Tetrolimulus

From a body like a strange crab sprouts the torso of a praying mantis, clad in coral-colored crustacean armor. Swaying hypnotically, it rattles razor-sharp claws and raises its long, rapier-like tail stinger.

Tetrolimulus (CR 11)

Large Magical Beast (Aquatic)
Alignment: Neutral Evil
Initiative: +8
Senses: Darkvision 60 feet, Low-Light Vision; Perception +7

Speed: 50 feet, Swim 50 feet
Space: 10 feet

Defense

Armor Class: 27, touch 13, flat-footed 23 (+4 Dex, +14 natural, -1 size)
Hit Points: 147 (14d10+70)
Saving Throws: Fort +16, Ref +13, Will +7
Energy Resistance: cold 10

Offense

Melee: 2 claws +19 (2d6+6/x4), sting +17 (1d6+3 plus poison)
Reach: 10 feet

Special Attacks: poison, Pounce

Statistics

Str	Dex	Con	Int	Wis	Cha
22 (+6)	18 (+4)	21 (+5)	3 (-4)	12 (+1)	9 (-1)

Base Attack Bonus: +14
CMB +21
CMD 35

Feats: Endurance, Great Fortitude, Improved Initiative, Iron Will, Lunge, Multiattack, Run

Skills: Climb +10, Perception +7, Survival +14

Languages:

Special Qualities: Amphibious, shoreline mastery

Special Abilities

Poison (Ex)

• Delivery: Sting-injury
• Fortitude Save: 22
• Frequency: 1/round for 2 rounds
• Initial Effect: staggered 1 round
• Secondary Effect: paralyzed for 1d4 rounds
• Saves: 2 consecutive saves

Shoreline Mastery (Ex)

The multi-limbed nature of the crab half of the tetrolimulus allows it to ignore the effects of uneven or difficult terrain. This does not apply to terrain magically manipulated to impede movement.

Ecology

Environment: Temperate Coasts
Organization: solitary, pair
Treasure: none


A terrifying mix of prehistoric arthropod and heavily armored mantis, the tetrolimulus is the stuff of nightmares for shipwrecked and abandoned mariners. Plated with a spiny crustacean exoskeleton, the upper body of the tetrolimulus is reminiscent of a very robust kind of mantis. Its raptorial forelimbs, folded as if in prayer, flash forward with frightening speed and precision to brutally slice opponents before they have had a chance to act. Captains and mutineers alike are quick to remind their enemies of these deadly claws and the creature's other name, the \"beach guillotine,\" for the brutal justice it exacts on those put ashore for choosing the wrong side in a mutiny. With somewhat less panache, the tetrolimulus is often described as the \"sea-mantis\" because it resembles a crab's strong legs and shell merged with a mantis' powerful arms. Trailing behind is a scorpion's deadly stinger. The creature's durable, spiked shell covers five pairs of blade-like legs that work together to produce remarkable speeds even through challenging terrain. Truly a master of the beaches, the tetrolimulus has caught many mariners off guard with a blazing charge over varied terrain, perforating a noiseless trail through wet sand, then clattering over rocks with the sound of dice thrown across a table.

Its final and most dangerous terror, held upright and waved like a regal scepter in combat, is the tetrolimulus's tail stinger. The stinger is razor sharp along its outer edge, but its neat incisions are nowhere near as dangerous as the poison that coats its blade. Those who succumb to a dose of poison-called tetrodotoxin-are soon to be a meal for the sea-mantis. Muscle spasms and cramps accompany a gradual slowing of movement, hinting at oncoming paralysis and the agony of a neat butchering while still alive for easy consumption. One of nature's cruelest poisons, tetrodotoxin is a popular tool of the Red Mantis assassins, who appreciate both the poison's painful efficacy and the mantis-form of its progenitor.

Ecology

Out of the water, the tetrolimulus adopts an unusual swaying movement of the upper body. Although its purpose is not entirely clear, it is thought that, much like the land-dwelling mantis, the movement enhances the creature's primitive vision and makes picking out prey by its own relative movement easier. It has been suggested that remaining completely still when confronted by a tetrolimulus may prevent detection, but none have been able to confirm the success of this tactic, and there are none who are confident enough of the theory to test it in the field.

Female tetrolimuluses, the hunters of the species, are by far the more aggressive. Rarely seen, males live in deeper waters as bottom feeders, emerging only in the mating season in early spring. At this time for a few days each year, both sexes make great journeys, sometimes of hundreds of miles, to return to ancient coastal breeding grounds. Here dominant and aggressive females meet and mate with the strongest of the smaller and more delicate males. Only a small number of these males get a chance to breed, and an even smaller number survive to return to the oceans. The energy and effort of their travels exhaust the females, and once they've been impregnated, the easiest and closest source of food is the weaker males surrounding them. A fertilized female may even continue to exhibit signs of availability to encourage more males to approach her- not for reproduction, but to satisfy her more immediate hunger.

Young are born at sea, and perhaps as payment for their strength and power later in life, they spend their first few months at the bottom of the food chain. Without the thick shells of maturity, they are easy prey, which contributes a great deal to population control of their species. As their shells thicken and harden, they start to enjoy a less harried existence, and by 6 months old they start to fight back. They reach maturity in 12 to 18 months and can live for up to 50 years.

Tetrolimuluses' behavior is largely instinct-driven, but during the breeding season the normally nomadic creatures will fight viciously to protect the shores of their ancestral breeding grounds. Even male sea-mantises rise to combat, though at sea they more commonly flee than risk confrontation.

Females can be found in the area of the Abendego Gulf, from Mediogalti Island all the way into the Shackles and as far north as the Sodden Lands. Even Rahadoum has seen the occasional tetrolimulus washed ashore to the south, where the creatures are feared as the twisted manifestations of Achaekek, conjured for worship by the Red Mantis and a stark reminder of the folly of religious devotion. There are descriptions of creatures similar to the tetrolimulus to the north, even into the Inner Sea, but these stories are as old and leaky as the ships of the pirates and traders who tell them and no reports of tetrolimuluses along the coast of Cheliax, for example, are younger than two generations.

Much of tetrolimuluses' bulk is armor, and despite their size they can survive on relatively small quantities of food. In perhaps the only mark of intelligence in their species, they try to avoid overfishing, instead roaming over several miles of coastline to balance their Ecology. The majority of their diet is fish and cephalopods, but they are competent trackers and follow hints of habitation on their beaches to devour any coast-dwelling mammals foolish enough to find themselves on the beaches, including humanoids. Like most animals, tetrolimuluses tend to avoid large settlements or areas frequently visited by humans. Remote or inaccessible beaches are the females' preferred habitat, but occasionally a powerful storm rolling out of the Eye of Abendego can toss them on more popular or even populous coastlines. Surprisingly high concentrations of the creatures are found around Mediogalti Island and its outlying cluster. Some suggest this is due to deliberate cultivation by the Red Mantis, thanks to the tetrolimulus's favorable form, but it may simply be because the treacherous waters and hidden coves are perfect for their reclusive lifestyle, and the frequent mutinies, shipwrecks, and foolish adventurers provide a varied and ample diet for the brutal predators.

Tetrodotoxin

While none are stupid enough to actively farm sea-mantises, occasionally the corpse of one is washed up into the more accessible bays on the coasts of the Shackles or Mediogalti Island. Some of the more enterprising residents of Ilizmagorti have developed a method of harvesting the cruel tetrodotoxin poison, from which the tetrolimulus gets its name, for sale to the assassins of the Red Mantis.

A single dose of tetrodotoxin sells for 1,300 gp. Its rarity and potency make it a valuable product, and prices outside the Shackles or Mediogalti Island can be 50-100% higher.

One dose of poison can be harvested from the corpse of a tetrolimulus, provided the lower half of the creature is intact. This requires a DC 25 Survival check, and even those who usually find themselves competent at skinning or gutting creatures struggle with the intricacies of the sharp tail stinger. In harvesting the tetrodotoxin poison, those without the poison use ability are subject to the standard 5% chance of self-poisoning.