Mythic Monster Advancement
This section addresses how to turn a non-mythic monster into a mythic monster and how to create an entirely new mythic creature. Just as characters' abilities depend on their mythic tier, monsters' abilities depend on their mythic rank (MR), with a higher rank meaning a creature has additional mythic abilities.
Mythic Simple Templates
The following simple templates can be used to turn any monster into a mythic creature. A creature given one of these templates counts as a mythic creature for the purposes of spells, abilities, and magic items even though it doesn't have the mythic subtype. Note that because it doesn't have the mythic subtype, it doesn't gain the many benefits of having the mythic subtype—the creature only gains the benefits described in the simple template.
Agile (MR 1, CR +1)
Creatures with the agile template are quick and deadly, moving faster than their normal counterparts and striking with incredible speed and agility. An agile creature's quick and rebuild rules are the same.
Rebuild Rules
Init +20 bonus; AC +2 dodge bonus; hp mythic bonus hit points; Defensive Abilities evasion (as the rogue class feature); Speed +30 feet for all movement types (up to double the creature's base movement speed); Special Attacks dual initiative.
Arcane (MR 1 or 2, CR +1)
Creatures with the arcane template are infused with arcane power, capable of casting a limited number of arcane spells. If the creature has 11 or more Hit Dice, this simple template grants a mythic rank of 2 instead of 1. An arcane creature's quick and rebuild rules are the same.
Rebuild Rules
AC +2 deflection bonus; hp mythic bonus hit points; SR gains SR equal to its new CR + 11; Special Attacks mythic magic, simple arcane spellcasting.
Divine (MR 1 or 2, CR +1)
Creatures with the divine template can call upon the power of the gods, allowing them to cast a limited number of divine spells. If the creature has 11 or more Hit Dice, this simple template grants a mythic rank of 2 instead of 1. A divine creature's quick and rebuild rules are the same.
Rebuild Rules
Aura aura of grace (creature and all allies within 10 feet receive a +2 sacred bonus on saving throws—or a profane bonus if the templated creature is evil); AC +2 deflection bonus; hp mythic bonus hit points; Special Attacks mythic magic, simple divine spellcasting.
Invincible (MR 1 or 2, CR +1)
Creatures with the invincible template are incredibly difficult to harm. They can withstand immense punishment and continue to fight. If the creature has 11 or more Hit Dice, this simple template grants a mythic rank of 2 instead of 1. An invincible creature's quick and rebuild rules are the same.
Rebuild Rules
AC increase natural armor bonus by 2 (or 4 if the creature has 11 or more Hit Dice); hp mythic bonus hit points; Defensive Abilities gains DR and resistance to all types of energy as per the table below, as well as block attacks and second save.
Invincible Template Defenses
| Hit Dice | Energy Resistance | DR |
|---|---|---|
| 1–4 | 5 | — |
| 5–10 | 10 | 5/epic |
| 11+ | 15 | 10/epic |
Savage (MR 1 or 2, CR +1)
Creatures with the savage template are untamed, primordial versions of their non-mythic cousins. Their claws are sharper, their fangs larger, and their hides thicker. If the creature has 11 or more Hit Dice, this simple template grants a mythic rank of 2 instead of 1. A savage creature's quick and rebuild rules are the same.
Rebuild Rules
AC increase natural armor bonus by 2; hp mythic bonus hit points; Defensive Abilities gains DR and resistance to all types of energy as per the table below; Special Attacks all attacks gain bleed 1 (this stacks with itself), feral savagery (full attack).
Savage Template Defenses
| Hit Dice | Energy Resistance | DR |
|---|---|---|
| 1–4 | 5 | — |
| 5–10 | 10 | 5/epic |
| 11+ | 15 | 10/epic |
Building a Mythic Creature
In addition to using a mythic simple template, there are two ways to create a new mythic monster. The first is to take an existing monster, give it the mythic subtype, and add abilities as described in that subtype. The second method is to create an entirely new monster with the mythic subtype and incorporate additional abilities into the final monster.
Modify an Existing Monster
Making a mythic monster out of an ordinary monster is fairly straightforward—just follow these steps.
Step 1-Determine its mythic rank
. Divide your monster's CR by 2 to get its approximate mythic rank. If the result is not a whole number, it just means you have some flexibility in choosing the MR. For example, if your monster is a CR 7 chimera, half of 7 is 3.5, which means you can try it at MR 3 or MR 4. It's easier to start with a lower MR—you can always increase the MR later if you need the monster to be a little more powerful.
Step 2-Add the mythic subtype
. The modifications to the creature's ability scores, hit points, and other game statistics depend on your monster's MR.
Step 3-Add additional mythic abilities
. As described in the mythic subtype, the monster gains a number of mythic abilities equal to its MR + 1.
Step 4-Evaluate the monster at its final CR
. Your monster's final CR is its initial CR + 1/2 its MR (round down; minimum 1). Use the Monster Statistics by CR table to evaluate whether the monster's abilities are appropriately challenging for its final CR. If a creature's mythic abilities complement its non-mythic abilities particularly well, that mythic creature may be too powerful for its final CR. If a creature's mythic abilities don't interact with its non-mythic abilities, that creature may be too weak for its final CR. If either of these situations occur, make adjustments to the creature so it better fits the intended CR.
If the creature is too weak and you rounded the creature's MR down in Step 1, you can round up instead (adjusting the modifiers from the mythic subtype). If the creature is too strong and you rounded the creature's MR up in Step 1, you can round down instead (adjusting the modifiers from the mythic subtype).
Once the creature's abilities and statistics fit its CR, you're done.
Create a New Monster
Creating a new mythic monster is especially challenging because you're basically creating a monster with two CRs—an initial CR, which determines its appropriate mythic rank and thus how many mythic abilities it gets, and its final CR, which determines appropriate values for its AC, hit points, damage per round, and so on. Though it's possible to create the monster all at once with a particular CR and MR in mind, it's generally easier to build it in several steps (some of which are very similar to the steps for modifying an existing monster).
Step 1-Estimate its final CR
. Knowing the intended CR of your new monster is critical. This target helps determine the starting power level for your monster in the later steps, and means you won't have to reconfigure your monster if it's too weak or too powerful. For example, you might want a CR 7 mythic monster to challenge a 5th-level mythic party.
Step 2-Determine its mythic rank
. Divide your final CR by 2.5 to get the approximate mythic rank of your monster. If the result is not a whole number, it just means you have some flexibility in choosing the MR. For example, if your final CR is 7, dividing that by 2.5 is 2.8, so your monster could be 2nd rank or 3rd rank. It's generally easier to start with a lower MR—you can always increase the MR later if you need the monster to be a little more powerful.
Step 3-Determine its initial CR
. Subtract half the MR from the final CR to get the initial CR. If the final CR is 7 and the MR is 2, half of 2 is 1, so the initial CR is 7 – 1 = 6.
Step 4-Build a new monster for that initial CR
. This is identical to the process for creating a non-mythic monster. Follow the guidelines in the Pathfinder RPG Bestiary, creating a creature balanced for its CR, or starting with a base creature known to be appropriate for its CR and altering that monster to suit your purposes.
The next three steps make the creature mythic.
Step 5-Add the mythic subtype
. The modifications to the creature's ability scores, hit points, and so on depend on its MR.
Step 6-Add additional mythic abilities
. As described in the mythic subtype, the monster gains a number of mythic abilities equal to its MR + 1.
Step 7-Evaluate the monster at its final CR
. Your monster's final CR is its initial CR + 1/2 its MR (which should be close to your estimate from Step 1). If half the MR isn't an even number, round down to get the monster's final CR. Use the Monster Statistics by CR table to evaluate whether the monster's abilities are appropriately challenging for its final CR. If a creature's mythic abilities complement its non-mythic abilities particularly well, that mythic creature may be too powerful for its final CR. If a creature's mythic abilities don't interact with its non-mythic abilities, that creature may be too weak for its final CR. If either of these situations occur, make adjustments to the monster so it better fits the intended CR.
If the monster is too weak and the MR from Step 2 isn't a whole number, increase the monster's MR by 1 (adjusting the modifiers from the mythic subtype). If the monster is too strong and you have to round down to get its final CR, compare the monster to the statistics for the next highest CR. Once the monster's abilities and statistics fit its CR, you're done.
Mythic Subtype
A creature with this subtype is infused with mythic power and is capable of terrible and awe-inspiring feats. Creatures with the mythic subtype gain the following abilities.
Mythic Rank
A creature with the mythic subtype gains 1 to 10 mythic ranks, representing its overall mythic power. Its rank is generally equal to 1/2 its original CR.
Natural Armor Bonus
Add the creature's mythic rank to its natural armor bonus. A creature without natural armor has an effective natural armor bonus of +0.
Bonus Hit Points
A creature with d6 Hit Dice gains 6 hit points per mythic rank, a creature with d8 Hit Dice gains 8 hit points per rank, and a creature with d10 or d12 Hit Dice gains 10 hit points per rank. Note that this is the same number of bonus hit points the creature would gain if it had a mythic simple template.
A creature with 5 to 10 Hit Dice gains DR 5/epic. A creature with 11 or more Hit Dice gains DR 10/epic.
If the creature already has damage reduction, it adds epic to the qualities needed to bypass that reduction. If the damage reduction granted from this subtype has a larger numerical value than the creature's original damage reduction, increase the creature's original damage reduction to the amount of the epic DR. For example, a monster with DR 5/bludgeoning that gains DR 10/epic from the mythic subtype gains DR 10/bludgeoning and epic.
If the creature has spell resistance, add its mythic rank to its spell resistance.
The creature gains the mythic power and surge universal monster abilities.The monster's surge die depends on its rank, as summarized in the Mythic Subtype Abilities table.
Ability Bonus
At 2nd rank and every 2 ranks thereafter, the monster gains a permanent +2 bonus to an ability score. If it has multiple bonuses, it can apply them to the same ability score or to different ability scores.
Mythic Feats
At 1st rank and every 2 ranks thereafter, the monster gains a mythic feat. It must meet all of the prerequisites for this feat.
Additional Mythic Abilities
The monster gains a number of mythic abilities equal to its MR + 1. Such abilities can be drawn from the mythic path abilities for mythic heroes or the mythic abilities listed with the monsters in this section, or it can be a new ability you create by taking inspiration from those abilities. These abilities should be thematically appropriate for the creature.
Some new monster abilities are especially powerful; at the GM's discretion, they can count as two abilities toward this total. For example, the mythic fire giant's fire vortex ability could count as two mythic abilities.
In place of a mythic ability, the monster may gain a universal monster ability, such as rend or pounce, either from an existing Bestiary or from this section.
CR
When you're finished adding abilities to the monster, add 1/2 the monster's mythic rank to its CR to determine its new CR. Evaluate the monster at its new CR using the Monster Statistics by CR table to make sure it falls within the expected values for its new CR.
XP
Change the creature's XP award to match its new CR.
Mythic Subtype Abilities
| Mythic Rank | Ability Bonus | Mythic Feat | Surge Die Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | — | 1st | 1d6 |
| 2nd | 1st | — | 1d6 |
| 3rd | — | 2nd | 1d6 |
| 4th | 2nd | — | 1d8 |
| 5th | — | 3rd | 1d8 |
| 6th | 3rd | — | 1d8 |
| 7th | — | 4th | 1d10 |
| 8th | 4th | — | 1d10 |
| 9th | — | 5th | 1d10 |
| 10th | 5th | — | 1d12 |
Mythic Bonus Hit Points
A creature with one of the mythic templates gains additional hit points according to its Hit Die type. A creature with d6 Hit Dice gains 6 hit points per mythic rank, a creature with d8 Hit Dice gains 8 hit points per rank, and a creature with d10 or d12 Hit Dice gains 10 hit points per rank.
New Universal Monster Rules
Like the universal monster rules in the Bestiary, the following rules are referenced (but not repeated) in mythic monster stat blocks. Each rule includes a format guide for how it appears in a monster's listing and its location in the stat block.
Once per round, when the creature is hit by a melee or ranged attack, it can attempt a melee attack using its highest attack bonus. If this result exceeds the result from the attack against it, the creature is unaffected by the attack (as if the attack had missed).Format: block attacks; Location: Defensive Abilities.
The mythic dragon's blood and other fluids are infused with acid, cold, electricity, or fire, matching the dragon's breath weapon energy type. Every time the dragon is damaged by a piercing or slashing weapon, the attacking creature takes energy damage according to the table below (or double damage if the attack is a critical hit). Using a reach weapon does not endanger the attacker in this way. If the dragon has the swallow whole ability, it adds this damage to its swallow whole damage.Format: dragon blood (2d6 fire); Location: Defensive Abilities.
Dragon Blood Damage
| Dragon Size | Points of Energy Damage |
|---|---|
| Medium or smaller | 1d4 |
| Large | 1d6 |
| Huge | 1d8 |
| Gargantuan | 2d6 |
| Colossal | 2d8 |
If the mythic dragon is able to cast arcane spells, it automatically knows all cantrips for its equivalent spellcasting class and can cast them at will.Format: dragon cantrips; Location: SQ.
If a mythic dragon confirms a critical hit with a natural weapon, it adds its dragon blood damage to the damage dealt by the natural attack.Format: dragon fury (1d6 fire); Location: Special Attacks.
Dual Initiative
The monster gets two turns each round, one on its initiative count and another on its initiative count – 20. For example, if the monster's initiative is 23, for its first turn it could make a full attack (and take a 5 foot step) at initiative 23, and for its second turn at initiative 3 it could take a move action and cast a spell. This allows the monster to perform two actions per round that normally take an entire round, such as using a summon monster spell. For the purposes of spells and effects that have a duration of a round or longer or trigger at the beginning of the creature's round or the start of its turn such as saving throws against ongoing effects or taking bleed damage), only the monster's first turn each round counts toward such durations.Format: +21/+1; Location: Initiative.
Under the circumstances listed in the monster's stat block—such as when it makes a full attack or a rend attack—it can immediately attempt an additional attack against an opponent. This attack is made using the creature's full base attack bonus, plus any modifiers appropriate to the situation. This additional attack doesn't stack with similar means of gaining additional attacks, such as the haste spell or a speed weapon. This ability doesn't grant an extra action, so you can't use it to cast a second spell or otherwise take an extra action in the round.Format: feral savagery (full attack); Location: special attacks.
The monster has an 50% chance to treat any critical hit or sneak attack as a normal hit, as if wearing moderate fortification armor.Format: fortification (50%); Location: Defensive Abilities.
Evaluating Monster Statistics
The Monster Statistics by CR is an expansion of the table of the same name listed here, listing approximate statistics for monsters up to CR 30 (the information for CR 1–20 is identical to that presented in the Bestiary). These values are rough guidelines. You'll notice that many of the existing monsters in this section don't follow these guidelines exactly. Most monsters excel in one of these areas (usually in the amount of damage dealt), but lag in one or two other areas to balance them out. For example, a monster might have higher damage than what's listed in the table, but have a lower AC and hit points. The entries on the table are as follows.