D&D 5E What do Shrieker parts do?

[guachi]

Party kills a Shrieker. One PC wants to take the parts and do something with it. Player asks what he could make with Shrieker parts, or what it tastes like, or what happens when he eats it.

My mind was a blank.

What can you do with Shrieker parts?

Any ideas? Silly or serious - all accepted.

 

[Caliban]

Well, the Shrieker is a plant/fungus. You can use the parts to brew a Shrieker potion (using herbalism) that will cause you to involuntarily emit a Shriek that is audible for 300 feet when startled or injured. The potion remains active in your system for 6 hours, or until triggered. Similar to hiccups, once triggered you will continue to emit a Shriek intermittently for the next minute, then the effect ends. Useful for guards who have trouble staying awake, or ladies walking alone at night.

 

[MNblockhead]

Well, it is a fungus. So, first, is it poisonous to humanoids? If not, it can be food, if so, it can be used to make poisons.

The MM description doesn't give you much info on how it makes the noise, but the picture is in line with other descriptions that describe a mushroom cap with holes and a vocal-chord like membrane. How the air is take in and expelled to make the noice isn't explain, but isn't necessary for determining usefulness of parts. I would think you could take pieces of the cap and blow through them to make a noise.

Maybe you take the whole cap preserve it somehow and connect it to an airbag like a bagpipe. In the hands of a bard, it could be quite the sonic weapon.

 

[steeldragons]

What do you want/need the shrieker "parts" to do?

 

[guachi]

The player wants it to do something interesting. That's really all he's looking for. My problem is my imagination came up with nothing.

 

[77IM]

Shrieker tastes like acidic dirt (imagine dirt mixed with grapefruit juice) but has the texture of a boiled egg. When you eat some, 10 minutes later you must succeed at a DC 10 Constitution saving throw or become poisoned for 1 hour.

This poison isn't very powerful; if refined and concentrated, it's an ingested poison that causes severe vomiting for 5 minutes and then poisoned for 4 hours, unless the victim succeeds on a DC 14 Constitution saving throw. In fact such a concoction is often used medicinally to force vomiting when someone has ingested a more serious poison.

You can extract this poison from a dead shrieker using an herbalism kit or poisoner's kit and spending an hour. At the end of the hour make a DC 10 Intelligence check, adding your kit proficiency bonus, if applicable. On a success, you brew 3d6 doses. On a failure, if you are proficient in the kit you still manage to brew 2d4 doses; otherwise, you get no doses from that shrieker.

 

[77IM]

The player wants it to do something interesting. That's really all he's looking for. My problem is my imagination came up with nothing.

You can always let him just keep the shrieker and come up with a use for it later. Mushrooms should preserve pretty well. After the party slaughters a bunch of shriekers, have him make an Intelligence (Nature or herbalism kit) check. On a result of 15+ he gets one shrieker part per shrieker; on a 5-14, he gets half as many parts (round down). Have him write that down on his character sheet somewhere.

Later, inspiration might strike one of you. Maybe some NPC demands payment in the form of rare fungus. Or maybe one of the PCs wants to craft a minor magic item, maybe a potion of protection against deafness or something. Actually one of the uses of thaumaturgy is to increase the volume of your voice, so maybe a potion of thaumaturgy (vocal volume increase only) would be appropriate. The point is, you don't have to decide now, just harvest the stuff and somebody can figure it out later.

 

[Mecheon]

Quite a few of the larger beasties of the Underdark love Shriekers as a food source, so it'd make servicable bait for them if they wanted to do such. Given the Shrieker's defense mechanism I wouldn't say they're poisonous, as if they were poisonous, well, they'd probably handle enemies a different way from "Shriek very loudly"

Back in 2E their spores could be used for potions of plant control

Failing that, Iron Chef. Today's ingredient?

SHRIEKER

 

[Plaguescarred]

Eating a shrieker may give the Tourette syndrome

 

[seebs]

Party kills a Shrieker. One PC wants to take the parts and do something with it. Player asks what he could make with Shrieker parts, or what it tastes like, or what happens when he eats it.

My mind was a blank.

What can you do with Shrieker parts?

Any ideas? Silly or serious - all accepted.

In Dungeon Master, they were an early food source.