Dust Devil: Elemental Rogue of Air and Earth
“Meet the treasure-hunting whirlwind that chokes its prey and senses gold from 60 feet away!”

A dust devil in its natural state is a swirling, semi-transparent column of dust and grit, roughly spherical at its core but with tendrils of fine particulate matter trailing off into the air. When solidified, it condenses into a compact, humanoid-shaped entity formed from tightly packed dust and dirt, its outline vaguely humanoid but always shifting and crumbling at the edges. Its “eyes” glow faintly, like embers caught in a desert windstorm, reflecting its intelligence and greed.
Behaviour:
Dust devils are opportunistic and cunning. They prefer to observe their targets from a distance, biding their time until the perfect moment to strike. While generally solitary, they may tolerate others of their kind when treasure is abundant. Despite their chaotic nature, they are highly methodical when pursuing wealth, showing a single-minded focus on securing precious metals and gemstones. Their intelligence allows them to devise traps or ambushes, and they relish outsmarting mortals who underestimate their guile.
Habitat:
Dust devils hail from the Elemental Planes of Air and Earth, where the boundary between the two is turbulent and chaotic. They are also found in arid regions of the Material Plane, such as deserts, rocky canyons, or abandoned mines, which provide both concealment and the promise of riches buried beneath the surface. They are drawn to areas with high concentrations of valuable minerals or ancient hoards, whether natural or man-made.
Modus Operandi:
Dust devils hunt through stealth and speed. Their treasure sense allows them to detect valuables carried by potential victims, and they use their mobility to strike with precision. They often employ their asphyxiate attack to incapacitate a single target, creating chaos and fear among the rest of a group. With their ability to shift between planes, they can evade pursuers or ambush enemies unexpectedly. They often hoard their stolen treasures in hard-to-reach places, hidden in the depths of caverns or buried beneath shifting sands.
Motivation:
The insatiable greed of a dust devil drives its every action. Unlike their elemental kin, dust devils are not content to simply exist; they crave the acquisition of wealth, particularly in the form of rare metals and gems. This desire is more than material—it seems almost instinctual, as though tied to their very existence. They view the mortals of the Material Plane as both a source of treasure and a challenge, reveling in outwitting or overpowering them to claim their riches. This motivation often makes dust devils a dangerous combination of predator and thief, willing to risk much for the gleam of gold.
Dust Devil 5e
Dust Devil 3.5
Dust Devil

Small Elemental (Air, Earth, Extraplanar), Chaotic Neutral
Armor Class 16 (natural armor)
Hit Points 45 (6d8 + 12)
Speed 0 ft., fly 50 ft. (hover)
STR | DEX | CON | INT | WIS | CHA |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
12 (+1) | 18 (+4) | 14 (+2) | 12 (+1) | 14 (+2) | 10 (+0) |
Saving Throws Dex +7, Wis +4
Skills Perception +4, Stealth +7
Damage Resistances bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing from nonmagical attacks
Damage Immunities poison
Condition Immunities exhaustion, grappled, paralyzed, petrified, poisoned, prone, restrained, unconscious
Senses darkvision 60 ft., passive Perception 14
Languages Auran, Terran
Challenge 4 (1,100 XP)
Proficiency Bonus +2
Traits
Dust Form (Incorporeal Movement). The Dust Devil’s natural form is a swirling vortex of fine sand and dust. It can move through other creatures and objects as if they were difficult terrain. If it ends its turn inside an object, it takes 1d10 force damage. While in this form, it has resistance to all damage except force, psychic, and radiant damage.
Treasure Sense. It can sense the presence and approximate value of precious metals and gemstones within 60 feet. Barriers such as 1 foot of stone, 1 inch of common metal, or 3 feet of wood or dirt block this sense.
Elemental Nature. The Dust Devil doesn’t need to eat, drink, or sleep.
Condense (Recharge 5-6). As a bonus action, the Dust Devil can shift into a solid, compact form. While solidified, it gains a +2 bonus to AC but loses the ability to move through objects and its resistance to nonmagical attacks.
Actions
Multiattack. The Dust Devil makes two Slam attacks.
Slam. Melee Weapon Attack: +6 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target.
Hit: 8 (1d8 + 4) bludgeoning damage.
Asphyxiate (Recharge 5-6). The Dust Devil engulfs a creature in its vortex. One creature within 5 feet must make a DC 13 Constitution saving throw or take 13 (3d8) bludgeoning damage and be unable to breathe while engulfed. A creature can repeat the saving throw at the end of each of its turns, ending the effect on itself on a success.
Ethereal Shift. The Dust Devil shifts to the Ethereal Plane or back to the Material Plane as an action. It can bring along any nonliving objects it is carrying, up to a total weight of 50 pounds.
Treasure Gust (Recharge 6). The Dust Devil unleashes a violent gust of wind in a 15-foot cone. Each creature in the cone must make a DC 14 Strength saving throw or be pushed 10 feet away and fall prone. The gust dislodges unsecured metallic or gem-like objects in the area, which are pulled toward the Dust Devil.
Tactics
The Dust Devil uses its speed and flight to harass enemies, staying out of melee range when possible. It prioritizes targets carrying visible valuables, using Treasure Sense to hone in on those with hidden riches.
- Engage and Distract: The Dust Devil opens combat by using Treasure Gust to disarm opponents and create chaos.
- Divide and Conquer: It isolates one target to asphyxiate while staying mobile and avoiding being surrounded.
- Hit-and-Run: It uses Ethereal Shift to escape unfavorable situations or launch surprise attacks.
- Protect the Hoard: If it has treasure to guard, it fights fiercely to keep intruders away, employing its Condense ability for added durability in close combat.
Treasure Hoarder
A Dust Devil hoards small piles of coins, gemstones, and other valuables, which it often hides in hard-to-reach places. Adventurers who defeat a Dust Devil may uncover a hoard worth 2d6 × 10 gp in value, with an equal chance of gemstones or precious metals.
This stat block and tactical design reflect the Dust Devil’s elemental nature, greed, and cunning, ensuring it is both a thematic and challenging foe for adventurers.
Dust Devil

An amorphous, roughly spherical cloud of semi-transparent dust skims above the surface of the ground
Originally Posted by Shade of the En World forums.
On this Thread
Dust devils are creatures of both elemental air and earth. Smarter than their air elemental and earth elemental kin, dust devils are also far greedier.
Dust devils covet precious metals and gemstones, and can naturally sense such materials. They frequently travel to the Material Plane in search of precious metals and gems, finding it easier to acquire from mortals than the mostly tougher beings of the Elemental Planes of Air and Earth.
A typical dust devil is 4 feet tall and weighs 8 pounds.
Dust devils speak Auran and Terran.
Dust devils can be summoned via a summon monster VI or summon nature’s ally V spell.
Dust Devil | |
Small Elemental (Air, Earth, Extraplanar) | |
Hit Dice | 6d8 (27 hp) |
Initiative | +3 |
Speed | Fly 50 ft. (perfect)(10 squares) |
Armor Class | 18 (+1 size, +3 Dexterity, +4 natural), touch 14, flat-footed 14 |
Base Attack/Grapple | +4/+1 |
Attack | Slam +8 melee (1d4+1) |
Full Attack | 2 slams +8 melee (1d4+1) |
Space/Reach | 5 ft./5 ft. |
Special Attacks | Asphyxiate |
Special Qualities | Darkvision 60 ft., dust form, elemental traits, ethereal shift, treasuresense |
Saves | Fort +5, Ref +8, Will +3 |
Abilities | Strength 13, Dexterity 16, Constitution 11, Intelligence 13, Wisdom 12, Charisma 12 |
Skills | Appraise +10, Listen +10, Spot +10 |
Feats | Combat Reflexes, Flyby Attack, Improved Initiative (B), Power Attack, Weapon Finesse (B) |
Environment | Elemental Plane of Air and Elemental Plane of Earth |
Organization | Solitary |
Challenge Rating | 4 |
Treasure | Double coins, double goods (gems and precious metal items only), no items |
Alignment | Usually chaotic neutral |
Advancement | 7-9 HD (Small); 10-18 HD (Medium) |
Level Adjustment | – |
COMBAT
Dust devils prefer to asphyxiate their foes, but utilize a variety of tactics featuring Flyby Attack and Power Attack.
Asphyxiate (Ex): A dust devil in solid form (see dust form, below) can engulf opponents by moving on top of them. It fills the air around one Medium or smaller opponent without provoking an attack of opportunity. The target must succeed on a DC 13 Fortitude save or inhale part of the creature. The thick, choking dust inside the victim deals 3d4 points of damage per round. An affected creature can attempt another Fortitude save each subsequent round to cough out the semivaporous menace. While asphyxiated, the victim suffers a -4 penalty to Strength and Dexterity. The save DC is Constitution-based.
Dust Form (Ex): A dust devil’s natural form is a vortex of whirling dust, with the same effects as gaseous form. In this form it can fly at a speed of 50 ft (perfect).
A dust devil can condense its body into a solid form as a swift action, this solidification takes a round to take effect, during which time the dust devil loses the DR 10/magic of gaseous form but is unable to attack physically, although it can still perform actions that do not require a solid body, such as movement. A solidified dust devil can still fly, but must stay near the ground – it is unable to stray more than its Reach from the earth without collapsing back into gaseous form.
A dust devil can instantaneously return to its natural dust vortex form as a swift action.
Ethereal Shift (Su): As a full-round action, a dust devil can transfer itself to the Ethereal Plane from the Material Plane, the Elemental Plane of Air or the Elemental Plane of Earth. It can then transfer itself from the Ethereal Plane to any of the aforementioned planes with another full-round action. The dust devil can also transfer any non-living objects it can carry when it uses ethereal shift.
Treasure sense (Su): Dust devils can sense the location and amount of any precious metal (precious metals include adamantine, copper, gold, mithral, platinum, and silver) and gems within a distance of 60 feet. This makes it nearly impossible to sneak up on a dust devil when wearing jewelry or carrying coins. Like Blindsense, opponents the dust devil can’t actually see still have total concealment against the elemental. Treasure sense can penetrate barriers, but 1 foot of stone, 1 inch of common metal, a thin sheet of lead, or 3 feet of wood or dirt blocks it.
Originally appeared in Dragon Magazine #45 (1981).