Stone Roper

This creature is a vaguely cone-shaped creature with six tentacles and a large, gaping mouth filled with serrated teeth.

Stone Roper (CR 6)

Medium Aberration
Alignment: Chaotic Evil
Initiative: +6
Senses: Darkvision 60 feet, Low-Light Vision, Tremorsense 200 feet; Perception +12

Speed: 10 feet
Space: 5 feet

Defense

Armor Class: 22, touch 12, flat-footed 20 (+2 Dex, +10 natural)
Hit Points: 39 (6d8+12)
Saving Throws: Fort +4, Ref +4, Will +8
stony hide

Offense

Melee: bite +7 (1d8+4)
Reach: 5 feet (50 feet with strand)
Ranged: 6 strands +7 touch (1d4 Strength)

Special Attacks: Pull (strand, 5 feet), strands, venom pulse

Statistics

Str	Dex	Con	Int	Wis	Cha
17 (+3)	15 (+2)	14 (+2)	12 (+1)	16 (+3)	12 (+1)

Base Attack Bonus: +4
CMB +7
CMD 19 (can't be tripped)

Feats: Improved Initiative, Precise Shot, Weapon Focus (strand)

Skills: Climb +12, Knowledge (dungeoneering) +10, Perception +12, Stealth +11 (+19 in stony or icy areas), Survival +12

• Racial Modifiers: +8 Stealth in stony or icy areas

Languages: Terran, Undercommon

Special Abilities

Stony Hide (Ex)

A stone roper's tough hide renders it immune to damage from nonmagical ranged attacks, save those of unusually large size (such as boulders hurled by a giant).

Strands (Ex)

Most encounters with a stone roper begin when it fires up to six strong, sticky strands up to 50 feet away (no range increment). A roper's attacks with its strands are treated as ranged touch attacks. Strands can be severed by any amount of slashing damage (a strand is AC 20). Once a strand has successfully struck a victim, it remains attached until severed or retracted by the stone roper (which it may do as a free action). Attached strands do no further Strength damage, but the struck individual is subject to the pull effect each round, and is subject to the stone roper's venom pulse ability. A creature that begins its turn attached to a strand is numbed and weakened by the strange material, and for each strand attached must make a DC 15 Fortitude save or take 1d4 points of Strength damage. The save DC is Constitution-based, and poison resistances and immunities apply.

Venom Pulse (Ex)

Twice per day, a stone roper can exude a pulse of venom through all of its attached strands as a free action. A creature attached to a strand must succeed on a DC 15 Fortitude save or be paralyzed (multiple attached strands to not require multiple saves or increase the save DC). A paralyzed creature appears to have been turned to stone (DC 20 Spot check or close inspection reveals that this is in fact not the case). One round after being paralyzed, the victim recovers and must succeed on a DC 15 Will save or act as if under the effects of a charm monster spell for 2d4 minutes. A charmed creature fights for and defends the stone roper. If the stone roper is killed, a charmed victim acts as if under the effects of a confusion spell for 1d6+2 rounds. The save DCs are Constitution-based, and poison resistances and immunities apply.

Ecology

Environment: Underground
Organization: solitary
Treasure: 10% coins; 50% goods (stone only no items (see text)


Stone ropers are distant relatives of the common roper though the two races do not (as far as sages know) associate with one another. Stone ropers are always found underground and never venture forth to the surface world. They have a dislike for sunlight, though it doesn't harm them in any way. Stone ropers are primarily predators, dining on a diet of fresh meat taken from whatever they can find and kill. When food is scarce, stone ropers become scavengers and dine on carrion. Stone ropers are mottled gray and brown like stone and have a rock-like body. Cutting a stone roper open reveals its treasure (inside its gizzard).

Most encounters with a stone roper begin when it fires its strong, sticky strands. A stone roper attacks anything that comes within 50 feet by suddenly shooting out its tentacle strands. It prefers to attack two victims at once, each with three strands. The first two victims struck are affected with its venom pulse. If this succeeds, they are immediately released before they can be affected by the stone roper's Strength damage weakening effect. If the venom fails, the stone roper continues to hold the creatures and the weakness takes effect on the creatures' turn.

A typical stone roper stands 5 feet tall and weighs about 1,000 pounds.

Credit The Stone Roper (Storoper) originally appeared in the First Edition module A3 Assault on the Aerie of the Slave Lords (© TSR/Wizards of the Coast, 1980) and later in the First Edition Monster Manual II (© TSR/Wizards of the Coast, 1983) and is used by permission.

Copyright Notice Author Scott Greene, based on original material by Allen Hammack and Gary Gygax.