Flesh Render

Level:

Creature Type: Outsider

Alignment: Evil

Environment: Any

Attack: Claw, tail, spells, poison

Special Qualities: Damage reduction, fire and cold resistance, poison immunity, spell resistance

Organization: Solitary or pair

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Flesh Render. The name does it justice. I remember the first time I saw one, summoned forth from some nether pit of Fernia or Mabar. Actually, my memory of the encounter was brief; most of it centered around the long recovery period in a temple of the Silver Flame. But enough about that. Trust me when I say that I've conducted extensive interviews with those who've dealt with these foes and lived to talk about it. And I'm sure that Polocles, the most forthcoming of my subjects, continues to have a fulfilling life as a counselor to fellow maimed adventurers.

The Flesh Render presents a threat that any single man, woman, or warforged of this city would be hard-pressed to survive, much less conquer. The creature's demonic origin offers it a host of protections against spells and magical attacks. Arcane spellcasters are advised to rely on electrical effects such as ball lightning and lightning bolt. Fighters who prefer to use a sword or mace will have no easier time dealing with the render, thanks to its magically tough skin...or hide, or whatever it is that contains its evil spirit. Even worse, should the combatants prove sufficiently skilled or strong to strike the demon, the creature's evil origin also renders it immune to most physical attacks, unless those attacks are blessed by the holy power. In other words, unless your blade or mace is capable of dealing holy damage to the target, the Flesh Render will ignore your blows. There are rumors that toughest of these Flesh Renders, their dukes and other royalty, can only be wounded by holy cold iron weapons. As with many extraplanar creatures, dismissal and banishment are other options, if you are successful at overcoming the creature's spell resistance and excellent saving throws. Of course, it's an instantaneous victory should the spell succeed.

But what you need to worry most about are its claw attacks: they strike with deadly accuracy, and have a chance to infect the victim with a deadly poison. Even some of the toughest dwarves have fallen victim to it, though to my mind that says as much about the overrated dwarven constitution as it does the efficacy of the Flesh Render venom. Then there's the fact that Flesh Renders have been known to cast spells as diverse as inflict spells and flame strike. Many different Flesh Renders, with titles, names, and authority over some underworld domain, have a variety of puissant arcana at their disposal.