Monster Workshop
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Chus
A product of alchemical experimentation on oozes, chus are a widespread pest. They take the form of rubbery blobs, typically less than a foot tall, and they come in an array of colors.
Experiment Amok. The first chus were intended to be living cauldrons, consuming the components of potions and excreting the finished product. Unfortunately, the chus behaved erratically and their excretions still required further refinement.
Deemed a failure, the first chus were unceremoniously dumped in the wilds, and their creators expected them to die out within a few weeks outside lab conditions.
Surprising Resilience. Chus proved a resilience and adaptability not suggested by their simple forms. Their population grew and quickly spread. The chus seek out plants, small animals, and potion reagents and consume them until they eventually burst, forming a new batch of three to five chus from the resulting puddle in as little as a day.
Left to their own devices, many types of chus have formed, and they adapt to new environmental stimuli in just a few days.
Yellow Chu
Tiny ooze (chu)
- Armor Class 8
- Hit Points 9 (2d4 + 4)
- Speed 10 ft.
STR DEX CON INT WIS CHA 10 (+0) 6 (-2) 14 (+2) 2 (-4) 6 (-2) 1 (-5)
- Damage Immunities lightning
- Condition Immunities charmed, deafened, exhaustion, frightened, prone
- Senses passive Perception 8
- Languages —
- Challenge 1/8 (25)
- Proficiency Bonus +2
Amorphous. The yellow chu can move through a space as narrow as 1 inch wide without squeezing.
Charged Body. A creature that touches the yellow chu or hits it with a melee attack while within 5 feet of it takes 2 (1d4) lightning damage. This trait is negated if the yellow chu's hitpoints drop below half its maximum.
Actions
Leap. Melee Weapon Attack: +2 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 4 (1d6 + 1) bludgeoning damage and 4 (1d6 + 1) lightning damage.
Red Chu
Tiny ooze (chu)
- Armor Class 8
- Hit Points 18 (4d4 + 8)
- Speed 10 ft.
STR DEX CON INT WIS CHA 10 (+0) 6 (-2) 14 (+2) 2 (-4) 6 (-2) 1 (-5)
- Condition Immunities charmed, deafened, exhaustion, frightened, prone
- Senses passive Perception 8
- Languages —
- Challenge 1/8 (25)
- Proficiency Bonus +2
Amorphous. The red chu can move through a space as narrow as 1 inch wide without squeezing.
Actions
Leap. Melee Weapon Attack: +2 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 9 (2d6 + 2) bludgeoning damage.
Green Chu
Tiny ooze (chu)
- Armor Class 8
- Hit Points 13 (3d4 + 6)
- Speed 10 ft.
STR DEX CON INT WIS CHA 10 (+0) 6 (-2) 14 (+2) 2 (-4) 6 (-2) 1 (-5)
- Condition Immunities charmed, deafened, exhaustion, frightened, prone
- Senses passive Perception 8
- Languages —
- Challenge 1/8 (25)
- Proficiency Bonus +2
Amorphous. The green chu can move through a space as narrow as 1 inch wide without squeezing.
Magic Resistance. The green chu has advantage on saving throws against spells and other magical effects.
Actions
Leap. Melee Weapon Attack: +2 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 9 (2d6 + 2) bludgeoning damage.
Blue Chu
Tiny ooze (chu)
- Armor Class 8
- Hit Points 18 (4d4 + 8)
- Speed 10 ft.
STR DEX CON INT WIS CHA 10 (+0) 6 (-2) 14 (+2) 2 (-4) 6 (-2) 1 (-5)
- Damage Immunities lightning
- Condition Immunities charmed, deafened, exhaustion, frightened, prone
- Senses passive Perception 8
- Languages —
- Challenge 1/4 (50)
- Proficiency Bonus +2
Amorphous. The blue chu can move through a space as narrow as 1 inch wide without squeezing.
Charged Body. A creature that touches the blue chu or hits it with a melee attack while within 5 feet of it takes 2 (1d4) lightning damage.
Magic Resistance. The blue chu has advantage on saving throws against spells and other magical effects.
Actions
Leap. Melee Weapon Attack: +2 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 7 (2d6 + 1) bludgeoning damage and 4 (1d6 + 1) lightning damage. On a successful hit, the target must make a DC 13 Constitution saving throw or be stunned until the start of their next turn.
Harvesting Chu Jelly
Chu jelly can be harvested from fallen chus. A fallen chu renders about an ounce of chu jelly. Collecting chu jelly requires a DC 14 Dexterity (Survival) check, and you must have a container like a vial or jar to keep it in.
Brewing Chu Potions
Chu jelly can be brewed into a number of useful potions. Each potion requires 20 ounces of chu jelly to brew and proficiency with alchemist's supplies. Brewing a single potion takes 3 days and requires a successful Intelligen (Arcana) check. The DC for the skill check varies between potions.
| Potion | DC | Rarity |
|---|---|---|
| Blue Chu Potion | DC 20 | Very Rare |
| Green Chu Potion | DC 16 | Rare |
| Purple Chu Potion | DC 14 | Uncommon |
| Red Chu Potion | DC 12 | Uncommon |
| Yellow Chu Potion | DC 14 | Rare |
Purple Chu
Tiny ooze (chu)
- Armor Class 8
- Hit Points 13 (3d4 + 6)
- Speed 10 ft.
STR DEX CON INT WIS CHA 10 (+0) 6 (-2) 14 (+2) 2 (-4) 6 (-2) 1 (-5)
- Condition Immunities charmed, deafened, exhaustion, frightened, prone
- Senses darkvision 60 ft., passive Perception 8
- Languages —
- Challenge 1/8 (25)
- Proficiency Bonus +2
Amorphous. The purple chu can move through a space as narrow as 1 inch wide without squeezing.
Shadow Power. While the purple chu is in dim light or darkness, it is resistant to bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing from non-magical weapons.
Actions
Leap. Melee Weapon Attack: +2 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 9 (2d6 + 2) bludgeoning damage.
Chu Potion
Armor (light, but not padded), uncommon
Thick liquids with an unpleasant smell and taste, their vibrant colors stand out.
Blue Chu Potion. When you drink this potion, you gain the effects of the heroes' feast spell for 1 hour.
Green Chu Potion. Drinking this potion restores 3 spell slots of third level or lower.
Purple Chu Potion. When you drink this potion, you gain darkvision out to 60 ft. for 1 hour.
Red Chu Potion. You regain hit points equal to 6d4 + 6 when you drink this potion. Additionally, if you are at full hit points, you gain 6d4 + 6 temporary hit points for 1 hour.
Yellow Chu Potion. When you drink this potion, you gain resistance to lightning damage and add 10 ft. to your speed for 1 hour.
Mutant Rust Monster
More dangerous than their smaller relatives, mutant rust monsters have grown in power deep within the earth. They are ill-tempered beasts that will gladly feast on flesh and blood when other sources of iron are less forthcoming.
Born in the Deep. Mutant rust monster crawl up from the deep places of the world. Some believe these rust monsters to be the results of magical experimentation. However, this seems to be the natural evolution of rust monsters exposed to a world's core for long periods.
Magnetic Presence. As a mutant rust monster trudges along, all manner of small metal objects fly toward it, sticking to its carapace. A mutant rust monster that has eaten through a dwarven village will likely be covered in thimbles and belt buckles and half-corroded pots and pans.
Larger than Life. Those who have ventured deep into the Underdark whisper tales of massive rust monsters, even larger than these, with carapaces that shine with the remnants of arms and armor, skeletons pinned between their armor remnants and the beasts' shells. Rumors tell of Underdark civilizations brought to their knees by the hunger of a rust monster titan.
Mutant Rust Monster
Large monstrosity
- Armor Class 16 (natural armor)
- Hit Points 85 (10d10 + 30)
- Speed 40 ft.
STR DEX CON INT WIS CHA 14 (+2) 12 (+1) 16 (+3) 2 (-4) 13 (+1) 6 (-2)
- Senses darkvision 60 ft., passive Perception 11
- Languages —
- Challenge 3 (700)
- Proficiency Bonus +2
Iron Scent. The rust monster can pinpoint, by scent, the location of ferrous metal within 60 feet of it.
Rust Metal. Any nonmagical weapon made of metal that hits the rust monster corrodes. After dealing damage, the weapon takes a permanent and cummulative -1 penalty to damage rolls. If its penalty drops to -5, the weapon is destroyed. Nonmagical ammunition made of metal that hits the rust monster is destroyed after dealing damage.
Actions
Multiattack. The rust monster makes one attack with its bite and one attack with its tail.
Bite: Melee Weapon Attack: +4 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 13 (2d8 + 4) piercing damage.
Tail: Melee Weapon Attack: +4 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 13 (2d8 + 4) bludgeoning damage.
Antennae: The rust monster corrodes a nonmagical ferrous metal object it can see within 5 feet of it. If the object isn’t being worn or carried, the touch destroys a 1-foot cube of it. If the object is being worn or carried by a creature, the creature can make a DC 12 Dexterity saving throw to avoid the rust monster’s touch.
If the object touched is either metal armor or a metal shield being worn or carried, its takes a permanent and cumulative -1 penalty to the AC it offers. Armor reduced to an AC of 10 or a shield that drops to a +0 bonus is destroyed. If the object touched is a held metal weapon, it rusts as described in the Rust Metal trait.
Legendary Actions
The rust monster can take 1 legendary action, choosing from the options below. Only one legendary action option can be used at a time and only at the end of another creature’s turn. The rust monster regains spent legendary actions at the start of its turn.
Leap. The rust monster leaps 10 feet in the air and moves up to half its speed to land in an unoccupied space that it can see. It does not provoke attacks of opportunity when moving in this way.
Magnetic Aura. The rust monster draws on its magnetic aura, attempting to drag any metal within 20 feet toward it. Creatures wearing or carrying metal must make a DC 16 Strength saving throw or be dragged 10 feet closer to the rust monster.
Corrosive Blast (Recharge 6). The rust monster unleashes a blast of corrosive spines from its antenna, attempting to corrode nonmagical ferrous metal objects within 5 feet of it. If an object isn’t being worn or carried, the spines destroy a 1-foot cube of it. If an object is being worn or carried by a creature, the creature can make a DC 12 Dexterity saving throw to avoid the rust monster’s spines.
If an object in this area is either metal armor or a metal shield being worn or carried, its takes a permanent and cumulative -1 penalty to the AC it offers. Armor reduced to an AC of 10 or a shield that drops to a +0 bonus is destroyed. If the object touched is a held metal weapon, it rusts as described in the Rust Metal trait.
Rancor
Famed predators, the rancor is an adaptable, resilient creature at home in a number of environments. Lairing in deep caverns, jungle glades, and desert canyons, rancor are noteworthy for their large appetites and ferocity in battle.
Pit Fighters. A gate rises and two eyes shine the shadows behind it. The crowd roars as the hunched, 15-foot tall rancor stomps into the light. Bipedal with leathery brown, grey, or green hides, a tail, a wide maw, and long arms ending in sharp claws, rancor are familiar to the common person as a challenge to gladiators.
Battles against the monsters are often death sentences. Starved rancor are vicious and relentless. Their tough hides allow them to shrug off damage as they wear down prey. Many a gladiatorial career has come to a grizzly end, swallowed whole by a rancor.
Unearned Reputation. Their reputation as violent monsters comes almost entirely from the poor creatures trapped into service as arena attractions. In the wild, rancor are notably gentle with their offspring and mates.
A wild rancor, while still dangerous, rarely attacks unprovoked. So long as prey is plentiful, a rancor is only likely to attack humanoids if it believes they pose a threat to its young.
Far removed from their role in arenas, some humanoids raise and tame rancor as mounts, hunting companions, and protectors of livestock.
Legendary Origins. The exact origin of the rancor is a subject of debate among scholars. Most agree that they are the product of magical experiments, but the ancestral species is hotly contested.
Perhaps the most popular theory in the public imagination is that the first rancor was created from the hide of a tarrasque.
Rancor
Huge monstrosity
- Armor Class 16 (natural armor)
- Hit Points 120 (12d12 + 42)
- Speed 30 ft.
STR DEX CON INT WIS CHA 25 (+7) 10 (+0) 19 (+4) 6 (-2) 12 (+1) 9 (-1)
- Perception Perception +2
- Senses darkvision 60 ft., passive Perception 13
- Damage Resistances fire, lightning; bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing from non-magical weapons
- Languages —
- Challenge 8 (3,900 XP)
- Proficiency Bonus +3
Keen Smell. The rancor has advantage on Wisdom (Perception) checks that rely on smell.
Relentless (Recharges after a Short or Long Rest). If the rancor takes 14 damage or less that would reduce it to 0 hit points, it is reduced to 1 hit point instead.
Actions
Multiattack. The rancor makes two attacks: one with its bite and one with its claw, one with its bite and one with its grab, or two with its claw.
Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +7 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 26 (3d12 + 7) piercing damage.
Claw. Melee Weapon Attack: +7 to hit, reach 10 ft., one target. Hit: 20 (2d12 + 7) slashing damage.
Grab. Melee Weapon Attack: +7 to hit, reach 5 ft., one Large or smaller creature. Hit: 20 (2d12 + 7) bludgeoning damage. The target is grappled (escape DC 16) if the rancor isn't already grabbing a creature, and the target is restrained until this grapple ends.
Swallow. The rancor makes one bite attack against a Medium or smaller target it is grappling. If the attack hits, the target is also swallowed, and the grapple ends. While swallowed, the target is blinded and restrained, it has total cover against attacks and other effects outside the rancor, and it takes 14 (4d6) acid damage at the start of each of the rancor's turns. A rancor can only have one creature swallowed at a time.
If the rancor takes 30 damage or more on a single turn from the swallowed creature, the rancor must succeed on a DC 14 Constitution saving throw at the end of that turn or regurgitate the create, which falls prone in a space within 10 feet of the rancor. If the rancor dies, a swallowed creature is no longer restrained by it and can escape from the corpse by using 15 feet of movement, exiting prone.
Juvenile Rancor
Large monstrosity
- Armor Class 13 (natural armor)
- Hit Points 75 (11d10 + 15)
- Speed 30 ft.
STR DEX CON INT WIS CHA 13 (+1) 10 (+0) 13 (+1) 6 (-2) 12 (+1) 9 (-1)
- Perception Perception +2
- Senses darkvision 60 ft., passive Perception 13
- Languages —
- Challenge 2 (450 XP)
- Proficiency Bonus +2
Keen Smell. The juvenile rancor has advantage on Wisdom (Perception) checks that rely on smell.
Relentless (Recharges after a Short or Long Rest). If the juvenile rancor takes 14 damage or less that would reduce it to 0 hit points, it is reduced to 1 hit point instead.
Actions
Multiattack. The juvenile rancor makes two attacks: one with its bite and one with its claw or two with its claw.
Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +3 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 10 (3d6 + 1) piercing damage.
Claw. Melee Weapon Attack: +3 to hit, reach 10 ft., one target. Hit: 8 (2d6 + 1) slashing damage.
Rancor Loot Tables
Rancor are not prone to building up their own treasure hoards, but their dens will often have small piles of clutter from recent meals.
Rancor dens near frequently used roads may also contain remains from adventurers that attacked the rancor and fell in battle.
To determine the contents of a rancor's den, roll on the following tables. For an encounter with a single rancor, roll twice on the appropriate table.
If multiple rancor are encountered, roll twice for one of the most powerful rancor, and roll once for each additional rancor encountered.
| d4 | Juvenile Den |
|---|---|
| 1 | A cow skeleton |
| 2 | A rusted shortsword |
| 3 | A pouch containing 14 sp |
| 4 | One 10 gp gem |
| d6 | Adult Den |
|---|---|
| 1 | A dinosaur skeleton |
| 2 | An unhatched rancor egg |
| 1 | 1d6 (3) martial weapons |
| 2 | A pouch containing 140 gp |
| 3 | A Potion of Hill Giant Strength |
| 4 | Goggles of Night |
Rancor Salvage Tables
A rancor encountered away from its den is not likely to carry treasure, but parts of the rancor can be salvaged and sold to craftsmen.
Each part of the rancor requires a skill check to salvage. The DC for each part is listed in the tables below. These skill checks could be Wisdom (Survival), Wisdom (Medicine), or Intelligence (Nature).
Rancor hides are the most valuable salvage, but also the heaviest. A juvenile rancor hide may weigh as much as 100 lbs. An adult rancor hide may weigh in excess of 200 lbs.
| Juvenile Salvage | Skill Check | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Eyes | DC 12 | 10 sp |
| Fangs | DC 15 | 1 gp |
| Claws | DC 13 | 1 gp |
| Hide | DC 16 | 10 gp |
| Adult Salvage | Skill Check | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Eyes | DC 14 | 1 gp |
| Fangs | DC 16 | 5 gp |
| Claws | DC 14 | 5 gp |
| Hide | DC 18 | 100 gp |
Rancor Armor
Armor (light, but not padded), uncommon
Made from the tanned hide of an adult rancor, rancor armor is especially valued by dragon hunters and mercenaries who often pursue magic-wielding foes. While wearing this armor, you are resistant to fire and lightning damage.