[I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again–fearsome critters are weird. A good number of them have seemingly mechanical parts. Fearsome critters can expand and contract, bear propellers or lassos, spin parts of their bodies 360 degrees, explode and even shoot bullets.]
Tripodero
This bizarre creature resembles a flightless bird with a long neck and a muscular, feathered tail. It turns its tube-like head towards you as if
appraising you, and then ratchets upward as its legs expand like a telescope.
Another native of the dry,
scrubby chapparal, tripoderoes are weird predators with a surprising level of
intelligence. Unlike most uncultured beasts, tripoderoes hunt their prey at
range, firing bullets of clay with remarkable speed and force. Tripoderoes
manufacture these bullets by rolling clay into spheres and drying them in the
sun; it stores a supply of quids in its cheeks for use. Tripoderoes have a
strong numerical sense and can keep track of how many quids they have
remaining—if a tripodero is running low on ammunition, it will flee from combat
and hide. Tripoderoes generally prefer to hunt smaller game than man. Their
jaws are fused into a tube, but its power of suction and expulsion are
incredible. As such, it feeds by attaching its mouth to the open wounds
inflicted by its quids and sucking in all of the prey’s fluids and organs. Due
to the level of precision a tripodero needs to make a seal and the time it
takes for it to ingest its prey, this ability is useless in combat.
Tripoderoes are generally
solitary creatures and defend large stretches of territory. These territories
are only unified by the presence of clay-bearing soil, which the tripodero uses
to make its ammunition. If a tripodero does not have access to clay, it can use
pebbles as bullets, but these are not as well balanced and deal only 1d4 points
of damage. Roperites and tripoderos have similar habitat requirements, and they
compete for prey. Roperites will hunt tripoderoes if they get an opportunity,
but the two creatures are relatively evenly matched. At range, a tripodero can
kill a lone roperite with little difficulty, but a pack of roperites can easily
overwhelm and consume a tripodero.
Tripoderoes are native to the rocky plains of northern Munab, where they frequently conflict with nomadic elves and humans. Their particular abilities are idolized by gunslingers across the Swirling Sea.
Shores of Swords 