Ettin

Ettin

(Creature)

2E1E

Common

CE

Large

Giant

Humanoid

Level

6

Alignment

LG	NG	CG
LN	N	CN
LE	NE	CE

Images of ettins

Source: Bestiary, pg(s). 156

Type

Humanoid
(giant)

CR

6

Environment

Cold hills

Alignment

LG	NG	CG
LN	N	CN
LE	NE	CE

Images of ettins

Source: Bestiary, pg(s). 130

See also: Atamahuta and Two-headed troll

Ettins, also known as two-headed giants, are dim-witted but vicious giant-kin whose two heads make them exceptionally perceptive.

Appearance

Ettins are similar in appearance to hill and stone giants with tusked faces like orcs. Their skin is pinkish-brown, stained gray with filth and grime due to their terrible hygiene. Ettins stand around thirteen feet tall and weigh about 5,200 pounds. They have a life span of about 75 years.

Habitat and society

Ettins favor cold, hilly regions. They make their homes in caves or hollows, often surrounded by pits and other obstacles. They prefer solitude, usually coming together only to breed, after which the two ettins go their separate ways. Ettins reach adult size in only one year, at which time their mother drives them out of the lair.

Despite their brutish tendencies and lack of intelligence, ettins are canny fighters who prefer to ambush their prey. Each head controls one side of their body, allowing them to fight effectively with two weapons at once without any special training. They prefer flails in combat.

Powerful ettins may gather a gang of orc or goblin followers, or even other ettins, but due to the two-headed giants' individualist nature, such arrangements tend to fall apart fairly quickly. Ettins often keep dire bears as pets. They sometimes ally with trolls to protect their hunting grounds. They have also been known to ally with flocks of harpies who find the brutish ettins too stupid to enjoy torturing and killing.

Ettins speak a pidgin of the Giant, Goblin, and Orc languages. Native speakers of any of these languages can understand an ettin's speech with some effort.

Religion

Ettins are known to worship Kostchtchie, the demon lord of giants, frost, and revenge. Although most ettins are evil and short-sighted, the uncharacteristically introspective and morally neutral faith of the Children of Balance has found considerable traction among the two-headed giants. The faith, worshiping the dualistic gods Pharasma, Gozreh, and Nethys, appeals to the ettins' divided sense of self, promising harmony between their twin personalities.

On Golarion

Ettins can be found throughout Golarion, with populations inhabiting such far-flung regions as the Mana Wastes Taldor the Hold of Belkzen the River Kingdoms Kaoling and the Lands of the Linnorm Kings.

Ettins are especially common in Varisia. They were among the giants enslaved by the runelords of ancient Thassilon, and were favored slaves of the rulers of Edasseril. Some ettins have gathered under the banner of Lord Mokmurian, a powerful stone giant warlord of the Storval Plateau. There are also significant populations of ettins present in Kaoling, the hobgoblin nation in distant Tian Xia.

Notable Ettins

See also: Category:Ettin/Inhabitants

Notable ettins include:

• Nghiem, who plans on building a kingdom from his base in the Ruins of Maiaji using an army of his own children as the cornerstone of his future dynasty.
• Romrix, head of polytheistic faith known as the Children of Balance.
• Zalla-Kyzah, an aspiring ettin warlord who seeks to raise an army in the Conquered Lands of the Hold of Belkzen.

References

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