Emperor of ScalesThe air fills with the sound of hissing snakes as a giant, severed snake’s head floats into view, with a gaping mouth and twin fangs dripping virulent poison. Its eyes are milky and blind, but its forked tongue constantly tests the air for fresh scents. Below the head, where a body should be, numerous hissing serpents thrash like tendrils of torn flesh. Blood drips from the severed head, sizzling as it burns like acid through anything it touches.Emperor of Scales CR 15Source Pathfinder #42: Sanctum of the Serpent God pg. 82
XP 51,200
CE Huge outsider (chaotic, evil, native)
Init +11; Senses all-around vision, darkvision 60 ft., scent; Perception +26
Aura frightful presence (60 ft., DC 25), maddening hiss (100 ft., DC 25)DefenseAC 30, touch 15, flat-footed 23 (+7 Dex, +15 natural, -2 size)
hp 225 (18d10+126); regeneration 5 (electricity)
Fort +19, Ref +13, Will +15
DR 15/good and silver; Immune acid, fire, mind-affecting effects, paralysis, poison, vorpal weapons; SR 26OffenseSpeed 30 ft., climb 30 ft., fly 60 ft. (good)
Melee bite +24 (2d8+8/19-20 plus poison and grab), 8 snakebites +22 (1d6+4 plus poison)
Space 15 ft., Reach 10 ft. (15 ft. with snakebites)
Special Attacks acidic gore, poison, swallow whole (2d8+12 plus poison, AC 17, 22 hp)
Spell-Like Abilities (CL 15th; concentration +21)
Constant — fly
At will — poison (DC 20), teleport
3/day — accelerate poison* (DC 18), blindness/deafness (DC 18), blur, dominate person (DC 21), major image (DC 19), mirror image, suggestion (DC 19)
1/day — chaos hammer (DC 20), dream, mass suggestion (DC 22), nightmare (DC 21), unholy blight (DC 20)StatisticsStr 26, Dex 24, Con 23, Int 13, Wis 19, Cha 22
Base Atk +18; CMB +28 (+32 grapple); CMD 45 (can't be tripped)
Feats Combat Reflexes, Great Fortitude, Hover, Improved Critical (bite), Improved Initiative, Multiattack, Power Attack, Snatch, Toughness
Skills Bluff +27, Climb +16, Escape Artist +22, Fly +20, Knowledge (history) +12, Knowledge (planes) +12, Knowledge (religion) +12, Perception +26, Sense Motive +22, Spellcraft +19, Stealth +16, Use Magic Device +21; Racial Modifiers +4 Escape Artist, +4 Perception, +4 Stealth, +4 Use Magic Device
Languages Abyssal, Aklo, Azlanti (does not speak), telepathy 100 ft.
SQ command snakesEcologyEnvironment any
Organization solitary
Treasure standardSpecial AbilitiesAcidic Gore (Su) The Emperor of Scales’ giant severed head continually drips blood and gore that burn like acid. Any creature within 10 feet of the Emperor of Scales must make a DC 25 Reflex save or be sprayed by droplets of acidic blood, taking 2d6 points of acid damage. The save DC is Constitution-based.
Command Snakes (Ex) As a free action, the Emperor of Scales can command any snake or serpent with the animal or magical beast type, as the dominate animal spell. The target can resist the command with a DC 25 Will save.
Immunity to Vorpal Weapons (Ex) The Emperor of Scales is essentially a giant head with no body. As a result, its head cannot be severed, and vorpal weapons have no additional effect on it.
Maddening Hiss (Su) The Emperor of Scales’ numerous snake heads constantly hiss in a maddening cacophony as a free action. Any creature within 100 feet of the Emperor of Scales must make a DC 25 Will save or be confused for 1 round. This is a mind-affecting compulsion insanity effect. A creature that saves cannot be affected by the Emperor of Scales’ maddening hiss for 24 hours. The save DC is Charisma-based.
Poison (Ex) Bite or swallow—injury; save Fort DC 25; frequency 1/round for 10 rounds; effect 2d6 acid and 1d4 Str; cure 2 consecutive saves; snakebite—injury; save Fort DC 20; frequency 1/round for 6 rounds; effect 1d2 Con; cure 2 consecutive saves.
* See Pathfinder RPG Advanced Player’s Guide.DescriptionIn the earliest days of the Age of Serpents, when the great serpentfolk empire was young, the serpentfolk were ruled by a single, powerful priest-king. When Ydersius took his rightful place as god of the serpentfolk, he exalted this priest-king above all others, raising the king up to become his foremost servant and herald. With his original name long lost to memory, the first king of the serpentfolk empire became known as the Emperor of Scales.
With Ydersius’s still-living head entombed beneath the earth and his mindless body endlessly wandering the Darklands, the Emperor of Scales is the snake-god’s primary representative on Golarion. Unable to take direct action on his own, Ydersius relies upon his herald to enact his will on the Material Plane. The Emperor of Scales embodies the fall of the mighty serpentfolk empire from its previous heights, and personifies the rage of Ydersius himself, trapped and sundered into two lesser parts. But he also represents the god’s immortality, for even in defeat Ydersius was not slain, and even without a body, the Emperor of Scales still serves.
The Emperor of Scales does not speak, but it can communicate telepathically. Snakes and serpents of all kinds and sizes flock to the Emperor of Scales, who can enslave them to his will. The Emperor of Scales appears as a giant snake’s head about 20 feet long, and weighs close to 5 tons. His serpentine tendrils extend another 15 feet behind and around his head.
|