Black Shuck — Phantom Hound of East Anglia
East Anglian phantom hound · Death omen · Unlikely protector
The black dog stands across the moonlit road. Its fur seems darker than the shadows around it; an eye glows green, or perhaps two burn like embers. It watches the travellers without barking. When the horses rear and the company looks back, the road is empty.
Black Shuck at a Glance
| Creature | A supernatural black hound, sometimes a death omen and sometimes a guardian |
|---|---|
| Size and type | 5.5e / 5e main form: Large fey; rare 5e dread incarnation: Large fiend; PF1e: Large magical beast (published CR 7; smaller CR 4 option); 3.5e: Medium magical beast |
| Temperament | Watchful, elusive, sometimes merciless, sometimes unexpectedly protective |
| Role | Roadside omen, terrifying stalker and solitary guardian |
| Signature | Dread howl and death omens (fifth edition); cursed gaze, disease and disguise (PF1e); tripping bite and Shadow Walk (3.5e) |
| Habitat | Lonely lanes, marshland, ancient woods, burial mounds and abandoned crossroads |
| Campaign Range | Kingdom of England, especially Norfolk, Suffolk and Essex in East Anglia |
| Challenge | 2024 CR 5; 2014 CR 5 (dread fiend alternative CR 11); PF1e CR 7 (weaker option CR 4); D&D 3.5e CR 4 |
Rules by Edition
The omen-bearing hound and the deadly fiend are different incarnations of the tale. Their rules and challenge ratings are not interchangeable. The dread fiend remains available as an optional 2014 encounter.
Black Shuck — 5.5e / 2024
Large Fey, Chaotic Neutral
Armor Class 16 (natural armor)
Hit Points 76 (8d10 + 32)
Speed 55 ft.
Skills Athletics +7, Insight +7, Perception +7, Stealth +6 (+16 while Pass without Trace applies)
Damage Resistance Cold
Condition Immunity Frightened
Senses Darkvision 90 ft., passive Perception 17
Languages Common, telepathy 100 ft. (images of omens rather than words)
Challenge 5 (1,800 XP); Proficiency Bonus +3
| STR | DEX | CON | INT | WIS | CHA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 18 (+4) | 17 (+3) | 19 (+4) | 6 (−2) | 18 (+4) | 14 (+2) |
Traits
Innate Spellcasting. Wisdom (spell save DC 15), no material components. Constant: Pass without Trace; at will: Divination (death omens only, with an indefinite time span); 3/day each: Fog Cloud, Hellish Rebuke, Hunter’s Mark.
Keen Hearing and Smell. Black Shuck has advantage on Wisdom (Perception) checks involving hearing or smell.
Magic Resistance. It has advantage on saving throws against spells and other magical effects.
Actions
Multiattack. Black Shuck makes two Bite attacks.
Bite. Melee Attack Roll: +7 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 13 (2d8 + 4) magical Piercing damage. The target must succeed on a DC 15 Strength saving throw or have the Prone condition.
Bonus Actions
Terrifying Howl. Creatures of Black Shuck’s choice within 120 feet that can both see and hear it must succeed on a DC 15 Wisdom saving throw or have the Frightened condition for 1 minute. Affected creatures repeat the save at the end of each turn, ending the effect on a success. A creature that succeeds becomes immune to this hound’s howl for 24 hours.
Black Shuck — D&D 5e / 2014
Large fey, chaotic neutral
Armor Class 16 (natural armor)
Hit Points 76 (8d10 + 32)
Speed 55 ft.
Skills Athletics +7, Insight +7, Perception +7, Stealth +6 (+16 while Pass without Trace applies)
Damage Resistance Cold
Condition Immunity Frightened
Senses Darkvision 90 ft., passive Perception 17
Languages Common, telepathy 100 ft. (images of omens rather than words)
Challenge 5 (1,800 XP); Proficiency Bonus +3
| STR | DEX | CON | INT | WIS | CHA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 18 (+4) | 17 (+3) | 19 (+4) | 6 (−2) | 18 (+4) | 14 (+2) |
Traits
Innate Spellcasting. Wisdom (spell save DC 15), no material components. Constant: Pass without Trace; at will: Divination (death omens only, with an indefinite time span); 3/day each: Fog Cloud, Hellish Rebuke, Hunter’s Mark.
Keen Hearing and Smell. Black Shuck has advantage on Wisdom (Perception) checks involving hearing or smell.
Magic Resistance. It has advantage on saving throws against spells and other magical effects.
Actions
Multiattack. Black Shuck makes two Bite attacks.
Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +7 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 13 (2d8 + 4) magical Piercing damage. The target must succeed on a DC 15 Strength saving throw or be knocked prone.
Bonus Actions
Terrifying Howl. Creatures of Black Shuck’s choice within 120 feet that can both see and hear it must succeed on a DC 15 Wisdom saving throw or be frightened for 1 minute. Affected creatures repeat the save at the end of each turn, ending the effect on a success. A creature that succeeds becomes immune to this hound’s howl for 24 hours.
Rare dread incarnation — CR 11 fiend (Tome of Beasts 3)
Large fiend, chaotic evil — CR 11 (7,200 XP); proficiency bonus +4
Armor Class 17 (natural armour)
Hit Points 157 (15d10 + 75)
Speed 50 ft.
Saving Throws Str +8, Dex +7, Con +9, Wis +7
Skills Athletics +8, Stealth +11, Survival +7
Resistances Cold, fire, lightning
Immunities Necrotic and poison damage; bludgeoning, piercing and slashing from nonmagical attacks that are not silvered
Condition Immunities Charmed, frightened
Senses Darkvision 90 ft., truesight 60 ft.; passive Perception 13
Languages Understands Abyssal and Common but cannot speak
Challenge 11 (7,200 XP)
| STR | DEX | CON | INT | WIS | CHA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 19 (+4) | 16 (+3) | 21 (+5) | 14 (+2) | 17 (+3) | 15 (+2) |
Traits
Blood Frenzy. It has advantage on attacks against creatures below their hit point maximum.
Keen Hearing and Smell. Advantage on Wisdom (Perception) checks that rely on these senses.
Water Walker. It crosses the surface of water as if it were solid ground.
Actions
Multiattack. Three Bite attacks, plus Curse of the Grave or Fearsome Howl if available. If two or more bites hit the same Medium or smaller creature, that creature must succeed on a DC 17 Strength saving throw or take 7 (2d6) slashing damage, be thrown up to 15 feet in a random direction and knocked prone.
Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +8 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 13 (2d8 + 4) piercing damage plus 10 (3d6) necrotic damage.
Curse of the Grave. A creature within 30 feet that the hound can see must succeed on a DC 17 Wisdom saving throw or suffer disadvantage on the next two death saving throws it makes within seven days. Remove Curse or similar magic ends the curse; it also ends after the rolls occur or seven days elapse.
Fearsome Howl (Recharge 5–6). Every creature within 60 feet that hears it must succeed on a DC 17 Wisdom saving throw or be frightened until the end of its next turn. A creature concentrating on a spell that fails this save must also make a DC 17 Constitution saving throw or lose concentration.
Bonus Actions
Mist Stalker. The hound takes the Hide action when in dim light, fog or mist.
Black Shuck — Pathfinder 1e
BLACK SHUCK CR 7 · XP 3,200 · CN Large magical beast
Init +11; Senses blindsight 60 ft., darkvision 60 ft., low-light vision, scent; Perception +12
Defense
AC 20, touch 16, flat-footed 13 (+7 Dex, +4 natural, −1 size)
hp 85 (9d10+36)
Fort +10, Ref +13, Will +5
DR 10/cold iron or magic
Offense
Speed 40 ft., swim 15 ft.
Melee bite +13 (1d8+5 plus disease and trip), 2 claws +13 (1d6+5)
Space/Reach 10 ft./5 ft.
Special Attacks green-eyed gaze
Spell-Like Abilities (CL 9th; concentration +11): 3/day each—blink, fog cloud, misdirection
Statistics
Str 20, Dex 24, Con 18, Int 13, Wis 11, Cha 15
Base Atk +9; CMB +15 (+17 trip); CMD 32 (38 vs. trip)
Feats Combat Expertise, Improved Initiative, Improved Trip, Iron Will, Stealthy
Skills Acrobatics +7 (+11 when jumping), Bluff +11, Escape Artist +9, Perception +12, Stealth +17, Swim +13
Languages Common
SQ change shape (human; alter self)
Ecology
Environment temperate coasts or marshes
Organization solitary
Treasure none
Special Abilities
Shuck’s Kiss (Ex). Its bite carries a wasting disease: injury; Fort DC 18; onset 1 day; frequency 1/hour for six hours; effect 1d4 Str and 1d4 Con damage; cure two consecutive saves. The DC is Constitution-based.
Green-Eyed Gaze (Sp). Three times per day, Black Shuck targets one creature within 30 feet. A DC 16 Will save negates the effect; otherwise the victim suffers a fixed bestow curse effect (CL 9th) specific to that hound. Whether the save succeeds or fails, that individual cannot be affected by the same hound’s gaze again for 24 hours. The DC is Charisma-based.
Change Shape (Su). Black Shuck can assume a human form, often posing as a traveller. Its listed shapechanging ability operates as alter self.
Tactics. The hound hides among fog and tidal reeds, sometimes under the guise of a stranded traveller. It curses enemies with its eye, uses blink to frustrate pursuers, and closes with its disease-bearing bite and claws.
Published Pathfinder 1e Black Shuck, from Pathfinder Adventure Path #129: The Twilight Child. Archives of Nethys — Black Shuck · Rules reference.
Optional weaker Black Shuck — CR 4 shadow-walker
BLACK SHUCK CR 4 — XP 1,200; N Medium magical beast
Init +1; Senses darkvision 60 ft., low-light vision, scent; Perception +9
Defense
AC 16, touch 11, flat-footed 15 (+1 Dex, +5 natural)
hp 37 (5d10 + 10)
Fort / Ref / Will +6 / +5 / +3
Defensive Abilities Fast healing 1
Offense
Speed 40 ft.
Melee Bite +8 (1d8 + 4 plus trip)
Special Attacks Savage, trip
Other Abilities Shadow Walk (Su), 10 minutes each day; begin and end in shadow
Statistics
Str / Dex / Con 16 / 12 / 15
Int / Wis / Cha 2 / 14 / 13
Base Atk / CMB / CMD +5 / +8 / 19 (23 vs. trip)
Feats Alertness, Stealthy, Endurance
Skills Perception +9, Stealth +8, Survival +6 (+10 for tracking by scent)
Languages —
Ecology
Environment Temperate forests, misty roadways and moors of eastern England
Organization Solitary
Treasure None; the hound may guard another creature’s cache
Special Abilities
Fast Healing (Su). Black Shuck heals 1 hp each round.
Shadow Walk (Su). It travels as Shadow Walk for at most ten minutes each day; every journey must begin and end in darkness or dim light.
Savage (Ex). Against an adjacent prone opponent, it can attempt a grapple as a standard action at +12 (CMB +8 with a +4 bonus), without provoking an attack of opportunity. On a success the opponent takes 2d6 damage and must make a DC 15 Fortitude save or be stunned for one round. The save DC is Strength-based.
Trip (Ex). After hitting with its bite, Black Shuck may immediately attempt a trip as a free action without provoking. Failure does not allow the target to trip it back.
Scent (Ex). It receives a +4 racial bonus on Survival checks when tracking by scent.
Black Shuck may instead appear as this weaker shadow-walking guardian.
Black Shuck — D&D 3.5e
Black Shuck — Medium Magical Beast (usually neutral)
Hit Dice 5d10+10 (37 hp)
Initiative +1
Speed 40 ft. (8 squares)
Armor Class 16 (+1 Dex, +5 natural), touch 11, flat-footed 15
Base Attack/Grapple +5/+8
Attack Bite +8 melee (1d8+4 plus trip)
Full Attack Bite +8 melee (1d8+4 plus trip)
Space/Reach 5 ft./5 ft.
Special Attacks Trip, savage
Special Qualities Fast healing 1, darkvision 60 ft., low-light vision, scent, shadow walk
Saves Fort +6, Ref +5, Will +3
Abilities Str 16, Dex 12, Con 15, Int 2, Wis 14, Cha 13
Skills Hide +5, Listen +4, Move Silently +6, Spot +4, Survival +9*
Feats Alertness, Stealthy, Track (bonus)
Environment Temperate forests and plains
Organization Solitary
Challenge Rating 4
Treasure None
Alignment Usually neutral
Advancement 6–12 HD (Medium)
Level Adjustment —
Combat
Black Shuck isolates prey through shadow walking, trips its target and then attempts to savage the fallen creature.
Fast Healing (Su). Regains 1 hit point each round.
Shadow Walk (Su). Travels as the spell shadow walk for up to ten minutes each day; it must begin and end the journey in darkness or shadowy illumination.
Savage (Ex). Against a prone enemy Black Shuck may make a grapple attempt without provoking, receiving a +4 bonus. If successful, the victim takes 2d6 damage and must make a DC 15 Fortitude save or be stunned for one round. The save DC is Strength-based.
Trip (Ex). A bite hit allows a trip attempt as a free action (+3 modifier) without a touch attack or provoking. On failure the target cannot trip it in return.
Skills. The hound has a +4 racial bonus on Survival when following a trail by scent (*included in the listed tracking check).
Appearance
The shaggy animal may look like a large wolfhound or loom taller than a horse. In some sightings one great luminous eye burns in its face; in others there are two. Its coat absorbs moonlight and its passage leaves neither bark nor footfall. Whether it appears to warn or hunt, a traveller seldom forgets meeting it.
Where Black Shuck Is Found
Reports cluster around Norfolk’s coastal roads, Suffolk’s causeways and the marshy approaches to Essex. It has been encountered between West Runton and Overstrand, near ancient groves, beside grave-mounds and at forgotten bridges. Sometimes the hound is tied to a particular boundary, household or oath.
The solitary Shuck is not necessarily one of the many black dogs of Britain, nor is it a hell hound. The Cù Sìth is another supernatural hound with its own lore. Keep the encounters and creature types distinct.
Behaviour
Black Shuck follows travellers without announcing itself. It may stalk a grave-robber for days, refuse to let a merchant cross a dangerous ford or walk beside a lost child until the village lights come into view. Some hounds guard burial places, ancient groves or the limits of a forgotten pact. They grow violent when those boundaries are deliberately broken.
Signs and Warnings
Ordinary dogs will not bark. A heavy paw mark ends in the centre of a moonlit road. Fog clings to an isolated gate. Footsteps follow a traveller after the hound has vanished. Those who turn back after its third appearance often live to tell the tale.
If Violence Starts
Black Shuck prefers to scatter and isolate. The fey incarnation uses Terrifying Howl to break a group, then pulls down a single victim with its bite. The dread fiend savages wounded foes and may inflict its grave curse before departing. The Pathfinder 1e hound can disguise itself as a lone traveller, spread fog, curse prey with its green eye, and follow up with a diseased bite and claws. The D&D 3.5e hound trips and grapples a fallen traveller, using Shadow Walk to escape when surrounded. A free hound often relents if intruders leave its charge undisturbed; a magically compelled hound may fight on until released.
Using Black Shuck in Play
| A warning at the bridge | The hound blocks a flooded crossing just before its banks collapse. The creature is protecting travellers from danger. |
|---|---|
| The plundered barrow | A thief carries an ancient grave token. Shuck stalks everyone travelling with the thief until the object is returned. |
| The household oath | The hound returns to the same gate every night. A forgotten contract names the one person it is compelled to pursue. |
| A friend to the lost | The beast walks a missing child home. The villagers gather hunters, convinced it has abducted the child. |
A CR 5 fey Black Shuck makes a suitable ominous road encounter for a mid-level party. The CR 11 fiend is a far more dangerous optional foe. PF1e characters encounter the published CR 7 shapechanging, curse-bearing predator or the optional CR 4 shadow-walker. D&D 3.5e characters face a CR 4 ambusher whose escape through shadows makes straightforward pursuit difficult. Victory need not require killing it: return the relic, break a binding or learn what danger it is warning against.
Historical and Mythical Context
East Anglian tales describe the great black dog as an omen of misfortune and, in other accounts, a companion that guards lonely travellers. The best-known printed episode dates to a great storm in 1577, recounted by Abraham Fleming. Later retellings embellished the beast’s size and glowing eyes. Black-dog stories also helped inspire later fiction including The Hound of the Baskervilles.
For historical reading see the Norfolk Record Office and Black Shuck folklore overview. The literature behind the black-dog tradition belongs to an era later than the campaign, but its underlying legends and fears are older.
Related Creatures and Lore
Magical beasts · Black dog · Cù Sìth · Hell hound · Shadow Walk · England · Ranger · Druid
Further Videos
Black Shuck video reference 1 · Black Shuck video reference 2 · Black Shuck video reference 3
Rules Sources and Credits
Pathfinder 1e: The primary CR 7 Black Shuck is the published creature from Pathfinder Adventure Path #129: The Twilight Child (Paizo Inc., 2018, p. 82), with statistics available at the Archives of Nethys. The weaker CR 4 shadow-walker beneath it is a separate optional adaptation, not a Paizo stat block. Pathfinder content © 2018 Paizo Inc.; authors Ron Lundeen, with Patchen Mortimer, Andrew Mullen, Richard Pett, F. Wesley Schneider and David Schwartz.
D&D 5e / 2014: The CR 5 fey omen hound follows Epic Monsters: Black Shuck (5E). The rare CR 11 fiend is an alternative from Tome of Beasts 3 © 2022 Open Design LLC; complete author credits appear below. Neither is an official D&D monster. The 5.5e / 2024 entry adapts the CR 5 creature using current terminology; its mechanics are not from the official SRD.
D&D 3.5e: The shadow-walking magical beast derives from Monster Encyclopaedia I: Ravagers of the Realms (Mongoose Publishing, 2004), by August Hahn, Gareth Hanrahan and Lizard.
Rules references: D&D SRD 5.2.1, PF1e Black Shuck, and D&D 3.5e creature types.
Adventure Threads
Each of these mysteries begins with the hound, but the characters must discover the cause of the haunting before they can resolve it. Black Shuck is not necessarily the villain.
The Hound of the Moors — a fabricated murder, a genuine omen
What has happened. A landowner has used trained hounds to frighten an heir from a disputed estate and claims the deaths are Black Shuck’s work. The real spectral hound has appeared beside a boundary stone, not at the sites of the attacks.
The party’s objective. Establish who staged the attacks and recover the testament hidden beneath the boundary stone. A stolen kennel ledger, pawprints leading towards a locked stable, and an eyewitness who saw the same horse twice will unravel the deceit. A living heir and a hidden inheritance are at stake.
Complication and resolution. The real Shuck guards the stone because an oath sworn there remains unfulfilled. The characters may expose the human culprit and honour the oath; fighting the apparition only delays the solution.
The Haunting of Black Shuck — judgement at the old grove
What has happened. A village ordered woodcutters to clear an ancient grove. Now a spectral hound blocks the woodland road, and a miller has vanished after stealing a carved boundary stone for his cellar.
The party’s objective. Find the missing miller, discover who ordered the grove cleared and decide whether the cutting was an act of ignorance or deliberate theft. A treant or elder treant can explain why the grove matters.
Complication and resolution. The hound watches the approach while the grove’s guardian judges the village. Returning the boundary stone and protecting what remains of the grove may end the attacks. A fight with the hound cannot replace the broken covenant.
The Curse of Black Shuck — the sorcerer’s leash
What has happened. Families living near a ruined manor hear paws at their doors shortly before a relative disappears. An ambitious sorcerer has bound a dreadful incarnation of Black Shuck to frighten villagers while servants abduct those who can identify an illicit trade route.
The party’s objective. Protect the next threatened household, follow the servants’ tracks and find the sorcerer’s binding seal beneath the manor. A witness’s description of ordinary wagon wheels, the names of the missing and signs of magical compulsion reveal the true scheme.
Complication and resolution. Shuck may attack when commanded but resist striking a child or noncombatant. Breaking the binding frees it and undermines the sorcerer. Slaying the hound alone does not rescue the captives.
The Black Shuck’s Curse — the warriors beneath the hill
What has happened. Robbers stripped an old burial mound and used the stolen funerary goods to pay a local official. The dead now stir and the hound stalks those carrying the tokens. Suspicion falls on an innocent neighbouring village.
The party’s objective. Identify the robbers, recover the tokens and return them to the tomb before the next procession of mourners is attacked. Broken seals, a burial tally and the official’s locked strongbox provide evidence. The hill itself is defended by the restless dead, possibly including a banshee.
Complication and resolution. The official is willing to sacrifice the villagers rather than confess. Returning the goods may satisfy Black Shuck and the dead, but the living culprit must still answer for the theft.
After the Encounter
A black shuck seldom carries treasure. Its defeat or departure may reveal a hidden boundary, the location of a stolen relic, the name on a binding oath or a road that other travellers never find. Some vanish without a body when dawn touches them. Others leave dark fur, which crumbles to dust as the sun rises.
A ranger or druid may travel with such a hound briefly, but it follows its own strange purpose and is not a tame pet.
Original Artwork and Credits
The new Black Shuck hero and secondary illustrations replace the earlier NightCafe depictions. The historical illustration in the mythology section is a public-domain printed image associated with Abraham Fleming’s account. The alternate fifth-edition illustration formerly hotlinked from a Googleusercontent address can be viewed in its original context at Epic Monsters: Black Shuck (5E).
Original Tome of Beasts 3 author credits
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.
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