Greelox

Greelox are powerful, spiderlike creatures. In addition to eight spiny, spiderlike legs, greelox have two limbs that function as arms. Their two front legs end in scythelike blades. Greelox are gray and brown, with dull red eyes and black claws and mandibles.

Greelox speak their own language and those of any race that lives within 20 miles of their lairs. In addition, they may speak any other language they hear spoken for one hour or more.

Combat: Greelox attack with two of their spider legs (1d3 points of damage apiece), with their two humanoid arms (2d6 points of damage apiece). and they bite for 2d4 points of damage. They may wield weapons and shields in their humanoid hands, in which case damage is inflicted according to weapon type. The bite of the greelox is poisonous – it injects a variant of type F poison into the wound – and the victim must roll a successful saving throw or die in 1d4 rounds. Even if the saving throw is successful, the victim becomes nauseated for 3d4 rounds, imposing a -2 penalty upon attack rolls and a +1 penalty to Armor Class (due to slowed movement) for the duration of the effects. A victim whose bare flesh comes in contact with a greeox web suffers 1 point damage per round from the acidic coating secreted through the creature’s skin and onto anything it touches. (The acid affects only organic material.)

A greelox may choose to forgo all its attacks for one round and spin webbing equivalent to a web spell cast by a 6th-level wizard. The monster can direct this sticky substance at any target within 90 feet. This may be done once per turn.

Alternatively, in any one round a greelox may forgo any attacks and manipulate the surrounding shadows to achieve a variety of effects, equivalent to a shadow magic spell cast by a 9th-level wizard. The greeöox may also invoke dimension door through shadows at will. Of course, the greelox must have shadows present to perform this feat, but it may travel up to 210 feet in this manner. A greelox may hide in shadows as a thief does, with a 90% chance of success. A +2 or better weapon is required to hit a greelox, and it is immune to all forms of poison and acid.

Habitat/Society: Greelox are solitary creatures on the Prime Material Plane, but they are rumors of greelox cities in the Demiplane of Shadow; massive mazes of webs that take up acres of terrain.

Greelox young are born live and are abandoned soon thereafter. They grow rapidly, reaching full size in one year. Greelox live an average of 50 years.

Ecology: These creatures serve little purpose within the Prime Material Plane, other than to consume wandering vermin and small monsters that wander into their lairs. Dried greelox webbing is useful to wizards in the preparation of oil of acid resistance.