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    Duoksini 두억시니

    Medium undead, chaotic evil

    Armor Class 17 (natural armor)

    Hit Points 198 (23d8 + 92)

    Speed 0 ft., fly 40 ft. (hover)

    STR 6 (−2) · DEX 18 (+4) · CON 18 (+4) · INT 14 (+2) · WIS 19 (+4) · CHA 21 (+5)

    Saving Throws Dex +9, Wis +9, Cha +10

    Skills Insight +9, Intimidation +10, Perception +9, Stealth +9

    Damage Vulnerabilities radiant

    Damage Resistances acid, fire, lightning, thunder; bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing from nonmagical attacks

    Damage Immunities necrotic, poison

    Condition Immunities charmed, exhaustion, grappled, paralyzed, petrified, poisoned, prone, restrained

    Senses darkvision 120 ft., passive Perception 19

    Languages Common and one other language it knew in life

    Challenge 14 (11,500 XP)

    Traits

    Incorporeal Movement. Duoksini can move through other creatures and objects as if they were difficult terrain. It takes 5 (1d10) force damage if it ends its turn inside an object.

    Aura of Dread. Any creature that starts its turn within 10 feet of Duoksini must succeed on a DC 18 Wisdom saving throw or become frightened until the start of its next turn. While frightened in this way, a creature is also poisoned. A creature that succeeds on the save is immune to Aura of Dread for 24 hours.

    Plague Warden. If Duoksini drops a creature to 0 hit points, that creature immediately dies and its corpse carries a magical disease. A humanoid that touches the corpse or starts its turn within 5 feet of it must make a DC 18 Constitution saving throw or contract the plague (see Plague of Dashen below). Casting lesser restoration or comparable magic on the corpse before 24 hours pass purges the disease.

    Hidden Mercy. When a creature uses an action to kneel or prostrate itself within 30 feet of Duoksini, the spirit must succeed on a DC 18 Wisdom saving throw or become indifferent toward that creature until the creature attacks it or forces it to make a saving throw.

    Actions

    Multiattack. Duoksini makes two attacks: one Head-Crush and one Spectral Claw.

    Head-Crush. Ranged Spell Attack: +10 to hit, range 60 ft., one creature. Hit: 33 (6d10) psychic damage, and the target must succeed on a DC 18 Constitution saving throw or be stunned until the end of Duoksini’s next turn.

    Spectral Claw. Melee Weapon Attack: +10 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 19 (3d8 + 5) necrotic damage.

    Plague of Dashen (Recharge 5–6). Duoksini targets up to three creatures it can see within 60 feet. Each target must make a DC 18 Constitution saving throw. On a failure, a target takes 35 (10d6) necrotic damage and is infected with a supernatural plague. On a success, the target takes half damage and isn’t infected.

    • An infected creature is poisoned and can’t regain hit points. At the end of each of its turns, the creature repeats the saving throw, ending the effect on itself on a success. A creature that dies while infected rises as a zombie under Duoksini’s control after 1 minute.

    Bonus Actions

    Baleful Glare. One creature Duoksini can see within 30 feet must succeed on a DC 18 Wisdom saving throw or be frightened until the end of Duoksini’s next turn. While frightened in this way, the creature’s speed is halved.

    Reactions

    Cruel Smirk. When a creature Duoksini can see fails a saving throw, Duoksini can immediately move up to half its fly speed without provoking opportunity attacks.

    Lore

    A spirit that appears as a child. It can crush a person, shattering the skull of anyone it dislikes.

    The monster’s name is a compound that neatly captures its nature. The first part, du-eok (두억), comes from an old phrase meaning “to press or crush the head.” The suffix ‑sini (시니) is a folk term for a spirit or ghost, shortened from sin-wi (신위, “spiritual presence”). Put together, the name literally describes the creature’s hallmark attack—crushing a human head.

    The best-known tale of Duoksini appears in the story collection Cheonye-rok (천예록). It tells of an extravagant banquet at a noble yangban’s house where a strange boy of about fourteen suddenly appears and stands silently, hair disheveled. He is described as “fierce,” immovable—“like a mountain” against every attempt to chase him away. When the family realizes the visitor isn’t human, they drop to their knees and beg him to leave. The boy smirks and vanishes. No sooner has he gone than a deadly plague strikes the household, killing everyone who had shown him disrespect.

    From Korean Bestiary 5E, p. 34 · Fern Flower Press