Shadowscourge Wyldermite
Small swarm of beasts, Chaotic Neutral
Armor Class: 13 (natural armor)
Hit Points: 45 (10d6 + 10)
Speed: 30 ft., fly 30 ft. (hover)
Challenge Rating: 1/8 (50 XP)
| STR | DEX | CON | INT | WIS | CHA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12 | 16 | 14 | 1 | 10 | 2 |
Saving Throws: Dexterity +5, Constitution +4
Skills: Stealth +7, Survival +2
Damage Vulnerabilities: Radiant damage
Damage Resistances: Bludgeoning, Piercing, and Slashing damage from non-magical attacks
Damage Immunities: none
Condition Immunities: Charmed, Frightened, Paralyzed, Petrified, Poisoned
Senses: Darkvision 60 ft., Tremorsense 30 ft.
Languages: Understands Common but cannot speak
Spellcasting
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Actions & Abilities
Multiattack: The Shadowscourge Wyldermite makes two Swarm Attacks.
Swarm Attack: *Melee Weapon Attack:* +5 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. *Hit:* 2d6 + 2 piercing damage. The damage is split among all targets within a 10-foot radius of the swarm, making it a collective assault on multiple enemies if they are close together.
Flanking Harrier: If two or more Shadowscourge Wyldermites are within 5 feet of a creature they are attacking, the attack gains a +2 bonus to hit due to the confusion created by being surrounded.
Cacophony of Screeches (Recharge 5-6): The swarm releases a harrowing screech that echoes throughout the cavern. Each creature within a 30-foot radius of the Wyldermites must make a DC 12 Wisdom saving throw. On a failed save, a creature becomes frightened until the end of its next turn, unable to move closer to the swarm and disadvantage on ability checks and attacks while frightened.
Evasive Maneuvers: When a Wyldermite swarm takes damage, it can move up to half its speed as a reaction without provoking opportunity attacks. This allows the swarm to reposition itself in the shadows, enhancing its tactical advantage in future turns.
Shrouded Darkness: When the Shadowscourge Wyldermite is in dim light or darkness, it can use its action to create an aura of shadows. For one round, the area within 10 feet becomes heavily obscured. Creatures within this aura have disadvantage on perception checks relying on sight.
Shadow Step (Recharge 5-6): The Wyldermites can dart between the heavy shadows, teleporting to an unoccupied space they can see within 30 feet. This can be used to escape an attack or to attack a new target.
Swarmsplit: Upon dropping to half health, the Shadowscourge Wyldermite can choose to split into two smaller swarms, causing them to reduce their size and effectively increase their mobility and attack options, gaining separate initiative if needed.
Appearance
Emerging from the twilight shadows, the Shadowscourge Wyldermite captures the imagination with its striking yet unsettling presence. This small creature, roughly the size of a rat, takes shape in a dynamic silhouette that hints at both agility and menace. Swarming in a mass, the Wyldermites create an illusion of bulk, resembling a dark, amorphous entity with their synchronized movements.
The exoskeleton of each Wyldermite gleams with a deep obsidian-black hue, interwoven with iridescent greens that glisten like dewdrops under a pale moon. As they shift and dart, the colors dance across their sleek surfaces, enhancing their ghostly allure against a stark white background. The texture is smooth yet marked by subtle ridges, imparting a polished quality that draws the eye and hints at their sinister nature. A fine, oily sheen coats their bodies, allowing them to slip through the dark like whispers in the night.
At the forefront, their grotesque faces feature bright, glowing red eyes that stand out vividly, piercing through the shadows with an illuminating intensity. These eyes radiate a predatory gleam, casting an unsettling gaze that can momentarily distract and disorient their prey. The mandibles, sharp and serrated, drip with a malevolent ichor, underscoring their lethal intent.
Each Wyldermite boasts six long, spindly legs that terminate in razor-sharp claws, built for swift movement and adept navigation across rocky terrains. Their limbs are not merely appendages but instruments of their predatory prowess. With a slight hunch to their posture, they exude an air of unpredictability—quick, fluid, and unusually agile in their scuttling dance.
In moments of frenzied motion, the Wyldermites surge together as one, creating a the cacophony of rustling sounds that echoes with eerie intensity. This collective behavior lends them an almost supernatural aura, as if they are a single entity instead of countless individuals. Their movements convey a calculated precision, an embodiment of their hive mind that enhances their tactical efficiency in both attack and retreat.
A unique and captivating feature emerges: the bioluminescent glow of their eyes leaves a faint trail of light in their wake, while their collective chittering creates a haunting symphony, instilling an instinctual dread in those who dare face them. This amalgamation of darkness and light, predator and prey, resonates throughout the air, crafting a tangible sense of fear as they weave together in an entrancing display of menace and allure.
The Shadowscourge Wyldermite stands as a living testament to the mysteries of the abyss, a chilling spectacle that melds beauty and terror in a captivating dance of shadows and light—forever a haunting whisper from the dark corners of the world.
Tactical Information
Shadowscourge Wyldermite: Behavior and Tactical Overview
1. Behavior in Day-to-Day Life
In the dark recesses of the Obsidian Pit, the Shadowscourge Wyldermites thrive in an environment steeped in brooding shadows and unnatural energies. Their daily existence centers on a singular, primal motivation: survival through terrifying predation. As an amalgamated hive mind, they communicate through rhythmic chitterings and collective movements, forming a seamless, living entity rather than a collection of individuals. During periods of quiet, the Wyldermites can be seen meticulously patrolling their territory, using the jagged terrain to remain unseen while honing their ambush techniques.
In their natural habitat, they exhibit an intense territoriality, marking the edges of their domain with remnants they have collected from previous intruders—bones stripped clean of flesh, glittering trinkets illuminated by their reflective carapaces. They primarily feed on the life force of creatures unfortunate enough to wander into their realm, drawn by the dark energies that pulse within the Pit. Despite their predatory nature, the Wyldermites display a fascinating behavior: when faced with a successful hunt, they engage in a ritualistic dance of sorts, swirling together in a mesmerizing display, their bodies blending as they absorb the remnants of the life force they’ve consumed, further amplifying their bond as a swarm.
2. Combat Behavior
When combat commences, the Shadowscourge Wyldermites take advantage of the environment, exhibiting their quick and tactical instincts. They prefer to ambush unsuspecting intruders, emerging silently from the shadows in a wave, their bodies creating an overwhelming sight of darkness and dread. In the initial moments of combat, their primary goal is to create confusion; they use their Evasive Maneuvers to slip into hidden crevices, attacking from multiple angles to disorient adventurers.
Utilizing their Swarm Attack, they can simultaneously assault multiple targets, focusing on the weakest link within the party; even if they cannot defeat a formidable opponent directly, instilling fear is a crucial strategy. When flanking opportunities arise, they rapidly divide into smaller bands to envelop targets, taking full advantage of the Flanking Harrier bonus to their attack. Their tactic emphasizes swarming behavior, allowing them to withdraw and reposition rapidly when facing concerted retaliation, exploiting their agility to remain a persistent threat.
Should the tide of battle shift unfavorably—or their swarm diminish from heavy attacks—they can utilize the Cacophony of Screeches to inspire fear, attempting to scatter adventurers or temporarily stun them into inaction. If pressed into a corner, the Wyldermites are not above retreating into the shadows, cloaking themselves once more as they regroup or plot another ambush, all while remaining eerily silent in their flight.
3. Roleplay/Narrative Interactions
In non-combat encounters, the Shadowscourge Wyldermites have a chilling presence. Their intelligence, although primal, possesses an instinctual cunning. Should adventurers stumble into their territory, the Wyldermites may initially choose to observe, hiding amidst the shadows and gauging the intentions of the newcomers. If they perceive threat, they may dart in and out of view, communicating among themselves with unsettling chittering sounds to coordinate their positioning.
Attempts at diplomacy are met with silence, as the Wyldermites are incapable of traditional conversation; instead, they express a cold, inscrutable judgment through their movements. Should an adventurer attempt to appease them with offerings—perhaps objects of value or remnants of past prey—the swarm’s interest may shift momentarily, diverging away from outright aggression. Nevertheless, trust is elusive; the wyldermite hive mind is driven by hunger and survival, and any perceived weakness can provoke an immediate swarm attack.
If adventurers are cornering them, the Shadowscourge Wyldermites may attempt to utilize the environment to escape; they scatter into smaller clusters, aiming for darkness and elevation, relying on their innate Evasive Maneuvers to downplay the potential threat. They are not inherently malevolent creatures, but rather protective of their territory and scared by intrusions that disrupt their chaotic, shadow-infused existence.
Overall, the encounter with a Shadowscourge Wyldermite is one steeped in psychological tension; its nature compels it toward predation, yet the intelligence shaping its behaviors reveals an intricate web of survival instincts, exacerbated further by the haunting darkness from which it emerges.
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