- For other Undead, see Undead.
The great ghuls are undead elemental cousins of the genies, the most wicked members of an inferior order of jann. They haunt burial grounds and feed on dead human bodies. They are usually female; all are beguiling and seductive shapechangers. No matter what form they take, their feet remain those of a donkey, though they often wear special boots or long robes to conceal this aberration. Ghuls delight in devouring the flesh of their victims and then sucking the marrow from their bones.
Great ghuls have thick hair and bushy eyebrows that often droop over their eyes. Their hands end in clawed fingers, and their feet and sometimes their ears are those of a donkey. Their jutting jaws are powerfully muscled, their pale white skin cold and clammy. They have the hunched posture of normal ghouls. Because great ghuls are aware of how their appearance repulses other creatures, they disguise themselves with cosmetics, clothes, and jewelry.
Combat[]
Great ghuls attack with their claws and teeth. They can only be struck by magical weapons. Great ghuls can use each of the following spell-like abilities at will: polymorph self, shocking grasp, and bestow invisibility.
Like most undead, great ghuls are immune to sleep, charm, hold, and cold-based magic. They are not affected by paralyzation or poison. All ghuls suffer only half damage from falls.
Great ghuls can be turned as ghasts; mage ghuls are turned as wraiths. They suffer 2-12 points of damage from holy water, and a -1 penalty to their attack rolls in daylight.
Normally, only jann slain by great ghuls become ghuls themselves. All other races are usually slain and devoured.
About one in every six great ghuls is a mage of up to 7th level of ability. Great ghuls may even become sha'ir, thus gaining some measure of power over other genies. Other great ghuls study the magical provinces of flame, sand, and wind. Ghuls who study the magic of the sea are extremely rare. All ghuls are immune to the binding and capturing powers of the sha'ir.
Habitat/Society[]
Great ghuls live in secluded ruins or caves found in the emptiest deserts or on the highest mountains. Because of their sharp claws and incredible strength, great ghuls from the mountains are able to climb sheer rock walls that would daunt most mountaineers. Desert ghuls are not as adept at climbing, but can dig through sand or soft stones.
Because great ghuls are feared by humans and despised by genies, they rarely keep their own form, even when at home in their ruins or caves. Habitual shapeshifters, they are excellent liars and actors.
Ecology[]
Great ghuls serve the genies (when required), but tyrannize normal ghouls, whom they consider unrefined and unreliable. Great ghuls who become sha'ir tend to be secretive; the other genies resent and fear the ghuls power over them. Such great ghuls are often destroyed when their homes are discovered.
Although great ghuls avoid contact with other races, they occasionally aid humans or others who come to them seeking help against genies. Sometimes they help humans in quests which the ghuls find interesting; they do this without expectation of reward.
Lesser Ghuls[]
Lesser ghuls are submissive, less aggressive versions of great ghuls, usually functioning as servitors for noble efreeti, slayer genies, and other powerful entities. They may also serve ghul mages and, on occasion, great ghuls. Except for their smaller size, lesser ghuls resemble great ghuls. However, they appear sad and miserable, wracked with sorrow over their wretched existence. Some sob continuously, others bury their faces in their hands and grieve in silence.
While most great ghuls are former jann, lesser ghuls are former humans. A human slain by a mage ghul may become a lesser ghul if the mage ghul sits with the human corpse for an entire night, its hands on the corpses head. At dawn, the corpse rises as a lesser ghul. Some entities, such as noble efreeti, can transform humans to lesser ghuls, lesser ghuls to great ghuls.
Though capable of attacking with the ferocity of great ghuls, lesser ghuls generally shun combat, fighting only when cornered or threatened. They suffer a -2 penalty to their attack rolls. Otherwise, they have all of the magical abilities and vulnerabilities of great ghuls.