Chuul 5e: Pincers, Paralysis and the 2024 Chuul

A chuul is a CR 4 Large Aberration with AC 16, 93 hit points (76 in 2024), two pincer attacks with 10-foot reach that grapple, and tentacles that paralyze whatever it's holding. That combo is the whole monster: grab, paralyze, then crush a target that can't move and takes automatic critical hits. It's amphibious, immune to poison, and senses magic within 120 feet, so it finds the party's wizard first. The 2024 version has fewer hit points and weaker pincers but uses its tentacles every turn.

Table of Contents

• •Chuul Stat Block (2014)
• •The Chuul in the 2024 Rules
• •How Chuuls Fight
• •Running a Chuul Encounter
• •How Players Beat a Chuul
• •Chuul Encounter Ideas
• •Frequently Asked Questions

Chuul Stat Block (2014)

Each Pincer is +6, 10-foot reach, 11 (2d6 + 4) bludgeoning, and grapples a Large or smaller target (escape DC 14) as long as the chuul isn't already holding two other creatures. Its Multiattack is two pincers, plus one use of its Tentacles if it's grappling someone: a DC 13 Constitution save or the target is poisoned for 1 minute and paralyzed for as long as the poison lasts, repeating the save at the end of each of its turns. Note the order: the 2014 tentacles can only be used on someone already grappled, so the pincers have to land first.

The Chuul in the 2024 Rules

AC 16, CR 4, 1,100 XP, Sense Magic and the poison immunities are unchanged. The 2024 version is easier to kill (17 fewer HP) and deals 2 less per pincer, but it reads more cleanly: two pincers, then tentacles on anyone held. One 2024 wrinkle: under the SRD 5.2.1 grappling rules, a pincer that is holding someone can't attack a different creature until it lets go, so a chuul holding two victims attacks only them.

How Chuuls Fight

Grab from 10 feet. The pincers reach 10 feet, so the chuul grabs the character standing behind the fighter. Against AC 16, a +6 hits on a 10 or higher, 55% of the time. Two pincers per turn mean a grapple most turns.

Then paralyze. The tentacles need no attack roll. A character with Constitution +2 and no save proficiency fails DC 13 on a 10 or lower: a coin flip every turn they're held. A paralyzed character is incapacitated and can't spend an action to escape the grapple.

Then crush. Attacks against a paralyzed creature have advantage, and any hit from within 5 feet is a critical hit. A chuul that grabbed from 10 feet away steps up next to its paralyzed victim first. Two pincers with advantage hit about 80% of the time against AC 16:

That's enough to drop a level 4 or 5 spellcaster in one turn.

Sense Magic picks the target. It senses magic within 120 feet as if using Detect Magic, but the trait isn't itself magical, so dispelling and antimagic don't stop it. Run it as a hunter of magic: it goes for the caster concentrating on a spell or the character with the glowing sword.

Use water. Amphibious, with 30 feet of swimming. A chuul that drags a paralyzed victim under a lake's surface is a problem the party has to solve this round.

Running a Chuul Encounter

One chuul (1,100 XP) is Moderate for four level 4 characters under the 2024 budget: just over Low (1,000), well under Moderate (1,500). Two chuuls (2,200 XP) are above High (2,000) for that party and Moderate for four level 5 characters (Low 2,000, Moderate 3,000). Three (3,300 XP) are High for level 5 (High tops out at 4,400).

The 2014 guidelines in our encounter calculator rate one chuul as Medium for four level 4 characters.

Pair a chuul with a waterway, a flooded ruin or a bigger aquatic boss like an aboleth as a DM's choice. One chuul plus underwater terrain feels harder than the XP says.

How Players Beat a Chuul

• •Kill it or stay out of 10 feet. It has no ranged attack and only 30 feet of speed on land. Ranged characters 40 feet away are safe.
• •Free the grappled ally fast. A grappled creature escapes with Strength (Athletics) or Dexterity (Acrobatics) against DC 14. In both editions the grapple also ends if the target ends up beyond the chuul's reach: a Thunderwave that pushes the chuul 10 feet away from an adjacent victim does it.
• •End the poison. The paralysis lasts only while the target is poisoned, so ending the Poisoned condition with Lesser Restoration ends both. Protection from Poison and a dwarf's Dwarven Resilience give advantage on the saves.
• •Protection from Evil and Good. Chuuls are Aberrations, so a protected creature imposes disadvantage on their attacks.
• •Target Intelligence or Charisma. Both saves are −3. Hold Person won't work (it's not a Humanoid), but Hold Monster does.

Chuul Encounter Ideas

The treasury pool. A drowned shrine's offering pool holds centuries of coins and one magic ring. A chuul sleeps under the coins. The ring's magic draws it out the moment a character with a magic item comes within 120 feet.

The wizard's moat. A dead wizard's tower has a moat with a chuul in it, released when the drawbridge was raised. It ignores the barbarian and goes straight for the arcanist reading the door's wards.

The trade. A lizardfolk village has lost three hunters to a chuul in the reeds. They'll guide the party through the swamp if the party kills it.

Frequently Asked Questions

What CR is a chuul in 5e?

CR 4, worth 1,100 XP, in both the 2014 and 2024 rules.

How does the chuul's paralysis work?

The tentacles affect one creature the chuul is grappling. It makes a DC 13 Constitution save or is poisoned, and while poisoned it is paralyzed. It repeats the save at the end of each of its turns. Either way it lasts 1 minute at most: the 2014 poison has a 1-minute duration, and in 2024 the save succeeds automatically after 1 minute.

How many creatures can a chuul grapple?

Two. The 2014 pincer can't grapple if the chuul already has two other creatures grappled. The 2024 pincer grapples "from one of two pincers."

Is a chuul immune to poison?

Yes. It is immune to poison damage and the poisoned condition in both editions.

What does Sense Magic do?

The chuul senses magic within 120 feet. The trait works like the Detect Magic spell, but it isn't magical itself.

Stat blocks: System Reference Document 5.1 (2014) and 5.2.1 (2024), Wizards of the Coast, CC-BY-4.0. Tactics, encounter math and ideas are Loreify's own.