Buy me a coffeeNightgaunt
BY Mitchellnolte
This lanky ebon humanoid has batlike wings and a long prehensile tail, yet its most unsettling feature is its lack of a face.
Nightgaunts haunt the deepest and darkest chasms of dreams. They lurk in the shadows that loom at the edges of sane slumber, but are ready at any moment to snatch a blithe dreamer away, carrying it off into realms of endless nightmare and tickling it terribly all the way. They appear as stooped, emaciated humanoids, yet possess a remarkable strength in their sinewy limbs. With inky black skin, batlike wings, a long spiny tail, and demonic horns protruding from its skull, a nightgaunt is a fearsome foe—yet the lack of any facial features is what makes it truly nightmarish.
A typical nightgaunt would stand 7 feet tall if fully upright, and weighs 175 pounds.
Nightgaunts feed on emotions, preferring despair, horror, and nervous laughter. They enjoy carrying their prey high over the mountains, tickling their prey to create a mix of emotions, and finally dropping their victims in remote areas where other monsters can stalk and kill them. Some creatures pay nightgaunts to serve as guardians or carry them from place to place, though the nightgaunts are prone to turn on their employers at the smallest slight.
Most nightgaunts have little interest in anything other than sating their hunger on sleepers, and gather in colonies to entertain each other by sharing emotion-memories through strange caresses. They sometimes war with the other creatures found in their desolate realms.
Nightgaunt
This lean humanoid creature has large bat-like wings, a pair of horns jutting from its head, and a long, snaky tail. Its body is covered in rubbery black hide, and it has no face.
Medium monstrosity (extraterrene), chaotic neutral
Armor Class 16 (natural armor)
Hit Points 60 (8d8+24)
Speed 30 ft., fly 40 ft.
| STR | DEX | CON | INT | WIS | CHA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 16 (+3) | 17 (+3) | 16 (+3) | 5 (-3) | 14 (+2) | 7 (-2) |
Skills Perception +4, Stealth +5
Condition Immunities blinded, frightened, gaze attacks
Damage Resistances bludgeoning, cold
Senses blindsight 120 ft. (blind), passive Perception 14
Languages Benthic (can’t speak)
Challenge 4 (1,100 XP)
SPECIAL TRAITS
- Carry Off A nightgaunt can fly at its normal speed while carrying a grappled creature of Medium size or smaller. Three nightgaunts grappling the same Large creature can fly at their normal speed.
ACTIONS
- Multiattack. The nightgaunt makes two claw attacks and one gore attack.
- Claw. Melee Weapon Attack: +5 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 1d6+2 slashing damage, and the target is grappled (escape DC 13).
- Gore. Melee Weapon Attack: +5 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 2d4+2 piercing damage.
- Horrifying Grasp. Melee Spell Attack: +5 to hit, reach 5 ft., one grappled living creature. Hit: The target is incapacitated for 1 minute. At the end of each of its turns, the target can attempt a Cha save (DC 11) to end the effect early.
ABOUT
Nightgaunts are horrible gargoyle-like creatures that often serve as guards or sentries for more intelligent creatures. They can be called and bound with various unspeakable rituals, and in fact seem to exist specifically to serve when called. Powerful wizards, evil priests, and alien beings are often protected by nightgaunt guards; in fact, many of these monsters infest decadent cities, where they serve as the spies and soldiers of the cult of Nyarlathotep.
Nightgaunts never abandon their duties, and often remain on guard for centuries after their masters pass on and their treasures crumble into dust. More than a few crypts and ruins lost in Thule’s wilderness are vigilantly guarded by nightgaunts summoned countless years ago, even though there is nothing left to protect. When not bound to another’s service, nightgaunts seek out the deepest, darkest caverns they can find-they dislike daylight and avoid it when they can.
Section 15: Copyright Notice
Primeval Thule Campaign Setting Copyright 2021 Sasquatch Game Studio, LLC. Design Richard Baker, David Noonan, Stephen Schubert
Nightgaunt CR 4
XP 1,200
CN Medium monstrous humanoid (extraplanar)
Init +6; Senses all-around vision, blindsight 60 ft., darkvision 60 ft.; Perception +6
DEFENSE
AC 18, touch 13, flat-footed 15 (+2 Dex, +1 dodge, +5 natural)
hp 37 (5d10+10)
Fort +3, Ref +8, Will +6
Defensive Abilities faceless; Immune cold, gaze attacks, inhaled poison, scent-based attacks
OFFENSE
Speed 30 ft., fly 40 ft. (average)
Melee 2 claws +9 (1d6+4 plus grab)
Special Attacks clutches, tickle
STATISTICS
Str 18, Dex 15, Con 14, Int 5, Wis 14, Cha 11
Base Atk +5; CMB +9 (+17 grapple); CMD 22
Feats Dodge, Improved Initiative, Lightning Reflexes
Skills Fly +7, Perception +6, Stealth +11; Racial Modifiers +4 Stealth
Languages Aklo (can’t speak)
SQ no breath
SPECIAL ABILITIES
Clutches (Ex)
A nightgaunt has a +4 racial bonus on grapple combat maneuver checks. If a nightgaunt uses its fly speed to move itself and a grappled target, it can fly at full speed.
Faceless (Ex)
A nightgaunt has no face, but can still see in all directions as if its entire body were an eye. It is immune to gaze attacks, but not to illusions that rely upon vision to function. It has no need to breathe, and is immune to all inhaled and scent-based effects.
Tickle (Ex)
As a swift action, a nightgaunt can use its tail to tickle a grappled or helpless foe with horrible efficiency. The target must succeed at a DC 14 Fortitude save or be nauseated for 1 round. The save DC is Dexterity-based.
ECOLOGY
Environment any mountains (Dimension of Dreams)
Organization single, pair, flight (3–12), or colony
Treasure none
Section 15: Copyright Notice
Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Bestiary 4 © 2013, Paizo Publishing, LLC; Authors: Dennis Baker, Jesse Benner, Savannah Broadway, Ross Byers, Adam Daigle, Tim Hitchcock, Tracy Hurley, James Jacobs, Matt James, Rob McCreary, Jason Nelson, Tom Phillips, Stephen Radney-MacFarland, Sean K Reynolds, F. Wesley Schneider, Tork Shaw, and Russ Taylor.