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Breadcrumb

Water Elemental

Challenge
str
18
dex
14
con
18
int
6
wis
10
cha
6

AC 14 (natural armor)

HP 114 (12d10 + 48; bloodied 57)

Speed 30 ft., swim 90 ft.


Proficiency +3; Maneuver DC 15

Damage Resistances acid; damage from nonmagical weapons

Damage Immunities poison

Condition Immunities fatigue , grappled , paralyzed , petrified , poisoned , prone , restrained , unconscious

Senses darkvision 60 ft., passive Perception 10

Languages Aquan


Conductive. If the elemental takes lightning damage, each creature sharing its space takes the same amount of lightning damage.

Fluid Form. The elemental can enter and end its turn in other creatures’ spaces and move through a space as narrow as 1 inch wide without squeezing.

Freeze. If the elemental takes cold damage, its speed is reduced by 15 feet until the end of its next turn.

Elemental Nature. An elemental doesn’t require air, sustenance, or sleep.


ACTIONS

Multiattack. The elemental makes two slam attacks.

Slam. Melee Weapon Attack: +7 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 13 (2d8 + 4) bludgeoning damage. 

Whelm. The elemental targets each Large or smaller creature in its space. Each target makes a DC 15 Strength saving throw . On a failure, the target is grappled (escape DC 15). Until this grapple ends, the target is restrained and unable to breathe air. The elemental can move at full speed while carrying grappled creatures inside its space. It can grapple one Large creature or up to four Medium or smaller creatures.

Combat

The water elemental uses Whelm to drown two or more creatures, beating them with slam attacks while they’re restrained in the elemental’s space. While on dry land, the elemental seeks cover from mobile ranged attackers. Elementals retreat only if ordered to do so.


Water Elemental Appearance

1 Endlessly flowing streams and waterfall

2 Humanoid dressed as a pirate

3 Floating merfolk made of water

4 Cresting waves


Legends and Lore

With an Arcana or Religion check, characters can learn the following:

DC 10 Elementals are spirits of fire, earth, air, and water not native to this world. Spellcasters can summon elementals and bend them to their will. An uncontrolled elemental may turn on the creature that summoned it.

DC 15 Elementals are resistant to nonmagical weapons and immune to poison. Earth elementals are vulnerable to thunder. Fire elementals take damage from water. Water elementals are slowed by cold damage. 

Description

Spellcasters and other powerful beings draw upon the animating life force of the pure elements—air, earth, fire, and water—to manifest elementals. Just as our world is home to birds, beasts, trees, and flowers, the elemental planes contain shapeless spirits of energy and instinct. These inchoate entities can be exploited with magic to create compliant servants and timeless guardians. 

Shaped for Service.  A conjurer of sufficient skill can shape an elemental as they please, not just as creatures, but also as weapons or objects of artifice. Elemental power can create stone soldiers, forges of living flame or ships carried on their own currents, and windmills turned by an endless breeze. Elemental servants might resemble large humanoids, primal beasts, or divine avatars. The only limit is the summoner's imagination and their will to control the elemental.

Perilous Conjuration. A wild spirit of elemental force has little sense of self, content to be one with the element with which it shares an affinity. Should an elemental break free from control, it becomes an animate mass of its native element, wreaking havoc without regard for its surroundings.

Behavior

1 Singing a lament about sailors lost at sea

2 Complaining about being thirsty

3 Dancing around and splashing in puddles

4 Lying in a pool or basin

Signs

1 The air is humid. Surfaces are slick and slimy

2 The sound of rushing water

3 Surfaces are covered with moss and coral

4 The smell of the sea

Encounters

Elementals accompany spellcasters and guard their lairs. They’re native to the Elemental Planes.

CR 5–10 1 or 2 elementals ; elemental with 1d4 mephits ; giant elemental

Monster Type Description

Elementals are creatures from one of the Elemental Planes. The most basic of elementals are earth elementals , fire elementals , water elementals , and air elementals , each composed of magically animate earth, fire, and so on. The Elemental Planes are also home to genies, mephits , and other elemental creatures.