Garuda
Garuda — The Encounter
Sun-Winged King of Birds, Devourer of Serpents · a boss your table can run with almost no prep. SRD 5.1-compatible.
Who Is Garuda
Hatched from the world-egg before the first temple rose, Garuda is the king of all winged things, the steed upon whom the preserver of worlds is borne across the heavens. Old hymns name him the devourer of serpents, for his mother was kept in bondage by the serpent-folk, and he tore the sky apart to win her freedom and the elixir that would buy it. Where his shadow falls, snakes flee into the deep earth, and poisons lose their bite. The faithful carved his likeness above doorways so that no venom might cross the threshold, and travelers in the high passes swear that a sudden gale of gold-edged wings is his passing. He is no mindless beast but a sworn lord, honoring oaths and despising oath-breakers, and those who hunt the naga-kin may find in him an ally fierce beyond reckoning — so long as their cause is just and their word is kept.
Run Garuda in Sixty Seconds
- Stay airborne. Garuda's 90-foot fly speed and Skyward Beat let it strike and leave; never let melee pin it. If they cluster under it, that's when Solar Cry comes down.
- Open with the dive. Move 30+ feet straight at the back-line caster, hit with a talon for the bonus damage and a prone, then grapple and carry them off to split the party.
- Kill-priority: serpents and casters. Bane of Serpents makes it the table's best snake-slayer — point it at naga-kin, snake summons, and poison-users first; otherwise it hunts healers.
- When bloodied, snatch a hostage with a double-talon grapple and fly to a high perch, forcing the party to chase or rescue while you recover with Wind of Wings.
- Three ways to run it: a noble flying boss guarding a temple (solo, native T2); the serpent-king's nemesis allied to the party against a naga cult; or an aerial executioner paired with a bigger ground threat.
Garuda
Large celestial, lawful good
CR 6 · 2,300 XP · GUIDELINEBane of Serpents. Signature. Garuda's attacks score a critical hit on a roll of 19 or 20 against any creature of the dragon, beast, or monstrosity type with a serpentine form (snakes, naga-kin, wyrms). The first time each turn it hits such a creature, it deals an extra 7 (2d6) radiant damage.
Sky-Lord's Dive. If Garuda moves at least 30 feet straight toward a target before a talon attack on its turn, that attack deals an extra 9 (2d8) damage on a hit, and the target must succeed on a DC 14 Strength save or be knocked prone.
Actions
Multiattack. Garuda makes one Beak attack and two Talon attacks.
Beak. Melee Weapon Attack: +7 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 13 (2d8+4) piercing damage.
Talon. Melee Weapon Attack: +7 to hit, reach 10 ft., one target. Hit: 11 (2d6+4) slashing damage. If both Talon attacks hit the same Medium or smaller target, it is grappled (escape DC 14) and Garuda can fly off carrying it.
Solar Cry (Recharge 5-6). Garuda looses a blazing screech in a 30-foot cone. Each creature there makes a DC 14 Constitution save, taking 24 (7d6) radiant damage on a failure, or half on a success. Serpentine creatures have disadvantage on this save.
Bonus Actions & Reactions
Wind of Wings (Reaction). When a creature Garuda can see makes a ranged attack against it, Garuda beats its wings; the attack is made with disadvantage as a sudden gale buffets the attacker.
Legendary Actions (3/Round)
Talon Strike. Garuda makes one Talon attack.
Skyward Beat (Costs 1 Action). Garuda flies up to half its fly speed without provoking opportunity attacks.
Radiant Glare (Costs 2 Actions). Garuda fixes one creature within 30 feet with its burning gaze. The target makes a DC 14 Constitution save, taking 9 (2d8) radiant damage and being blinded until the end of its next turn on a failure.
Cast at the apex of a killing dive — eagle head crested and crowned, twin wings flung wide, taloned hands open to seize, feathered legs coiled over a rocky perch.
Garuda, Bound
Companion · acts on your initiative
Bound · GUIDELINESerpent-Sense (signature). The fledgling has advantage on Wisdom (Perception) checks to detect serpentine or hidden creatures, and cannot be surprised by them.
Actions
Rending Talons. Melee Weapon Attack: +5 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 9 (2d6+2) slashing damage, plus 4 (1d8) radiant against serpentine foes.
Reactions
Updraft Snatch. When an ally within 5 feet drops to 0 hit points, the fledgling may fly up to 20 feet carrying them clear of melee, without provoking opportunity attacks.
A half-grown garuda still bright with the gold of the elixir it guards, eager to prove its talons against the old serpent enemies.
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 by diving on the squishiest caster, knock them prone, then carry them off with a double-talon grapple to split the party. Save Solar Cry for the moment two or more clump up. If a snake, naga, or venom-themed enemy is on the field, send Garuda straight at it — Bane of Serpents lets it shred that target fastest.
This is its home tier and a true flying boss. Stay airborne, Sky-Lord's Dive into the back line for prone+bonus damage, then spend legendary actions on Skyward Beat to retreat out of reach. Recharge Solar Cry on clustered targets; kill-priority is healers and snake-kin. When bloodied, grab a hostage and fly to a perch the melee can't reach.
Run it as an aerial duelist that never lands. Open with a diving prone, then full Multiattack on the marked target; reserve Solar Cry and Radiant Glare for blinding the party's biggest hitter. Kill-priority stays casters and serpentine summons. Pair it with a venomous serpent-cult to lean into the serpent-slayer fantasy, or fly it solo as the temple's living guardian.
Put Garuda 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 Garuda?
Native CR 6 (2,300 XP) at Tier 2, built for levels 5-10. Because it has legendary actions and a strong reaction, it works as a solo centerpiece. Scale to CR 2 (levels 1-4) or roughly CR 11 (levels 11-15) using the tier table — traits stay the same, only the numbers move.
Can Garuda be a companion or ally?
Yes. As the sworn devourer of serpents, Garuda is a natural ally to any party hunting naga-kin or venom cults. Use the Amrita-Chick (Fledged) companion block for a player-scale fledgling, or run the full Garuda as a temporary aerial ally bound by an oath the heroes must honor.
Why does Garuda hit serpents so hard?
Bane of Serpents reflects the oldest myth: Garuda's lifelong war on the serpent-folk who enslaved his mother. Against snakes, naga-kin, and serpentine wyrms he crits on 19-20 and adds radiant damage, making him the perfect counter-piece to a serpent-themed villain or encounter.
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: Garuda draws from ancient mythological traditions, bringing legendary power to your tabletop.
Encounter Design: Use Garuda 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 Garuda 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 Garuda miniature available in?
Garuda is available in 32mm (tabletop standard) and 75mm (display/collector scale). Both scale files are included with presupported and unsupported STL options.
Is the Garuda 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 Garuda in my D&D or tabletop RPG campaign?
Absolutely. Garuda 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 Garuda 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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