54
Legacy of the Dragons
Kahrn Adult
Larva
Large Magical Beast Hit Dice: 10d10+50 (105 hp), dying/dead –6/–20 Initiative: +5 Speed: 30 feet AC: 20 (–1 size, +1 Dexterity, +10 natural), touch 10, flat-footed 19 Base Attack/Grapple: +10/+19 Attack: Claw +10 melee (1d8+5) Full Attack: 4 claws +10 melee (1d6+5) and bite +8 melee (1d8+3 + poison) Space/Reach: 10 feet/10 feet (Face/Reach: 5 feet by 5 feet/10 feet) Special Attacks: Improved grab, rend 2d6+10, spawn, poison Special Qualities: Low-light vision, fast healing 5 Saves: Fort +12, Ref +8, Will +5 Abilities: Str 21, Dex 12, Con 20, Int 7, Wis 15, Cha 14 Skills: Listen +8, Spot +9 Feats: Combat Reflexes, Improved Initiative, Light Sleeper, Multiattack*, Power Attack
Small Magical Beast 2d10+6 (17 hp), dying/dead –4/–17 +2 30 feet 18 (+1 size, +2 Dexterity, +5 natural), touch 13, flat-footed 16 +2/–2 Claw +2 melee (1d4) 4 claws +2 melee (1d4), bite +0 melee (1d6) 5 feet/5 feet (Face/Reach: 5 feet by 5 feet/5 feet) Rend 2d4 Low-light vision, fast healing 2 Fort +6, Ref +5, Will +1 Str 11, Dex 15, Con 17, Int 5, Wis 12, Cha 9 Listen +3, Spot +4 Light Sleeper, Multiattack* * Denotes a feat from the MM.
Environment: Organization: Challenge Rating: Treasure: Advancement: Level Adjustment:
Any Solitary 7 Standard 11–15 HD (Large); 16–20 HD (Huge) —
This eight-limbed creature walks on four legs and uses four arms for battle, which is its sole preoccupation. The kahrn literally feeds on conflict and uses physical strife to reproduce. Kahrns once roamed the Central Plains as a fairly peaceful omnivore, albeit one quite capable of defending itself. Nevertheless, the kahrn herds grew thin, and the species faced extinction, unable to compete with other, more successful types of creatures. Then came the dramojh. Experimentation by the dragon scions centuries ago transformed the remaining kahrns into very different creatures. While their appearance remained similar, the kahrns became creatures that thrived on combat. Bred to be soldiers, the kahrns were given minds greater than those of simple beasts, plus entirely new reproductive and digestive systems. Now kahrns do not eat flesh or plant life, but subsist on combat. The act of battle—the strife, the danger, the anger, the pain, the challenge—magically nourishes them. To gain sustenance, they must be involved in the combat; their feeding cannot be a passive act. Moreover, combat fertilizes embryos within the creatures, allowing them to reproduce asexually in the midst of conflict. A bud forms on a kahrn’s back, growing quickly with a cracking and snapping noise (the sound of bones and tissue
Any Solitary 2 None 3–6 HD (Small); 7–9 HD (Medium) — rapidly expanding). The bud bursts, spraying fluid and blood everywhere, and a kahrn larva spurts out, landing on the ground behind its parent. It’s an unsettling display to behold, but it inflicts no real harm on the parent kahrn— its natural rapid healing takes care of it well. A kahrn can reproduce only once every six months. The creatures love to fight, and they like combat to last a long time. With supernaturally fast regenerative abilities, they enjoy a remarkable capacity to stay in a fight. Sometimes folk in an area frequented by kahrns use the phrase “heals faster than a kahrn” to refer to someone who recovers from an injury or illness quickly. Further, and even stranger, their venom possesses healing qualities that keep their opponents alive and fighting. Kahrns hate it when foes run away or die too quickly. Sometimes they attempt to antagonize creatures that otherwise would not fight them: They strike their foe, give chase, and even make belligerent, bleating, and annoying noises. Kahrns may even observe another creature for a while to discern the best way to anger or provoke it—attacking the young or weak members of a group, damaging or stealing an important item, and so on. They also like to corner foes or trap them in an area from which they cannot easily escape.
