5e: Your Nightmare Made Reality, the Keeysha Beast!

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I recently ran a promotion on twitter, promising that after reaching 300 followers I would create a custom monster for D&D Fifth Edition based on a design brief provided by a randomly determined follower. That follower was @PatouLeFou, who provided me with the fascinating details of a creature he calls the Keeysha Beast! Bipedal, intelligent relatives of the displacer beast, these monsters were created by a goddess named Keeysha, and were named for her. Transformed mages, they possess powerful arcane abilities as well as the innate capabilities of a displacer beast. I’ve fleshed out the concept @PatouLeFou provided, and adjusted it so that the lore surrounding these creatures could be easily slotted into most worlds, even established settings like the Forgotten Realms. Notably, I reenvisioned Keeysha as a banished Archfey.

Since they are intelligent and powerful, and the direct creations of an entity with equivalent power to a demigod, the Keeysha Beast should make a good villain and boss monster. With that in mind, I opted to make my version a legendary creature.

The statblock of the Keeysha Beast is considered Open Game Content (see the Open-Gaming License). The Keeysha Beast’s lore is not Open Game Content.

Keeysha Beast

A Keeysha Beast resembles its cousin the displacer beast, appearing to be a panther-like creature with malevolently glowing eyes. It has six powerful limbs and two long tentacles sprouting from its shoulders which widen at the ends into spike-covered pads. Unlike the displacer beast, a Keeysha Beast stands upright on two of its legs and is around ten feet tall. Like most other intelligent bipedal species it wears clothing: generally breeches on its lower half and a long hooded cloak around its shoulders. Its twin tentacles can either remain hidden under the cloak, or protrude through a pair of slits cut through the garment. The Keeysha Beast wields two scimitars with its lower pair of hands, and uses its upper arms to fire a powerful yew longbow.

Fey Creations. Like their less intelligent cousins, the Keeysha Beasts owe their current form to the magic of an Archfey of the Unseelie Court. Keeysha the Veiled was a mighty sorceress and master illusionist even by the standards of the other Archfey, and her power and ambition was feared by other members of the Court. It was she who first tamed the displacer beasts, and raised them from mere beasts to sly and magical creatures. When they escaped and ran amok, the Unseelie Court found an excuse to punish Keeysha, imprisoning her in a powerful relic called the Ash Diamond.
The precise chain of events that led the Ash Diamond to be relocated to the material plane are unknown, but it is certain that the artefact fell into the hands of a circle of magi who sought to use the power they detected within it as fuel for their ambitions. As they enacted their ritual the seal on the Ash Diamond was broken and Keeysha was freed. She turned her dark charms upon the mages and made them her slaves, then transformed them into agents of her will that resemble displacer beasts. It amuses Keeysha to think that she will return to the Feywild and destroy the Unseelie Court using instruments that take the same form as the creations for which she was imprisoned.
Lofty Ambitions. While they serve Keeysha loyally and do everything in their power to further her plans, Keeysha Beasts are vain and greedy creatures who carry their own grand aspirations. Keeysha is generally content to allow them a free reign as long as they continue to serve when she calls. In the past, Keeysha Beasts have masterminded many schemes in the search of personal power. They typically do not rely on their own kind, preferring to surround themselves with subservient minions, using those creatures to pursue their goals while they remain cloaked in intrigue. Some Keeysha Beasts have been known to gather monstrous armies and embark on campaigns of conquest. When multiple Keeysha Beasts do gather and pool their malevolent minds and considerable resources in the name of a single insidious plan, they can extend their influence to manipulate entire cities and nations.
Potently Magical. Created from the marriage of powerful magic users and Keeysha’s own fey magics, a Keeysha Beast possesses massive reserves of arcane power. Their specialty is naturally illusion, which makes them frustrating opponents to deal with, particularly if they are able to prepare a scheme with which to confound their foes. Their other supernatural abilities cannot be discounted either, particularly their most dangerous weapon: an eye ray of deadly prismatic magic.
Pack Leaders. Keeysha Beasts possess an innate ability to influence displacer beasts they encounter, and most are therefore accompanied by a pack of their lesser cousins.
Keeysha Beast
Large monstrosity, lawful evil

Armor Class

14 (natural armor)

Hit Points

170 (20d10 + 60)

Speed

30 ft.

STR DEX CON INT WIS CHA
16 (+3) 17 (+3) 16 (+3) 18 (+4) 15 (+2) 14 (+2)

Saving Throws

Dex +8, Wis +7

Skills

Arcana +9, Deception +7, Insight +7, Intimidation +7, Perception +7, Persuasion +7

Damage Resistances

bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing from nonmagical attacks that aren’t made with a magical weapon.

Condition Immunities

charmed

Senses

darkvision 120 ft.; passive Perception 17

Languages

Common, Sylvan

Challenge

14 (11,500 XP)

Arcane Sight.

Magical darkness doesn’t impede the keeysha beast’s darkvision.

Avoidance.

If the keeysha beast is subjected to an effect that allows it to make a saving throw to take only half damage, it instead takes no damage if it succeeds on the saving throw, and only half damage if it fails.

Baiting Blow.

Whenever a creature has disadvantage on attack rolls against the keeysha beast and misses, if the keeysha’s own turn follows that creature in the initiative order or it uses one of its legendary actions immediately following their turn, the keeysha beast has advantage on the first attack it makes against them.

Displacement.

The keeysha beast projects a magical illusion that makes it appear to be standing near its actual location, causing attack rolls against it to have disadvantage. If it is hit by an attack, this trait is disrupted until the end of its next turn or until it uses its displace legendary action. This trait is also disrupted while the keeysha beast is incapacitated or has a speed of 0.

Innate Spellcasting.

The keeysha beast’s innate spellcasting ability is Intelligence (spell save DC 17, +9 to hit with spell attacks). The keeysha beast can innately cast the following spells, requiring no material components:

At will: blade ward, minor illusion, shocking grasp
2/day each: arcane eye, evard’s black tentacles, fly, major image, vampiric touch (cast as a 5th-level spell)
1/day each: programmed illusion, project image

Legendary Resistance (3/day).

If the keeysha beast fails a saving throw, it can choose to succeed instead.

Magic Resistance.

The keeysha beast has advantage on saving throws against spells and other magical effects.

Actions

Multiattack.

The keeysha beast makes four attacks: up to two attacks with its scimitars, up to two attacks with its longbow, and up to two attacks with its tentacles.

Scimitar.

Melee Weapon Attack: +8 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 10 (2d6 + 3) slashing damage.

Tentacle.

Melee Weapon Attack: +8 to hit, reach 10 ft., one target. Hit: 6 (1d6 + 3) bludgeoning damage plus 3 (1d6) piercing damage.

Longbow.

Ranged Weapon Attack: +8 to hit, range 150/600 ft, one target. Hit: 11 (2d8 +2) piercing damage.

Prismatic Eye Rays (recharge 5-6).

The keeysha beast fires eight multicolored rays of magical light from its eyes which sweep over a 60-foot cone. Resolve this ability as though the keeysha beast had cast the prismatic spray spell.

Legendary Actions
The keeysha beast 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. The keeysha beast regainst spent legendary actions at the start of its turn.

Detect.

The keeysha beast makes a Wisdom (Perception) check.

Displace.

The keeysha beast regains the benefits of its Displacement feature.

Predatory Shift.

The keeysha beast moves up to 15 feet, and may make a single scimitar attack at any point during this movement.

More Monsters!

When I hit 500 followers, I intend to to create additional monsters for two randomly selected followers. I’m looking forward to it!