Proto-Shoggoth Synctium

Proto-Shoggoth Synctium CR 14

XP 38,400
CN Large ooze (mythos)
Init +11; Senses all-around vision, low-light vision, tremorsense 60 ft.; Perception +19

DEFENSE

AC 28, touch 16, flat-footed 21 (+7 Dex, +12 natural, –1 size)
hp 200 (16d8+128); fast healing 5
Fort +15, Ref +12, Will +10
DR 5/—; Immune blindness, cold, deafness, disease, infestation, mind-affecting effects, ooze traits, sonic; Resist acid 10, electricity 10, fire 10; SR 25

OFFENSE

Speed 40 ft., climb 30 ft., swim 40 ft.
Melee 4 slams +22 (2d6+11/19–20 plus grab)
Space 10 ft., Reach 10 ft.
Special Attacks constrict (2d6+11), distracting cacophony

STATISTICS

Str 32, Dex 24, Con 27, Int 1, Wis 16, Cha 10
Base Atk +12; CMB +24 (+26 sunder); CMD 41 (43 vs. sunder)
Feats Cleave, Great Cleave, Great Fortitude, Improved Critical (slam), Improved Initiative, Improved Sunder, Iron Will, Power Attack
Skills Climb +19, Perception +19, Swim +19
SQ compression, merge

SPECIAL ABILITIES

Distracting Cacophony (Su)

Although a syncytium is not intelligent enough to understand language, its half-formed mouths constantly emit a distracting cacophony of sounds and nonsense words. A syncytium can activate this ability is a free action. All other creatures in a 30-foot radius must succeed at a DC 18 Will save or be staggered for 1 round. A creature that successfully saves cannot be affected by this proto-shoggoth’s distracting cacophony again for 24 hours. This is a sonic mind-affecting effect. The save DC is Charisma-based.

Merge (Ex)

As a full-round action, two proto-shoggoth syncytia can attempt to merge (see the Merge entry in the protoshoggoth stat block on page 90); each must succeed at a DC 30 Fortitude save in order to merge. If both succeed at this save, they combine to form a fully-grown shoggoth.

ABOUT

Environment any
Organization solitary or mass (2–6)
Treasure incidental

Early attempts by the elder things to craft life resulted in strange, heaving masses of protoplasm that displayed a disturbing hunger for living flesh. Emboldened by this discovery, the alien scientists soon stabilized this matter, resulting in the creation of the first proto-shoggoths.

A proto-shoggoth appears as a tangled mass of roiling flesh and organs weighing approximately 160 pounds and is capable of forming all manner of hideous and nauseating shapes.

Proto-shoggoths have a singularly unusual and disturbing life cycle. While certain vile procedures can result in the artificial creation of a new protoshoggoth, these creatures can also spawn new proto-shoggoths by infecting the bodies of other living creatures. Yet to grow, a protoshoggoth does not feed—instead, it seeks out others of its kind to perform a voluntary sort of cannibalism with them, consuming and being consumed, and ultimately combining to manifest a larger version of the whole. Protoshoggoths thus do not advance in power via the standard rules for increasing a creature’s size.

Proto-shoggoths have no true society and are driven by two overwhelming instincts: the urge to infect living flesh, and the urge to merge with other proto-shoggoths. Once a creature succumbs to such an infestation, a proto-shoggoth instinctually knows to linger in the area and attempts to merge with its freshly born offspring when it erupts from the victim’s body. A proto-shoggoth tends not to remain in proximity with others of its kind that it has failed to merge with but is not hostile toward such incompatible specimens.

Once two proto-shoggoths successfully merge and form a proto-shoggoth syncytium, the syncytium gains a rudimentary intellect that allows it to more successfully seek out others to merge with and finish the growth cycle into a full-fledged shoggoth. It can no longer infect flesh, though, nor can it merge with other nonsyncytium proto-shoggoths, but it does understand that lingering in areas where other protoshoggoths are active will, eventually, give it opportunities to grow. A proto-shoggoth syncytium often acts as a protector over its mindless “children” and has been known to use rudimentary cunning to lure (or more often chase) unsuspecting living creatures into proto-shoggoth nests.