Glabrezu 5e: Stats, Pincers and Spell Combos

A glabrezu is a CR 9 Large demon (5,000 XP) with AC 17, 157 hit points, two pincers that grab Medium or smaller creatures (escape DC 15), and the sharpest spell list of any SRD demon its size. At will it casts Darkness and Dispel Magic, and once a day Power Word Stun, which stuns any creature with 150 hit points or fewer with no saving throw to resist it. Its truesight sees through its own Darkness, so it fights inside the sphere while the party can't see. The 2024 glabrezu has 189 HP and swaps its two fists for Pummel, a DC 17 Dexterity save against a creature it's already holding.

Table of Contents

• •Glabrezu Stat Block (2014)
• •The 2024 Glabrezu
• •How the Glabrezu Fights
• •Running a Glabrezu Encounter
• •How Players Beat a Glabrezu
• •Glabrezu Encounter Ideas
• •Frequently Asked Questions

Glabrezu Stat Block (2014)

The SRD 5.1 glabrezu.

Each turn the 2014 glabrezu picks one of two Multiattacks:

• •Four attacks: two pincers (+9, reach 10 ft., 16 bludgeoning, grapple) and two fists (+9, 7 bludgeoning). That's 46 damage if all four land, about 28 against AC 18.
• •Two pincers and a spell. It gives up the fists, about 8 expected damage, to cast Darkness, Dispel Magic, Confusion, Fly or Power Word Stun in the same turn.

The second option is almost always better. Each pincer can hold one creature, so a glabrezu can grab two characters at once and keep casting.

It casts with Intelligence 19 and a spell save DC of 16. Like other demons it resists cold, fire and lightning (and, in 2014, bludgeoning, piercing and slashing from nonmagical attacks), is immune to poison, has Magic Resistance and sees 120 feet with truesight.

The 2024 Glabrezu

Pummel is a save, not an attack. The fists in 2014 were two weak attack rolls. Pummel is one saving throw that deals 15 damage, or 7 on a success, against a creature already caught in a pincer. A wizard with a +2 Dexterity save fails DC 17 70% of the time.

Stun turns Pummel into an auto-fail. A Stunned creature automatically fails Dexterity saves. A 2024 glabrezu that has stunned and grabbed the same character deals 15 Pummel damage every turn with no roll, plus pincers with advantage.

How the Glabrezu Fights

Make the room dark. On round one, cast Darkness as the spell in its Multiattack and stand in the middle of the 15-foot sphere. Truesight lets the glabrezu see normally inside magical darkness. Characters without truesight (or a warlock's Devil's Sight, or blindsight) can't see it. That gives the glabrezu advantage on its pincers and gives anyone attacking it disadvantage. Nonmagical light doesn't help, and Darkness dispels any light spell of 2nd level or lower that overlaps it.

Grab, then stun. A pincer hit grapples a Medium or smaller creature. A grappled creature's speed is 0, so it's stuck in the dark with the demon. Power Word Stun needs no attack roll and allows no initial save. Most level 9 characters have well under 150 HP, so it just works. The stunned target then makes a DC 16 Constitution save at the end of each of its turns.

A stunned wizard stays stunned for about three turns on average, and every pincer against them has advantage.

Strip buffs with at-will Dispel Magic. The glabrezu can cast Dispel Magic as its spell every turn. Spells of 3rd level or lower end automatically, including Haste, Fly and Spirit Guardians. Dispelling Haste on a fighter costs that fighter their next turn to lethargy. For higher-level spells it makes an Intelligence check (+4) against DC 10 + the spell's level.

Mind the concentration. Darkness, Confusion and Fly all require concentration, so it can keep only one of them going. Power Word Stun and Dispel Magic don't. The usual order is Darkness, then Power Word Stun, then Dispel Magic every round after that.

Confusion for groups. If three or four characters bunch up outside the darkness, a 10-foot-radius Confusion (DC 16 Wisdom) is a better use of concentration than Darkness. Each confused character may wander, attack a random creature or do nothing.

Running a Glabrezu Encounter

One glabrezu is 5,000 XP. For four characters under the 2024 budget:

A glabrezu with 6 dretches (5,300 XP) is a Moderate encounter for level 9, just above the 5,200 Low budget, but the dretches buy it two or three rounds to set up Darkness and Power Word Stun.

Under the 2014 Dungeon Master's Guide guidelines (used by our encounter calculator), one glabrezu against four level 7 characters is Hard (4,400 to 6,799 XP) and against four level 9 characters is Medium (4,400 to 6,399).

The spell list makes the glabrezu stronger than its XP when the party relies on one key caster or buff. A party built around a hasted fighter or a Spirit Guardians cleric feels every Dispel Magic.

How Players Beat a Glabrezu

• •Bring light it can't kill, or leave the dark. The darkness is a 15-foot-radius sphere. Characters can step out and force the glabrezu to come to them, or cast Dispel Magic on the Darkness. In both editions, Daylight dispels Darkness (a spell of 3rd level or lower) if their areas overlap.
• •Get big or get free. Pincers only grapple Medium or smaller creatures. Enlarge makes a character Large and immune. Escaping takes an action and a Strength (Athletics) or Dexterity (Acrobatics) check against DC 15.
• •Break its concentration. Darkness and Confusion end when the glabrezu fails a Constitution save from damage. Its Con save is +9, so it takes big hits: the DC is half the damage of each hit, so only a single 40-damage hit forces DC 20.
• •Counter the spells. Counterspell can stop Power Word Stun. Under the 2014 rules it's an 8th-level spell, so a level 9 caster must also win an ability check against DC 18. Under the 2024 rules the glabrezu makes a Constitution save instead, at +9 with advantage from Magic Resistance, so it usually keeps the spell.
• •Aim at Dexterity. Its Dexterity save is +2, its worst. Spells with Dexterity saves still deal half damage on a success, and Magic Resistance makes it likely to succeed, but Dexterity saves are the best bet. Avoid fire, cold and lightning, which it resists. Shatter (thunder, Constitution save) and Moonbeam (radiant) deal full damage.

Glabrezu Encounter Ideas

The vault in the dark. A wizard's vault is guarded by a glabrezu bound there long ago. The vault is pitch black, but inside the glabrezu's Darkness the party's torches light nothing and any Light cantrip that overlaps it is dispelled. It talks to them from the dark (Deception +7 in 2024), offering to let one of them walk out with treasure if they leave the rest.

Two hostages. A glabrezu holds a captured noble in each pincer and walks out of a burning manor toward the party. It wants safe passage to a ruined temple. Attacking it means fighting around two grappled hostages. Negotiating means letting a demon walk free.

The counter-wizard. A cult's ritual site is protected by a glabrezu whose only job is to stop magic. It ignores the fighters and spends every turn dispelling the party's buffs. Players who rely on spells feel helpless. Players who bring rope, nets or crowbars get to be heroes for a fight.

Frequently Asked Questions

What CR is a glabrezu in 5e?

A glabrezu is CR 9 and worth 5,000 XP in both the 2014 and 2024 rules.

What spells can a glabrezu cast?

At will: Darkness, Detect Magic and Dispel Magic. Once per day each: Confusion, Fly and Power Word Stun. Its spellcasting ability is Intelligence, with a spell save DC of 16, in both editions.

Can a glabrezu see in its own Darkness?

Yes. A glabrezu has truesight out to 120 feet, which lets it see normally in magical darkness. Characters without truesight or similar senses can't see it inside its Darkness.

How does the glabrezu's pincer grapple work?

A pincer hit deals 16 damage and grapples a Medium or smaller target, escape DC 15. It has two pincers, each able to hold one creature. In 2024, it can then use Pummel on a creature it's holding: DC 17 Dexterity save, 15 bludgeoning damage, half on a success.

Is a glabrezu a demon or a devil?

A demon. It is a Large Fiend (Demon), chaotic evil, that speaks Abyssal and resists fire instead of being immune to it.

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.