Giants! Be they the Zentradi from Robotech, the Navigators from the Alien franchise, or even the Na’vi of Avatar, there has been a giant humanoid shaped spot in Sci-Fantasy for quite some time. Since the classic D&D adventure line ‘Against the Giants’ just the hint of an organized force of giants was enough to strike fear in the hearts of adventurers. In Starfinder though, not so much. Because Starfinder has very little mechanically tied to size (just reach, number of squares occupied, and average height/weight really) there isn’t a big difference (har har) between a medium sized humanoid enemy and a giant one. In ranged combat, giants have their old fall back of hurling bolder sized debris, but otherwise are no more effective than their smaller counterparts. They can still be terrifying melee combatants, but Starfinder’s greater emphasis on ranged play ameliorates that somewhat.
As I’ve been working on Endless Horizon and anticipating the upcoming Tech Revolution book, I’ve been giving some thought to incorporating giants into my Starfinder games. The various Giant Type template grafts are decent, but don’t exactly convey how these creatures might be employed in a game. So what would an encounter with a troop of giants look like? Let’s build one for the least giant type presented – the stone giant.
I want this giant encounter to be memorable, so this will be APL (average party level) +3, and I’m building a troop of 3 giants, so that works out such that the CR of the giants is going to be equal to the level of the party. Level 5-8 seems like the right time for PCs to be ready for giants, so let’s go with level 6. At CR 6 our giants are going to be two bruisers and a rockcaller (who tries to hold person targets while the bruisers wade in.) So, after applying the stat array, template graft, and rounding everything out we have:
STONE GIANT BRUISER (2)
CR 6
XP 2,400
N Large humanoid (giant)
Init +2; Senses blindsense (vibration) 30 ft., darkvision 60 ft., low-light vision; Perception +13
DEFENSE
HP 90
EAC 18; KAC 20
Fort +10; Ref +8; Will +5
Immunities exhaustion, fatigue, stun; Resistances acid 5, fire 5
OFFENSE
Speed 50 ft.
Melee slam +16 (1d8+11 B) or tactical meteor glaive +16 (1d12+11 F, wound)
Ranged hurl debris +13 (2d6+6 B, plus 10-ft.-radius area of difficult terrain around the spot where the debris hit)
Space 10ft.; Reach 10ft. (15 ft. with glaive)
Offensive Abilities hurl debris, trample (1d8+11 B, DC 14)
STATISTICS
Str +5; Dex +2; Con +3; Int +0; Wis +1; Cha -1
Skills Athletics +13, Intimidate +18
Languages Common, Giant, Terran
Gear Reinforced EVA Suit III with jump jets, tactical meteor glaive with two petrol tanks, comm unit, cred stick with 300cr
Other Abilities no breath
SPECIAL ABILITIES
Hurl Debris (Ex) The mighty strength of a giant allows it to turn nearly anything into a ranged weapon. A giant is assumed to have such debris available (either loose or readily torn from the environment without requiring an extra action) unless the GM rules otherwise. Hurled debris has a range increment equal to the giant’s Strength modifier × 5 feet. Such attacks also create difficult terrain in a 5-foot-radius area around the target, or a 10-foot-radius area for Huge and larger giants.
STONE GIANT ROCKCALLER
CR 6
XP 2,400
N Large humanoid (giant)
Init +0; Senses blindsense (vibration) 30 ft., darkvision 60 ft., low-light vision; Perception +18
DEFENSE
HP 75
EAC 17; KAC 18
Fort +7; Ref +5; Will +9
Immunities exhaustion, fatigue, stun; Resistances acid 5, fire 5
OFFENSE
Speed 50 ft.
Melee slam +12 (1d6+11 B) or tactical maul +12 (1d8+11 B, knockdown)
Ranged hurl debris +10 (1D8+6 B, plus 10-ft.-radius area of difficult terrain around the spot where the debris hit)
Space 10ft.; Reach 10ft.
Mystic Spells Known (CL 6th)
2nd (3/day) hold person (DC 18), tectonic shift (DC 18)
1st (6/day) acidic mist (DC 17), mystic cure, defrex hardiness
0th (at will) detect magic, telepathic message
Offensive Abilities hurl debris
STATISTICS
Str +5; Dex +0; Con +2; Int +0; Wis +3; Cha -1
Skills Athletics +13, Intimidate +18
Languages Common, Giant, Terran
Gear D-suit I with jump jets, tactical maul, comm unit, cred stick with 300cr
Other Abilities no breath
SPECIAL ABILITIES
Hurl Debris (Ex) The mighty strength of a giant allows it to turn nearly anything into a ranged weapon. A giant is assumed to have such debris available (either loose or readily torn from the environment without requiring an extra action) unless the GM rules otherwise. Hurled debris has a range increment equal to the giant’s Strength modifier × 5 feet. Such attacks also create difficult terrain in a 5-foot-radius area around the target, or a 10-foot-radius area for Huge and larger giants.
So with all that put together we’ve got three big fellas that should give a party of four level 6 Starfinder characters a real challenge. Especially if the combat happens in a tight space that allows the giants to maximize the benefits of their reach.
As always, if you like this or any of the other content here on Solo Run Studio I would welcome a little of your support through Ko-fi. Until next time Starfinders!
Jeremy Corff
Artist and Writer