Gargantuan Monstrosity (Shapechanger, Titan), Neutral
Armor Class 20 (Natural Armor)
Hit Points 553 (27d20 + 270)
Speed 25 ft.
STR
30 (+10)
DEX
8 (-1)
CON
30 (+10)
INT
21 (+5)
WIS
16 (+3)
CHA
10 (+0)
Saving Throws DEX +7, CHA +8
Skills Perception +19, Stealth +9
Damage Resistances Bludgeoning, Piercing, and Slashing from Nonmagical Attacks that aren't Adamantine
Damage Immunities Acid
Condition Immunities Prone
Senses Darkvision 240 ft., Passive Perception 29
Languages Common, Undercommon
Challenge 25 (75,000 XP)
Proficiency Bonus +8
Traits

Shapechanger. The mimic can use its action to polymorph into a dungeon or back into its true, amorphous form. Its statistics are the same in each form. Any equipment it is wearing or carrying isn't transformed. It reverts to its true form if it dies.  The mimic can also make alterations to its dungeon form to create or dismantle features such as puzzles, traps, and walls.  The mimic uses it ability to shapechange to form eyes along its interior, allowing it to keep track of the location and activities of creatures inside it.

Damage Threshold (20):  An attack must inflict at least 20 damage, after applying resistances and immunities, to harm the mimic.  Otherwise, the mimic takes no damage.

Adhesive (Object Form Only). The mimic can adhere to anything that touches it, and chooses which targets it adheres to and which it doesn't. A Gargantuan or smaller creature adhered to the mimic is also grappled by it (escape DC 26). Ability checks made to escape this grapple have disadvantage.

False Appearance (Object Form Only). While the mimic remains motionless, it is indistinguishable from a typical adventuring dungeon.

Grappler. The mimic has advantage on attack rolls against any creature grappled by it.

Innate Spellcasting. The mimic's innate spellcasting ability is Intelligence (spell save DC 21, +13 to hit with spell attacks). The mimic can innately cast any spell which replicates the effect of a trap or puzzle at the discretion of the DM.  It also can cast the following spells, requiring no components:

At will: detect magic, detect thoughts, identify.

Risk and Reward: A creature reduced to 0 hit points while challenging the mimic's dungeon dies and is devoured by the mimic.  A creature that fails to follow the dungeon rules and receives 3 warnings is attacked by the mimic.  Successfully completing dungeon challenges awards higher end treasure appropriate for that creature's level.

Scaling Dungeon. The mimic can use its spell DC as the DC for any checks a creature makes in order to succeed against the obstacles it generates.  The mimic can scale its spell DC to accommodate the ability level of an adventuring party challenging it based on the average level of the party.

Actions

Pseudopod. Melee Weapon Attack: +18 to hit, reach 20 ft., one target. Hit: 36 (4d12 + 10) bludgeoning damage. If the mimic is in object form, the target is subjected to its Adhesive trait.  If the target is a creature, it must succeed on a DC 26 Strength saving throw.  On a failed save, the target is pulled to a space within 5 feet of one of the mimic's walls, which forms a set of jaws.

Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +18 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 36 (4d12 + 10) piercing damage plus 26 (4d12) acid damage. If the target is a Huge or smaller creature, it must succeed on a DC 26 Strength or Dexterity saving throw (target's choice) or be swallowed by the mimic. A swallowed creature is blinded and restrained, it has total cover against attacks and other effects outside the mimic, and it takes 42 (12d6) acid damage at the start of each of the mimic's turns.

If the mimic takes 40 damage or more on a single turn from a creature inside it, the mimic must succeed on a DC 21 Constitution saving throw at the end of that turn or regurgitate all swallowed creatures, which fall prone in a space within 10 feet of the mimic, outside of the mimic's dungeon. If the mimic dies, a swallowed creature is no longer restrained by it and can escape from the corpse, treating the amorphous mimic's corpse as difficult terrain caused by liquid; a creature with a swimming speed can move normally.

Collapse (Recharge 6). The mimic collapses a room inside itself.  Any creature in that room must succeed on a DC 26 Strength or Constitution saving thrown (target's choice), taking 208 (32d12) bludgeoning damage on a failed saving throw, or half as much damage on a success.  Regardless of the saving throw's result, the creature is swallowed by the mimic, as outlined above.

Reactions

Set Challenge. When a creature first enters a new room in the mimic's dungeon, the mimic creates one of the following challenges:

  • Combat Encounter.  The mimic generates 1d4 simulacrum which must be defeated in order to advance further into the dungeon.  Simulacrum are outlined in the Dungeon Master's Challenges section under "Combat Challenges" below.
  • Puzzle:  The mimic sets a puzzle which must be solved in order to advance further into the dungeon.  A puzzle may incorporate a combat encounter or a trap, but should not incorporate both; but is ultimately at the discretion of the DM.
  • Trap:  The mimic sets a trap which must be dealt with in order to advance further into the dungeon.  Traps are outlined in the Dungeon Master's Challenges section under "Traps" below.
Legendary Actions

The Dungeon Master can take 3 legendary actions, choosing from the options below. Only one legendary action option can be used at a time and only at the end of another creature's turn. The Dungeon Master regains spent legendary actions at the start of its turn.

Shift Labyrinth. The mimic changes up to two of its walls.  It can create walls, collapse walls, create doors, make doors disappear or move a wall 5 feet.  Such a wall must be straight, and the area affected cannot exceed 30 feet in length.

Description

The Dungeon Master is an ancient mimic of massive size and vast intellect.  While most mimics seek nothing more than their next meal to survive, the Dungeon Master seeks intellectual stimulus: to challenge and be challenged.  To engage in a game of wits.  To meet both of its needs, it takes the shape of a dungeon, luring adventurers hungry for treasure or glory.

Once a party of adventures steps inside, the Dungeon Master sets challenges before them in the form of puzzles, traps, or monster encounters using smaller and weaker copies of itself, which mimic construct, ooze, and plant creatures.  Those who succeed against its challenges are rewarded with treasures from the Dungeon Master's impressive hoard.  Those who fail are consumed, and their possessions added to the pile of rewards at the Dungeon Master's disposal.

While the Dungeon Master does not openly advertise that it is in fact a mimic, it will reveal itself if an adventurer attempts to bypass one of its challenges, which is deems to be cheating, or attempts to damage it. 

Despite being a monster of colossal size with a diet consisting almost entirely of adventurers, the Dungeon Master is a patient and polite creature.  It reveals itself by speaking to an offending adventurer, explaining its nature and rules, and giving the adventurer its first warning.  After three such warnings, the Dungeon Master disqualifies the adventure; who becomes lunch.

The Living Labyrinth

This monster is a dungeon that has game statistics.  It is represented by a map rather than a miniature or token.  The DM will still need to populate said dungeon with traps, puzzles, or combat encounters, but should not limit their choices in such obstacles based on this monster's written statistics.

 

Lair and Lair Actions

The Dungeon Master’s Lair

The Dungeon Master doesn't so much have a lair as it is a lair.  As an ancient shapechanger, it has a great deal of control over its body, which it uses to its advantage.

Lair Actions

On initiative count 20 (losing initiative ties), the Dungeon Master takes a lair action to cause one of the following effects; the Dungeon Master can’t use the same effect two rounds in a row:

  • The Dungeon Master causes a spike—5 feet tall and 1 inch in diameter—to burst from the ground in a room within its body.  Any creature in the space where the spike emerges must make a Dexterity saving throw for a Dangerous Trap as outlined in the Dungeon Master's Challenges section under "Traps" below.  On a failed save, the creature takes Dangerous piercing damage and is restrained by being impaled on the spike. A creature can use an action to remove itself (or a creature it can reach) from the spike, ending the restrained condition.
  • The Dungeon Master causes a pit to open beneath 1 creature in a room within its body.  That creature must succeed on a Dexterity saving throw for a Deadly Trap as outlined in the Dungeon Master's Challenges section under "Traps" below, or fall 20 feet into the pit, taking 2d6 bludgeoning damage due to the fall.  The pit lasts until the next initiative count 20, after which, the pit raises back to ground level.
  • The Dungeon Master unleashes a volley of acid arrows in one of its rooms.  All creatures in that room must succeed on a Dexterity saving throw for a Dangerous trap as outlined in the Dungeon Master's Challenges section under "Traps" below, or take Set Back piercing damage plus an equal amount of acid damage.

Regional Effects

The region containing the Dungeon Master is warped by the mimic’s magic, which creates one or more of the following effects:

  • There’s a noticeable increase in the population of mimics in the region.
  • Rumors spread throughout the region of a ruin, temple, or similar dungeon structure appearing overnight. 
  • Adventurers in the area are determined to find the mysterious structure to plunder its riches.  The fact that many adventurers have gone off to find it and not returned is a popular news item.  The few adventuring parties known to have returned do so a great deal wealthier.

If the Dungeon Master dies, these effects fade of 1d10 days.

Dungeon Master's Challenges

The Dungeon Master is capable of producing truly deadly traps through magic or by mimicking their mechanisms.  However, it also realizes that not every adventuring party that challenges it is prepared to compete with it on its own level, and while decimating such adventurers would be an easy way to get prey, it deprives the Dungeon Master of its entertainment.  Thus, the Dungeon Master will hold back, and scale down its challenges to an appropriate level when challenged by a lower level party.

Combat Challenges

The Dungeon Master simulated combat encounters by generating simulacrums to act as its proxies.

A simulacrum is a mimic that has its own initiative and uses is Shapechanger trait to polymorph into a construct, ooze, or plant that has a challenge rating equal to or less than the average level of the adventuring party currently challenging the mimic's dungeon.  A simulacrum retains a mimic's traits, but gains the traits and uses the statistics of whatever monster it is mimicking.

For an idea on how to appropriately scale a combat encounter of the party's level, refer to Challenge section under Monsters in the DM Rules.

Traps

The following tables are taken from the Traps section of the DM Rules to provide a guideline on how to scale the Dungeon Master's traps.  A traps appearance and mechanism or the skills needed to disarm it are at the discretion of the DM.

Trap Save DCs and Attack Bonuses

Trap Danger Save DC Attack Bonus
Setback 10-11 +3 to +5
Dangerous 12-16 +6 to +8
Deadly 17-21 +9 to +13

Trap Damage Severity by Level

Character Level Setback Dangerous Deadly
1st-4th 1d10 2d10 4d10
5th-10th 2d10 4d10 8d10
11th-16th 4d10 8d10 16d10
17th-20th 8d10 16d10 32d10

Previous Versions

Name Date Modified Views Adds Version Actions
11/18/2018 12:24:45 AM
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Monster Tags: TitanShapechanger

Habitat: ArcticCoastalDesertForestGrasslandHillMountainSwampUnderdarkUrban

Sam_Hain

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