Furyhorn (Pathfinder monster, EO inspired)

An aura of menace surrounds this broadly shouldered, deer-like monster. Its red eyes glower down at any creature whose path it crosses from a height far above the heads of most fully grown men. Its golden mane and crest contrast the two-toned blues of its thin coat, lines of lighter blue creating patterns of artists' envy. Despite its peculiar coloration, the eye is first drawn to the massive horns sitting atop its head for which it is named, branching into sharp-edged curves ending in wicked points.


Furyhorn  CR 4

XP 1200
N Large Magical Beast
Init +3; Senses darkvision 60 ft, low-light vision; Perception +10

DEFENSE

AC 17; touch 12, flat-footed 14 (+3 Dex, -1 size, +5 natural)
hp 42 (5d8+20)
Fort +7, Ref +7, Will +3
Weaknesses vulnerability to electricity

OFFENSE

Speed 40 ft.
Melee gore +8 (2d6+6)
Space 10 ft.; Reach 5 ft.
Special Attack Muddle Roar, Trample (DC 16, 1d6+6)

STATISTICS

Str 18, Dex 16, Con 16, Int 5, Wis 15, Cha 11
Base Atk +5; CMB +11; CMD 22 (26 vs Trip)
Feats Improved Natural Attack (Gore), Toughness, Ability Focus (Muddle Roar)
Skills Perception +10
Languages None

SPECIAL ABILITIES

Muddle Roar (Su)

Just as piercing as the Furyhorn's namesake is its blood-chilling roar. Its powerful lungs channel huge gulps of air through its bizarre vocal cords, creating a discordant sound that invokes a primal fight or flight response. Muddle Roar affects creatures in a 30 ft cone from the Furyhorn. Creatures in this area must make a DC 14 Will Save or fall into a supernaturally-induced panic.

Creatures that fail their Save are Confused for 1d4+1 rounds. At the end of each of their turns, a Confused creature may make another Will Save against the same DC to end the effect. Regardless of the result of their Saving Throw, a creature affected by a Furyhorn's Muddle Roar cannot be affected by it again for 24 hours. This is a mind-affecting fear effect, and a compulsion effect. The Save DC is Charisma-based.

ECOLOGY
Environment Temperate forests and grasslands
Organization Solitary or family (2-3)
Treasure Standard

Furyhorns stand roughly 10-12 feet in length and 10 feet in height, disregarding their horns. They often weigh close to 3000 lbs due to their broader build and dense muscle mass. Despite their vicious disposition, Furyhorns are herbivorous, and are reluctant to leave what small area they consider their territory, even to chase intruders. It is believed their aggression stems from an almost obsessive desire to protect their claimed land, and that this overrides their violent tendencies when faced with the choice of pursuit or continuing to defend their domain.

They tend to pace across their territory in a surprisingly organized pattern when not incensed, only occasionally stopping to listen carefully, sharpen their antlers against hard surfaces, or graze on tree leaves before resuming their patrol. These qualities, combined with its unusual fur patterns and supernatural roar, lead most experts to agree that the Furyhorn is the result of an attempt at creating an effective guard animal through magic, possibly druidic or fey in origin.

Their aggression towards even others of their kind (outside of their immediate family and potential mates) and preference for living in small areas has kept their population in check. Furyhorns only migrate in the face of extreme circumstances; reported sightings in an area that is inhabited or well traveled in the wake of fierce storms or forest fires are met with swift evacuation.

Many times the first sign of a Furyhorn having invaded an area is the disappearance of travelers or inexperienced adventuring groups, or a sudden ceasation of raids from nearby goblin or orc encampments that lead to the investigation and discovery of a slaughtered tribe. The second sign to any who investigate are long, thin lines cut into stone along paths of trampled brush where the Furyhorn has sharpened its namesakes.

Its striking fur and horns serve as status symbols for those who can acquire them- in equal parts for the rich that can afford them as decoration and the hunters who mount them onto their walls as trophies- but are a rarity for obvious reasons. Still many hunt the beasts, not just for these trophies, but for what valuables were left by its prior victims that are (with the small size of its territory) almost always nearby.

In combat, the Furyhorn's tactics are simple but brutally straightforward. They begin their assault with Muddle Roar against as large a concentration of targets as possible, followed by trampling groups of slower quarry underhoof, then goring any stragglers. This creature's infamy comes most of all from how many freshfaced adventurers met their end by underestimating the 'oversized deer'.