Medium aberration (grell), neutral evil
Armor Class 12
Armor Class (suggested) 14
Hit Points 55 (10d8 + 10)
Speed 10 ft., fly 30 ft. (hover)
Proficiency Bonus +2
Proficiency Bonus +5 (5th Edition Advanced Mode)
| STR | DEX | CON | INT | WIS | CHA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 15 (+2) | 14 (+2) | 13 (+1) | 12 (+1) | 11 (+0) | 9 (-1) |
Skills Perception +4, Stealth +6
Damage Immunities lightning
Condition Immunities blinded, prone
Senses blind sight 60 ft. (blind beyond this radius), passive perception 12
Languages Grell
Challenge 3 (700 X P)
ACTIONS
- Multiattack. The grell soldier makes two attacks: one with its tentacles and one with its beak.
- Multiattack (suggested). The grell soldier makes eleven attacks: ten with its tentacles and one with its beak.
- Tentacles. Melee Weapon Attack: +4 to hit, reach 10 ft. , one creature. Hit: 5 (1d6 + 2) piercing damage, and the target must succeed on a DC 11 Constitution saving throw or be poisoned for 1 minute. The poisoned target is paralyzed , and it can repeat the saving throw at the end of each of its turns, ending the effect on a success. The target is also grappled (escape DC 15). If the target is Medium or smaller, it is also restrained until this grapple ends. While grappling the target, the grell has advantage on attack rolls against it and can’t use this attack against other targets. When the grell moves, any medium or smaller target it is grappling moves with it.
- Beak. Melee Weapon Attack: +4 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 7 (2d4 + 2) piercing damage.
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
A grell soldier is a type of aberration that resembles a giant floating brain with a wide, sharp beak and ten long tentacles. It has no eyes, but can sense its surroundings with blindsight. Its skin is leathery and tough, and its tentacles are covered with hollow barbs that can inject a paralytic venom into its prey. A grell soldier is usually pale pink-gray or faint purple-pink in color, with older specimens being darker than younger ones.
COMBAT
A grell soldier prefers to ambush lone creatures or stragglers, hovering silently near the ceiling of a passage or cavern until a suitable target passes below, whereupon it descends quickly and wraps its tentacles around its prey. It then floats away to its lair with the paralyzed creature in its clutches. A grell soldier can also use its beak to bite its enemies, especially if they resist its tentacles or try to escape. A grell soldier is not very intelligent, but it can follow simple commands from a grell philosopher or patriarch, who are the leaders of grell colonies.
HABITAT / SOCIETY
A grell soldier is native to the Far Realm, a plane of madness and chaos where the laws of nature are different from those of the Prime Material Plane. However, some grells have found their way to other planes, such as the Underdark, the Shadowdark, or other caves and underground locations. There, they form colonies of varying sizes and structures, depending on the availability of food and resources. A grell colony is usually led by a grell philosopher, who is more intelligent and capable of using psionic magic, and a grell patriarch, who is larger and stronger than other grells. A grell philosopher also practices a form of alchemy that allows it to create potions and poisons from various substances. A grell soldier serves as a worker and a warrior for the colony, hunting for food, defending the lair, and obeying the orders of its superiors. A grell soldier has no sense of individuality or personality, and only cares about the survival and prosperity of the colony.
ECOLOGY
A grell soldier is a carnivorous creature that feeds on any living being it can catch and paralyze. It has no preference for any particular type of prey, as long as it is edible and not too large or dangerous. A grell soldier can digest almost anything organic, including bones, flesh, organs, and even metal or wood. It regurgitates any indigestible material as pellets that it discards in its lair. A grell soldier reproduces by budding, which means that it grows a small lump on its body that eventually detaches and becomes a new grell. This process takes several months, and requires a lot of food and energy. A grell soldier does not care for its offspring, and leaves them to fend for themselves as soon as they are born. A grell soldier has no natural predators, except for other aberrations that may compete with it for food or territory. A grell soldier also has no natural allies, except for other members of its colony or creatures that it can manipulate or enslave with its venom or psionics.