Living Sandstorm
This hulking humanoid figure of packed red sand is no taller than an average human, but it is brawny and exceptionally broad.
Living Sandstorm (CR 11)
Fine Outsider (Earth, Elemental, Swarm)Alignment: Neutral
Initiative: +6
Senses: Darkvision 60 feet, sandsight, Tremorsense 60 feet; Perception +18
Speed: 30 feet, Fly 60 feet (good)
Space: 5 feet
Defense
Armor Class: 34, touch 25, flat-footed 27 (+6 Dex, +1 dodge, +9 natural, +8 size)Hit Points: 147 (14d10+70)
Saving Throws: Fort +9, Ref +15, Will +12
swarm traits
Damage Reduction: 10/-
Immunity: elemental traits, weapon damage
Offense
Melee: swarm (6d6 plus distraction)Reach: 0 feet
Special Attacks: create sand, Distraction (DC 22), sand blast
Statistics
| Str | Dex | Con | Int | Wis | Cha |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 (-5) | 22 (+6) | 21 (+5) | 12 (+1) | 12 (+1) | 13 (+1) |
CMB -
CMD -
Feats: Dodge, Improved Iron Will, Powerful Maneuvers, Iron Will, Step Up
Skills: Acrobatics +20, Fly +35, Intimidate +18, Knowledge (planes) +18, Linguistics +4, Perception +18, Stealth +39 (+47 in sand), Survival +18
- Racial Modifiers: +8 Stealth in sand
Special Qualities: Change Shape (humanoid form or sandstorm form; polymorph)
Special Abilities
Create Sand (Su)
While in sandstorm form, a living sandstorm can, as a standard action, create 500 cubic feet of fine red sand, filling a 10-foot radius beneath it to a depth of 5 feet. All creatures in the area and adjacent squares must succeed at a DC 22 Reflex save or be blinded for 1d4 rounds. Medium and smaller creatures in the area are buried and must begin holding their breath to avoid drowning in the sand. By attempting a Reflex save against the same DC, a creature can avoid being buried if there is an adjacent space outside the area to which it can move; if the save is successful, the creature is moved into an available adjacent space. As a standard action, each buried creature can dig itself out or be dug out by another with a successful DC 15 Strength check. Invisible creatures in or adjacent to the area when the sand is created are outlined until the dust is removed. The save DC is Constitution-based.Sand Blast (Ex)
When in sandstorm form, a living sandstorm can attack with a blast of scouring sand in a 20-foot line. The sand deals 6d6 points of slashing damage and blinds creatures in the area for 1d4 rounds. A successful DC 22 Reflex save halves the damage and negates the blinding. The save DC is Constitution-based.Ecology
Environment: Any DesertOrganization: solitary, pair, or gang (3-8)
Treasure: none
Notorious for appearing suddenly out of the roiling tempests of the deep desert, living sandstorms are capable of turning oases and dry farmlands into areas of featureless desert in a shockingly short span of time. When angered, they can scour a whole army down to bits of shining metal and bone buried under feet of shifting sand over the course of one terrible night. Some Osiriani scholars claim that living sandstorms are related to the deadly khamsin storms that scour the desert, and while these creatures are related to elementals, they have nothing to do with the formation of those iconic storms.
Living sandstorms are most comfortable when sand is free to flow across the earth. They become agitated whenever creatures make an effort to remove or limit sand in an area, shelter an area from the drifting dust, or alter the weather to reduce or prevent sandstorms. However, they are curious creatures and enjoy experiencing new interactions with beings of other shapes, and are willing to parley when they believe doing so may open the door to a novel diversion—or if a creature simply appears easy to intimidate. A living sandstorm in its humanoid shape is about 6 feet tall and weighs 900 pounds. In sandstorm form, it expands its form into a pulsing cloud of streaming, loose sand, which gathers into small clumps before being reabsorbed into the storm.
Ecology
Living sandstorms are formed from and fed by the unpredictable interaction of raw elemental earth and planar storms or vortices carrying the essence of other planes. These ageless elemental creatures tend to be curious and outgoing when they first discover new places, but are easily frustrated by any kind of restraint. They use their ability to create sand liberally, attempting to pack caves, voids in the Plane of Earth, and other open areas at least half-full of their reddish sand. Because of their origin, they are usually found near gates, portals, and vortices between planes both on the Plane of Earth and on the Material Plane.
Habitat & Society
Living sandstorms dwell in the rare open caverns on the Plane of Earth. On that plane, they are misfits, feared for their affinities for open spaces and howling winds. When conflicts erupt between the powers of the Elemental Planes, they are sometimes recruited to lead strike teams into other planes, as they are adventurous and enjoy discovering open spaces they can fill with their fine, red sand. They are especially valuable when establishing beachheads on planes that have little in the way of earth, because of their ability to create large amounts of sand in relatively short periods of time.
Due to their intrepidness, they readily answer callings to serve summoners so they can visit new places and spread their sand far and wide. If they see an opportunity to do so, they may break free of their calling and explore the wider Material Plane, where they favor desert climes and their nearby regions, and where they are known to contribute to rapid desertification. When marooned on the Material Plane, they are generally restless until they find a way back to the Plane of Earth, but if they know of a route home, they instead explore the nearby area, wandering farther and farther until they lose interest in filling that world with sand and long to move on to a new one.
Comments