The ashbeast is vaguely cat-like beast the size of a panther or cheetah composed by gray ashen particles. The particles shift as the ashbeast moves, often making it difficult to focus on. An ashbeast is from the Quasi Elemental Plane of Ash in the Elemental Chaos. The stifling plane is difficult to breathe in as the cloying cold ash seems to seak out warmth. An ashbeast hunts breathing creatures seeking to suffocate them and drag them off to feed.

Ashbeast Tactics

The ashbeast moves insubstantially as a cloud of white-gray ash, approaching its desired target silently. It tries to camoflage it’s movements in stone based terrain. With stealth the ashbeast will stun it’s opponents and keep them stunned. Faced with a group of opponents bearing down on it, the ashbeast will unleash it’s suffocating breath in an attempt to stun many of them and escape.

Ashbeast Lore

A character knows the following information with a successful Arcana check.

DC 15: The ashbeast is an elemental magical beast from the Quasi Elemental Plane of Ash. It hunts creatures that breathe seeking to suffocate them with it’s ashen breath.

DC 20: The ashbeast hunts silently as it disperses while moving, reconstituting to stun its opponents. It can breathe a cloud of ash that draws heat from the victims.

DC 25: The ashbeast is resistant to both fire, due to its origin, and cold due to its composite material.

Encounter Groups

Ashbeasts sometimes hunt in conjunction with undead who are not affected by the cloying cold of the ashbeast as they do not breathe.

Level 3 Encounter (XP 700)

• 1 Ashbeast (level 3 lurker)
• 1 Corruption Corpse (level 4 artillery, MM page 274)
• 3 Zombies (level 2 brute, MM page 274)

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Creatures by Chris Cumming