[Addressing the elephant in the room: The Book of Fiends. The Book of Fiends is a Green Ronin product from the D&D 3.x days, updated for 5e, that I have written about at length and converted many monsters from, some less faithfully than others. The book combines the puerile with the genuinely disturbing, is a major influence on the development of Pathfinder (it's where qlippoth come from), and contains a number of named fiends derived from the Ars Goetia. I am using it as a source of inspiration, but am not directly converting the vast majority of its takes. I will, however, lift some of the art: none of the Balam/Balans online are nearly as good as this illustration from the 5e edition.
A lot of the Goetic demons are depicted as having unusual mounts. Which makes sense; the grimoire tradition was written in an era where nobles were expected to be skilled at riding horses, and giving a Duke of Hell a weird mount was an immediate signal of "noble but wrong somehow". Astaroth rides a dragon. Paimon rides a camel. And Balam rides a bear. Apparently a donkey was too on the nose. I wanted the bear to be relevant to Balam's stats, so that meant class levels and an animal companion. The Book of Fiends names Balan's bear Fleshtearer, which is the kind of subtlety that book excels at. I went with Theodore. Both because it means "gift from God", a great Latinate name for a pious devil, and because that gives Balam a literal teddy bear.
If you'd like to support my writing and get some bonus monsters for your trouble, check out the Creature Codex Patreon here]
Devil, Balam
CR 17 LE Outsider (extraplanar)
This muscular, red-skinned man has three horned heads. His left-head is a silver-furred ram, his right head is a golden ox, and his central head is gray skinned and human-like. He carries a massive lance and rides a fearsome bear.
Balam is a huntsman of Hell and tracker of damned souls. He serves Barbatos loyally, and patrols Avernus in search of escaped petitioners and interloping adventurers. An expert tracker, Balam can even follow the path taken through the air by a flying creature. Balam’s boon companion on these hunts is Theodore, a great fiendish bear that he raised from a cub. Balam is terse and to the point, and answers questions asked of him directly. Still, he is a devil, and his lies have ensnared those who confuse brevity with honesty.
Balam typically begins combat mounted on Theodore, having cast and split spells between them such as barkskin, protection from energy and freedom of movement. Balam first attacks with a charge, hoping to strike foes down with a single blow from his lance. If enemies survive, he often lets Theodore “play” with them, using his actions to augment Theodore’s offenses. Balam rarely hunts alone, and erinyes, magaavs, hellcats and hell hounds are all common members of his troupe. These allies are rarely obvious, however, as Balam possesses mastery over invisibility, and he uses these powers on his allies while presenting himself as a visible target. Most feared is Balam’s habit of stabilizing his fallen enemies and bringing them back to Barbatos. When not employed in the hunt, Balam spends much of his time beneath the boughs of the Penitent Cross, admiring his trophies as they slowly expire in agony.
Barbatos joined the Pandaemonic Parliament enthusiastically, on the condition that his huntsman Balam was given a seat as well. Some of the Parliament members consider Balam little more than a glorified bodyguard, but that is far from the truth. Balam’s experience pursuing petitioners give him first hand and sometimes deeply personal insights into the behavior of mortals and their souls. In addition, he also serves the valuable function of “translating” Barbatos’ cryptic utterances into actionable advice, helping the Wiseman of the Wilds drive his strange agendas further. Theodore, on the other hand, is not interested in politics, and typically spends Parliament meetings snoozing and occasionally mauling the support staff.
Balam CR 17
XP 102,400
Variant narzugon hunter (divine hunter) 13
LE Medium outsider (devil, evil, extraplanar, lawful)
Init +7; Senses darkvsion 60 ft., Perception +22, see in darkness
Defense
AC 31, touch 16, flat-footed 27 (+3 Dex, +1 dodge, +6 natural, +9 armor, +2 deflection)
hp 221 (8d10+13d8+115)
Fort +18, Ref +17, Will +11
DR 5/good; Immune fear, fire, poison; Resist acid 10, cold 10; SR 28
Defensive Abilities all around vision
Offense
Speed 20 ft., 30 ft. unarmored
Melee +1 planar lance +26/+21/+16/+11 (1d8+9/x3), gore +20 (3d6+4) or +1 greataxe +26/+21/+16/+11 (1d12+12/x3), gore +20 (3d6+4) or gore +25 (3d6+12)
Space 5 ft.; Reach 5 ft. (10 ft. with lance)
Special Attacks animal focus (13 min/day, 2 animals), gaze, scythe of evil (5 rounds/day), touch of evil (8/day, 5 rounds)
Spells CL 13th, concentration +20 (+24 casting defensively)
5th (2/day)—baleful polymorph (DC 20), cure critical wounds (DC 20)
4th (4/day)—air walk, explosion of rot (DC 19), freedom of movement, unerring tracker, unholy blight (DC 19)
3rd (5/day)—aerial tracks, bloody claws, cure moderate wounds (DC 18), greater magic fang, magic circle vs. good (DC 18), strong jaw
2nd (6/day)—align weapon (evil only), barkskin, iron stake, protection from energy, speak with plants, spider climb
1st (7/day)—alarm, bristle, cure light wounds (DC 16), faerie fire, lead blades, protection from good (DC 16), speak with animals
0th—detect magic, guidance, light, mending, resistance, stabilize
Domain—evil
Spell-Like Abilities CL 8th, concentration +13 (+17 casting defensively)
At will—greater teleport (self plus mount plus 150 lbs only), invisibility sphere
3/day—greater invisibility, hold person (DC 16), phantom steed, scorching ray
1/day—mass invisibility, order’s wrath (DC 17), phantasmal killer (DC 17), unholy blight (DC 17)
Statistics
Str 26, Dex 16, Con 18, Int 12, Wis 20, Cha 16
Base Atk +17; CMB +25; CMD 40
Feats Combat Casting, Dodge, Improved Bull’s Rush, Improved Initiative, Improved Share Spells, Mounted Combat (B), Mounted Skirmisher, Outflank (B), Power Attack, Spirited Charge, Toughness, Trick Riding, Uncanny Concentration, Unseat
Skills Bluff +19, Handle Animal +19, Intimidate +19, Knowledge (nature, religion) +17, Perception +22, Ride +24, Sense Motive +22, Spellcraft +17, Stealth +16, Survival +28; Racial Modifiers +4 Ride
Languages Celestial, Common, Draconic, Infernal, Sylvan
SQ act as one, improved empathic link, nature training, otherworldly companion, raise animal companion, speak with master, track +6, wild empathy +16, woodland stride
Gear +2 glamered breastplate, +1 planar lance, +1 greataxe, ring of protection +2, belt of physical might +2 (Str, Con), headband of wisdom +2, 820 gp
Special Abilities
Act as One (Su) A narzugon and its mount form a telepathic connection that facilitates the cooperation between them both. When Balam rolls initiative, he and his mount choose the better initiative modifier between them and roll once. Balam never takes armor check penalties for Ride checks. Balam takes no damage from area of effect spells or effects generated by his mount, and the mount takes no damage from area of effect spells or effects generated by him. In addition, a narzugon’s mount is immune to its gaze attack.
Gaze (Su) slowed 5 rounds (as per the slow spell), range 30 ft, Will DC 19 negates. The save DC is Charisma based.
Variant Narzugon (Ex) Balam is unusual by the standards of narzugons. He has three heads, granting him all-around vision, a +4 racial bonus on Perception checks, and a gore attack that deals 3d6 damage. Because of his extra heads, he gains a +2 racial bonus to the save DC of his gaze attack. Balam gains an additional +4 natural armor bonus over that possessed by typical narzugons. Balam gains greater invisibility, invisibility sphere and mass invisibility as spell-like abilities. These benefits increase Balam’s CR by +1.
Theodore CR -
Animal companion fiendish grizzly bear
NE Large animal (augmented)
Init +8; Senses darkvision 60 ft., low-light vision, Perception +10, scent
Defense
AC 28, touch 14, flat-footed 23 (-1 size, +4 Dex, +1 dodge, +12 natural, +2 armor)
hp 126 (11d8+7)
Fort +13, Ref +11, Will +6; +4 vs. enchantment
DR 10/good; Resist cold 15, fire 15; SR 18
Defensive Abilities devotion, evasion
Offense
Speed 40 ft.
Melee bite +15/+10 (1d8+8), 2 claws +15 (1d8+8 plus grab)
Space 10 ft.; Reach 5 ft.
Special Attacks animal focus (bear, tiger), smite good (1/day, +0 atk, +11 dmg)
Statistics
Str 27, Dex 19, Con 22, Int 2, Wis 13, Cha 6
Base Atk +8; CMB +17 (+21 grapple); CMD 32
Feats Blind-Fight, Dodge, Improved Natural Weapon (claw), Iron Will, Outflank (B), Power Attack, Toughness
Skills Perception +10, Stealth +6, Swim +17; Racial Modifiers +4 Swim
SQ link, share spells, tricks (attack [all creatures], come, defend, down, heel, hobbling attack, seek, sic ‘em, stay, track)
Gear bracers of armor +2, greater dire collar
Special Abilities
Tricks (Ex) Theodore can use the hobbling attack and sic ‘em tricks from the skirmisher ranger list 6 times a day.
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On the left, the Sword Wraith! Soldiers and mercenaries too glory hungry for death to stop! Usually made when they whole battalion gets cornered and slaughtered without a chance to fight back. They're actually pretty easy to calm down, just praise them. Or order them if you have higher military rank. They're strong as a grizzly bear, even more durable, and surprisingly dexterous. Thier ability to attack quicker I'm sure would help with speed elsewhere too if you like it fast.
On the right is the Narzugon, the Hell Knight! 6 ft (1.8 m) telepathic knights who can cause magical fear! They also hate! Like, everything. Themselves, you, thier boss, existence, etc. They're the damned souls of normal knights who woke up in hell, bound to a new service. The few devils allowed to keep thier memories and old self, if only to be haunted by the knowledge that the cause they thought was righteous was not. So uh. They're cool af, but going to have some baggage.
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My party is in Hell, and just in time for Descent into Avernus. Have some devils, with demons and yugoloths on the way! I’ve got a few converted devils of my own on here, I’ll post all eleven new ones to the site when I get the chance.
