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Condylacubus Phonidra 29

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by

Dale
in

Original Life Forms Referenced

  • Class Mammalia: Star-nosed Mole (Condylura cristata)
  • Class Arachnida: Whip Scorpion / Vinegaroon (Thelyphonida)
  • Class Scyphozoa: Box Jellyfish (Cubozoa)
  • Class Osteichthyes: Anglerfish (Lophiiformes)

Appearance The Condylacubus is a subterranean horror, a creature perfectly adapted to a life of darkness and ambush. Its main body is squat and powerful like that of a mole, covered in slick, dark, rubbery skin. It moves on six multi-jointed, arachnoid legs, while its two front limbs are stout, shovel-like claws for digging. It has no visible eyes. Its face is a nightmarish combination of features: at the center is the fleshy, pink, 22-tentacled star-shaped appendage of a star-nosed mole, which constantly twitches and tastes the air and ground. Dangling from just above this “star” is a single, flexible stalk that ends in a softly glowing, bioluminescent lure. Below the star is a disproportionately massive, gaping mouth filled with rows of needle-sharp, inward-curving teeth.

For offense and defense, it possesses two pincer-like pedipalps near its mouth for grasping prey. A long, whip-like tail extends from its rear, capable of spraying a noxious mist. Perhaps most dangerously, trailing from its underbelly are up to a dozen long, nearly transparent, gelatinous tentacles that drift almost invisibly behind it, each one covered in millions of lethally venomous nematocysts.

Size This is a medium-sized predator, built low to the ground and densely muscled for burrowing.

  • Body Length: 4 to 6 feet.
  • Height: Approximately 2.5 feet at the shoulder.
  • Weight: 180 to 250 pounds.

Speed On the surface, the Condylacubus is slow and awkward, scuttling at a walking pace. Its true speed is revealed underground. Using its powerful forelimbs, it is an exceptionally fast burrower, capable of tunneling through soil, clay, and soft stone with relentless efficiency, creating new tunnels as it moves.

Stat Modifiers This creature is a master of its subterranean domain. Its primary strengths are its incredible sensory perception (via touch), its powerful digging ability, and the lethality of its various toxins. It is physically strong but not agile on the surface. It is effectively blind, relying entirely on its star-nose, making it immune to sight-based illusions or attacks but potentially vulnerable to wide-area vibrational disruption.

Skills

  • Eimer’s Organ Array: Its star-shaped nose is a hyper-sensitive sensory organ. It can “see” in perfect detail in complete darkness by interpreting minute vibrations, textures, and electrical fields in the surrounding environment up to a short distance.
  • Rapid Burrowing: The creature can tunnel through earth and soft rock at a speed equivalent to a human’s brisk walk, leaving a stable tunnel behind it.
  • Nematocyst Tentacles: Its nearly invisible trailing tentacles are its primary hunting tool. A mere brush with one triggers the injection of a potent, fast-acting neurotoxin from its jellyfish ancestry.
  • Acidic Mist: The whip-tail can be aimed and used to spray a fine mist of acid, a defensive mechanism to deter predators attacking from the rear.
  • Bioluminescent Lure: It can control the color and pulse-rate of its anglerfish-like lure, using it to attract curious subterranean creatures.
  • Ambush Jaw: Its massive mouth and flexible jaw structure allow it to swallow prey up to half its own size whole.

Behavior The Condylacubus is a solitary, patient, trap-based predator. It spends most of its existence motionless in a self-dug cavern or “killing room” deep underground. It lays its nearly invisible tentacles out in the surrounding tunnels and then dangles its lure in a central, visible location. It will wait, perfectly still, for days or even weeks. When a creature, attracted by the light, wanders into the tunnels and brushes against a tentacle, the potent venom paralyzes it almost instantly. The Condylacubus then uses its star-nose to precisely locate the paralyzed victim, pulling it in with its pincers to be devoured.

Diet It is a carnivore that will eat any creature it can lure or entrap in its underground domain. Its diet includes giant cave insects, subterranean reptiles, other burrowing creatures, and any surface-dweller, including unwary avatars, who ventures too deep into its cave system.

Emotions This creature is entirely driven by instinct. It does not feel anger, fear, or malice. Its existence is a cycle of patient, silent waiting followed by brief, efficient, and reflexive acts of predation. It is less a thinking monster and more a living, predatory trap.

Environment Where Found The Condylacubus lives exclusively in the deep underground realms of Saṃsāra. It thrives in the total darkness of natural cave systems, forgotten mines, and especially in the vast, unlit lower levels of the megacities found in dark cave systems. It requires earth or stone soft enough to burrow through and a steady supply of creatures drawn to its light.

Tags: Feral Life Form, Subterranean, Carnivore, Ambush Predator, Trap-Layer, Burrower, Bioluminescent, Venomous, Acid Spray, Pincer-limbed, Tentacled, Blind, Star-Nose, Massive Maw, Whip-Tail, Nematocysts, Vibration Sense, Cavern Dweller, Lure Hunter

Life Cycle

The life cycle of a Condylacubus is a strange, multi-stage process adapted for its solitary and hidden existence. It primarily reproduces asexually, with sexual reproduction being a rare, stress-induced event.

  • Asexual Budding: An adult Condylacubus will periodically and asexually bud off dozens of tiny, gelatinous polyps. These simple organisms, little more than a mouth and a single, weakly venomous tentacle, are expelled into the damp underground environment to fend for themselves.
  • Polyp Stage: For months, these polyps crawl through the darkness, consuming fungi, microbes, and any insects they can catch. They are a bottom layer of the subterranean food chain.
  • Metamorphosis: Once a polyp has reached a critical biomass, it finds a secure, hidden niche and encases itself in a thick, earthen cocoon mixed with its own secretions. Inside this pupal case, it undergoes a complete metamorphosis.
  • Juvenile Stage: A juvenile Condylacubus, about the size of a large rat, emerges from the cocoon. It is a perfect miniature of the adult, but its claws are weak, its venom is not yet at full potency, and its tentacles are short. It spends the first few years of its life as a scavenger and timid predator, constantly hiding and digging temporary burrows.
  • Adulthood and Lifespan: A Condylacubus reaches its full size and lethal potential after about five years of slow growth. Due to their protected, low-energy lifestyle in the deep underground, they have an exceptionally long lifespan, with some specimens believed to live for over a century.

Mating

Sexual reproduction is a rare occurrence, typically only happening under specific environmental triggers, such as a sudden, massive increase in food sources or a significant geological shift that forces multiple creatures into contact.

The process is not driven by sight or sound, but by complex chemical signals. A receptive Condylacubus will secrete a potent pheromone that can be absorbed and transmitted through soil and rock over a great distance. Another of its kind that detects this signal will follow the scent gradient to the source.

The courtship is a tense and dangerous affair. The two creatures will meet in a large cavern and engage in a slow, ritualistic “dance,” using their incredibly sensitive star-noses to read each other’s chemical signals and intent. They will gently touch each other’s fleshy appendages, assessing fitness and suppressing their innate predatory instincts. If the ritual is successful, they engage in external fertilization of a small clutch of zygote-cysts, which are far more resilient than the asexually budded polyps. Immediately after, they abandon the cysts and part ways, their brief truce over.

Tactics

The Condylacubus is the ultimate trap-based predator. Its tactics are defined by patience, preparation, and terrifying efficiency.

  • The Tentacle Web: The creature’s primary tactic is to create a vast, three-dimensional “web” of its nearly invisible tentacles. It doesn’t just wait in a single room; it spreads its dozens of long tentacles throughout a network of tunnels, often hundreds of feet in every direction from its central lair.
  • The Lure: The bioluminescent lure that dangles in its personal chamber isn’t meant to draw prey directly to it, but to draw them into its web of tunnels. The gentle, psychic hum of the lure encourages curiosity and exploration in other subterranean life.
  • Paralyze and Retrieve: Once a victim blunders into a tentacle, the nematocysts fire reflexively, delivering a massive, paralytic dose of venom. The creature, from its central lair, feels the vibration and the specific tentacle that was triggered. It doesn’t rush out. It slowly and inexorably begins to reel that single tentacle in, dragging the helpless, silent victim through the tunnels back to its maw.
  • Lair Defense: If its central lair is breached, it becomes a cornered beast. It will use its powerful pincers to fend off immediate threats, its gaping mouth to bite and swallow anything it can, and its acid-spraying tail to create a chaotic, blinding distraction while it uses its powerful digging claws to carve a new escape tunnel through the nearest wall.

Actions

  • Nematocyst Discharge: A reflexive, instantaneous firing of venom from a tentacle that is touched.
  • Tentacle Reel: A slow, deliberate action used to drag a paralyzed creature (up to its own size) toward its lair from a distance.
  • Engulfing Bite: Its primary attack on prey that has been brought to its mouth. Its jaw can unhinge to swallow creatures up to half its own mass whole.
  • Pincer Crush: A defensive attack with its frontal pedipalps, used to grasp and crush threats in its immediate vicinity.
  • Acidic Mist: A defensive spray from its whip-tail that covers a short cone in a noxious, blinding chemical agent.
  • Emergency Burrow: A focused action allowing it to rapidly excavate an escape tunnel through earth, clay, or soft rock.

Other Interesting Information

  • Psychic Lure: Survivors of near-encounters (an exceptionally rare group) have reported that the lure doesn’t just glow, but it “sings” in the mind. It’s a silent, psychic hum that bypasses the ears and plants feelings of calm, curiosity, and a deep desire to find the source of the beautiful “music,” suggesting the lure is a psionic as well as a biological tool.
  • Lair Ecology: The lair of an adult Condylacubus is a grim ecosystem. The constant supply of paralyzed and slowly-digested prey creates a nutrient-rich environment that supports unique forms of fungi and carrion-eating insects, which in turn can serve as a food source for the creature’s own asexually budded polyps.
  • A walking Alchemical Trove: The creature is a biological treasure. Its jellyfish-derived neurotoxin, whip-scorpion-derived acid, and anglerfish-derived bioluminescent compounds are all incredibly potent and have no true equivalent from other sources. A single, carefully harvested corpse can provide the key ingredients for dozens of different high-tier potions, poisons, and magical reagents.

An adventuring party in the world of Saṃsāra would likely encounter a Condylacubus Phonidra 29 under specific, terrifying circumstances, almost always deep beneath the earth. The reasons for seeking one out are few and reserved for the most specialized and daring of quests, while accidental encounters are often fatal.

Scenario 1: The Alchemist’s Desperate Commission (A Targeted Hunt)

This is the most direct, albeit incredibly dangerous, reason to hunt a Condylacubus. A high-tier alchemist, a master poisoner, or a researcher in a magi-tech guild posts a quest with an astronomical reward for acquiring pristine samples of the creature’s unique biological agents. The bounty would specify the need for:

  • The Nematocyst Venom: The jellyfish-derived neurotoxin from its tentacles is unlike any other. It acts almost instantly and is notoriously difficult to cure with standard magic. It is the key ingredient for creating legendary-tier paralytic poisons or, conversely, the only known basis for a universal anti-paralysis antidote.
  • The Lure’s Psionic Crystal: The quest might not be to kill the beast, but to perform the near-impossible task of snipping off its bioluminescent, psychic lure. Scholars of the mind and telepathy would pay a fortune for the chance to study the crystal that produces its captivating “mental song,” hoping to replicate its effects for communication or pacification devices.
  • The Acid Gland: The creature’s “vinegaroon” gland produces a unique, highly stable acid. Master engineers might require this specific acid to etch magical circuits into materials that are resistant to all other forms of carving or magical inscription.

This type of quest would be considered suicidal by most and would require extensive preparation, including gear to resist toxins, ways to navigate in total darkness, and a method to extract the components without them becoming inert.

Scenario 2: The Delver’s Doom (A Rescue Mission)

A party might be hired to investigate the mysterious disappearance of a group of miners or a well-equipped delving expedition in a newly opened tunnel system or ancient ruin. The quest would begin with reports of strange, beautiful lights seen deep within the passages, followed by silence. The patrons, perhaps a mining guild or a noble family, would want the party to find out what happened and, if possible, rescue any survivors.

The adventurers would descend into the darkness, eventually discovering the creature’s hunting grounds. The challenge would be navigating the maze of tunnels, which are now laced with the Condylacubus’s invisible tentacle “webs.” They would have to contend with the psychic lure drawing them deeper into the trap. The climax would involve finding the central lair, possibly discovering paralyzed survivors near the creature’s maw, and then having to fight the subterranean horror to extract them.

Scenario 3: The Unexpected Tenant (An Accidental Encounter)

This is the most common and deadliest way to meet a Condylacubus. The party is not looking for the creature at all; they are simply in the wrong place at the wrong time.

  • Exploring a Dungeon: The party is deep within a forgotten underground city or a natural cave system, seeking treasure or knowledge. They take a wrong turn, break through a thin wall of rock, and accidentally stumble directly into the creature’s lair, forcing a sudden, desperate fight for survival in a confined space.
  • Fleeing Another Threat: While escaping a different subterranean monster or a collapsing tunnel, the party burrows or finds refuge in what they think is a safe side-cavern, only to realize it is the “killing room” of a Condylacubus that was patiently waiting for a meal to come to it. The lure lights up, and the tentacles begin to move.
  • Megacity Undercroft: In one of the great cave-megacities, the party might need to travel through the unlit, undeveloped “sub-basement” levels beneath the city proper. These deep, dark, forgotten tunnels are the perfect urban environment for a Condylacubus to establish a territory, preying on giant vermin and unwary travelers who stray from the magically-lit thoroughfares.

In all these scenarios, the Condylacubus represents a unique and terrifying challenge. It is not a monster to be fought with brute force in an open field, but a living, patient trap that turns its environment into the weapon, forcing adventurers to rely on their wits, perception, and courage to survive its silent, underground domain.

Beyond the more obvious components, a skilled harvester with knowledge of subterranean biology and alchemy can extract several unique and powerful ingredients from the corpse of a Condylacubus Phonidra 29. These items are highly valued for their specialized properties in crafting and enchanting.

1. The Eimer’s Organ Cluster

  • Description: This is the fleshy, star-shaped nasal appendage, a complex web of twenty-two tentacles containing thousands of hyper-sensitive nerve nodes. The entire organ must be harvested and carefully dissected in a sterile environment to isolate these nodes from the surrounding tissue before they decay.
  • Use: These preserved neuro-nodes are unparalleled sensory enhancers. When integrated by a master enchanter into the fingertips of gloves or the grips of a tool, they grant the user an incredibly enhanced sense of touch. An avatar with such gear can feel the faintest vibrations through solid stone, detect the subtle tumblers shifting inside a complex lock, or find nearly invisible seams and pressure plates. The most powerful items made with these nodes can grant a limited form of tremorsense.

2. The Psionic Lure Crystal

  • Description: At the tip of the creature’s bioluminescent esca (lure) is a semi-organic, softly glowing crystal. This is the source of both the light and the subtle, mind-affecting “song” the creature uses to attract prey. The crystal is incredibly fragile and loses its psionic resonance within an hour of the creature’s death if not placed in a magically prepared preservation fluid.
  • Use: This crystal is a key component for gear and potions related to enchantment and illusion magic. When used as a focus in a lantern or amulet, it doesn’t just produce light, but also a calming, pacifying aura that can soothe aggressive beasts or lower the guard of sentient beings. When carefully ground into a powder, it’s a primary reagent in potions of persuasion or elixirs that enhance an avatar’s ability to create compelling, believable illusions.

3. Vinegaroon Acid Gland

  • Description: Located at the base of the creature’s whip-like tail is a tough, leathery sac containing a highly concentrated and volatile acidic fluid. Harvesting it is dangerous, as a clumsy cut can cause the gland to rupture, spraying the corrosive liquid.
  • Use: In its raw form, the acid is a potent tool for demolition, capable of eating through stone and even some metals. Its true value, however, is in its use as a magical etching agent. When carefully diluted, alchemists can use it to inscribe intricate glyphs and power channels onto materials that are otherwise impossible to carve, such as dragon scales, the shells of Conacanths, or other super-hard substances, making it essential for the creation of very high-tier enchanted items.

4. Nematocyst Jelly

  • Description: This is the almost invisible, gelatinous substance that makes up the creature’s trailing tentacles. The entire tentacle must be harvested and stored in a magically sealed container, as the jelly is filled with millions of microscopic, hair-trigger venomous stingers (nematocysts). Contact with bare skin is catastrophic.
  • Use: This is one of the most potent and fast-acting neurotoxins found in the deep underground. Alchemists can refine this jelly to create “Ghost Venom.” When applied to a weapon, this poison doesn’t just damage the target’s body; it temporarily severs the connection between their mind and their muscles. A victim must resist not only the physical damage but also a magical effect that can cause paralysis or the inability to use complex trained skills for a short time.

5. Burrower’s Spade-Claws

  • Description: These are the thick, spade-shaped chitinous plates from the creature’s powerful front digging limbs. They are not sharp but are incredibly dense and resistant to abrasion and impact. They must be chiseled off the underlying limb structure.
  • Use: The spade-claws are too large and blunt to be used effectively as personal weapons. Instead, they are highly sought after by engineers and artificers. A set of these claws can be integrated into the head of a magical tunneling machine, greatly increasing its efficiency and durability. A single, well-preserved claw can be fashioned into the core component of a “Gauntlet of the Delver,” a powerful piece of enchanted gear that allows the wearer to dig through earth, clay, and soft rock with supernatural speed.

Gem-Seeker and Star in Earth

It’s a truth known by those who walk in the deep places of the world that not all that glitters is a gem, and not all songs are meant for the ears. This is the story of a man who learned that truth too late.

There was a delver named Roric, and his trade was seeking the treasures of the earth. He was a man whose skill in navigating the dark tunnels was matched only by the greed in his heart. He could read the languages of stone and follow the whispers of ore seams. He didn’t fear the dark; he saw it as a blanket that hid great wealth from lesser men.

He heard tales from other, more frightened, miners. They spoke of a newly opened passage, a place of deep, silent caves where a strange light could be seen. They said it was a soft light, like a star that had fallen from the sky and become trapped in the earth. They also said that it “sang,” not to the ears, but to the mind, and that those who went to find its source did not return. The miners, who were wise enough to fear a mystery, sealed the passage and warned all to stay away.

But Roric’s heart wasn’t full of fear, it was full of the thought of gold. A star in the earth? To him, this meant a gem of impossible size and value. A flawless diamond or a heart-stone of a kind no one had ever seen. The stories of disappearing men were, to him, just the tales of weaklings who were unworthy of such a prize. He decided he would claim this treasure for himself. He told no one where he was going, and went into the sealed tunnels alone.

The tunnels were deep and still. The air was cool and heavy with the smell of wet stone. As Roric walked, he felt strange, tickling sensations on his skin, like brushing through a spider’s web, but there was nothing there. It was the nearly invisible, gelatinous tentacles of the beast, laid out in its great web. He didn’t know this. He thought it was just the strange magic of this new place.

After walking for a long time, he began to see it. A faint, soft blue-green light, pulsing gently in the darkness far ahead. And with the light, he felt the song. It was a sweet, quiet hum inside his own thoughts. It wasn’t a sound; it was a feeling of peace, and of curiosity, and of a great treasure waiting to be found. The light made a promise to him without using words. All caution left him. His greed now felt like a holy mission.

He came at last to a great, round cavern. And there, in the center, hanging in the absolute blackness, was the light. The Star in the Earth. It was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen. He had found his prize. He raised his lantern to get a better look, to see the great gem that was making this beautiful glow.

But the lantern’s light showed him nothing. The light simply hung in the air, with no chain, and no crystal around it. It was just… light. His mind, so full of the lure’s song, couldn’t understand what he was seeing. He stepped forward, reaching out his hand to touch it.

As he stepped, his foot caught on something on the ground. It felt slick, and it clung to his boot. He looked down, annoyed, and saw a pale, almost transparent rope wrapped around his ankle. He had blundered into the beast’s trap. At the same moment, the back of his outstretched hand brushed against another of the ropes.

The pain was not a pain. It was an ending. A feeling like cold, white fire shot up his arm, and then there was no feeling at all. He watched, his mind slow and distant, as his entire arm went numb and limp. The numbness spread through him like a tide. He fell to the cavern floor, his body paralyzed, but his eyes still open.

He couldn’t move his head. His view was now of the cavern floor. The beautiful, singing lure still pulsed above him. But from the deep darkness beneath the light, something began to move. A great, dark shape on six legs. He saw the fleshy, twitching star of its face as it felt the vibrations of his fall. He saw its great, grasping pincers. He saw its huge, dark mouth begin to open.

In his last moments, Roric understood the terrible truth of the grotto. The Star in the Earth wasn’t the treasure. It was the bait. The gem was the tongue, and the whole cave was the mouth. The song in his head faded, and the last thing he saw was the great, eyeless face moving down towards his own.

The Moral: In the deep earth, don’t seek the prettiest light, for a treasure that calls to you is not a treasure at all. It is a lure.

Suggested conversions to other systems:

Call of Cthulhu (7th Edition)

The Cavern Angler A subterranean predator of unknown origin, the Cavern Angler is a living trap. It is functionally blind, navigating the lightless deep via a fleshy, star-shaped organ on its face that can sense the faintest vibrations. It lures prey with a single, bioluminescent lure that emits a subtle, mind-altering frequency, compelling those who see it to draw closer. Its true weapons are the nearly invisible, venom-laced tentacles that it spreads throughout its lair, paralyzing victims who blunder into them before they are dragged away to be consumed.

STR: 70 CON: 80 SIZ: 75 DEX: 35 INT: 20 POW: 85 HP: 15 DB: +1d4 Build: 1 Move: 4 / 6 burrowing Attack: 1 per round Fighting (Bite): 60% (30/12), damage 1d10 + damage bonus Dodge: 17% (8/3) Stealth: 80% (40/16) (when motionless in its lair) Armor: 1 point of thick, rubbery hide. Sanity Loss: 0/1d2 SAN for seeing the hypnotic lure; 1/1d8 SAN for witnessing the creature’s true form and its method of feeding.

Special Rules:

  • Psionic Lure: Any investigator who sees the creature’s lure must succeed on a POW roll. On a failure, they are overcome with a compulsion to approach the light, using their movement to get closer for 1d3 rounds. They can take no other actions unless attacked.
  • Nematocyst Tentacles: The Angler’s lair is a hazardous area filled with its nearly invisible tentacles. To spot them requires a Hard Spot Hidden roll. Any investigator who moves more than half their MOV in a round through the lair must make a Luck roll. On a failure, they have brushed against a tentacle and must immediately make a Hard CON roll vs a potent toxin.
  • Angler’s Venom: On a failed CON roll, the victim is instantly paralyzed for 1d10+2 rounds. During this time, they are helpless.
  • Blind Hunter: The creature is blind and immune to all visual effects. It automatically detects any creature within 60 feet that is moving or making sound via vibration.
  • Ambush: The Cavern Angler can automatically hit a paralyzed victim with its Bite attack.

Blades in the Dark

The Whisper-Lure A creature of the deep places, the forgotten cisterns and lightless tunnels beneath Duskvol. It doesn’t hunt; it waits. It emanates a soft, beautiful light, a “whisper” that pulls at the mind, promising warmth and discovery. The truth is a horror of invisible, paralyzing tendrils and a gaping maw in the darkness. The Circle of Flame pays well for knowledge of its lairs, as its venom is a key ingredient in their arcane preparations. Tier III Threat Instinct: To patiently draw prey into its web. Qualities: Subterranean, Silent Predator, Terrifying, Psionic Lure, Venomous

Mechanics: An encounter with the Whisper-Lure is a descent into a horror scenario. The creature itself may never be fought directly; the true threat is its lair.

  • The Lure’s Song: As the crew gets closer, the GM can start a 6-segment clock: Mesmerized by the Whisper. Resisting the urge to investigate the beautiful light would be a Resolve resistance roll. When the clock fills, affected PCs are compelled to walk directly towards the lure, heedless of their own safety.
  • The Tentacle Web: The creature’s lair is a zone filled with its invisible tentacles. Any movement in this zone is a Desperate action. A consequence of a failed roll isn’t just harm, but contact with a tentacle. The GM can start a 4-clock for any PC who enters: Paralyzed. When the clock fills, the character suffers Level 3 Harm: “Nervous System Failure.”
  • Dragging Prey: Once a PC is paralyzed, the GM can start another clock: Dragged into the Maw (6-clock). The crew must intervene before this clock fills, or the PC is considered devoured and lost.
  • The Central Beast: The Whisper-Lure itself is the heart of the web. Attacking it is possible, but it is surrounded by the thickest concentration of tentacles. Getting to it would likely require a complex Group Action or a clever plan to bypass or clear the tentacles.

Dungeons & Dragons (5th Edition)

Starlit Horror Large monstrosity, unaligned

Armor Class: 13 (natural armor) Hit Points: 114 (12d10 + 48) Speed: 20 ft., burrow 30 ft.

STR: 18 (+4) DEX: 8 (-1) CON: 18 (+4) INT: 2 (-4) WIS: 14 (+2) CHA: 16 (+3)

Skills: Perception +5, Stealth +2 Condition Immunities: blinded, charmed Senses: blindsight 60 ft. (blind beyond this radius), passive Perception 15 Challenge: 6 (2,300 XP)

Tunneler. The starlit horror can burrow through solid rock at half its burrowing speed and leaves a 10-foot-diameter tunnel in its wake.

Lair Actions On initiative count 20 (losing initiative ties), the starlit horror takes a lair action to cause one of the following effects; the horror can’t use the same effect two rounds in a row:

  • Grasping Tentacles. The floor of the lair in a 20-foot radius around the horror sprouts with nearly invisible tentacles until the next initiative count of 20. That area is difficult terrain, and each creature that starts its turn there must succeed on a DC 15 Constitution saving throw or be poisoned for 1 minute. While poisoned this way, the creature is paralyzed.
  • Psychic Hum. The horror’s lure emits a low hum. Each creature in the lair must succeed on a DC 15 Wisdom saving throw or be unable to speak or cast spells that require verbal components until the next initiative count of 20.

Actions Multiattack. The starlit horror makes two attacks with its pincers.

Pincers. Melee Weapon Attack: +7 to hit, reach 10 ft., one target. Hit: 11 (2d6 + 4) bludgeoning damage, and the target is grappled (escape DC 15). The horror has two pincers, each of which can grapple one target.

Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +7 to hit, reach 5 ft., one grappled creature. Hit: 22 (4d8 + 4) piercing damage.

Alluring Lure. The starlit horror activates its lure. Each creature within 60 feet of the horror that can see the lure must succeed on a DC 15 Wisdom saving throw. On a failed save, the creature is charmed. A charmed creature must take the Dash action on its turn and move toward the horror by the most direct route. It doesn’t avoid opportunity attacks. At the end of each of its turns, a charmed creature can repeat the saving throw, ending the effect on itself on a success.

Knave (2nd Edition)

Cave Angler HD: 8 Armor: 12 Morale: 9 Attack: Bite (1d10) Qualities: Subterranean, Blind, Lure, Tentacle Lair, Acid Spray

Mechanics:

  • Subterranean: Can burrow through earth and soft stone at its normal speed, leaving a tunnel.
  • Blind: The Angler is immune to all effects that require sight. It attacks any creature that moves or makes a significant noise within 60ft.
  • Lure: As its entire turn, the Angler can activate its lure. Anyone who sees it must make a WIL save. On a failure, they are compelled to spend their next turn moving towards the lure by the most direct route.
  • Tentacle Lair: The Angler’s lair is a 60ft radius area filled with its nearly invisible, venomous tentacles. This area is considered difficult terrain. Any character who moves through it must make a DEX save each turn to avoid touching a tentacle.
  • Tentacle Venom: Touching a tentacle forces a CON save vs poison. On a failure, the character is paralyzed and helpless for 1d6 turns.
  • Acid Spray: Once per combat, the Angler can spray a 15ft cone of acid as its action. All targets in the cone take 4d6 damage (CON save for half).
  • Devour: The Angler can automatically hit a paralyzed or helpless character in its lair with its bite attack.

Fate Core System

The Shifting Cove-Horror This creature is an apex predator of its domain, relying on patience and otherworldly beauty to secure its meals. It’s best treated as a significant threat, whose danger comes not from its raw power, but from its ability to control the battlefield and disable its opponents before the fight even begins.

High Concept: Perfect Ambush Predator of the Littoral Zone Trouble: Territorial and Driven by Primal Instinct Other Aspects: My Skin is a Hypnotic Veil, A Touch of Poison, a Bite of Death, Master of its Watery Domain

Skills Superb (+5): Stealth Great (+4): Fight Good (+3): Athletics, Physique Fair (+2): Notice Average (+1): Will

Stunts

  • Perfect Camouflage: The Cove-Horror’s skin perfectly mimics its surroundings. It gets a +2 to Stealth when creating advantages related to hiding or ambushing. When hidden, opponents must succeed at an overcome action with a difficulty of Superb (+5) to spot it.
  • Hypnotic Display: Once per scene, as an action, the Cove-Horror can create a mesmerizing light show on its skin. This initiates a contest: the creature rolls Will against all opponents who can see it. Any character who fails the contest is afflicted with the situation aspect Drawn to the Alluring Light with one free invocation.
  • Venomous Bite: When the Cove-Horror succeeds with style on a Fight attack to inflict physical stress, it can choose to inflict a Paralytic Venom consequence on the target instead of taking the +2 shift bonus.
  • Poisonous Skin: When a character succeeds on a physical attack made from an adjacent zone, the Cove-Horror can use its reaction to force that character to make a Physique roll at Good (+3) difficulty. On failure, the character takes a 2-shift hit.

Stress & Consequences Physical Stress: [1] [2] [3] [4] Consequences: One mild, one moderate, one severe.

Numenera & Cypher System

Dendroform Ambusher This semi-aquatic predator hunts the murky grottos and mangrove swamps along the coast. It’s a fusion of several life forms, resulting in a creature that can perfectly camouflage itself before luring prey with a hypnotic light display. Its touch is poison, and its bite is paralytic.

Level: 5 Health: 20 Damage: 5 points Armor: 2 Movement: Short; Short swimming; Short climbing Modifications: Stealth as level 7. Resists poison as level 7.

Combat: The Dendroform Ambusher is a patient hunter. It will remain perfectly still, effectively invisible (a level 7 task to spot), until prey is in an ideal position.

  • Hypnotic Display: The ambusher can use its action to flash mesmerizing patterns. All creatures within short range who can see it must make an Intellect defense task. Those who fail are stunned, unable to take actions for one round, and feel a compulsion to move closer to the creature.
  • Venomous Bite: The creature’s bite inflicts 5 points of damage. In addition, the victim must succeed on a Might defense task or the venom takes hold. On a failure, the victim immediately descends one step on the damage track. They must repeat this task at the start of their next turn; on another failure, they descend another step. If this would move them below Debilitated, they are instead paralyzed and unable to act for one minute.
  • Poisonous Skin: Any creature that makes physical contact with the ambusher must succeed on a Might defense task or suffer 3 points of ambient damage. This includes being grappled by its tentacles or making an unarmed attack against it.
  • Tentacle Grapple: Instead of inflicting damage, the creature can use its action to grapple a target. A grappled target is hindered (all tasks are modified by one step to their detriment) until they use their action to make a Might-based task to escape. The creature can automatically make a bite attack against a grappled target.

Loot: Its venom sac, poison glands, and chromatophore-rich skin are all valuable components for creating cyphers or artifacts related to poison, paralysis, and stealth.

Pathfinder (2nd Edition)

Chromatic Cave Lurker – Creature 5 Uncommon, Aberration, Amphibious Perception +13; darkvision Skills Acrobatics +13, Athletics +14, Stealth +15 Str +5, Dex +4, Con +3, Int -4, Wis +2, Cha +0

AC 22; Fort +14, Ref +15, Will +11 HP 80; Immunities poison

Poisonous Skin (Aura, Poison) 5 feet. A creature that enters or ends its turn in the aura takes 2d6 poison damage (DC 22 basic Fortitude save). A creature that touches the lurker or hits it with an unarmed Strike takes 2d6 poison damage (DC 22 basic Fortitude save).

Perfect Camouflage The lurker can Hide in aquatic or stony environments even if it doesn’t have cover.

Actions Speed 25 feet, climb 25 feet, swim 35 feet Melee [one-action] Forcipule Bite +15 (Agile), Damage 2d8+8 piercing plus Cave Lurker Venom Melee [one-action] Tentacle +15 (Reach 10 feet), Damage 2d6+8 bludgeoning plus Grab

Hypnotic Display [two-actions] (Concentrate, Enchantment, Incapacitation, Mental, Visual) The lurker flashes mesmerizing patterns. Each creature within a 30-foot emanation must attempt a DC 22 Will save.

  • Critical Success The creature is unaffected and is temporarily immune for 24 hours.
  • Success The creature is unaffected.
  • Failure The creature is fascinated. For 1 minute, whenever it ends its turn, it must move at least 5 feet toward the lurker, if able. This effect ends if the lurker takes any hostile action against the creature.
  • Critical Failure As failure, but the creature is also stunned 1.

Cave Lurker Venom (Injury, Poison) Saving Throw DC 22 Fortitude; Maximum Duration 6 rounds; Stage 1 1d6 poison damage and clumsy 1 (1 round); Stage 2 1d6 poison damage, clumsy 2, and slowed 1 (1 round); Stage 3 2d6 poison damage and paralyzed (1d4 rounds).

Savage Worlds Adventure Edition (SWADE)

Prism Stalker A horrifying amphibious predator that dwells in dark, wet places. It is known for its ability to blend into the background before luring prey with a beautiful light show, only to reveal its monstrous form when it’s too late.

Attributes: Agility d10, Smarts d4(A), Spirit d8, Strength d8, Vigor d10 Skills: Athletics d10, Fighting d10, Notice d8, Stealth d12 Pace: 6; Swim: 8; Parry: 7; Toughness: 9 (2) Edges: Ambidextrous (for its tentacles) Special Abilities:

  • Aquatic: Pace 8 in water, doesn’t drown.
  • Armor +2: Tough, rubbery hide.
  • Camouflage: +4 to Stealth rolls when motionless in its natural habitat.
  • Poisonous Skin: Anyone making a successful unarmed attack against it suffers from its Poison (see below).
  • Tentacles: Can make two Tentacle attacks with no multi-action penalty. The tentacles have Reach 1. Can initiate a Grapple with them.
  • Venomous Bite: Str+d6 damage. A successful hit requires the victim to make a Vigor roll against the creature’s Poison.
  • Hypnotic Display: As an action, can make a Support roll using its Spirit. All who can see it must resist with a Spirit roll. Those who fail are Distracted and Vulnerable. With a raise, they are Stunned.
  • Poison (-2): The creature’s poison (from skin or bite) is potent. On a failed Vigor roll, a victim is Paralyzed (cannot move or take actions) for 1d4 rounds.

Shadowrun (6th Edition)

The Whisper-Lure A highly dangerous subterranean paracritter, the Whisper-Lure has adapted to life in the toxic sludge of forgotten sewer systems and abandoned underground arcologies. It’s a living trap, using a psionically-resonant bioluminescent organ to attract squatters and unwary explorers into its web of nearly invisible, venomous tentacles. Corpsec security teams have learned to treat any unexplained lights in the under-levels with extreme prejudice.

Attributes Body: 7 Agility: 3 Reaction: 4 Strength: 6 Willpower: 5 Logic: 1 Intuition: 4 Charisma: 2 Edge: 2 Essence: 6 Magic: 6

Derived Stats Initiative: 8 (4 + 4) Physical Condition Monitor: 12 Stun Condition Monitor: 11 Defense Rating: 7 Armor: 6

Skills: Unarmed Combat 4, Perception 4 (Touch only), Stealth 6, Exotic Ranged Weapon (Acid Spray) 4

Critter Powers

  • Armor: Rating 6 (Tough Dermis)
  • Blind: The creature is immune to abilities based on sight but uses Perception + Intuition [Touch] to perceive vibrations and contact within 20 meters.
  • Corrosive Spit: The creature’s whip-tail attack is a Ranged Exotic Weapon that uses the Cone template. It has a DV of 6P, AP -3.
  • Engulf: The creature can attempt to swallow a grappled or paralyzed target of Size 3 (Dwarf, Ork) or smaller.
  • Paralyzing Venom: The creature’s tentacles carry a potent toxin.
    • Toxin: Nematocyst Neurotoxin
    • Vector: Contact
    • Speed: 1 Combat Round
    • Penetration: -2
    • Power: 9
    • Effect: Stun damage, Paralysis (victim cannot take any actions).
  • Psionic Lure (Mana): As a Major Action, the creature can activate its lure. Anyone with a view of the lure must make a Willpower + Intuition (3) test. On a failure, they are compelled to move toward the lure for 1 Combat Round per net hit. They will not defend themselves but will not walk into obvious hazards like fire.
  • Tentacle Web: The Whisper-Lure’s lair is filled with its nearly invisible tentacles. Spotting them requires a Perception + Intuition (4) test. Moving through the web without making contact requires an Agility + Stealth (3) test.

Starfinder

Cavern Angler – CR 8 XP 4,800 N Large aberration Init +1; Senses blindsight (vibration) 120 ft.; Perception +16

Defense EAC 20; KAC 22 HP 125 Fort +12; Ref +8; Will +9 Immunities blinded, gaze effects

Offense Speed 20 ft., burrow 20 ft. Melee Bite +19 (2d8+12 P) or Pincer +19 (1d10+12 B plus Grab) Offensive Abilities Luring Song, Tentacle Web

Statistics STR +4; DEX +1; CON +6; INT -4; WIS +2; CHA +0 Skills Athletics +16, Stealth +16

Ecology Environment Underground caves and tunnels on any solid body. Organization Solitary

Special Abilities

  • Burrow: The cavern angler can leave a tunnel behind it when it burrows.
  • Luring Song (Su): As a standard action, the cavern angler can activate its bioluminescent lure. Any creature within 100 feet that can see the lure must succeed at a DC 16 Will save or be fascinated. A fascinated creature will take the most direct and safe route towards the lure. If the path leads into a dangerous area (such as the angler’s Tentacle Web), the creature can attempt a new save. The fascination ends if the creature is attacked. This is a mind-affecting, sense-dependent effect.
  • Tentacle Web (Ex): The cavern angler can fill an area up to a 60-foot radius with its nearly invisible, venomous tentacles. The area is difficult terrain. Any creature that ends its turn in the web must succeed at a DC 16 Fortitude save or become paralyzed for 1d4 rounds.
  • Grab (Ex): If the creature hits with a pincer attack, it can attempt a grapple check as a free action.

Traveller (Mongoose 2nd Edition)

Subterranean Lure-Beast This large, subterranean predator is a significant threat to mining operations and deep-cavern explorers. It is a blind, six-legged creature with a fleshy, star-shaped sensory organ on its face and a bioluminescent lure. It creates a “web” of nearly invisible, highly toxic tentacles in its tunnel network to entrap prey drawn in by its light. Its intelligence is purely instinctual, but its hunting methods are terrifyingly effective.

Str +3, Dex -2, End +3, Int – (Animal), Inst +3 Skills: Melee (natural) 2, Recon 2, Stealth 1 Pace: 4m / 4m burrowing Armor: 3 (Rubbery Hide) Weapons:

  • Pincer (Melee): 2d6+3 damage, Grapple
  • Bite (Melee): 3d6+3 damage
  • Acid Whip (Ranged): 10m range, 2d6 damage, Corrosive

Traits:

  • Blind (Vibration Sense): The creature is immune to visual effects. It can detect any moving creature or object within 50m through vibrations.
  • Burrower (4m/round): Can tunnel through any material softer than rock.
  • Lure: Any character seeing the creature’s light must make an INST (8+) check or feel a strong compulsion to investigate, moving toward the light unless they choose to resist.
  • Tentacle Field: The creature’s lair is a hazard. Any character moving through it must make a DEX (10+) check each round or make contact with a tentacle and be exposed to its Toxin.
  • Toxin (Potent Paralytic): A character exposed to the tentacle venom must make an END (10+) check. On a failure, they are paralyzed for 1d6x10 minutes.

Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay (4th Edition)

Glimmer-Thing of the Deeps A foul and unnatural beast that lurks in the deepest caverns and forgotten under-tunnels of the world. Scholars who have studied the fragmented reports of survivors believe it to be a creature of Chaos, a thing of amalgamated parts that defies natural law. It is blind, yet senses everything. It calls to its victims with a beautiful, silent light, snaring them in near-invisible tendrils dripping with a paralytic venom before dragging them to a maw of needle-like teeth. To see its light is to be tempted, and to be tempted is to be lost.

Characteristic Profile WS: 45 BS: – S: 50 T: 55 I: 35 Ag: 20 Dex: – Int: 10 WP: 60 Fel: –

Skills: Athletics 60, Cool 75, Dodge 30, Intimidate 60, Melee (Brawling) 65, Perception 60, Stealth (Underground) 70 Traits:

  • Armour: 2 (Thick Hide)
  • Afraid (Fire): It fears open flames and will recoil from them.
  • Bite: S+T Bonus+3 damage. Qualities: Vicious.
  • Corruption: Minor
  • Fear: 2
  • Pincers: S+T Bonus+1 damage. Qualities: Grapple.
  • Size: Large
  • Swamp-strider: Ignores penalties for moving through subterranean terrain.
  • Venom: Potent Paralytic. A character exposed must make a Difficult (-10) Endurance Test or gain 3 Paralyzed Conditions.
  • Silent Lure: As a Full Action, the Glimmer-Thing can activate its lure. Anyone who sees it must make a Challenging (+0) Cool Test. If they fail, they gain the Mesmerised Condition and must spend their next turn moving toward the lure.
  • Tentacle Web: The Glimmer-Thing’s lair is considered Dangerous Terrain. At the end of every round a character spends in the lair, they must succeed on an Average (+20) Agility Test or be exposed to the creature’s Venom.