Planar Bestiary
Knargalians, or "berserk circles," are bizarre magical creatures that look like 10-foot-diameter floating circles surrounded by mystical runes. They flit across the landscape until they find a creature they want to consume, arrange themselves around their foe, and drain their life energy, leaving only a withered husk.
The first knargalian is believed to have been a fiend-trapping spell that went awry, creating a being of living energy that exists only to contain and consume other things. Although berserk circles prefer hunting celestials and elementals, they have been known to attack other creatures, especially those who try to bind or control them.
As a being of magic made manifest, a knargalian doesn't require air, food, drink, or sleep.
Motive: Contain and consume angels and elementals, or those who interfere with the knargalian
Environment: The Lower Planes, anywhere dimension-traveling magic has become oversaturated or gone out of control
Health: 15
Damage Inflicted: Moderate wound (5 points)
Armor: 2
Movement: Short when flying
Modifications: Speed defense as level 4 due to large size; resists mental influence as level 7
Combat: A berserk circle attacks twice each round with radiant blades of pure magic, inflicting 5 points of Intellect damage (ignores Armor); on a second failed Speed defense task, the target is encircled by the knargalian. All the tasks of an encircled victim are hindered, and the victim can't leave the circle until they succeed on an Intellect task as their action to escape. Encircled victims automatically take 3 points of Intellect damage (ignores Armor) each round.
If the knargalian is affected by an ability that nullifies magic or strips away magical protections (such as Pry Open), the entire creature is suppressed, and ceases to exist for about a minute. However, anytime such a magic effect or spell fails to affect them, the creature consumes that magic and regains 5 points of health.
Teleportation and interplanar travel attempts within short range of a knargalian don't function if the would-be traveler fails an Intellect defense task against the knargalian.
As an action, the knargalian can become invisible until they attack.
Interaction: As a living magical effect, the knargalian's mind is unknowable to most creatures. Attempts to communicate through language and telepathy fail, although creatures have had limited success using bursts of weak magic to convey simple concepts.
Use: The characters are gifted with a questionable "magic item" that they are told will help them trap a demon or similar creature; all they have to do is break the seal and get away, lest they become the target of the "magic effect" contained within.
GM Intrusion: Through some sort of psychic error, a character's mind enters the knargalian, and their body drops limp. The mental passenger can attempt to control the berserk circle each round with an Intellect task, but failure inflicts 5 points of Intellect damage (ignores Armor) to the character and kicks them back into their own body.