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Archives of Nethys
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Gorthoklek

This creature's description may contain spoilers. Click to revealIf there's any trace of his former mortal soul within Gorthoklek, it's deeply buried beneath centuries of fiendish influence. Somewhere within his mind, Gorthoklek remembers a burning human village and peasants being trampled under hooves, but whether he was a victim of this massacre or one of its perpetrators is a distinction he doesn't care to make.

Like many devils, Gorthoklek was forged and reforged in the depths of Hell, at first torturing mortal souls and then eventually claiming them. His ascension as a nessari took dozens of centuries, and even after Asmodeus himself granted Gorthoklek this honor, he had to continue to prove his infernal worth. By fighting tirelessly against celestial forces and occasionally appearing on Golarion to tempt powerful mortals into selling their souls, Gorthoklek was given the rank of general and control over his own domain within Avernus, the topmost layer of Hell. There, he constructed the Iron Fortress, a towering edifice of blackened iron from which he forged and commanded armies of devils in the unending fight against all that's holy.

Though Asmodeus was the main architect of the Infernal Compact that allowed House Thrune to gain control over Cheliax, General Gorthoklek was present at the signing, where he oversaw the fiendish forces granted to House Thrune. Decades later, when Abrogail Thrune II ascended to the throne, Gorthoklek was assigned to be her royal advisor on the mortal plane. He doesn't resent the queen for linking their fates in this way; like most devils, he understands that a contract is a contract, and services must be rendered when purchased. In truth, he's enjoyed his time in Abrogail's court, often donning a mortal guise to avoid frightening the lesser nobles overmuch. However, it's an open secret that Abrogail's painfully handsome Chelaxian advisor is a powerful devil in disguise; Gorthoklek has allowed the rumors to continue, as they only enhance his charge's reputation.

As Cheliax's war with Andoran escalated, Gorthoklek subtly steered Abrogail to effect the capture of Talmandor and renegotiate the Infernal Compact one more time. He then accompanied Abrogail to Hell, where she began the ritual to create a new layer. Though this ritual has the potential to transform Abrogail into a new archdevil, Gorthoklek is eager to take up residence in a hellish Cheliax. With his armies, an archdevil Abrogail could conquer the entire world.

Campaign Role

Gorthoklek is the final encounter of the adventure, and his defeat disrupts Abrogail Thrune II's ritual to transform the Inner Sea region into the tenth layer of Hell. If the PCs don't succeed here, the lives and souls of millions of people on Golarion will be forfeit to Asmodeus. The stakes are incredibly high, and the PCs are facing off against this foe in his own domain. The PCs must use every trick and tactic at their disposal to defeat the tyrant devil and his retinue.

Elite | Normal | Weak
Proficiency without Level

Print Stat Block

Elite GorthoklekCreature 22

Unique Large Devil Fiend Unholy 
Source Pathfinder #223: Hell's Destiny pg. 248
Elite Changes are marked. The +2 damage bonus to non-strike offensive abilities (+4 if the ability is limited, such as spells) is NOT factored in.
Recall Knowledge DC 44 (54 if Unique applies) • Fiend (Religion)
Male nessari general
Perception +41; greater darkvision, truesight
Languages Common, Diabolic, Draconic, Empyrean; telepathy 100 feet
Skills Acrobatics +38, Arcana +36, Athletics +37, Deception +43, Diplomacy +38, Intimidation +43, Religion +41, Society +40, Stealth +38
Str +10, Dex +8, Con +9, Int +8, Wis +10, Cha +8
Shape Devils (divine, downtime) Gorthoklek reshapes a large number of orts within a 600-foot emanation into more powerful devils to swell Hell’s legions. Gorthoklek must have enough orts availiable. Gorthoklek can shape 100 orts per day, to a maximum of 1,100 orts in 11 days. Devils created in this way whose level is 19 or lower are in thrall to Gorthoklek and follow his orders. At the end of the Shape Devils activity, Gorthoklek attempts an incredibly hard Religion check of the desired devil’s level, with results as follows. If Gorthoklek gets a critical failure, he gets a failure instead.
Critical Success Gorthoklek shapes two devils from the massed orts instead of one.
Success Gorthoklek shapes a devil of the desired type and level.
Failure The devil shaped from the orts is 2 levels lower than the intended devil.
Critical Failure Gorthoklek fails to shape any devils and draws the ire of an archdevil for his waste of resources.
Items +3 major striking flaming unholy spiked chain
AC 50; Fort +41, Ref +36, Will +39; +1 status to all saves vs. magic
HP 395, Regeneration 30 (deactivated by holy); Immunities fire; Resistances physical 15 (except silver), poison 15; Weaknesses holy 15
Frightful Presence (aura, divine, emotion, fear, mental) 20 feet, DC 46General’s Aura (aura, divine) 150 feet. Commanded or allied unholy creatures in the aura of lower level than Gorthoklek gain a +1 circumstance bonus to attack rolls, damage rolls, AC, saves, and skill checks. Once per turn, a commanded or allied unholy creature in this aura can Step as a free action.Reactive Strike [reaction]
Speed 35 feet, fly 50 feet
Melee [one-action] jaws +43 [+38/+33] (magical, poison, reach 10 feet, unholy), Damage 4d10+2+19 piercing plus nessari venomMelee [one-action] spiked chain +43 [+38/+33] (disarm, magical, reach 10 feet, trip, unholy), Damage 4d8+2+19 slashingMelee [one-action] claw +41 [+37/+33] (agile, magical, reach 10 feet, unholy), Damage 4d6+2+19 slashingMelee [one-action] tail +39 [+34/+29] (magical, reach 10 feet, unholy), Damage 4d10+2+19 bludgeoning plus Improved GrabMelee [one-action] wing +39 [+34/+29] (magical, reach 15 feet, unholy), Damage 4d6+2+19 slashingDivine Innate Spells DC 46 (+4 dmg); 10th falling stars, manifestation; 9th dispel magic, seize soul (at will); 8th dispel magic (at will), divine decree (at will), fireball (at will), scrying, wall of fire (at will); 5th translocate; 4th translocate (at will); Constant (9th) truesight
Rituals DC 46 (+4 dmg); 1st diabolic pact
Chain Sweep [two-actions] Gorthoklek makes a spiked chain Strike and compares the attack roll result to the AC of up to three foes, each of whom must be within his melee reach and no more than 10 feet from each other. Gorthoklek rolls damage only once and applies it to each creature hit. A creature that’s critically hit is also knocked prone. Chain Sweep counts as two attacks for his multiple attack penalty.Change Shape [one-action] (concentrate, divine, polymorph) Gorthoklek takes on the shape of any Large or smaller humanoid. This doesn’t change his Speed or attack and damage bonuses with his Strikes but might change the damage type his Strikes deal (typically to bludgeoning).Constrict [one-action] (unholy) 2d10+19 bludgeoning, DC 47Fast Swoop [one-action] Gorthoklek Flies and makes a wing Strike at any point during his movement.Masterful Quickened Casting [free-action] (concentrate) Frequency once per round; Effect If Gorthoklek’s next action is to cast an 8th-rank or lower innate spell, reduce the number of actions to cast it by 1 (minimum 1 action).Nessari Venom (poison) Saving Throw DC 47 Fortitude; Maximum Duration 10 rounds; Stage 1 6d6 poison damage and drained 1 (1 round); Stage 2 8d6 poison damage and drained 2 (1 round); Stage 3 9d6 poison damage and drained 3 (1 round)
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