Litanu

This hulking merfolk has rotting skin, dull black eyes, and four thick tentacles ending in toothy maws protruding from its back.

Litanu CR 11

XP 12,800
CE Medium undead (aquatic)
Init +4; Senses darkvision 60 ft.; Perception +20

AC 25, touch 15, flat-footed 20 (+4 Dex, +1 dodge, +10 natural)
hp 147 (14d8+84)
Fort +11, Ref +8, Will +12
Defensive Abilities channel resistance +4; deep dweller; Immune undead traits; Resist cold 20

Speed 10 ft., swim 40 ft.
Melee mwk trident +19/+14 (1d8+8), 4 tentacles +16 (1d4+4 plus paralysis)
Special Attacks paralysis (1d4+1 rounds, DC 19), seclusion empowerment, sequestering paralysis

Str 27, Dex 18, Con â, Int 15, Wis 16, Cha 21
Base Atk +10; CMB +18; CMD 33
Feats Combat Reflexes, Dodge, Great Fortitude, Multiattack, Power Attack, Skill Focus (Stealth), Toughness
Skills Acrobatics +18 (+10 when jumping), Craft (traps) +16, Intimidate +22, Perception +20, Sense Motive +13, Stealth +27, Swim +26
Languages Aquan, Common
SQ amphibious

Deep Dweller (Ex)

Litanus are immune to damage from water pressure.

Seclusion Empowerment (Su)

Litanus draw strength from other creaturesâ feelings of isolation and loneliness. A litanu gains a +1 profane bonus on saving throws, attack rolls, and weapon damage rolls for each non-litanu creature within 60 feet that does not have line of sight to an ally, including any creature affected by the litanuâs sequestering paralysis. These profane bonuses stack, up to a maximum equal to the litanuâs Charisma modifier (maximum +5 for a normal litanu).

Sequestering Paralysis (Su)

Creatures affected by a litanuâs paralysis cannot breathe and begin to suffocate, and they are blinded and deafened. Although effects such as remove blindness/deafness can remove the blinded or deafened condition from a creature paralyzed by a litanu, this does not remove the paralysis. This ability is a necromancy and paralysis effect.

Environment any oceans
Organization solitary, pair, or school (3â8)
Treasure standard (masterwork trident, other treasure)

Litanus are undead abominations created by vile necromantic rituals and psychological torment. All litanus were once merfolk, but were tortured to death and animated as undead creatures. Litanus are sneaky, spiteful creatures who seek prey suffering from loneliness and fear.

Resembling merfolk that have hyper-developed musculature, litanus have wide mouths with narrow, sharklike teeth. Four tentacles sprout from a litanuâs back, each a few inches wide and 4 feet long. These tentacles end in toothy maws and excrete a paralyzing toxin so powerful that victims are rendered insensible and unable to perform most autonomic functions, including breathing, until the toxin wears off.

A litanu is about 7 feet long from head to tail and weighs around 300 pounds.

Because litanus are created from merfolk subjected to horrifying tortures and necromantic infusions, they generally arise in underwater torture chambers or corpse pits. Although they have no need to hunt for sustenance, they derive a perverse joy from ambushing, paralyzing, and killing prey. Most litanus prefer to hunt intelligent prey, as complex feelings of isolation and desperation resonate with the undead creatures. Angry at their fate and resentful that their kin were spared it, litanus prefer merfolk as prey over all others. A hunting litanu might even allow non-merfolk to pass by unharmed if it believes that a little more patience might allow it an opportunity for merfolk prey instead.

Litanus are immensely strong for their size, and their long, toothed tentacles are exceedingly nimble. These tentacles are grafted to a litanuâs body in the final part of the reanimation ritual, rather than spontaneously grown.

Litanus are protective of their tentacles, taking care to keep them clean and prevent them from becoming tangled together as the undead swim or fight.

Although any isolated creature suffering from fear or loneliness is a delicacy for a litanu, most litanus attempt to exacerbate feelings of dread and isolation as much as possible before feeding. A litanu might drag a victim into the deep, dark ocean watersânot so deep as to kill their prey outright from cold or water pressure, but deep enough to amplify the victimâs fear and suffering. When the victimâs feelings of terror and isolation are at their peak, the litanu finally kills its prey with slow, deliberate bites from its tentacles.

Once a litanu slays its victim, it usually loses interest in the corpse. The litanu might steal any valuables or trinkets from the body but otherwise leaves it to drift away on the ocean currents. A litanu does not value this plunder for its own sake, but it collects items, such as shiny necklaces or colorful baubles, that might be useful in luring away future victims.

Habitat and Society

Litanus live underwater and prefer the seclusion of dark ocean waters. Unaffected by cold or water pressure, they can be found in deep ocean trenches. From there, they range into brighter, shallower waters to hunt for prey. If a litanuâs prey escapes onto land, the litanu is unlikely to pursue; although litanus can propel themselves on land by using their tails and tentacles if necessary, they prefer to remain in the water.

To merfolk, litanus are terrifying bogeymen that lurk in the deep, set traps to catch the unwary, and drag their victims away.

Fortunately, litanus are rare, so most merfolk have never seen one; some merfolk believe that they donât even exist, and were invented to explain away strange disappearances or half-glimpsed natural predators such as octopuses. Those merfolk who have met a litanu (or worse, have been terrorized by a litanu that arose from the corpse of a friend or relative) know firsthand the fear and carnage even a single litanu can create.

Litanus are sufficiently rare as to normally be solitary; a litanu might hunt for decades without meeting another of its kind. On the rare occasions when litanus do find each otherâor when they are created alongside each otherâ they gather into small gangs called schools. Litanus are selfish by nature, so this tendency to congregate is unusual and perhaps due to some dimly instinctual sociability from their merfolk heritage.

Only a powerful master, such as a necromancer or mighty aquatic undead creature, can compel them to cooperate with each other on a long-term basis.