Flameskull 5e: Stats and Guide for Players & DMs

Last Updated on January 22, 2023

Remember Ghost Rider, that old comic with a biker who rides out of hell and has a flaming skull for a head? The movie starred the greatest actor ever, Nicholas Cage, who really seemed to channel the maniacal-flaming-skull personality with troubling ease.

The flameskull is a bit like that, albeit less scary than Nicholas Cage. It is a tiny undead monster that has a predilection for fire spells and can fly around very quickly.

This post focuses on the flameskull: where to find it, how to fight it, and even how to make one in your game.

We will start with a player’s guide detailing their tactics and yours on the battlefield and then move into a Dungeon Master’s guide to varying up the flameskull and its creation. Finally, we will finish up with a story outline that you can use to frame the flameskull into your next campaign.

What Is a Flameskull in DnD 5e?

A flameskull is a tiny, CR 4 undead that appears to be a flying skull wreathed in flame. It is a dangerously offensive, nearly mindless, undead spellcaster.

A Player’s Guide to Flameskulls

The following is your guide to surviving your next encounter with a flameskull, which, to be honest, could very well be the encounter you are in right now, and you are looking at your phone under the table while the DM is laughing maniacally and rolling fire damage. If this is the case, scroll straight down to the point where I tell you how to kill this thing.

For everyone not facing the reality of making a new character before the next session, take your time to peruse the stat block with me.

Flameskull Stat Block and Breakdown

The Tactics of a Flameskull

The flameskull, thankfully, is nearly mindless. When created, it will follow the instructions it is given to the letter.

This means that in a dungeon situation, the flameskull will probably have been told to wander a specific path and attack anyone that meets certain requirements — like breathing or something similar.

The flameskull is smart enough to choose its tactics, however. If it gets a surprise round and the entire party is in a nice little group, you should expect a fireball to come your way while the flameskull mage hands a bottle of BBQ sauce.

When you respond with your attacks, expect the flameskull to respond with a shield if necessary and then cast blur on its next turn while it flies out of range. On its 3^rd turn, you can expect it to close in with fire ray. When blur wears off, if it is still alive, it will probably cast flaming sphere.

The other tactic it may employ would be to block your path with a flaming sphere. If it can add that obstacle while your party is in a bottleneck, it could make the most of the spell’s damage capability while casting magic missile.

If there is more than one flameskull, you can probably expect a combination of tactics to be used. One flameskull will close in with blur and fire rays to occupy the melee combatants while another manages a flaming sphere to put pressure on the ranged combatants and spellcasters.

By dividing your party’s attention, they will pick you all off one by one.

Tactics When Fighting a Flameskull

After knowing what the flame skulls best tactics are, the whole encounter seems fairly dismal. But no worries! This thing has weaknesses.

It has no resistance to bludgeoning, slashing, psychic, force, or radiant damages. It also has a lower-than-average strength save and no bonuses to Wisdom or Charisma saves. While it does have advantage on saving throws against magic, it is susceptible to a wet blanket being thrown over its head.

Seriously. It has such a low strength that it will need a turn or two to burn through the wet blanket while you all curb stomp it.

If you don’t have a towel (for shame) to use in this situation, you can still rely on cantrips like mind sliver and sacred flame. Also, if anyone can actually catch it (the monk, maybe?), try grappling. Its strength is so low that you will win the grapple. From there, you can point its face away from anyone and slam it against the wall.

A DM’s Guide to Flameskulls

Flameskulls have the potential to make for strange and memorable encounters.

Where Might You Place a Flameskull?

The standard place to put a flameskull is in a dungeon where it can fly around and attack intruders. This tracks; I mean, you wouldn’t want one of these guarding a library. Flameskulls could also wander the nine hells, where fire often claims spellcasting victims.

Another great place for flame skulls is in the hoard of a fire-breathing dragon. They are the skulls of adventures who perished in the magical flames of a draconic breath weapon.

Creating a Flameskull

There are several ways you could have flameskull be created in your campaign. Here are 3 options:

1. Through a Ritual!

In order to create a flameskull, you must have first harvested a skull from a living sacrifice of a person who died from fire damage. The skull must be polished and waxed with an alchemical salve costing 250 gp and set to cure in a kiln for 82 hours (9 is a magical number).

After the skull cures and hardens, you must expose it to all of the spells you wish it to cast, one after the other. Each time you cast a spell, you must succeed on a DC 13 Arcana check or cast the spell again.

Upon completion, you must specify your instructions for the flameskull. After the ritual, it lives until destroyed, following your instructions.

2. Cast a Spell

This 9^th-level, homebrew spell will create a flameskull.

3. With a Magic Item!

The following homebrewed magic item will create a flameskull:

Story Seed

If you happen to really enjoy what we’ve done with the flameskull above, consider using this outline to feature flameskulls in your next campaign.

Libraries all over the country are burning down. While many terrorist groups have taken credit for the attacks, none of them seem to have the logistical or physical capability to actually pull it off.

Eyewitness reports describe small fireballs descending into the building through any windows or open doors, always late at night after everyone has gone home. Shortly after, the building burns down from magical fire that can not be put out by water.

The PCs can get to the bottom of this by succeeding at a DC 14 Intelligence check (history) to determine which library will be hit next. If they do not succeed, simply put them in a different library where nothing happens and they hear about another library being attacked. Make them repeat this process until they finally roll high enough.

Once they are in the correct library, they will soon be joined by several hostile flame skulls that break into the building. While the majority of them attack the PCs and start setting the fires, a DC 12 perception check (have them roll every round) will reveal that a small percentage of the flame skulls are actually using mage hand to drop several books into a bag of holding.

If the PCs manage to destroy all of the flame skulls, they will hopefully look and see which books are being saved. All of the books in the bags of holding are written by the same author, a wizard who is trying to erase himself from history before becoming a lich.

Have the PCs track him down by contacting his publisher and last known employer (a magical university), and then fill his lair with all sorts of flameskulls! Literally fill it to the brim with flameskulls that have all the same spells but do different types of damages instead.

Consider even making the wizard speak through flameskulls that are used to cast clairvoyance and act as weird little morbid drones.

Have fun with this one!