Straugh
Level 10Attacks
Abilities
Requirements The ghoul is adjacent to the corpse of a creature that died within the last hour.
Effect The ghoul devours a chunk of the corpse and regains 7d6 healing Hit Points.
It can regain Hit Points from any given corpse only once.
Unaware that its vocal organs have withered and decayed, the straugh instinctively but ineffectively attempts to screech, instead releasing malodorous gas, half-digested corpse flesh, and small swarms of maggots from its open beak. The straugh releases a disgusting cloud of gas and decaying detritus in a 15-foot area; any creature within the area must attempt a DC 28 fortitude save. On a failure, the creature is Sickened 2. On a critical failure, the creature also takes a -5 foot status penalty
Saving Throw DC 28 fortitude
Stage 1 carrier with no ill effect (1 day)
Stage 2 4d8 void damage and regains half as many Hit Points from all healing (1 day)
Stage 3 as stage 2 (1 day)
Stage 4 4d8 void damage and gains no benefit from healing (1 day)
Stage 5 as stage 4 (1 day)
Stage 6 dead, and rises as a Ghoul the next midnight.
Any living, non-elf creature hit by a ghoul's attack must succeed at a DC 26 fortitude save or become Paralyzed. It can attempt a new save at the end of each of its turns, and the DC cumulatively decreases by 1 on each such save.
A straugh can burrow through solid stone at a Speed of 10 feet. It can leave a tunnel if it desires, and it usually does.
Requirements The straugh has Burrowed underground and remains undetected by the creature it plans to attack
Effect The straugh Burrows twice to emerge from the ground adjacent to at least one enemy and immediately makes a Strike against that foe.
When skirmishes break out between tunneling ghouls and creatures that dwell beneath the surface of Golarion, there's a chance that ghoul fever could infect such animals, producing strange new variants of ghoul beasts. However, letting the natural corruption run its course sometimes results in unsatisfying monsters, so some necromancers speed the process. This is the situation that led to the creation of the first straugh. A priest of Kabriri made the monstrosity to defend a claimed cemetery from another sect of ghouls who were preying upon the interred bodies. In some places, ghouls use straughs to tunnel into rival warrens or highly fortified mausoleums.