Monstrous Manual • Old Empires
| Climate/Terrain: | Subtropical/Desert |
|---|---|
| Frequency: | Very Rare |
| Organization: | Pack |
| Activity Cycle: | Any |
| Diet: | Destruction |
| Intelligence: | Exceptional (15-16) |
| Treasure: | Nil |
| Alignment: | Neutral evil |
| No. Appearing: | 3-18 |
| Armor Class: | -5 |
| Movement: | 12, 18, or 24 (see below) |
| Hit Dice: | 16+16 |
| THAC0: | 5 |
| No. of Attacks: | 2 |
| Damage/Attack: | 2-20/2-20 |
| Special Attacks: | Sandstorm, dispel magic |
| Special Defenses: | +2 or better weapon to hit, immune to slow, acid, fire, lightning |
| Magic Resistance: | 50% |
| Size: | L (10’ tall) |
| Morale: | Fanatic (17-18) |
| XP Value: | 16+16 HD: 16,000 24+24 HD: 24,000 |
Skriaxits, the blackstorms, the living sandstorms, are the most feared creatures in the deserts of the east. When the ancient gods were defeated by those lords of Raurin who would later become the god-kings of Mulhorand, the ancient gods summoned spirits of retribution that destroyed all that had not been demolished in the war. When the god-kings fled Raurin, these spirits took the land as their own domain, with each pack stirring from slumber every century to wreak havoc on all that oppose them.
Skriaxits are powerful and intelligent air elementals that take the sand and dust of the desert and whirl it to create their ten-foot-tall forms. It is as a pack that they create their greatest terror, generating huge winds and a fierce sandstorm that can render a human fleshless in minutes. They speak the tongue of air elementals and their own language, a howling, shrieking tongue that frightens most humans who hear it.
Combat: Skriaxits move by creating a large vortex of wind that propels them at tremendous speed. If there are one to six skriaxits together, their speed is 12; if there are seven to 12 skriaxits, their speed is 18, and if there are 13 or more skriaxit, their speed is 24. The skriaxit vortex creates a sandstorm in a 200-yard radius around them; those caught in this storm suffer 1 point of damage per round per skriaxit (thus if there are 12 skriaxits, those caught in its whirlwind receive 12 points of damage per round).
Within the confines of this sandstorm, the skriaxit group continuously dispels magic, as a 16th-level wizard.
Each skriaxit can form its winds into a razor sharp lash, inflicting 2d10 points of damage on a successful strike.
Though skriaxits were originally summoned from the elemental plane of Air, the Prime Material is now considered to be their home and they cannot be dispelled.
Habitat/Society: Skriaxits are a society of highly intelligent, but extremely evil, air elementals. They feed on causing destruction and terror; once they have caused enough catastrophe, they sleep for 1d3 centuries. While asleep, they have removed themselves from the confines of existence and not even the gods can affect them. They reawaken when hungry. They view humans, demihumans, and humanoids as playthings, with the same sadistic attitude as a human child playing with a fly. They hate nothing and fear nothing; they just delight in destruction. They may amuse themselves by listening to humans bargain with them, but humans have nothing to offer them of interest. The skriaxit pack is ruled by the Great Skriax.
Ecology: Skriaxits are creatures of magic, now considered to be native to the Prime Material plane. They feed on the feelings of superiority they gain by destroying and killing. No known magic is has been able to control them, though they are susceptible to wards against air elementals.
The leader of the skriaxit pack is the Great Skriax. It has 24+24 Hit Dice and attacks with a +4 bonus to all attack and damage rolls. The Great Skriax is considered the most evil of the pack.
