8. Broken and Forgotten (CR 11 Encounter)

Illustration by Camus Altamirano

8. Broken and Forgotten

As you travel down the mist filled corridor you find a massive boulder filled with iron ore broke off from some part of the ceiling, and it has since settled here. The tunnel continues on past the boulder.

Perception DC 20 reveals that the flooding waters tore off a chuck of the ceiling and shoved it down the tunnel to this point and then dug a tunnel around its side when the waters could move it no further.

Perception DC 30 reveals a stone door concealed behind the bolder.

Dragging the bolder requires a strength score of 42 for a medium sized bipedial creature (dragging 8,000 lbs), 37 large bipedial creature, 24 large bipedial creature, (The PCs can use any number of inventive means to move the boulder from beast shape to a mount spell)

Once moved a stone door is revealed it is subject to an arcane lock. It has break DC of 38 (locked DC 20), a hardness of 8, and 90 hp.

Beyond the door in the center of the room upon a patchwork blanket of clothes you see a pile of human bones that appear to have been picked clean and gnawed upon. In the far back corner is another well of boiling water.

The Broken Maidens wait in hiding (Peception DC 36) as they float above the entrance until they can get through the door. Once they can they will attack attempting to feed as they are ravenously hungry, having been trapped here so long. During this time they have been haunting the dreams of various creatures they knew in the dungeon, driving them to despair, madness, and sometimes death.

The Broken Maidens (4)    CR 8

XP 4,800

Accursed Wendigo

CE Large outsider (cold, native)

Init +8; Senses blindsight 60 ft., darkvision 60 ft., low-light vision; Perception +21

Defense

AC 20, touch 13, flat-footed 16 (+4 Dex, +7 natural, –1 size)

hp 186 (18d10+90); regeneration 15 (fire)

Fort +11, Ref +12, Will +1 (+8 bonus vs. fear)

DR 7/cold iron and magic; Resist cold 30; SR 14

Weaknesses vulnerability to fire

Offense

Speed fly 120 ft. (perfect)

Melee bite +21 (2d8+4/19–20 plus 4d6 cold and grab), 2 claws +26 (2d6+4/19–20 plus 4d6 cold)

Space 10 ft.; Reach 10 ft.

Special Attacks dream haunting, howl, rend (2 claws, 1d8+6 plus 4d6 cold plus 1d4 Cha damage), wendigo psychosis

Spell-Like Abilities (CL 18th; concentration +20)

1/day—control weather (as druid), nightmare (DC 17)

Statistics

Str 19, Dex 19, Con 21, Int 16, Wis 10, Cha 14

Base Atk +18; CMB +23 (+27 grapple); CMD 37

Feats  Ability Focus (howl), Critical Focus, Flyby Attack, Improved Critical (bite, claws), Improved Initiative, Lightning Reflexes, Persuasive, Tiring Critical

Skills Acrobatics +15, Bluff +13, Diplomacy +4, Fly +21, Intimidate +17, Knowledge (arcana, geography, nature, religion) +11, Knowledge (planes) +14, Perception +26, Sense Motive +26, Spellcraft +29, Stealth +26, Survival +26

Languages Aklo, Common, Giant; telepathy 1 mile

SQ no breath, deformed nature (loses wind walk), faded existence

Special Abilities

Dream Haunting (Su) When a wendigo uses its nightmare spell-like ability, the victim is also exposed to wendigo psychosis.

Faded Existence (Su): Accurse creatures are only half (50%) as strong as nonaccursed creatures, though creatures who believe the accursed creatures to be real are affected by them at full strength. Any creature that interacts with the accursed can make a Will save (DC 16) to recognize its true nature. Upon a successful save, the victim only suffers half damage from any of the accursed creature’s melee, ranged, or special attacks. The Save DC is Charisma based.

Howl (Ex) Three times per day as a standard action, a wendigo can emit a forlorn howl that can be heard up to a mile away. Any who hear the howl must make a DC 23 Will save to avoid becoming shaken for an hour. Creatures within 120 feet become panicked for 1d4+4 rounds, and those within 30 feet cower with fear for 1d4 rounds. This is a mind-affecting fear effect. The save DC is Charisma-based.

Reversal (Ex) Upon an accursed creature’s death, surrender, or flight from battle any supernatural, spell, or spell-like effects that did not cause hit point damage it created during the previous hour are undone. This includes, its spell-like abilities, dream haunting, howl and wendigo psychosis, many accursed creatures plead for their lives by reversing these effects.

Wendigo Psychosis (Su) Curse—Nightmare; save Will DC 21; onset 1 minute; frequency 1/day; effect 1d4 Wis drain (minimum Wis 1); cure 3 consecutive saves. When a victim's Wisdom reaches 1, he seeks an individual of his race to kill and devour. After completing this act, the afflicted individual takes off at a run, and in 1d4 rounds sprints up into the sky at such a speed that his feet burn away into jagged stumps. The transformation into a wendigo takes 2d6 minutes as the victim wind walks across the sky. Once the transformation is complete, the victim is effectively dead, replaced by a new wendigo. True resurrection, miracle, or wish can restore such a victim to life, yet doing so does not harm the new wendigo. The save is Charisma-based.

Treasure:

The wendigo have been hording the belongings of the unlucky Dissentient who had come to rescue them they are hidden in the room (Perception DC 36).

+1 hide armor (1,165 gp), potion of haste (750 gp), oil of make whole (300 gp) masterwork dire flail (390 gp), Shortbow, composite (+1, 275 gp), royal outfit (200 gp), 

You can find the start of these encounters here in Area 1.