Elven Wasp

This large wasp has a sapphire blue body and jet black wings.

Elven Wasp (CR 4)

Medium Vermin
Alignment: Neutral
Initiative: +2
Senses: Darkvision 60 feet; Perception +9

Speed: 20 feet, Fly 60 feet (good)
Space: 5 feet

Defense

Armor Class: 17, touch 12, flat-footed 15 (+2 Dex, +5 natural)
Hit Points: 58 (9d8+18)
Saving Throws: Fort +8, Ref +5, Will +4
Immunity: mind-affecting effects

Offense

Melee: sting +9 (1d6+4 plus poison)
Reach: 5 feet

Statistics

Str	Dex	Con	Int	Wis	Cha
16 (+3)	15 (+2)	14 (+2)	-	12 (+1)	10 (+0)

Base Attack Bonus: +6
CMB +9
CMD 21

Feats:

Skills: Fly +6, Perception +9, Stealth +6

• Racial Modifiers: +8 Perception, +4 Stealth

Languages:

Special Abilities

Poison (Ex)

Sting-injury; save Fortitude DC 18; frequency 1/round for 6 rounds; effect 1d4 Dexterity damage; cure 1 save. The save DC is Constitution-based and includes a +2 racial bonus. Non-elves gain a +2 bonus on their Fortitude saves against an elven wasp's poisonous sting.

Ecology

Environment: Temperate Forests
Organization: solitary, group (2-5), or nest (6-12)
Treasure: incidental


Elven wasps build their lairs deep within the ground in temperate forests, plains, and hills. A rare species is believed to inhabit warm and tropical forests and hills as well. A typical lair is a spiraling tunnel that empties into a large open chamber. The entrance to the lair is usually well-hidden and difficult to locate (Search DC 20). The wasps also build a special incubating nest nearby (usually within 500 feet of the main nest another large spiraling tunnel that empties into a large main chamber. It is in this incubating nest where they store their victims and the female lays her eggs.

Elven wasps are hunters; their favorite food being elves. Though not particularly picky with their elven diet, they prefer surface elves to drow or aquatic elves. Elves that fall prey to these wasps are used not only as food, but also as \"incubators\" for the young. A paralyzed elf is dragged back to the wasp's incubating lair and dropped into the main chamber. While still alive and paralyzed, the elf's abdomen is slit open and the female elven wasp lays a single large egg in the wound. The female then leaves the chamber and seals the entrance.

In a short time the egg hatches and the elven wasp larvae begin devouring the still living elf. After devouring the majority of the elf, the larvae spin cocoons and pupate, hatching several months later as elven wasps—they then dig their way out of the lair and fly off on their own into the world.

Elven wasps are large 6-foot long wasps, though they can grow to be up to 10 feet in length. Females tend to be slightly larger and more aggressive than males. An elven wasp attacks with a vicious stinger that can paralyze its victim. A paralyzed victim, if it's an elf, is dragged back to the wasp's lair where it is used as food and an incubator for the queen's eggs. Non-elf victims are stung to death or left to other predators and scavengers. Some elven wasps, seemingly aware that their paralyzed victims occasionally shake off the effects of their venom, break an elven victim's legs to prevent or hamper any chance a recovered victim has of escaping the lair.