5e24:Sphinx: Difference between revisions
(Created page with "<div class=grid-container-std> <div class="bctop">{{backto|{{5e24|Celestial}}}}</div> <div class="notice">{{edition|Sphinx}}</div> <div class="badge">{{5e24varied|canon=true|sources=SRD 5.2, MM5e24}}</div> <div class="gi-main"> <div style="display:block; float:right; max-width:200px;"> thumb|180px|Sphinx<br />by Ipipipourax<br />via MediaWiki Commons<br />Licensed: [[CC-BY-SA ]] {{tocright}} </div> {{5e24 Creature Short|Sphinx|Sphinx|Overvi...") |
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==Lore== | ==Lore== | ||
'''Unofficial Description:''' Sphinxes are {{5e24lc|Celestial}} beings that usually appear as winged {{5e24|Great Cat}}s often with anthropoid heads. They are tasked with protecting important, sacred, or dangerous areas and/or objects. | '''Unofficial Description:''' Sphinxes are {{5e24lc|Celestial}} beings that usually appear as winged {{5e24|Great Cat}}s often with anthropoid heads. They are tasked with protecting important, sacred, or dangerous areas and/or objects. | ||
===Lair=== | |||
Some sphinx have lairs.<br /> | |||
{{5e24:Sphinx/Lair}} | |||
===Other Lore=== | ===Other Lore=== | ||
Latest revision as of 16:26, 2 July 2025

by Ipipipourax
via MediaWiki Commons
Licensed: CC-BY-SA
Lore
Unofficial Description: Sphinxes are celestial beings that usually appear as winged Great Cats often with anthropoid heads. They are tasked with protecting important, sacred, or dangerous areas and/or objects.
Lair
Some sphinx have lairs.
[3] Sphinxes in places of great knowledge or prophetic magic.
The region around a sphinx lair has the following effects:
Distant Sight. Casts Clairvoyance.
Infusion of Knowledge. Boosts ability checks for the Study action.
If the sphinx dies or moves its lair elsewhere, these effects end immediately.
Other Lore
A typical sphinx is about 10 feet long and weighs about 800 pounds.
Most sphinxes fight on the ground, using their wings to help them pounce much as lions do. If outnumbered by earthbound creatures, a sphinx takes wing and attacks on the fly.
In Greek tradition, the sphinx has the head of a woman, the haunches of a lion, and the wings of a bird. She is mythicised as treacherous and merciless. Those who cannot answer her riddle suffer a fate typical in such mythological stories, as they are killed and eaten by this ravenous monster.[6] This deadly version of a sphinx appears in the myth and drama of Oedipus.[7]
Unlike the Greek sphinx, which was a woman, the Egyptian sphinx is typically shown as a man (an androsphinx). In addition, the Egyptian sphinx was viewed as benevolent, but having a ferocious strength similar to the malevolent Greek version. Both were thought of as guardians, and often flank the entrances to temples.[8]
In European decorative art, the sphinx enjoyed a major revival during the Renaissance. Later, the sphinx image, initially very similar to the original Ancient Egyptian concept, was exported into many other cultures, albeit there often interpreted quite differently due to translations of descriptions of the originals and through evolution of the concept in relation to other cultural traditions.
Sphinx depictions are generally associated with architectural structures such as royal tombs or religious temples.
Found in Adventures
No results
List of Sphinxes
| Creature | Size | Type | Tags | Alignment | HP | CR | Habitat | Marked | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sphinx Overview | Overview | Celestial, Sphinx | Desert, Planar | Canon, Pointer | SRD 5.2, MM5e24 | ||||
| Sphinx of Lore | Large | Celestial | Sphinx | Lawful Neutral | 170 | 11 | Desert, Planar | Canon | SRD 5.2 |
| Sphinx of Valor | Large | Celestial | Sphinx | Lawful Neutral | 199 | 17 | Desert, Planar | Canon | SRD 5.2 |
| Sphinx of Wonder | Tiny | Celestial | Sphinx | Lawful Good | 24 | 1 | Desert, Planar | Canon | SRD 5.2 |
Sources and Notes
- Wizards RPG Team. SRD 5.2 (5e 2024) (2025-04-22). Wizards of the Coast. p. 324-325. Licensed: CC-BY. ↑
- Wizards RPG Team. Monster Manual (5e24) (5e 2024) (2025-02-18). Wizards of the Coast. ISBN 9780786969548. p. 291-294. ↑
- SRD 5.2 p.294 {paraphrased) ↑
- Wizards RPG Team. SRD v3.5 (3.5e) (2003). Wizards of the Coast. Licensed: OGL. ↑
- Wikipedia - Sphinx (exerpt, accessed 2020-04-03) ↑
- . Dr. J's Lecture on Oedipus and the Sphinx Accessed: 15 May 2014. People.hsc.edu. ↑
- Kallich, Martin. "Oepidus and the Sphinx." Oepidus: Myth and Drama. N.p.: Western, 1968. N. pag. Print. ↑
- Stewart, Desmond. Pyramids and the Sphinx. [S.l.]: Newsweek, U.S., 72. Print. ↑
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This work includes material from the System Reference Document 5.2 (“SRD 5.2”) by Wizards of the Coast LLC, available at https://www.dndbeyond.com/srd. The SRD 5.2 is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, available at https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/legalcode].
