Underground Monstrosities

Dire corbies are subterranean predators that resemble humanoid crows with muscular arms and fearsome claws. Though they make their cliff-side homes on the walls of underground chasms, where they climb and leap with death-defying agility, they are most frequently encountered in the tunnels where they wait to ambush prey, leaping down from the ceiling to rend and tear. Dire corbies are intelligent, but have little use for society outside of the rough, squabbling pecking order of their rookeries, where their social order is little better than that of the mundane birds they resemble. Along with the near-suicidal savagery with which they launch themselves into combat, dire corbies are known for their terrifying screeches, songs of doom capable of unsettling even experienced explorers. In addition to being savage predators, dire corbies are also notorious cannibals when it comes to their young, and a mother dire corby must carefully defend her eggs lest a flock of males from the same rookery descend on her nest and devour the unborn children in a flurry of yolk and blood. This ultimately counterproductive tendency only further supports the impression most races have of dire corbies as dangerously unbalanced beings, and may explain why the creatures remain relatively rare. A typical dire corby stands 5 feet tall and weighs between 125 and 150 pounds.

DREAD CORBY
These powerful dire corbies are the offspring of dire corbies and harpies. They have the advanced template and gain the following special attack.
Screech of Doom (Su) Once per day, a dread corby can shriek at a target within 30 feet. The target must make a DC 12 Will save or become frightened for 1d4 rounds. This is a sonic, mind-affecting fear effect. The save DC is Charisma-based.

Despite their monstrous appearances, mongrelmen are generally hardworking and peaceful creatures. A mongrelman can produce offspring with any humanoid, mixing bloodlines in strange ways to create hardier crossbreeds. No two mongrelmen look the same. One may have a face that is half hobgoblin, half lizardfolk, with one human-like foot and one cloven hoof, while his sister may have elven ears, a dwarven beard, orc tusks, and clawed hands. Each mongrelman usually has characteristics from at least a half-dozen different races. This strange mixture enforces mongrelmen’s place in the edges of the world, for they are shunned by all who fear their twisted appearance. Mistaken as enemies by all, mongrelmen prefer to be left alone. Most mongrelmen live deep below the surface of the world in hidden caves far from civilization. These creatures pride themselves on their survival skills, for the bowels of the earth are no place for weaklings. Other foul and intelligent races who claim dominion in the underworld take mongrelmen as slaves (particularly morlocks), finding this deformed race’s docile nature and hardworking attitude makes them extremely useful as tools of labor. In this role, mongrelmen still fall back on their pride of survival, slow to rebel and patiently waiting for the overthrow of their masters. Mongrelmen dwelling on the surface sometimes live amid the hustle and bustle of cities, sequestering themselves in ghettos and sewers to avoid notice. Urban mongrelmen may rely on begging and pickpocketing to get by, but most form rural communities near trading routes. Despite their varied physical forms, most mongrelmen average 5–6 feet tall and weigh between 150 and 250 pounds on average. A tragically short lifespan limits the creatures’ population growth— mongrelmen rarely live past 35 years.

Degenerate humans long lost from the world of light, morlocks have regressed through years of subterranean dwelling into ravenous, barely thinking beasts of the endless night. They no longer remember the civilized lives their ancestors led, although many morlock tribes still dwell in the shattered ruins of their ancient homes. Ironically, in many cases morlocks worship the statues left behind by these ancestors as their gods. Morlock priests of such ancestor worship have access to the domains of Darkness, Earth, Madness, and Strength. A typical morlock stands just over 5 feet tall and weighs roughly 150 pounds. Morlocks move about on two legs at times, but often drop down to a creepy four-limbed shuff le when speed or stealth is necessary. Their wiry, often emaciated frames mask the strength of their limbs and their swift reactions. Morlocks typically give birth to broods of three to four babies at a time, ravenous creatures born with a full set of teeth and a cannibalistic predisposition. The first few weeks of a brood’s life must be carefully mothered to prevent attrition—it usually takes that long for the morlock young to overcome their natural inclination to feed on whatever is closest. Morlocks mature quickly, achieving adulthood after only 5 years of life. A typical morlock can live to a ripe old age of 60—although the majority of their kind die far sooner than that due to violence.

The six-legged albino cave solifugid is well known for its aggressive hunting patterns. It has a legspan of 5 feet, and weighs 100 pounds.

To the serpentfolk, the pursuit of knowledge and magic is the highest goal. Their legends speak of how humanity rose to power only through the theft of serpent magic, a legend that may form the basis of the hatred toward humanity most serpentfolk harbor. They view themselves as the undisputed masters of magic, be it arcane or divine. Yet despite this, the majority of serpentfolk today are degenerates who have devolved to the point of primeval savagery and have lost much of their magical legacy— more civilized serpentfolk generally regard these degenerates with shame and disdain. Serpentfolk are 6 feet tall and weigh 120 pounds. Degenerates are only 5 feet tall but weigh 200 pounds. All serpentfolk are quite long-lived, and generally live to the age of 500.

ADVANCED SERPENTFOLK
When a serpentfolk gains class levels, several of its abilities increase as well, as detailed below.
• Spell Resistance equals total Hit Dice + 10.
• Poison bite save DC equals 10 + Con modifier + 1/2 total Hit Dice.
• When it is 4th level in any class combination, it gains two spell-like abilities usable once per day each: dominate person and major image. When it reaches 9th level in any combination, it gains two more usable once per day each: mass suggestion and teleport.
• A serpentfolk’s racial ability score modifiers are as follows: Str –2, Dex +10, Con +6, Int +8, Wis +4, Cha +6.

DEGENERATE SERPENTFOLK
Degenerate serpentfolk possess the same statistics as normal serpentfolk, save for the following adjustments.
• They have no spell-like abilities.
• They lose the +4 racial bonus on Use Magic Device checks, but gain a +4 racial bonus on Perception checks.
• Their natural armor bonus increases from +3 to +7.
• They have the following ability score modifiers: Str +10, Dex +2, Con +8, Int –6 (minimum 3), Wis +2, Cha –4. A typical degenerate serpentfolk’s ability scores are Str 20, Dex 13, Con 19, Int 4, Wis 13, Cha 6.

Bugganes are a race of blind, hairless giants that dwell deep underground. Distantly related to ogres, bugganes share their surface-dwelling cousins’ appetite for the flesh of sentient beings, and are coldly efficient killers who tenaciously stalk their prey in absolute silence. Bugganes pursue and slay those who trespass into their well-marked territories, carrying their victims back to their lairs where they are unceremoniously consumed by the entire clan. Dull-witted and savage, bugganes disdain the use of even the most primitive weapons and tools. They rely on their tusks and claws, all of which are capable of shredding flesh, bone, and solid rock with equal ease. Their useless, mole-like eyes react painfully to bright light. A typical buggane stands between 8 and 9 feet tall and weighs 900 pounds.

Dark and moody cousins to nymphs, lampads sulk along natural caverns and dank tunnels, their weeping cries echoing through the darkness. These creatures are often found carrying light in caverns and dungeons, drawing creatures to them like moths to flame. Though they prefer the darkness, they know that exposing their forms under bright conditions gives them an edge over creatures viewing them. Just as nymphs guard nature’s purest places and dryads protect their sacred trees, lampads watch over the dark places of the world. They speak to the stone that forms their murky world, and their forlorn cries ring out through the belly of the earth.

Stooped over in a perpetual crouch, cave giants move as if they had never mastered walking erect. Their faces mix the worst features of ogre and feral orc. The largest would measure 10 feet in height if they ever stood straight. The typical cave giant weighs 1,000 pounds. Though few survive past 60 years, cave giants can live as long as 150 years. While they prove remarkably adept with axes of all varieties, cave giants lack the patience to work metal. What metal a cave giant possesses was likely stolen from other giants or worked by enslaved subterranean smiths. Slaves such as dwarves, orcs, and troglodytes do most of the labor in cave giant settlements. Poor treatment and the need for meat keep slave populations small and ever-rotating. New slaves are brought in whenever raiding parties remember to reign in their blood lust. Any prisoners who fail to submit to their new masters find themselves served on the dinner table or tossed screaming into the giant’s cave lizard pens. Giant lizards of all types serve as both guard beasts and sport for the cave giants. Giant frilled lizards are rarely pets, as most cave giants opt to keep less dangerous monitor lizards instead. Kept in check only by fear and brutal beatings, such pets turn on their handlers at the first sign of weakness. At feeding time, live captives are tossed into the pens, a festive event filled with boisterous cheers and spirited betting.

Rock trolls are relatives of normal trolls and ice trolls, but make their lairs far beneath the earth in underground caverns. They rarely venture forth from their subterranean lairs, for they have a weakness unknown in other troll subspecies—the light of the sun turns them to solid stone. Rock trolls have stony skin studded with crystals, but otherwise display typical troll characteristics— hunched posture, long arms, a large underbite, and powerful regenerative abilities. Because of the crystalline nature of their skin, however, rock trolls prove more susceptible to sonic damage than other trolls, but they are able to regenerate even wounds dealt by fire. Rock trolls are larger and stronger than normal trolls, typically standing 15 to 16 feet tall in height, and weighing upward of 1,200 pounds. Rock trolls are fond of humanoid flesh, but eat whatever food they can get their claws on. Most underground creatures go out of their way to avoid rock trolls, as the ravenous creatures will eat anything that passes through their territory, as long as it is at least marginally edible. Rock trolls also occasionally eat rocks and minerals, though such fare seems to do little to soothe their voracious hungers. Instead, these minerals supplement the trolls’ diet, strengthening their skin, teeth, and claws. Deposits of certain crystals seem especially tasty to rock trolls, and a rock troll who finds such a collection will often gorge himself on the crystalline delicacies.

While most giants have the physical features of the type of giant of their immediate ancestors, occasionally a giant gives birth to a child who has physical traits associated with one of the other types of giants. Hill giants are the one type of giant whose traits don’t arise in other giants.

In the distant past, the ancestors of the reclusive kabandha made a bargain with some unknown entity or power to grant their people long lives in exchange for agreeing to serve as wardens of the hidden places of the world, such as the conf luences of ley lines and other sites of mysterious power. Kabandhas have kept this pact through the millennia, and today they serve as tactically minded guardians with great longevity.  The strangest aspect of a muscular kabandha’s appearance is the large face and expressive eye that reside in its barrel-like chest, as the creature lacks a head atop its shoulders. Kabandhas have a variety of complexions, and sometimes grow magnificent moustaches. They tend to dress in open shirts, robes, or armored coats worn with loincloths, trousers, or skirts, and they love to wear numerous bracelets, bracers, and other ornaments on their arms.  Because their lives revolve around stewardship, kabandhas defend their domains violently. Kabandhas live at of very close to their guarded sites, and a family or clan of vigilant kabandhas guards the same area for many generations.  Kabandhas are known for their insatiable appetites, preferring to eat rare but heavily seasoned roasted cuts of meat throughout long, music-f illed feasts. They approach singing as a sort of competition, and prize volume over pitch or melody. Many adventurers who have witnessed a kabandha’s lair report that it smells strongly of cinnamon—a spice that the giants prize above all others.  To reproduce, these giants lay single, rock-like eggs that require great heat to mature. The eggs hatch quickly, releasing young that reach full size within a year. Though a cold environment doesn’t harm their eggs, it does cause the eggs to enter stasis until properly tended.

Underworld dragons, also called futsanglungs, are calculating, greedy creatures that carve great labyrinthine tunnels beneath the world, defending their hidden treasures. Preferring the earth to the heavens, they channel the fires of the world’s core within their twisting, stonelike bodies and through flaming breath hot enough to turn granite into slag.

Tomb giants are an entire race of humanoids who have given themselves over to necromancy, and in so doing have gained sinister powers. These giants are born as the living agents of undeath, and they show great skill in creating all manner of undead creatures—even from their own kind. They prefer enclosed spaces and caverns as lairs and often choose to live in crypts among the bodies of the dead. These giants have no compunction about living among undead, but are circumspect about their own safety and well aware that many undead horrors are hostile to the living. They are a secretive race and go to extraordinary lengths to pursue and capture anyone they catch spying on them; such intruders often end up as raw material for the giants’ creation of further undead. Tomb giants often seek to continue their existence after death by becoming undead themselves, usually seeking transformations into sentient and corporeal monsters like liches, mummies, or vampires.  A tomb giant is 13 feet tall and weighs 1,300 pounds.

Horrific, ravenous creatures that dwell underground but are all too eager to venture forth to the world above, psoglavs terrorize the living and desecrate the dead, all to sate their hunger for flesh. The creatures are a horrible amalgam of different animal and humanoid parts—a one-eyed wolf ’s head with teeth made of iron, a human’s torso with vicious, clawed hands, and elongated horselike legs upon which it walks upright.  These foul monsters have the fearsome reputation for annihilating small villages and clearing out graveyards as they hunt for food. Though they feed on any humanoids they can find, they prefer to hunt humans, whose flesh grants them a dark boon when they eat it. Victims of a psoglav attack may survive the ordeal, but they can suffer the effects of the creature’s cursed bite for months or even years.  Psoglavs prefer to make their lairs in the upper reaches of deep caverns near trade routes or clusters of villages to ensure a steady supply of victims. They prefer lairing in caverns that hold large numbers of gemstones. Whether they are actually attracted to the gems or simply use such treasures as bait is unclear, but psoglavs often collect gems and jewelry from the bodies they dig up, so their lairs may house a great deal of wealth. Some psoglavs even carry valuable trinkets with them; magical rings and jewelry are popular prizes for these creatures, even when the monsters don’t fully comprehend the use of the items in question.  A typical psoglav stands 6 feet tall and weighs 200 pounds.