Homebrew A Leveled Up Bestiary

[Faolyn]

Up next is the peltast, and it’s going to be a departure from normal monsters. It’s one of those creatures that honestly feels like it should be an object instead. I could give it full stats, but let’s face it: nobody is going to fight this thing. It has no attacks and isn't capable of speech. There’s no monster use here. And so: the peltast, a living magic item.

This also brings a new entry into the Table of Contents in post #1: Monsters That Should Be Objects. There was one in an earlier issue of Dragon, but it was basically a living computer with infinite hp, so I didn’t feel a need to convert it.

Artist: ?. From MC Appendix II; the art in the Creature Catalog was... not very useful

Peltast
Creature Catalog, Dragon Magazine #89
Created by Ed Greenwood

Wondrous object, very rare (cost 9,000 gp)
Crafting Components: A peltast is a living being and can’t be constructed—although it can, potentially, be bred.

Distantly related to the mimic, a peltast in its natural form looks like a Tiny blob of amorphous leather. They are incapable of taking on as many forms as mimics can and are limited to shapechanging into a Tiny or Small leather object, such as a belt or backpack. In object form, a peltast is indistinguishable from a normal object.

The first time each day a peltast in object form is donned by a humanoid, it attaches to its wearer and bites. The peltast’s saliva injects an anesthetic, making the bite painless and unnoticeable. When first donned, and at the end of each short rest the wearer makes, the wearer must make a DC 10 Constitution saving throw. On a failure, its hit point maximum is reduced by 1 due to blood loss. The wearer dies if this effect reduces its hit point maximum to 0. This reduction lasts until the wearer completes a long rest. Removing the peltast requires no action.

While the peltast is attached, the wearer has advantage on saving throws to avoid being diseased or poisoned and gains an expertise die on saving throws against spells and other magical effects. If the wearer is reduced to 0 hit points, it is reduced to 1 hit point instead. Once this happens, the peltast can’t grant this ability again until it completes a long rest.

Although a detect magic will reveal that there is a magical aura around a peltast, an identify spell won't reveal what it is. A DC 15 Nature check is required, instead.

The peltast is a CR 1/8 Monstrosity has AC 11, 5 (2d4) hit points, and a speed of 10 ft., climb 10 ft. It has darkvision to 30 feet and tremorsense to 30 ft. It is resistant to fire and lightning damage, immune to poison and bludgeoning damage, and to the grappled, poisoned, and prone conditions. It has advantage on saving throws against spells and other magical effects. Its attributes are Strength 6 (-2), Dex 13 (+1), Con 10 (+0), Int 6 (-2), Wis 9 (-1), Cha 6 (-2). It can’t speak or understand any languages.

The peltast exudes waste materials whenever it is immersed in water. This stains and fouls adjacent water within 5 feet of it, making it unpotable, and anyone who drinks the water is poisoned for 10 minutes and suffers from cramps and nausea.

 

[WarDriveWorley]

It looks disappointed in my choices.

 

[Faolyn]

It looks disappointed in my choices.

Actually, now that I think about it, I think it would be voiced by the guy who did Droopy Dog.

 

[Faolyn]

Now the wind steed, also known as the asperii. Did you know that Asperii is a service management company that deals in cloud-based solutions? I just found that out when I did a search on asperii to try to remember which 3e MM they were in. The company’s logo is a horse head in profile with a lightning bolt attached. I get that the name asperii has Latin roots with the word for wind/air (High School Latin was a long time ago, but I still remember a few things), but I can’t find any mythological connection with horses here. What am I missing here!? All of my search results are for this company or this D&D creature. Is this a coincidence, or could it possibly be that this company, established in 2011, was named after a D&D monster first published in 1984? I am so confused. Can anyone shed some light on this?

You know what else I found when I searched “asperii horse”? The stats I created for them back for my college gaming group when I converted them from 2e to 3e, 20~ years ago! I had no idea that tripod pages were still around.

Anyway, I’ve always liked the idea, and while they’re very similar to pegasi (pegases?), I’m converting them anyway. They're elementals, not celestials.

Also, with this monster, I’m done with Creature Catalog I! But Creature Catalog II is coming up soon.

Artist: Roger Raupp

Wind Steed (Asperii)
Creature Catalog, Dragon Magazine #89
Created by Ed Greenwood

Wind steeds, also called asperii, appear to beautiful horses with cloud-colored coats and flowing manes, tails, and feathering on their forelegs that is a silvery gray or platinum white. They lack wings but can gallop through the air with agility and speed that few other creatures can match. They are actually horse-shaped elementals and are nearly as flesh-and-blood as actual horses. These inoffensive creatures gallop through the skies, riding on the winds, and rarely coming close to the ground.

Despite looking and acting like horses, wind steeds are omnivores. They like tender leaves, fish, and the meat of birds of prey. They rarely eat and actually have little need to, but when they get the chance to eat, they positively gorge themselves.

Coveted Mounts. Skittish and shy, wind steeds are also friendly with those who prove to have good intentions. They are even sometimes willing to serve as mounts, at least for short times, provided that the would-be rider is friendly to them. A wind steed fly so smoothly that it’s all but impossible to fall off—and should a rider fall anyway, their innate magic makes those falls harmless.

Telepathic Talkers. Wind steeds communicate primarily through telepathy, although they rarely speak to non-asperii until they’ve earned the steed’s trust by proving their good intentions. Those that manage to do so quickly learn that wind steeds are highly opinionated on just about everything.

Legends and Lore
With an Arcana check, the characters can learn the following:

DC 10. Sometimes thought of as wingless pegasi, wind steeds, also called asperii, are actually elemental creatures.

DC 15. These intelligent creatures are in high demand as mounts. If captured when young, they make for excellent steeds, and their magical nature makes staying mounted, even when flying, remarkably easy.

DC 20. Wind steeds are rarely found on the Material Plane, but when they are, they typically congregate near frozen mountain tops and over vast arctic plains.

Wind Steed Encounters
Terrain: Elemental Air, Mountains, Tundra

CR 0-2 Wind steed

CR 3-4 2 wind steeds

CR 5-10 1 herd noble and 2-3 wind steeds

Behavior
1-2. Soaring overhead.
3. Grazing on mosses and flowers.
4. Playfully teasing a storm giant or silver dragon.
5. Sleeping on a cloud.
6. Diving into a clear, cold pond; when it emerges, it has a fish in its mouth.

Names
Aeolus, Akash, Corentin, Erjon, Sirocco, Zephyr

Wind Steed
Large elemental
Challenge 2 (450 XP)
AC 16
HP 38 (4d10+18; bloodied 19)
Speed 60 ft., fly 120 ft.

STR 18 (+4) DEX 22 (+6) CON 15 (+2)
INT 10 (+0) WIS 14 (+2) CHA 14 (+2)

Proficiency +2
Maneuver DC 16
Skills Acrobatics +8 (aerobatics +1d4), Perception +4
Damage Vulnerabilities fire
Damage Resistances lightning, thunder
Damage Immunities cold
Senses true seeing 60 ft., passive Perception 14
Languages Auran, telepathy 60 ft.
Cloud-Walker. The wind steed can walk and rest on clouds as if they were solid terrain.
Limited Magic Resistance. The wind steed has advantage on saving throws against spells and other magical effects from the Air school of magic.
Magic Eyes. The wind steed can see into the Material Plane, Astral Plane, and Ethereal Plane. Additionally, it is immune to gaze attacks.
One With The Wind. The wind steed can’t be pushed back or knocked prone by wind. Additionally, if the wind steed has the wind at its back, it doubles its fly speed.
Perfect Mount. If a creature knows any maneuvers from the Spirited Steed tradition, that creature’s save DC for those maneuvers increases by 2 while it is mounted on the wind speed. Additionally, the creature has advantage on any saving throw made to avoid being knocked off the wind steed.
Spellcasting (At Will). The wind steed casts feather fall without the need for any components. Its spellcasting ability for this trait is Charisma.

Actions
Hooves. Melee Weapon Attack: +8 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 9 (1d6+6) bludgeoning damage. If the wind steed moves at least 20 feet straight towards the target before the attack, the target makes a DC16 Strength saving throw, falling prone on a failure.

Bonus Actions
Stormburst (1/Day, when Bloodied). The wind steed emits a burst of electricity in a 10-foot radius. Each creature in that area must make a DC 12 Dexterity saving throw, taking 10 (3d6) lightning damage on a failed save or half as much on a successful one.

Reactions
Uncanny Dodge. When an attacker the wind steed can see hits it with an attack, the wind steed halves the attack’s damage against it.

Combat
The wind steed charges at an enemy. If it knocks it foe down, it flies away and charges again on its next turn. Otherwise, it continues to attack with its hooves.

Variant: Herd Noble
When a wind steed reaches a certain age, it becomes a herd noble. Its coloration changes, going from its original pale color to a deep, iridescent nacre with hints of a rainbow of color in their mane, tail, and feathering. Despite their name, they are as likely to be an advisor to the leader of a herd as they are to be the leader themselves.

The herd noble is CR 3 (700 XP). It has 60 (8d10+16; bloodied 30) hit points. The range of its telepathy increases to 90 feet and its Intelligence is 13 (+1) and Charisma is 16 (+3). Its Spellcasting trait has been altered:

Spellcasting. The wind steed’s spellcasting trait is Charisma (spell save DC 13). It can cast the following spells, requiring no components:

At Will: feather fall
3/Day: suggestion

 

[Faolyn]

Greenwood is a juggernaut of monster design, and this article contains a bunch a’ bats. Or, well, bat-like creatures. Several of them are only bat-adjacent, really. The information from these bats was dictated to Ed by Elminster himself, so… none of these bats are sexy high-level ladies so does that mean he is more accurate or less accurate in his descriptions?

Anyhoo, the first of these Pseudomegochiroptera (my term, not Ed’s or Elminster’s) is the sinister-sounding sinister. I’m listing it as a monstrosity, but it’s pretty magical and kind of looks like a flying manta ray which means that it could very well be related to the cloaker, an aberration. Feel free to change it to aberration for your games.

As a side note, I’ve never been quite sure if a winged creature’s size should include their wingspan. The sinister is described as Large and having a 9-foot wingspan. In real life, one of the biggest bats in the world, if not the biggest bat (the golden crowned flying fox) has a wingspan of five feet... but it weighs less than three pounds and its body length is under two feet. I would consider that to be a Tiny creature, not the Medium creature that its wingspan would suggest. D&D and logic are not mixy things, but I decided to bump the formerly-Large sinisters down to Medium.

Since that's a less-than-helpful picture, here's what they looked like in Monsters of Faerûn:

Artist: Michael Kaluta

Sinister
Bats that do more than bite, Dragon Magazine #90
Created by Ed Greenwood

Sinisters resemble flying manta rays but with batlike ears and leathery wings. They are covered in velvety black hide and appear to be skeletally gaunt, and their eyes are a flat, non-reflective purplish-black. They make no vocalizations—unlike true bats, they don’t use echolocation to navigate—and as they fly magically, their wings make no noise when they flap. Sinisters draw their name from their ghoulish appearance, their tendency to watch people in utter silence, and certain alien behaviors they have been observed performing, not from known acts of evil. Sinisters are omnivores, surviving primarily on fruits, nuts, and carrion.

Sinisters are innately magical beings. They are protected by a force field that stops missiles—even magical ones—from reaching it. This field is invisible until a missile pings off of it, at which point it momentarily glows with dark purple light. Th

Music Hath Charms. Curiously, sinisters love music and singing of all sorts. Should they hear music being played, they silently gather to observe and listen. They do nothing but listen, in fact, while hovering quietly in the background, unless attacked first. They are likely to follow a musician for many nights, hoping for a repeat performance. Musicians that are kind and play for them often gain long-term friends. Although the sinisters won’t follow the musician outside their territory and are only active at night, they won’t let harm befall their source of music while they’re awake.

At the Narrator’s decision, a character who critically succeeds on the Busk journey activity while in a location home to sinisters may attract several such protective “fans” for the length of their stay in the region.

Strange Rituals. On occasion, people have spotted groups of exactly seven sinisters engage in a slow, silent, floating dance. As they are otherwise found only alone or in pairs, this grouping is highly unusual for them, and nobody has been able to figure out the dance’s purpose. Some people have reported the discovery of portals leading to the Feywild and Shadowfell after such a dance, but it’s unclear if the sinisters created those portals or if their presence merely heralded the portals’ existence.

Legends and Lore
With a Nature or Arcana check, the characters can learn the following:

DC 10. Sinisters are bat-like creatures that fly magically and in complete silence.

DC 15. Sinisters are surrounded by a magical force field that repels ranged attacks, and they can paralyze creatures with their gaze.

DC 20. Sinisters love music and will loyally follow musicians around, and may even protect them.

Sinister Encounters
Terrain: caverns, Feywild, forests, mountains, ruin, Shadowfell, tomb

CR 3-4 1 sinister

CR 5-10 2 sinisters

Signs
1. Local bards speak of strange, hovering, black things that followed them while in the wilderness.
2. Broken arrows with dented tips. An adventurer knowledgeable about weapon lore or fletching may make a DC 13 Intelligence check to realize that the arrows look as though they’ve struck a solid wall. There are no solid walls in the vicinity.
3. A sensitive adventurer detects the presence of a portal to the Feywild or Shadowfell
4. A flowering tree. The flowers on the tree’s tops have been eaten.

Behavior
1. Hanging upside down from a branch or stone outcropping.
2. Hovering silently in mid-air.
3. Paralyzing a small mammal, then swooping down to kill and eat it.
4. Hunting in the shadows.

Sinister
Medium monstrosity
Challenge 4 (1,100 XP)

AC 14 (natural armor)
HP 61 (10d8+16; bloodied 30)
Speed 10 ft., fly 60 ft. (hover)

STR 18 (+4) DEX 13 (+2) CON 15 (+2)
INT 8 (-1) WIS 14 (+2) CHA 15 (+2)

Proficiency +2
Maneuver DC 12
Skills Perception +4, Stealth +4 (+1d6)
Damage Resistances acid, fire; bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing from ranged attacks
Condition Immunities prone
Senses darkvision 120 ft., passive Perception 14
Languages telepathy 30 ft. (can transmit but not receive emotions and images), understands Common and Undercommon but can’t speak
Flyby. The sinister doesn’t provoke opportunity attacks when it flies out of a creature’s reach.
Magic Field. The sinister is surrounded by a magical field that deflects missiles, whether mundane or magic. Ranged weapon and spell attack rolls made against the sinister are made at disadvantage. This magic field also harmlessly absorbs magic missiles.
Magic Resistance. The sinister has advantage on saving throws against spells and other magical effects.
Sunlight Sensitivity. While in sunlight, the sinister has disadvantage on attack rolls and on Perception checks that rely on sight.

Actions
Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +4 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 7 (2d4+2) piercing damage.

Bonus Actions
Paralyzing Gaze (Gaze). The sinister targets a creature within 30 feet. The target must make a DC 13 Wisdom saving throw or be paralyzed until the end of its next turn. On a successful save, the target is immune to this sinister’s Paralyzing Gaze for 24 hours.
Shadow Stealth. The sinister takes the Hide action even if obscured only by dim light or darkness.

Combat
The sinister attacks from ambush. If it meets substantial resistance, it uses its Paralyzing Gaze and attempts to flee.

 

[Faolyn]

Now we have the hundar, which was spelled hendar in the Forgotten Realms MC Appendix, possibly to differentiate it from the slug-like haundar. It reminds me (in terms of appearance) of this one Cthulhu Mythos monster I can’t remember the name of. I can’t find my dead tree copy of the Malleus Monstrorum to look it up and it doesn’t seem to be in any of my Cthulhu-based pdfs. It was a wormy, horse-headed thing with one wing. Or maybe two wings, but the art only had one wing, IIRC. I don’t think I’m thinking of the shantaks.

Anyhoo. The hundar aren’t really Lovecraftian creatures. They’re just weird looking. And they’re not even remotely bat-like, except for their wings and echolocation.

To back to my mini-rant about wingspans and sizes, the hundar have a wingspan of 14-22 feet.

Since the art from the article was just a bat-like head in profile (and not even of a hammer-headed bat, which is very horse-like in appearance), here's their art from the FR MC Appendix:

Artist: Tom Baxa

Hundar
Bats that do more than bite, Dragon Magazine #90
Created by Ed Greenwood

Sometimes called a “horse-bat,” hundar look very little like either creature. Hundar are nasty-tempered, territorial creatures that resemble tremendous segmented worms with batlike wings and horselike heads and a mane that runs to about midway down their length. Their slimy hide is an iridescent purple-black and their eyes are fiery red. When angered, which they frequently are, hundar snort vapor from their nostrils and emit deep, rumbling roars. Despite their bulbous shape and awkward inchworm movement on land, hundar are surprisingly graceful flyers and swimmers.

Vain and Self-Important. Hundar are egotistical to a degree usually only matched by dragons. They fear almost nothing, viewing most creatures as being weaker then they are. They gladly eat humanoids, finding them superior in taste to “lesser” animals like livestock or wild game. They believe they deserve the best of everything. Although they are rarely willing to risk their lives, should they choose to attack, they fight to the death, as they can’t imagine that any creature smaller than it can pose a threat. Only a few very powerful creatures, such as dragons and aboleths, are enough to make a hundar second-guess its abilities.

Despite their vain natures, hundar rarely put much effort into making their lairs attractive to others. They live in dismal places—ruins, swamps, and moorland crags—and find their surroundings beautiful. In fact, the sheer presence of a hundar makes their surroundings even more dismal. Near a hundar’s lair, the rain and saturated ground seeps uncomfortably into even the most waterproof boots and clothing, clouds rarely part and it drizzles constantly, plants wilt, and water tastes oily and bad. And worse, zombies and other minor undead arise easily in the area. Hundars add to this effect by putting the arms, armor, and tools of their victims on display throughout their territory as both warning and declaration, not caring when they rot or rust away. Hundars are thought to live for hundreds of years, and the longer they remain in an area, the more unpleasant it gets.

Fiercely Territorial. Hundar lead very solitary lives. They allow other hundar near them only while mating, an event that occurs no more often than every thirty years or so. They drive out most other carnivores from their territory, although they tolerate, even welcome, perytons and harpies. These creatures recognize and respect the hundar’s power and get scraps of its food and safety from attackers, and in return, the hundar gets servants and admirers.

Strange Origins. Hundar have an unusual allergy to silver; it’s harmfully corrosive to them in a way rarely seen outside of supernatural creatures such as devils and lycanthropes. While some people believe that hundars are actually extraplanar in origin, there is no evidence to support that.

Legends and Lore
With an Arcana or History check, the characters can learn the following:

DC 10. Also called "bat-horses," hundar are notoriously bad-tempered and incredibly vain. It's possible to flatter one in order to trick it, but a hundar that suspects false flattery will turn violent and vengeful.

DC 15. A hundar’s territory is usually bare of large animals and people, as they greedily eat any humanoid they come across and chase or kill any rival predators.

DC 20. Hundar are vulnerable to both cold and silver. Cold causes their moist skin to crack and bleed while silver poisons them.

Hundar Encounters
Terrain: Grassland, Lake, Ruins, Swamp

CR 5-10 Hundar; hundar with 1-2 harpies or 1 peryton
Treasure: 220 gp, 700 ep, tarnished bronze bowl inscribed with geometric patterns (75 gp); 2 potions of poison, pipes of the sewers.

CR 11-16 Hundar; hundar with 3-4 harpies and 1-2 perytons; hundar with 1-2 zombie hordes.
Treasure: 200 pp, 1,120 gp, mitral band (250 gp), 3 jets (100 gp each), +1 helmet embossed with the insignia of a famed company of soldiers, death’s essence pendant.

Signs
1. A strange lack of major predators aside from harpies and perytons.
2. A trail of crushed, slightly slimy grass.
3. A post to which is tied the rusted and decayed remains of clothing, armor, and weapons.
4. With a DC 13 Perception check, a recently-dug and re-covered pit. Uncovering the pit reveals a cache of tarnished silver coins and objects.

Behavior
1. Gazing lovingly at its own reflection in a mirror or still pond.
2. Attacks on sight.
3. Messily devouring its prey.
4. Preaching to an audience of minions about how great it is.
5. In an aerial battle with young black dragon.
6. Demands surrender and tribute.

Names
Arleth, Bliss, Beauty, Joravaran, Naiardhan, Taddashree

Hundar
Large monstrosity
Challenge 8 (3,900 XP)
AC 16 (natural armor)
HP 133 (14d10+56; bloodied 67)
Speed 30 ft., fly 50 ft., swim 40 ft.

STR 19 (+4) DEX 14 (+2) CON 18 (+4)
INT 10 (+0) WIS 12 (+1) CHA 14 (+2)

Proficiency +3
Maneuver DC 15
Skills Perception +4
Saving Throws Con +7, Cha +5
Damage Vulnerabilities bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing from silvered weapons
Damage Resistances acid, fire
Senses blindsight 120 ft., passive Perception
Languages Common
Cold Vulnerability. If the hundar takes cold damage, then until the end of its next turn, it has disadvantage on attack rolls and saving throws and its speeds are reduced by 20 feet.
Echolocation. The hundar can’t use its blindsight while deafened.
Limited Amphibiousness. The hundar can breathe air and water, but needs to be submerged in water at least once a day for 1 minute to avoid suffocating.
Silver Allergy. If a hundar touches an object made of silver, it takes 3 (1d6) poison damage. If the hundar takes damage from a silvered weapon, it must make a DC 15 Constitution saving throw or be poisoned for 1 minute.

Actions
Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +7 to hit, reach 10 ft., one target. Hit: 15 (2d10+4) piercing damage.
Slam. Melee Weapon Attack: +7 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 13 (2d8+4) bludgeoning damage. If the target is a creature and the hundar moves at least 30 feet towards it before the attack, the target takes an extra 10 (3d6) bludgeoning damage and must make a DC 15 Strength saving throw, falling prone on a failure.
Tail. Melee Weapon Attack: +7 to hit, reach 15 ft., one target. Hit: 13 (2d8+4) bludgeoning damage. Instead of dealing bludgeoning damage, the hundar can grapple the target (escape DC 15), and a Medium or smaller creature grappled in this way is restrained. Until this grapple ends, the hundar can’t use its tail on another creature, and it makes bite attacks with advantage against the grappled target.

Bonus Actions
Opportune Bite. The hundar makes a bite attack against a prone creature.

Reactions
Tail Swipe (1/Day). If a creature within 5 feet hits the hundar with a melee attack, the attacker is battered by the hundar’s tail. The attacker must make a DC 15 Strength saving throw. On a failure, it takes 9 (2d4+4) bludgeoning damage and is pushed 10 feet from the hundar and knocked prone.
If the hundar is grappling a creature in its tail when it makes this attack, the grappled creature must also make a DC 15 Strength saving throw. It takes 9 (2d4+4) bludgeoning damage on a failed save or half as much damage on a successful one.

Combat
Hundar attack by trying to take their opponent out of their preferred element: they slam into aerial foes to knock them out of the sky, grab a land-based creature and pull them underwater to drown them, or pull an aquatic foe out of water and deposit them on land. They do not retreat, even when badly wounded.

 

[JEB]

It reminds me (in terms of appearance) of this one Cthulhu Mythos monster I can’t remember the name of. I can’t find my dead tree copy of the Malleus Monstrorum to look it up and it doesn’t seem to be in any of my Cthulhu-based pdfs. It was a wormy, horse-headed thing with one wing. Or maybe two wings, but the art only had one wing, IIRC. I don’t think I’m thinking of the shantaks.

Likely you're thinking of hunting horrors.

 

[Faolyn]

Likely you're thinking of hunting horrors.

Those are almost certainly it! Thanks!

 

[Faolyn]

The final bat is the azmyth, a tiny and friendly creature that is remarkably suitable as a familiar. They’re described in a way reminiscent of free-tailed bats—so, adorable—but the picture on their page in the Forgotten Realms Wiki shows them looking more like snakes than anything else. I guess the artist heard long tails and bat wings and that’s it. The picture in the article is, once again, a normal bat head in profile.

Taking a few days off so I can hopefully get some writing and art done for my other Level Up book. Then next time, Creature Catalog II!

Azmyth
Bats that do more than bite, Dragon Magazine #90
Created by Ed Greenwood

Azmyth resemble free-tailed bats with soft, pewter-colored fur and paler crests and beards of fur on their heads. Their skin, visible on their ears, long tails, and wings, can be nearly any (muted) color; green and mauve are particularly common. Their eyes are white and pupilless, and their tails are both unusually long and end with a needle-sharp point. Their wingspan is no more than three feet. Azmyth’s are typically friendly and unaggressive unless provoked. Their diet consists of flowers, fruit, and insects. They emit squeaks when alarmed or angry and endearing chuckles when amused.

Solitary Wanderers. Unlike true bats, they don’t travel in bats or have a roost. Instead, they travel in large, circular routes, occasionally returning to favorite spots for a few weeks or months at a time. They often form partnerships with humanoids, especially those who are themselves travelers. These partnerships become fast friendships, and the azmyth—who may live more than a century—may pass their friendship down to their companion’s children

Legends and Lore
With an Arcana or Nature check, the characters can learn the following:

DC 10. Azmyth are tiny, bat-like fey creatures. Their long tail ends in a sharp barb that delivers a nasty electrical shock. Unlike most bats, they rarely travel with their own kind.

DC 15. Azmyth can make for friendly and loyal life-long companions and familiars. They are intelligent but can’t speak, although they can communicate their emotions via a form of telepathy.

DC 20. Known to be wanderers, azmyth travel widely but frequently return to favorite spots. They are mostly solitary but enjoy traveling with humanoids; they seem to enjoy looking at life through a humanoid’s point of view.

Azmyth Encounters
Terrain: caverns, Feywild, forest

CR 0-1 azmyth

Signs
1. A half-eaten fruit; with a DC 15 Nature check, it’s clear that it was eaten by a tiny animal.
2. With a DC 14 Perception check, the sound of chuckling nearby.
3. A loud “ow!” from nearby. On investigation, the party discovers a foraging peasant or goblin who has been shocked by the azmyth after trying to grab it.
4. With a DC 14 Perception check, the sound of bat wings.

Behavior
1. Eating a fruit or flower.
2. Having a telepathic communication with a friendly pseudodragon.
3. Invisibly watching the party and judging their actions.
4. Hanging upside down from a tree branch and sleeping.

Names
Barbadine, Dahlia, Freesia, Fuchsia, Papaya, Yucca

Azmyth
Tiny fey
Challenge 1/4 (50 XP)
AC 12
HP 7 (2d4+2; bloodied 3)
Speed 5 ft., fly 50 ft.

STR 5 (-3) DEX 15 (+2) CON 13 (+1)
INT 12 (+1) WIS 13 (+1) CHA 14 (+2)

Proficiency +2
Maneuver DC 14
Skills Nature +3, Perception +3
Saving Throws Dex +4
Senses blindsight 60 ft., darkvision 60 ft.,
Languages telepathy 30 ft. (can transmit but not receive emotions and images), understands Common and Sylvan but can’t speak
Echolocation. The azmyth can’t use its blindsight while deafened.
Keen Hearing. The azmyth has advantage on Perception checks that rely on hearing.
Familiar. The azmyth can communicate telepathically with its master while they are within 1 mile of each other. When the azmyth is within 10 feet of its master, its master shares its Magic Resistance trait.
Magic Resistance. The azmyth has advantage on saving throws against spells and other magical effects.

Actions
Tail. Melee Weapon Attack: +4 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 1 piercing damage plus 2 (1d4) lightning damage, and if the target is a creature, it must make a DC 11 Constitution saving throw or it can’t take reactions until the start of its next turn.
Know Alignment (3/Day). The azmyth can use its action to examine a creature it can see within 30 feet. It will know that creature’s alignment, if it has one. This trait lasts for 1 minute, and the azmyth can examine a different creature on each of its turns for the duration.

Bonus Actions
Invisibility. The azmyth magically turns invisible, along with any equipment carried. This invisibility ends if the azmyth makes an attack, falls unconscious, or dismisses the effect.

Combat
The azmyth turns invisible and then flees, using its tail to attack only if corner. If fighting alongside an ally, it strikes repeatedly with its Tail attack and turns invisible between attacks.

 

[Faolyn]

Argh! So I suddenly realized that I was being a bad person and not crediting the artists! So I went back and credited as many artists as I could, but I couldn't figure out who did all of the artwork. Dragon was really bad at saying who did what piece in these early days (they got better later), and not all of the images had signatures.

If you recognize any of the artists that I didn't credit, please let me know!