Troll

Troll
(Creature)
Large Giant Troll Level Varies Images of trolls Source: Monster Core, pg(s). 330-331 Type Humanoid (giant) CR 5 Environment Cold mountains Alignment LG NG CG LN N CN LE NE CE Images of trolls Source: Bestiary, pg(s). 268

Sajan sparring with a troll in a monastery.

A troll is a monstrous giant with a rough hide, clawed hands, and a bestial face with a hideous, tusked underbite. These fearsome monsters can regenerate all damage not inflicted through fire or electricity, and a full-sized troll can regrow from even a tiny scrap of flesh.

Appearance

Male trolls typically stand between 8 and 12 feet tall and weigh 300 pounds. Females are larger, weighing up to 500 pounds and sometimes reaching heights of 10 to 12 feet. Trolls have a hunched posture that can make them appear shorter than they actually are.

Ecology

Trolls' young are raised by the females, who drive away adult males since the males would otherwise eat their own young. Females live in family groups, casting out any members who show weakness or killing them, typically through drowning or starvation. Males live as solitary hunters who prefer to lair in caves or dark woods.

Trolls who survive longer than most gain a degree of insight and ingenuity that makes them more dangerous. These warleaders integrate a layer of roughly fashioned armor under their regenerating flesh and often lead raiding parties composed of a variety of other trolls with tactics that complement their environment.

Society

Trolls believe they were created by the demon lord Urxehl, who loves to test them by inflicting upon them incursions of ogres and humans, storms and (worst of all) forest fires. Urxehl sometimes grants his followers the power of divination.

Troll augurs claim they can predict the future by ripping out their own entrails and reading omens from them. Augurs operate in Kaer Maga and the Vile Fortress in eastern Vudra.

Trolls are known to sometimes keep winter wolves as much-abused pets, relying on trollish regeneration to survive the wolves' sharp fangs and freezing breath.

On Golarion

Trolls live in the wilder areas throughout the Inner Sea region but are particularly common in northern Avistan. The River Kingdoms, the Lands of the Linnorm Kings, and Numeria specifically have long-standing issues with trolls. In the realm of Irrisen, trolls are often part of the general population, and ice trolls are employed as guards in the city of Whitethrone.

The largest tribe of trolls in Golarion lives in southern Vudra. They are known as the Mistshaper trolls and are ruled by a massive female called Xelnud. She considers herself to be Urxehl's agent and seeks to restore Golarion to the "perfect" condition of the Age of Darkness.

Troll variants

The most commonly encountered trolls in the Inner Sea region are forest trolls, which are often simply called trolls. Forest trolls stand from 12 to 16 feet tall when not hunched over. Forest trolls' skin is usually green, with females having darker shades than males.

Other variations include the alchemically enhanced rock troll, which comes to a halt in sunlight (and may even turn to stone given sufficient exposure), and the thin, plant-like moss troll. There are also blue-skinned ice trolls serving Baba Yaga in Irrisen.

Unlike most trolls, mountain trolls are associated with the First World and not inherently evil. They are huge and more powerful variants that tend to live in cold mountainous regions.

Others variants include the smaller sewer troll, flood troll, and chimney troll; gigantic nine-headed Jotund trolls; aquatic scrags; ettin-like two-headed trolls; and ogre-troll hybrids known as troggles.

References

Paizo published a major section about trolls in Monster Codex.

For additional as-yet unincorporated sources about this subject, see the Meta page.