Dullahan Template

Source: Harker's Guide to Vampire Hunting

The haunting dullahan ride dark steeds through lonely stretches of forest trails in search of the damned. It is said that the dullahan are Death’s own hands and feet; allegedly, when the dullahan utters a person’s name, they simply drop dead. Rumor has it that merely looking at a dullahan causes one to go blind. Even so, there are various accounts of a dullahan’s appearance: A headless horseback rider or carriage driver clad in black and armed with a long whip made of a human’s spinal cord. The dullahan’s head usually rests under the crook of its arm, and dullahan have been known to hurl their heads at their victims.

A dullahan’s steed is often a frightful creature in its own right. Dullahan typically ride Warhorses, though some also ride Pegasi or Unicorns. A dullahan’s steed is always pitch- black and has malicious red eyes. It is not widely known, but dullahan also hold a great aversion to gold and the metal severely weakens them.

Dullahan Template

To turn any humanoid creature into a dullahan, apply the following template.

First,

• It gains the undead tag.
• Increase its STR and AWR by +1.

• It gains Resist Physical +5, Immune Cold and Immune Necrotic.

• It gains Vulnerable Radiant +1 and Vulnerable Gilded Weapons +1.

• It gains the Iron Will, Steel Mind, Unerring Mind, Vigilant, and Regen 4 traits.
• It gains Darkvision 120 ft.

If a stat block references the Dullahan Template in its features section, then skip this step and apply only the second and third steps.

Second,

It gains the following features if it does not already have them.

Nightmare Steed. Riding a steed lets the Dullahan deal +3 (1d6) fire damage with its attacks. Both the mount and the Dullahan have Immune Fire while the Dullahan remains mounted.

Blinding Terror. When a creature starts its turn within 60 ft of the Dullahan, it may choose to avert its eyes, rendering the Dullahan Unseen. If it does not avert its eyes, the target must make a DC 14 SAN check. On a failure, the creature is Blinded until the start of its next turn. On a crit fail, the creature is Blinded until Lesser Restoration or similar magic restores its sight.

Harbinger of Doom. The Dullahan has +1 TA and +1 crit range against creatures that have gained Fear from the Dullahan since the last time they Took a Rest. The Dullahan supernaturally knows the distance and direction to such creatures.

Aversion to Gold. If a creature spends at least 1 AP exposing gold to the Dullahan, then the Dullahan is Frightened and must take two fewer Tier 1 actions on its next turn unless it uses those actions to move directly away from the gold.

Goldenslain. If the Dullahan has taken radiant damage or been exposed to gold or sunlight since the start of its last turn, its Regen ability does not work.

Third,

On each of the Dullahan’s turns, it may take one of the following sets of actions.

• Move and take four Tier 1 actions.
• Move and take two Tier 1 actions and one Tier 2 action.
• Move and take two Tier 2 actions.

It gains the following action options if it does not already have them.

Tier 1 Actions

Revelation. All nonmagically closed doors, windows, drawers, chests, and other containers in a 30 ft cone from the Dullahan simultaneously open, regardless of whether they were locked. If a creature was hiding from the Dullahan behind such a door, that creature gains +6 Fear.

Tier 2 Actions

Throw Head. Ranged 200 ft Natural Weapon: +DEX vs AR. Hit: 2d10+STR blunt, the target falls Prone, and the target gains +1 Fear.

Blazing Charge (Recharge 6). The Dullahan causes its steed to move up to its speed. The path along which the steed moved bursts into flames. If a creature starts its turn in or moves through the area, it must make an END check against a DC of 10 + the Dullahan’s DEX, taking 7 (2d6) fire damage on a fail and 1⁄2 as much on a success. The fire remains for 10 minutes, then fades out.

Bloodthirsty Scream (Recharge 6). 60 ft Radius Natural Weapon. +CHA vs WILL of each hostile creature in the radius. Hit: Creature is Broken until the end of its next turn. While Broken in this way, a creature gains +1 Fear whenever they take damage. Miss: Creature is Frightened until the end of its next turn.