D&D: Spooky Scary Skeletons to Send Shivers Down Your Spine
Want to send shivers down the spine of any D&D player? Just reach for one of these spooky scary skeletons and you’ll be good to go.
Skeletons are terrifying. They’re made out of bones. They know all sorts of spooky dances. Every single skeleton keeps a skull around, for extra creepiness. And there’s one living inside you right now.
These facts make skeletons the most terrifying of all potentially undead creatures. And Dungeons & Dragons is chock full of skeletons. Skeletons live all alone, outside of the bodies they once lived inside of. Don’t throw the same old bones at your players – check out these five especially spooky, scary skeletons.
Dinosaur Skeleton
Arguably the coolest skeleton on the list. A dinosaur skeleton is, as the name implies, the noble skeleton that lived inside a once-proud dinosaur. The geniuses behind Journeys through the Radiant Citadel were the only ones brave enough to explore the concept of a dinosaur’s skeleton.
Respectable, because I know I wouldn’t want to earn the wrath of Sue.
A dinosaur skeleton is terrifying though in its own right. For one, it’s large. And for two, a dinosaur skeleton comes with a powerful charge attack backed up by 51 hit points, making it a surprisingly resilient CR 2. The dinosaur skeleton can multiattack if it makes a move of 30 feet or more. It knocks down creatures it hits with a claw attack and gets a free bite.
Storm Giant Skeleton
First introduced in Candlekeep Mysteries, a storm giant skeleton is exactly what the name implies. And weighing in at CR 16, a storm giant skeleton is one of the beefiest skeletons in any book.
They back up their huge statue with a storm giant’s elemental powers. In addition to their 204 hit points, storm giant skeletons can hurl massive boulders, deal necrotic damage when they hit with their massive greatswords, and can hurl magical lightning at groups of creatures.
Skeleton Warrior
Skeleton Warriors might be mistaken at first glance for just well-equipped skeletons. But don’t be fooled. Skeleton warriors are specialized undead, empowered by necromantic energy and imbued with high intelligence and considerable battle prowess. Capable of speech and tactical thinking, skeleton warriors are independent and powerful in their own right.
They wield powerful weapons, typically wear heavy armor, and are resistant to magical spells and other effects. Couple this with a deadly greatsword and total immunity to nonmagical bludgeoning, piercing and slashing, and you’ve got the recipe for an extremely spooky scary skeleton.
Flameskull
Proof that you don’t even need to be a whole skeleton to be spooky and/or scary, a Flameskull is the skull of a dead wizard. Surrounded by green flames, Flameskulls possess powerful fire magic. They can shoot blasts of fire and can cast spells (mostly fiery ones, but also things like Magic Missile or Shield) at anyone in their way.
What makes these ones truly bone-chilling is that they don’t die when you kill them. If you destroy one, they’ll reform in 1 hour, unless you sprinkle holy water on their remains or cast dispel magic or remove curse on them.
Skull Lord
The only thing more terrifying than one skeleton is three skeletons. And a skull lord is made from three different mages, turned into skeletons, and magically fused together.
Unlike most fusions, this doesn’t make them any better in a fighting tournament. Instead, these three personalities all bicker and vie for control while trying to undermine the others. The first skull lords were said to appear in the aftermath of Vecna‘s betrayal by his trusted lieutenant Kas, the bloody-handed.
After Vecna was betrayed, Vecna gathered up his generals and captains and bound them together necromantically into abominations cursed to fight among themselves for all time.
But when they agree on who they want to kill, a skull lord can empower its allies and command other skeletons like nobody’s business.
Happy adventuring
