Hit Dice: 12d10+60 (126/126 hp) bzw. (126/126 hp)
Speed: 30 ft. (6 squares)
Spoiler (Anzeigen)Base Attack/Grapple: +12/+28
Attack: Claw +18 melee (2d6+8) or barb +11 ranged (1d4 plus poison)
Full Attack: 2 claws +18 melee (2d6+8) or barb +11 ranged (1d4 plus poison)
Space/Reach: 15 ft./15 ft.
Special Attacks: Bite 1d6+4, improved grab, poison
Special Qualities: Adhesive, darkvision 60 ft., low-light vision, spiny defense
Saves: Fort +13, Ref +9, Will +4
Abilities: Str 26, Dex 13, Con 20, Int 5, Wis 10, Cha 9
Skills: Hide +1*, Spot +7
Feats: Awesome Blow, Improved Bull Rush, Point Blank Shot, Power Attack, Precise Shot
Environment: Warm aquatic
Organization: Solitary
Challenge Rating: 8
Treasure: No coins; no goods; standard items
Alignment: Usually neutral
Advancement: 13-18 HD (Huge); 19-36 HD (Gargantuan)
Level Adjustment: --
What looked at first like a mound of corpses and discarded armament now shifts and moves, eight legs and two massive claws emerging from beneath it. Four eyes on stalks snake out from above the claws.
The carcass crab is a warped mutation of natural life found in the Mournland, and occasionally in Valenar and Darguun. Though essentially a giant crustacean, it augments its natural armor by attaching the detritus of battle -- bits of armor, weapons, and bodies -- to its hard shell with a natural adhesive. This provides both protection and camouflage in the wasted battlefields of the Mournland, the creature's preferred hunting ground.
Combat
Carcass crabs are hardly brilliant or subtle opponents. They make minimal use of their camouflage to get close to potential prey, then try to grab one opponent and scurry off to make a meal of it. It can also hurl poisonous barbs at targets out of claw's reach.
Bite (Ex): A carcass crab can make a bite attack (attack bonus +13) when it is grappling an opponent, in addition to making a single attack with a claw. This bite attack is not subject to the usual -4 penalty for attacking with a natural weapon in a grapple. The crab must begin its turn grappling to use its bite -- it can't begin a grapple and bite in the same turn.
Improved Grab (Ex): To use this ability, the carcass crab must hit with a claw attack.
Poison (Ex): Barb -- Injury, Fortitude DC 21, initial and secondary damage 1d6 Dex. The save is Constitution-based.
Adhesive (Ex): A carcass crab uses a natural adhesive to attach pieces of armor, weapons, and whole corpses to its shell. Typically, this grants the crab an armor bonus of +6 to its AC, equivalent to banded mail, but it is possible to find crabs with better or worse protection. A crab suffers no armor check penalty from this protection.
Spiny Defense (Ex): A carcass crab's shell is covered with sharp spines that protrude from between attached metal and bodies. Combined with spears and swords affixed to its shell, these spines offer the crab some protection against attacks. A creature that hits a carcass crab with natural weapons or unarmed attacks takes 1d6 points of piercing damage.
Skills: *In areas where heaps of corpses and discarded weapons and armor are common, including the Mournland, carcass crabs gain a +8 circumstance bonus on Hide checks
.
