Kyton, Sacristan

Chains and piercings torture this being’s bloodless flesh. The greatest violations invade its face and mouth.

Source Bestiary 4 pg. 177
Originally posted in Archives of Nethys

Every kyton considers itself some manner of artiste, working and reworking its avant-garde visions in various mediums ‘flesh, minds, darkness, and others both natural and fragile. But for every masterpiece, there are countless failures. Sacristans number among the most useful failures of the kyton race.

Born from scraps of imperfect flesh, bent chain, and scarred minds, sacristans are bound together by kyton sculptor-surgeons. They lack the burden of free will, and their minds are etched with the ability to serve, making them utterly obedient to other kytons. While much more than automatons, sacristans are a potent slave caste, one manufactured to take ecstatic pleasure from serving their brethren.

Their other blessing is a miniature, permanent portal to the Shadow Plane sealed within their mouths. Kept restrained, this portal endlessly howls the music of the kytons’ realms of shadowed torture and veiled delights. When threatened, sacristans burst open their mouths and allow the song of their collective race to seduce their foes in a way these brutes never could.

They vary in their appearance, but always look like tortured and maimed humanoids, often with redundant or absent features. They typically stand between 6 and 8 feet tall and weigh from 80 to 160 pounds.

Sacristan CR 10

XP 9,600 LE Medium outsider (evil, extraplanar, kyton, lawful) Init +3; Senses Darkvision 60 ft.; Perception +17

DEFENSE

AC 22, touch 13, flat-footed 19 (+3 Dexterity, +9 natural) hp 126 (12d10+60); regeneration 5 (good spells and weapons, silver) Fort +13, Ref +7, Will +10 DR 10/silver or good; Immune cold; SR 21

OFFENSE

Speed 30 ft. Melee mwk spiked chain +18/+13/+8 (2d4+7) or 2 claws +17 (1d4+5) Space 5 ft., Reach 5 ft. (10 ft. with spiked chain) Special Attacks shadow scream, unnerving gaze (30 ft., DC 18)

STATISTICS

Strength 20, Dexterity 16, Constitution 21, Intelligence 13, Wisdom 14, Charisma 15 Base Atk +12; CMB +17 (+19 bull rush); CMD 30 (32 vs. bull rush) Feats Bleeding Critical, Cleave, Critical Focus, Great Cleave, Improved Bull Rush, Power Attack Skills Acrobatics +15, Bluff +17, Climb +17, Intimidate +17, Perception +17, Sense Motive +17, Stealth +18 Languages Common, Infernal

SPECIAL ABILITIES

Shadow Scream (Su) Once per hour as a standard action, a sacristan can burst the bonds sealing its mouth and unleash a cacophony of darkness and soul-shaking howls from the pits of the Shadow Plane. The area within 25 feet of the sacristan is affected by deeper darkness. All creatures within the area are deafened for as long as they remain in the area and must succeed at a DC 18 Will save or be confused. The confusion effect lasts for as long as the creature is in the shadow scream’s area of effect and for 1d4 rounds after leaving.   Any creature that falls unconscious while under the effects of this confusion effect must succeed at an additional DC 18 Will save or be afflicted by a random insanity roll on the insanity table on page 250 of the Pathfinder RPG Game Mastery Guide to determine which. A sacristan’s shadow scream lasts for 3 rounds and remains centered on the kyton even if it moves. The sacristan can end the shadow scream at will. The scream also ends if the sacristan is killed or is affected by the spell dimensional lock, which prevents this ability’s use for as long as the spell in effect. The save DCs are Charisma-based. Unnerving Gaze (Ex) A creature that succumbs to an augur’s unnerving gaze becomes staggered for 1 round.

ECOLOGY

Environment any (Plane of Shadow) Organization solitary, pair, bodyguard (1d4 plus 1 kyton of lower CR [usually an ostiarius]), or entourage (2d6 plus 1 kyton of higher CR) Treasure standard