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Archives of Nethys

Archives of Nethys

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Tanglebones

Sometimes, when murderer buries a large number of victims in a mass grave, the vengeful spirits of the slain can become similarly tangled together. When these spirits can't untangle, they instead return to their physical remains, fusing into one horrific mass of bones and black, tar-like sludge—a tanglebones.

One awful tale speaks of a bitter old dowager who learned that, through a legal loophole, ownership of her estate would revert to her estranged daughter. She murdered her 13 servants, buried their bodies in the house's basement, and then played the gracious mother in handing over the manor keys at the appointed time. One night, the tanglebones that arose from the dowager's atrocity murdered the daughter and her family. By the time the authorities learned of what happened, the dowager had fled the nation, changed her identity, and (the story goes) wasted no time rebuilding her fortunes—this time becoming a queen.

Recall Knowledge - Undead (Religion): DC 28
Unspecific Lore: DC 26
Specific Lore: DC 23

Elite | Normal | Weak
Proficiency without Level

TanglebonesCreature 7

Legacy Content

Rare CE Large Undead 
Source Malevolence pg. 71
Perception +17; darkvision
Languages Necril
Skills Acrobatics +14, Athletics +17, Stealth +15
Str +6, Dex +3, Con +4, Int -2, Wis +6, Cha +2
AC 24; Fort +15, Ref +12, Will +17
HP 145 (negative healing); Immunities death effects, disease, paralyze, poison, unconscious; Weaknesses bludgeoning 7
Ectoplasmic Filament [reaction] Trigger A creature within the tanglebone's reach uses an action with the manipulate trait or a move action, or leaves a square during a move action it's using; Effect A filament of black, oily ectoplasm lashes out at the triggering creature, dealing 2d8+8 slashing damage (DC 25 basic Reflex save). If the filament deals damage, the tanglebones gains 2d8 temporary Hit Points.
Speed 25 feet
Melee [one-action] claw +17 [+13/+9] (agile, reach 10 feet), Damage 2d8+8 slashing plus GrabRanged [one-action] hurled bone +17 [+12/+7] (brutal, range 30 feet), Damage 2d4+8 bludgeoningEerie Flexibility A tanglebones can shift and adjust its mass to fit into smaller areas, allowing it to fit through tight spaces as if it were a Medium creature. While Squeezing, it can move at its full Speed.Gnaw [one-action] Requirements The tanglebones has Grabbed a foe; Effect The tanglebones gnaws and chews on the grabbed target with its many skulls, dealing 2d6+8 piercing damage (DC 23 basic Fortitude save). On a critical failure, the creature is also sickened 1 from the pain.Skeletal Storm [two-actions] The tanglebones makes a single claw Strike against every creature in reach. These attacks count toward the tanglebones' multiple attack penalty, but the multiple attack penalty doesn't increase until after the tanglebones makes all its attacks.Sprawled Bones [one-action] (concentrate) Until the next time it acts, the tanglebones appears as a sprawling mass of bones. It has an automatic result of 35 on Deception checks and DCs to pass as a grisly but seemingly harmless mess.

Sidebar - Treasure and Rewards Unravelers

It's believed that a tanglebones's formation can be prevented if even one body in the mass grave died from a different cause than its fellows. In regions where these undead horrors are more common, additional bodies known as unravellers are often dropped into mass graves in an attempt to prevent a tanglebones from rising.