Creature Feature (Starjammer): Sky Troll CR 7

Welcome to Creature Feature Starjammer. Today we present the Sky Troll, alchemically altered rock trolls bred for use in planetary bombardment.

Sky Troll CR 7

This hulking brute’s rocky skin is covered in scorch marks and craters.

XP 3,200
CE Large humanoid (giant)
Init +2; Senses low-light vision; Perception +6

DEFENSE

AC 20, touch 10, flat-footed 19 (+4 armor, +1 Dex, +6 natural, -1 size)
hp 71 (8d8+32); regeneration 5 (acid or sonic)
Fort +13, Ref +4, Will +5
Weaknesses sunlight stasis

OFFENSE

Speed 40 ft.
Melee bite + 12 (1d8+7), 2 claw +12 (1d6+7)
Ranged mwk pepperbox rifle +8 (2d8)
Space 10 ft.; Reach 10 ft.
Special Attacks meteoric strike, rend (2 claws, 1d6+9)

STATISTICS

Str 26, Dex 15, Con 24, Int 5, Wis 13, Cha 6
Base Atk +6; CMB +14; CMD 25
Feats Intimidating Prowess, Iron Will, Light Armor Proficiency, Exotic Weapon Proficiency (pepperbox rifle)
Skills Climb +13, Intimidate +10, Perception +6
Languages Giant

SPECIAL ABILITIES

Sunlight Stasis (Ex)

A sky troll that is exposed to natural sunlight is staggered and must make a DC 20 Fortitude save each round to resist turning to stone. A stone to flesh spell (or similar effect) restores a petrified sky troll, but if it remains exposed to sunlight, it must immediately start making new Fortitude saves to avoid petrification. Spells like sunbeam or sunburst that create powerful natural sunlight cannot petrify a sky troll, but the troll is staggered for 1d4 rounds after being exposed to such an effect. A petrified sky troll has 8 hardness. A petrified sky troll can turn back to flesh when it is no longer exposed to sunlight by making a DC 20 fortitude save. A sky troll can attempt this save each round it is not exposed to sunlight.

Meteoric Strike (Ex)

If launched from a vehicle, a sky troll can attempt a meteoric strike on the first round of combat. The sky troll slams into the largest available target, against a vehicle or other mobile target the sky troll must make a melee touch attack to hit, against an unmoving structure or solid ground the sky troll automatically hits.
If a sky troll is petrified, they can instead be launched or dropped as siege weapon ammunition.

Against a vehicle, a sky troll deals 1d8 damage per HD. If the sky troll does more damage to a vehicle than a single square of the vehicle can take, it ruptures the vehicle wall and lands inside. When striking the ground or an unmoving structure the Sky Stroll instead causes an effect similar to the earthquake spell, with a radius of 10 ft. for every 2 HD.

Additionally, the sky troll takes damage equal to half its total health, ignoring all damage reduction or resistances.

ECOLOGY

Environment low planetary orbit
Organization solitary, squad (12), or siege (100+)
Treasure large masterwork chain shirt, large masterwork pepperbox rifle, 32 metal cartridges

Trolls have long been used as shock troops by the more cunning. If not countered by their traditional banes, small groups of trolls can be near impossible to kill. Over time, the trolls themselves have been modified by their masters. rock trolls seemed the best starting point, as fire is not uncommon on most battlefields.

After generations of breeding, magical and alchemical modifications, the sky troll was finally made. Unlike its rock troll ancestors, the sky troll only turns to stone while directly affected by sunlight, when no longer exposed to sunlight, it turns back to its normal form. This allowed for the easy storage and transport of trolls, as well as considerable savings on food costs.

While in a petrified form the sky trolls can be used as ammunition, either shot out of a ship with a mass driver setup or simply dropped out of a bombing bay onto a planet below. While turned to stone, each sky troll could weigh up to two tons, making them a devastating payload when dropped from the upper atmosphere of the planet.

Most sky trolls have been trained in the usage of armor and firearms to give them additional capabilities that their less specialized cousins lack. If the initial bombing misses the target, the trolls can wait until night falls, regenerate any wounds from impact, and then march towards their destination, taking targets out at range with their rifles, before closing in with claws and teeth.

As sky trolls are traditionally not fed while in petrified storage, most of them wake up ravenously hungry and uncontrolled, eager to consume any defenders, as well as the local civilian population.

While originally bred and created by more advanced spacefaring militaries, retrieval of sky trolls is often difficult, planets that have been bombarded by them often leave a breeding population behind, threatening the local population of the planet for decades to come. Sometimes, however, locals have managed to tame and militarize the remaining sky trolls, exposing them to sunlight and using them as ammunition with more traditional siege weapons.



About Kevin Bryan

Kevin Bryan is a monster writer for the Open Gaming Network, and is looking forward to bringing all sorts of strange and bizarre creatures to life. His personal website is Kevinswriting.com.

View all posts by Kevin Bryan →

Submit a Comment