Mordenkainen's Tome of Foes

(Nancy Kaufman) #1

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
.
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