Woodland King

Woodland King CR: 8

Huge mammal, unaligned

Armor Class: 13 (natural armor)

Hit Points: 136 13d12+52

Speed: 50 ft

STR

25 +7

DEX

12 +1

CON

19 +4

INT

2 -4

WIS

12 +1

CHA

9 -1

Saving Throws: S: 1d20+7 | D: 1d20+1 | C: 1d20+4 | I: 1d20-4 | W: 1d20+1 | X: 1d20-1

Skills: Perception +4

Senses: Passive Perception 15

Challenge Rating: 8

Actions

Multiattack: Woodland King makes two attacks, one with its claws and one with its bite.
Double Grapple: If Woodland King makes two successful melee attacks against a creature of large or great, independent of size, it is grappled (escape DC 17). Until the grapple ends, the target is restrained, the Woodland King must continue attacking the same target, and can only use either its bite or its claw attacks.
Bite - Melee Weapon Attack: +10 to hit, reach 10ft, one target. Hit: 33 (4d12+7) piercing damage. If the target is a creature of Medium size or smaller,  it is grappled (escape DC 17). Until the grapple ends, the target is restrained and the Woodland King cannot bite another target.
Claw - Melee Weapon Attack: +10 to hit, reach 10ft, one target. Hit: 20 (3d8+7) slashing damage. If the target is a creature of Medium size or smaller, it is grappled (escape DC 17). Until the grapple ends, the target is restrained and the Woodland King cannot claw another target.

The Woodland King is a massive, 13 ton Cassiter beast with subspecies that hunt the inner Gonewald Forest and the Green Horn. Overall the creature resembles a cross between a Shark, a Wolf, and a Gorilla with a hunched appearance and a lumbering gait. Gonewald Woodland Kings have short, bristly fur which is generally solid black, whereas Green Horn Woodland Kings are usually mottled or spotted olive green to brown. The Woodland King's huge, muscular, triangular head is set close in to its body giving it incredible bite power along with its serrated teeth. It has massive foreclaws which are capable of grasping and slashing prey. Its large, digitigrade rear legs can launch it forward at incredible speed.

Suggested Environments

Jungle, Deep forest

Basic Information

Anatomy

Woodland Kings walk on all fours in a manner similar to a Gorilla, and are capable of much higher speed and acceleration than would be apparent at first sight thanks to their powerful rear legs. Their immense size puts an intense strain on their respiratory systems, and thus they do not have an "overbreathing" state (or rather they can be said to be in a permanent state of overbreathing). Unlike other large predators, Woodland Kings cannot turn their large heads past a 30 degree angle.

Genetics and Reproduction

Woodland Kings are generally solitary creatures (like most large cassiters) and mate during the dry season. The female gives birth to pups the following dry season, an extremely short gestation for a mammal of such large size. This is possible because of the small size of Woodland King pups, with a clutch size of 3-5. The creatures are born nearly fully independent and will usually strike out on their own by the rainy season. The female will be able to mate again immediately.

Growth Rate & Stages

Woodland King pups are born the size of large dogs, and grow to full size over a period of about 20 years. Woodland King pups are able to fend for themselves completely after only six months. Young Woodland Kings face dangerous lives in the Jungle, due to predation and intense territorial disputes, and few make it past the first five years. However they grow quickly and reach the size of Bears by this time, at which point they become much more difficult prey and reach their apex status. After another three to five years, their adolescence completes and they reach full size after an additional five years. During this time their own competition comes from other Woodland Kings.

Ecology and Habitats

Woodland Kings live in expansive jungles and thick forests. They are opportunistic predators and even scavengers, but their main source of prey are the massive Canopy Grazers. They clamp on to the long-necked creatures' spines with their mighty jaws and use their claws to strangle the beasts to death. 
The Gonewald Forest Woodland Kings population has been dwindling because of overhunting of their main Canopy Grazer prey, as well as poaching by Verdonese troops. The beasts are seen as a threat to inhabitants and their property and are often destroyed on sight in order to "keep the peace". The population of Woodland Kings in the Green Horn is strong, though.

Additional Information

Perception and Sensory Capabilities

Woodland Kings have powerful senses of sight and smell. In addition, an electrosensory organ allows them to sense what is behind them, making up for their heads' small range of motion. Woodland Kings can and do hunt in the dark.

Genetic Ancestor(s)

• Cassiter

Scientific Name

Magnosculum Rex

Origin/Ancestry

Mammal

Lifespan

Up to 100 years, but average lifespan is much lower considering a 20% survival rate past 5 years.

Average Height

9 meters

Average Length

9 meters

Geographic Distribution

• Gonewald Forest
• The Green Horn