Père Malfait

“Father Wrong-Doer”

Size/Type: Large Fey (Shapechanger, Spirit)
Hit Dice: 14d6+56 (105 hp)
Initiative: +6
Speed: 30 ft. (6 squares), swim 30 ft., climb 20 ft.
Armor Class: 22 (–1 size, +2 Dex, +11 natural), touch 11, flat-footed 20
Base Attack/Grapple: +7 / +17
Attack: Slam +12 melee (2d6+6 plus mire grasp)
Full Attack: 2 slams +12 melee (2d6+6 plus mire grasp)
Space/Reach: 10 ft. / 10 ft.
Special Attacks: Mire grasp, hypnotic call, ghost-music lure, judgment of the swamp
Special Qualities: Damage reduction 10/cold iron, darkvision 60 ft., low-light vision, swamp stride, moss-shroud form, fast healing 5 (in swamp), spell resistance 21, shapechange
Saves: Fort +9, Ref +11, Will +12
Ability Scores: Str 22, Dex 14, Con 18, Int 12, Wis 18, Cha 20
Skills: Hide +19 (+27 in swamp), Listen +21, Move Silently +19, Survival +21, Knowledge (nature) +15, Sense Motive +21
Feats: Improved Initiative, Power Attack, Cleave, Ability Focus (hypnotic call), Track
Environment: Warm marshes and bayous
Organization: Solitary (unique)
Challenge Rating: 12
Treasure: Standard (often partially submerged or hidden in roots and muck)
Alignment: Chaotic Neutral (often appears Chaotic Evil)
Advancement: 15–20 HD (Large), 21–28 HD (Huge)
Level Adjustment: —

Special Attacks

Mire Grasp (Ex):
Any creature struck by Père Malfait’s slam must succeed on a DC 20 Reflex save or be partially dragged into spectral swamp matter. The target is treated as entangled and takes 2d6 bludgeoning damage each round as roots, mud, and phantom debris constrict them. Escape requires a DC 20 Strength or Escape Artist check.

Hypnotic Call (Su):
As a standard action, Père Malfait emits a low, crooning call. Creatures within 60 feet must succeed on a DC 22 Will save or become fascinated and compelled to move toward him at half speed. This is a mind-affecting sonic effect. Creatures already in swamp terrain take a –2 penalty on the save.

Ghost-Music Lure (Su):
At night, Père Malfait can produce faint, disembodied music audible up to 300 feet. Creatures who hear it must succeed on a DC 22 Will save or wander aimlessly toward the sound for 1d4+1 minutes, ignoring hazards unless directly threatened. This effect ends if the creature takes damage.

Judgment of the Swamp (Su):
Once per day, Père Malfait may target a creature that has committed a morally questionable act (DM discretion). The target must make a DC 22 Will save or be overwhelmed with supernatural guilt, taking 6d6 psychic damage and becoming shaken for 1d6 rounds. On a successful save, the damage is halved and no condition is applied.

Special Qualities

Moss-Shroud Form (Su):
Père Malfait’s body is cloaked in living Spanish moss and swamp detritus. He gains concealment (20% miss chance) in any natural swamp terrain. As a swift action, he may increase this to total concealment (50% miss chance) for 3 rounds, once every 1d4 rounds.

Swamp Stride (Ex):
He may move through bogs, deep mud, and water without penalty and leaves no trail unless he chooses.

Shapechange (Su):
At will, Père Malfait may assume the form of a Large humanoid draped in moss, a hunched beast-like figure, or dissolve into a drifting mass of swamp vegetation. This functions as alter self, but also grants a +10 bonus to Disguise checks in swamp terrain.

Fast Healing (Ex):
Père Malfait gains fast healing 5 while in swamp or marsh terrain. This ability is suppressed for 1 round if he takes damage from a weapon made of gumwood.

Description

Père Malfait is less a creature and more a manifestation of the bayou’s will, an ancient, watchful presence that punishes those who disrespect the swamp or stray too far into its depths. His form shifts subtly between sightings, but certain elements remain constant. A towering silhouette draped in wet Spanish moss, long limbs that seem too strong and too fluid, and two faint, glowing eyes that hover within the tangled mass.

Up close, his body appears to be made of layered vegetation, mud, and something disturbingly animate beneath, like roots flexing as muscle. His movements are unnaturally quiet for something so large, accompanied only by the soft drag of moss and the distant sound of water disturbed where none should be.

His voice, when heard, is never direct. It comes as a hum, a melody, or a whisper carried on thick, humid air. Those who hear it often describe it as familiar, like a lullaby half-remembered from childhood, or a song that feels safe right until it isn’t.

Behavior

Père Malfait does not hunt in the traditional sense. He observes.

Travelers who pass respectfully through the swamp may never notice him at all. But those who pollute, desecrate, or act with cruelty, especially in isolation, may begin to feel watched. The air grows heavier. Sounds become muffled. Then the music begins.

He prefers to separate individuals from groups, using his ghost-music lure to draw them away before revealing himself. Even then, he does not always attack immediately. Many accounts describe him simply watching, as though judging, before deciding whether the trespasser deserves punishment.

When he does act, it is sudden and overwhelming. Roots burst from water, mud pulls at limbs, and his massive form strikes with crushing force.

Lore

Local Cajun folklore paints Père Malfait as both a warning and a guardian, a spirit born from the swamp itself, tasked with punishing wrong-doers, though what defines wrongdoing varies from tale to tale. Some say he was once a man who committed terrible acts and was claimed by the swamp as eternal penance. Others insist he has always existed, older than any settlement, older even than memory.

Children are warned not to wander after dark, especially near still water or hanging moss. Adults know the stories too, but treat them with a cautious respect rather than dismissal. Many carry small charms, prayers, or tokens when traveling through the bayou, just in case.

Recorded legends suggest that Père Malfait cannot be overcome by strength or steel alone. The only known way to drive him back involves spiritual protection, ritual preparation, or weapons crafted from gumwood trees, often shaped into stakes and blessed through old rites. Even then, such measures do not destroy him permanently, but instead force him to retreat into the depths of the swamp, where he reforms over time.

Above all, Père Malfait stands as a symbol of the wild, untamable power of nature. He is not merely a monster, but a lesson. The swamp does not belong to those who walk through it. It must be respected, feared, and left unchallenged by those who would survive its depths.