[Actually more related to lacewings and antlions than to either mantids or flies.]
Mantidfly,
Giant This
horse-sized insect has a brightly colored striped body, four wings and two long
clawed forearms.
Giant mantidflies are active
predators of open habitats, using their keen senses and powerful claws to take
down smaller organisms. Unfortunately for humanoids, “smaller” means man-sized,
and mantidflies are not picky about hunting and eating humanoid prey.
Mantidflies chase down prey on foot, as they are somewhat clumsy in the air—a
mantidfly that spots prey from above will swoop down on it but land as soon as
possible to get its footing.
Although mantidfly adults are
generalist predators, their larvae specialize on the eggs of giant spiders.
Mantidfly females lay their eggs in areas where giant spiders are common, and
the grubs actively search out egg sacs, burrow into them and grow fat by consuming
the spiders before they are born. A mantidfly larva uses the stats of a giant
maggot with the advanced simple template, no regurgitate special attack and a +8 racial bonus on all Reflex
saves vs. webs instead of immunity to disease. A mantidfly larva is CR 1.
Giant
Mantidflies as Vermin Companions Starting
Statistics:Size Medium; Speed 40
ft, fly 40 ft. (poor). AC +4 natural
armor; Attack 2 claws (1d6 plus
grab), bite (1d4); Ability Scores
Str 13, Dex 20, Con 15, Int —, Wis 14, Cha 6; Special Qualities darkvision 60 ft., low-light vision
7th-Level
Advancement: Size Large; AC +3 natural armor; Attack 2 claws (1d8 plus grab), bite
(1d6); Ability Scores Str +8, Dex
–2, Con +4; Special Attacks impale
(2d8)
Giant mantidflies are found on Cannehr, where they are rarely tamed by the azkat. They make good companions or mounts for when flight is needed, but their specialized diet keeps their numbers low.
Shores of Swords 