ᚲᚾᚨᚱᚲ-ᚹᛟᚷᛖᚾ

On random occasions—random to mortal understanding, at least—Hel sends the spirits of the damned to Miðgarðr to harry and kill any human who is foolish enough to be outdoors at night, in imitation of Odin’s Wild Hunt. The damned souls are cumulatively known as the “knark-vogen,” and a terrifying pack of flying spirits they are. The only protection against them is to take shelter in a structure with a door that can be closed; the knark-vogen will burst through any opening but will leave closed doors alone.

In combat the knark-vogen will simply roll over its opponents and move to keep them inside its body.

The knark-vogen looks like a dark stormfront full of glowing yellow eyes.

Huge swarm of medium-sized infernal creatures, life-hating and orderly

Armor Class 16 (natural armor)
Hit Points 143 (15d12+45)
Speed 0 ft, fly 50 ft (hover)

Str 9 (-1) Dex 18 (+4) Con 16 (+3)
Int 10 (+0) Wis 13 (+1) Cha 17 (+3)

Saving Throws DEX +8, CHA +7
Skills Intimidation +7, Perception +7
Condition Immunities charmed, distracted, dreamy, exhausted, frightened, grappled, paralyzed, petrified, poisoned, prone, restrained, stunned, weakened, woozy
Damage Immunities cold, necrotic, poison
Damage Resistances bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing; acid, fire, lightning, thunder
Senses darkvision 60 ft, passive Perception 11
Languages Viking
Reaction to pants-shitting terror
Challenge 10 (1,100 XP)

Flyby. The knark-vogen doesn’t provoke opportunity attacks when it flies out of an enemy’s reach.

Incorporeal Movement. The knark-vogen can move through other creatures and objects as if they were difficult terrain.

Terrifying Presence. Each creature that is inside the knark-vogen’s body or enters the knark-vogen’s body during its turn must succeed on a DC 15 CHA saving throw or gain the frightened condition for one minute. A creature can repeat the saving throw at the end of each its turns, ending the effect on itself with a success. If a creature’s saving throw is successful or the effect ends for it, the creature is immune to the knark-vogen’s Terrifying Presence for the next 24 hours.

ACTIONS

Multiattack. The knark-vogen makes two withering embrace attacks each turn.

Withering Embrace. Melee Weapon Attack: +8 to hit, reach 5 ft, one target. Hit: 14 (4d6) necrotic damage.

Psychic Scream (recharge 6). The knarkvogen screams the terrors of Hel into the minds of all those inside the knark-vogen’s body. All creatures inside the knark-vogen’s body must make a DC 15 CHA saving throw or take 22 (4d10) psychic damage and gain the distracted condition from the headache gotten from the knark-vogen’s scream; on a successful saving throw the target takes half damage.

MOTIVES

The knark-vogen obey Hel’s orders, but those orders are usually to harry and kill whatever mortals they find, and the knark-vogen sometimes exhibit surprising imagination in doing so.

ALLIES

The knark-vogen usually works alone but it does what Hel tells it to do, and if that means assisting other agents of Hel or going against an entire human army, the knark-vogen will do just that.