Lurker Above

What looks at first like a stalactite unfurls into a shape like a manta ray, sailing silently downward with his rasp-like mouth wide.

Lurker Above (CR 7)

Huge Aberration
Alignment: Neutral
Initiative: +5
Senses: Blindsense 10 feet, Darkvision 60 feet, Scent; Perception +5

Speed: 10 feet, Climb 5 feet, Fly 40 feet (poor)
Space: 15 feet

Defense

Armor Class: 19, touch 9, flat-footed 18 (+1 Dex, +10 natural, -2 size)
Hit Points: 85 (10d8+40)
Saving Throws: Fort +7, Ref +4, Will +9
Amorphous
Damage Reduction: 10/piercing or slashing
Energy Resistance: cold 10, fire 10
Weaknesses: light sensitivity

Offense

Melee: slam +15 (3d6+15 plus Grab)
Reach: 10 feet

Special Attacks: Constrict (3d6+15), Smother

Statistics

Str	Dex	Con	Int	Wis	Cha
30 (+10)	12 (+1)	19 (+4)	2 (-4)	15 (+2)	9 (-1)

Base Attack Bonus: +7
CMB +19 (+23 Grapple)
CMD 30 (can't be tripped)

Feats: Blind-Fight, Combat Reflexes, Improved Initiative, Skill Focus (Perception), Skill Focus (Stealth)

Skills: Climb +18, Fly +1, Perception +5, Stealth +8 (+16 in rocky areas)

• Racial Modifiers: +4 Stealth (+12 in rocky areas)

Languages:

Special Abilities

Smother (Ex)

When a lurker above grapples a target, it forms an airtight seal around its prey. A grappled target cannot speak or cast spells with verbal components, and must hold its breath (see Suffocation, Pathfinder RPG Core Rulebook 445).

Ecology

Environment: Any Underground
Organization: solitary
Treasure: standard


Lurkers above are the nearly mindless males of the species, and follow much the same tactics as executioner's hoods, save that they gain the ability to stretch themselves wide, glide with both speed and silence, and can even fly by awkwardly flapping their flesh.

They typically hide on cavern ceilings, shifting their coloration and texture to match the surrounding terrain. Like all lurking rays, lurkers above are carnivorous, preferring the tang of living flesh-though they can subsist for a time on the minerals they absorb from rocky surfaces through their tentacles.

Males are less able to subsist on minerals, however, and hence hunt more actively. While lurkers above are poor fliers, they're excellent gliders, able drop off a ceiling and silently float more than 100 feet horizontally over the course of a 5- or 6-foot drop.

Lurkers above can grow to be 15 feet from tip to tip, and weigh nearly 500 pounds when fully fed.