Great Old One, Tawil At'umrA gray robe and veil obscure this humanoid’s form, save for a
foaming mass of bubbles and tentacles extending from below.Tawil At'umr CR 30Source Bestiary 6 pg. 148
XP 9,830,400
CN Large outsider (chaotic, extraplanar, Great Old One)
Init +27; Senses darkvision 60 ft., see in darkness, true seeing;
Perception +49
Aura cloak of chaos (DC 30), unspeakable presence (300 ft., DC 39)DefenseAC 49, touch 37, flat-footed 35 (+4 deflection, +13 Dex, +1 dodge,
+10 insight, +12 natural, –1 size)
hp 752 (35d10+560); fast healing 30
Fort +31, Ref +36, Will +34
Defensive Abilities amorphous, dimensional fortification,
freedom of movement, immortality, insanity (DC 39); Immune ability damage, ability drain, aging, cold, death
effects, disease, energy drain, mind-affecting effects,
paralysis, petrification, sonic; Resist acid 30, electricity 30,
fire 30; SR 41OffenseSpeed 60 ft., fly 120 ft. (perfect)
Melee 2 slams +51 (2d8+17 plus temporal displacement),
4 tentacles +49 (6d6+8/19–20 plus grab)
Space 10 ft., Reach 10 ft. (30 ft. with tentacles)
Special Attacks command the ancient ones, constrict (6d6+25),
dimensional dreams, merge lives, mythic power (10/day,
surge +1d12), portal mastery
Spell-Like Abilities (CL 30th; concentration +42)
Constant—cloak of chaos (DC 30), freedom of movement, tongues, true seeing
At will—astral projection, dimensional lockM, dreamM, greater dispel magic, interplanetary teleport, nightmareM, plane shiftM (DC 29), sendingM, teleport object (DC 29)
3/day—demand (DC 30), quickened disintegrateM (DC 28), quickened feeblemind (DC 27), quickened misleadM (DC 28)
1/day—gate, microcosm (DC 31), summon (level 9, 2 ancient ones 100%), time stopM, wishM
M mythic spellStatisticsStr 44, Dex 36, Con 43, Int 35, Wis 32, Cha 35
Base Atk +35; CMB +53; CMD 91 (can’t be tripped)
Feats Combat Expertise, Combat Reflexes, Critical Focus, Dodge, Flyby Attack, Greater Disarm, Greater Sunder, Improved Critical (tentacle), Improved Disarm, Improved
Initiative, Improved Sunder, Mobility, Multiattack, Power
Attack, Quicken Spell-Like Ability (disintegrate, feeblemind, mislead), Staggering Critical
Skills Acrobatics +48, Bluff +50, Diplomacy +47,
Disguise +47, Fly +57, Intimidate +47, Knowledge (arcana,
engineering, geography, history, nature, religion) +47,
Knowledge (planes) +50, Perception +49, Sense Motive +49,
Spellcraft +47, Stealth +47, Use Magic Device +47
Languages Aklo; telepathy 1 mile; tongues
SQ otherworldly insightEcologyEnvironment any
Organization solitary (unique)
Treasure tripleSpecial AbilitiesCommand the Ancient Ones (Su) Tawil at’Umr commands the obedience of a race of lesser immortals known as the ancient ones, creatures akin to itself but of inferior power. An ancient one is a hundun with the invincible mythic simple template that is native to the Material Plane. In addition to Tawil at’Umr being able to summon ancient ones to its side, any command spoken or telepathically sent from it to an ancient one (but not to a normal hundun) must be obeyed without question (and with no save).
Dimensional Dreams (Su) When Tawil at’Umr uses its nightmare spell-like ability, it can target any creature it has affected with its spell-like or supernatural abilities, or any creature that has ever traveled via a gate spell, regardless of distance. In addition to the effects of nightmare, the target must succeed at a DC 39 Will save or die, only to be reincarnated a moment later into a new body on another world. This is a mind-affecting death effect. The save DC is Charisma-based.
Dimensional Fortification (Ex) Tawil at’Umr cannot be forced to travel via teleportation effects unless it so chooses.
Immortality (Ex) If Tawil at’Umr is killed, Yog-Sothoth can create a new avatar immediately. The replacement Tawil at’Umr typically does not reappear where it was killed, and it usually does not seek revenge against those who slew its predecessor. Usually.
Merge Lives (Su) Once per day as a full-round action, Tawil at’Umr can cause a touched creature’s mind (the target) to merge with any other creature (the host) that Tawil at’Umr has affected via dimensional dreams. The target can resist this effect with a successful DC 39 Will save. If the creature fails its save, its body vanishes (leaving behind any gear it may have carried) and its mind becomes trapped in the host creature’s mind. The target can observe the world through the host creature but cannot control the host creature’s actions. In time, or under certain conditions, the target can eventually take control of the host’s actions, but these developments are rare and require hundreds of years to occur (usually, the host creature dies long before the target can exert such influence). To others, it is rarely apparent which body throughout the countless worlds Tawil at’Umr has seen was chosen as a host for the target’s mind. This is a mindaffecting curse effect. The save DC is Charisma-based.
Portal Mastery (Su) Tawil at’Umr senses when a creature is about to teleport into its vicinity (within range of its unspeakable presence), or when a portal is about to open in that same area. If it wishes, Tawil at’Umr can block the teleportation or portal effect from occurring as an immediate action. The creator of the effect must succeed at a caster level check against Tawil at’Umr’s spell resistance or the effect is countered.
Temporal Displacement (Su) A creature struck by one of Tawil at’Umr’s slam attacks must succeed at a DC 39 Fortitude save or enter a state of suspended animation like that created by temporal stasis. This condition cannot be removed via dispel magic, nor does freedom of movement offer protection. Freedom can immediately end this effect, as can Tawil at’Umr’s touch. Once every 24 hours, a displaced creature can attempt a new DC 39 Fortitude save to end the effect, but otherwise this effect is permanent. The save DCs are Charisma-based.
Unspeakable Presence (Su) As long as it remains shrouded in its cloak, Tawil at’Umr’s unspeakable presence is suppressed, but as soon as it attacks or otherwise reveals its true form, any creature within range that fails a DC 39 Will save is placed in its own subjective reality, as if under the effects of a microcosm spell. A creature immune to mind-affecting effects that fails its save against this effect is instead staggered for 1d6 rounds. This is a mind-affecting phantasm effect. The save DC is Charisma-based.DescriptionTawil at’Umr is unusual among the Great Old Ones, for it is a physical projection of the will of one of the most powerful of the Outer Gods—Yog-Sothoth. As a sort of avatar of this deity, Tawil at’Umr pursues its own goals throughout the Material Plane and dimensions that intersect it in ways mortals can never fully understand. Tawil at’Umr is just as likely to react to attacks against it with its formidable combat prowess as it is to ignore its attackers or simply relocate to another point in the multiverse—its reasons for doing so are as inscrutable as its plans for reality. Some scholars theorize that Tawil at’Umr is little more than a side effect of Yog-Sothoth’s presence upon reality when the Outer God brushes up against this universe. Even if this is the case, Tawil at’Umr’s knowledge of reality is vast, and many have sought the avatar out to learn its secrets.
Tawil at’Umr appears as a cloaked figure of approximately the same shape as the observer, yet larger— when viewed by a humanoid, it stands 12 feet tall. When it casts its cloak aside, it is revealed as a seething mass of protoplasm capable of taking many shapes and forms, several of which should not be able to exist.Tawil At'umr's CultVery few even know about the existence of Tawil at’Umr,
much less worship this Great Old One. Most who would
venerate it instead worship it in its true form, Yog-
Sothoth. Those who choose to exalt this less-powerful but
highly-focused avatar tend to do so as individuals, and no
organized cult to Tawil at’Umr is known to exist. Those
who specifically seek to devote themselves to Tawil at’Umr
typically do so out of a mistaken impression that worship
matters to the avatar.
Tawil at’Umr’s symbol is a black spiral inside of a
hexagon, and his favored weapon is the dagger. The Great
Old One grants access to the domains of Chaos, Knowledge,
Travel, and Void, and to the subdomains of
Dark Tapestry, Exploration, Night, and
Stars.Creatures in "Great Old One" CategorySource Bestiary 4 pg. 135
The Great Old Ones are otherworldly entities of almost unimaginable power—beings completely alien to humanity, both physiologically and spiritually. They exist in the forgotten corners of distant worlds or lost dimensions, yet their power is so great they can influence certain sensitive mortal minds in their dreams and nightmares, even if such influence is as accidental as a star’s gravitational pull on a tiny mote of dust adrift in space. In such ways, cults devoted to the Great Old Ones can rise on worlds throughout the Material Plane, even without prior contact between these worlds. Some of the Great Old Ones grant access to the domain of Void and its associated subdomains (see below).
While not all of the Great Old Ones are evil, all are forces of chaos. Their cults are almost always evil and cause harm and madness, but the Great Old Ones are generally content to ignore lesser life such as humans, elves, and dwarves. Yet when their attention is garnered, the results can be catastrophic on an immense scale— for just as the ant who bites someone’s toe invites swift destruction on a scale its feeble mind can’t envision, so too does humanity invite unimaginable ruin by delving into the affairs of these powerful creatures.
The Great Old Ones themselves often serve and worship even greater powers, such as Azathoth, Nyarlathotep, Shub-Niggurath, and Yog-Sothoth. Those creatures are the Outer Gods, and whereas the Great Old Ones can be thought of as akin to demigods, the Outer Gods are themselves true deities.Other Great Old OnesBokrug, Cthulhu, and Hastur are but three of the Great Old Ones—countless others exist on distant worlds or other dimensions, yet are still able to influence the world through their dreams and cults. The central concept of the Great Old Ones was created by H. P. Lovecraft, one of the most influential writers of weird fiction—and horror fiction in general—of the 20th century. Lovecraft actively encouraged his writer friends to add to his mythos of creatures, and today we have Great Old Ones created not only by Lovecraft’s contemporaries like Clark Ashton Smith, Robert E. Howard, Henry Kuttner, and August Derleth, but also by modern writers like Ramsey Campbell, Brian Lumley, and Stephen King. Chaosium’s excellent Call of Cthulhu roleplaying game is a perfect place to start delving into the realm of Great Old Ones evoked in RPG form. By creating new Great Old Ones for your game, you can become part of a tradition of shared mythology nearly a century old!
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