Rare to the point of being almost mythical, the children of malignant symmetry are never encountered individually within the Abyss. They are only found en masse when a large group of their kind besieges and lays waste to a demonic settlement or party of travelers. Survivors of such encounters are even rarer, and demonic lords have long seethed in frustration at their inability to find the source of these raids. What they do know is that the children of malignant symmetry do not wander the Abyss skulking in the shadows, nor do they hide on unclaimed or disputed layers.

Habitat & Society

As best the lords of the Abyss can ascertain, the children have a layer of their own from which they periodically emerge, but no divinations reveal its nature or location, and in the aftermath of attacks, no physical link to any adjacent layers remains. As best the demons can tell, their bane appeared out of nowhere and vanished back to the same…

Unique within the Abyss, their actual home layer serves as both fortress and religious mecca. A place of ever-shifting landscapes rising out of a shallow, glowing sea, dotted by cities of twisted, crystalline architecture, the layer centers around a glistening anarchic font. Bordered by a fluctuating number of ancient, weathered standing stones inscribed in flowing, protean runes, the layer’s core is a pocket of the Maelstrom anchored there within the Abyss like a quiescent virus, deep within the infected flesh of an unsuspecting host.

While the other layers of the Abyss randomly open as great fissures in the substance of the Maelstrom borderlands, their layer never does, instead only forming tenuous links to other layers of the Abyss itself, usually those more obscure or less populated. With their layer functioning like a two-way mirror on a grand scale with regard to divination magic, the children gather information on the objects of their hatred, and continue the work that their mad creators initiated eons ago. Whether carrying out destruction by either their creators’ mandates or their own spawned schemes, the children of malignant symmetry are a race of fanatics, and only those directly furthering their goals—the obliteration of all other natives of the Abyss—avoid becoming targets as well.

Child of Malignant Symmetry CR 13

CE Large outsider (chaotic, evil)
Init +11; Senses darkvision 60 ft.; Perception +18
Aura warp the twisted earth (30 ft.)

DEFENSE
AC 26, touch 16, flat-footed 19 (+7 Dex, +10 natural, -1 size)
hp 124 (12d8+72); regeneration 5 (lawful or good)
Fort +14, Ref +17, Will +13
Defensive Abilities amorphous anatomy; DR 10/lawful or good; Immune acid, polymorph; Resist electricity 10, fire 10; SR 15

OFFENSE
Spd 30 ft., Climb 30 ft.
Melee 2 claws +19 (1d8+3), bite +19 (1d10+3 plus poison), sting +19 (1d12+3 plus poison)
Space 10 ft.; Reach 10 ft.
Special Attacks baneful poison, rend (2 claws 1d8+5)
Spell-like Abilities (CL 15th)
At will—arcane sight, comprehend languages, detect magic
3/day—baleful polymorph (DC 20), chaos hammer (DC 19), confusion (DC 19), dimensional anchor, haste
1/day—discern location, greater dispel magic, greater teleport, word of chaos (DC 22)

STATISTICS
Str 16, Dex 25, Con 22, Int 20, Wis 17, Cha 20
Base Atk +12; CMB +16; CMD 33
Feats Combat Expertise, Improved Initiative, Iron Will, Lightning Reflexes, Weapon Finesse
Skills Appraise +15, Bluff +20, Diplomacy +15, Handle Animal +20, Intimidate +20, Knowledge (arcane) +20, Knowledge (planes) +20, Perception +18, Ride +23, Sense Motive +18, Spellcraft +20, Stealth +23, Survival +18, Swim +18
Languages Abyssal, Protean
SQ amorphous anatomy

ECOLOGY
Environment the Abyss
Organization solitary, squad (3), or war party (5+, with 1-3 bebeliths)

SPECIAL ABILITIES
Amorphous Anatomy (Ex) A child of malignant symmetry’s vital organs shift and change shape and position constantly, granting it a 50% chance to ignore additional damage caused by critical hits and sneak attacks. They automatically recover from physical blindness or deafness after 1 round by growing new sensory organs to replace those that were compromised.

Baneful Poison (Ex) Bred as a tool to ravage and supplant the natives of the Abyss, the poison of a child of malignant symmetry’s bite or sting is capable of affecting even creatures normally immune to poison.

Malignant symmetry poison—injury; save Fort DC 23; frequency 1/round for 6 rounds; effect 1d4 Dex damage; save 2 consecutive saves

Rend (Ex) If a child of malignant symmetry hits with both claws in the same round, it automatically attacks with its lesser, insect-like forelegs, rending flesh for 1d8+5 damage.

Warp the Twisted Earth (Su) A child of malignant symmetry’s aura compromises the normal fabric of any chaotic evil plane, subverting its properties and turning them against any native creatures. Any other natives of these planes entering the aura’s radius find perspective’s skewed, their balance thrown off, and a visceral, unsettling feeling of having stepped into an alien environment. Victims are subject to a nauseating effect (Fort DC 20 negates). Additionally, feeling cut off from the natural power of their home plane, victims find the effective CL of their spells or spell-like abilities lowered by the child of malignant symmetry’s charisma bonus.

This article contains proper names (characters, deities, etc.), dialogue, plots, storylines, locations, and characters owned by Paizo Publishing, LLC. This content is used with the express permission of Paizo Publishing, LLC.