A massive, highly specialized relative of the lamprey, the coral masher is an enormous fish whose venomous spines make it deadly despite its passivity.
Coral mashers inhabit tropical waters, feeding on coral reefs by pulverizing them with the grinding teeth that line their circular maws. The creature digests the living coral polyps and converts the calcium deposits into the armor-like scales that cover its body. Mashers are gentle by nature but extremely skittish despite their great size. They can rapidly twist their worm-like bodies to bring their long defensive spines to bear; these spines inject their victims with potent venom that quickly eats away at muscles and organs.
Coral mashers usually measure up to 20 feet in length, but older individuals may be 30 feet or longer. Because their diet is so destructive to the ecosystem, mashers are forced to live solitary lifestyles lest they deplete their food source, coming together only to breed once every few years. Some merfolk and locathah tribes revere coral mashers for their great strength and ritually hunt the creatures, claiming spines as trophies.
Coral mashers are considered menaces of coral reefs, due to the destructive effects they have on fish populations. As such, they are hunted once found, with clerics of Talassa frequently overseeing.
Shores of Swords 