Medium fiend (demon), chaotic evil
Armor Class 16 (natural armor)
Armor Class (suggested) 17 (natural armor)
Hit Points 82 (11d8 + 33)
Speed 40 ft.
Speed (suggested) 40 ft.
Proficiency Bonus +2
Proficiency Bonus +5 (5th Edition Advanced Mode)
| STR | DEX | CON | INT | WIS | CHA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 19 (+4) | 16 (+3) | 16 (+3) | 11 (+0) 18 (+4)* | 12 (+1) | 13 (+1) |
Saving Throws (suggested). Dex +5, Int +6
Skills Perception +5, Stealth +5
Skills (suggested) Acrobatics +5, Athletics +6, Perception +5, Stealth +5
Damage Resistances cold, fire, lightning; bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing from nonmagical attacks
Damage Immunities poison
Condition Immunities poisoned
Senses darkvision 120 ft., passive Perception 15
Senses (suggested) blindsense, darkvision 120 ft., passive Perception 15
Languages Abyssal
Challenge 4 (1100 XP)
Corrosion (suggested). Anyone who hits the babau in melee must make a successful DC 13 Dexterity saving throws or suffer 7 (1d6+3) points of acid damage.
Cunning Action (suggested). You can take a bonus action on each of your turns in combat. This action can be used only to take the Dash, Disengage, or Hide action.
Evasion (sugggested). When you are subjected to an effect that allows you to make a Dexterity saving throw to take only half damage, you instead take no damage if you succeed on the saving throw, and only half damage if you fail.
Innate Spellcasting. The babau’s innate spellcasting ability is Wisdom (spell save DC 11). The babau can innately cast the following spells, requiring no material components:
- At will: darkness, dispel magic, fear, heat metal, levitate
Magic Resistance (suggested). The babau has advantage on saving throws against spells.
Sneak Attack (suggested). Once per turn, you can deal an extra 5d6 damage to one creature you hit with an attack if you have advantage on the attack roll.
Uncanny Dodge (suggested). When an attacker that you can see hits you with an attack, you can use your reaction to halve the attack’s damage against you.
ACTIONS
- Multiattack. The babau makes two melee attacks. It can also use Weakening Gaze before or after making these attacks.
- Multiattack (suggested). The babau makes three melee attacks, two with its claws and one with its sharpe horn or one melee attack with its spear. It can also use Weakening Gaze before or after making these attacks.
- Claw. Melee Weapon Attack: +6 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 8 (1d8 + 4) slashing damage.
- Sharp Horn (suggested). Melee Weapon Attack: +6 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 8 (2d4 + 4) piercing damage.
- Spear. Melee or Ranged Weapon Attack: +6 to hit, reach 5 ft. or range 20/60 ft., one target. Hit: 7 (1d6 + 4) piercing damage, or 8 (1d8 + 4) piercing damage when used with two hands to make a melee attack.
- Weakening Gaze. The babau targets one creature that it can see within 20 feet of it. The target must make a DC 13 Constitution saving throw. On a failed save, the target deals only half damage with weapon attacks that use Strength for 1 minute. The target can repeat the saving throw at the end of each of its turns, ending the effect on itself on a success.
- Weakening Gaze (suggested). The babau targets one creature that it can see within 60 feet of it. The target must make a DC 13 Constitution saving throw. On a failed save, the target loses 1d6+4 points of strength for 1 minute (10 rounds). If strength drops to zero, the target fall unsconscious until the spell effect ends.
5th Edition Advanced Mode
Limiting the power of a character and making the overall difficulty of the game harder, does not reduce the creativity, indeed it does quite the opposite.
The Game Master has the option to use any and all of the instances proposed in this guide, or just some of them according to their preference.
It is the lack of something that move and motivate characters, not the abundance of it
DESCRIPTION
Babaus are terrifying creatures that dwell in the layers of the Abyss, where they recruit lesser and least tanar’ri for their bloody armies in the Blood War. They resemble tall skeletons covered with dark, form-fitting leather. A great horn protrudes from the back of their skulls. Babaus have long, wicked claws covered with dirt, blood, and decaying flesh. Their movements are very quick, sharp, and mechanical, emphasizing their alien nature.
COMBAT
A babau’s red eyes can enfeeble any creature that looks at them. The target must make a saving throw or suffer the effects of a ray of enfeeblement. The babau can see up to 60 feet away and affects one creature per round with its gaze. The babau is immune to nonmagical weapons.
Babaus secrete a dark red substance that covers their bodies. This substance reduces damage from slashing and piercing weapons, and it has a corrosive effect. It also has a chance per hit of corroding a metal weapon, making it useless. Normal metal weapons must make a aving throw or become useless. Magical metal weapons may lose one “plus”.
HABITAT / SOCIETY
Other tanar’ri despise babaus for their role in the Abyssal invasion. They often hunt down babaus and try to kill them, but the babau fights back fiercely.
True tanar’ri have a special relationship with babaus. If a babau is attacked, a true tanar’ri (randomly determined) will intervene and help it – not out of loyalty, but out of the Blood War. This makes the lesser tanar’ri hate babaus even more.
ECOLOGY
The true tanar’ri (presumably the most powerful of the Abyssal lords) see the lesser and least tanar’ri as disposable soldiers for the Blood War. They value the babaus for their role in gathering those armies, and they are essential to the Abyss and the Blood War.