Kaiju

Kaiju

(Creature)

Kaiju

Type

Magical beast
(kaiju)

CR

Varies

Environment

Varies

Alignment

LG	NG	CG
LN	N	CN
LE	NE	CE

Images of kaiju

Source: Bestiary 4, pg(s). 166–167 (1E)
Ready? Fight!, pg(s). 67–71 (2E)

Ⅰ

Kaiju are semi-intelligent magical beasts of enormous size and among the largest creatures on Golarion. They alternate between deep hibernation and awakening, the latter of which can be apocalyptic for entire civilisations, especially when the kaiju's attack is intentional.

Appearance

Each kaiju is different, but all are massive, with bipedal kaiju standing between 100 and 200 feet in height and quadrupeds standing half as tall. Some are winged and capable of flight, others are aquatic and resemble colossal versions of sea creatures, and still others walk the earth or burrow beneath it.

Abilities

While each kaiju has unique abilities, many share common traits, such as destructive breath. While capable of understanding language, they cannot speak.

Ecology

The origins of kaiju are varied and often mysterious. Some are created by powerful beings, others incubate in blasted realms, and yet others are speculated to have been born alongside Golarion itself. Many are worshipped as deities or feared as bringers of destruction.

Kaiju share a common tendency to lair in extreme climates, far from population centres. They sometimes live near one another, and can battle for territory for up to days at once. Such fights usually end when the loser surrenders, and rarely result in death; instead, defeated kaiju retreat to lick their wounds.

Kaiju feed on energy, each in a different way and on a different form of energy, though they can hibernate indefinitely when deprived of it and do not starve. Individual smaller creatures do not disturb it, but settlements and nations unaware of slumbering kaiju sometimes expand into their territory and rouse them with their activity. Powerful weather events, magical rituals, and wars can awaken a hibernating kaiju and inspire a destructive rampage that can stretch across thousands of miles until the irritation's source is silenced.

Some people, called kaiju callers, understand that a kaiju's motivation and weakness are often the same, and can exploit this fact to predict a kaiju's awakening, direct its movement, or even control it. In the Valash Raj, the Royal Kaiju Callers are an official force of kaiju callers based in Rakarit who serve the ruling Valash Raja and are composed of some of the most skilled callers on Golarion.

On Golarion

Legends about Tian Xia suggest that kaiju once roamed the entire continent until they were pacified by dragons impersonating nagaji during the Age of Dragons.

Most kaiju on Golarion roam the Valashmai Jungle and Valash Raj of Tian Xia, with some crossing into Xa Hoi. The kaiju Bezravnis, Yorak, and Zimibra roam the continent's deserts of Shanguang.

The bear-like kaiju Cimurlian roams the arctic Crown of the World.

Many of the barrier reefs of Minata were formed from the remains of sea dragons killed by the kaiju Baku, the Moon Eater, after he was awakened by a conflict between the dragons Lihulan and Mugayan.

Vannarak, a city in Nagajor, grew around and within the remains of a beached kaiju. The free city of Kutaban near the border of Nagajor and the Valashmai Jungle is built within the rib cage and spine of a long-deceased kaiju.

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After the first round of the 7221 IC Ruby Phoenix Tournament, Mogaru was lured to Goka and assaulted the city. Mogaru's awakening, which was never publicly explained, awakened many other kaiju. Despite widespread destruction, the city recovered from the attack within weeks, though it slowed progress on Lady Nai Yan Fei's Surepath public transit project.

Notable kaiju

See also: Category:Kaiju/Inhabitants

In religion

Many kaiju are worshipped as deities or deific proxies by people who live in regions where they are active, particularly in Shanguang and the Valash Raj.

References

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