Watatsumi
Watatsumi — The Encounter
Whiskered tide-dragon, the great god who rules the sea · a boss your table can run with almost no prep. SRD 5.1-compatible.
Who Is Watatsumi
Watatsumi is the great kami of the deep, the dragon-god whose palace stands at the bottom of the sea where the tides are born. Sailors of the old coast knew that no wave rises and no current turns without its leave; they cast rice and sake upon the water before any crossing, for the sea-lord forgives slowly and drowns swiftly. It is said he keeps the two jewels that command the ebb and flow, and that mortals who descend to his coral halls return aged or not at all, time itself running strange in his domain. He is no devil and no demon but a sovereign of nature, just by his own ancient law: honor the offering and the voyage is calm; spill blood in his waters or break an oath sworn on the tide, and the same waters will rise as a wall of cold fury. Fishermen still bow toward the horizon at dusk, naming him the Old Lord Under, who was here before the first prow touched the surf.
Run Watatsumi in Sixty Seconds
- Stage it on water. Watatsumi's whole kit assumes a deck, bank, or flooded ruin. Tide-Lord's Command makes the ground difficult terrain and lets it drag enemies into deep water every round, so fight near water or the boss loses half its teeth.
- Open with Drowning Surge. Lead the encounter with the 60-ft. cone for 8d8 cold, knockdown, and grapple-by-current. It recharges on 5-6, so re-aim it at the densest cluster the moment it comes back.
- Spend legendary actions to control, not just hit. Surge of the Deep drags the party with the current and halves speeds; Tail Sweep keeps a flank prone. Detect only when you genuinely fear a hidden caster — otherwise pump the crowd control.
- When bloodied, dive and stall. Use Legendary Resistance on the spell that would lock it down, retreat into deep water where it swims 80 ft., and pick off whoever can't follow. Kill-priority targets are flyers and water-breathers who escape the current.
- Three ways to run it: (1) lone leviathan boss in a storm-lair; (2) tutorial sea-god that menaces a coastal town and is appeased, not killed; (3) angered guardian — the party broke an oath sworn on the tide and must survive the rising sea.
Watatsumi
Huge dragon, lawful neutral
CR 11 · 7,200 XP · GUIDELINEAmphibious. Watatsumi can breathe air and water equally well.
Tide-Lord's Command. Signature. Watatsumi rules every drop of water it can see. As long as it is not incapacitated, the ground within 30 ft. of it is difficult terrain for its enemies as surging water answers its will, and the dragon ignores difficult terrain caused by water or ice. When a creature within 30 ft. ends its turn in or under water, Watatsumi can drag the current: that creature is pulled up to 15 ft. toward the dragon (no save).
Legendary Resistance (2/Day). If Watatsumi fails a saving throw, it can choose to succeed instead.
Actions
Multiattack. Watatsumi makes one Bite attack and two Claw attacks. It can replace the Bite with a use of Drowning Surge if available.
Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +9 to hit, reach 10 ft., one target. Hit: 18 (2d12 + 6) piercing damage plus 7 (2d6) cold damage.
Claw. Melee Weapon Attack: +9 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 13 (2d8 + 4) slashing damage.
Drowning Surge (Recharge 5-6). Watatsumi exhales a roaring tide in a 60-foot cone. Each creature in that area must make a DC 17 Dexterity saving throw, taking 36 (8d8) cold damage and being knocked prone and pushed 15 ft. away on a failure, or half as much damage and not moved on a success. A creature that fails by 5 or more is also grappled by the current (escape DC 17) and restrained until it escapes.
Bonus Actions & Reactions
Coil and Smother (Reaction). When a creature Watatsumi can see moves within 10 ft. of it or hits it with a melee attack, Watatsumi sweeps its serpentine body. The creature must succeed on a DC 17 Strength saving throw or take 10 (3d6) bludgeoning damage and be pushed 10 ft. and knocked prone.
Legendary Actions (3/Round)
Detect. Watatsumi makes a Wisdom (Perception) check.
Tail Sweep. Watatsumi makes one Claw attack, or whips its tail at a creature within 15 ft. (DC 17 Dexterity save or 13 (2d8 + 4) bludgeoning damage and pushed 10 ft.).
Surge of the Deep (Costs 2 Actions). Watatsumi moves up to its swim speed without provoking opportunity attacks and may drag every creature within 15 ft. of its path 10 ft. with the current (no save). Each such creature must then succeed on a DC 17 Constitution saving throw or have its speed halved until the end of its next turn.
A river of pale scale and antlered fury erupts from a churning bank of storm-cloud, its whiskered head thrown back in a soundless roar. Every coil is carved muscle; the sea itself seems to have learned to hate.
Watatsumi, Bound
Companion · acts on your initiative
Bound · GUIDELINEJewel of the Ebbing Tide (signature). Once per turn as a bonus action, Watatsumi can spend the jewel's light to grant an ally within 30 ft. resistance to one damage type until the start of its next turn, or to let an ally swim up to 30 ft. through any water as a reaction.
Actions
Whisker Lash. Melee Weapon Attack: +6 to hit, reach 10 ft., one target. Hit: 14 (3d6 + 4) bludgeoning damage and the target is pushed 5 ft.
Reactions
Answering Current. When an ally within 30 ft. is knocked prone or pushed, Watatsumi can use its reaction to halve that movement and let the ally stand without spending movement.
A lesser tide-serpent that carries one of the great lord's jewels in its jaws, sent to aid those who have earned the sea's favor.
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 Drowning Surge to scatter the party off a dock or deck, then drag stragglers into the water with Tide-Lord's Command. Pair it with a small flagship threat or treat it as a river-spirit ambush; kill-priority is anyone standing in water, since Watatsumi yanks them under turn after turn. With Coil and Smother punishing melee, fragile T1 PCs should fight from dry, high ground.
Lead with Surge of the Deep to herd casters into the water, then alpha-strike the back line with Bite plus claws. Use the reaction to deny anyone closing for melee. Kill-priority: heal-stacked frontliners can be ignored while you drown the squishies; if the party splits the cloud-base, the dragon dives and resurfaces under the lightest cluster.
Run it as a true solo boss in its sea-storm lair: open with Drowning Surge into the tightest cluster, spend legendary actions on Surge of the Deep to keep the party swimming and slowed, and Coil and Smother every melee attacker that steps in. When bloodied, dive — Tide-Lord's Command makes the whole arena difficult, drag the casters into deep water, and use Legendary Resistance on the save-or-suck spell that would end the fight. Kill-priority: whoever can fly or breathe water and stay out of the current.
Put Watatsumi 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 Watatsumi?
Watatsumi is built as a Tier 3 boss at CR 11 (7,200 XP) — AC 18, 207 HP, +9 to hit, save DC 17. Because it is solo-capable with two-plus legendary options and a punishing reaction, its sheet sits one band below the raw numbers you'd expect from its legendary kit, which lets it play up against a four-PC party of levels 11-15. Drop to the Tier 1 or Tier 2 line for lower-level parties.
Can Watatsumi be a companion or ally?
The great sea-god itself is a force of nature, not a party member — but it can send Tama, the Tide-Pearl Bound, a lesser tide-serpent carrying one of its jewels (AC 15, 124 HP). Tama grants damage resistance, water-walking-style swim bursts, and shields allies from being shoved, making it a strong support ally for a seafaring party that has earned the sea's favor.
How do I make the fight feel like a sea-god, not just another dragon?
Lean on the water. Stage it on a storm-lashed deck or flooded shrine, narrate the tide answering its mood, and use Tide-Lord's Command and Surge of the Deep to constantly reposition the party. The threat isn't the bite — it's drowning. Offer the players an out: an offering, an oath, or the two tide-jewels can end the encounter without a single death.
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: Watatsumi draws from ancient mythological traditions, bringing legendary power to your tabletop.
Encounter Design: Use Watatsumi 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 Watatsumi 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 Watatsumi miniature available in?
Watatsumi is available in 32mm (tabletop standard) and 75mm (display/collector scale). Both scale files are included with presupported and unsupported STL options.
Is the Watatsumi 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 Watatsumi in my D&D or tabletop RPG campaign?
Absolutely. Watatsumi 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.
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