C'tan Shard, Escaping Containment

Saves: Toughness +13, Willpower +13

Senses: Perceives the state of every binding, pylon, and containment mechanism in its prison at all times

Failing Bindings. The encounter tracks four active pylons or anchors. Each one destroyed or failed removes a restriction on the shard - +10 feet of speed, +10 feet of reach, +1d10 damage on all attacks, or phase movement through walls, in that order - and when a binding fails the shard immediately takes one extra action in celebration the room may not survive.

Half In, Half Out. While two or more bindings stand, the shard can only act within 60 feet of its cage and cannot target creatures beyond that radius. Its freedom's geometry expands as the party fails.

One Door Left. This is the objective: full re-containment remains possible until the final binding falls - each pylon can be repaired under fire with a Tech check DC 16. After the last binding fails, only banishment, sacrifice protocols, or escape remain, and the failure state is a fully manifested shard.

Tear at the Cage. The shard strikes a pylon, anchor, or containment mechanism within reach, automatically dealing 4d10 + 6 rending damage to it. Its priority is always the architecture, not the party.

Lash the Jailers. Ranged Attack: +13 to hit, range 90 ft., one target. Hit: 4d10 + 6 warp damage, and the target is hurled 15 feet away from the nearest binding; Toughness Save DC 20 or land Prone.

Punish the Repair. When a creature completes a repair attempt on a binding within 90 feet, the shard makes a Lash the Jailers attack against it.

Morale: Does not make Morale checks - only momentum. Every round it is closer to free, and it knows it.

Tactics: Pure objective play with a visible countdown: pylons to repair under fire, power to reroute, a protocol to hold. The shard splits the party's attention by attacking the cage while they defend it and vice versa. Define the failure state up front - a fully manifested shard and an evacuation - so the stakes of every repair check are honest.

Loot / Evidence / Hooks: An intact pylon from a C'tan cage is beyond price; so is knowing who sabotaged the first one.

An Escaping Containment Shard is a prison break by something that predates the concept of prisons: pylons failing in sequence, physics curdling, and a window — shrinking — in which anyone can still do anything about it.

Use this threat as a timed disaster encounter where the objective is the cage, not the god — every round spent fighting is a round the bindings were not repaired.

Boss-grade threat on an escalation timer, growing stronger as each binding fails, reality distortion, objective-based defeat, hard failure state if containment collapses.

Failing Bindings. The encounter tracks active pylons or anchors; each one lost removes a restriction on the shard (speed, reach, damage, phase movement) and shortens the clock.

Half In, Half Out. Partially bound, it acts on limited rounds or within limited zones — the geometry of its freedom expands as the party fails.

One Door Left. Full re-containment is possible until the final binding falls; after that, only banishment, sacrifice protocols, or escape remain.

Tear at the Cage. Attacks a pylon, anchor, or containment mechanism directly; the shard's priority is always the architecture, not the party.

Lash the Jailers. Punishes creatures repairing or defending bindings with reality-distortion strikes at range.

Surge of Freedom. When a binding fails, it immediately takes an extra action in celebration the room may not survive.

Morale: No morale — only momentum; every round it is closer to free, and it knows it.

Tactics: Run this as pure objective play with a visible countdown: pylons to repair under fire, power to reroute, a ritual or protocol to hold. The shard splits the party's attention by attacking the cage while they defend it and vice versa. Define the failure state up front — a fully manifested shard and an evacuation — so the stakes of every repair check are honest.

Full Stat Block Priority: Boss