According to Horus’s priesthood, the bennu bird—also known as “He Who Came Into Being by Himself” and “The Ascending One”—is a self-created being that influenced the creation of the world. Many believe that this outsider forever guards the ba of the Prince of Princes.
Nowadays the bennu bird is the stoutest ally of Horus, gathering worshipers under the Sky Lord banner daily so that Nuria Natal can be reunited again.
An ancient wisdom radiates from this kingly gray heron crowned with a two-feathered crescent.
Bennu CR 18
XP 153,600
LG Medium Outsider (extraplanar, good, lawful, shapechanger)
Init +12; Senses darkvision 120 ft. lifesense, low-light vision; Perception +44
Defense
AC 34, touch 29, flat-footed 25 (+8 Dex, +1 dodge, +10 insight, +5 natural)
hp 330 (25d10+200)
Fort +18, Ref +22, Will +28
Defensive Abilities self-resurrection; DR 15/—; Immune fire; SR 29
Offense
Speed 25 ft.; fly 50 ft. (good)
Melee bite +33 (1d6 plus burn), 2 wings +31 (1d4 plus burn)
Special Attacks burn (5d6, DC 30)
Spell-Like Abilities (CL 20th, concentration +34)
Constant—detect chaos, detect evil, detect magic, read magic, tongues
At will—light, endure elements, eagle’s splendor, gentle repose, owl’s wisdom
5/day—continual flame, daylight, dispel magic, lesser restoration, searing light
3/day—flame strike (DC 29), mass eagle’s splendor, mass owl’s wisdom, raise dead, restoration
1/day—fire storm (DC 32), gate, greater restoration, resurrection, true resurrection
Statistics
Str 11, Dex 27, Con 26, Int 25 (currently 29), Wis 35 (currently 39), Cha 27 (currently 31)
Base Atk +25; CMB +33; CMD 43
Feats Agile Maneuvers, Alertness, Blind-Fight, Dodge, Flyby Attack, Great Fortitude, Improved Great Fortitude, Improved Initiative, Leadership, Mobility, Multiattack, Weapon Finesse, Wingover
Skills Diplomacy +38, Fly +40, Knowledge (all) +37, Perception +44, Sense Motive +44, Stealth +40
Languages Abyssal, Celestial, Common, Draconic, Huginn’s Speech, Infernal, Southern, tongues
SQ bennu’s cry, change shape, Horus-Re’s ba, primordial being
Ecology
Environment warm desert
Organization solitary (unique)
Treasure double (diamond dust worth 10,000 gp, golembane scarab, headband of mental superiority +4)
Special Abilities
Bennu’s Cry (Su) According to tales, the bennu bird flew over the waters of Nun, the primordial watery abyss, and landed on a rock mound called the ben-ben. From there it emitted a cry that broke the primordial silence and determined the course of the unfolding creation. Whenever the bennu repeats this original call, all silence, zone of silence, and similar effects are automatically negated all over the plane where the bird currently stands. Deaf people and deafened creatures within a 20-mile radius are also cured.
Change Shape (Su) The bennu can alter the coloration of its plumage as a free action, generally opting for gray, purple, blue, or white feathers. It can also assume the shape of a yellow wagtail, hawk, or eagle whenever it wants as a move action. Its last shape is that of a heron-headed man clad in a blue or white mummy dress under a transparent long coat, though it rarely assumes this form.
Horus-Re’s Ba (Su) The bennu bird represent an aspect of Horus-Re’s soul, namely his ba, or personality, everything that makes the Master of the Sun unique. This safeguard has enabled the rejuvenation of Horus after he had rescued Set’s corpse and been engulfed by the desert’s sands (see Chapter 10, page 248, Midgard Campaign Setting).
Primordial Being (Su) The bennu adds its Charisma modifier as an insight bonus to AC.
Self-Resurrection (Su) When slain, the bennu bird remains dead until the next dawn, rising from the horizon under the form of a fiery ball of fire akin to a small sun and this even if its body has been completely destroyed by an effect such as disintegrate. The bennu gains 1 permanent negative level when this occurs, although it uses greater restoration to remove this negative level as soon as possible. A bennu bird can self-resurrect indefinitely, but if it dies within the area of a desecrate spell, it cannot self-resurrect until the desecrate effect ends, at which point the bennu bird immediately resurrects. When brought back to life by other means, the bennu bird never gains negative levels as a result. The only way to kill the bennu would be to drown the bird in the primordial waters of Nun, the watery abyss from where the creation emerged.
