Description
(from Planescape Monstrous Compendium Appendix I - 1994):
The greatest of their kind, these few powerful slaadi have achieved near-immortal longevity through evil ceremonies. Most of the half-dozen known death slaadi work to propagate their race, marshalling mobs of red and blue slaadi to invade small villages on the Lower Planes. They imprison the population as hosts and incubate a new generation of slaadi.Death slaadi can communicate with all creatures through telepathy.
Combat: The death slaad attacks with two claws (3d6 damage and Constitution check or stunned for 1-6 rounds) and bite (2d10 damage). Like green and gray slaadi, a death slaad can shapechange into a duplicate of its original host, usually a powerful human. In this form it attacks twice per round, has at least 12 Charisma, and retains its great Strength (18/01, +3 damage adjustment). Only +2 or better weapons can harm a death slaad.
Collectively, death slaad have been observed to use the following spell-like powrrs, useable one at a time, one per round, at will: advanced illusion, astral spell, cloudkill, darkness, 15’ radius, detect magic, detect invisibility, ESP, fear, fireball (once per day), flame strike, invisibility, locate object, phantasmal killer (once per day), symbol (any, once per day), unholy word, and wind walk. No individuai death slaad has demonstrated all these powers.
Once per turn a death slaad can gate in 1-8 of any type of slaad except other death slaadi. This gate always succeeds. They can enchant an item if given time and equipment.
(from D&D 3rd Edition Monster Manual - 2000):
Lean and quick-looking, this humanoid resembles a two-legged frog. Its skin is a dappled gray color, and its fingers are long and clawed. It stands as tall as a human.
Death slaadi are grays that undergo some mysterious ritual that transforms them into veritable killing machines. Although they have spell-like abilities like gray slaadi, death slaadi focus more on killing than on magical power. They look exactly like gray slaadi. All slaadi obey the command of a death slaad, out of fear more than anything else. Death slaadi represent a corruption of pure chaos by evil rather than true exemplars of it.
Combat: Although its prowess with its natural weapons is fearsome, a death slaad enjoys wielding a magic weapon if available.
Stun (Ex): Three times per day, a death slaad can attempt to stun its opponent on an attack with one of its natural weapons. If the opponent fails a DC 21 Fortitude save, it is stunned for 1 round in addition to taking normal damage from the attack. The save DC is Wisdom-based.
Spell-Like Abilities: At will—animate objects, chaos hammer (DC 18), deeper darkness, detect magic, dispel law (DC 19), fear (DC 18), finger of death (DC 21), fireball (DC 17), fly, identify, invisibility, magic circle against law, see invisibility, shatter (DC 16); 3/day—circle of death (DC 20), cloak of chaos (DC 22), word of chaos (DC 21); 1/day—implosion (DC 23), power word blind. Caster level 15th. The save DCs are Charisma-based.
Change Shape (Su): A death slaad can assume any humanoid form as a standard action. In humanoid form, a death slaad cannot use its natural weapons (although a slaad can equip itself with weapons and armor appropriate to its appearance). A death slaad remains in one form until it chooses to assume a new one. A change in form cannot be dispelled, but the slaad reverts to its natural form when killed. A true seeing spell reveals its natural form.
Summon Slaad (Sp): Twice per day a death slaad can attempt to summon 1–2 red or blue slaadi with a 60% chance of success, or 1–2 green slaadi with a 40% chance of success. This ability is the equivalent of a 6th-level spell.
(from D&D 5th Edition Monster Manual - 2014):
Death slaadi are suffused with energy from the Negative Energy Plane and exemplify evil’s corruption of chaos, and they take sadistic pleasure in bringing harm to others. They propagate their race by dragooning mobs of red and blue slaadi and invading other planes. Humanoids who survive the incursion become incubators for new slaadi.
Alternate Versions
Size
Hero Forge: 7 ft. (XXL)
Lore: Medium
Suggested: Medium
Other Monikers
Lesser Masters
Abilities
- Shapechanger
- Innate Spellcasting
- Magic Weapons
- Resistant to acid, lightning, cold, fire, thunder
- Magic Resistance
- Regeneration
- Blindsight, Telepathy
Appearance
Like all Slaadi, death slaadi resemble giant, clawed, bipedal toads. Death slaadi look much like gray slaadi, but more corpulent and corrupted-looking, suffused as they are with energy from the negative energy plane.
Home Plane
Limbo (negative energy plane)
Stat Block
Sources
- Monster Manual (2014)
- Monster Manual 3rd Edition (2000)
- Planescape: Monstrous Compendium Appendix I (1994)