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Large dragon, neutral
Armor Class 18 (natural armour)
Hit Points 225 (18d10 + 126)
Speed 40 ft., fly 120 ft.
Saving Throws Str +13, Con +13, Wis +10
Skills Athletics +13, Insight +10, Intimidation +7
Proficiency Bonus +6
Damage Immunities poison
Condition Immunities frightened, poisoned
Senses darkvision 120 ft., passive Perception 14
Languages Draconic
Challenge 17 (18,000 XP)
ACTIONS
Head Smash. The spynkoriithi rams its horns into a single enemy. The enemy must succeed a DC 16 Strength saving throw or be knocked prone. Melee Weapon Attack: +13 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 27 (4d8 + 7) Bludgeoning damage.
Thagomize. The spynkoriithi swings its powerful tail into one or two enemies, striking them with the spikes of its tail. Melee Weapon Attack: +8 to hit, reach 15 ft., up to two adjacent targets. Hit: 28 (3d12 + 7) Piercing damage.
The spynkoriithi must succeed a Wisdom (Insight) saving throw on a sentient creature that is displaying an emotion akin to happiness prior to using one action listed below:
Hari Hari Meteor. Streams of fire erupt from the side of the spynkoriithi's mouth as it barrels through an enemy. +13 to hit, one target. Hit: 32 (6d6 + 8) Bludgeoning damage, plus 12 (3d6) Fire damage.
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Spynkoriithi are an ancient lineage of synapsids closely resembling dragons. As a species, they are nearly as old as the world itself, and at one point in time soared the skies of the tropics in great flocks. The spynkoriithi on average stands roughly ten feet tall, and weighs just shy of half a ton. The oldest recorded spynkoriithi lived for 366 years, at the temple of Kurginkaal on Zypher'tol island. Spynkoriithi often live in symbiosis with the spynkazaka, the latter often revering the creatures as their ancestors. The validity of this has yet to be confirmed, but nevertheless, the spynkazaka have built enormous temple structures to share with their draconic relatives as roosts. The spynkoriithi return the kindness of their kin, often by way of bountiful feasts, bringing in a variety of foods from far away lands on celebratory days, as well as defending their islands from outside threats. However, it should be noted that the spynkoriithi, while sentient and capable of rough speech in the Draconic language, are still brutalistic beasts that rely moreso on brawn than brain.
Like the spynkazaka, the spynkoriithi are omnivorous, and feed upon most anything, though they seem to excel at fishing. Spynkoriithi sightings close to Karyba'tol have reported that the animals will fly just over the ocean and skim fish from the surface. Record catches include a 10-foot great white shark, and a pair effort once resulted in the successful acquirement of a 1200 pound mola mola. On land, the spynkoriithi can go head-to-head with creatures the size of giganotosaurus, though their limited ranges mean that the two hardly ever meet. Spynkazaka will rarely take prey on land, but when forced, tend to prefer poultry such as chicken and turkey. Spynkoriithi distinctly avoid eating sapient races and intelligent animals such as primates, as it appears to go against Hari Hari. In the air, spynkoriithi are almost unrivaled in speed—coming out of a dive, a spynkoriithi can hit just over 500 mph, and even create instantaneous sonic booms. These airbursts are especially used in the stunning prey just below the surface of the ocean. Other preferred foods include potatoes, melons, and pineapple, as well as white cocoa products like their spynkazaka descendants, though these foods are only consumed by spynkoriithi residing in spynkazaka temples.
Hari Hari is a unique code, first created through instinct by the spynkoriithi, then refined by the spynkazaka to suit their needs as a civilized society. Hari Hari's basic principles follow the idea that all life is interconnected through a shared ability to perceive and feel—scholars have described it as extensive empathy. Empathy is thought to stimulate a very primitive part of the spynkoriithi brain, resulting in a powerful surge of adrenaline and similar effects that bolster a spynkoriithi's strength. As such, spynkoriithi seek empathy much as dragons seek treasure for their horde—they are naturally altruistic and will strive to do right if it means that someone's happiness can become their own. The rush that Hari Hari gives them may even briefly provide them with the strength to take on mature chromatic dragons, as demonstrated in Montiskor's Summer of Dragons.
Spynkoriithi can even become overloaded with empathic energy such that they overflow, and flames may periodically erupt from their mouths. Though fire is not intrinsic to spynkoriithi, it is thought to be a vestigial trait from an early ancestor from around the time of the world's creation. This fire billows off the sides of their mouths and forms almost ribbon-like columns as it flows back. This fire can be maintained long enough for the spynkoriithi to implement it in attacks that resemble a meteor strike, as the spynkoriithi rams into prey or enemies at full speed while on fire.
In recent millennia, their numbers have declined due to overfishing, leaving small isolated populations on islands in the tropics. Abolask's Zypher'tol island is currently the last bastion of the spynkoriithi, as the population in Ilos is in great danger of extinction.
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