Carrion Harvester
Medium undead, neutral evil
Physical Description
The Carrion Harvester is a grotesque undead entity with a humanoid form twisted by necromantic energies. Its desiccated flesh clings to a frame of bone, with elongated claws that gleam with necrotic energy. Dark, hollow eye sockets burn with an eerie intelligence, and its body emanates a sickly miasma of decay that surrounds it like a shroud.
The air grows thick with the stench of rotting flesh as the creature approaches, its skeletal fingers flexing with anticipation of the harvest to come.
Lore
Origin of the Harvesters Carrion Harvesters are created when powerful necromancers bind the souls of their most devoted followers to undeath with a specific purpose: to collect and process the dead for their master's dark works. These loyal servants continue their grim task even after their creators have perished, driven by an unnatural compulsion to harvest the recently deceased.
Purpose and Function Unlike mindless undead, Carrion Harvesters retain their intelligence and personality from life, though twisted by their new existence. They serve as commanders of lesser undead forces, using their innate necromantic abilities to raise fallen enemies and allies alike to bolster their ranks.
The Harvester's Gift
Those marked by the Harvester's touch often find themselves drawn to the necromantic arts, as if death itself has granted them a glimpse beyond the veil. ā Excerpt from "Communion with the Dead" by Archlich Velsarath
Stats
- Armor Class: 17 (natural armor)
- Hit Points: 161 (19d8 + 76)
- Speed: 30 ft.
| STR | DEX | CON | INT | WIS | CHA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 16 (+3) | 14 (+2) | 18 (+4) | 14 (+2) | 18 (+4) | 20 (+5) |
- Saving Throws: Con +7, Wis +7
- Skills: Perception +7, Religion +5, Stealth +5
- Damage Immunities: poison
- Condition Immunities: charmed, exhausted, frightened, paralyzed, petrified, poisoned
- Senses: darkvision 60 ft., passive Perception 17
- Languages: Common, plus any other languages known before death
- Challenge: 10 (5,900 XP)
Innate Spellcasting. The carrion harvester's spellcasting ability is Charisma (spell save DC 15). It can innately cast the following spells, requiring no material components:
At will: spare the dying 3/day each: animate dead, cause fear, blight 1/day each: finger of death, phantasmal killer
Stench of Death. Any creature that starts its turn within 30 feet of the carrion harvester must make a DC 15 Constitution saving throw. On a failed save, the creature is poisoned until the start of its next turn. On a successful save, the creature is immune to the carrion harvester's Stench of Death for 24 hours. While poisoned in this way, a creature takes 3 (1d6) poison damage at the start of each of its turns.
Unholy Healing. The carrion harvester can spend any amount of its hit points to heal a friendly undead creature within 60 feet of it for the same amount of hit points.
Death's Grasp. When an enemy within 5 feet of the carrion harvester makes a melee attack against it, the carrion harvester can use a reaction to attempt to grapple the attacker. If successful, the attacker takes 7 (2d6) necrotic damage at the start of each of its turns until the grapple ends. The grapple ends if the carrion harvester is ever moved or if the attacker makes a DC 13 Strength (Athletics) or Dexterity (Acrobatics) check.
Death's Favor. Whenever the carrion harvester hits a living creature with a claw attack, it can choose to grant it a temporary boon. The target gains one of the following benefits for 24 hours: advantage on Charisma (Intimidation) checks, proficiency in a skill of the carrion harvester's choice, or resistance to poison damage.
Multiattack. The carrion harvester makes two claw attacks.
Claw. Melee Weapon Attack: +6 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 13 (2d8 + 4) slashing damage, plus 7 (2d6) necrotic damage. If the target is a living creature, it must succeed on a DC 15 Constitution saving throw or become cursed with mummy rot. The cursed target can't regain hit points, and its hit point maximum decreases by 5 (1d10) for every 24 hours that elapse. If the curse reduces the target's hit point maximum to 0, the target dies and immediately rises as a zombie under the carrion harvester's control.
Life Leech (Recharge 5-6). The carrion harvester targets one creature it can see within 60 feet of it. The target must make a DC 15 Charisma saving throw. On a failure, the target takes 30 (6d8 + 4) necrotic damage, and the carrion harvester regains 20 hit points. On a success, the target takes half the damage and the carrion harvester regains no hit points.
Raise Minions. Once per day, the carrion harvester can raise undead minions from the corpses of its fallen enemies. This works as the animate dead spell, with the following exception: for each minion raised, the carrion harvester loses 10 hit points.
Legendary Actions
The carrion harvester can take 3 legendary actions, 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 carrion harvester regains spent legendary actions at the start of its turn.
Attack. The carrion harvester makes one claw attack.
Soul Siphon. The carrion harvester attempts to siphon the soul of a living creature within 60 feet of it. The target must make a DC 15 Charisma saving throw. On a failure, the target takes 22 (5d8) necrotic damage, and the carrion harvester regains 10 hit points.
Animate Ally (Costs 2 Actions). The carrion harvester touches a corpse it can see within 5 feet of it and reanimates it as a skeleton or a zombie under its control (the DM chooses the type or determines it randomly).
Tactics
The Carrion Harvester begins combat by using its Life Leech ability to weaken the strongest opponent while healing itself. It then positions itself to affect multiple enemies with its Stench of Death aura. The harvester prioritizes killing weaker enemies first so it can raise them as undead minions, using its legendary actions to maintain battlefield control. If severely wounded, it will sacrifice some of its hit points to heal allied undead that can protect it while it retreats to a more advantageous position.
As the battle concludes, the harvester's fingers trace arcane symbols in the air above the fallen, a silent promise that death is merely the beginning of their service.