Beheaded, Skull SwarmThis humanoid head floats silently and ominously, bits of flesh still hanging from its face and graying teeth clattering slightly as it bobs in the air.Skull Swarm CR 1Source Pathfinder #43: Haunting of Harrowstone pg. 82
XP 400
NE Tiny undead (swarm)
Init +2; Senses darkvision 60 ft.; Perception +0DefenseAC 14, touch 14, flat-footed 12 (+2 Dex, +2 size)
hp 9 (2d8)
Fort +0, Ref +2, Will +3
Defensive Abilities swarm traits; Immune undead traits, weapon damageOffenseSpeed fly 40 ft. (perfect)
Melee swarm (1d6)
Space 10 ft., Reach 0 ft.
Special Attacks distraction (DC 11)StatisticsStr 5, Dex 15, Con —, Int —, Wis 10, Cha 10
Base Atk +1; CMB +1; CMD 8 (can't be tripped)
Skills Fly +6EcologyEnvironment any
Organization solitary, pair, or mass (3-5)
Treasure none
Beheaded are floating skulls or severed heads whose bodies have long since abandoned them, either in the moment of death or long after. Reanimated via dark magic, these horrors are usually created as mindless sentinels for dungeons or lairs. Beheaded silently hover at about eye-level, often making them the last thing a casual wanderer or careless villager in an infested area ever sees.Creating BeheadedSpellcasters might create and employ beheaded in multiple ways.
Animating Beheaded: A magic-user can create any form of beheaded from a severed head of the appropriate size or creature. The spellcaster must cast the spell animate dead using an onyx gem worth at least 100 gp, followed by the spell fly on the head to be animated. The creator can only create a number of Hit Dice of beheaded equal to the amount allowed by animate dead. Beheaded with the variant abilities below can also be created, though for the purposes of how many can be created, they are treated as if they had one additional Hit Die for each additional ability. Beheaded count against the number of Hit Dice of skeletons or zombies that can be created using animate dead and vise versa.
Beheaded Familiars: Using the Improved Familiar feat, a spellcaster can gain an obedient severed head as a familiar. The character must be at least caster level 3rd to acquire the severed head. This creature is always neutral evil. Although any type of magic-user with the proper requisites can take a severed head as a familiar, necromancers and undead wizards employ them most frequently.Variant BeheadedThe following are variant abilities that a beheaded might possess. These traits can be mixed and matched in any way and applied to any of the beheaded listed above. Each ability increases the CR of the beheaded by the listed amount.
Belching (+1 CR): A belching beheaded gains the ability to spew raw energy from its mouth, giving it a ranged touch attack that does 1d6 damage of a specific type (acid, cold, electric, or fire) chosen at the time of the beheaded’s animation.
Burning (+1 CR): This beheaded is similar to the flaming skull; however, the fire not only surrounds the skull, but can pass on to those it attacks. The fire that consumes the head can be any color the animator chooses, though blue is one of the most common. A burning skull gains the burn (1d6) special ability when using its slam attack, where the Reflex save DC is 10 + 1/2 the burning skull’s racial HD + the burning skull’s Cha modifier.
Grabbing (+0 CR): This type of beheaded has long tendrils of ragged hair. It gains the grab special ability when using its slam attack, and can attempt to grapple any creature of Medium size or smaller in this way.
Screaming (+0 CR): Once every 1d4 rounds, a screaming beheaded can open its jaw and emit a bone-chilling scream. All creatures within 30 feet must make a Will save or be shaken for 1d4 rounds. The save DC is equal to 10 + 1/2 the screaming skull’s racial HD + the screaming skull’s Cha modifier. This is a sonic mind-affecting fear effect. Whether or not the save is successful, an affected creature is immune to the same beheaded’s scream for 24 hours.Creatures in "Beheaded" CategorySource Bestiary 4 pg. 17
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