Cherufe

Gargantuan elemental (spirit), chaotic evil

Armor Class 19 (natural armor)

Hit Points 333 (18d20 + 144)

Speed 40 ft., burrow 40 ft., climb 40 ft., swim 30 ft.

STR 27 (+8) · DEX 10 (+0) · CON 26 (+8) · INT 16 (+3) · WIS 17 (+3) · CHA 20 (+5)

Saving Throws Dex +7, Con +15, Wis +10, Cha +12

Skills Athletics +15, Intimidation +12, Perception +10

Damage Resistances bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing from nonmagical attacks

Damage Immunities fire, poison

Condition Immunities poisoned, grappled, prone

Senses darkvision 120 ft., tremorsense 120 ft., passive Perception 20

Languages Ignan, Mapudungun; telepathy 120 ft.

Challenge 18 (20,000 XP)

Traits

Heated Body. A creature that touches Cherufe or hits it with a melee attack while within 5 ft. of it takes 10 (3d6) fire damage. Non-magical weapons that hit the Cherufe become red-hot; after dealing damage the weapon takes a permanent –1 penalty to damage rolls unless the wielder uses an action to douse it in water or cold. The weapon is destroyed if the penalty reaches –5.

Illumination. Cherufe sheds bright light in a 60-foot radius and dim light for an additional 60 ft.

Legendary Resistance (3/Day). If Cherufe fails a saving throw, it can choose to succeed instead.

Lava Strider. Cherufe can move across molten lava and stone without impediment and ignores earth- or stone-based difficult terrain. It can burrow through nonmagical, unworked earth and stone, leaving a red-hot tunnel that cools after 1 minute.

Molten Blood. When Cherufe is reduced to 0 hit points, it explodes in a geyser of lava. Each creature within 30 ft. must make a DC 22 Dexterity saving throw, taking 35 (10d6) fire damage and 35 (10d6) bludgeoning damage on a failed save, or half as much on a successful one.

Actions

Multiattack. Cherufe makes three Lava Claw attacks.

Lava Claw. Melee Weapon Attack: +14 to hit, reach 15 ft., one target. Hit: 28 (4d8 + 10) slashing damage plus 14 (4d6) fire damage.

Magma Gout (Recharge 5–6). Cherufe belches a 90-foot line, 10 ft. wide, of superheated magma. Each creature in the line must make a DC 22 Dexterity saving throw, taking 63 (18d6) fire damage on a failed save, or half as much on a successful one. A creature that fails the save is coated in magma and takes 10 (3d6) fire damage at the end of each of its turns. The effect ends if the creature or an adjacent ally uses an action to scrape the magma away or the creature immerses itself in water.

Seismic Stomp (Recharge 4–6). Cherufe strikes the ground, triggering a localized earthquake. Each creature on the ground within 30 ft. of Cherufe must succeed on a DC 22 Strength saving throw or take 35 (10d6) bludgeoning damage and be knocked prone. Structures in the area take double damage. The ground becomes difficult terrain until cleared (each 5-ft. square requires 1 minute of work).

Bonus Actions

Meteoroid Hurl (Recharge 4–6). Cherufe breaks off a chunk of molten rock and hurls it up to 120 ft. It explodes on impact. Choose a point within range; each creature in a 20-ft.-radius sphere centered on that point must make a DC 22 Dexterity saving throw, taking 28 (8d6) bludgeoning damage and 28 (8d6) fire damage on a failed save, or half as much on a successful one.

Reactions

Superheated Parry. When a creature Cherufe can see targets it with a melee weapon attack, Cherufe gains a +4 bonus to AC for that attack. If the attack misses, the weapon becomes red-hot; the attacker must succeed on a DC 22 Constitution saving throw or drop the weapon, which takes 10 (3d6) fire damage.

Legendary Actions

Cherufe 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. Cherufe regains spent legendary actions at the start of its turn.

Lava Claw. Cherufe makes one Lava Claw attack.

Move. Cherufe moves, climbs, or burrows up to half its speed.

Ignite (Costs 2 Actions). Each creature within 10 ft. of Cherufe takes 14 (4d6) fire damage; flammable objects ignite.

Volcanic Surge (Costs 3 Actions). Cherufe immediately recharges Magma Gout and uses it.

Lore

A magma-dwelling lava giant who devours virgins and flings their flaming heads from volcanoes.

The mythological landscape of the South American continent—especially the part where the Mapuche people live in what is now Chile and Argentina—forms a unique system of beliefs in which the forces of nature are personified as powerful and often destructive beings. Within this system a special place is reserved for Cherufe, an anthropomorphic and zoomorphic embodiment of volcanic fury, tectonic upheaval, and celestial fire. The name of the entity comes from Mapudungun: the term cherüwfe (variants cherrufe, cherrube, cheruve, chewurfe) literally means “the one who reduces to ashes by fire” or “the burner,” underscoring not only the creature’s fiery nature but also its transformative function. In different Mapuche regions the name is pronounced differently and carries varied semantic shading: in central Chile the form Cherüwfe focuses on turning things to ash; in coastal areas Cherruve or Cherive highlights ties to meteors and “flying heads”; in the high Andes Chewurfe stresses dominion over basaltic rock and magma.

Cherufe’s origin is linked to myths of the world’s creation and ordering. At the top of the Mapuche spirit hierarchy stand the heavenly spirits, the Pillan, many of whom were cast down by the supreme deity Antu and imprisoned in the depths of mountains for taking part in ancient celestial wars. Within this structure, Cherufe serves as the intermediary and enforcer of the imprisoned Pillan’s will. He does not control volcanoes outright—the spirits known as Ngen-winkul are considered the true masters and guardians of the mountains’ order and resources—yet Cherufe embodies the chaotic energy of the captive Pillan. His relationship with the Ngen-winkul is one of forced coexistence: the Ngen-winkul govern water, animals, and plants, while Cherufe dwells in deep magmatic lakes. When the imprisoned Pillan grow enraged, Cherufe becomes active, breaks through the Ngen-winkul’s barriers, and unleashes seismic shocks and lava eruptions.

From Demonic Bestiary 5E, p. 40 · Fern Flower Press