ft., one target.
Hit: 31 (4d10 + 10) bludgeoning damage, and the target must succeed on a DC 20 Strength saving throw or be knocked prone.

Acid Rain Breath (Recharge 5–6).
The Rain Linnorm exhales a torrent of corrosive rain in a 120-foot-long, 20-foot-wide line. Each creature in that area must make a DC 22 Dexterity saving throw, taking 88 (16d10) acid damage and 22 (4d10) lightning damage on a failed save, or half as much damage on a successful one. The affected area becomes heavily obscured until the start of the linnorm’s next turn, and any creature that starts its turn in the cloud takes 11 (2d10) acid damage.

Deluge (1/Day).
The linnorm calls forth a monsoon over a 1-mile radius centered on itself. For 1 hour, sheets of rain reduce visibility to 30 feet, all nonmagical flames are extinguished, and ranged attacks are made at disadvantage. At the end of each of its turns, the linnorm can designate one 60-foot area within the storm to be struck by lightning, dealing 36 (8d8) lightning damage to creatures there (DC 22 Dexterity save for half damage).

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Reactions

Storm Rebuke.
When the linnorm takes damage from a melee attack, it releases a burst of thunderous energy. The attacker must succeed on a DC 22 Constitution saving throw or take 18 (4d8) thunder damage and be pushed 10 feet away.

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Legendary Actions

The Rain Linnorm can take 3 legendary actions, 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. It regains spent legendary actions at the start of its turn.

• Move. The linnorm moves up to half its speed without provoking opportunity attacks.
• Tail Sweep. The linnorm makes one tail attack.
• Summon Storm (Costs 2 Actions). The linnorm intensifies the rain around it; until the end of its next turn, creatures within 30 feet have disadvantage on attack rolls and on Wisdom (Perception) checks relying on sight.
• Flash of Lightning (Costs 3 Actions). The linnorm targets one creature it can see within 120 feet. That creature must make a DC 22 Dexterity saving throw, taking 45 (10d8) lightning damage on a failed save, or half as much on a successful one.

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Lair Actions

On initiative count 20 (losing initiative ties), the Rain Linnorm can use one of the following lair actions while in its lair:

• Driving Rain. Torrential rain reduces visibility; creatures without blindsight or truesight are blinded until initiative count 20 on the next round.
• Flash Flood. Water surges through the lair; creatures of the linnorm’s choice must succeed on a DC 22 Strength saving throw or be knocked prone and swept 30 feet in a direction the linnorm chooses.
• Crackling Sky. Lightning strikes a point the linnorm can see within 120 feet, dealing 22 (5d8) lightning damage to each creature within 10 feet (DC 22 Dexterity save for half damage).

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Regional Effects

The area within 10 miles of a Rain Linnorm’s lair is transformed by its storm-born presence:

• Endless Rain. The sky is perpetually overcast, and rainfall is constant, ranging from drizzle to torrential downpour.
• Restless Waters. Rivers, lakes, and coastal tides rise unnaturally high; floods are common even in dry seasons.
• Echoes of the Storm. Thunder rolls and flashes of lightning appear even on otherwise clear days.

If the Rain Linnorm dies, these effects fade over 1d10 years, though the land remains waterlogged and scarred by floodwaters long afterward.

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Tactics

The Rain Linnorm fights as an elemental storm given flesh. It opens combat by taking to the skies and using Acid Rain Breath to scatter enemies before summoning a Deluge to reshape the battlefield. It prefers to isolate targets by flooding terrain and striking from above, exploiting its superior mobility. Against spellcasters and ranged attackers, it uses Flash of Lightning to punish clustering foes and Summon Storm to impose disadvantage in its shroud of rain. When wounded, it retreats into mist or submerges into rising waters, biding time until its enemies are exhausted or drowned beneath the storm’s weight.

Rain Linnorm

This titanic serpent coils amid sheeting rain, its scales shimmering with the dull luster of wet iron. Each breath releases a hiss of steam as stormlight flickers through the clouds that cling to its body.

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Rain Linnorm CR 22
XP 614,400
CE Gargantuan dragon (aquatic, cold, water)

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Init +4; Senses darkvision 120 ft., low-light vision, scent; Perception +39

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Defense

AC 38, touch 6, flat-footed 38 (+32 natural, –4 size)
hp 470 (27d12+297)
Fort +25, Ref +14, Will +23
DR 15/magic; Immune acid, cold, paralysis, sleep; Resist electricity 30
SR 33
Weaknesses death curse

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Offense

Speed 50 ft., swim 80 ft., fly 100 ft. (poor)
Melee bite +34 (4d8+20 plus 4d6 acid and grab), 2 claws +34 (2d8+20), tail slap +32 (3d8+20)
Space 20 ft.; Reach 20 ft. (30 ft. with bite)
Special Attacks acid rain breath (DC 33), constrict (3d8+20), deluge, death curse (endless rain), swallow whole (3d8+20 bludgeoning, AC 21, 47 hp)

Spell-Like Abilities (CL 20th; concentration +27)

• Constant—freedom of movement, water walk
• At will—control water, fog cloud, gust of wind (DC 20), obscuring mist
• 3/day—call lightning storm (DC 22), cone of cold (DC 22), control weather, sleet storm
• 1/day—chain lightning (DC 24), storm of vengeance (DC 25), tsunami

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Statistics

Str 39, Dex 10, Con 29, Int 16, Wis 23, Cha 25
Base Atk +27; CMB +51 (+55 grapple); CMD 61 (can’t be tripped)
Feats Awesome Blow, Blind-Fight, Flyby Attack, Improved Initiative, Improved Vital Strike, Iron Will, Lightning Reflexes, Multiattack, Power Attack, Snatch, Vital Strike
Skills Fly +4, Intimidate +35, Knowledge (arcana) +33, Knowledge (geography) +33, Knowledge (nature) +36, Perception +39, Sense Motive +36, Stealth +14, Survival +36, Swim +47
Languages Aklo, Draconic, Sylvan; telepathy 120 ft. (cannot speak)

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Ecology

Environment temperate or tropical coasts, flooded valleys, or storm-wracked highlands
Organization solitary
Treasure triple (coins, gems, jewelry, magical items)

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Special Abilities

Acid Rain Breath (Su)
Every 1d4 rounds, a rain linnorm exhales a torrent of caustic rain in either a 120-foot line or a 60-foot cone. Creatures in the area take 20d8 acid damage and 10d8 electricity damage (Reflex DC 33 half). The affected area becomes heavily obscured until the linnorm’s next turn, and any creature starting its turn in the storm takes 4d8 acid damage. The save DC is Constitution-based.

Deluge (Su)
Once per day, a rain linnorm may summon a monsoon over a 2-mile radius centered on itself. The storm lasts 1 hour, reducing visibility to 30 feet and imposing a –4 penalty on ranged attacks. Each round on its turn, the linnorm may call down a bolt of lightning anywhere within the storm’s range (as call lightning storm at CL 20th). The storm moves with the linnorm.

Death Curse (Su) – Endless Rain
When a rain linnorm is slain, the land within 50 miles of its corpse is cursed with endless rainfall. Rivers swell, crops rot, and lowlands drown beneath rising waters. This curse lasts for 100 years and can only be ended by a miracle or wish spell.

Aura of Rain (Su)
A rain linnorm is perpetually surrounded by a churning storm within a 1,000-foot radius. Light is dimmed, nonmagical flames are extinguished, and ground terrain becomes slick, counting as difficult terrain for non-swimming creatures. Ranged attacks take a –2 penalty within this aura.

Water Mastery (Ex)
The linnorm gains a +1 bonus on attack and damage rolls if both it and its opponent are touching water. It takes a –4 penalty on such rolls if its opponent is on solid ground and it is not.

Amphibious (Ex)
The rain linnorm can breathe both air and water.

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Combat

A rain linnorm is a living tempest—patient, territorial, and terrifyingly destructive. It begins combat by darkening the skies with control weather, using sleet storm or fog cloud to obscure the field before unleashing its acid rain breath.
It prefers to remain airborne or submerged, striking with swift passes and dragging foes into flooded terrain. If pressed, it calls a Deluge, transforming the battlefield into a drowning nightmare where it alone moves unhindered.
A rain linnorm rarely fights to the death unless defending its lair or brood. When wounded, it retreats beneath the waters, letting its storms and curses punish the survivors.

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Ecology & Lore

Rain linnorms are ancient embodiments of the world’s untamed waters. Said to have formed from the first rains that fell upon the newborn world, they are as much natural disaster as living creature. Their existence represents the cyclical cleansing of the land—destruction followed by renewal.

To primitive coastal peoples, they are the Drowners, divine arbiters who punish hubris and greed by washing away kingdoms. Some worship them as heralds of rebirth, offering sacrifices to keep their lands dry.
Their lairs are typically drowned temples, cliffside grottoes, or vast sinkholes where rainfall never ceases. Treasure within such hoards is often rusted or half-fused by centuries of moisture: barnacle-encrusted idols, coral-crowned pearls, and sea-worn relics of lost civilizations.
Among linnorms, the rain linnorm is considered the most patient and melancholic—a being that remembers the age before the land rose from the sea, when the world was whole beneath the water’s surface.

Rain Linnorm

These Norse dragons are vain to the point of demanding credit for their atrocities. The more heinous the act, the more powerful the rain linnorm feels. They desire more treasure than any dragon could possibly accumulate.

Originally Posted by Shade of the En World forums.

On this Thread

Although it lacks wings and hind feet, this creature is clearly draconic. Its shiny, teardrop-shaped scales shift from blue to gray to green to white. The smell of a fresh lightning strike accompanies the creature.

Rain linnorms are among the most vain and haughty of the linnorms. They consider all other creatures to be beneath them, and each considers itself the better of others of its own kind. Rain linnorms determine social status based on comitting the most heinous atrocities and accumulating the greatest wealth.

The lairs or rain linnorms are hidden deep within hills frequently buffetted by rain and wind. They are incredibly secretive, and will quickly move to a new hoard if any other creature finds their lair and survives.

Rain linnorms speak Draconic and Abyssal.

Rain Linnorm
Huge Dragon
Hit Dice	10d12+60 (125 hp)
Initiative	+0
Speed	50 ft. (10 squares), Fly 100 ft. (good), Swim 30 ft.
Armor Class	24 (-2 size, +16 natural), touch 8, flat-footed 24
Base Attack/Grapple	+10/+27
Attack	Bite +17 melee (2d6+9)
Full Attack	Bite +17 melee (2d6+9) and 2 claws +15 melee (2d8+4) and tail slap +15 melee (2d6+13)
Space/Reach	15 ft./10 ft.
Special Attacks	Breath weapon, crush 2d8+13, spell-like abilities, spells
Special Qualities	Blindsense 60 ft., damage reduction 10/magic, immunity to disease, electricity, Paralysis, and sleep, keen senses, regeneration 10, Spell Resistance 25, water breathing
Saves	Fort +13, Ref +7, Will +12
Abilities	Strength 28, Dexterity 10, Constitution 23, Intelligence 14, Wisdom 20, Charisma 17
Skills	Bluff +16, Concentration +19, Diplomacy +7, Disguise +3 (+5 acting), Intimidate +10, Knowledge (Arcana) +15, Listen +18, Search +12, Sense Motive +18, Spellcraft +9, Spot +18, Survival +5 (+7 following tracks), Swim +27
Feats	Flyby Attack, Multiattack, Quicken Spell-Like Ability (lightning bolt), Snatch
Environment	Any Marsh or Hill
Organization	Solitary
Challenge Rating	14
Treasure	Standard
Alignment	Usually chaotic evil
Advancement	11-20 HD (Huge); 21-30 HD (Gargantuan)
Level Adjustment	–

COMBAT

Rain linnorms prefer to open combat with their powerful weather-related spells and spell-like abilities, demonstrating their power over nature. They quickly follow with their breath weapons and more magic. Rain linnorms dislike sullying their claws in melee.

Breath Weapon (Su): 90-foot line of caustic boiling water, once every 1d4 rounds; damage 9d6, half of which is acid and the other fire, Reflex DC 21 half. The save DC is Constitution-based.

Crush (Ex): A flying linnorm can land on opponents three or more sizes smaller than itself as a standard action, using its whole body to crush them. A crush attack affects as many creatures as can fit under the linnorm’s body. Each creature in the affected area must succeed on a DC 21 Reflex save or be pinned, automatically taking 2d8+13 points of bludgeoning damage. The save DC is Constitution-based. Thereafter, if the linnorm chooses to maintain the pin, treat it as a normal grapple attack. While pinned, the opponent takes crush damage each round. The save DC is Strength-based.

Spells: A rain linnorm can cast divine spells as a 14th-level druid. They cannot swap out prepared spells to cast summon nature’s ally spells.

Typical druid Spells Prepared (6/6/6/5/4/3/3/2; save DC 13 + spell level):

• 0–create water, detect magic, flare, know direction, purify food and drink, resistance;
• 1st–endure elements, entangle, faerie fire, longstrider, obscuring mist, pass without trace;
• 2nd–barkskin, bull’s strength, chill metal, flaming sphere, fog cloud, Lesser restoration;
• 3rd–call lightning, greater magic fang, poison, protection from energy, sleet storm;
• 4th–blight, control water, flame strike, ice storm;
• 5th–death ward, Insect Plague, stoneskin;
• 6th–find the path, greater dispel magic, summon nature’s ally VI;
• 7th–creeping doom, heal.

Spell-Like Abilities: At will — control winds (DC 23);

• 3/day — entangle (DC 19), plant growth, quench (DC 21), quickened lightning bolt (DC 21);
• 2/day — call lightning (DC 21), create food and water, Summon Monster V (water elementals only);
• 1/day — control weather, wind walk.

Caster level 15th. The save DCs are Charisma-based.

Water breathing (Ex): A rain linnorm can breathe underwater indefinitely and can freely use its breath weapon, spells, and other abilities while submerged.

Skills: A rain linnorm has a +8 racial bonus on any Swim check to perform some special action or avoid a hazard. It can choose to take 10 on a Swim check, even if distracted or endangered. It can use the run action when swimming, provided it swims in a straight line.

Originally appeared in Dragon #183 (1992) and MCA1.