Giant, Death (CR 16)

Huge Giant
Alignment: Always neutral evil
Initiative: +1 (Dex); Senses: darkvision 60 ft., low-light vision, Listen +12, and Spot +12


AC: 29 (-2 size, +1 Dex, +14 natural, +6 banded mail), touch 9, flat-footed 28
Hit Dice: 23d8+115 (218 hp)
Fort +25, Ref +17, Will +21
Speed: 50 ft. (35 ft. in banded mail)
Space: 15 ft./15 ft.
Base Attack +17; Grapple +37
Attack: Greataxe +27 melee or slam +27 melee or rock +17 ranged
Full Attack: Greataxe +27/+22/+17/+12 melee and bite +22 melee or 2 slams +27 melee and bite +22 melee or rock +17 ranged
Damage: Greataxe 4d6+18/x3, bite 2d6+6, slams 1d8+12, rock 2d8+12
Special Attacks/Actions: Frightful keening, rock throwing, spell-like abilities, steal soul
Abilities: Str 34, Dex 13, Con 21, Int 12, Wis 20, Cha 25
Special Qualities: guardian souls, immunity to fear and energy drain, low-light vision, rock catching, sold soul, soul healing
Feats: Ability Focus (frightful keening); Ability Focus (steal soul); Cleave; Iron Will; Lightning Reflexes; Point Blank Shot; Power Attack; Precise Shot
Skills: Concentration +19, Intimidate +15, Knowledge (arcana) +14, Knowledge (history) +12, Knowledge (religion) +19, Listen +12, Spellcrafr +16, Spot +12, and Survival +6
Advancement: By character class
Climate/Terrain: Temperate deserts
Organization: Solitary, pair, or gang (3-8)
Treasure/Possessions: Standard

Source: Monster Manual III

Frightful Keening (Su): As a standard action, a death giant can trigger the guardian souls that waft around its body to wail in frightful anguish. Living creatures within 100 feet that hear this keening must make a DC 30 Will save. Success indicates that the creature is shaken until it can no longer hear the keening or moves out of range. Failure causes the creature to be panicked for as long as it can hear the keening and remains within range, and shaken for 24 hours afterward.

Ending the frightful keening is a standard action. This is a sonic, mind-affecting fear ability. The save DC is Charisma-based.

Rock Throwing (Ex): Death giants are accomplished rock throwers and gain a +1 racial bonus on attack rolls when throwing rocks. A death giant can hurl rocks of 60 to 80 pounds (Medium objects) up to five range increments. The range increment is 120 feet for a death giant's rocks.

Spell-like Abilities: 3/day - greater dispel magic, inflict critical wounds (+27 melee touch, DC 21), unholy blight (DC 21); 1/day - flame strike (DC 22). Caster level 16th

Steal Soul (Su): Any living creature with 10 or fewer hit points within 15 feet of a death giant must succeed on a DC 30 Fortitude save each round or die instantly. This is a death effect. The save DC is Charisma-based.

Any creature that dies within 15 feet of a death giant has its spirit sucked up into the swirling guardian souls that protect the death giant. Such creatures cannot be raised resurrected, or reincarnated so long as the death giant lives Killing the death giant releases the souls.

If a living death giant is within 15 feet of a death giant that dies, the souls are not released and are instead transferred to the nearby death giant due to its steal soul ability.

Under extraordinary circumstances, a living death giant may release a soul it has captured.

Guardian Souls (Su): A death giant's victims become its guardians in death. Each death giant is surrounded by a constantly swirling cloud of intangible spirits.

These spirits provide the death giant with warnings and protection, granting the creature a bonus on initiative rolls, saves, Listen checks, and Spot checks equal to its Charisma modifier.

A death giant's will binds its guardian souls to it. They are not ghosts or undead in the usual sense and cannot be damaged, dispelled, or separated from the death giant. Only a successful turning attempt can quell these spirits for a time, If the turning attempt would turn or rebuke an undead with Hit Dice equal to the death giant's, the guardian souls vanish for 1d10 rounds, and the death giant loses the benefits of its guardian souls, frightful keening, soul healing, and steal soul abilities until the souls return.

Rock Catching (Ex): Once per round, a death giant that would normally be hit by a rock (or projectile of similar shape) can make a Reflex save to catch it as a free action The DC is 15 for a Small rock, 20 for a Medium one, and 25 for a Large one. (If the projectile provides a magical bonus on attack rolls, the DC increases by that amount.) The giant must be ready for and aware of the attack in order to make a rock-catching attempt.

Sold Soul (Ex): A death giant cannot be raised, resurrected, or reincarnated. If a death giant's soul is not taken as a guardian soul by another death giant or kept from departing by some other means (such as soul bind), it is utterly destroyed 1 round after the giant's death.

Soul Healing (Su): When a death giant is protected by its guardian souls, hit point damage due to negative energy (such as from an inflict spell) heals rather than harms a death giant. Death giants are healed by positive energy (such as from cure spells) normally.

Death giants are fearsome melee opponents and powerful spellcasters. They prefer to cast spells in combat situations but reserve some for opportune tactics and healing.