Cherubim
Cherubim — The Encounter
Many-winged guardian of the threshold, eyes within its feathers · a boss your table can run with almost no prep. SRD 5.1-compatible.
Who Is Cherubim
Set thou this guardian at the gate, that none unworthy pass. The Cherubim is no fat-cheeked infant of later paint, but the older terror the scribes feared to draw plainly: a creature of many wings, every feather an eye, every eye awake. It keeps thresholds the way a sword keeps an edge. Tradition seats it nearest the throne of heaven, bearing the chariot of glory and barring the way to the tree of life with a turning blade of flame. It speaks little and forgives nothing trespassed. Burn before it and it will weigh you; falter, and the fire that warms the righteous will judge you instead. Those who have seen it and lived describe wheels within wheels, a sound of many waters, and the certainty that they were counted. It does not hate. That is the worst of it. It simply will not move, and the flame it carries was never meant for you.
Run Cherubim in Sixty Seconds
- It guards, it does not chase. The cherub plants itself between the party and what it protects. If they flee, let them flee; if they push past, it punishes the one who tries.
- Open with the light. Flare Wreathed in Holy Fire and Eyes Within the Wings on turn one so anyone ending their turn close has to save or lose reactions, then commit to Multiattack.
- Kill-priority is the line-crosser. It always swings at whoever is trying to slip past it to the thing it guards, not the loudest damage dealer.
- When bloodied, Guardian's Resolve may yank it back to its feet once per day if the protected target is still safe. Tell players the only way to drop it for good is to break what it protects first.
- Three ways to run it: as a sealed-gate puzzle (out-think the saves, don't out-damage it), as a brutal wall in front of a boss (Warding Flare every round), or as a tragic test (it judges, never hates, and stands down if proven worthy).
Cherubim
Large celestial, lawful neutral
CR 11 · 7,200 XP · GUIDELINEEyes Within the Wings. Rings of unblinking eyes stud the cherub's feathers. It has advantage on Wisdom (Perception) checks and on saving throws against being blinded, and it cannot be surprised. Any creature that ends its turn within 10 feet of the cherub and is illuminated by its light must succeed on a DC 16 Wisdom saving throw or be unable to take reactions until the start of its next turn.
Wreathed in Holy Fire. The cherub sheds bright light in a 20-foot radius and dim light for another 20 feet. A creature that touches it or hits it with a melee attack within 5 feet takes 7 (2d6) radiant damage.
Guardian's Resolve. If the cherub is reduced to 0 hit points while a creature, object, or place it has sworn to guard is unharmed, it instead drops to 1 hit point and regains 22 (3d10+6) hit points (once per day).
Actions
Multiattack. The cherub makes two attacks: one with its Flaming Sword and one with its Searing Wings.
Flaming Sword. Melee Weapon Attack: +9 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 18 (3d8+5) slashing damage plus 13 (3d8) radiant damage.
Searing Wings. Melee Weapon Attack: +9 to hit, reach 10 ft., one target. Hit: 16 (3d6+5) radiant damage, and the target must succeed on a DC 16 Strength saving throw or be pushed 10 feet away and knocked prone.
Radiant Pinions (Recharge 5-6). The cherub flares every wing at once. Each creature in a 30-foot cone must make a DC 16 Dexterity saving throw, taking 35 (10d6) radiant damage on a failed save, or half as much on a success. Fiends and undead have disadvantage on this save.
Bonus Actions & Reactions
Warding Flare (Reaction). When a creature the cherub can see attacks a target other than itself within 30 feet, the cherub interposes a wing of fire. It imposes disadvantage on the attack roll, and if the attack still hits, the cherub reduces the damage by 10 (3d6).
A whirling tower of overlapping wings and watching eyes, faces fused at its molten heart and a feathered wheel of holy fire burning beneath it. It does not rest, and it does not blink.
Cherubim, Bound
Companion · acts on your initiative
Bound · GUIDELINESentinel's Eye (signature). While within 30 feet of the cherub, neither it nor the cherub can be flanked, and both have advantage on Perception checks to detect hidden creatures.
Actions
Lash of Light. Melee Weapon Attack: +7 to hit, reach 10 ft., one target. Hit: 14 (2d8+5) radiant damage.
Reactions
Interpose. When an ally within 5 feet is hit by an attack, Cherubim takes half the damage instead.
A lesser ember broken from the greater wing, a single winged eye that drifts at the guardian's flank and never closes.
Guideline numbers — formula-tuned and read from the miniature's design, not yet table-proven. Tell us how it ran in the comments.
How It Fights — by Tier
Same creature, scaled threat. The traits never change; only the numbers move.
Open with Searing Wings to knock the front-liner prone, then hold the doorway it guards. Save Radiant Pinions for when 3+ heroes cluster in the cone. Kill-priority is anyone trying to slip past it; pair it with a captain it has sworn to protect.
Hover out of reach and pick off ranged threats with Searing Wings shove-and-prone. Use Warding Flare to shield the thing it guards every round. Recharge Radiant Pinions punishes melee clusters; it is the wall, so give it a boss to wall off.
Open by flaring its light and forcing the Eyes-Within saves to strip reactions, then Multiattack the heaviest hitter. Lead with Radiant Pinions on any clump, especially fiends and undead. Kill-priority is whoever charges the protected target; this is an add-on guardian, so pair it with a flagship it dies to defend.
Put Cherubim on the table
Download the presupported STL and run the fight tonight — the model, and the encounter that comes with it.
Get the STL on MyMiniFactory →Clay Cyanide Companion Rules v1
How a bound creature acts
- A companion acts on its owner's initiative, immediately after the owner.
- It uses the Companion block above — roughly ×0.6 HP and damage, no recharge abilities, and at most one reaction trait.
- It moves freely; it takes its Action only while its owner is conscious.
- At 0 HP a companion is broken, not dead — restored on a long rest unless your table rules otherwise.
Original Clay Cyanide material © Clay Cyanide LLC — explicitly not the non-SRD official sidekick rules.
Questions, Asked at the Table
What CR is Cherubim?
Its home tier is CR 11 (7,200 XP), built for an 11th-15th level party as a celestial guardian. Scaled stat lines are provided for tiers 1 (CR 2-ish) and 2 (CR 6-ish) so it can warn a low-level gate or wall off a mid-level dungeon without changing a single trait.
Can Cherubim be a companion or ally?
Yes, as a sworn protector rather than a follower. It will guard a person, relic, or place a worthy party champions, using Warding Flare and Interpose to shield them, but it answers to its oath, not to commands. For a player-side option use the smaller Watcher-Flame companion sheet.
Why does it have eyes in its wings instead of a baby's face?
Because that is the older tradition. The plump winged infant is a Renaissance softening; the scriptural cherub is a many-winged, many-eyed guardian of holy thresholds, and the sculpt restores that original majesty and menace.
Tell Us How It Ran
This work includes material taken from the System Reference Document 5.1 ("SRD 5.1") by Wizards of the Coast LLC and available at dnd.wizards.com/resources/systems-reference-document. The SRD 5.1 is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License available at creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/legalcode.
Clay Cyanide Miniatures is not affiliated with, endorsed, sponsored, or specifically approved by Wizards of the Coast LLC. This content is compatible with the fifth edition of the world's most popular fantasy roleplaying game. Companion rules, lore, names, and original mechanics © Clay Cyanide LLC.
The Legend
In Your Campaign
Source Mythology: Cherubim draws from ancient mythological traditions, bringing legendary power to your tabletop.
Encounter Design: Use Cherubim as a divine patron, a mythic boss encounter, or the centerpiece of a mythology-themed campaign arc. The model's dynamic pose creates immediate dramatic tension at the table.
Campaign Hooks: An ancient temple awakens. A prophecy names Cherubim as either savior or destroyer. A cult seeks to summon or bind this mythological power for mortal purposes.
Technical Specifications
32mm, 75mm
STL, Pre-supported STL
Standard or ABS-like resin, 0.05mm layer height
Yes — ready to print, optimized supports included
From the Same Collection
Frequently Asked Questions
What scale is the Cherubim miniature available in?
Cherubim is available in 32mm (tabletop standard) and 75mm (display/collector scale). Both scale files are included with presupported and unsupported STL options.
Is the Cherubim STL file presupported?
Yes. Every Clay Cyanide miniature includes presupported STL files optimized for resin printing at 0.05mm layer height, plus unsupported files for custom support placement.
Can I use Cherubim in my D&D or tabletop RPG campaign?
Absolutely. Cherubim is designed for tabletop gaming at 32mm scale, fitting standard grid-based combat systems. The dynamic pose and detailed sculpt create memorable encounters and character moments.
Played Cherubim at your table? Log in with your Obsidian Tavern account to leave a balance note, a war story, or a file issue — the sharpest reports get the block revised.
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