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Archives of Nethys

Archives of Nethys

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Taiga Yai

Wearing the visage of taiga giants, taiga yais generally travel in a solitary fashion, always yearning for new experiences and destinations. They are zealous in their love of nature in its purest form and gleefully destroy any established civilizations that they encounter before continuing onwards.

Recall Knowledge - Fiend (Religion): DC 34
Recall Knowledge - Humanoid (Society): DC 34
Unspecific Lore: DC 32
Specific Lore: DC 29

Elite | Normal | Weak
Proficiency without Level

Taiga YaiCreature 15

Legacy Content

NE Huge Fiend Giant Humanoid Oni 
Source Pathfinder #167: Ready? Fight! pg. 81
Perception +30; greater darkvision
Languages Common, Jotun; speak with animals
Skills Acrobatics +29, Arcana +26, Athletics +27, Deception +27, Intimidation +27, Nature +30, Survival +32
Str +6, Dex +8, Con +8, Int +5, Wis +7, Cha +6
Items +2 greater striking shortbow (20 arrows)
AC 36; Fort +27, Ref +29, Will +30; +1 status on all saves vs. magic
HP 270, regeneration 15 (deactivated by fire)
Attack of Opportunity [reaction] Botanic Interruption [reaction] (evocation, primal) Trigger The taiga yai is standing in natural foliage or undergrowth and is targeted by a melee attack; Effect The taiga yai infuses their power within the plants around them, causing the plants to shoot up and create a protective barrier. The taiga yai gains a +2 circumstance bonus to AC against the triggering attack roll. If the attack misses, the attacker must attempt a DC 33 Reflex save. On a failed save, the attacker is immobilized for 1 round as the plants grab hold of them; on a critical failure, the attacker is also knocked prone.
Speed 40 feet, fly 40 feet
Melee [one-action] fist +27 [+23/+19] (agile, evil, magical, reach 15 feet), Damage 3d8+12 bludgeoning plus 2d6 acidRanged [one-action] acid missile +29 [+24/+19] (acid, evil, magical, range increment 60 feet, reload 0), Damage 3d8+10 acid plus flat-footed for 1 roundRanged [one-action] shortbow +31 [+26/+21] (deadly 2d10, range increment 60 feet), Damage 3d6 piercingPrimal Innate Spells DC 34; 8th earthquake (×2), summon animal; 7th shifting sand (×2); 6th tangling creepers (×2); 4th darkness; 2nd entangle (at will), invisibility (at will; self only); Constant (8th) speak with animals
Change Shape [one-action] (concentrate, polymorph, primal, transmutation) The taiga yai takes on the appearance of a taiga giant. This doesn't change their Speed or Strike attack and damage.Return to Nature [one-action] (earth, manipulate) The taiga yai commands underground plant roots to drag a creature within 60 feet into the earth. The target must succeed at a DC 35 Fortitude save or be immobilized for 1d4 rounds. After this time, the creature is buried; it is grabbed, begins to suffocate, and takes 4d6 bludgeoning damage each round they remain buried. To escape either while immobilized or grabbed, the creature must succeed at a DC 35 Escape check or an adjacent ally must succeed at a DC 33 Athletics check to pull them out.

Sidebar - Related Creatures Oni loners

More so than other oni, taiga yais prefer seclusion or the company of evil beasts and wicked fey over that of other humanoids. They often befriend carnivorous animals, frequently partnering with apex predators such as bears and lions.

All Monsters in "Oni"

NameLevel
Fire Yai14
Ice Yai13
Mountain Oni8
Onidoshi8
Shadow Yai16
Taiga Yai15
Water Yai17

Oni

Source Bestiary 2 pg. 188 2.0
Not all divine creations are meant to live as mortals. Some spirits are created as guardians instead, tasked as protectors of elements of nature that cannot protect themselves. When these spirits accept their divine place in the metacosmos and take on such charges, they become kami. But some of these spirits are willful, obstinate, or simply rotten, railing against such demands from the gods and becoming bodiless and unable to interact with the world they can torturously still observe. Others receive such punishment simply for failing at their duty, and their despair at their condition twists them like those that began with a seed of darkness. When these spirits look upon mortal lives and become overcome with envy of the flesh and pleasure that humanoids can revel in, they form surrogate bodies of their own and become monsters known collectively as oni.

When an oni manifests, they always do so in a form that parodies a specific humanoid ancestry closely associated with the oni's obsessions and envies. Giants' over-the-top personalities and sizes are likely the reason why these humanoids are the most common incarnations chosen by oni; such oni are known collectively as yai oni. Yet there exist oni associated with almost every kind of humanoid. Most oni are capable of supernaturally disguising themselves as their associated humanoid type and use this ability to infiltrate societies and seize control from within. Once established, oni typically reveal their true form and revel in dominating those they view as lesser beings fit only to serve their whims.

Oni are nothing if not vain. They typically choose comely or striking appearances in their humanoid disguises—forms that are completely at odds with the ugliness of their true natures. An oni's true form is indicative of their innermost desires and always has features such as oversized teeth that verge into tusks, sharp claws, unusually bright skin colors, or a third eye in the forehead. Oni have desires as varied as those of any being, though by their nature these desires are almost always for hedonistic or destructive experiences of the flesh, typically food, pleasure, or violence.

Sidebar - Additional Lore Oni Daimyo

Oni daimyo are quasi-deities with isolated mortal domains. The most powerful is Inma, the Empress of the World, but Akuma the Horned King, Murona the Dark Mother, and Nataka the Red King are also worshipped.

Sidebar - Additional Lore Oni Origins

The first oni originated in the nation of Minkai on the continent of Tian Xia. Whether due to prevalent local kami— particularly in the mist-shrouded Forest of Spirits—or its peoples' faiths, Minkai is a hotbed of oni activity.

Sidebar - Additional Lore Oni Shapechangers

Oni humanoid forms are limited to one specific appearance. An ogre mage can assume only one specific ogre form, while an ice yai can appear only as one specific frost giant. Some oni have greater control over their shapeshifting power and can assume the form of any humanoid creature, and these oni tend to be the most dangerous.

Sidebar - Related Creatures Other Oni

Different oni exist for nearly every humanoid ancestry. Kuwa oni mask their golden skin and four-fingered claws in human form, while ja oni hide as hobgoblins. Other yai include wind yai (who take their form from cloud giants) and the immensely powerful void yai (who form from other yai and ascend to rule over rune giants).