1Mac's Woebegone
The Woebegone
A sad, loathsome creature waddles before you. With scales like a lizard’s, tufts of fur on its underside, and a muzzle like a rodent’s, it evokes nothing but pity and a twinge of disgust.
Woebegone
CR 2
XP 600
N Small animal
Init +2; Senses: Low light vision, scent; Perception +4
DEFENSES
AC 14, touch 13, flat-footed 12 (+2 Dex, +1 natural, +1 size)
hp: 17 (3d8+3)
Fort +4, Ref +5, Will +1
OFFENSE
Speed: 30 ft., burrow 10 ft.
Melee: bite +4 (1d3-1), 2 claw +4 (1d2-1, plus poison)
STATISTICS
Str 8, Dex 15, Con 13, Int 2, Wis 10, Cha 12
Base Atk +2; CMB +0; CMD 12
Feats: Weapon Finesse, Ability Focus (poison)
Skills: Climb +3, Perception +4, Stealth +10
SPECIAL ABILITIES
Poison (Ex)
Claw—injury; save Fort DC 13; frequency 1/min for 6 minutes; effect 1d2 Constitution damage and sickened; cure 1 save. The save DC is Constitution-based.
Pitiful (Ex)
The woebegone is so pitiful that few want to attack it without provokation. Anyone within 30 ft of the woebegone takes a -4 penalty to attack it, and the woebegone gets a +4 bonus to any save against any effect that targets it directly. A character can make a DC 11 Will save once per day to reduce this penalty/bonus to -2/+2 (this save is Charisma based). If the woebegone attacks before any character, the woebegone loses the benefits of this ability against anyone that sees it attack.
ECOLOGY
Environment warm desert or plains
Organization solitary
Treasure none
Naturalists puzzle over the origins of the woebegone. It seems in some ways like a desert rodent, with its sharp incisors, whiskered snout, and furry underside. In others it seems like a lizard or other reptile, with its scaley hide and venomous claws. In still others it is like a bird, as it lays birdlike eggs and emits a squawk when threatened not unlike a goose or other waterfowl. These bizarre features have led to various nicknames like “nature’s mix-up” or “evolution’s cul-de-sac.”
HOOKS
A new discovery: An explorer from the desert territories is showcasing the remains of a news species, but a skeptical public scoffs and dismisses it as a fraud. Will the PCs be able to bring back a live specimen and salvage the explorer’s reputation?
Save the woebegones!: It is believed that the woebegone’s venom can be used as a cureall. An eccentric lover of wildlife doesn’t believe it, and wants the PCs help in disproving it, to save the helpless animal from being overhunted.
