Hill Giant Shaman

Hill Giant Shaman (CR 19)

Pure Evil - Large - Humanoid (Giant)

Lore:	Know (Local)
36		53
Basic DC		Full DC

Initiative

31

Perception:
43	+33
Passive	Active

Ambush:

10+

on a d20

Senses:

• Standard Senses
• Low-Light Vision
• Darkvision 60 ft.
• Scent 30 ft.

Movement Types:

• Walk 30 ft.

Defense

AC

43

Man Def

43

Monster Health
883	441	36
Hit Points	Bloodied	Hit Dice

Saving Throws
Fort:	+16
Refl:	+16
Will:	+21

Strong Against:

Weak Against:

Offense

Size:	Large
10 ft.		10 ft.
Space		Reach

To-Hit

+28

Man Off

+32

Action

0

Points

Standard Attack (Melee):

• 1x Giant Club +28 (4d8+22/19-20 x2)
  as bludgeoning (physical, common)

Full Attack (Melee):

• 3x Giant Club +28 (4d8+22/19-20 x2)
  as bludgeoning (physical, common)

Standard Attack (Ranged):

Full Attack (Ranged):

Siege Damage: Not siege capable

Statistics

74

STR

16

DEX

20

CON

6

INT

16

WIS

12

CHA

Skills:

• Movement: 31
• Perception: 33
• Survival: 31
• All other skills: 26 (no ranks)

Languages: Giant

Feats:

Special Abilities

Ghost Shout (Sp) Standard Action

Concentration: 1d20 + 23 vs. a DC of 35 (12 needed on the die) As a standard action, the Hill Giant Shaman can cast Ghost Shout, dealing 4d8+22 points of sonic (energy, common) damage to one target within 100 feet and one additional target within 10 feet of the first target, as well as inflicting the Startled condition on both victims until the end of the encounter, unless removed. Targets may make a Will save, DC 29, to reduce the startled condition to Anxious, and to only take half of the sonic damage. Both the Startled and Anxious conditions are fear effects.

Thunderguts (Sp) Standard Action 1/Enc

Concentration: 1d20 + 28 vs. a DC of 35 (7 needed on the die) Once per encounter as a standard action, the Hill Giant Shaman may cast Thunderguts. The shaman stands upright and slaps its massive hands against its even more massive gut, raising a loud cavernous booming, until it belches forth a truly horrific cloud of magical gas. This affects a 30 foot cone (6x6 squares) adjacent to the shaman's space, and creates a lingering effect for as long as the shaman maintains it. This effect only causes harm to enemies. To allies of the Shaman, the Thunderguts cloud does not exist and has no effects. Enemies of the shaman find the area of effect impossible to see through, such that all sight, even darkvision, lifesense, and the like, is blocked beyond five feet by a thick roiling green-black mist. Attacks made against adjacent targets have Partial Concealement (miss on a Natural 6 or less), and any targets further away than that have Total Concealment (missing on a Natural 12 or less even if you attack the correct square). Attacks made using a targeting sense that is not visual-based ignore this miss chance. Even worse, enemies of the shaman that end their turn within the area of effect of Thunderguts will suffer 4d6+14 points of negative (energy, uncommon) energy damage each round they remain in the area of effect, as the mist assaults their very essence. Holding your breath does not stop this terrible effect, but immunity to poison renders you immune to this effect. As a move action, the Hill Giant Shaman may sustain Thunderguts for an additional round, by belching again, as long as they are inside or adjacent to the effect. Furthermore, as part of the same move action, the Shaman may move the area of the Thunderguts effect up to 10 feet in any direction. On any round in which it does not sustain the poison cloud after the first, Thunderguts' effects end at the bottom of the round. In the event that multiple Shamans are present in the encounter, they are not restricted to refreshing and moving their own Thunderguts effect. They may refresh and move any cloud of Thunderguts poison they can move into or adjacent to. Gust of Wind (Sorcerer/Wizard Spell) or any other 'dispersing' effect will immediately dispel a Thunderguts cloud.

The Fetch (Sp) Standard Action 1/Enc

Concentration: 1d20 + 28 vs. a DC of 35 (7 needed on the die) Once per encounter as a standard action, the Hill Giant Shaman may call forth the bound spirit of some small, hapless woodland creature it has tortured and eaten. This is often a fox, or a wolf, or a deer. The Hill Giant Shaman can assign this fetch spirit to either assist an ally, or harass an enemy, once per round in its initiative, as a swift action. Changing what the fetch is doing is also a swift action for the Shaman. The fetch can only be given to creatures that the Shaman has line of effect to and are within 100 feet, although line of sight is not required. This means the fetch can be given to invisible, stealthed, concealed, and insubstantial creatures even if the Shaman has no idea where they are. Because the Fetch is visible, this will pinpoint the square of an unseen foe, although miss chances on low Natural die rolls will still apply unless there is a skill check or sense (such as lifesense) that pierces stealth and/or invisibility. Assist Ally: The Fetch is placed inside the ally's space and lends it Lifesense, as well as giving a +4 bonus to-hit and damage to all attacks. Harass Enemy: The Fetch is placed inside the enemy's space and makes it dazzled, and any attacks made against the enemy ignore any miss chance it might normally inflict (from concealment, invisibility, etc.). The Fetch spirit is immune to all harm as long as the Shaman is alive, and escapes into freedom as soon as the shaman is killed.

Hill Giant Shaman

Hill Giants are massive creatures, covered in huge masses of thick muscle and fat. While they are technically size Large, they are definitely at the very upper end of that size category due to their simple bulk. Hill giants exude a sense of huge power mixed with dull frustrated rage at a world they simply don't understand. Indeed, Hill Giants are the second strongest breed of Giants, their physical power exceeding the strength of far more dangerous clans of giants, such as Cloud giants, who are frail weaklings compared to Hill giants.

Luckily for every other creature in the world, their incredible strength is also their downfall, as Hill Giants, charitably, are musclebound idiots. They are physically clumsy, slow of action, and awkward when they manage to do something, as likely to break a weapon as use it to smash a foe. Even worse, they are crude and stupid creatures. Ogres are mental giants compared to a Hill Giant. Hill Giants struggle to sustain even the most rudimentary of social structures, like family, or language. The actions of most other races are incomprehensible to a Hill giant, who is too limited to even grasp what a farm is, never mind understand why agriculture is a good idea.

As a result of their incredible physical strength and incredible mental deficiencies, Hill giants on their own live lives of desperate poverty, lacking fire, shelter, and far too often, even clothing. Despite this, Hill giants thrive on their own, their size and strength serving quite well in Nature to sustain their lives. Groups of Hill giants are uncomfortably common in untamed lands, and they are disgustingly fertile, to boot.

Many Hill giants find themselves working as serfs for other races. Ogres and especially Trolls find Hill giants to be excellent companionship, and those creatures serve to improve the life of Hill giants tremendously. Other Giant races also employ Hill giants as serfs, especially Frost and Fire giants, as well as Death giants and the terrible Fomaori. Hill giants are sadly susceptible to the mental enslavement used by Hobgoblins, and make valuable chattel for their strength and ability to fight. No one tries to enslave a Hill giant with simple physical force, by the way. No chain will hold them and no punishment will deter them, so there is little point. Give them a warm place to sleep, food to eat, things to torment, and rugged, simple work to do, and Hill giants will be loyal forever.

Hill giants usually live in small tribal groups, and make crude mud huts out of sticks and wattle. They will roam out daily, in a more-or-less random direction, and forage for food and victims. If Hill giants are serving as serfs for other classes of creatures, they will arise, take their food, and then happily perform whatever jobs they are given, as long as those jobs are within their intellectual grasp. As long as they are given lots of things to do, Hill giants are surprisingly tractable. If some of those duties involve killing and hurting things, all the better!

As Hill Giants grow older, a substantial fraction of them stumble upon latent magical abilities. These abilities are based upon wisdom and strength, because for sure, they have nothing to do with intelligence. Once a hill giant develops these powers, they are accorded a place of superstitious awe and terror among their tribe. Indeed, even as serfs, hill giant shamans are considered quite valuable just for their ability to call a fetch, never mind their more martial abilities. Shamans tend to look like other hill giants, except their clothing has more furs and fetishy bits and their weapons are simpler. That said, Shamans are much smarter than most Hill Giants, being able to speak in full sentences, although they are still no smarter than Ogres. In battle they will cloud the sight of their enemies, assign a fetch to boost their favorite allies, and generally be a terrible, terrible danger.

Combat Tactics

Hill Giant Shamans are mental titans compared to other Hill Giants, and as such will fight...a little better. In the first round they will hang behind any allies and cast Ghost Shout on the toughest-looking enemies, as long as they can get two of them. If they can't get two in the first round, they will cast thunderguts instead and move inside the vile cloud.

In round two, they will move in, casting thunderguts on their enemies if its not out, or using Ghost Shout if it is out. On the third and later rounds they will sustain thunderguts and either Ghost Shout or bring out their Fetch, depending on how invisible and/or concealed their foes are.

Shamans will seek to keep their thunderguts atop as many foes as possible and will lurk inside it, using attacks of opportunity on hapless foes who wander too close to them. Once the battle begins, Hill Giant Shamans get their blood up and will fight to the death without hesitation.

Shamans are often employed as serfs by mightier clans of Giants, and are highly prized solely because of their fetch. In such situations, the Shaman will bring out the fetch and set it to work buffing its masters, or sniffing out hidden foes, and then lurk back in safety, basking in the sense that They're Helping!

Out of Combat

It should be noted that Hill Giants are ridiculously strong. Per the Carrying Capacity rules, Hill Giant Shamans can lift and carry 238 tons as a light load! This is completely intentional: Hill Giants are so strong that it is encouraged that out of combat they be treated as able to lift and carry pretty much anything at all. Of course, given how stupid and lazy they are, its rare for them to do so unless motivated. Note, however, that this amazing strength does not, will not, and should not EVER alter their combat statistics! Out of combat a Hill Giant can pluck up huge trees as easily as a daisy, but their combat stats are just boring old numbers, as laid out above.

Rewards

XP: 204,800

Treasure: Sellable Goods worth 89,889 gp.

Weight: 190 lbs.     Volume: 7.6 cu. ft.

Optional Treasure Rules: Roll a d20 on Table 1 below once per encounter (NOT per creature). Any items discovered are in addition to the normal treasure for the encounter.

Table 1: Remnant(s) Found
1 - 10	Nothing Found
11 - 14	1 Languid Remnant (tier 1)
15 - 17	1 Pale Remnant (tier 2)
18 - 19	1 Bright Remnant (tier 3)
20	Roll on Table 2
###	Nothing to see here!
###	Or here. Move along.

Table 2: Remnant(s) Found
1 - 5	3 Languid Remnants (tier 1)
6 - 10	3 Pale Remnants (tier 2)
11 - 14	1 Intense Remnant (tier 4)
15 - 17	1 Blazing Remnant (tier 5)
18 - 19	1 Vital Remnant (tier 6)
20	Roll on Table 3
###	Or here. Move along.

Table 3: Remnant(s) Found
1 - 5	3 Bright Remnants (tier 3)
6 - 8	3 Intense Remnants (tier 4)
9 - 11	3 Blazing Remnants (tier 5)
12 - 14	3 Vital Remnants (tier 6)
15 - 17	1 Prime Remnant (tier 7)
18 - 19	1 Mythic Remnant (tier 8)
20	1 Empyrean Remnant (tier 9)