Ghoul
Ghoul (CR 5)
Ghouls are emaciated and pale humanoids, their skin stretched taut over their skeletal frames. Their eyes appear larger than normal, and their hair is wispy and thin. Unlike magically reanimated undead such as skeletons and zombies, ghouls are not able to reintegrate themselves after being slain. However, ghouls do not age, and will live forever if they manage to avoid being hacked to bits by some overzealous barbarian with a great axe. Curiously, ghouls can completely regenerate all injuries after a full night's rest, even regrowing lost limbs. This odd power of regeneration requires sleep, however, and gives them no advantage in combat.
Ghouls are spawned from the corpses of living humanoids slain by other ghouls, which begs the question of where the first ghoul came from, and if it is still around. The ghouls race's requirement of living humanoid victims to "reproduce" doesn't appear to have hampered their growth as a species.
The most defining characteristic of ghouls is their hunger. They are constantly and unendingly hungry for meat of any kind (they're obligate carnivores!). Ghouls will also eat vegetables, plants, rocks, or anything else that they can fit into their mouths, but vastly prefer meat, whether fresh or not-so-fresh, over anything else. Sadly, no amount of eating will ever satiate them, and they can quite literally eat forever, always yearning for more. In fact, watching a ghoul eat, you can actually see their frustration at not being able to eat faster.
Another interesting fact about ghouls is they are very intelligent. They live in communities, cooperate with one another, and will even, at times, interact (relatively) peacefully with other races (although their aching hunger often makes this very uncomfortable for them). Vampires and Liches in particular find ghouls useful neighbors.
Ghouls who live more than a decade or two tend to pick up several languages, and retain any languages they knew when they were alive. Many ghouls also share a secret sign language, which is unique to each ghoul community, but allows the ghouls to communicate while preparing to ambush prey. Ghouls also use the sign language as a way to hide their own intellect from the living races, preferring that they be forever underestimated by the day-dwellers.
GENERAL
CR 5 Hit Dice 7
XP 1,600
CE Medium Undead
Init +3; Senses Darkvision 60 ft., Perception +10
DEFENSE
AC 21, touch 14, flat-footed 17 (+4 dex, +7 armor)
hp 52
Fort +4, Ref +4, Will +8
Aura: -
SR: -
Special Defenses: Undead Traits, ER 5/positive energy
Immunities: Undead Traits
Weaknesses: -
OFFENSE
Speed 30 ft.
Space / Reach: 5 ft. / 5 ft.
Single Melee Bite +10 (1d8+2/x2) plus Paralysis and Disease
Full Melee Bite +10 (1d8+2/x2) plus Paralysis and Disease, 2x Claws +10 (1d6+2/x2) plus Paralysis
Ranged -
Special Attacks Paralysis, Disease
Action Points 0
STATISTICS
Str 13, Dex 15, Con -, Int 15, Wis 14, Cha 14
Base Atk +5; CMB +11; CMD 22
Feats -
Skills Stealth +8
Languages Onundur, Ghoul Sign Language, Thanic, Necril, Common
SPECIAL ABILITIES
- Paralysis
Creatures damaged by a ghoul's natural attacks must make a successful DC 14 Fortitude save or be immobilized (cannot leave current space except by teleport or forced movement). A creature cannot be affected by a paralysis effect more than once per round (i.e. they do not stack). At the end of each of their turns thereafter, they must make another Fortitude save. If a second save (DC 14) is unsuccessful, the condition worsens to paralyzed. Paralyzed creatures cannot move, speak, or take any physical actions. The creature is rooted to the spot, frozen and helpless. A winged creature flying in the air at the time that it is paralyzed cannot flap its wings and falls. A swimmer can't swim and may drown. The affected creature gets a new save at the end of each of his turns. A save after paralysis reverts to immobilized, another save after that reverts to the slowed condition.
- Array: Paralyzed ==> Immobilized ==> Slowed
- Disease (Su)
- Ghoul Fever: Bite—injury; save Fort DC 14; onset 1 day; frequency 1/day; effect 1d3 Con and 1d3 Dex damage; cure 2 consecutive saves. The save DC is Charisma-based.
A humanoid who dies of ghoul fever rises as a ghoul at the next midnight. A humanoid who becomes a ghoul in this way retains none of the abilities it possessed in life. It is not under the control of any other ghouls, but it hungers for the flesh of the living and behaves like a normal ghoul in all respects. A humanoid of 4 Hit Dice or more rises as a Ghast.
TREASURE
sell value of approximately 1,375 gp
COMBAT TACTICS
Given the choice, ghouls will eat carrion rather than tackling live prey, but since they are always insatiably hungry, ghouls are also very proficient (and prolific) hunters. They will set ambushes, even making odd sounds to attract the curious. They prefer to hunt along the outskirts of villages and towns to try to draw out farmers, children or even small parties of town defenders.
Ghouls will seek to paralyze all their intended prey and then begin feasting on their flesh (it is irrelevant that the prey might still be alive). They will utilize their numbers to good advantage, ganging up on foes who are particularly resistant to the paralysis until they are subdued, seeking out flanks, etc.
Ghouls are very driven by their hunger, but also consider their unlife something worth preserving, so they will retreat from losing fights if it seems practical. However, ghouls defending their community from intruders will always fight to the death.