ARMANITE – 5e stats

Large fiend (demon), chaotic evil

Armor Class 16 (natural armor)
Hit Points 84 (8d10 + 40)
Speed 60 ft.

Proficiency Bonus +3
Proficiency Bonus +4 (5th Edition Advanced Mode)

STR	DEX	CON	INT	WIS	CHA
21 (+5)	18 (+4)	21 (+5)	8 (-1)	12 (+1)	13 (+1)

Damage Resistances cold, fire, lightning
Damage Immunities poison
Condition Immunities poisoned
Senses darkvision 120 ft., passive Perception 11
Languages Abyssal, telepathy 120 ft.
Challenge 7 (2900 XP)

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

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

ACTIONS

• Multiattack. The armanite makes three attacks: one with its hooves, one with its claws, and one with its serrated tail.
• Hooves. Melee Weapon Attack: +8 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 12 (2d6 + 5) bludgeoning damage.
• Claws. Melee Weapon Attack: +8 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 10 (2d4 + 5) slashing damage.
• Serrated Tail. Melee Weapon Attack: +8 to hit, reach 10 ft., one target. Hit: 16 (2d10 + 5) slashing damage.
• Lightning Lance (Recharge 5-6). The armanite looses a bolt of lightning in a line 60 feet long and 10 feet wide. Each creature in the line must make a DC 15 Dexterity saving throw, taking 27 (6d8) lightning damage on a failed save, or half as much damage on a successful one.

DESCRIPTION

Armanites resemble pale, undead centaurs with the horns of rams or bulls. They wear the full armor of knights. Their tails and the manes down their spines are stiff bristels, and the flesh on their bellies sags so much that older armanites sometimes look like gutted half-horses, dragging their entrails beneath them.

Some breeds of armanite are more kangaroolike in their nonhuman half. Their front limbs are hands, capable of manipulating weapons and small items.

All armanites wear black, fluted armor that seems more ornamental than functional. Because of their great strength, the armor is much heavier than ordinary armor and more effective than it might appear. Armanites are never without their weapons: flanged maces, wavy flamberge swords, and heavy crossbows or composite bows.

HABITAT / SOCIETY

Armanites are the mercenaries and scavengers of the Blood War, living by devouring the flesh and spirits of the fallen. They serve their masters well but expect plunder in return; failure to provide it results in desertion or rebellion, even on the eve of battle. Most herds of armanites specialize in a particular battlefield duty, such as scouting, foraging for quartermasters, skirmishing, archery, or the like. They never take part in sieges. Their reputation for fickleness is well earned; if they receive orders they don’t like, they simply leave.

Female armanites number only half that of their male counterparts. The sexes are strictly segregated for most of their lives, for they inevitably fight among themselves if allowed to mix. Males and female herds only mingle during mating, which occurs after a successful battle against the baatezu. Young are herded along with the servants and camp followers until the seize weapons of their own from a fallen member of the troupe and slay an enemy, at which point they join the adults.

Each armanite troupe carries an individual troupe banner and the banner of their current master or mistress, such as Graz’zt’s diagonal black-and-white slash or Pazrael’s golden talon on dark red. If the banner is lost in battle, the troupe disband to take up service in the household of one of the lords of the Plain of Infinite Portals or to attempt to join annother troupe. The banner is the symbol and unifying principle of each warband; without it, the armanites feud among themselves and soon their group falls apart.

Because they operate well as independent groups, armenites are often selected to undertake special missions for the Abyssal lords. They are called the Dark Horsemen or the Dark Riders in the Upper Planes and are feared there. They are a common sight in Sigil as well, where they sometimes serve as bloodthirsty bodyguards.

ECOLOGY

Armanites devour the blood and spirits of their fallen foes, rendering them unresurrectable, and some stories say that they prefer this sustenance to any other. Their favorite prey are varrangoin, baatezu, and yugoloths, in that order. Some armanites take on rutterkin as grooms, smiths, riding auxiliaries, and servants, though this is rare. They despise all forms of least tanar’ri and abuse them mercilessly.

Armanites prefer raucous, chaotic group combat to formal duels or feats of arms. They often brawl like warhounds in the halls and citadels of the tanar’ri, and provoking a fight with one armanite means a grudge match with the entire troupe. Armanites despise the bariaur and attack them on sight.