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Monster Feats

Most of the following feats apply specifically to monsters, although some player characters might qualify for them (particularly Craft Construct).

Note that for the purposes of this site it was decided that a feat that wasn't explicitly notated as a "monster feat" in the original source materials but which, by it's prerequisites or other requirements, is exceptionally unlikely to be a viable choice for a player character was listed here. Such feats include those with a prerequisite of a type or subtype that are not normally player character options, such as the giant or fire subtypes. If characters can somehow gain these subtypes or otherwise do meet all of the prerequisites please consult with your GM to see if such feats are allowed for PCs in his or her campaign.

If you are building a new monster, note that each creature with an Intelligence score receives a number of feats equal to 1 + 1 per every 2 Hit Dice after the first (so, 1 at 1 HD, 2 at 3 HD, etc.). A creature must qualify to take a feat as normal.

See Table: Statistics Summary for a quick feat calculation chart for determining number of feats a creature should receive.

Feat Descriptions

Monster Feats are summarized on the table below. Note that the prerequisites and benefits of the feats on this table are abbreviated for ease of reference. See the feats description for full details.

The following format is used for all feat descriptions.

Feat Name: The feat's name also indicates what subcategory, if any, the feat belongs to, and is followed by a basic description of what the feat does.

Prerequisite: A minimum ability score, another feat or feats, a minimum base attack bonus, a minimum number of ranks in one or more skills, or anything else required in order to take the feat. This entry is absent if a feat has no prerequisite. A feat may have more than one prerequisite.

Benefit: What the feat enables the character (“you” in the feat description) to do. If a character has the same feat more than once, its benefits do not stack unless indicated otherwise in the description.

Normal: What a character who does not have this feat is limited to or restricted from doing. If not having the feat causes no particular drawback, this entry is absent.

Special: Additional unusual facts about the feat.

Table: Monster Feats
Feat Name	Category/Type	Prerequisites	Benefit	Source
Ability Focus	Monster	Special attack	One of this creature's special attacks is particularly difficult to resist.	PRG:B1
Ancestral Enmity	Monster
Ankle Biter	Combat, Monster	Goblin, Escape Artist 1 rank	Bite an opponent that targets you with a combat maneuver as an immediate action.	PPC:Goblins
Awesome Blow	Combat, Monster	Str 25, Power Attack, Improved Bull Rush, size Large or larger	This creature can send opponents flying.	PRG:B1
Babau Rogue Talent	Monster	Dex 17, babau	Choose one rogue talent that adds to sneak attacks (such as bleeding attack or slow reactions).	PCS:DR
Battle Singer	Monster	Goblin, bardic performance class feature	You can sing in goblin so your bardic performance inspire courage ability does not affect those who do not understand goblin.	PPC:Goblins
Blasting Boulder	Monster	Smoking Boulder, BAB +13, heat rock special attack	You can infuse rocks thrown as part of an attack action with volatile fire energies, adding one of the following effects to a thrown rock affected by your Smoking Boulder feat: Choking Smoke, Concussive Blast, Incendiary Explosion.	PCS:Giants
Blood Feast	Combat, Monster
Bouncing Spell-Like Ability	Monster	Spell-like ability at CL 4th or higher	Failed spell-like ability bounces to another target	PRG:HA
Brain Eater	Monster	Ghoul, Int 17	Eat the brains of other creatures to gain a small bonus on skill checks and Will saves.	PCh:CHR
Bullying Blow	Monster
Burn! Burn! Burn!	Monster	Goblin, Disable Device 1 rank	You deal an extra 1d4 fire damage with non-magical or alchemical attacks (such as with torches or alchemical fire) and gain a +4 bonus to Reflex saves to avoid catching on fire or putting yourself out when on fire.	PPC:Goblins
Civilized Ghoulishness	Monster	Ghoul, Cha 18	Learn how to better pass off as a living creature.	PCh:CHR
Combat Distraction	Monster	Goblin, Acrobatics 1 rank, Escape Artist 1 rank	Your antics in combat cause others to suffer a -2 penalty to Perception and Concentration checks.	PPC:Goblins
Consume Essence	Combat, Monster
Consume Undeath	Monster	Nabasu, Con 23	As a full-round action, you can consume the animating force of any undead creature you have created with your death-stealing gaze. This immediately destroys the undead creature, but grants you one of that creature's special attacks or supernatural abilities (chosen from one of the following abilities possessed by the undead: Constitution drain, disease, energy drain, or paralysis). The ability granted persists for 24 hours or until the next sunrise, whichever comes first.	PCS:DR
Cooperative Rend	Monster
Craft Construct	Item Creation, Monster	Caster level 5th, Craft Magic Arms and Armor, Craft Wondrous Item	You can create construct creatures like golems.	PRG:B1
Dangerous Tail	Monster
Demonic Possession	Monster	Demon or half-demon, Cha 21, Wis 17	You gain the ability to use magic jar as a spell-like ability once per day.	PCS:DR
Demoralizing Lash	Monster
Disruptive Spell-Like Ability	Monster	Spell-like ability at CL 4th or higher	Spell-like ability interferes with spellcasting	PRG:HA
Dog Killer-Horse Hunter	Monster	Goblin, Handle Animal 1 rank	You gain a +2 morale bonus on attack and damage rolls as well as rolls to confirm critical hits against dogs and horses (and similar creatures.)	PPC:Goblins
Draconic Defender	Monster	Con 17, Toughness	Grant a nearby ally your dodge bonus from fighting defensively or combat expertise.	PCh:DR
Draconic Discipline	Monster	Wis 17, base Will +10, any lawful alignment, dragon type	Get a second retry on necromancy or mind-affecting enchantment spells.	PCh:DR
Earthtouched	Monster	Cha 15, stone giant	You gain a +1 racial bonus to your caster level when casting sorcerer spells with the [earth] descriptor. For every 3 sorcerer levels you attain, you add a new spell known of a spell level you can cast. This spell must either be from the abjuration or divination schools or have the earth descriptor.	PCS:Giants
Empower Spell-Like Ability	Monster	Spell-like ability at caster level 6th or higher	One of this creature's spell-like abilities is particularly potent and powerful.	PRG:B1
Engulf Horror	Combat, Monster
Engulf Revulsion	Combat, Monster
Exsanguinate	Combat, Monster
Fearsome Spell-Like Ability	Monster	Spell-like ability at CL 6th or higher	Spell-like ability makes damaged foes shaken
Fire Hand	Monster
Flensing Strike	Monster	Sneak attack +3d6, bleeding sneak attack rogue trick or bleed universal monster ability.	When you successfully inflict sneak attack damage on a foe with a slashing weapon, your attack doesn't go particularly deep, but you do carve away a significant portion of skin and flesh. If this sneak attack inflicts bleed damage, the victim of the sneak attack is sickened by the pain and has its natural armor bonus (if any) reduced by a number of points equal to the number of sneak attack dice you possess. These penalties persist as long as the bleed damage persists. Multiple strikes on the same foe do not stack the bleed damage, but the penalty to natural armor does stack, to a maximum penalty equal to the target's normal full natural armor score.	PCS:DR
Flyby Attack	Monster	Fly speed	This creature can make an attack before and after it moves while flying.	PRG:B1
Fortitude of Giants	Monster	Con 14, Great Fortitude, giant subtype	When you attempt a saving throw against a poison effect or an effect that inflicts the fatigued condition, roll twice and take the higher result.	AP91
Gift of Sight	Monster	Troll	Learn to read the future in your own entrails.	PCh:CMR
Goblin Gunslinger	Combat, Monster	Goblin
Great Rend	Combat, Monster	Troll
Grudge Fighter	Combat, Monster	Orc
Gruesome Shapechanger	Monster	Shapechanger subtype	Bloody transformation sickens foes and makes area slippery	PRG:HA
Horrific Gorging	Combat, Monster
Hover	Monster	Fly speed	This creature can hover in place with ease and can kick up clouds of dust and debris.	PRG:B1
Impaling Charge	Monster	Gore attack, powerful charge	Start a free grapple when hitting your enemy with a charge attack gore.	PCh:CMR
Improved Death-Stealing	Monster	Nabasu, Ability Focus (death-stealing gaze)	When you would normally create a ghoul with your death-stealing gaze, you instead create a ghast. As a free action, you may also spend a number of growth points in order to even further augment your new undead minion as it is created. If you spend 1 growth point, you create a wight instead of a ghast. If you spend 3 growth points, you create a wraith instead of a ghast. And if you spend 5 growth points, you transform the target into a juju zombie instead of a ghast. Note that spending growth in this manner reduces your statistics as appropriate.	PCS:DR
Improved Infuse Weapon	Monster	Infuse weapon special ability, Cha 27	When you infuse a weapon, you can add an additional +1 worth of weapon qualities to that weapon; this could either be used to increase a weapon infused to be a +1 weapon to be a +2 weapon, or to grant a weapon quality like flaming, defending, keen, or any other +1 quality. This effect occurs automatically as you infuse a weapon, but you may only do so to one weapon you wield at a time.	PCS:DR
Improved Natural Armor	Monster	Natural armor, Con 13	This creature's hide is tougher than most.	PRG:B1
Improved Natural Attack	Monster	Natural weapon, base attack bonus +4	Attacks made by one of this creature's natural attacks leave vicious wounds.	PRG:B1
Improved Possession	Monster	Demonic Possession or shadow demon, Cha 25	The duration of your magic jar spell-like ability increases to 24 hours. You can choose to activate a host body's extraordinary abilities, supernatural abilities, spell-like abilities, and spells known or prepared.	PCS:DR
Improved Stench	Monster	Stench universal monster ability	The aura range of your stench ability increases by 30 feet. In addition, your stench ability save DC increases by 2, and its duration increases by 50%.	PCS:DR
Improved Surprise Follow-Through	Combat, Monster	Orc/half-orc
Intensified Spell-Like Ability	Monster	Spell-like ability at CL 4th or higher	Spell-like ability has a higher damage dice cap	PRG:HA
Kobold Ambusher	Combat, Monster	Kobold
Kobold Sniper	Combat, Monster	Kobold
Latching Horror	Combat, Monster
Lead from the Back	Combat, Monster	Goblin, Intimidate 1 rank	If you have cover or concealment and are not threatened, you may bark orders and grant your allies a bonus to damage rolls.	PPC:Goblins
Letter Fury	Monster	Goblin, rage class feature	If someone reads or writes in your presence you may activate your rage ability for one round for free.	PPC:Goblins
Lingering Spell-Like Ability	Monster	Spell-like ability at CL 4th or higher	Instantaneous spell-like ability lasts another round	PRG:HA
Longshanks	Monster	Giant subtype, size Large or larger	Your land speed increases by 5 feet, and you can ignore up to 20 feet of non-magical difficult terrain each round you move.	AP91
Mighty Bite	Combat, Monster	Troll
Minotaur's Charge	Monster	Str 13, Improved Bull Rush, powerful charge	Initiate a free bull rush when you make a charge attack.	PCh:CMR
Multiattack	Combat, Monster	Three or more natural attacks	This creature is particularly skilled at making attacks with its natural weapons.	PRG:B1
Multiweapon Defense	Monster	Three or more arms, Dex 21	When you make a full-attack action, you may choose not to take an attack with a number of your wielded weapons other than your primary weapon. For each attack you forgo, you gain a +1 shield bonus to your AC for that round. This bonus stacks with itself to a maximum bonus of +5, but not with shield bonuses to AC from other sources.	PCS:DR
Multiweapon Fighting	Combat, Monster	Dex 13, three or more hands	This multi-armed creature is skilled at making attacks with multiple weapons.	PRG:B1
Multiweapon Specialist	Monster	Three or more arms, Dex 21	When you wield one-handed or light weapons in each of your arms, and all of those weapons belong to the same weapon group (as defined for the fighter class), all attacks with those weapons gain a +2 bonus on damage rolls.	PCS:DR
Nightstalker	Monster	Stealthy, darkvision, size Large or larger	Ignore size penalties and gain +2 bonus to Stealth checks when in areas of shadowy illumination.	PCh:CMR
Noxious Bite	Monster	Acidic breath weapon, bite attack	Deal extra acid damage with your bite attack along with nauseating the enemy.	PCh:DR
Orc Weapon Expertise	Combat, Monster	Orc
Penetrating Possession	Monster	Magic jar as a known spell or spell-like ability, Cha 21	The first time you attempt to possess a host under the effect of protection from evil spell or any similar spell, you have a chance to dispel that spell as if you had cast dispel magic on the spell.	PCS:DR
Pungent Stench	Monster	Stench universal monster ability, Improved Stench, Great Fortitude	The first round a creature is affected by your stench, it is nauseated in addition to being sickened. At the end of an affected creature's turn after the first round, it can make a new save against the stench's DC to remove the nauseated condition, but the sickened condition lasts as long as normal.	PCS:DR
Quick at Hand	Monster	Ogre	You may use any item as an improvised melee or ranged weapon without penalty.	PCh:CMR
Quicken Spell-Like Ability	Monster	Spell-like ability at CL 10th or higher	This creature can use one of its spell-like abilities with next to no effort.	PRG:B1
Raging Regeneration	Combat, Monster	Troll
Reach Spell-Like Ability	Monster	Spell-like ability at CL 4th or higher	Spell-like ability gains a longer range	PRG:HA
Roll with It	Combat, Monster	Goblin, Acrobatics 1 rank.	Reduce damage you take from an attack and get tossed aside.	PPC:Goblins
Saddle Shrieker	Combat, Monster	Goblin, Ride 1 rank	Take a -1 penalty to attacks and CMB checks to give your mount a +1 bonus to attack and damage rolls with its natural weapons.	PPC:Goblins
Scarring Spell-Like Ability	Monster	Spell-like ability at CL 4th or higher	Spell-like ability causes penalties against emotion effects	PRG:HA
Scent of Fear	Monster	Scent ability, any evil alignment	Gain several bonuses against opponents that have the shaken or frightened conditions or while such creatures are nearby.	PCh:CMR
Sickening Spell-Like Ability	Monster	Spell-like ability at CL 6th or higher	Spell-like ability sickens damaged foes	PRG:HA
Silent as Stone	Monster	Roper, Stealthy	This creature gains a +4 bonus to Stealth checks and suffers no penalties to Stealth checks when climbing. In addition, may drag and kill foes silently with strands in some cases.	PCh:DDR
Skin Suit	Monster	Int 7, undead creature that was originally humanoid	Hide in false flesh during the day	PRG:HA
Slurk Rider	Combat, Monster	Kobold
Smoking Boulder	Monster	BAB +11, heat rock special attack	Cause a boulder you throw to erupt into a 10-foot-radius spread of heavy smoke on a successful hit that lasts for 1d4 rounds.	PCS:Giants
Snapping Jaws	Combat, Monster	Gnoll
Snatch	Monster	Size Huge or larger	This creature can grab other creatures with ease.	PRG:B1
Sow Terror	Monster	Stealthy	Cause a creature to become shaken for 1d4 rounds when you make eerie noises or strange sounds.	PCh:CMR
Spawnlink	Monster	Int 13, create spawn universal monster ability	See through spawn’s eyes	PRG:HA
Spirit Vision	Monster	Magic jar as a known spell or spell-like ability, Wis 15	When you sense life forces while seeking a host, you can observe them as you could when you were in your own body. Attempting to possess a body is a standard action.	PCS:DR
Stone Awareness	Monster	Wis 13, Perception 10 ranks, stone giant	Gain tremorsense 15 feet when in contact with earth or stone.	PCS:Giants
Stone Clinger	Monster	Roper	This creature gains a climb speed of 10 ft. and can hang from ceilings and drop on foes, dealing them piercing damage.	PCh:DDR
Stone Magic	Monster	Stone giant elder (700 years or older), Cha 17	In addition to normal spell-like abilities of a stone giant elder, can use passwall, statue, spike stones, stoneskin, and wall of stone 1/day.	PCS:Giants
Stone Soul	Monster	Stone giant	Your natural armor bonus increases by 1. Once per day, you can use stoneskin (on yourself only) as a spell-like ability. Your caster level is equal to 1/2 your Hit Dice.	AP91
Storm Soul	Monster	Cloud or storm giant	You gain immunity to electricity.	AP91
Storm Warrior	Monster
Tail Terror	Combat, Monster	Kobold
Tail Weapon	Combat, Monster	Serpentfolk
Tangle Feet	Combat, Monster	Goblin
Taskmaster	Combat, Monster	Hobgoblin
Terrorizing Display	Combat, Monster	Hobgoblin
Toxic Stench	Monster	Stench universal monster ability, immunity to poison, Improved Stench, Toughness	The first round a creature is affected by your stench, it must also make a successful Fortitude save against the same DC to resist becoming poisoned. If you have 10 or fewer HD, this poison is identical to insanity mist; if you have 11 or more HD, the poison also adds confusion for 1 round to its effects.	PCS:DR
Traumatic Spell-Like Ability	Monster	Spell-like ability at CL 6th or higher	Spell-like ability causes nightmares	PRG:HA
Vandal	Monster	Goblin, sneak attack class feature	You can deal sneak attack damage to unattended objects (but half normal damage.)	PPC:Goblins
Venomous Spray	Combat, Monster	Serpentfolk
Warren Digger	Monster	Ghoul, Str 17	Gain a burrow speed of 10 ft.	PCh:CHR
Will of Giants	Monster	Wis 14, Iron Will, giant subtype	You gain immunity to enchantment effects that target only humanoids, such as charm person and hold person.	AP91
Wingover	Monster	Fly speed	This creature can make turns with ease while flying.	PRG:B1

Monster Feats from other Publishers

Feat Name	Category/Type	Prerequisites	Benefit	Source
Become the Swarm	Monster	Vampire	You can change into a bat swarm, centipede swarm, rat swarm, or spider swarm.	WoW5
Blood of the Deep	Monster	Vampire	You are not harmed by running water and you gain a swim speed equal to normal movement rate.	WoW5
Creature of Darkness	Monster	Darkvision 60 ft., undead	Your darkvision increases to 120 ft. & you can also see perfectly in any darkness.	WoW5
Dark Flight	Monster	Vampire	You gain a fly speed 40 ft. (good).	WoW5
Hasty Rebirth	Monster	Lich	You rejuvenate in just one day.	WoW5
Lingering Spirit	Monster	Vampire or lich	You are not destroyed or forced into gaseous form at 0 hp, you instead remain intact until you are reduced to your negative Charisma score.	WoW5
Master Vampire	Monster	Vampire	Depending on the ability chosen, you can hear what your spawn hears, see what it sees, or communicate telepathically with it.	WoW5
Mortal Visage	Monster	Lich	You do not appear to be undead.	WoW5
Red Feast	Monster	Vampire	You deal 1d6 Con damage and gain 10 hp or 10 temporary hp from your blood drain special attack.	WoW5
Sunlight Resistance	Monster	Vampire	You are able to withstand direct sunlight longer than normal.	WoW5
Undead Overlord	Monster	Lich, 15th level	You gain a +2 bonus to Diplomacy checks when dealing with the undead.	WoW5
Unnatural Armor	Monster	Lich	Your natural armor bonus is increased to +8.	WoW5
Vampiric Nobility	Monster	Vampire, 15th level	You gain a +2 bonus to Diplomacy checks when dealing with the undead, your channel resistance increases to +6, and your Dominate DC is increased by +2.	WoW5
Withering Touch	Monster	Lich	Your touch attack is more effective than normal.	WoW5