Monday, September 14, 2015

Fluttersquee: Terror of the Great Vault

About the size of a melon, this sweet little critter looks like a puffy ball of fur or feathers ranging from neon green to hot pink, with two large eyes, a long prehensile tail ending with three soft feathery protrusions, and butterfly-like wings and antennae. Two short velvety limbs enable the creature to stand, hang from a perch, or hold a small object. It typically feeds on the nectar of very large flowers found high up on certain tropical trees of the Dread Lands, using a retractable proboscis coil about three feet long. Fluttersquees are about as intelligent as house cats, and often behave like them, though they are unable to hunt or fight in any way. When satisfied, they purr. They communicate with squeaks and warbles. Native fellfolk sometimes keep one as a tribal mascot, and say that it can produce a soothing melodious hum.

Fluttersquees can feed on magical objects, which causes them to reproduce. They detect a small enchantment as far as a 100 yards away. Large ones, such as a skyship’s, are sensed from a mile away. To feed on magic, one must be able to touch the source with its proboscis. Without magic, reproduction is comparable to other small critters.

These creatures can drain an item’s minor magic (one hour per +1 magical bonus, or individual magical effects if more than one are present). They can drain a skyship’s enchantments in one hour per point of hull rating. When a flying vessel’s magic has sustained more than 10% loss, it tends to “flicker” at random. Magical detection can easily reveal this symptom. Reduced ship performance and “holes” (drained areas) in a ship’s enchantment start to develop with 20% loss or higher.

Fluttersquees are hermaphroditic. While continually exposed to magic, one lays 1d4 eggs every twelve hours. An egg typically hatches twelve hours later. These creatures hate the scent of a greedlegrim, a small woodland predator. A few drops of their musk, which is odorless to humans and demi-humans, repels Fluttersquees. One application covers about a foot-square and can last 1d4 days when it dries up and loses its potency.

Most military have banned these critters from their fleets, although Calderan smugglers sometimes attempt to trade fluttersquees kept in cages. They can provide wizards with valuable spell components. These creatures do not survive more than a few months in captivity, however, unless cages allow them to fly, such as a large aviary for example. Mongoose-like greedlegrims are hard to keep as they are fast, vicious, venomous, and have a limited teleport ability.

Fluttersquee

Abilities
Chick
Mature
Life Force (%)
½
1
Size (feet)
Very small
Small
Movement:       hopping
flying
40’ (20)
120’ (40’)
90’ (30’)
180’ (60’)
Armor Rating (%)
AR5
AR15
Physical Attacks
None
Physical Damage
Special Abilities
Purr:  acts as a magical charm within a 30’ hearing radius.
If happy: (mature only) melodious hum heals a small amount of damage (VL+1 once/hour) within 30’ hearing radius.
If threatened:  can turn invisible.
If hungry:  can provoke magical lethargy within 30’ radius once per day (negated with a defense roll).
Magic drain:  one +1 magical bonus or HR point per hour.
Defense Rolls
As warrior with comparable LF
Basic Immunities
None
Magic Immunity (%)
Min. Int. & Wis. (%)
28
33
Philosophy/Per.
As a house cat
Morale Rating (%)
MR42
MR58

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