AC 17 (natural armor)
HP 221 (26d8 + 104; bloodied 110)
Speed 30 ft.
Proficiency +5; Maneuver DC 17
Saving Throws Con +9, Int +6, Wis +9, Cha +8
Skills History +6, Religion +6
Damage Immunities necrotic, poison; damage from nonmagical weapons
Condition Immunities charmed , fatigue , frightened , paralyzed , poisoned
Senses darkvision 60 ft., passive Perception 14
Languages the languages it knew in life
Curse: Mummy Rot. A mummy’s touch inflicts a dreadful curse called mummy rot. A cursed creature can’t regain hit points, and its hit point maximum decreases by an amount equal to the creature’s total number of Hit Dice for every 24 hours that elapse. If this curse reduces the target’s hit point maximum to 0, the target dies and crumbles to dust. Remove curse and similar magic ends the curse.
Flammable. After taking fire damage, the mummy lord catches fire and takes 11 (2d10) ongoing fire damage if it isn’t already suffering ongoing fire damage. A creature can use an action or legendary action to extinguish this fire.
Legendary Resistance (1/Day). If the mummy lord fails a saving throw while wearing its scarab amulet, it can choose to succeed instead. When it does so, the scarab amulet shatters. The mummy lord can create a new amulet when it finishes a long rest.
Magic Resistance. The mummy lord has advantage on saving throws against spells and magical effects.
Rejuvenation. If its heart is intact, a destroyed mummy lord gains a new body in 1d4 days, regaining all its hit points. The new body forms within 10 feet of the heart.
Spellcasting. The mummy lord is an 11th level spellcaster. Its spellcasting ability is Wisdom (spell save DC 17, +9 to hit with spell attacks). The mummy lord has the following cleric spells prepared, which it can cast without material components:
Cantrips (at will): guidance , thaumaturgy
1st-level (4 slots): create or destroy water , detect magic
2nd-level (3 slots): augury , gentle repose
3rd-level (3 slots): animate dead , dispel magic
4th-level (3 slots): divination
5th-level (2 slots): contagion
6th-level (1 slot): harm
ACTIONS
Multiattack. The mummy lord uses Dreadful Glare and then attacks with its rotting fist.
Dreadful Glare (Gaze). The mummy lord targets a creature within 60 feet. The target makes a DC 16 Wisdom saving throw . On a failure, it is magically frightened until the end of the mummy lord’s next turn. If the target fails the save by 5 or more, it is paralyzed for the same duration. A target that succeeds on the saving throw is immune to the Dreadful Glare of mummies and mummy lords for 24 hours.
Rotting Fist. Melee Weapon Attack: +9 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 14 (3d6 + 4) bludgeoning damage plus 21 (6d6) necrotic damage. If the target is a creature, it makes a DC 17 Constitution saving throw . On a failure, it is cursed with Mummy Rot.
Guardian of Faith (2/day). A Large, indistinct spectral guardian appears within an unoccupied space within 30 feet and remains for 8 hours. Creatures of the mummy lord’s choice that move to a space within 10 feet of the guardian for the first time on a turn make a DC 17 Dexterity saving throw , taking 20 radiant or necrotic damage (mummy lord’s choice) on a failed save or half damage on a success. The spell ends when the guardian has dealt 60 total damage.
Dispel Magic (3rd-Level; V, S). The mummy lord scours the magic from one creature, object, or magical effect it can see within 120 feet. A spell ends if it was cast with a 3rd-level or lower spell slot. For spells using a 4th-level or higher spell slot, the mummy lord makes a Wisdom ability check (DC 10 + the spell’s level) for each one, ending the effect on a success.
Contagion (5th-Level; V, S). Melee Spell Attack: +9 to hit, reach 5 ft., one creature. Hit: The target contracts a flesh-rotting disease. It has disadvantage on Charisma ability checks and becomes vulnerable to all damage. The target makes a DC 17 Constitution saving throw at the end of each of its turns. After 3 failures, the target stops making saving throws and the disease lasts for 7 days. After 3 successes, the effect ends.
Harm (6th-Level; V, S). The mummy lord targets a creature within 60 feet. The target makes a DC 17 Constitution saving throw . On a failure, the creature is diseased , taking 49 (14d6) necrotic damage. Its hit point maximum is reduced by the same amount for 1 hour or until the effect is removed with a spell that removes diseases. On a successful save, the creature takes half the damage. The spell’s damage can’t reduce a target to less than 1 hit point.
REACTIONS
Blasphemous Counterspell. When the mummy lord is targeted by a spell using a 4th-level or lower spell slot, the attacker makes a DC 16 Constitution saving throw . On a failure, the spell is wasted, and the caster takes 3 (1d6) necrotic damage per level of the spell slot.
LEGENDARY ACTIONS
The mummy lord can take 3 legendary actions, choosing from the options below. Only one legendary action can be used at a time and only at the end of another creature's turn. It regains spent legendary actions at the start of its turn.
Channel Negative Energy. A 60-foot-radius aura of magical negative energy surrounds the mummy lord until the end of its next turn, spreading around corners. Creatures in the aura can’t regain hit points.
Whirlwind of Sand. The mummy lord, along with its equipment, magically transforms into a whirlwind of sand and moves up to 60 feet without provoking opportunity attacks , and then reverts to its normal form.
Attack (Costs 2 Actions). The mummy lord uses Dreadful Glare or attacks with its rotting fist.
Blasphemous Word (Costs 2 Actions). Each non-undead creature within 10 feet of the mummy lord that can hear its magical imprecation makes a DC 16 Constitution saving throw . On a failure, a creature is stunned until the end of the mummy lord’s next turn.
Dispel Magic (Costs 2 Actions). The mummy lord casts dispel magic .
Combat
If the mummy lord expects a battle, it uses its guardian of faith action. It begins combat with contagion , and then targets the contagion victim with harm . Otherwise it uses its multiattack. With its legendary actions, the mummy either uses Whirlwind of Sand (to get close to foes) or Channel Negative Energy, and then uses either Blasphemous Word (if near multiple non- stunned enemies) or Attack (targeting stunned or paralyzed foes with its rotting fists).
Names
Am-Toram, Arkandres, Iderna, Meristah, Nesses, Pyrasha the Heron of the West
Legends and Lore
With an Arcana or Religion check, characters can learn the following:
DC 10 Mummies are the remains of mortals specifically prepared to rise as undead after their death. They guard tombs or sites of religious significance.
DC 15 The wrappings and chemicals used to preserve their bodies make mummies particularly flammable.
DC 20 A mummy’s touch afflicts living creatures with a terrible curse. Cursed creatures can’t recover from injuries and eventually crumble to dust. Only divine magic can lift the curse.
Mummy Lord Appearance
1–2 Wrapped in tattered linen bandages
3 Looks as it did when alive except that its eyes burn with black fire
4 Looks as it did when alive except for the gaping hole where its heart once sat
5 Covered with scars; its rotting lips reveal its teeth
6 Ceremonial robes and golden mask conceal the ravages of time
7 Leathery and gaunt, like a desiccated zombie, in royal regalia
8 Nothing reveals its nature except its extreme slenderness and a certain stiffness to its movements
9 Wrapped in tattered linen bandages; each strip is covered with tiny writing. The mummy knows anything written on its bandages
10 Wrapped in strips of black linen and wearing a stone or metal mask depicting a beautiful face
Mummy Lord Lair Features
The maze-like passages surrounding a mummy lord’s burial chamber are specially designed to punish unwitting trespassers. Roll or choose one entry for the approach to the mummy’s lair and one for the inner chamber itself.
1 The lair includes swinging pendulums or arrow volley traps. These traps make area-of-effect attacks 5 feet wide and 80 feet long in predictable patterns; each character in the area makes a DC 14 Dexterity saving throw , taking 14 (4d6) damage on a failure.
2 The lair is guarded by techno-magical traps such as floor tiles that deal 10 (3d6) radiant damage to anyone who spends 2 turns in a row on the same tile or who steps on a certain color of tile.
3 Obelisks crackle with purple glowing runes. A living creature that touches one takes 21 (6d6) necrotic damage, and an undead creature that touches one regains the same number of hit points. Each obelisk can be used once.
4 Swirling dust that smells faintly of rot. Food supplies rot and water is spoiled.
5 Three mummies , or a single clay guardian , arrives 1d6 rounds after the party reaches the inner sanctum.
6 What looks like a gold carpet is yellow mold .
Some ancient priest-monarchs were mummified using powerful necromantic techniques that preserved not only their bodies, but their souls as well. When their eternal slumber is disturbed, these mummy lords return to the material world with all the wisdom, arrogance, and might they possessed in life.
Sentries and Traps. The unwavering loyalty mummy lords commanded in life endures beyond death. It is not uncommon for a mummy lord’s royal guard or palace staff to accompany their liege into the afterlife. These devoted servants choose undeath over life, animating as ordinary mummies to provide protection and support when the need arises.
Furthermore, old stories describe the intricate and deadly games played by the priest-monarchs as they vied to outdo each other in their bids for immortality. The tombs of these monarchs bristle with physical, intellectual, and magical tests designed to prevent unwelcome intrusion.
Heart and Amulet. A mummy lord’s magical defenses are not limited to guards and booby-traps. Shortly after death, each mummy lord has its heart removed and hidden somewhere in its burial chamber. Until this still-beating heart is silenced, a mummy lord can’t truly be defeated. Even if its body is reduced to ashes, the mummy lord reforms inside its inner sanctum a few days later.
Furthermore, each mummy lord wears a blessed scarab amulet that protects it from harm. When the mummy would fall victim to a deadly hazard, the amulet suffers the consequences instead.
Sleeping Monarchs. Mummy lords were preserved with the expectation that they might slumber for thousands of years before rising again. A mummy lord might defer its immortality for any number of reasons: to outlast a plague, or because the only world they had left to conquer was the future. In any case, unwary adventurers who stumble into a mummy lord’s burial chamber may awaken an ambition best left undisturbed.
1 Sitting on a throne, expects devotion from all who approach
2 Hungry for news of the outside world: also hungry for human hearts
3 Wishes to return to the world and rule as god emperor
4 Nearly finished with a century-long ritual of cosmic purpose; enraged if interrupted
5 Acts friendly; tries to trick you into breaking the last seal that prevents it from escaping its prison: perhaps a rune must be defaced, a door opened, or a dagger pulled from its withered heart
6-7 Patrolling; attacks on sight
8 In crypt or sarcophagus; attacks if disturbed
9 Surrounded by books; a librarian of vast knowledge who will trade information
10 Demands that mortals bow and leave tribute
1 A dry, dusty smell
2 Ancient runes. DC 15 Arcana or Religion check: The runes pertain to the preservation of bodies
3 Coffin-sized stone slabs on the ground. Each covers a burial niche. Some are broken open and empty
4 Sandstone statues in various degrees of ruin
5 An empty sarcophagus, broken open from the inside
6 A shrine containing a trapped sarcophagus
Mummies rarely venture from the tombs, temples, and necropolises in which they were buried.
CR 3–4 mummy ; mummy with 1 or 2 skeletons or zombies ; mummy with 1d4 cultists
Treasure 100 gp, ancient religious book (50 gp), gold earrings (125 gp)
CR 5–10 2 or 3 mummies ; mummy with cult fanatic and 1d6 + 4 cultists ; mummy with 1 or 2 gargoyles or walking statues ; mummy with 1d6 + 1 ghouls
Treasure ceremonial silvered mace (150 gp), gold mask (750 gp), gold map case (250 gp) containing map showing the locations of nearby traps and a spell scroll of remove curse , armor of vulnerability ( half plate , resistant to slashing)
CR 11–16 mummy lord
Treasure 200 pp, 300 gp, 2 gold armlets (750 gp each), spell scrolls of contagion and scrying carved on stone tablets, boots of speed
CR 17–22 mummy lord with 2 mummies or wights ; mummy lord with 1d6 + 1 ghouls ; mummy lord with flesh guardian
Treasure 7,000 gp, gold crown (2,500 gp), gold scepter (2,500 gp), 2 potions of supreme healing , armor 1 emblazoned with the symbol of a past empire (mummies do not attack the wearer unless attacked), staff of withering
CR 23–30 mummy lord with 2 priests and 2 veterans ; mummy lord with 2 or 3 wights ; mummy lord with stone guardian
Treasure 15,000 gp, gold crown set with rubies (7,500 gp), gold-plated stone sarcophagus (7,500 gp), jacinth necklace (7,500 gp), fragmentary research towards a dangerous 9th-level spell, spell scroll of holy aura , scarab of protection , wand of paralysis