Gumple Stilt-Shins
Grumple was an ornrey old gnome who lived in a small village. His life was normal. He made his living owning a general store, before comfortably retiring. He had a wife, and then didn't. Had kids, and then they were gone. Old Man Grumple seemed content living his peaceful life of tea, relaxing on the porch in his favorite rocking chair, the occasional book, and neighborhood gossip. But one cool autumn day, when he found his legs to be too restless, the tea to be too bland, the gossip to be too boring, and the children to be too bothersome, Old Man Grumple went for a walk in the woods.
On his walk, the old gnome forgot himself for a time, wandering out aimlessly for hours. His legs hadn't quite failed him yet, to his surprise. Grumple walked, and walked until he happened upon a small hut. And in that hut, was a hag. A strangely friendly hag. The hag offered him hospitality in her hut, complete with a warm cup of tea, some cakes, as well as either pleasant conversation or peace and quiet, upon request. At first, Grumple chose the latter, though it wasn't long before he found himself chatting up the old hag, discussing various gossip, reminiscing, and complaining like old folks do. The old man made himself at home, and the both of them couldn't have been happier.
It was just as Grumple was about to leave that the hag made him an offer. No one knows the deal that was proposed, only that Grumple accepted, and his payment would be claimed at a later date.
Grumple continued on with his life as if nothing happened, for some time. He returned to his home, to the village, and to his rountine. But it was not to last. On a cool autumn day, some years later, when Grumple had almost forgotten about that day, the hag returned. She entered his home without invitation or preamble, and demanded payment. Though to her detriment, Grumple had not simply sat idly waiting, and he was ready for the creature's return. The hag was smote to ruin upon the den of Old Man Grumple.
Remains went unburied, and a debt unsatisfied.
Grumple was different from that day, on.
At first it, the folk of the village were rather passive in there reception of these changes. Parents told their children they are never to go to Old Man Grumple's. Neighbors, concerned he might be ill, came to check on him, once in a while. Though that ceased quickly, and Grumple's once neighbors sought homes elsewhere.
The sounds, the smells.
The lights.
The filth.
Small towns had lynched for less. And the townsfolk needn't much convincing to blame the old gnome for each of their kin to fall ill, or for each failed crop.
Old Man Grumple was torn from his house, the gnome's protests falling on deaf ears as he was dragged to a cliff outside of town. Waves crashed onto the jagged rocks from the vast waters of the lake.
Grumple kicked. Grumple begged. Grumple cried. Grumple fell.
And fell, and fell, and fell.
The old gnome's legs shattered against the jagged stones. His body dashed against the rock by current and wave. His screams crawling up the cliffside. And the townsfolk continued on with their lives.
Much time had passed, just enough for the town to almost forget about Old Man Grumple, when they recieved a ghastly visitor. A tall, shadowy figure stood at the edge of the village. He was the height of a man, but his body was small, and his legs thin and spindly. Townsfolk were impailed on his wooden stilts, as the visitor trampled through the village. People succumbed to plagues in an instant. Others simply eviscerated, by claw, or even a simple look. The village was reduced to shattered homes, and bloody corpses. And Old Man Grumple went for a walk in the woods.
A Trifling Gnome
The occasional survivor of an attack by Grumple Stilt-Shins, will bring with them tales of a twisted, bloody gnome that loomed like a giant, with legs made of wood and claws like an animal. Somtimes through their hysterics, they might become lucid enough to tell you about the sickness that preceeded his arrival. Nothing tragic, meerly an increase in colds and the like, but enough to be odd. And they might tell you how food tasted worse in the days leading up to the his arrival, or how all the elderly seemed even more weary, or the strange smells that occasionally wafted in on a breeze.
I would hope it needn't be said that, should you find your village under attack by Grumple Stilt-Shins, or notice these preceding signs, you should flee as far as you can. But there are those out their who would stand up against such a creature, and to those are whom I write these pages.
Known Traits and Behavior
Grumple Stilt-Shins has been known to be viscous in combat. His primary method of attack consists of the wooden stilts that make up the lower half of his legs. They are deadly and have a long reach, allowing him to keep a safe distance from his victims should they be the sort to fight back. Despite his small appearance, Grumple has been known to have incredible strength, and though one may be understandably tempted to knock him over to gain the advantage, such a tatic would prove inefective. Not only this,but he boast a resistance to mundane, nonsilver, weaponry. He's also been known to have some innate spellcasting abilities, including both destructive abilities, as well as manipulative spells. Additionally, all accounts from those involved in skirmishes with Grumple Stilt-Shins have reported seeing him disappear and reappear across the battlefield.
His favored targets are small towns, villages, and hamlets; and within those he expresses a particular hatred toward children. The ones he finds most irritating are attacked first. When Grumple Stilt-Shins appears in an area, he tends to stay until he finishes slaughtering whatever inhabitants happen to live there.
Methods of Elimination
While groups experienced with combating monsters will be able to fend off Grumple Stilt-Shins, simply defeating him in combat with not suffice. If he is slain, he will reappear in somewhere nearby, the next day, the location appearing to be random. If one burns an effigy of Grumple, it can ward him off from a specific location for a short time. Doing so will divert his attention elsewhere, as if the area was obscured. If Grumple appears to be targeting anyone individually, this method can protect them temporarily, though they must stay quiet, produce no light, aside from that of the burning effigy, or otherwise not draw attention to themselves. Even then, this protection is temporary, and loses effectiveness over time.
In order to be rid of Grumple Stilt-Shins, long term, one must start by retrieving his missing legs. Whenever he appears in an area, his missing legs also appear somewhere nearby. A locate object spell can make the task of finding them easier, though should such a method be unavailable, they produce a powerful scent of rotting flesh, and they tend to attract rats. Once one has retrieved the severed limbs, they must then build a fire and burn the legs, then Grumple must be slain and his body burnt within the same fire.
It is important to note that once the legs begin burning, Grumple Stilt-Shins will immediately be summoned to that location. Now this can be made advantagious by preparing a location beforehand. Placing traps in the area and setting up an ambush is recomended. Once he is summoned, Grumple will immediately attempt to put out the fire. If he is successful, both him and his legs will disappear.
Following this process will fix the problem should a village find itself under attack by Old Man Grumple. Unfortunately, however, this process has been preformed multiple times with Grumple always appearing somewhere else. That is not to say that villagers who have come to know his ire are forever marked. Grumple cannot return within one year of his cremation, and when he does, it is not necessarily in the last place he haunted. Imagine him, if you will, like a weed in a garden. If one were to pluck the weed out by the root the weed would be gone and not return. But eventually, another weed will appear in some other part of the garden. And as the weeds return, so too shall Grumple Stilt-Shins.
Some think of Grumple Stilt-Shins as a force of nature, almost like weather passing through, that was brought into being by the dying will of Old Man Grumple. Others believe it to be the man himself, always returning through his shear stubborness. Others still, believe that there are actually multiple Grumple Stilt-Shins, as some accounts of his appearance seem to overlap, though details of his rampages can become vague and muddled in places. And there are a few who believe that the origins of Grumple Stilt-Shins to be a complete fabrication, perhaps to cover up the details of a wizard's experiment, or to obscure a truth even more horrifying. Regardless of his true nature, he can be bested, and armed with the knowledge provided here, you stand a much better chance of defending your home and family from the abominations of this world.
Grumple Stilt-Shins
Medium fey, chaotic evil
- Armor Class 15 (natural armor)
- Hit Points 97 (15d8 + 30)
- Speed 30 ft.
STR DEX CON INT WIS CHA 20 (+5) 12 (+1) 14 (+2) 10 (+0) 10 (+0) 16 (+3)
- Saving Throws Con +5
- Skills Deception +6, Perception +3
- Damage Resistances bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing from nonmagical weapons that aren't silvered
- Condition Immunities prone
- Senses passive Perception 13
- Languages Common, Elvish, Gnomish
- Challenge 5 (1,800 XP)
Innate Spellcasting. Grumple's innate spellcasting ability is Charisma (spell attack bonus +7, spell save DC 15). He can innately cast the following spells, requiring no material components:
3/day each: blur, diguise self, dissonant whispers, ray of sickness
2/day: shatter, invisibility
1/day each: blink, dominate person
Dimensional Stilts. As a bonus action, Grumple can teleport up to 30 feet to an unoccupied space that he can see.
Rejuvenation. If Grumple is killed, he regains all of his hit points and appears in a random space within 100 feet of the point his death, at the next sunset, unless his body was destroyed in a fire along with his original severed legs, in which case he can't rejuvinate for 1 year, doing so in a location of the DM's choice, regardless of the distance from his point of death.
Actions
Multiattack. Grumple makes one attack with his stilts, and one with his claws.
Claws. Melee Weapon Attack: +8 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 9 (1d8 + 5) slashing damage and 3 (1d6) psychic damage.
Stilts. Melee Weapon Attack: +8 to hit, reach 10ft., one target. Hit: 10 (1d10 + 5) piercing damage.
Hateful Omen (Recharge 6). Each creature within 60 feet of Grumple becomes magically cursed for 1 minute. At the start of a cursed creature's turn, it must succeed on a DC 13 Constitution saving throw or suffer one level of exhaustion. On a successful save, the curse ends on the creature.
Magic Items
Stilt Staff
Staff, very rare (requires attunement)
The broken remnants of one of Grumple Stilt-Shin's very own stilts, still bearing some of his power, created by breaking one of Grumple's stilts, and using its splintered tip to strike the killing blow against him. This staff also acts as a quarterstaff with which you have a +2 bonus to attack and damage rolls.
This staff has 7 charges, and regains 1d6 + 1 charges daily at dawn
Spells. You may spend charges from this staff to cast the following spells (DC: 15, Attack bonus: +7): staggering smite (4 charges), blur (2 charges), ray of sickness (1 charge).
Impale. When you hit with a melee attack with this staff, you may expend 1 of this staff's charges. If you do so, the target must make a Constitution saving throw (DC 15). On a failed save the target is paralyzed, and the staff remains embedded in the target, for 1 minute. A paralyzed creature may repeat their saving throw at the end of each of their turns, and on a successful save the staff falls to the ground. A creature within 5 ft. of the paralyzed creature may attempt a Strength check (DC 15), removing the staff and ending the paralysis on a success.
Grumple's Severed Legs
Wondrous item, artifact
A pair of green skinned severed legs, once belonging to an old gnome who met with a terrible fate. Blood slowly drips from the still open wound, seemingly without end. The scent emanating from these discarded limbs is precisely what one would expect, and offends from quite a distance.
While these legs are in your possession, your Charisma checks are made with disadvantage.
Invoke Stench. You may cast the Stinking Cloud spell, without expending a spell slot. When you do so, the spell is centered on yourself and you are immune to the effects. The cloud moves with you and cannot be dispersed by natural means for the duration. You may use this property once, and regain use of it daily at dawn.
Unholy Ward. You are always under the effects of the Protection from Good and Evil spell, except it does not affect undead, which make attacks against you with advantage.
Skip in Your Step. You may sever your own legs at the shins, and replace them with Grumple's Severed Legs by placing the severed stumps against your own. The legs attach themselves to you, and grant you the following benefits:
- You may cast the Disguise Self, Misty Step, Jump (self only), and Longstrider (self only) spells at will.
- You may cast the Blink spell a number of times equal to your proficiency modifier, per day.
- When you are hit with an attack that is a critical hit, you may use your reaction to turn that hit into a regular hit.
- Your Charisma (Intimidation) checks are no longer made with disadvantage, and are instead made with advantage.