Displacer beasts are the only monster that I actually lament not being able to use in Pathfinder—they, like beholders, mind flayers, etc are claimed by Wizards of the Coast as intellectual property. A big part of my consternation comes from the monster’s ties to A. E. Van Vogt’s creature, coeurl, from the author’s story “Black Destroyer” in Voyage of the Space Beagle (also cited as an influence for the film Alien). The displacement elements of the creature are 100% evolved through D&D’s rules, but other similarities (most obviously its appearance) tie it strongly to Van Vogt’s work.

With that in mind, in Pathfinder Adventure Path #22: Edge of Eternity I worked with Van Vogt’s estate to present stats for coeurl. It was a one time deal (so it won’t be showing up in any of our bestiaries) but I’m glad we were able to get such a cool and influential beastie out there—along with a healthy sidebar crediting Van Vogt’s contribution and pointing readers toward his fantastic work.

If you’re interested in the Pathfinder take on coeurl, you can find it right here.

And if you want to read “Black Destroyer”—and you should be, ‘cause it’s great—you can do so here!



So while you won’t be seeing displacer beasts in any Pathfinder RPG adventures, don’t be afraid to sub in a CR 8 couerl when you get a chance, or even one of the CR 4 or 12 displacer beasts presented above. But when you do, after the session, make sure you mention to your players, “Hey, know those monsters that just wrecked you? They’re from this cool story ‘Black Destroyer’ that inspired Alien…”

RPGs: Educational since always.

