Leicester's Ramble: Caecilian, Biggun.

Monday, January 5, 2015

Caecilian, Biggun.

To expand upon the Bleeding Caecilian - its larger relative (while avoiding the 'Great' and 'Dire' nomenclature).

Who's a cute little slimy horror?

These legless, burrowing amphibians are encountered in wet, tropical climes. Although nearly blind, they are equipped with an acute sense of smell and sense motion via vibrations, making them difficult to surprise (1 in 6 chance). Designed for a burrowing life, their skulls are thick and heavily muscled. Their teeth are relatively small, but numerous, and their bite is quite powerful.

source

A portion of caecilians will also secrete hemolytic poison from sub-dermal glands. 25% lay eggs, and the female will guard the incubating young until birth. The remainder are viviparous, with the young hatching within the female's body prior to birth.

Caecilians are typically retiring and will tend to flee unless surprised, although an incubating female will stand her ground. Hunting caecilians may erupt from the ground, mistaking a single or small individual as prey.

Rawr

Caecilian, Big-ass

No. Encountered: 1d4
HD: 2-4 (for extreme specimens)
AC: 8/12
Atk: Bite (1d4 per HD), 20% will have hemolytic poison (1 hp hemolysis/day/HD until cure disease or 2x save)
Save: 16-14
Move: 6/3 (burrowing)

The poison glands have value to various practitioners:

1. Assassins will refine glands to distill a more potent poison (4 hp hemolysis/day/-2 to save)
2. Sorcerers and necromancers require them as a material component for creating magic items enchanted with bleed or similar spells.
3. Likewise, clerics and healers may use the glands as a material component for antitoxins against bleeding spells or poisons.
4. Certain sham 'healers' may keep a vial of the caecilian poison about to effect additional bloodletting of bad humours, in lieu of leeches. Of course, having methods for stopping the process may not have occurred to them...

The glands may be harvested from adults, although those harvested from immature specimens or unhatched caecilians may also be used. These will be less potent (save at +2).