Eolascean Scout
| Statistic | Value |
|---|---|
| Size/Type | Tiny Vermin |
| Hit Dice | 1/4d8+1 (3 hp) |
| Initiative | +3 |
| Speed | 50 ft. (10 squares), climb 20 ft. |
| Armor Class | 17 (+2 size, +4 Dex, +1 natural), touch 15, flat-footed 13 |
| Base Attack/Grapple | +0/-16 |
| Attack | Bite (1d3-4) |
| Full Attack | Bite (1d3-4) |
| Space/Reach | 2-½ ft./0 ft. |
| Special Attacks | Suicide |
| Special Qualities | Darkvision 60 ft., resistance to cold 5, vermin traits |
| Saves | Fort +2, Ref +4, Will +1 |
| Abilities | Str 3, Dex 19, Con 10, Int 8, Wis 12, Cha 2 |
| Skills | Climb +5, Hide +12, Listen +3, Move Silently +5, Search +3, Spot +3 |
| Feats | Alertness, Weapon FinesseB |
| Environment | Cold plains |
| Organization | Solitary |
| Challenge Rating | 1 |
| Treasure | None |
| Alignment | Neutral |
| Advancement | ― |
| Level Adjustment | ― |
Description
An odd-looking tree with a tan, segmented trunk, slender branches, and unusually large leaves, is surrounded by a multitude of insect-like creatures, all continually engaged in furious activity.
The eolasceans appear to be a symbiotic partnership between a tree-like organism and a type of arboreal crustacean. In actuality the tree is the immobilized queen of the colony, while the smaller crustacean males perform all of the duties that require mobility. Thus the crustacean males gather certain nutrients and minerals; defend the queen, and perform the transport of pollen to other eolascean colonies.
The queen tree is covered in a thick, chitinous shell, with the upper half of the body sprouting a radiating bundle of branches and leaf-like energy collectors. On the lower half of the body are several articulated limbs that are used to manipulate the nearby environment. At the base of the queen are clusters of nesting capsules for the crustaceans. These are further enhanced by a complex of reinforced tunnels built around the roots for protection. The queen communicates with the crustaceans through high pitched warbling sounds and various chemical odors.
Combat
The eolascean queen relies on its army of males for defense, sending them against her opponents in a crushing swarm or using specially equipped scouts to perform suicide attacks with implanted explosive devices. During combat, individual males care little for their own safety and will readily sacrifice themselves to protect their queen.
Improved Grab (Ex): To use this ability, an eolascean queen must hit with its claw attack. It can then attempt to start a grapple as a free action without provoking an attack of opportunity. If it wins the grapple check, it establishes a hold and can bite.
Bite (Ex): Attack bonus +20 melee, damage 2d8+4.
Distraction (Ex): Any living creature that begins its turn with an eolascean swarm in its space must succeed on a DC Fortitude save or be nauseated for 1 round. The save DC 18 is Constitution-based.
Suicide (Sp): As a standard action a scout can self-destruct in an explosion of flame as the fireball spell (caster level 5th).
Skills: A eolascean swarms and scouts have a +4 racial bonus on Search checks and a +8 racial bonus on Climb checks.
Eolascean Society
The eolasceans evolved on a low-gravity, mineral-poor world that permitted the development of larger, exoskeleton creatures. Their primordial ancestors were organized in a manner similar to bee colonies, with a single, immense queen supported by an army of workers, warriors, and drones. The eolasceans also evolved a symbiotic relationship with a type of bacteria that can absorb energy from their sun, providing much of the colony's food requirements.
With the development of a technological civilization, the eolasceans created the means for the queen tree to move about with a massive, tracked vehicle. Transmitters are used to increase the communication radius of the crustaceans, allowing the queen tree to interact with large numbers of other eolasceans.
The eolascean queens, however, are very much individualists, and so their civilization was slow to develop. Thus while the eolasceans are now reasonably advanced technologically after many millions of years, they are especially weak in the cooperative social skills needed to progress as rapidly as other species. Instead they have become manufacturers and merchants, trading knowledge and information for goods and services.
There is intense competition between the various eolasceans for any form of useful knowledge, and their economy is based on the values of various pieces of information. Free sharing of useful knowledge is all but unheard of between the eolasceans, and it came as a considerable culture shock to find other intelligent species that worked together in useful harmony.
The eolascean queen tree typically resides in a large, translucent dome, supported by her army of males. Few queens actually bother to travel far in their wheeled vehicles, instead preferring to wait for others to come to them. The queens communicate with each other through an advanced computer network.
When they travel, eolascean queens are typically carried in a massive, tank-like vehicle that provides armor protection for their root ball. These vehicles can carry the entire complement of the queen's crustacean males, and they are equipped with various slug projectors, flamers, and particle beam weapons.