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Legacy of the Dragons
Bone Viper Small Magical Beast Hit Dice: 3d10+3 (19 hp), dying/dead –2/–13 Initiative: +2 Speed: 30 feet AC: 16 (+1 size, +2 Dexterity, +2 natural, +1 dodge), touch 14, flat-footed 13 Base Attack/Grapple: +3/–1 Attack: Bite +3 melee (1d6 plus poison) Full Attack: Bite +3 melee (1d6 plus poison) Space/Reach: 5 feet/5 feet (Face/Reach: 5 feet by 5 feet/5 feet) Special Attacks: Eyes of the serpent, poison Special Qualities: Darkvision 60 feet, low-light vision, spawn egg bearer Saves: Fort +4, Ref +5, Will +2 Abilities: Str 10, Dex 15, Con 13, Int 6, Wis 12, Cha 14 Skills: Hide +9, Wilderness Survival +4 Feats: Combat Reflexes, Defensive, Skill Focus (Sneak) Environment: Warm plains and forests Organization: Solitary, pair, or nest (4–16) Challenge Rating: 2 Treasure: Standard Advancement: 4–6 HD (Medium) Level Adjustment: +3 Nearly 3 feet long, this serpent has bright emerald scales and black eyes that gleam with a feral intelligence. Nestled beneath its forked tongue is a sharp, hollow, bony stinger that it uses to seize control of its victim’s nervous system, allowing it to roost within its prey’s body and incubate its spawn. Bone vipers have an affinity for magic, particularly spells that control other creatures. A bone viper can drill its stinger into the brain of a captured or recently slain victim, turning it into a mindless slave. Bone vipers dwell within the throats of these captives and lay their eggs within their viscera. Using its control over the victim’s nervous system, a bone viper can direct its slave to perform tasks such as gathering food or erecting a crude shelter. The viper-infested victim can even pass itself off as a living, free-willed individual, though usually only for a short time. After 2d4 weeks, the viper’s eggs hatch. The newborn snakes devour the body and burst forth in search of more food, leading many bone vipers to gather stockpiles of food as their eggs draw near to hatching. Bone vipers rarely target humanoids with their attacks, since such creatures are much more dangerous prey than wild animals. In dangerous, monster-infested regions, bone vipers tend to be more aggressive toward travelers. In those situations, the relative safety of a humanoid host compensates for the danger involved in claiming one. While bone vipers have low Intelligence scores, they can speak Common in rasping, lisping tones. They can be reasoned with, and sometimes they may agree to leave a victim’s
body if they are promised a different suitable creature to nest within. Unscrupulous folk sometimes keep these creatures as pets and guardians. They capture rivals and opponents, allow the viper to nest within them, and then work with the snake to meet their goals.
Combat Bone vipers typically attack from ambush, using their small size to sneak up on a lone target before unleashing their gaze attack. They are clever enough to approach small groups or lone travelers, often striking at night to claim a guard while his companions sleep. After claiming a victim, the serpent usually directs its host to gather food and supplies before fleeing from contact with its former companions. While the serpent can hide its nature for a short time, its low intelligence and poor grasp of social norms eventually lead to its exposure. Eyes of the Serpent (Su): Once per round as a free action, a bone viper can use a gaze attack to lull an opponent into a trancelike state. The victim of this attack must make a Will save (DC 12) or be stunned for 1d4 rounds. This is a mind-affecting effect. If a magical effect or a mirror is used to reflect the viper’s gaze back at it, it must succeed on a save to resist its own attack. The save DC is Charisma based. Poison (Ex): Injury, Fortitude save DC 13, initial damage paralysis for 1d4 minutes, secondary damage paralysis for 1d6 hours Spawn Egg Bearer (Ex): A bone viper can crawl into a paralyzed victim if it can spend 10 undisturbed minutes with it. At the end of this period, the victim receives the bone viper egg bearer template (see below).
Bone Viper Egg Bearer Template A creature that succumbs to a bone viper’s attacks becomes the viper’s puppet, an unwilling participant in its natural life cycle.
Creating an Egg Bearer “Bone viper egg bearer” is an acquired template that one can add to any animal, giant, humanoid, or magical beast of Medium size or larger. The egg bearer uses the base creature’s statistics except as noted below. A recently dead creature can also gain this template if the viper burrows into it within five minutes of the creature’s death. Speed: The bone viper has an imperfect control over its victim’s motor skills, giving it a slightly jerky motion as it moves. Reduce the speed for all the creature’s movement modes by 5 feet. Special Attacks and Qualities: A bone viper can use its victim’s natural abilities and many of its magical ones. The egg bearer uses its extraordinary (Ex) and supernatural (Su) abilities, but it loses all spell-like (Sp) abilities. In addition, it gains the following abilities. Eyes of the Serpent (Su): The viper’s connection with its host allows it to channel its magical ability through the
