Briar Beast

Large Magical Beast

Hit Dice: 8d10+40 (84 hp),dying/dead –5/–19 Initiative: +0 Speed: 40 feet AC: 23 (–1 size,+14 natural),touch 9,flat-footed 23 Base Attack/Grapple: +8/+18 Attack: Claw +13 melee (1d6+6) or briar whip +8 melee (1d8+6) Full Attack: 2 claws +13 melee (1d6+6) and gore +11 melee (1d8+3),or 2 briar whips +8 melee (1d8+6) Space/Reach: 10 feet/10 feet or 15 feet (briar whips) (Face/Reach:5 feet by 5 feet/10 feet or 15 feet) Special Attacks: Control briars Special Qualities: Low-light vision,briars,immunities Saves: Fort +10,Ref+6,Will +5 Abilities: Str 23,Dex 11,Con 19,Int 6,Wis 13,Cha 9 Skills: Knowledge (nature) +4,Listen +4,Spot +3 Feats: Light Sleeper,Multiattack*,Opportunistic Attack†,

Stunning Blow

Environment: Temperate forest or hills Organization: Solitary or pair Challenge Rating: 6 Treasure: Standard Advancement: 9–12 HD (Large);13–16 HD (Huge) Level Adjustment: +3

*Denotes a feat from the MM.

A huge beast covered in briar tangles,this monstrosity roams the wilderness,capturing prey by mentally controlling the strands ofbriars wrapped around it.It can use them to grab foes,whip them,or spray them with barbs.It can even control briars found in patches nearby,causing them to grasp at foes or forming them into difficult barriers.

The briar beast is a predator,but normally it only goes after prey that does not fight back.Nevertheless,it can prove a threat to humanoids,because it defends its territory against all other perceived competition.It is an obstinate and easily irritated beast.

The briar beast usually roams alone,but occasionally two siblings (the beasts are always born in litters oftwo) or a mated pair hunt together.Unless part ofsuch a pairing,briar beasts hate others oftheir kind more than anything.

Anytime a beast comes upon a briar patch,it renews the briar tangles that wrap around it.It often sleeps within briar patches but rarely keeps a permanent lair,unless it is caring for newborn young.For their first year,the parents watch over these young beasts closely.

Known for its extremely durable armored hide,the briar beast has a muscular physique.It normally walks on all fours,with its back hunched.It can,for short periods,walk on only its rear legs,which—unlike the massive weapons on its front legs—bear only small claws.Its head looks a little like that ofa boar,with two yellowish tusks on each side ofits wide snout.Its hide is dark brown with tufts oflong, wiry black hair.The briars covering the creature are light brown and dark green.

Combat

When hunting,a briar beast aggressively pursues its quarry by running it down and grasping with briars (or its claws). Against dangerous foes,it fights defensively,retracting into a tight mass ofmuscle,claws,and briars.

Briars (Ex): This beast is covered in barbs.Any creature that attempts to grapple it,becomes grappled by it,or strikes it with natural weapons (including unarmed strikes) suffers 1d3 points ofdamage per round from the barbs.

Control Briars (Su): The briar beast can psionically control all briars within 50 feet at will,making them move as if using telekinesis. This ability allows it to produce a number of effects,each requiring a standard action (except for wall of thorns,which requires a full round).

Whip: The simplest thing the briar beast can do is whip someone with a strand ofbriars.It can strike anyone within 15 feet ofitselfwith a strand from its own body.It can also use a separate briar strand within 50 feet ofit to attack a target within 15 feet ofthe briar.(A briar whip not wrapped around the beast strikes with an attack bonus of+8,inflicting 1d8 points ofdamage.) The briar beast can use one briar whip attack as a standard action or two as a full attack action.

Grapple: A creature struck by a briar whip is subject to an immediate grapple attack ifthe beast wishes it.This does not provoke an attack ofopportunity.A briar attached to the beast may use the beast’s size and grapple bonus. Otherwise,the briar’s grapple bonus is +8,and it is treated as a Medium creature.An individual strand has a hardness of2 and 5 hit points.

Spray Barbs: The briars wrapped around the beast flail about,launching their barbs in all directions.Everyone within 30 feet suffers 3d6 points ofdamage.A Reflex saving throw (DC 14) decreases the damage by half.The beast can spray barbs only from its own encircling briars.The saving throw DC is Dexterity based.

Wall ofThorns: This effect,which takes a full-round action to create,requires a particularly thick,briar-filled area beyond those briars attached to the beast itself.The beast creates an effect as described in the wall ofthorns spell,as if cast by a 10th-level caster.The briar beast can use this ability once per day.

Entangle: This effect requires a thick,briar-filled area beyond those briars attached to the beast itself.Briars wrap,twist,and entwine about creatures within or entering an area 30 feet wide,holding them fast and causing them to become entangled unless they succeed at a Reflex saving throw (DC 13).

An entangled creature moves at halfspeed,cannot run or charge,and suffers a –2 penalty on attack rolls and a –4 penalty to its effective Dexterity score.An entangled character attempting to cast a spell must make a Concentration check (DC 15 + spell level) or lose the spell.The creature can break free and move at halfits normal speed by using a full-round action to make a Strength check (DC 20) or Escape Artist check (DC 20).A creature that succeeds at its Reflex save is not entangled but can still move at only halfspeed through the area.On the briar beast’s turn each round,as a standard action,the beast can once again attempt to entangle all creatures in the area that have avoided or escaped entanglement. Otherwise,the briars do not grasp again at free creatures. Those entangled are held for 1d6+1 rounds.The saving throw DC is Charisma based.

Immunities (Su): The briar beast cannot be harmed by briars,plant thorns,or similar damaging objects.This is true even ofthe physical attacks made by intelligent plants. Likewise,it remains immune to effects that cause plants to grasp or grab (like bind with plants).

Briar Beast Encounter (EL 6)

Making their way through the wilderness,the PCs encounter a man who claims to have had a vision.He says he was once an evil financier,cheating widows out oftheir savings and taking the land from innocent farmers who had fallen on hard times.To redeem himself,the vision showed him,he must come into the wilderness and find a creature that would lash his sins away.As they speak,an angry briar beast crashes out ofa nearby copse oftrees. The man exclaims that the briar beast is the creature he saw in his vision.The PCs must decide what to do when the financier charges headlong toward the beast—and certain doom.Even ifthey let him go (a callous act,to be sure,considering the man seems sincerely repentant),after the briar beast has made short work ofhim,it comes after them as well.