Monster: Necrocerebrum

Necrocerebrum

A pink and gray brain floats in the air with a tangle of tendril-like nerves extending from its steam. It has a pair of eyes floating in front of it, their exposed nerves resembling grotesque stalks.

CR 7; XP 3,200
CE Tiny Undead
Init +8; Senses darkvision 60 ft., thoughtsense 100 ft.; Perception +18

Defense
AC 20, touch 20, flat-footed 15 (+3 deflection, +4 Dex, +1 dodge, +2  size)
hp 85 (10d8+40)
Fort +6, Ref +9, Will +9
Defensive Abilities all-around vision, channel backlash, psychic armor; Immune undead

Offense
Speed 5 ft., fly 20 ft. (perfect)
Space 2-1/2 ft.; Reach 0 ft.
Special Attacks neuron blast, neuron spike
Spell-Like Abilities (CL 10th, concentration +13; saving throw and concentration checks are Int-based)
At Will—telekinesis (4th level, DC 17)

Statistics
Str 1, Dex 18, Con —, Int 17, Wis 13, Cha 17
Base Atk +7; CMB +0; CMD 18 (can't be tripped)
Feats Alertness, Dodge, Improved Initiative, Lightning Reflexes, Toughness
Skills Fly +29, Knowledge (arcana) +16, Knowledge (religion) +16, Perception +18, Sense Motive +18, Spellcraft +16, Stealth +25
Language Understands Aklo, Common, and Undercommon; telepathy 100 ft.
SQ dead puppets, living mind

Ecology
Environment any
Organization single or pair
Treasure standard

Special Abilities

Channel Backlash (Su) When a necrocerebrum makes a successful saving throw against undead-damaging positive energy effect, it transfers all the damage it should suffer to the originator of the effect as untyped mind-affecting damage. A successful Will saving throw (DC 18) negates the reflected damage. The saving throw DC is Intelligence-based.

Dead Puppets (Sp) A necrocerebrum can use its telekinesis spell-like ability to animate one or more corpses as if using animate dead with long range and duration of concentration (maximum 1 round/level).

Living Mind (Ex) A necrocerebrum can be detected and contacted with mind-affecting effects as if it was a living creature. It remains immune to being controlled or influenced with mind-affecting abilities.

Neuron Blast (Su) A necrocerebrum primary mode of attack is firing pulses of psychic energy that unerringly strike up to three targets within 100 feet. Each target that fails a Will saving throw (DC 18) suffers 3d6 points of damage and an annoying headache that forces the victim to make concentration checks to use and maintain abilities that require concentration (DC 15+spell level of the ability used). The headache can be removed with any effect that alleviates pain or an hour of rest. The saving throw DC is Intelligence-based. This is a mind-affecting and pain effect.

Neuron Spike (Su) A necrocerebrum can emit a pulse of psychic energy that amplifies headaches into sudden bursts of intense pain and unleashed as psychokinetic wave. A neuron spike affects all the creatures within 100 feet suffering from the headache caused by neuron blasts. Each subject is staggered for 1 round on a successful Will saving throw (DC 18) or stunned for 1d4 rounds on a failed save, either way, the headache ends immediately. Any creature adjacent to a creature affected in this way suffers 2d6 points of force damage as the intense pain triggers a spontaneous psychokinetic outburst. The saving throw DC is Intelligence-based. The initial effect on creatures suffering from the headache is a mind-affecting and pain effect.

Psychic Armor (Su) A necrocerebrum projects a defensive field of force around itself, gaining a deflection bonus to AC equal to its Intelligence bonus.


A necrocerebrum is a brain of a psychically talented individual, extracted and animated via combination of esoteric surgery and necromantic energies. The resulting being is a malevolent but intelligent entity that can focus its residual psychic abilities into a pain-inflicting mental attacks or manipulate its surroundings via psychokinesis.

A necrocerebrum can also be created inadvertently, when an agitated psychic is killed in a particularly gruesome way that destroys majority of the body while leaving enough of the neural system intact. In a few documented cases, psychics with particularly potent defensive abilities were capable of protecting his their brains from such devastating effects as disintegrate or destruction.

A necrocerebrum retains vestigial traits of the psychics personality, though it is flayed of many of its mortal aspects such as empathy, compassion, greed, and sexuality.