These vile horrors are believed to be some sort of atavistic throwback to a long-dead insectile race. Nevertheless, they present a murderous and alien threat, despite being few in number.
These creatures are a little larger than human size, about eight feet tall, but they are hunched and slumped, usually with their wing-claws wrapped around them. When they unfurl and stand up straight, they generally reach a massive size, and terrify their prey. They are usually silent, but emit a strong smell of formic acid, which can be overwhelming when close to them. The underside of their bodies are covered in hundreds of long, sharp claws, and their head features several bulbous eyes and a vicious-looking proboscis. These creatures are secretive and seem to be driving some kind of hidden agenda, but no sage has yet been able to divine their purpose. Statistics: Reticentipedes are 12HD Aberrations, with equivalent spellcasting as a sorcerer, usually choosing Enchantment spells. They often choose to grapple an opponent, taking no penalty for spellcasting while doing do, and can insert their vile proboscis into a target they are grappling, causing a large amount of damage as they siphon life-force directly from the target, and causing a paralyzing poison to immobilize them. The physical revulsion caused in most humanoids on seeing them forces a Will save (DC 15) in order to avoid being sickened for the next 1d3 rounds. How you can use Reticentipedes in your game: • Tracking the course of one of these secretive monsters will be difficult- they possess humanlike intelligence as well as sorcery, and will rarely leave evidence. Those who have even seen them are likely to be disgusted, horrified, and traumatized. • A Writhe of Reticentipedes is, oddly, less likely to be cautious, trusting their own alien intelligence and power to overwhelm most challenges. They might leave some clues as to their own nature in whatever forsaken place they claim as their nest. • A sage who wishes to study these monsters might hire skilled adventurers, perhaps even telling them what they suspect the PCs will come up against. But does this Alienist have hidden motives of their own? (Originally posted on Game Masters Stash on 28 February 2019) Comments are closed.
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