Aswang

Medium shapechanger, chaotic evil

Armor Class 15 (natural armor)

Hit Points 99 (13d8 + 39)

Speed 30 ft., fly 60 ft. (bird form only)

STR 13 (+1) · DEX 18 (+4) · CON 16 (+3) · INT 11 (+0) · WIS 14 (+2) · CHA 16 (+3)

Saving Throws Dex +7, Wis +5

Skills Deception +6, Perception +5, Stealth +7

Damage Vulnerabilities radiant

Damage Resistances bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing from non-magical attacks that aren’t silvered

Condition Immunities charmed, frightened

Senses darkvision 60 ft., passive Perception 15

Languages Common, one regional language

Challenge 5 (1,800 XP)

Traits

Shapechanger. As a bonus action, the aswang can transform into a Large black bird or back into its humanoid form. While a bird, its speed is replaced by fly 60 ft., it can’t wield weapons, and it gains advantage on Dexterity (Stealth) checks made at night.

Night Ointment. The aswang’s flight and resistance traits function only while it is in darkness or dim light. If it starts its turn in sunlight or is completely immersed in flowing water (such as heavy rain), it takes 11 (2d10) radiant damage, loses its resistances, and its fly speed becomes 0 until the end of its next turn.

Silver Aversion. If the aswang is hit by a silvered weapon, it loses its Damage Resistances until the end of its next turn.

Blood Sense. The aswang knows the location of any creature that has less than half its hit points within 120 feet and in the same body of air.

Actions

Multiattack. The aswang makes two Claw attacks and one Tongue Bite, or three Beak attacks in bird form.

Claw (Humanoid Form). Melee Weapon Attack: +7 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 9 (1d10 + 4) slashing damage.

Tongue Bite (Humanoid Form). Melee Weapon Attack: +7 to hit, reach 10 ft., one target. Hit: 14 (4d4 + 4) piercing damage plus 10 (3d6) necrotic damage, and the aswang regains hit points equal to the necrotic damage dealt. The target’s hit-point maximum is reduced by the same amount. The reduction lasts until the target finishes a long rest. The target dies if this effect reduces its hit-point maximum to 0.

Beak (Bird Form). Melee Weapon Attack: +7 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 12 (2d6 + 5) piercing damage. If the target is surprised, the attack deals an extra 7 (2d6) necrotic damage.

Reactions

Toxic Plume (Bird Form, Recharge 6). When the aswang is hit by a ranged attack, it releases a cloud of foul, black feathers in a 10-foot radius around itself. Each creature other than the aswang in the area must succeed on a DC 15 Constitution saving throw or be blinded until the end of its next turn. The attack that triggered this reaction is made with disadvantage.

Lore

A catch-all name for Filipino shapeshifters and vampire-type monsters. By day they blend in with ordinary people; by night they hunt, drinking blood and eating organs—especially those of pregnant women and newborns.

To set the record straight from the start, an Aswang is not a vampire in the usual sense of the word. Nor is an Aswang what we normally mean by “werewolf.” On top of that, these monsters are more than mere witches or sorceresses.

An Aswang is a blend of all the above. In most stories the word refers to an attractive girl or young woman who knows the recipe for a special ointment. After rubbing this salve over her body she turns into a large black bird that circles villages, crying out “ka-kak” or “ki-kak.” Once she singles out a house—typically that of a sick person, a pregnant woman, or a child—the Aswang pierces the victim’s jugular with her long tongue and drinks every drop of blood. Some accounts add that blood-sucking isn’t her only vice; she is also blamed for stealing babies, even the unborn, in order to devour their livers and hearts, which grant her extra power.

From Oceanian Bestiary 5E, p. 20 · Fern Flower Press