#smile in the shadows

[thecreaturecodex]

Sangubrax, the Smile in the Shadows

"Nightmare--Revenge" © ArtStation user Midnight, accessed at their gallery here

[Sponsored by @tar-baphon, who wanted a CR 15 herald, suitable for greater planar ally spells, for Nyarlathotep, specifically in the Bloody Tongue mask. The Bloody Tongue is one of the widest influences of the Call of Cthulhu game on greater views of the Mythos; Nyarlathotep was not associated with being a tentacle monster before that point, and was usually depicted as being mostly human, as he appears in Lovecraft. Hence, my feeling it was appropriate to make this herald appear pretty humanoid. The epithet and CR were provided for me, but I was allowed free reign otherwise.]

Sangubrax, the Smile in the Shadows CR 15 CE Outsider (extraplanar) This humanoid creature appears to be a flayed knight made of blood and gore. There is a visor covering where there should be eyes, and his face is split in a mad ear to ear grin. His arms end not in hands, but in baroque and lethal weapons. He moves with liquid grace.

Sangubrax is the Smile In the Shadows, a supernatural murderer with a penchant for targeting nobility, royalty, the powerful and influential. He is one of the Heralds of Nyarlathotep, being devoted specifically to the Mask known as the Bloody Tongue. The Bloody Tongue seeks to destabilize societies through sacrificial murders, and Sangubrax is called upon to strike at reformers, benevolent leaders, and anyone who might try to make a city, province or nation safer and more supporting of its citizens.

Sangubrax is a consummate assassin, but he has a penchant for the theatrical. Murders he commits vary in tune with the societal importance of the target. A beggar that gets in his way will merely have his throat slit, but a monarch will be murdered in broad daylight with much pomp and ceremony. His arms can become all manner of weaponry, but he prefers sword-like blades, the better to spill plenty of blood. Creatures he strikes bleed more and more until their entire life comes gushing out, and he has an extensible, chameleon-like tongue for dragging fleeing victims closer and ensuring they cannot even magically escape.

The Smile in the Shadows has a mocking, sardonic personality, even to his summoners. He believes that mortals are fundamentally incapable of ruling themselves, and that the return of the Old Gods will be a time of glorious and violent anarchy. He serves in the Prehistoric Temple in Leng, acting as bodyguard and majordomo for the High Priest Not to Be Described. Although he performs such duties loyally, he is always excited to be summoned in order to commit murder and mayhem on another plane.

Being a semi-liquid creature, Sangubrax has no set height, but weighs 200 pounds. Although he has no eyes, he can see perfectly well.

Sangubrax CR 15 XP 51,200 CE Medium outsider (chaos, evil, extraplanar) Init +7; Senses lifesense 60 ft., Perception +28, see in darkness Aura frightful presence (60 ft., Will DC 25)

Defense AC 30, touch 18, flat-footed 30 (+7 Dex, +1 dodge, +12 natural) hp 225 (18d10+126) Fort +13, Ref +18, Will +18 DR 15/lawful or good; Immune bleed, curses, death effects, disease, poison; SR 26 Defensive Abilities amorphous, evasion, improved uncanny dodge

Offense Speed 30 ft., fly 30 ft. (perfect) Melee 2 morphic weapons +24 (2d10+6/19-20 plus exponential bleed), tongue +19 touch (pull plus no escape) Ranged morphic weapon +24 (2d10+6/19-20 plus exponential bleed) Space 5 ft.; Reach 10 ft. (30 ft. with tongue) Special Attacks pull (10 ft.), sneak attack +4d6 Spell-like Abilities CL 18th, concentration +24 At will—deeper darkness, detect good, detect law, invisibility, waves of blood (DC 19, CMB +25) 3/day—cruel jaunt, mass fester (DC 22), quickened true strike, empowered vampiric touch 1/day—decapitate (DC 22), greater shadow evocation (DC 24), regenerate

Statistics Str 23, Dex 24, Con 25, Int 20, Wis 25, Cha 22 Base Atk +18; CMB +22; CMD 40 Feats Combat Expertise, Combat Reflexes, Dodge, Empower SLA (vampiric touch), Improved Critical (morphic weaponry), Mobility, Quicken SLA (true strike), Spring Attack, Whirlwind Attack Skills Acrobatics +28, Bluff +27, Escape Artist +36, Fly +33, Intimidate +27, Knowledge (nobility) +23, Knowledge (planes) +26, Perception +28, Sense Motive +28, Stealth +36, Survival +28; Racial Modifiers +8 Escape Artist, +8 Stealth Languages Aklo, Abyssal, Common, Protean, Shadowtongue SQ compression

Ecology Environment any land or underground (Leng) Organization unique Treasure incidental

Special Abilities Exponential Bleed (Su) Whenever Sangubrax hits a creature with a morphic weapon, it deals 1 point of bleed damage. If it hits that creature again, the bleed damage doubles, to a maximum of 16 points of bleed a round for 5 hits. This doubling effect occurs even if the creature stops bleeding, such as through a Heal check or healing magic, but expires 24 hours after the last time Sangubrax struck it. In an area of antimagic or similar effect, Sangubrax’s morphic weaponry still deals 1 point of bleed damage. Morphic Weapons (Ex) Sangubrax can manipulate his body to mimic a wide array of potent weaponry, or revert to having hands, as a swift action. While the weapons may look different, they are considered natural weapons and they all do the same amount of damage. Morphic weapons deal bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing damage, and are treated as magic for the purpose of overcoming damage reduction. Sangubrax can also attack with a morphic weapon by hurling a portion of his body as a thrown weapon with a range increment of 60 feet (he swiftly regrows thrown portions of its body after using this attack, while the hurled portion melts away into a bloodstain after dealing damage to a target). No Escape (Su) A creature touched by Sangubrax’s tongue must succeed a DC 24 Will save or be affected by both a slow and dimensional anchor spell that lasts for 1 minute. The save DC is Charisma based.

[everwalldigan]

I love it when people draw Robin!Dick as a little creepy unsettling child like yes he embodies the blue eyed stare and moves in ways humans were never meant to move in and he never really grew out of it. Like the bright colours, the flips and the quips are so deceiving he’s so unsettling in the way no other Robin could quite replicate. I just know every criminal breathed a sigh of relief when he finally outgrew the tights.

[emerald-hills2]

for the people who say that shadow never smiles...i have to say,you have living in a BIG lie all this time and actually its something that he does to much and i really love see shadows simling :D

[futuristichedge]

I've waited a long time for this

[artificialchaoscola]

stare

[yellowvixen]

the moon [xviii] - deception, fear, illusion. uncertainty in choices and hidden truths

[ohposhers]

yeah you guys can blame @artificialchaoscola for this one her big brain thought it up (this is a joke au gang dont take it that seriously im crying

[heilos]

I have to talk about this scene cause it's driving me crazy. The juxtaposition of how painful the doom power transformations are for Shadow and the sheer power high and glee he gets for just a moment after acquiring his final ability, the Doom Wing, to the point of smiling about it is doing things to my brain. Not to mention that one quick line where he says "I feel...complete" had me lose it. We know he's only gaining these abilities as a means to defeat Black Doom. We know he hates the fact that he's part Black Arms just from what we saw in Shadow Dark Beginnings. And we know he has no choice but to keep collecting these powers even though every time he unlocks one he's pleading "No" over and over again. He doesn't want to do this and yet every power feels right to him because of his DNA and that must mess with his head so much.

[ahvene]

APOTHEOSIS

[hinamie]

realizing how much i like drawing him a million years too late :<

[estellardreams]

WAIT HE'S SMILING?!?!

(Up close:)

HE'S SMILING!!!

[moicat]

I just wanted an excuse to draw these two, also, outfits are from the hwt cd covers.

Original image below.

I had a few other ideas (for other characters to draw for this) but as said earlier, I wanted to draw these guys a lot so here we are.

[j1gsawz]

considering the order of the hypnosis endings… this was the last new scene in the whole show. the last new thing we saw. and the writers knew that. in this universe and every universe, guillermo de la cruz and nandor the relentless love each other and that’s canon.

[jinikaris]

HYUNJIN and FELIX at Incheon International Airport // December 20th, 2024

[deliciousnecks]

jandy. you will be missed.😔

[glitchedcosmos]

✨babbie✨