Junjo (5e Creature)

Junjo

Medium monstrosity, unaligned Armor Class 12 (natural armor) Hit Points 38 (7d8 + 7) Speed 30 ft., swim 10 ft. STR DEX CON INT WIS CHA 10 (+0) 9 (-1) 12 (+1) 3 (-4) 8 (-1) 2 (-4) Damage Immunities poison Condition Immunities poisoned Senses passive Perception 9 Languages — Challenge 1 (200 XP) Stench. Any creature that starts its turn within 10 feet of the junjo must succeed on a DC 13 Constitution saving throw or be poisoned until the start of its next turn. Creatures poisoned this way cannot willingly move closer to the junjo. ACTIONS Multiattack. The junjo makes a bite attack. It can then use its Isopod Infection on the same target. Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +4 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 3 (1d4 + 1) piercing damage. Isopod Infection. The crustacean brain of the junjo attempts to crawl inside and infect another creature. One creature of the junjo's choice thats within 5 feet must succeed on a DC 13 Dexterity saving throw or become poisoned. While poisoned this way, creatures have disadvantage on Charisma checks and saving throws, gain the junjo's Stench feature, and attract other junjo. This effect can be ended if someone makes a successful DC 16 Wisdom (Medicine) check to remove the crustacean, if the target takes more than 20 poison damage in one round, or by use of the spell greater restoration. After using this action, the body of the junjo becomes mindless; it wanders randomly, doesn't react to external stimuli, and cannot regain hit points by completing a long rest. Fish Head. The junjo drops its head, which retains its Stench feature. Until it completes a long rest, the junjo can't make bite attacks or use its Fish Head.

Art by Jonathan Wojcik From the waist down, a junjo exhibits healthy, energetic humanoid anatomy. From the waist up, the junjo is a scaly-skinned fish that begins to decompose upon reaching maturity, its putrefying innards generating a steady stream of reeking, volatile gas. The true brain of a junjo is housed within a symbiotic isopod body, carrying with it the genetic information to replicate its complete outer body. Every six days, this crustacean retreats to the humanoid posterior while the rotting upper body is discarded completely, still floundering and belching gas while its brain-louse and posterior wander onwards, regenerating a new anterior in under thirty hours. During its reproductive cycle, a junjo transfers its isopod to the body of a humanoid host, leaving its old form to stumble off and expire while its brain overtakes the new host body. Gradually, the host will bloat and decompose with the junjo's symbiotic bacteria, emitting a stink that attracts other junjo from miles away. In a bizarre mating frenzy, the creatures add their own brains to the host, which multiply within its body over the course of several days. Ultimately, each brain-louse will gestate a new embryonic junjo around itself, and the host will rupture from the growing biomass of writhing young. A typical junjo has a single-minded directive to "go," but no particular goal or destination. The monster simply continues to walk in a straight line as long as it is capable, leaving behind a trail of its own twitching, cast-off heads. Variant: Dead Fish Sometimes junjo can be created by necromantic magic, or rise from the dead through other means. These junjo have the undead type, are vulnerable to radiant damage, and replace half of any poison damage they deal with an equal amount of necrotic damage.

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