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Cerberus

Challenge
Tags
Terrain
str
22
dex
15
con
17
int
7
wis
12
cha
10

AC 15 (natural armor)
HP 152 (16d12+48; bloodied 76)
Speed 50 ft.


Proficiency +4; Maneuver DC 18
Saving Throws Dex +6, Con +7
Skills Insight +5, Perception +5 (1d4), Stealth +6, Survival +5
Damage Resistances cold, fire, necrotic, radiant
Senses darkvision 200 ft., passive Perception 18
Languages Common


Ageless. Cerberus cannot suffer from frailty of old age, die from old age, or be aged magically.

Snake-Tail. Cerberus’ uses its Dexterity modifier for attack and damage rolls with its snake-tail.

Three Heads. Cerberus gains double his proficiency bonus to and has advantage on Wisdom (Perception) checks. In addition, he has advantage on saving throws against being blinded , charmed , deafened , frightened , stunned , or knocked unconscious .


ACTIONS

Multiattack. Cerberus makes three bite attacks and one snake-tail attack.

Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +8 to hit, reach 10 ft., one target. Hit: 11 (1d10+6) piercing damage. If the target is a creature, it must succeed on a DC 17 Strength saving throw or be knocked prone .

Snake-Tail. Melee Weapon Attack: +6 to hit, reach 15 ft., one target. Hit: 5 (1d6+2) piercing damage plus 7 (2d6) poison damage.

Poison Foam (Recharge 5-6). Cerberus exhales a spray of toxic liquid in a 20-foot cone. Each creature in that area must make a DC 18 Dexterity saving throw , taking 35 (10d6) poison damage on a failed save, or half as much damage on a successful one.

Description

Let’s head down into the underworld—which means of course crossing paths with Hades’ guard dog Cerberus! Cerberus has not only three heads, but a serpent for a tail and in many legends he is, indeed, part snake. This threeheaded canine guards the gates of Hell, and keeps the dead from escaping the afterlife—really though Cerberus’ claim to fame is his capture by Hercules as one of the Twelve Labors, a story celebrated again and again throughout both Greek and Roman arts.

Hercules wasn’t the first to get past Cerberus. Orpheus the bard slipped past by charming the beast with music, on his way to seek his beloved Eurydice. Aeneaus threw the dog a honey cake spiced with ‘drowsy essences’ which sent Cerberus to sleep.

Hercules traveled into the underworld at the bidding of Eurystheus, by way of a cave in Tainaron, guided by Athena and Hermes. Once down there Hercules encountered the heroes Theseus and Pirithous, held captive for trying to rescue Hade’s wife Persephone from Hell. He freed Theseus from the Chair of Forgetfulness to which they were bound by snakes, but sadly Pirithous remained trapped.

On the way out, of course, Hercules ran into the three-headed guardian and wrangled the hound, overcoming it with sheer strength, wrapping the dog in chains of adamant and dragging it to the surface, completing his Twelfth Labor by presenting the monster to Eurystheus.

Monster Type Description

Monstrosities are magical beings usually native to the Material Plane. Some monstrosities combine the features of beasts and humanoids, like centaurs . Others have bizarre or unnatural appearances, like many-tentacled ropers . Monstrosities could only arise in a world suffused with magic.