Sandy petersens cthulhu mythos (1) 274

VIII Great Old Ones and Outer Gods Quachil Uttaus CR 17; XP 102,400 NE Great Old One of dust, immortality, and the passage of time Primary Source Clark Ashton Smith, “Treader of the Dust” C U LT Domains Death, Destruction, Evil, Madness Subdomains Catastrophe, Insanity, Nightmare, Undead Favored Weapon dagger Symbol handful of dust Temple abandoned buildings Worshipers those who seek immortality Servitors none I N F L U E N C E S TA G E D C 24 Area 100-foot radius; Nucleus square feet AC 31; Saves +20; hp 240 Effects apathy, deterioration, hidden nucleus, reactive ruination, touch of dust Escalation After 2d6 weeks have passed, Quachil Uttaus’s influence escalates to stage I N F L U E N C E S TA G E D C 27 CR 20; XP 307,200 Area 1,000-foot radius; Nucleus square feet AC 36; Saves +22; hp 370 Effects apathy, deterioration, hidden nucleus, reactive ruination, touch of dust Escalation After 1d6 months have passed, Quachil Uttaus’s influence escalates to stage I N F L U E N C E S TA G E D C 29 CR 23; XP 819,200 Area 1-mile radius; Nucleus square feet AC 40; Saves +24; hp 480 Effects apathy, deterioration, hidden nucleus, reactive ruination, touch of dust apathy every time it re-enters the area of influence, and once every 24 hours that it remains within the area of influence If a creature fails this saving throw when it is within 30 feet of the influence’s nucleus, it is rendered immobile and can take no actions In such a case, Quachil Uttaus’s touch of dust will soon render a dreadful fate Deterioration Once a day, all living creatures that have spent the previous 24 hours within the area of influence take 1d4 points of Constitution damage and all undead creatures that spent that time within the area take 1d4 points of Charisma damage as their bodies, minds, and souls age or weather away as if many years have passed A successful Fortitude save negates this effect This is an aging effect Hidden Nucleus When Quachil Uttaus’s influence settles over a region, its nucleus does not manifest at the center of that area Instead, it manifests at some point chosen by Quachil Uttaus (typically in a well-hidden area) Even then, the nucleus remains obscured from sight, as if by greater invisibility (CL 17th) Once removed, this invisibility does not return Quachil Uttaus itself cannot move its nucleus, but if a short magical incantation is performed (requiring a successful DC 15 Spellcraft check to correctly repeat), Quachil Uttaus immediately relocates to the location where that ritual was spoken and descends in a shaft of gray moonlight to touch the creature who spoke the ritual The ritual speaker cannot avoid this touch (see Touch of Dust, below) Summoning Quachil Uttaus in this way allows its presence to be attacked directly Note that while this incantation is simple to recite once learned, the precise words that must be spoken are well hidden and have a strange habit of changing each time Quachil Uttaus is summoned The effort required to learn D E F E AT Combat Quachil Uttaus’s influence can be ended by damage The influence ends automatically once no living or undead creature remains active in the area of its influence or a month has passed, whichever comes first INFLUENCE EFFEC TS Apathy Upon first exposure to Quachil Uttaus’s influence, a living or undead creature must make a successful Will saving throw to avoid being overcome with apathy For a living creature, this is a mind-affecting effect—if the creature fails its saving throw, it will not voluntarily leave the area of influence, but it does not resist being led out of the area by others For an undead creature, this is a curse effect—a failed saving throw indicates that the creature becomes spiritually anchored to the area, and cannot voluntarily travel outside of the area of influence A creature must make a new saving throw to resist this What You See This terror takes the form of a withered and mummified human fetus Its bones are ankylosed together, and its arms stretch rigidly forward It appears in a pillar of moonlight and descends slowly toward its target, seemingly unable to move its limbs, eternally fixed in its tormented pose 267