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    Wanyudo 輪入道

    Large undead (yokai), chaotic evil

    Armor Class 17 (natural armor)

    Hit Points 136 (16d10 + 48)

    Speed 0 ft., fly 50 ft. (hover)

    STR 21 (+5) · DEX 16 (+3) · CON 16 (+3) · INT 10 (+0) · WIS 14 (+2) · CHA 12 (+1)

    Saving Throws Str +8, Con +6, Wis +5

    Skills Intimidation +4, Perception +5

    Damage Resistances bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing from nonmagical attacks

    Damage Immunities fire, poison

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

    Senses darkvision 120 ft., passive Perception 15

    Languages understands Common; cannot speak (communes via snarls, roars, or telepathic curses)

    Challenge 8

    Traits

    Fiery Wheel Form. Wanyudo appears as a massive, flaming cartwheel with the enraged face of a daimyo in its center. It hovers a few feet above the ground and can briefly ascend to treetop or rooftop height.

    Nightmare Presence (Critical Glance). Any creature that sees Wanyudo for the first time on a turn or starts its turn able to see Wanyudo must succeed on a DC 16 Wisdom saving throw or become frightened for 1 minute. While frightened in this way, a creature’s speed is halved, and it takes 7 (2d6) psychic damage at the start of each of its turns as it perceives horrific visions of severed limbs or flaming cart spokes. A frightened creature can repeat the saving throw at the end of each of its turns, ending the effect on itself on a success. Once a creature succeeds on this save or the effect ends for it, it is immune to Nightmare Presence for the next 24 hours.

    Fiery Body. A creature that touches Wanyudo or hits it with a melee attack while within 5 feet takes 5 (1d10) fire damage. Additionally, Wanyudo can move through a space as narrow as 1 foot wide without squeezing.

    Sunlight Banishment. At dawn, Wanyudo vanishes in a swirling wisp of flame. Any ongoing effects from its abilities end immediately. It reappears at nightfall in or near the location it last manifested, unless destroyed or exorcised.

    Actions

    Multiattack. Wanyudo makes two Spoke Slash attacks or one Spoke Slash attack and uses Flaming Overrun if available.

    Spoke Slash. Melee Weapon Attack: +8 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target.

    Hit: 13 (2d6 + 6) slashing damage plus 5 (1d10) fire damage. If the target is frightened, the attack deals an additional 7 (2d6) psychic damage as the victim’s terror intensifies.

    Flaming Overrun (Recharge 5-6). Wanyudo moves up to 30 feet in a straight line. During this movement, it can pass through the spaces of other creatures. Each creature whose space it enters must make a DC 16 Dexterity saving throw, taking 21 (6d6) fire damage on a failed save, or half as much on a success. A creature that fails by 5 or more is also knocked prone.

    Bonus Actions

    Severing Curse (1/Day). Wanyudo curses a single creature within 30 feet that it can see and that can see it. The target must succeed on a DC 16 Constitution saving throw or suffer the following effects for 1 minute:

    • Its movement speed is reduced by 10 feet.

    • Whenever it takes the Attack action, it takes 5 (1d10) psychic damage as phantom pain wracks its limbs.

    • The target can repeat the saving throw at the end of each of its turns, ending the effect on itself on a success.

    Reactions

    Rageful Glare. When Wanyudo is dealt damage by a creature it can see, it can use its reaction to force that creature to make a DC 16 Wisdom saving throw. On a failed save, the creature becomes frightened of Wanyudo until the end of the creature’s next turn and takes 5 (1d10) psychic damage.

    Tactics & Behavior

    Wanyudo capitalizes on its Nightmare Presence, sowing terror before rushing in.

    It often appears overhead or around a corner, uses Flaming Overrun, and speeds away to disorient foes.

    As a nocturnal terror, it typically retreats or fades away when dawn threatens, only to return the next night.

    Lore

    Flaming wheel with a man’s face, patrolling roads and ferrying souls to Hell.

    Afearsome figure of old, Wanyudo (“Wheel Monk”) is deeply rooted in ancient Buddhist notions of karma, retribution, and punishment for one’s sins. He appears as a blazing, oversized wheel of a cart, its center bearing a twisted human face— often likened to a stern monk or the tormented spirit of a sinner condemned to an eternal, rolling inferno. His emergence is bound to Buddhist concepts of justice, and his role is to punish those who break moral laws and commit evil deeds.

    Many accounts of Wanyudo’s origin point to people who committed horrific crimes in life. In one of the most widespread traditions, this yokai was once a pitiless daimyo (feudal lord) or a cruel Buddhist monk, infamous for oppressing the innocent, abusing peasants, and bending authority to personal gain.

    From Yokai Bestiary 5E, p. 56 · Fern Flower Press