Medium fiend (devil), lawful evil
Armor Class 22 (natural armor)
Hit Points 255 (30d8 + 120)
Speed 30 ft., fly 50 ft.
Proficiency Bonus +6
Proficiency Bonus +13 (5th Edition Advanced Mode)
| STR | DEX | CON | INT | WIS | CHA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 23 (+6) | 16 (+3) | 19 (+4) | 14 (+2) | 15 (+2) | 19 (+4) |
Saving Throws Str +12, Con +10, Wis +8
Skills Intimidation +10, Perception +8
Damage Resistances cold; bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing from nonmagical attacks that aren’t silvered
Damage Immunities fire, poison
Condition Immunities poisoned
Senses darkvision 120 ft., passive Perception 18
Languages Draconic, Infernal, telepathy 120 ft.
Challenge 19 (22,000 XP)
Devil’s Sight. Magical darkness doesn’t impede the abishai’s darkvision.
Magic Resistance. The abishai has advantage on saving throws against spells and other magical effects.
Magic Weapons. The abishai’s weapon attacks are magical.
Regeneration (suggested). The red abishai regenerates 1 hit point per round unless damaged by holy water.
ACTIONS
- Multiattack. The abishai can use its Frightful Presence. It also makes four attacks: one with its morningstar, one with its claw, one with its bite and one with its poisonous tail.
- Morningstar. Melee Weapon Attack: +12 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 10 (1d8 + 6) piercing damage.
- Claw. Melee Weapon Attack: +12 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit : 17 (2d10 + 6) slashing damage.
- Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +12 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 22 (5d10 + 6) piercing damage plus 38 (7d10) fire damage.
- Poisonous Tail (suggested). Melee Weapon Attack: +12 to hit, reach 10 ft., one target. Hit: 8 (1d4 + 6) piercing damage. The target must succeed on a DC 17 Constitution saving throw or become poisoned. The poisoned target is unconscious and must repeat the saving throw at the end of each of its turns, taking 1d10 poison damage on a failed save. The poison ends when the target succeeds on three saving throws or dies.
- Frightful Presence. Each creature of the abishai’s choice that is within 120 feet and aware of it must succeed on a DC 18 Wisdom saving throw or become frightened of it for 1 minute. A creature can repeat the saving throw at the end of each of its turns, ending the effect on itself on a success. If a creature’s saving throw is successful or the effect ends for it, the creature is immune to the abishai’s Frightful Presence for the next 24 hours.
- Incite Fanaticism. The abishai chooses up to four of its allies within 60 feet of it that can see it. For 1 minute, each of those allies makes attack rolls with advantage and can’t be frightened.
- Power of the Dragon Queen. The abishai targets one dragon it can see within 120 feet of it. The dragon must make a DC 18 Charisma saving throw. A chromatic dragon makes this save with disadvantage. On a successful save, the target is immune to the abishai’s Power of the Dragon Queen for 1 hour. On a failed save, the target is charmed by the abishai for 1 hour. While charmed in this way, the target regards the abishai as a trusted friend to be heeded and protected. This effect ends if the abishai or its companions deal damage to the target.
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
Red abishai are the most powerful and fearsome of the abishai, a race of fiendish devils that serve the evil dragon goddess Tiamat. They resemble red-scaled gargoyles with horns, wings, claws, and barbed tails. They have a supernatural affinity to fire and believe themselves to be Tiamat’s chosen. They can speak Draconic, Infernal, Common, Celestial, and telepathy, and often act as leaders or emissaries for Tiamat’s cults and armies.
COMBAT
Red abishai are formidable foes in combat, capable of using their morningstars, long daggers, claws, bites, and tails to inflict devastating damage. They can also emit a frightful presence that causes mortals to flee in terror, or inspire fanaticism in their allies, granting them advantage on attack rolls and immunity to fear. Their most dangerous ability, however, is their power of the dragon queen, which allows them to charm any dragon within 120 feet of them, especially chromatic dragons, who have disadvantage on their saving throws. A charmed dragon regards the red abishai as a trusted friend and will obey its commands.
HABITAT / SOCIETY
Red abishai dwell in the Nine Hells, the infernal realm of devils. They are most common in the first and second layers of Baator, Avernus and Dis, where they fight against the demonic hordes of the Abyss. They also serve as Tiamat’s personal guard in her lair on Avernus, where they have access to a nearly limitless supply of other abishai. Red abishai are respected and feared by other devils, and often command legions of lemures or other lesser baatezu. They also have authority over Tiamat’s cults on the Material Plane, and can be summoned by powerful clerics of the dragon queen.
ECOLOGY
Red abishai are carnivorous creatures that feed on the flesh of their enemies or their sacrifices. They are loyal to Tiamat and her cause, and seek to spread her influence and power across the multiverse. They are also ambitious and ruthless, and will not hesitate to eliminate any rivals or obstacles in their path. Red abishai can be promoted to higher forms of devils if they prove their worth to Tiamat or her archdevils. Conversely, they can also be demoted to lower forms of abishai if they fail or betray their mistress.