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Swarm of Brine-Skitterers - AI-generated fantasy Monster

Swarm of Brine-Skitterers

Coastal nomads call them the Salt Teeth. Many travelers have survived a fight with a desert lion only to be paralyzed and slowly consumed by the skitterers that arrived to clean up the mess.

Monsters
Medium swarm · Medium · Common

Swarm of Brine-Skitterers

A carpet of salt-encrusted scavenger crabs with venomous scorpion tails that emerge from coastal salt flats to feast on wounded prey.
AC12
HP36/36
CRMedium
Init
STR
DEX
CON
INT
WIS
CHA
ConditionsNone

Combat

AC 12 · HP 36 · Medium

Swarm of Brine-Skitterers

Medium swarm (tiny beasts), unaligned
Armor Class12 (natural armor)
Hit Points36 (8d8)
Speed
20 ft. walk,
20 ft. swim,
5 ft. burrow (salt or sand only)
STR
DEX
CON
INT
WIS
CHA
Saving ThrowsDexterity
SkillsStealthPerception
Damage Resistances
Bludgeoning,
Piercing,
Slashing
Immunities
Condition: Charmed,
Condition: Frightened,
Condition: Grappled,
Condition: Paralyzed,
Condition: Petrified,
Condition: Prone,
Condition: Restrained,
Condition: Stunned
Weaknesses
Fresh Water (Dousing the swarm with 1 gallon of fresh water deals 1d4 acid damage)
Senses
Blindsight 10 ft.,
Passive Perception 12
Languages
None
ChallengeMedium
Swarm. The swarm can occupy another creature's space and vice versa, and the swarm can move through any opening large enough for a Tiny crab. The swarm can't regain hit points or gain temporary hit points.
Blood Scent. The swarm has advantage on Wisdom (Perception) checks to locate any creature that does not have all its hit points.
Salt Camouflage. While the swarm remains motionless in salt flats or sandy terrain, it is indistinguishable from the surrounding environment.

Actions

Bites and Stings. Melee Weapon Attack: to hit, reach 0 ft., one creature in the swarm's space. Hit: 10 () piercing damage, or 5 () piercing damage if the swarm has half of its hit points or fewer. The target must make a Constitution saving throw or be Poisoned for 1 minute. While poisoned in this way, the creature's speed is halved. The creature can repeat the saving throw at the end of each of its turns, ending the effect on a success.

Reactions

Hunker Down. When the swarm takes damage from a weapon attack, it can hunker its individual members into their shells, gaining a bonus to AC against that attack.
Role
Area Hazard / Nuisance
Built for
2

Notes for the game master

Resistant to most physical damage but susceptible to Area of Effect spells.
The poison is a cumulative fatigue effect more than a deadly toxin.
The 0 ft. reach requires the swarm to be in the target's space.

Tactics

  1. Opening

    The swarm waits until a creature is distracted or bleeding, then moves into its space using its burrow speed to emerge from beneath the feet.

  2. Mid-fight

    Focuses on the creature with the lowest current HP. It stays within a target's space to force them to attack themselves or their allies if they use melee.

  3. End of the fight

    If the target is poisoned and slowed, the swarm continues to bite until the target falls or the swarm is reduced to 5 HP.

  4. Retreat

    If the swarm is reduced below 5 HP, the remaining crabs scatter into the salt crust, becoming impossible to track.

How it fights

Attack in numbers: multiple swarms may converge on one target.
Use the salt crust: hide and use Readied actions to strike when a character stops to rest.
Target legs: the goal is to slow the target so the larger predators or the rest of the swarm can finish them.

Who it attacks first

Wounded creatures
Creatures already poisoned
Small or Tiny creatures (easier to consume)

Works well with

Works well with Giant Scorpions or Sand Sharks which do the initial wounding.
The slowed condition makes it harder for players to escape other environmental hazards like rising tides.

How to beat it

Area of effect spells (Burning Hands, Sleep).
Fresh water can be used as a makeshift weapon.
High AC armor (plate mail) prevents many of the smaller bites from connecting.

Ways to avoid a fight

Bribing the swarm with a fresh piece of meat to allow passage.
Using a high Wisdom (Survival) check to spot the disturbances in the salt before stepping into them.

Ecology

A roiling mass of fist-sized, pale-colored crabs. Each creature has a thick, calcified shell that looks like a chunk of salt and a long, curved tail ending in a black, glistening stinger. Their many legs create a constant, rhythmic clicking sound against the hard-packed earth.

Behavior

Brine-skitterers remain dormant under salt crusts or sandy dunes for weeks. They are hypersensitive to the scent of ichor and blood, surging forth in a wave once a predator makes a kill or a traveler is wounded. They focus on overwhelming victims with dozens of small, paralytic stings.

How it lives

They serve as cleaners of the coastline, stripping carcasses to the bone in minutes. Their presence often indicates a larger predator is nearby, as the skitterers follow the scent of the predator's leftovers.

Lair

They do not keep traditional lairs, instead settling anywhere with high mineral content and proximity to game trails.

Habitat
Temperate coastlines, salt flats, desert fringes, and tropical jungle perimeters.

Signs that it is near

Pockmarked salt crusts
White calcified shells bleached by the sun
Rhythmic clicking sounds coming from underground
Bleached white skeletons stripped of all meat

Tags

Scavenger,
Venomous,
Coastal,
Desert

Lore

Coastal nomads call them the Salt Teeth. Many travelers have survived a fight with a desert lion only to be paralyzed and slowly consumed by the skitterers that arrived to clean up the mess.

What drives it

Consumption of organic matter and salt acquisition.

After the fight

Once the swarm is defeated, the area remains quiet, but the scent of blood will likely attract another swarm within the hour.

Variants

Jungle Skitterer: Higher climb speed, mossy shell (Green Camouflage).
Deep-Sea Skitterer: Blue shells, causes 1d4 cold damage on hits.

Hooks

Plot hooks

A local salt merchant has stopped deliveries because the salt flats have become 'alive' with clicking terrors.
The party needs the venom of a Brine-skitterer to create an antidote for a coastal prince.
An eccentric chef offers a high price for a 'bucket of the salt-tail crabs' for a rare delicacy.

How to use it

As an environmental hazard during a desert crossing.
As a secondary threat that arrives 1d4 rounds after a main combat begins.
To guard a saltwater oasis or coastal cave.

Treasure

The calcified shells can be ground into a fine, high-quality salt (worth 5 gp per swarm defeated).
Occasionally, undigested jewelry from previous victims can be found in the area.

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