There - a new slimy creature pulled out of the sleeve. Together with working on this eighth creature I have started some effort in spreading the word about this blog. There are now enough critters here so that any visitor can judge the place, and see if it is worthwhile following. I want to express my sincere thanks to Puple Pawn, Hero Press, and Greywulf's Lair for writing about it. Perhaps it has been mentioned elsewhere, but those are the places I know about. Okay, so any suggestions on the next creature? Perhaps somebody would like to purpose a category or direction? What kind or creatures do you miss, so far? Anything bothersome or annoying about what I’ve so far created? Your opinions are very welcome here, as I hope you will welcome the Mellion Trollfrog.
CATEGORY: Amphibian (Plant)
TERRAIN: Deciduous forests, jungles, marshes, and stale waters
AGGRESSION: Normal to high
SIZE: 4 feet (120cm), without the weed
MENTAL RESILIENCE: 1-3
(If stats of a human ranges from 3 to 18)
SPEED: Running x 1, Swimming x 3
(Multiple is times human speed)
MAGIC POWER: 0
(Ranges from 0-100)
HIT POINTS: 3-10
(If a human commoner has about 11 hit points)
BACK LEGS: 2
FRONT LEGS: 2
(If Full Plate Armour is 10)
The Trollfrog has a slippery, elastic skin that gives it a little protection. The areas covered (usually back and head) by the weed are tougher. The weed parasite can’t be killed in itself, since it is part of the genetic code of the host creature. If carved off it will grow back again.
1 BITE: 1-6
2 SLAPS: 1-3
(If a Long Sword makes a damage of 1-8)
The only potent natural weapon of the Trollfrog is its jaws. The Trollfrog tends to rely heavily on electrical powers when attacked by larger and armed creatures.
ELECTRIC CHARGE: The Trollfrog can send out electrical charges at will. These do 4-12 points of damage to all within three feet (90 cm) of the creature. When injured a Trollfrog lets go of such a charge automatically as a means of defence. A fully charged frog can manage 9 such charges before it needs refilling in the form of lightning, or other strong electrical sources.
LIGHTNING BOLT: When desirable the Trollfrog can discharge the electricity in the form of a bolt. The bolt travels up to 20 yards (18 meters) and does 8-24 points of damage. One bolt drains the same amount of power as three normal charges.
In some of the still and murky waters of the world, a weed grows that is like no other. Dark and leathery it can live for eons, lying in wait for a suitable life form on which to sponge upon. When that happens it ensnares it, and smothers it. In a very short time it probes and finds an entryway into the body. Once inside it starts to change the host in a remarkable fashion. Through biochemical substances it takes control, and the host creature is resurrected. Every cell goes through transformation, and within a few hours a new life form is born. This genetic combination works much like the ensnared creature, but is now governed and kept alive by the sea-weed.
Strengthened by a host the weeds attract the lightning of thunder. They can store electrical power, deliver electrical charges, and shoot minor bolts of lightning. Through electricity the host is kept animated and strong, even when the brain and organs are weakened by the parasite. The weed doesn’t kill its host, but makes sure it eats for two, so that the weed can grow and that the creature can mate.
This parasitic transformation affects DNA, and the offspring of the victim is born with a weed parasite inside of them. The weed attacks a number of different creatures, but has been most successful with what was once the Mellion Frog, now called Trollfrog. The original species is extinct and only the Trollfrog remain. Once a year the Trollfrogs shed parts of the parasites in a suitable watery area, so that the parasite can spread. The weed favours sponging upon land-living creatures, which enables it to multiply over wider areas. It does attack humans, but unless dazed, drowning, or otherwise weakened, fully grown humans have little problems disentangling themselves before the weed manages to smother them. Luckily, human beings rarely swim in the murky waters preferred by the seaweed.
The Mellion Trollfrog can be found mainly in leafy forested areas and big marshlands, but may roam over greater areas to find new waters for their leathery masters. They become ecstatic and join in great numbers in storms of lightning and thunder. Their intelligence is like that of a smart dog, and they move about semi-erect on land, leaping now and then to avoid obstacles, and when attacking prey. They eat mainly smaller creatures, like hares, squirrels, badgers, snakes, etc. But when in greater numbers the can attack elks, bears and other larger creatures. In some cases Trollfrogs have been known to catch victims alive, only to sink them down into the waters where the dark seaweed grows. They give off a deep bellowing sound when agitated, and they have a constantly crazed look upon their faces, as if in great pain or in a violent madness.
In the winter the Mellion Trollfrogs rest upon the bottom of lakes and deep marshes. They go, like many other frogs, into a hibernating state, and stay so until springtime. They lay eggs in the early summer, but unlike normal sized frogs, the eggs of a Trollfrog are only five-fifteen in number. The tadpoles, which are about four inches (10 cm) at birth, can already unleash discouraging electrical charges, and are thereby safe from most predators. Unluckily, some dark guilds of man have discovered that eating only small pieces of the flesh of such a tadpole (before they reach full frog state) makes the consumer vulnerable to the weed infection. Thus infected the consumer normally dies, but in some cases the cells are transformed correctly, and the weed starts to grow out of the victim’s flesh. A being transformed in such a manner looses all will and is “zombified” by the weed parasite. In this case the full transformation takes about three weeks. If there are cures or not is up to the Game Master.
The slimy skin and electrical properties of the Trollfrogs make them extremely hard to catch, and attacking them with weapons of steel can send strong electrical charges up the arm of the attacker. A Trollfrog can live for 200 years. They reach adulthood in 10 years, and male and female differ little from each other. The colours of their skin tend to darken in the autumn, and reach their most vivid at midsummer. Trollfrogs are constantly hungry, and very active as long as the temperature stays above freezing. The creatures can hold their breath for up to twenty minutes.
© Copyright 2010 - Nicholas Cloister