Protean, KeketarColors dance over this serpentine creature’s scales. A strange crown of energy glows above the thing’s reptilian head.Keketar CR 17Source Bestiary 2 pg. 215, The Great Beyond - A Guide to the Multiverse pg. 60
XP 102,400
CN Large outsider (chaotic, extraplanar, protean, shapechanger)
Init +5; Senses blindsense 60 ft., darkvision 60 ft.; Perception +33
Aura spatial riptide (30 ft.)DefenseAC 32, touch 14, flat-footed 27 (+5 Dex, +18 natural, –1 size)
hp 287 (23d10+161); fast healing 10
Fort +22, Ref +14, Will +22
Defensive Abilities amorphous anatomy, freedom of movement; DR 15/lawful; Immune acid, polymorph; Resist electricity 10, sonic 10; SR 28OffenseSpeed 40 ft., fly 40 ft. (perfect), swim 40 ft.
Melee bite +31 (4d8+9 plus warpwave), 2 claws +31 (2d6+9 plus warpwave), tail slap +29 (2d8+4 plus grab)
Space 10 ft., Reach 10 ft.
Special Attacks constrict 1d8+9, reshape reality
Spell-Like Abilities (CL 17th; concentration +24)
Constant—detect law, tongues
At will—chaos hammer (DC 21), greater dispel magic, greater teleport (self plus 50 lbs. of objects only), major creation, move earth, shatter (DC 19)
3/day—quickened confusion (DC 21), dispel law (DC 22), empowered chaos hammer (DC 21), polymorph any object (DC 25)
1/day—disintegrate (DC 23), prismatic spray (DC 24), prismatic sphere (DC 26), reshape realityStatisticsStr 29, Dex 21, Con 24, Int 20, Wis 25, Cha 24
Base Atk +23; CMB +33 (+35 bull rush, +37 grapple); CMD 48 (can’t be tripped)
Feats Combat Expertise, Combat Reflexes, Empower Spell-like Ability (chaos hammer), Great Fortitude, Improved Bull Rush, Improved Vital Strike, Iron Will, Lightning Reflexes, Multiattack, Power Attack, Quicken Spell-like Ability (confusion), Vital Strike
Skills Acrobatics +31, Bluff +33, Diplomacy +33, Fly +11, Intimidate +33, Knowledge (arcana, planes) +31, Knowledge (any two) +28, Perception +33, Stealth +27, Swim +40
Languages Abyssal, Protean; telepathy 100 ft.
SQ change shape (greater polymorph)EcologyEnvironment any (Limbo)
Organization solitary or chorus (2–4)
Treasure standardSpecial AbilitiesReshape Reality (Sp) This ability functions as the spell mirage arcana heightened to a 9th-level spell, except the changes created are quasi-real, like those created by shadow conjuration. A creature that interacts with reshaped reality may make a DC 26 Will save to see through the semi-real illusion. Terrain can provide concealment, and against foes who do not make the Will save to see through the facade, reshaped reality can provide cover. For disbelievers, quasi-real objects and terrain have only 20% normal hardness and hit points, and break DCs are 10 lower than normal. Dangerous terrain cannot exceed 5d6 points of damage per round (1d6 per round against disbelievers). This ability cannot damage existing structures, nor does it function in areas where planar travel is prohibited.
Spatial Riptide (Su) Any non-protean teleporting into or out of the protean’s aura must make a DC 28 Fortitude save or enter a state of suspended animation (identical to temporal stasis) for 1d3 rounds; success means the creature is merely nauseated for 1 round. The save DC is Constitution-based.
Warpwave (Su) A creature struck by a keketar’s claw or bite must make a DC 28 Fortitude save or be affected by a warpwave. The save DC is Constitution-based.DescriptionPriests and prophets, keketars are the leaders of their race, guiding proteans in their sacred mission to return all existence to primal chaos.Creatures in "Protean" CategorySource Bestiary 2 pg. 213
Beings of pure chaos, the serpentine proteans slither through the anarchic improbabilities of Limbo, remaking reality according to their whims. According to their own history, they were already here when the first gods pulled forth the other planes from raw chaos—and they have been battling against the indignity ever since. Hereditary and ideological enemies of Axis, Heaven, and Hell, and especially of the residents of those planes, all proteans see it as their sacred duty to return the bland, static expanses of mundane reality to the beautiful incongruities of Limbo, for the planes' own good and for the greater glory of their mysterious god, a dualistic deity which may be a living aspect of Limbo itself. They are Limbo's living, breathing immune system, rooting out infections of mundanity and replacing them with beautiful entropy.
Primeval in shape and philosophy, proteans are the race that most perfectly embodies the twin aspects of creation and destruction (although certain aeons might contest this claim). Even their language is mutable, evolving so quickly that few outsiders can understand it without magical aid. Ecological study is nearly impossible, as reproduction can take a wide variety of forms, from sexual union to fission to spontaneous generation. Despite their deceptively similar natural appearances, the two things that truly unify the protean race are slavish devotion to their strange god and a fervent desire for the dissolution of reality as we know it.
Proteans are organized into several sub-races or castes, each with its own individual abilities and roles. Other proteans than the four presented here doubtless exist, but they do not interact with other races nearly to the extent that these four types do.
Voidworms: Disowned by greater proteans, who find these tiny beings shameful, voidworms nevertheless retain all the characteristics of true proteans, and are frequently found swimming through Limbo in vast schools or serving as spellcasters' familiars.
Naunets: Possessing little in the way of culture, the powerful naunets are the most bestial of the true proteans, representing the lowest recognized caste. Naunets are the shock troops of the protean race, and patrol the borderlands between Limbo and other planes, seeking out lawful incursions and making daring, savage raids into the realms of their enemies.
Imenteshes: These cunning proteans seek to subvert the forces of order from within their own systems, whispering information and insinuations where they can do the most damage. Endlessly creative, they adore reforming the landscapes of Limbo to suit their fancies, but enjoy warping the vistas and creatures of other planes even more.
Keketars: Priest-kings and voices of Limbo itself, keketars rule their fellows in the name of their bizarre god. Though their forms are extremely mutable, keketars can always be recognized thanks to eyes that glow amber or violet and floating crowns of swirling and changing symbols that often appear above their heads. Organized into cabals called choruses, keketars seek only to understand and follow the will of entropy. Protean Lords While the keketars are the highest caste of the protean race, there exist a few scattered individuals who put even the mightiest chorus to shame. Equal in power to demon lords or empyreal lords, the beings known as protean lords are an enigma, far older than other proteans and perhaps spawned in a previous iteration of the multiverse or somewhere beyond the depths of Limbo. Disdaining direct leadership, protean lords act according to their own desires, occasionally appearing to advise their lesser kin or keep an inscrutable eye on entities whose powers rival their own. Warpwaves Many proteans, particularly the imenteshes, have the ability to create and manipulate ripples in reality known as warpwaves. Yet even a protean can't predict what effects a warpwave might have. When a creature is affected by a warpwave, roll 1d20 and consult the table below to see what effect the entropic energies have.
| d20 | Warpwave effect | | 1 | Target takes 2 Strength damage. | | 2 | Target takes 2 Dexterity damage. | | 3 | Target takes 2 Constitution damage. | | 4 | Target takes 2 Intelligence damage. | | 5 | Target takes 2 Wisdom damage. | | 6 | Target takes 2 Charisma damage. | | 7 | Target gains 1 negative level. | | 8 | Target is blinded or deafened for 1d4 rounds. | | 9 | Target is confused for 1d4 rounds. | | 10 | Target is entangled by filaments of energy for 1d4 rounds. | | 11 | Target becomes fatigued (or exhausted if already fatigued). | | 12 | Target becomes nauseated for 1d4 rounds. | | 13 | Target is stunned for 1d4 rounds. | | 14 | Target is sickened for 1d4 rounds. | | 15 | Target is staggered for 1d4 rounds. | | 16 | Target gains 4d6 temporary hit points. | | 17 | Target is affected by a heal spell (CL = protean's CR). | | 18 | Target is turned to stone. | | 19 | Target is affected by baleful polymorph (CL = protean's CR). | | 20 | Portions of target's body burst with energy of a random type (choose between acid, cold, electricity, or fire), dealing 4d6 points of damage of the appropriate type to the target. |
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