Deadringer
- Armor Class
- 4 [15]
- Hit Dice
- 5
- Attacks
- Attack (1d3)
- Special
- undead, immune to sleep/charm/hold
- Move
- 9
- HDE/XP
- 6/400
Description
A Deadringer is a rare skeletal undead. In appearance it is almost indistinguishable from a more common animated skeleton. This walking dead carries small wooden-handled brass bells, that it will begin to ring continuously as soon as it becomes aware of intruders. A deadringer is most often found hidden within a group of skeletons.
All undead within a 20-foot radius of a deadringer who is ringing its bell benefit from a +1 bonus to both their attack and damage rolls, and any bodies within 50 feet of the deadringer will animate as a resonated (see page 223), when the bell is rung.
If a deadringer is engaged directly in melee combat, it will use its free hand to try and touch its opponent, all the while continuing to ring its bell. Those touched must make a saving throw against magic or be deafened for 1d4 rounds. However, the greater damage is the victim is also cursed to attract all undead within 10 miles. All undead will treat the victim as their preferred foe, attacking them first, though they will not ignore attacks from others. Undead animated or created by a spell-caster will not obey commands of their masters while the cursed victim is within the 10-mile range, instead moving towards the cursed one to attack. As with all bestowed curses, it can be countered with a Remove Curse spell, otherwise the curse only ends with the victim’s death.
A deadringer, like a skeleton, only takes half damage from edged weapons and only a single point from bolts, arrows, or sling bullets. As undead, it is immune to Sleep, charm, and hold, and can be Turned by a Cleric (as a mummy).
Source note: This creature is converted from The Basic Fantasy Field Guide of Creatures Malevolent and Benign – Omnibus Edition, 1st Edition Release 4, © 2010–2025 Chris Gonnerman, R. Kevin Smoot, James Lemon, Matt Sluis, and Contributors. The Basic Fantasy Field Guide textual material is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International; this page adapts that creature to White Box.