Manus#

Armor Class 21 (natural armor) Hit Points 350 Speed 50 ft. Challenge 17 (18,000 XP)

• Saving Throws Dex +14, Con +11, Wis +10, Cha +14
• Skills Acrobatics +14, Deception +14, Insight +10, Intimidation +14, Perception +10, Performance +14, Persuasion +14
• Condition Immunities frightened, grappled, restrained
• Senses darkvision 120 ft., passive Perception 20
• Languages Common and two other languages of his choice

Advanced Shapechanger. As a bonus action, Manus can change his appearance and voice. He determines the specifics of the changes, including his coloration, hair length, and sex. He can also adjust his height and weight, but not so much that his size changes. He can make himself appear as a member of another race, though none of his game statistics change. He can’t duplicate the appearance of a creature he’s never seen and he must adopt a form that has the same basic arrangement of limbs that he has. His clothing and equipment aren’t changed by this trait.

He stays in the new form until he uses a bonus action to revert to his true form or until he dies.

Elemental Weapons. As a bonus action, Manus can conjure up to two elemental blades at once made purely from the magic type he chooses. These blades deal either cold, fire, lightning, or poison damage depending on his choice. Manus can select a different damage type per blade.

Manus can also choose to conjure an elemental bow, which deals one of the above damage types. Manus can use a bonus action to switch between the blades and bow.

The original Manus always deals the amount of damage equal to his tier 4 attacks. Copies of Manus deal damage equal to their corresponding tiers.

Evasion. Manus can nimbly dodge out of the way of certain area effects, such as a red dragon’s fiery breath or an ice Storm spell. When Manus is subjected to an effect that allows him to make a Dexterity saving throw to take only half damage, you instead take no damage if you succeed on the saving throw, and only half damage if you fail.

Ki. Manus has six ki points he can use to either dash as a bonus action or use a stunning strike.

One With Darkness. Manus has spent much of his time honing his craft over the control and creation of shadows and darkness. This allows Manus to see in all forms of darkness as normal within his darkvision range and sees anything past that as dim light up to 300 feet.

Shadow Passage. Manus can move from one shadow into another. When Manus is in dim light or darkness, as a bonus action he can teleport up to 60 feet to an unoccupied space he can see that is also in dim light or darkness. Manus can also teleport freely in any shadows he creates and can teleport to shadows that are as small as one foot in size, slinking out from them and appearing in an unoccupied space five feet from them. This includes shadows cast by other creatures.

Spellcasting. Manus is a 20th-level spellcaster. His spellcasting ability is Charisma (spell save DC 22, +14 to hit with spell attacks). Manus has the ability to learn more spells and use more spell slots but decided to funnel his magical affinity into crafting his own abilities, leaving him with fewer slots than your typical 20th-level caster. Manus knows the following spells:

• Cantrips (at will): mage hand, minor illusion, prestidigitation, ray of frost, chill touch
• 1st level (5 slots): _detect magic, disguise self, shield
• 2nd level (4 slots): darkness, invisibility, misty step, silence
• 3rd level (4 slots): counterspell, dispel magic
• 4th level (3 slots): dimension door
• 5th level (2 slots): passwall

Actions#

Multiattack. Manus can make a combination of four elemental blade or fist attacks per turn or three elemental bow attacks per turn.

Conjure Shadow Self (When Initiative Hits 20). Manus has become one with darkness and has mastered the ability to transfer his life into it. Whenever the initiative count hits 20, Manus can conjure up to four shadow copies of himself within 90 feet of his original body. These copies are indistinguishable from how Manus appears currently and are capable of anything Manus is capable of doing except cast spells, use Shadow Flood or use Conjure Shadow Self. Manus’ original body and any shadow copies he currently copies are also allowed to teleport another within that 90 feet. Manus can have a maximum of four shadow copies active at any given time. Shadow copies use Manus’ stats for any checks or saving throws.

To create a shadow copy, Manus must sacrifice a portion of his remaining hit points. Depending on how many hit points Manus dumps into any given shadow copy, they enter a tier and deal the appropriate damage as labelled in their elemental blade, bow and fist attack descriptions. Manus must put at least 10 hit points in any given shadow copy (tier one). For each additional 10 hit points Manus puts into a shadow copy, it goes up another tier up to a maximum of 40 hit points and creates a tier 4 shadow copy (10-19 = Tier 1, 20-29 = Tier 2, 30-39 = Tier 3, 40 = Tier 4). A shadow copy losing hit points after it has been conjured doesn’t lower its tier. Manus cannot drop to 0 hit points or below by using this ability. These clones stay active so long as Manus is conscious.

To command these shadow copies, Manus must use a legendary action. However, the shadow copies then use that legendary action to take a full turn (action, bonus action, movement, reaction, etc.).

Elemental Blade/Bow (Tier 4). Melee weapon attack: +14, reach 5 ft. as a blade, 150/450 ft. as a bow, one target. Hit: 22 (4d6 + 8). Manus can choose between cold, fire, lightning, or poison damage for his elemental blades.

Elemental Blade/Bow (Tier 3). Melee weapon attack: +14, reach 5 ft. as a blade, 150/450 ft. as a bow, one target. Hit: 16 (3d6 + 6). Manus can choose between cold, fire, lightning, or poison damage for his elemental blades.

Elemental Blade/Bow (Tier 2). Melee weapon attack: +14, reach 5 ft. as a blade, 150/450 ft. as a bow, one target. Hit: 11 (2d6 + 4). Manus can choose between cold, fire, lightning, or poison damage for his elemental blades.

Elemental Blade/Bow (Tier 1). Melee weapon attack: +14, reach 5 ft. as a blade, 150/450 ft. as a bow, one target. Hit: 5 (1d6 + 2). Manus can choose between cold, fire, lightning, or poison damage for his elemental blades.

Fist. Melee weapon attack: +14, reach 5 ft., Hit: 13 (1d10 + 8) bludgeoning damage. Manus and Tier 4 copies deal the previously stated damage. The damage roll goes down to d8+6 for Tier 3 copies, d6+4 for Tier 2 copies, and D4+2 for tier 1 copies.

Shadow Flood (After losing 200 HP). Immediately after losing 200 hit points, Manus unhinges his jaw and exhales a massive cloud of shadow that covers the battlefield. This cloud extends up to 120 feet wide and 20 feet high. This cloud is treated like the Darkness spell.

Legendary Actions#

The monster 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 monster regains spent legendary actions at the start of its turn.

Elemental Blade/Bow. The original Manus makes an elemental blade or bow attack.

Command Shadow Copy. Manus mentally commands a shadow copy to take a full turn.