Holbag
CLMATE/TERRAIN: Third layer, Alabeth
FREQUENCY: Uncommon
ORGANIZATION: Solitary
ACTIVE TIME: Any
DIET: Aerial "plankton"
INTELLIGENCE: Animal (1)
TREASURE: None
ALIGNMENT: Neutral
NO. APPEARING: 1 (1-3)
ARMOR CLASS: 6
MOVEMENT: Fl2 (5) MCA
HIT DICE: Special
THAC0: 3
NO. OF ATTACKS: 1
DAMAGE/ATTACK: 4-80
SPECIAL ATTACKS: Lightning, ram
SPECIAL DEFENSES: Regeneration
MAGIC RESISTANCE: 5%
SIZE: G (see below)
MORALE: Fearless (20)
XP VALUE: 1,000
Holbags are huge, gas-filled bags that float in the atmosphere of the third layer of Alabeth (refer to the description of that planet for details on layers, etc.). They are somewhat like onions in shape: circular when viewed from above, flattened on top, and tapering to a point beneath. This lower point is tipped with a dozen short tendrils. The largest circumference of the creature - which is just below the flat top - is ringed with 144 slender spines, each of which is equal in length to about one-twentieth the diameter of the holbag.
The size of a holbag is almost unbelievable for a living creature. Mature specimens measure between 3 and 5 miles in diameter, and exceptional specimens up to 10 miles in diameter have been spotted. This means that the equatorial spines are between 750 and 1,350 feet long on an average specimen, and almost 3,000 feet long - more than half a mile - on extreme specimens. The shorter tendrils attached at the creature's lower tip are about half the length of its equatorial spines.
Holbags float slowly about the atmosphere of Alabeth. They are lighter than air because they secrete gas much lighter than air into a huge internal cavity, and then heat it to generate even more lift. In effect, holbags are massive natural dirigibles. Their bodies are thick and muscular, and very rubbery in texture.
The amount of damage that can be absorbed by a typical holbag is absolutely immense. Their muscular walls are a hundred yards or more in thickness, and it would take upwards of 300 hit points - all inflicted on exactly the same spot - to puncture one. Such a puncture will cause the creature to deflate slowly, sinking downwards into the cloud deck below, where it dies. With a single puncture, it will take an average holbag 20 turns to lose enough gas to start to descend. (Since the creatures regenerate rapidly, an enemy would have to work to keep a puncture from closing.)
Holbags have no eyes or optical organs, and operate solely on senses other than sight. They seem to respond to pressure changes caused by large objects - i.e., those over 50' in size - moving nearby, but can also detect large motionless creatures at a range of 500 yards or more. Some sages speculate that the holbags detect the slight electrical fields created by all living things.
Combat: Holbags defend themselves against natural enemies - most importantly, sky scavvers (cf.) - with magical lightning. They can fire a single lightning bolt every 5 rounds. The bolt extends straight outward from anyone of the holbag's equatorial spines, to a maximum range of 500 yards. These bolts always strike their targets, and inflict 4d20 points of damage on impact (save vs. breath weapons for half damage). A holbag can use its lightning against a spelljamming vessel, inflicting 4d2 points of hull damage; the vessel receives a saving throw vs. lightning for half damage. There is no limit to how many times a holbag can fire its lightning. (Note: This damage and range figure reflects an average individual. Exceptionally large holbags might have a maximum range of 750 yards, and inflict up to 8d20 hit points, or 8d2 hull points, of damage.)
Although they move very slowly, adult holbags can do significant damage by ramming a spelljamming vessel. (The creatures don't have precise enough senses to detect any creature smaller than about 50' in length or diameter.) Use the standard rules for ramming and crashes on page 65 of the Concordance of Arcane Space.
Because of their rubbery, muscular structure, holbags cannot be harmed by blunt or bludgeoning weapons (note that this includes blunt rams). Piercing and slashing weapons do normal damage. Holbags are totally immune to lightning; fire- and cold-based attacks do normal damage. Since holbags have no mind in the normal sense of the word, they are immune to charm, illusions and other mind-affecting magic.
Holbags regenerate, at a rate of 2 hit points per round. This means that a puncture will eventually close unless an attacker makes a conscious effort to keep it open.
Habitat/Society: Holbags are usually solitary creatures. Under normal circumstances, adult holbags won't approach within one mile of each other. Every 10,000 standard days or so (about 27 standard years), however, holbags enter their mating season. When this happens, adult holbags "pair up." For several days, pairs of the massive creatures enact great and cumbersome aerial "dances" around each other. Then the two holbags approach each other slowly until the come into contact.
The great equatorial spines of each creature sink into the flesh of the other, and they remain locked together like this for as many as 50 standard days. During this period, the creatures' senses are extremely sensitive, and they can detect the approach of a possible enemy at almost twice the normal range. If anything is foolish enough to approach two mating holbags, both of the great creatures will attack the interloper with their lightning bolts. Bonded holbags can each fire a lightning bolt only every 10 rounds (1 turn), but these bolts have double range and inflict double damage. After about 50 standard days, the two holbags separate, and return to their standard behavior (i.e., never approaching within one mile of each other). Five hundred days later, one of the holbags gives birth to an immature creature. (Sages have found no way of predicting which individual in a mated pair will actually give birth to the offspring.) The offspring emerges from an orifice at the lower tip of the mature creature.
Immature Holbags: At birth, a holbag is tiny compared to its parent: no more than 250 yards across. In appearance it resembles its "parent": the relationships between diameter and spine length are the same as with adults. Immature holbags are considerably faster fliers than their parents: a movement rate of 5 rather than 2.
Immature holbags are much less resilient than their parents. A newly-born holbag can sustain only 25 hit points or so inflicted in the same spot before it is punctured. The young creatures regenerate at the same rate as their parents, however.
A young holbag can fire lightning bolts, but only to a range of about 75 to 100 yards. These bolts inflict only 1d20 hit points of damage, or 1d2 hull points, on a target (save for half damage).
Immature holbags grow slowly, taking about one mating cycle - 10,000 standard days - to reach full size and maturity. While it's young and undersized, a holbag will usually stay close to its parent, often snuggling up right against it, so the "baby's" equatorial spines are sunk into the flesh of its parent.
Unlike the adults, which seem totally insensitive to pain, immature holbags react strongly to pain, particularly heat. They will move rapidly away from a strong source of heat. The elves who dwell atop the mature holbags will often use this characteristic to control immature specimens. A group of elves will climb aboard a young holbag, and then will apply heat - usually magically-created - to the margin of the creature directly opposite to the direction the elves want to go. The holbag will move to avoid the heat, allowing the elves to control its movements.
Ecology: Holbags subsist entirely on the "aerial plankton"
that drifts down from the second layer of Alabeth. They absorb these microscopic creatures through pores in their great bodies, and through the orifice in their undersides. The holbags have only one significant natural enemy: sky scavvers (described below). These monstrous creatures risk the damaging attacks of the holbags' lightning to dart in and rip huge mouthfuls of flesh from the floating gas bags. These attacks rarely puncture, let alone kill, an adult holbag. Although sky scavvers will attack mature holbags - often to their detriment - they prefer to harry the small, immature specimens. When these smaller creatures stray too far from their parents, they are relatively easy targets for the "sky sharks." Sky scavvers seem to understand instinctively about the young creatures' response of moving away from a source of pain. Thus the sky sharks will always make their first attack on a young holbag on the side closest to the creature's parent. In response to the pain of the attack, the young holbag will move further from the protection of its parent, lessening the risk of a lethal attack from the mature holbag. This technique is very effective, and the mortality rate for young holbags is high - approaching 95%. Holbags are extremely long-lived. An average specimen might live through 20 mating cycles - 200,000 standard days, or almost 550 standard years - and exceptional specimens have been said to be considerably older than this. The population of holbags on Alabeth seems to be remaining roughly constant.
Holbags seem totally unaware - or at least unconcerned that their topsides are home to Alabeth elves and other creatures. The relationship between these smaller creatures and the holbags is pure commensalism: the elves and others receive benefits, while the holbags receive neither benefit nor detriment from the relationship.
