Jade Scarab
Jade Scarab Swarm (Swarm; CR 17)
| Neutral - Diminutive - Vermin |
|---|
| Lore: | Know (Nature) | ||
| 34 | 49 | ||
| Basic DC | Full DC | ||
| Initiative |
26 |
| Perception: | |
| 38 | +28 |
| Passive | Active |
| Ambush: |
| 8+ |
| on a d20 |
- Ambush Notes: Jade Scarabs are often placid before they are disturbed, and their passivity and small size make them excellent, albeit often accidental, amushers.
Senses:
- Standard Senses
- Keen Scent 30 ft.
- Jade Scarabs are carrion eaters, and adventurers often carry the scent of old blood.
Movement Types:
- Walk 20 ft.
- Greater Climb 20 ft.
- Greater Flight 60 ft.
Defense
| AC |
40 |
| Man Def |
|
40 |
| Monster Health | ||
| 1,222 | 611 | 32 |
| Hit Points | Bloodied | Hit Dice |
| Saving Throws | |
| Fort: | +14 |
| Refl: | +19 |
| Will: | +14 |
Strong Against:
- (Swarm Role) Hardened (½ damage): slashing (physical, common), piercing (physical, common)
- (Swarm Role) Immune (no effect): Critical Hits and Flanking
- (Swarm Role) Immune (no effect): Any attack that targets Maneuver Defense
- (Swarm Role) Immune (no effect): Any spell that targets a specific number of creatures, except mind-affecting spells (if this creature has an Int score).
- (Mindless) Immune (no effect): all mind-affecting effects (charms, compulsions, fear, morale effects, patterns, and phantasms)
Weak Against:
- (Swarm Role) Vulnerable (1.5x damage): area of effect spells (including Channel Divinity)
Offense
| Size: | Diminutive | ||
| 10 ft. | 0 ft. | ||
| Space | Reach | ||
| To-Hit |
+25 
|
| Man Off |
+30
|
| Action |
| 0 |
| Points |
- (Component Creatures: 1 ft. / 0 ft.)
- Maneuver Offense Notes: +4 for Overrun Maneuvers
Standard Attack (Melee):
- 1x Jaded Bite (Swarm -- Auto-Hit) (4d10+24/19-20 x2)
as gnashing (physical, uncommon)
Full Attack (Melee):
Standard Attack (Ranged):
- 1x Jaded Glint (Swarm -- Auto-Hit) (4d10+24/x2)
as light (energy, uncommon)
(Increment: 30 ft.; Max Range: 90 ft.)
must be in a square with bright light to use this attack
Full Attack (Ranged):
- 3x Jaded Glint (Swarm -- Auto-Hit) (4d10+24/x2)
as light (energy, uncommon)
(Increment: 30 ft.; Max Range: 90 ft.)
must be in a square with bright light to use this attack
Siege Damage:
- 1x Jaded Bite +28 (1d6+2)
Statistics
| 24 |
| STR |
| 28 |
| DEX |
| 24 |
| CON |
| — |
| INT |
| 18 |
| WIS |
| 32 |
| CHA |
Special Abilities
| Personal Space Issues (Ex; Swarm Role) Automatic After Damage |
| Any living creature that takes damage from a swarm also becomes Distracted. While sharing a space with the swarm, affected creatures cannot get rid of the Distracted condition. At the end of any of an affected creature's turn in which they are outside of the swarm's space, the Distraction condition automatically ends. However, it is re-applied if they take further damage from the swarm. |
| Sum of the Parts (Ex; Swarm Role) Always On |
| Swarms, troops, and hordes follow the squeezing rules based on their component creature size, NOT the size of the swarm, troop, or horde as a whole. This means these groups of creatures can easily move through doorways that are sized appropriately to their component creature sizes. They can even stop in such spaces without suffering squeezing penalties. In such cases, the swarm's shape is unaffected, except that its space excludes any blocked spaces. That is, its space doesn't deform into a non-square shape, it's just treated as not occupying any blocked spaces within its space. This means it cannot threaten through blocked spaces, since it isn't technically occupying them.
Multiple swarms, troops, and hordes can share the same squares without squeezing or movement penalties. They can move through, and even stop on top of (or within) the spaces of other swarms, troops, or hordes. Swarms, troops, and hordes can also move over, through, and into spaces occupied by enemy creatures without provoking attacks of opportunity, even if they pass through or leave a threatened square. Furthermore, creatures inside the space of a swarm, troop, or horde are treated as flanked while they remain in that space (though this doesn't usually matter much, since swarms, troops, and hordes automatically hit with their attacks). Finally, a maximum of two swarms, troops, or hordes can attack a single given creature in a round, even if more than two swarms, troops, or hordes are threatening that creature. There simply isn't enough surface area of the enemy creature for more attacks to be inflicted. |
Jade Scarab Swarm
This creature possesses the Swarm role, and therefore counts as 2 monsters for purposes of encounter size, XP award, and treasure.This monster frequently has the Swarm role, but may be set to different roles if desired.Jade Scarabs are a sort of large beetle, easily big enough to cover the palm of your average civilized humanoid. Jade Scarabs are dangerous, magically potent vermin, although they are fortunately quite placid unless their territory is disturbed.
Despite their small size, Jade Scarabs are extremely magical and very dangerous, not least due to their very hardy nature, their ability to bite and rend nearly anything, and their habit of attacking by flying directly into their enemies, crashing home, despite their tiny size, like hurled boulders. Perhaps worst, they have some (probably Divine) connection to some of the worst sorts of Undead and aberrant fiends out there. Jade Scarabs are often found near Mummies, to be blunt.
Even if Jade Scarabs are not affiliated with one of those Emptied Horrors they are still very dangerous, even though they are remarkably decorative. You will sometimes see these tiny monstrosities kept as pets by the wealthy and daring, in which case you should be very careful indeed.
Even fallow nests of Jade Scarabs are potentially very dangerous if the mystically empowered beetles are somehow disturbed or provoked, and Scarabs often act as mindless 'guardians' of barrows and tombs, even if their Undead allies are not present. Wise polities hire adventurers to clear out such nests as quickly as they are discovered.Jade Scarabs are frequently associated with Scarab-Plague Mummys. These creatures can often be found together.Combat Tactics
Jade Scarabs are mindless vermin, but they are highly magical and incredibly dangerous. On their own, they are so small that they must perform an Overrun Combat Maneuver to get into the space of their foes, but they are very, very good at it, with a huge +6 bonus on such attempts. It is not uncommon for Jade Scarabs to smash into their foes so hard (despite their diminutive size) that they knock their foes prone as part of their maneuver, while inflicting their Jaded Bite damage to-boot. They can do this as part of a Move action, and they are truly excellent flyers.
Jade Scarabs prefer to fly to the attack, get into the space of their foes, and go to full attack actions. But, if they cannot get to their enemies in a single move action, and they are in a square of bright light, they will use their extremely shiny carapace to reflect deadly glints of light at their foes. This is an easy-to-defeat attack mechanism, so they much prefer their normal 'crash and bite' attacks.
In combat, they are brightly colored and large enough that they are easy to attack, even while in another creatures space. If they in the space of a foe that occupies more than one square, the GM must assign them a square in that other creature's space, and they can take five foot steps or use Walk to move themselves around over the surface of their enemy. Attacks made against them must be able to reach the square they are occupying.
Once combat begins, Jade Scarabs will fight to the death.
Out of Combat
Jade Scarabs eat the dead, and apparently absorb some sort of power by doing so. They tend to be dormant for long periods of time, and are docile most of the time, but if they smell carrion (and adventurers, depite their best efforts at hygiene, often carry the scent of blood) they will move hungrily to attack and eat.
Mummies often have massive swarms of Jade Scarabs at their beck and call, and powerful bad guys can demonstrate their might by keeping a pet Scarab, with a glittering gold chain on one leg. Cages won't work to contain these things, they can chew their way through wood, stone, and metal with terrifying speed.
Lastly, Jade Scarabs are incredibly pretty and striking creatures, rich jade green and legs of shining golden chitin, with rich, glossy black-brown underparts. They are so striking that if they are sitting docilely, they can easily be mistaken for jeweled brooches or other fine decorations...much to the chagrin of thieves.
Rewards
XP: 204,800 (Swarm role included.)
Treasure: Sellable Goods worth 102,889 gp.
- Weight: 340 lbs. Volume: 13.6 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) |