Ved

This hairy humanoid giant's misshapen head appears too large for its body. It wields a lumpy, primitive club.

Ved (CR 5)

Large Humanoid (Giant)
Alignment: Neutral Evil
Initiative: -1
Senses: Low-Light Vision; Perception +6

Speed: 30 feet
Space: 10 feet

Defense

Armor Class: 16, touch 8, flat-footed 16 (-1 Dex, +8 natural, -1 size)
Hit Points: 57 (6d8+30)
Saving Throws: Fort +7, Ref +1, Will +6

Offense

Melee: club +10 (1d8+7)
Reach: 10 feet

Special Attacks: gale breath

Statistics

Str	Dex	Con	Int	Wis	Cha
25 (+7)	8 (-1)	20 (+5)	7 (-2)	12 (+1)	9 (-1)

Base Attack Bonus: +4
CMB +12 (+14 Bull Rush)
CMD 22 (24 vs. Bull Rush)

Feats: Awesome Blow, Powerful Maneuvers

Skills: Intimidate +4, Perception +6, Survival +6 (+10 in snow)

• Racial Modifiers: +4 Climb (when climbing rocks), +4 Survival (in snow)

Languages: Giant

Special Abilities

Gale Breath (Su)

Every 1d4 rounds as a full-round action, a ved can draw in a mighty breath and expel it outward in a 30-foot cone. Targets within 10 feet of the origin of this cone must succeed at a DC 18 Strength check or be knocked prone. Those who succeed at the check or are standing farther away from the ved treat the effects of the gale breath as a gust of wind spell.

Ecology

Environment: Cold Hills or Mountains
Organization: solitary, pair, gang (3-5), or clan (6-16)
Treasure: standard


When Baba Yaga invaded the eastern Linnorm Kingdoms, she brought these ungainly giants with her and left them here to fend for themselves once they had helped her conquer Irrisen. Brutish and rather stupid, these humanoids are clannish and shun even lightly populated areas, preferring the cold hills and mountains of southern Irrisen. Occasionally a gang of veds (often an adult leading two or three adolescents) carries out raids against the mining camps in that region, claiming the lives of half a dozen miners or slaves. But such forced labor is easily replaced, and the Jadwiga overseeing operations in the region don't view these depredations as a serious threat to their extraction industry.

Clans of veds rarely consist of more than a few mated pairs, their offspring, and one or two aged specimens that are commonly left to die when they become unable to pull their weight. Veds are omnivores; they prefer meat (eaten raw), but aren't averse to consuming winteryew bark for nourishment. Perhaps the most unusual aspect of veds is their enormous lung capacity, which they are able to use quite aggressively.

These giants can expel air from their lungs in a mighty blast, extinguishing small fires and knocking prone any who stand before them. The veds then descend on their victims, pummeling their prey viciously with simple but effective clubs.