Demon, DerakniThe size of a horse, this demonic locust has a scorpion’s stinger
and an almost-human face. Its front legs end in clawed hands.
Derakni CR 10Source The Worldwound pg. 43
XP 9,600
CE Large outsider (chaotic, demon, evil, extraplanar)
Init +10; Senses darkvision 60 ft., scent; Perception +25
DefenseAC 25, touch 15, flat-footed 19 (+6 Dex, +10 natural, –1 size)
hp 126 (11d10+66)
Fort +13, Ref +13, Will +8
DR 10/good; Immune electricity, poison; Resist acid 10, cold 10,
fire 10; SR 21
OffenseSpeed 30 ft., fly 60 ft. (good)
Melee bite +18 (1d4+8 plus poison), 2 claws +18 (1d4+8),
sting +18 (1d8+8/19–20 plus poison)
Space 10 ft., Reach 10 ft.
Special Attacks drone
Spell-Like Abilities (CL 12th; concentration +15)
At will—contagion (DC 17), greater teleport (self plus 50 lbs.
of objects only), gust of wind
3/day—enervation, quickened
summon swarm
1/day—insect plague, summon (level 4,
1 derakni or 1d4 vescavor swarms 40%)
StatisticsStr 26, Dex 23, Con 22, Int 9, Wis 17, Cha 16
Base Atk +11; CMB +20; CMD 36 (44 vs. trip)
Feats Flyby Attack, Improved Critical (sting), Improved Initiative, Iron Will, Power Attack, Quicken Spell-Like Ability (summon swarm)
Skills Acrobatics +20, Fly +22, Perception +25,
Stealth +16, Survival +17; Racial Modifiers +8 Perception
Languages Abyssal, Celestial, Draconic; telepathy 100 ft.
EcologyEnvironment any (Abyss)
Organization solitary, pair, or swarm (3–10)
Treasure standard
Special AbilitiesDrone (Su) The sound of a derakni in flight is a mesmerizing,
unsettling drone that causes confusion in all non-demons who
hear the sound. A derakni must fly at least 10 feet to activate
this ability (which it can do as a free action as part of its move
action). Any non-demon creature that begins its turn within 30
feet of a derakni that moved in this manner on its previous turn
must succeed at a DC 18 Will save or become confused for 1d4
rounds. A creature that makes this save is immune to the drone
of that derakni for 24 hours. Demons are immune to this sonic,
mind-affecting effect. The save DC is Charisma-based.
Poison (Ex) Bite or sting—injury; save Fort DC 21; frequency 1/
round for 6 rounds; effect 1d4 Con; cure 2 consecutive saves.
The save DC is Constitution-based.
DescriptionDeraknis, also known as locust demons, are among Deskari’s
favorite minions, both in the Abyss and in the Worldwound.
Great flights of these creatures plague the skies above the
Wounded Lands in particular, but they can be encountered
anywhere in the Worldwound. These creatures’ leering
humanoid visages are armored with chitinous plates, and
their front feet end in small claws that look strangely like
human hands. A derakni can use these hands to manipulate
objects or wield items, but generally eschews using weapons
or shields entirely.
Often, deraknis are encountered in the vicinity of hives
of vescavors (Pathfinder Campaign Setting: Lost Kingdoms 50).
Indeed, vescavor swarms eagerly serve deraknis as minions,
and, save for truly unusual circumstances, a derakni never
needs to worry about taking damage from or being distracted
by a vescavor swarm that shares its space. Deraknis typically
aid in the devastation of large regions, often in preparation for
the advance of larger demonic armies, and the Worldwound
is one of their crowning glories.
A derakni is 14 feet long and weighs 1,200 pounds. These
wretched demons arise from the souls of those who, in life,
purposefully engineered disasters or aided in their
development—particularly souls whose disasters
resulted in mass famines or droughts.Creatures in "Demon" CategorySource Pathfinder RPG Bestiary pg. 57
Demons exist for one reason—to destroy. Where their more lawful counterparts, the devils of Hell, seek to twist mortal minds and values to remake and reshape them into reflections of their own evil, demons seek only to maim, ruin, and feed. They recruit mortal life only if such cohorts speed along the eventual destruction of hope and goodness. Death is, in some ways, their enemy—for a mortal who dies can often escape a demon's depredations and flee to his just reward in the afterlife. It is the prolonging of mortal pain and suffering that fuels a demon's lusts and desires, for it is partially from mortal sin and cruelty that these monstrous fiends were born.
Demons are the most prolific and among the most destructive of the fiendish races, yet despite what some lore might preach, they were not the first forms of life to rise in the stinking pits of ruin and cruelty known across the multiverse as the Abyss. Before the first fledgling deity gazed upon reality, before mortal life drew its breath, before even the Material Plane itself had fully formed, the Abyss was infested with life.
Known to many scholars as “proto-demons,” these wretched and deadly beings were the qlippoth. Today, because of the influence of sinful mortal souls upon the Abyss, mixed with unholy tamperings at the hands of the daemonic keepers of Abaddon and the cruel whims of fate and evolution, the rule of the qlippoth has receded. The proto-demons dwell now in the noxious and forgotten corners of the Abyss, and the far more fecund and prolific demons rule now in their stead. With each evil mortal soul that finds its way into the Abyss, the ranks of the demonic hordes grows—a single soul can fuel the manifestation of dozens or even hundreds of demons, with the exact nature of the sins carried by the soul guiding the shapes and roles of the newly formed fiends.
The Abyss is a vast (some say infinite) realm, far larger than any other plane save possibly the primal chaos of the Maelstrom itself. As befits such a vast and varied realm, the demonic host is likewise diverse. Some carry in their frames humanoid shapes, while others are twisted beasts. Some flop on land while others flap in air or sea. Some are schemers and manipulators of emotion and politics, others are destructive engines of ruin. Yet all demons work to the same goal—pain and suffering for mortal life in all its forms.
Yet despite this, mortals have sought demonic aid since the start. Be it an instinctual draw to self-destruction or a misguided lust for power, conjurers to this day continue to draw forth demons with forbidden magic. Some conjure demons for lore, while others call upon them to serve as assassins or guards. Demons view such summoners with a mix of hatred and thanks, for most demons lack the ability to come to the Material Plane to wreak havoc on their own. They depend on the mad to call them up from the Abyss, and while they gnash their fangs and rail against the commands and strictures enforced, most demons find ways to twist their summoners' demands so that even the most tightly controlled demonic slave leaves a trace of ruin and despair in its wake. More often than not, a foolish spellcaster makes a fatal mistake in the conjuring and pays for it with blood, unwittingly releasing a terrible blight upon the world as his conjuration breaks free of his control.
The truly mad call upon demons to offer themselves, both body and soul, in the misguided belief that alliance with the demonic can buy salvation and protection when the demonic apocalypse finally comes to call. Tales of desperate kings who sought to engage demons to serve as generals for their armies or of lunatics who seek demonic sires to gift them with horrific children are common enough, yet worst are those mortals who worship the most powerful demons as gods, and who pledge their lives in support of that which would bring destruction to all. Demon SubtypeDemons are chaotic evil outsiders that call the Abyss their home. Demons possess a particular suite of traits (unless otherwise noted in a creature's entry) as summarized here.- Immunity to electricity and poison.
- Resistance to acid 10, cold 10, and fire 10.
- Summon (Sp) Demons share the ability to summon others of their kind, typically another of their type or a small number of less powerful demons.
- Telepathy.
- Except where otherwise noted, demons speak Abyssal, Celestial, and Draconic.
- A demon's natural weapons, as well as any weapon it wields, is treated as chaotic and evil for the purpose of resolving damage reduction
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