Monster: Bone Eater

Bone Eater

An innocent looking man, except for a hungry gleam in his eyes.

CR 4; XP 1,200
NE Medium Monstrous Humanoid
Init +8 ; Senses darkvision 60 ft., scent; Perception +19

Defense
AC 17, touch 14, flat-footed 13 (+4 Dex, +3 natural)
hp 38 (4d10+16)
Fort +5, Ref +8, Will +6
Defensive Abilities ghoulish courtesy, innocent mask; Immune diseases, poison

Offense
Speed 30 ft., climb 30 ft.
Melee 2 claws +18 (1d6+4)
Special Attacks bone-eating, pounce

Statistics
Str 18, Dex 18, Con 18, Int 13, Wis 15, Cha 15
Base Atk +4; CMB +8; CMD 22
Feats Alertness, Improved Initiative
Skills Climb +12, Bluff +14, Perception +19, Sense Motive +16, Stealth +11, Survival +9; Racial Modifiers +8 Bluff, +8 Perception, +8 Sense Motive
Languages Common, Goblin
SQ compression, gorge

Ecology
Environment any
Organization solitary, pair
Treasure standard

Special Abilities

Bone-Eating (Ex) Bone eaters can quickly tear flesh and shatter bones of an incapacitated creature with their claws. They have ×4 critical multiplier when they perform coup d'grace, and they can tear apart and eat the best parts of a Medium-sized corpse in one minute if undisturbed (each round of eating is treated as coup d'grace action), preventing easy revival.

Ghoulish Courtesy (Su) Unintelligent undeads ignore bone eater unless explicitly commanded to attack them. Sentient undeads avoid harming them as if the bone eater was protected with sanctuary effect (Will save DC 20). The saving throw DC is Charisma-based and includes +4 racial bonus.

Gorge (Ex) Bone eaters have similar needs to human beings when it comes to amount of food consumed, with a pound or two of flesh constituting an average meal, though unlike humans they can eat prodigious amounts of food in advance and fast for extended periods of time later. A bone eater can eat and store for later up to three meals per point of Constitution score. A bone eater does not even start to get hungry before those reserves are used up.

Innocent Mask (Su) Bone eaters appear to be mundane humans when not hunting. Any divination effects also show them to be human beings with neutral alignment, unless their caster make a successful Will saving throw (DC 20). The saving throw DC is Charisma-based and includes +4 racial bonus.


Bone eaters are human-looking monsters that feed on corpses of the dead, with bones of sapient beings being their favorite diet. While they can be easily mistaken for ghouls because of their behavior, they are not undead. Instead they are living, breathing beings, possibly a mutation or accursed off-shot of humankind. Many bone eaters live among humans, hiding their nature, and hunting or trapping humans for their sustenance in secrecy. A few of them are responsible for dark tales of murderous innkeepers and weird child-eating neighbors.

While they might show a degree of sentiment for their victims, they are callous beings, considering humanoids their pets at best, and usually as merely cattle to be consumed or prey to be hunted.

Bone eaters' jaws are strong enough to crush bones but unsuitable to use in combat or even for eating larger portions of their victims at once. They rely on tearing apart their meals and opponents with claws instead.

A bone eater usually advances by taking levels in slayer class.