# Avassh's Festerblight

Creeping engines of rot and corruption, the Festerblights are the vile masterpieces of the Twister of Roots. Each Festerblight is trapped in an eternal cycle of excruciating growth and terrible decay, scattering spores and diseased material in a wide area around it. Consisting of a patchwork mixture of roots, mycelium and once-human flesh, the form of each Festerblight shifts, grows, and dies at horrific speed, their mouths twisted in insane ecstasy as they worship the daelkyr Avassh. The seeping poison and spores shed by the creatures act like contagions, rotting and corrupting the life in the area around them. Fungal gardens, myconid colonies and rotting corpses are but a few delightful samples of what such creatures leave in their wake as they crawl through the demiplanes of Khyber like parasites.

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"*You fear death, yet cannot escape it. You cling to life, yet it drags you  into the mire; we live off consumption and are consumed in turn - now overcome the rotten cycle.*

*Rise beyond your mortal chains - with experience comes understanding, becomes true enlightenment. Join the embrace of the earth, and find eternal peace. *"

**-The Creed of Avassh, Twister of Roots**
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##### Running the Festerblight
The Festerblight is a ticking time-bomb of poisonous rot, stacking debuffs and status conditions to wear it's enemies down into mulch. Delay and distract your players until the Festerblight Proliferates, massively increasing its damage against infected enemies. For a fair fight, make sure to hint at the imminent explosion, giving your players time to evacuate - or weather the incoming storm!

**Fitting Locales:** Jungles, Khyber, The Gloaming
  
**Monster Role:** Artillery, Controller
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> ## Festerblight
>*Medium plant (Aberrant), chaotic evil*
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> - **Armor Class** 15 (natural armor)
> - **Hit Points** 142 (16d8 + 70)
> - **Speed** 5 ft.
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>|STR|DEX|CON|INT|WIS|CHA|
>|:---:|:---:|:---:|:---:|:---:|:---:|
>|20 (+5)|4 (-3)|20 (+5)|3 (-4)|18 (+4)|14 (+2)|
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> - **Saving Throws** Str +8, Con +8, Wis +7
> - **Skills** Perception +10, Survival +7
> - **Damage Resistances** fire, psychic
> - **Damage Immunities** necrotic, poison
> - **Condition Immunities** blinded, charmed, exhaustion, frightened, grappled, poisoned, prone
> - **Senses** blindsight 80 ft., tremorsense 120 ft., passive Perception 20
> - **Languages** Undercommon
> - **Challenge** 8 (3,900 XP)
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> ***Unbound Proliferation.*** Starting at Medium size, the Festerblight grows one size larger at the end of each of it's turns. It adds 4 (1d6) piercing damage to it's Vine Lash attack for every size above Medium. When the Festerblight ends it's turn as Garguantuan, it erupts in a burst of putrefying spores and returns to  Medium. Every creature within 40ft of the Festerblight that is not immune to disease must make a DC16 Constitution Saving throw or gain vulnerability to poison damage for 1 hour. This effect supercedes   resistance to poison damage and is considered a disease.
>
> ***Poison Thorns.*** A creature that touches the Festerblight or hits it with a melee attack while within 5 feet of it takes 3 (1d4) poison damage. If the Festerblight enters a creature's space due to Unbound Proliferation, the creature also takes 3 (1d4) poison damage and is pushed to the edge of the Festerblight's space.
>
>
> ### Actions
> ***Multiattack.*** The Festerblight makes one Vine Lash attack, then uses Rot and Ruin.
>
> ***Vine Lash.*** _Melee Weapon Attack:_ +9 to hit, reach 10 ft., one creature. _Hit:_ 12 (2d6 + 5) piercing damage plus 13 (4d6) poison damage.
>
> ***Rot and Ruin.*** The Festerblight mutates uncontrollably as it grows, contaminating the area around it. The Festerblight uses each of the following options no more than once (roll a d4 or choose one) until it returns to size Medium:<br>
>1. _Blistervines._ Each creature of the Festerblight's choice within 60ft must succeed on a DC16 Dexterity Saving throw or become covered in poison until an action is taken by them or another creature to scrape it off. A creature covered in the toxin takes 7 (2d6) poison damage at start of each of its turns.<br>
>2. _Mantrap Burst._ Melee Weapon Attack: +9 to hit, reach 15 ft., one target. _Hit:_ The target is trapped inside leafy jaws. the target is blinded and restrained, and takes 13 (4d6) piercing damage plus 13 (4d6) poison damage at the start of each of the target's turns. The target, or an adjacent creature, must take an action to succeed on a DC 16 Athletics (Strength) check for them to escape.<br>
>3. _Thorn Skewers._ Ranged Weapon Attack: +9 to hit, range 120/240 ft., three targets further than 15ft from the Festerblight. _Hit:_ 18 (2d12 + 5) piercing damage and 7 (2d6) poison damage.<br>
>4. _Euphoria Spores._ The Festerblight releases a spore cloud affecting every creature within 20ft of it. Affected creatures must succeed on a DC 16 Constitution saving throw or become charmed by the Festerblight for 1 minute. A creature charmed in this way must move to the nearest ally and attempt to grapple them as an action. A creature can repeat the saving throw at the end of each of its turns and whenever it takes damage, ending the effect on a success.

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## Campaign Options:


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### Plot Hooks

**Deep Roots:** A cities water supply has become tainted with vile poisons and the citizens are falling ill. What evil has taken root deep with the caverns and aquifers below?
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**Crawling Tide:** Twisted animals and walking plant monsters are pouring from the nearby forest. With every day, the Festerblight crawls closer - but the enemies grow stronger!

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**Spore Core:** A Myconid colony deep underground has taken to worshipping a Festerblight as a prophet from Avassh. Can the players sneak past the colonies gaze?

### Fitting Minions

Avassh's creations include all manner of twisted and corrupted plants ranging from small twig blights to immense corpse flowers. These accompany the usual servants of the daelkyr such as dolgrims and dolgaunts, which may appear to be fusions of plant and humanoid, blighted with rot and poisonouse thorns.
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**Twig Blights** (CR 1/8, MM) and **Needle Blights** (CR 1/4, MM) are perfect minions, dying to single attacks but more mobile than the Festerblight and can force concentration saves on casters. Each can easily represent the reanimated corpses of those slain by the Festerblight's spores and decay. 
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For more capable parties, **Dolgrims** (CR 1/2, RftLW) and **Vine Blights** (CR 1/2, MM)  also fit, although these are comparatively far more dangerous; Vine Blights can restrain targets, preventing them from running and marking them for attacks, while Dolgrims have high damage output for their low CR. Consider customising Dolgrims (or Dolgaunts) that serve Avassh by removing one attack from their Multiattack, but granting them Immunity to poison damage and the following:
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<div class='descriptive'>
***Poison Thorns***. A creature that hits the Dolgrim/gaunt with a melee attack while within 5 feet of it takes 3 (1d4) poison damage.
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### Regional Effects
A Festerblight's presence has a marked effect on it's environment, poisoning the animal life and corrupting the flora into aggressive and poisonous monstrosities. These effects fade after 1 day if the Festerblight is slain
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* Animals living within 1 mile of the Festerblight are under the effect of the _barkskin_ spell and appear to have skin made of wood or twisted vines
* A humanoid that dies within 1 mile of the Festerblight turns into a Vine Blight after 24 hours.
* Creatures within 1 mile of the Festerblight can see plants turning to face them in their peripheral vision.

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### Loot and Rewards

The Festerblight is a potential source for potion reagents, plant-based symbionts and magic items suited for Druids and Rangers. Consider the following thematic options:
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#### Very Rare: 
Ring of Regeneration
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#### **Rare:** 

&nbsp;&nbsp;  Charm of Plant Command, 

'Seed of Rot' (Outer Essence Shard (Evil) )

Quaal's Feather Token (Tree)

Ring of Poison/Necrotic Resistance

Staff of Withering

'Vileblood Thorn' (Rapier of Life Stealing)

#### **Uncommon:**

&nbsp;&nbsp; 'Evergrowth Loop' 

Periapt of Proof against Poison

Wand of Vine Growth (Wand of Web)

Potion of Poison, Potion of Poison/Necrotic Resistance 
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<div class='descriptive'>
##### **Evergrowth Loop** 
*Ring, uncommon (requires attunement)*
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This writhing vine band has 3 charges and regains 1d3 expended charges daily at dawn. While wearing it, you can expend 1 charge to cast _ensnaring strike_ (save DC 13).
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#### Living Symbionts:
Consider adding the following  to denote the alien nature of items derived from the madness of the daelkyr: 

 **Symbiotic Nature.** The [ item ] can't be removed from you while you're attuned to it, and you can't voluntarily end your attunement to it. If you're targeted by a spell that ends a curse, your attunement to it ends, and it can be removed.
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