Mordenkainen's Tome of Foes

20~

GIFF

It's easy to spot the giff in a room: a group

of 7-foot-tall,

hippopotamus-headed

humanoids attired in gaudy mil-

itary uniforms, with

gleaming pistols and muskets on

display. These

spacefaring mercenaries are renowned

for their martial training and their

love of explosives.

Military Organiz ation. Every

aspect of giff society is

organized

along military lines. From birth until death

,

every giff

has a military rank. It must follow orders

from

those of superior rank, and it

can give orders to those

of lower rank. Promotions

don't depend on age but are

granted by a superior as

a reward for valor. Giff are de-

vote

d to their children, even as most of their

education is

geared

toward fighting and war.

Mercenaries Extraordinaire. Giff are in

high demand

as warriors for hire,

but they insis t on serving in units

composed entirely

of giff; a giff hiring itself out individu-

ally is unheard of. Giff refuse to fight other

giff, and will

never agree to a contract unless it stipulates

that they

can sit out a battle rather than wage

war against their

kin. A giff prizes

the reputation of its unit above its own

life. Life is fle

eting, but the regiment endures for ge ne

ra-

tions or even centuries.

A Whiff o f Gunpowder. Musk

ets and grenades are the

favorite weapons of every giff.

The bigger the boom, the

brighter

the flash, and the thicker the smoke it produces

,

the m

ore giff love a weapon. Their skill with gu npowder

is another

reason for their popularity as mercenaries.

Giff revel in the challenge

of building a bomb big enough

to level a fortification.

They gladly accept payment

in kegs of gunpowder

in preference to gold, gems, or

other currency.

No Honor in Magic. Some giff become

wizards, cler-

ics, and other kinds of spellcasters, but

they're so infre-

quent that most

giff mercenary units have no magical ca-

pability. Typical

giff are as smart a s the average human

,

but their focus on military training

to the exclusion of all

other areas of study can make them

seem dull-witted to

those who have more varied int

erests.

GUNPO

WDER BY THE Kee

Aside from their personal gunpowder

weapons, giff ships

and mercenary companies

carry spare gunpowder in kegs.

In an emergency, or any

time a large explosion is needed,

a whole keg can be detonated.

A giff lights the fuse on the

keg and can then throw the keg up to l S

feet as part of

the same action. The keg explodes at

the start of the giff's

next turn. Each creature within 20

feet of the exploding keg

must make a DC 12 Dexterity

saving throw. O n a failed

save, a creature takes 24

(7d6) fire damage and is knocked

prone. On a successful s ave, a creature takes

half as much

damage and isn't knocked prone.

Every other keg of gunpowder within

20 feet of an ex·

ploding keg has a SO percent chance

of also exploding.

Check each

keg only once per turn, no matter how many

other

kegs explode around it.

CHAPTER 6 J BESTI

ARY

Medium humanoid,

lawful neutral

Armor Class

16 (breastplate)

Hit Points 60 (8d8 + 24)

Speed 30 ft.

STR

18 (+4)

DEX

14 (+2)

CON

17 (+3)

Senses passive Perception 11

Languages

Common

Challe nge

3 (700 XP)

• 
  

INT

11 (+O)

WIS

12 (+l )

CHA

12 (+l )

Head.first Charge. The giff

can try to knock a creat ure over;

if the giff moves at least

20 feet in a straight line that ends

within 5 feet of a Large or smalle r creature, th

at creature must

succeed on a DC 14

Strength saving throw or take 7 (2d6) blud-

geoning damage and be knocked prone.

Firearms

Knowledge. The giff's mastery of its weapons

enables

it to ignore the loading property of muskets and

pistols.

ACTIONS

Multiattack. The giff makes two pistol attack

s.

Longsw

ord. Melee Weapon Attack: +6 to hit, reach 5 ft.,

one tar·

get. Hit: 8 (ld8 + 4) slashing

damage, or 9 (ldlO + 4) slashing

damage if used with two

hands.

Musket. Ranged Weapon Attack: +4

to hit, range 40/120 ft., one

target.

Hit: 7 (1dl2 + 2) piercing damage.

Pistol. Ranged Weap

on Attack: +4 to hit, range 30/90 ft., one

target. Hit: 7 (ldlO + 2) piercing damage.

Fragmentation Crenade (1/day). The giff throws

a grenade up

to 60 feet. Each creature within 20 feet of the

grenade's detona-

tion must make a

DC 15 Dexterity saving throw, taking 17 (Sd6)

piercing damage on a failed save, or half

as much damage on a

successful one

.