Gifted Beasts
Today's new homebrew, like a few of our others recently, is the first taste of what could be a rather long series. This time, we offer you the first two 'Gifted Beasts', rare animals blessed with a deeper connection to nature, and magic to go with it. Julie chose to start with the an elk and a lion, but these druidic creatures are only a few of many possible types of gifted creatures. From a design perspective, the idea for these was to use innate magic to expand upon and complement a mundane animal's existing combat traits; so, the gifted lion can now cast jump to Pounce from across the battlefield, and the gifted elk can Charge from trees for extra damage in combination with tree stride. There are a lot more animals in 5E, and so a lot more beasts for us to give gifts to, and we will, sooner or later. Sooner, if you're eager to see them! Let us know what animals you want to see empowered, and we'll start brewing. We hope you enjoy!
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Gifted Beasts
Gifted beasts are beasts of all walks of life blessed with magic. How they come across this magic is often dependent on the circumstances of their birth. Many are born in enchanted woodlands, corrupted deserts, or a similarly mystical biome, akin to the birth of a sorcerer. With this condition often comes a greater sentience. Those who are fortunate to encounter this rare breed, as well as live to tell the tale, often describe it as encountering a person, the light behind their gaze revealing their wisdom.
Despite this, as there are rarely enough of them to form meaningful communities, they often do not evolve past their more bestial urges and tendencies. Instead they often wield their strength and superior minds to become leaders of packs, becoming the apex of their environments. It is because of these natural talents that they are often hunted down for sport and material, their magical prowess providing ideal spellcasting and magic item components, as well as an ideal hunt. But such efforts rarely bode well for the hunters, as these beasts command their intelligence and magic to quickly turn the tables on those foolish enough to pursue them.
Gifted Elk
Folklore and poems are often told of these mythic, elegant beasts. While many who admire their beauty count themselves lucky to do so even from a distance, many obsess over these elks. To hunt one is considered to be the ultimate accomplishment as a hunter, and their hides and heads sell for top coin. But such poachers’ attempts are rarely fruitful, as many of these elk have the tools to not only elude their pursuants, but to punish them for trying.
Gifted Lion
Lions are a terrible encounter for any creature travelling through jungles and savannahs, their title ‘King of the Jungle’ being well earned. However, the raw presence and power of gifted lions exceed even that hierarchy. Their majesty and character commands their pride, and their prides are often loyal beyond question to their charge, rewarded with bountiful food and security. Gifted lions represent their pride, and possess the intellect to nonverbally negotiate with animals and humanoids alike; but with their power, they rarely find the need to.
Creating a Gifted Beast
Gifted beasts are a great opportunity to flesh out a setting, as well as provide an organic and compelling encounter. If you're interested in creating a gifted beast for your own setting, first identify the beast you want to make a gifted version of. Make sure you have the statblock for this beast, as the making of a gifted beast involves modifying the ordinary beast's statblock.
Afterward, identify your CR range. Once you've done this, raise the creature's statistics accordingly. Pay attention to the mental statistics, as they represent the gifted beasts' heightened mental prowess. As you're doing this, choose which mental statistics will be their spellcasting statistic. Afterward, choose spells that compliment the beast's biology, behaviors, and associated superstitions. Spells that lean towards the manipulation of nature, and spells that augment physical capabilities, are generally recommended. Then consider whether the damage, skill proficiencies, armor class, hit points, and features should change to match their magically enhanced skillet. When doing this, try to take iconic features, such as Pack Tactics, and add a unique addition to the gifted beast's version of it.
Finally, give them the Tempered Mind feature, and consider giving them proficiency in Wisdom saving throws, as well as other saving throws. There are a plethora of options to easily charm beasts at players' disposal; with these beasts being significantly more intelligent than the average beast, the Tempered Mind feature and proficiency in Wisdom saving throws will adequately represent this unique difference. Moreover, it will solidify them as a considerable threat to the party. Once this has been completed, review the resulting statblock for inconsistencies and extraneous features. Upon completion, a gifted beast has been created!
Gifted Elk
Large beast, chaotic neutral
Armor Class 16 (natural armor)
Hit Points 60 (8d10 + 16)
Speed 50 ft.
STR 16 (+3)
DEX 16 (+3)
CON 15 (+2)
INT 9 (-1)
WIS 17 (+3)
CHA 13 (+1)
Saving Throws Wis +5
Skills Insight +5, Perception +5, Stealth +5
Senses Darkvision 120 ft., passive Perception 15
Languages —
Challenge 2 (450 XP)
Charge. If the gifted elk moves at least 20 feet straight toward a target and then hits it with a ram attack on the same turn, the target takes an extra 7 (2d6) damage. Alternatively, if the gifted elk has used tree stride to transport between different trees prior to hitting a creature with its ram attack, the creature takes an additional 14 (4d6) damage. If the target is a creature, it must succeed on a DC 13 Strength saving throw or be knocked prone.
Innate Spellcasting. The gifted elk’s innate spellcasting ability is Wisdom (spell save DC 13). It can innately cast the following spells, requiring no material components:
3/day each: animal friendship, spike growth
1/day each: meld into stone, pass without trace, tree stride
Nature's Stride. Moving through natural difficult terrain costs the gifted elk no extra movement.
Tempered Mind. The gifted elk has advantage on saving throws against being charmed.
Actions
Ram. Melee Weapon Attack: +5 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 7 (1d6 + 3) bludgeoning damage.
Hooves. Melee Weapon Attack: +5 to hit, reach 5 ft., one prone creature. Hit: 8 (2d4 + 3) bludgeoning damage.
Gifted Lion
Large beast, neutral
Armor Class 15 (natural armor)
Hit Points 91 (14d10 + 14)
Speed 50 ft.
STR 19 (+4)
DEX 15 (+2)
CON 13 (+1)
INT 9 (-1)
WIS 12 (+1)
CHA 17 (+3)
Saving Throws Str +7. Dex +5, Wis +4
Skills Animal Handling +4, Intimidation +6, Perception +4, Stealth +8
Senses passive Perception 14
Languages —
Challenge 5 (1,800 XP)
Innate Spellcasting. The gifted elk’s innate spellcasting ability is Wisdom (spell save DC 12). It can innately cast the following spells, requiring no material components:
At will: jump, longstrider
3/day each: animal friendship, earthbind, hunter's mark
1/day each: fear
Pack Tactics. The gifted lion has advantage on an attack roll against a creature if at least one of the lion’s allies is within 5 feet of the creature and the ally isn’t incapacitated.
Pounce. If the lion moves at least 20 feet straight toward a creature and then hits it with a claw attack on the same turn, that target must succeed on a DC 15 Strength saving throw or be knocked prone. If the target is prone, the lion can immediately make one bite attack against it (no action required). If it does so, another lion within 20 feet can use its reaction to move up to its speed toward the target and make a bite attack.
Tempered Mind. The gifted lion has advantage on saving throws against being charmed.
Actions
Multiattack. The gifted lion makes two attacks: one with its bite and one with its claws.
Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +7 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 13 (2d8 + 4) piercing damage.
Claw. Melee Weapon Attack: +7 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 11 (2d6 + 4) slashing damage.
Summon Pride (1/Day). The gifted lion magically calls forth up to 2 lions. The called creatures arrive in 1 round, acting as allies of the gifted lion and obeying its mental commands. The lions remain hostile until the gifted lion dies, or until the gifted lion dismisses them as a bonus action.