Xenic
| Statistic | Value |
|---|---|
| Size/Type | Medium Aberration |
| Hit Dice | 2d8+4 (13 hp) |
| Initiative | +3 |
| Speed | 40 ft. (8 squares) |
| Armor Class | 15 (+3 Dex, +2 natural), touch 13, flat-footed 12 |
| Base Attack/Grapple | +1/-1 |
| Attack | Claw +4 melee (1d4-2 plus daze) |
| Full Attack | 2 claws +4 melee (1d4-2 plus daze) |
| Space/Reach | 5 ft./5 ft. |
| Special Attacks | Psionics |
| Special Qualities | Darkvision 60 ft., fast healing 2, spell resistance 8, mind sense |
| Saves | Fort +2, Ref +3, Will +4. |
| Abilities | Str 7, Dex 17, Con 14, Int 6, Wis 12, Cha 19 |
| Skills | Climb +3, Hide +4, Listen +2, Move Silently +9, Spot +2 |
| Feats | Weapon Finesse |
| Environent | Cold hills |
| Organization | Solitary, pair, or pack (5–10) |
| Challenge Rating | 2 |
| Treasure | None |
| Alignment | Neutral evil |
| Advancement | 3–6 HD (Medium), 7–10 (Large) |
| Level Adjustment | ― |
Description
This creature is shaped like a giant toadstool, with a wrinkled neck and a bundle of articulated limbs hanging from the underside. The crown is covered by a mottled golden hide. On the front of this crest are a pair of dark, unblinking eyes.
The large, oval head of this creature has a mushroom shape, with a pair of large, piercing black eyes, and a wrinkled neck extending down to a bundle of articulated limbs. The top of the head is a gold hue covered with large brown mottling that changes hue when the xenic is displaying strong emotions. Two triangular protrusions along the sides of the heads serve as cooling mechanisms, each having flapping vents for circulating air. The hide of a xenic is wrinkled and coarse, with a light stubble of bristly protrusions.
These creatures were bred by an ancient, long-extinct alien race to serve as a dangerous hunting animal for sport. The xenic evolved on a world with a thin atmosphere, and can readily tolerate high altitudes that would quickly exhaust a human. While the xenic have powerful minds, they lack the reasoning faculties of a sentient race. Instead their mental abilities are focused on their potent psionic abilities, which are used for hunting their prey.
Despite their predatory nature, the xenic are gregarious creatures similar in nature to wild felines. The female of the species hunt for food in a team while the sluggish but more potent males stay behind to protect their offspring. These creatures typically dwell in a cave or covered area high up a slope where they have an excellent view of the surroundings.
Combat
The xenic possess a limited form of telepathy that allows a pack to silently communicate simple messages over short distances. They work together as a team to close in on a prey, laying a trap that is sprung when one of the xenic advances to panic their target. When the prey approaches the remainder of the pack, their psionic abilities are used to daze and confuse the creature, allowing the killing strike. They are not particularly powerful creatures, and instead rely on speed and agility to bring down prey.
Daze (Sp): When the xenic physically contacts an opponent, it can attempt to cloud the mind of the creature so that it takes no actions. An opponent hit by a xenic's claw attack must succeed on a DC 15 Will save or be dazed for a round. The save DC is Charisma-based.
Psionics (Sp): At will―know direction, message, resistance. 3/day―cause fear (DC 15), feather fall, lesser confusion (DC 15). 1/day―slow (DC 17). Effective caster level 6th. Save DCs are Charisma-based.
Mind Sense (Sp): At will as a standard action, a xenic can detect the presence or absence of thoughts in an area as the detect thoughts spell used for a single round. Equivalent caster level 3rd.
Skills: Xenic have a +4 racial bonus on Climb and Move Silently checks.
Also in this section of the source
Animals
Many of these animals are drawn from past eras, and are suitable for use in a time travel or cliffhanger genre campaign.