Katzenveit

Large fiend (demon, shapechanger), Lawful Evil

Armor Class 17 (natural armor)

Hit Points 189 (18d10 + 90)

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

STR 20 (+5) · DEX 16 (+3) · CON 20 (+5) · INT 18 (+4) · WIS 16 (+3) · CHA 18 (+4)

Skills Deception +8, Insight +7, Intimidation +8, Perception +7, Stealth +7

Gear Purse of the Honest Merchant (Produces 1d4 silver pieces daily; silver turns to useless straw forever if the owner attempts to lie or cheat for financial gain), Rope of Truth (A creature bound by this rope cannot speak deliberate lies; if it attempts to, it takes 1d6 bludgeoning damage as the rope constricts), Pouch of Kohlberg Ash (Can be consumed to cast Produce Flame or Burning Hands).

Senses Blindsight 60 ft., Darkvision 120 ft., passive Perception 17

Languages Common, Abyssal, Infernal, Ignan

Challenge 9 (5,000 XP)

Traits

Earth Glide. Katzenveit can burrow through nonmagical, unworked earth and stone. While doing so, he doesn't disturb the material he moves through.

Bound to the Flame. Katzenveit draws his power from the eternal subterranean fires of Mount Kohlberg. If he is moved more than 1 mile from his mountain, or if he is forcefully pinned to the ground (Grappled or Restrained), he loses his flying speed and his resistances to Bludgeoning, Piercing, and Slashing damage until the condition ends or he returns to his territory.

Aversion to the Sacred. If Katzenveit is splashed with holy water or takes Radiant damage, he is enraged and disoriented, suffering Disadvantage on his attack rolls and ability checks until the end of his next turn.

Lair Actions. While inside the fiery caverns of Mount Kohlberg, Katzenveit can invoke the ambient magic of the mountain. On initiative count 20 (losing initiative ties), Katzenveit takes a lair action to cause one of the following effects; he can't use the same effect two rounds in a row:

Cave-In: Katzenveit drops the cavern ceiling in a 15-foot radius centered on a point he can see within 120 feet. Creatures in the area must make a DC 16 Dexterity saving throw, taking 14 (4d6) bludgeoning damage on a failure, or half as much on a success.

Lava Pit: Katzenveit opens a 10-foot-square pit of lava under the feet of his enemies. Any creature in that space must succeed on a DC 16 Dexterity saving throw or fall into the pit, taking 17 (5d6) fire damage.

Actions

Multiattack. Katzenveit makes three attacks using Fiery Claws, Threshing Blow, or Brimstone Spit. He can replace one of these attacks with Spellcasting.

Fiery Claws (Cat or True Form Only). Melee Attack: +9 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 14 (2d8 + 5) slashing damage plus 7 (2d6) fire damage.

Threshing Blow (Humanoid or True Form Only). Melee Attack: +9 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 18 (2d12 + 5) bludgeoning damage. If the target is a creature, it is automatically knocked Prone, and 1d4 coins of its most valuable currency spill from its inventory onto the ground.

Brimstone Spit. Magic Attack: +8 to hit, range 60 ft., one target. Hit: 18 (4d8) fire damage. If the target is a creature, it is automatically Blinded until the end of its next turn by a sudden swarm of stinging insects and choking ash.

Fire Breath (Recharge 5-6). Katzenveit exhales a 30-foot cone of subterranean fire, sulfur, and burning coal. Each creature in that area must make a DC 16 Dexterity saving throw, taking 42 (12d6) fire damage on a failed save, or half as much damage on a successful one.

Spellcasting. Katzenveit casts one of the following spells, requiring no material components and using Charisma as the spellcasting ability (Spell Save DC 16):

At Will: Command Command (PHB, p. 251), Minor Illusion (PHB, p. 298), Prestidigitation Minor Illusion (PHB, p. 307)

2/Day Each: Hallucinatory Terrain (PHB, p. 283), Polymorph (Offensive use only; PHB, p. 283), Wall of Fire (PHB, p. 338)

Bonus Actions

Shapechanger. Katzenveit magically transforms into a Medium humanoid, a Large black tomcat, a Medium owl, a Large swarm of bees, or back into his true form (shuddering earth and pillars of fire). His statistics are the same in each form, though he can only use certain attacks based on his current shape. Any equipment he is wearing or carrying isn't transformed. He reverts to his true form if he dies.

Lore

A spiteful demon cat from underground.

Katzenveit — a Spiteful Demon Cat from Underground In old German folktales Katzenveit isn’t just some forest monster; he’s a spirit with a pitch-black past. Centuries ago, they say, he was a living man—a cruel, grasping tax collector. People called his office something that sounded like “Katzenveit” (“the Cat Bailiff”). He sinned so much, stole so much, and tormented so many that when he died Heaven slammed its gates on him, and his soul became a vicious ghost doomed to wander the earth.

Eventually the local authorities had had enough. They summoned a traveling exorcist who bound the specter and drove him deep into the coal mines under Mount Kohlberg. The most terrifying part is that in the 15th century, a hunter’s stray musket shot set the coal seams ablaze, and the tunnels beneath the mountain have burned ever since. That eternal underground fire is now Katzenveit’s lair. The mountain’s weight crushes down on him, and in his rage he quakes the ground and spits flame. In his true form he has no body at all—just shuddering earth, pillars of fire, and the choking reek of sulfur and scorched coal.

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