Roc
Gargantuan Monstrosity · · CR 11
- Monstrosity
- Gargantuan
- Tier 3
CR 11 gargantuan monstrosity, unaligned — that's Roc. Native to arctic, coastal, desert, hill, and mountain. Sourced from Monster Manual (5e 2014) and Monster Manual (5.5e 2024).
Stat Block
- Challenge Rating
- 11
- Type
- Monstrosity
- Size
- Gargantuan
- Alignment
- —
- Speed
- —
- Habitats
- Arctic, Coastal, Desert, Hill, Mountain
- Sources
- Monster Manual (5e 2014), Monster Manual (5.5e 2024)
Ecology
Rocs are the largest avian predators on the material plane, with wingspans approaching two hundred feet and bodies weighing thousands of pounds. They nest on inaccessible mountain peaks and remote islands, raising single chicks every century. They prey on whales, elephants, and adult dragons, snatching prey from sea or land and carrying it aloft. Their populations are tiny, and each roc is essentially unique, named in the folklore of every region within flight range.
Behaviour
Rocs are solitary except when raising young or briefly mating, and they are aggressively territorial across hundreds of miles of sky. They are not particularly intelligent but possess long memory and can learn to associate specific human actions with food or threat. They sing to one another across continents in low resonant calls audible underwater, conducting conversations that may take days. They consider lesser flying creatures, including dragons, as prey or rivals depending on size.
Origin
Rocs are believed to predate most other megafauna, surviving from an age when the world's air was thicker and giant flight more practical. Some scholars argue rocs are the descendants of primordial sky-titans diminished into animals; others suggest they were always birds, simply scaled to a vanished world. They appear in the oldest mortal myths under different names, and sailors still pray to them as weather-spirits along certain trade routes.
Related Monsters
Frequently Asked Questions about Roc
- What is the challenge rating of Roc?
- On the bestiary CR scale, Roc sits at 11. It suits high-tier groups.
- What type of creature is Roc?
- Roc is classified as a monstrosity in D&D 5e, gargantuan size.
- Where does Roc live?
- Habitats for Roc: Arctic, Coastal, Desert, Hill, Mountain.