Large Beast, Unaligned
- AC
- 11
- Initiative
- +1 (11)
- HP
- 39 (6d10+6)
- Speed
- 30 ft., Swim 30 ft.
| Score | Mod | Save | |
|---|---|---|---|
| STR | 15 | +2 | +2 |
| DEX | 13 | +1 | +1 |
| CON | 13 | +1 | +1 |
| INT | 2 | -4 | -4 |
| WIS | 10 | +0 | +0 |
| CHA | 3 | -4 | -4 |
Traits
Amphibious. The toad can breathe air and water.
Standing Leap. The toad's Long Jump is up to 20 feet and its High Jump is up to 10 feet with or without a running start.
Actions
Bite. Melee Attack Roll: +4, reach 5 ft. Hit: 5 (1d6+2) Piercing damage plus 5 (2d4) Poison damage. If the target is a Medium or smaller creature, it has the Grappled condition (escape DC 12).
Swallow. The toad swallows a Medium or smaller target it is grappling. While swallowed, the target isn't Grappled but has the Blinded and Restrained conditions, and it has Total Cover against attacks and other effects outside the toad. In addition, the target takes 10 (3d6) Acid damage at the end of each of the toad's turns. The
toad can have only one target swallowed at a time, and it can't use Bite while it has a swallowed target. If the toad dies, a swallowed creature is no longer Restrained and can escape from the corpse using 5 feet of movement, exiting with the Prone condition.
How to run Giant Toad
A giant toad on the party's side is a druid's wild shape pick (39 HP, Large, swim 30 feet, swallow ability), a mount for small-race parties, or a swamp guide bound by oath. Use it as a wetland specialist.
It carries a Small rider through water, guards a ford, ambushes enemies in shallows. Walk speed 30 feet on land, swim 30 feet in water, Darkvision 60 feet for night work. The toad isn't subtle, but in its element it's harder to spot than the CR suggests.
In combat, lead with Bite and Grapple. Pull one enemy into melee while the party surrounds that target. If the grappled creature is Small, follow up with Swallow on the next turn. A swallowed enemy takes 3d6 acid per round, has total cover outside, and can't fight back. The toad won't last a focused fight, so use it as the opener that locks down one enemy while allies attack others.
When a druid drops wild shape from toad form mid-combat and a swallowed enemy spills out covered in gastric acid, describe it with weight. The table will remember that moment.
A giant toad is a CR 1 swamp ambush with 39 HP, AC 11, Bite at +4 for 1d6+2 piercing plus 2d4 poison, and Grapple on hit (escape DC 12). Swallow swallows a Medium or smaller target the toad is grappling, dealing 3d6 acid damage per turn. The toad is amphibious with Standing Leap at 20 feet long and 10 feet high. It wins by striking once from motionless cover and swallowing a PC in that same turn.
Stage the ambush in shallow water or wet terrain. Passive Perception 10 means the toad sits hidden until a PC walks within reach. Initiative is the toad's Bite at +4 on the party's point person. On a hit, the target is Grappled. If the target is Medium or smaller, the toad spends its next turn using Swallow. A swallowed PC takes 3d6 acid damage per turn, has total cover from outside attacks, and can't support allies. This is the full encounter in three rounds or less.
The toad cannot win a prolonged fight. AC 11, no ranged options, 30 feet walk and swim means it can't escape once the party commits to killing it. Its strategy is the opening round. After Swallow lands or Grapple fails, the toad is just HP.
Describe the sticky tongue before the attack roll. "Its tongue unfurls like a whip, sticky and fast." The shape of the threat is what's memorable, not the dice.
Stat block from the System Reference Document 5.2.1 © Wizards of the Coast LLC, used under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license.