5e Santa Stats

It’s the most wonderful time of the year. What time is that? It’s the time this site hosts the RPG Blog Carnival. The theme is “Homebrew Holiday Gifts.” I’m asking bloggers everywhere to share their RPG creations for their favorite systems with me. At the end of the month I’ll make a list linking all participating blog posts so everyone can checkout the fine homebrew creations in one place.

Of course all over the world many people are getting into the holiday spirit as well as celebrating the RPG Blog Carnival. So it is with that inspiration I present that latest fifth edition Dungeons and Dragons creature I’ve brewed up – Santa Claus. Of course if you prefer the third edition Santa, he lives over here.

Santa Claus

The story of Santa Claus is known throughout the land. This jolly old elf (actually a celestial) brings cheer to those on his nice list and punishes those on the naughty list. Common folk know him as a generous, kind giver of gifts, but his enemies know him only as a giver of pain.

Kind Old Man with a Righteous Spirit. Santa Claus’ appearance is one of an elderly human male dressed in warm red and white robes carrying a large sack of gifts. His cheeks are rosy, his eyes are twinkly, and a mop of white hair adorns his smiling, bearded face. This appearance leads some to believe Santa is no more than a kind grandpa, but this being is full of magical power fueled by the generosity of all good creatures.

Created by Generosity. Santa may appear humanoid, but he is really a product of something far more mystical. When a good creature performs a generous act, a small amount of positive energy is released. This energy travels as far North as it can. The first commingling of this energy created Santa Claus himself, the next created his wife, then his army of winter elves, and finally his workshop. Now the energy which travels North sustains these life forces and workshop.

Promoter and Protector of Good. Santa’s mortality is directly connected to good people. Thus he encourages kindness by rewarding all good folk with presents once a year. Less known is that Santa travels to defend groups of good creatures when their lives are threatened. Using his magic he has beaten many bands of marauding monsters, fiendish incursions, and things that go bump in the night.

Santa’s Lair

Santa’s lair is a magical workshop run by his winter elves (a size Small subrace of elves). Here these creatures make toys and other gifts. Various items symbolic to a plethora of Winter holidays decorate the walls of this grand mansion.

Most of the workshop is dedicated to the construction and delivery of gifts. There’s huge rooms dedicated to carpentry, mechanics, gift wrapping, candy-making, and stables for reindeer. The elves have a spacious dormitory, Santa and his wife have modest living quarters, and all residents share a dining hall and library. A special room in the center of the mansion gives Santa the ability to scry on any creature on the same plane.

While Santa’s workshop may appear harmless, the property is well protected. Only creatures of good alignment can actually see the mansion from the outside. Inside the workshop, seemingly harmless life-sized toy soldiers, teddy bears, and dolls come to life and attack intruders while magic traps controlled by Santa can blast enemies with cold energy and freeze them in place.

Lair Actions

On initiative count 20 (losing initiative ties), Santa takes a lair action to cause one of the following effects; Santa can’t use the same effect two rounds in a row:

• Magic mistletoe grows down from the ceiling and attempts to grab up to three creatures Santa can see within 120 feet of him. Those creatures must succeed on a DC 15 Dexterity saving throw or be restrained until the start of Santa’s next lair action. On its turn a creature restrained this way can try and free itself as an action with a DC 15 Dexterity (Acrobatics) check. Another creature can attack the mistletoe and attempt to destroy it (AC 15, HP 20, immune psychic, vulnerable slashing).
• Spectral jingle bells appear and sound. Each creature within 120 feet of Santa who can hear the bells must make a DC 15 Wisdom saving throw. Santa can slide any creature who fails 30 feet in the direction of his choosing.
• Santa laughs and the ground shakes like a bowl full of jelly within a 60-foot radius around him. Every creature on the ground within the area other than Santa must succeed on a DC 15 saving throw or be knocked prone.

Regional Effects

The region containing Santa’s lair is changed by his magic, which creates one or more of the following effects:

• All pack animals (such as horses, reindeer, and oxen) gain a fly speed equal to their speed within 6 miles of the lair.
• For non-evil creatures any snow within 6 miles of the lair tastes like peppermint and provides nourishment. Such creatures automatically succeed on Constitution saving throws against exhaustion due to harsh climate within 6 miles of the lair, warmed by a delightful feeling which comes from within their hearts.
• Snowmen created by creatures with the good alignment within 1 mile of the lair come to life and point the way to Santa’s workshop. Evil creatures who build snowmen within 1 mile of the lair find the creation explodes upon completion, dealing 11 (2d10) cold damage to anyone within 5 feet of it.

If the Santa dies permanently, the effects end immediately.

Santa Claus

Medium celestial, neutral good

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Armor Class 20 (natural armor)

Hit Points  300 (40d8 + 120)

Speed  30 ft., fly 60 ft.

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STR	DEX	CON	INT	WIS	CHA
18 (+4)	10 (+0)	16 (+3)	20 (+5)	22 (+6)	24 (+7)

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Saving Throws  Dex +6, Con +9, Wis +12

Damage Resistances bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing damage from nonmagical weapons

Damage Immunities cold

Condition Immunities exhaustion, petrified

Skills Animal Handling +12, Perception +12

Senses blindsight 60 ft., darkvision 120 ft., passive perception 22

Languages all

Challenge 20 (25,000 XP)

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Amorphous. Santa can move through a space as narrow as 1 inch wide without squeezing.

Discern Alignment. Santa immediately knows the alignment of any creature he can see.

Discorporation. When Santa drops to 0 hit points or dies, his body is destroyed, but his essence travels back to his domain in the North Pole, and he is unable to take physical form for a time.

Flying Sleigh. When Santa drives a sleigh drawn by at least 6 pack animals, the animals and sleigh gain a 120-foot fly speed.

Legendary Resistance (3/Day). If the Santa fails a saving throw, he can choose to succeed instead.

Magic Resistance. Santa has advantage on saving throws against spells and other magical effects.

Magic Weapons. Santa’s weapon attacks are magical.

Master Artisan. Santa is proficient with all artisan’s tools. His proficiency bonus is +6.

Naughty List. Santa deals an extra 9 (2d8) cold damage to creatures of evil alignment with weapon and spell attacks.

Spellcasting. Santa’s spellcasting ability is Charisma (spell save DC 21, +13 to hit with spell attacks). He can innately cast the following spells, requiring no material components.

At will: bless, invisibility, locate creature, misty step, ray of frost, scrying, sleep, zone of truth

3/day: cone of cold, hold monster, mass cure wounds, sleet storm

1/day: teleport, time stop, wall of ice

Actions

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Multiattack. Santa can make three sack of gifts attacks or two Jolly Holly attacks.

Sack of Gifts.  Melee Weapon Attack: +10 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 15 (2d10 + 4) bludgeoning damage.

Jolly Holly.  Ranged Spell Attack: +13 to hit, range 120 ft., one target. Hit: 28 (4d10 + 7) piercing damage and the creature must make a DC 21 Wisdom saving throw. A creature who fails this saving throw collapses in a fit of laughter, falls prone, and cannot stand until the end of Santa’s next turn.

Open Up Your Present. Santa hurls a random gift from his sack up to 90 feet. It explodes in a 20-foot-radius sphere. Creatures in the area must make a DC 21 Constitution saving throw. Creatures who fail take 21 (6d6) cold damage. Creatures who succeed take half. In addition creatures who fail the save suffer a random effect rolled on a d4. On a 1 they’re blinded, on a 2 they’re deafened, on a 3 they’re frightened of Santa, on a 4 they’re poisoned. The random effect lasts one minute. A creature can repeat the saving throw at the end of its turn, ending the effect early on a success.

Peace on Earth. Santa and any number of creatures he chooses within 30 feet fall under the effect of the sanctuary spell (DC 21). The effect lasts 1 minute, but ends early if Santa attacks, casts a spell, or chooses to end the effect as a bonus action.

Legendary Actions

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Santa can take 3 legendary actions, choosing from the options below. Only one legendary action option can be used at a time and only at the end of another creature’s turn. Santa regains all spent legendary actions at the start of his turn.

Jolly Holly. Santa attacks with Jolly Holly.

Twinkly Eyes. Santa targets one creature he can see that can also see him within 30 feet. The target must succeed on a DC 21 Wisdom saving throw or become charmed by Santa until the end of Santa’s next turn. While charmed by Santa the creature cannot attack him.

You’ve Been Naughty. Santa shows a creature within 30 feet who can seem him its name on on the naughty list. The creature must succeed on a DC 21 Wisdom saving throw or suffer disadvantage on all attacks against Santa and his allies. In addition Santa and his allies have advantage on attack rolls against the target, and the target suffers disadvantage on saving throws against the effects of Santa’s abilities and spells. These effects last until the end of Santa’s next turn.

PDF

Would you like Santa in a PDF along with all the other fifth edition D&D creatures I’ve designed? Grab them below.

Santa Claus

All Monsters

If you don’t want to grab them now, but decide you want the PDFs at a future date, head on over to the Free Game Resources section of this site where the documents will live along with magic items, backgrounds, D&D fifth edition rules modules, spells, adventures, and more created by yours truly.

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