Vael'Suun the Sunsplitter

Gargantuan dragon (titan), lawful evil · CR 25

by DawnscaleArchivist

Vael'Suun the Sunsplitter
Armor Class
22
natural armor
Hit Points
499
27d20 + 216
Speed
40 ft., climb 40 ft., fly 80 ft.
  • STR +9
  • DEX +1
  • CON +8
  • INT +5
  • WIS +6
  • CHA +8
Saving Throws
Dex +9, Con +16, Wis +14, Cha +16
Damage Immunities
Fire, Radiant
Condition Immunities
Blinded, Charmed, Frightened
Senses
blindsight 60 ft., darkvision 120 ft., passive Perception 24
Languages
Common, Celestial, Draconic
Challenge 25 75,000 XP

Traits

  • Legendary Resistance (3/Day). If the creature fails a saving throw, it can choose to succeed instead.
  • Magic Resistance. The creature has advantage on saving throws against spells and other magical effects.
  • Frightful Presence. Each creature of the dragon's choice within 120 feet and aware of it must succeed on a DC 24 Wisdom saving throw or become frightened for 1 minute. A creature can repeat the save at the end of each of its turns, ending the effect on itself on a success. If a creature's save succeeds or the effect ends for it, the creature is immune to this dragon's Frightful Presence for the next 24 hours.
  • Sunfire Aura. At the start of each of the dragon's turns, each creature within 15 feet of it takes 14 (4d6) radiant damage. A creature that ends its turn within this aura is blinded until the start of its next turn unless it succeeds on a DC 24 Constitution saving throw. The dragon sheds bright light in a 30-foot radius and dim light for an additional 30 feet.

Actions

  • Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +17 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 31 (4d10 + 9) piercing damage. Melee Weapon Attack. The creature bites with its jaws.
  • Claw. Melee Weapon Attack: +17 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 22 (3d8 + 9) slashing damage. Melee Weapon Attack. The creature rakes with its claws.
  • Tail. Melee Weapon Attack: +17 to hit, reach 20 ft., one target. Hit: 28 (3d12 + 9) bludgeoning damage. Melee Weapon Attack. The creature swings its tail at a target within reach.
  • Sunsplitting Breath (Recharge 5-6). The creature exhales fire in a 30-foot cone. Each creature in the area takes 72 (16d8) radiant damage. Each creature in that area must make a DC 13 Dexterity saving throw, taking fire damage on a failed save, or half as much on a successful one.

Legendary Actions

The Vael'Suun the Sunsplitter can take 3 legendary actions, choosing from the options below. Only one legendary action option can be used at a time, and only at the end of another creature's turn. The Vael'Suun the Sunsplitter regains spent legendary actions at the start of their turn.

  • Detect. The creature makes a Wisdom (Perception) check.
  • Tail Attack. The dragon makes a tail attack.
  • Wing Attack (Costs 2 Actions). The dragon beats its wings. Each creature within 15 feet of the dragon must succeed on a Dexterity saving throw or take bludgeoning damage and be knocked prone. The dragon can then fly up to half its flying speed. Each creature in the area must make a DC 25 Dexterity saving throw, taking 2d6+{strMod} bludgeoning damage on a failed save, or half as much damage on a successful one. The dragon can then fly up to half its flying speed.

Origin Story

Vael'Suun was old when the first deserts were young. Dragonkind name it the Sunsplitter for the day it tore open the sky above a heretic empire and let raw daylight pour down until the cities ran to glass. It does not hoard gold so much as light: mirrored halls, sun-stones, and the scorched relics of those who once worshipped a kinder dawn. Priests of the sun curse its name in the same breath they pray, for Vael'Suun believes itself the true and final sun, and means one day to prove it by putting out every other.

Habitat and Ecosystem

It lairs in a glass-walled temple-canyon at the heart of a salt desert, where the noon sun never seems to set and shadows fall the wrong way. Nothing green grows for a day's flight in any direction; the sand is fused into rippling mirrors that blind travelers and mark the dragon's territory. Lesser sun-cultists, fire elementals, and broken couatl serve it, drawn or compelled to the false dawn that burns above its hoard.

Behavior Patterns

Anglerhounds hunt in silent pairs or trios. One drifts in open water with its lure aglow while the others lie buried in silt along the victim’s likely path. They are ruthless but not stupid: a pack that loses a member to a well-armed party will abandon the lure entirely and stalk from below, snapping at stragglers who linger near the water’s edge. They never stray far from water and will break off a chase the moment prey reaches dry, open ground.

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