The Unearthed Apocrypha critter competition Im hosting is still open for more submitals. Just to clarify GMs, these entries dont have to be just monsters and xenos, they can be specific encounters, individuals, situations, traps, mutants or even diseases/poisons and so forth as long as it fits at least 2+ pages of 12 point single space font and has some art (your own or not) and/or maps/handouts.

The goal of the UA Encounters Manual is not to replace the Creatures Anathema but to be a web release done side by side with the Creatures Anathema. Currently the award is a copy of DotDG. I now most of you will already have a copy, but hey, an extra copy isnt too bad and is a ebay object at the least LOL.

Head Spider

Description:
This Daemon manifests itself in the sleeping bodies of willing cultists, those driven insane by exposure to the Warp, or unfortunates overwhelmed with despair.

Once possessed, the host's body takes on a series of changes:

Until destroyed, the soul of the possessed body is trapped there, fully conscious of the experience and has to witness whatever terrors the Head Spider decides to inflict upon world.

Attributes:
Although Head Spiders can possess any living body, they prefer human hosts.

Either way, the Daemon's chosen body will retain all of its Characteristics Skills, Talents and special abilities, but with the following adjustments:

Warp Vomit
As an attack Action (half), the Head Spider may vomit out a powerful stream of putrid ooze which reeks of vomit, fecal matter and rotting vegetation.

This attack has a range of 10 meters. It will automatically hit the target's face unless they spend a reaction to Dodge.

If the Warp Vomit attack is used in Melee combat, it counts as having the Fast quality (target gets -10 to Dodge or Parry).

The effects are: 1d5+2 Wounds (which may be reduced by Armor on the Head location only) and the target must make a Toughness test or be poisoned; which causes the target to lose 2d10 Toughness points (which may be healed at the normal rate). The target is also blinded for 2d5 rounds. If they had a mask or protective eye gear, then this blindness only lasts one round (spent wiping the muck from the PC's mask or visor).

Head Detach
If a critical hit is scored against any location of the host's body (except for the head), the Head Spider will detach itself as a half action, leaving the dead body behind.

Any targets witnessing this horrific act must take a Fear (2) test.

While detached, the Head Spider may continue to use its Warp Vomit ability, but otherwise cannot attack.

In this state, the Head Spider counts as a Puny Target (-20 to shoot at it), gains the Dodge skill at +10, the Concealment skill at +20, the Crawler Trait (no penalty for difficult terrain), and can move up walls and ceilings. It's Agility counts as being 40.

A successful hit that wounds a Head Spider will kill it instantly, thus it will usually attempt to flee and hide immediately.

A detached Head Spider that has lost its host body can attempt to attach itself to a new one. The target must be sleeping during the procedure. It will sit on the host's existing head and drain out its Willpower at a rate of 1 point per round. If the target's Willpower is reduced to zero in this fashion, then the possession is complete: the Daemon will use its vomit to melt the host's real head and insert itself into the neck. Once this occurs, the Head Spider takes on a likeness of the host—but the similarity ends there: the Head Spider can only speak in the Dark Tongue of Daemons, which is a dead giveaway.

The Opera Stinger

Homeworld: A feudal world named Adazzia with a climate, flora and fauna equal to brazil

The Opera Stinger is a hornet like insect with wings like a dragonfly and a body twice the size of an adult man´s middle finger. They do not build nests like other insects. Instead, huge amounts of eggs are spread by the females all around. From the eggs comes a small larva that spends it time with feeding on plants untill it pupates after three or four month. Most of the larva fall prey to other creatures, but some make it through.

Out of the puppet hatches a full grown Opera Stinger. The Opera Stinger lives of other insects, carcass and even small creatures like mice. If it feels threathend, it attacks viciously. The sting of the insect is both painfull and slightly venomous. Most creatures shy away from an opera stinger.

The name of the creature hails from its communication. In the mating season, it seems to "sing" certain tones and notes, like a singer would sing certain tones to prepare for the opera. Males and females seek each other out "singing". In some instances "mating swarms" of this strange creatures gather, filling the air with their pheromones, trying to choose a perfect mating partner. This swams can last for a couple of days, since the mating & spreading of the eggs is the last part of their life cycle.

Anyone foolish enough to follow the "music" to a mating swarm is in for trouble, since he will be attack a good score of aggressive opera stingers. [NO STATS GIVEN!]

The natives found out, that their is one way to "calm" an opera stinger. The creatures will pacify if a "perfect C" is sung near them (a challeging test for "performer: singer"). On the home world of this creatures a caste of "maiden singers" has evolved to accompany traveling nobles. Both to enterain them and to protect them of the attacks of an opera stinger should one be encountered while travelling.

Besides, a lot of nobles across the sector have become found of the Adazzia Opera , a huge sealed and climated dome emulating a beautifull (and harmless) spot of the jungle on Adazzia. The dome is very high (about eight or twelve meters) with a very tight knitted net separating the lower 3 meters from the upper dome. The upper dome is home to carefull groomed swarm of opera stingers. Certain tailoring of the environment can manipulate the swarm into "mating season" which offers the nobles a very special opera event every three or four month... and a very special form of punishment, since the angry tunes of a swarm of opera stingers unleashed on a naked victim is a music all on its own.

On such a occasion the net is connected to the ground, forming a cone with 5 meter wide bottom. The subject of punishment will be lowered through an opening of the dome while a strong blowing air ventilation system will prevent the stinger from escaping through this opening. While the subject is lowered, the already enraged swam will follow it to the ground, where the noble and his entourage can watch and listen as spectators from their side of the net.

STATS MIGHT FOLLOW OR NOT

cool, I will add these to the entries.

For those wondering how judging goes, I am not the judge. My group will look over these and a vote will be cast.

One of my players requested I go ahead and add character creation/modifications to this, such as new alternate career ranks or background packages. Same rules apply however for size and spacing and font and number of pages, so you might mix 2 or 3 related together in one entry.

Peacekeeper_b said:

Please do NOT add mine "as an entry". You are free to use it, but I do not like to enter any competition. Thank you

Gregorius21778 said:

As you wish

You can use mine! Heh heh.

Although I think that it could use a re-write and a bit of editing. I'm not certain that everything is clear.

Not sure if it fits the current format, but here's a repost from a previous thread.

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WARP-RAT (version 2.0)

The eyeless bipedal creatures known as Warp-Rats are similar to the common rodent species they are named after only in their characteristic teeth, matted fur and proportions. They plague ships through-out the entirety of the Calixis Sector and beyond and are known to be carnivorous and territorial.

They wouldn't be considered a matter of relevance for the Inquisition if it wasn't for their innate psychic abilities, a product of generations exposed to the warp, and the exponential growth of their psychic powers and apparent intelligence when concentrated in numbers. These traits require constant vigilance and a quelling of their numbers. Inquisitorial agents have uncovered reports of these creatures controlling the minds of crew members in rituals of self-flagellation and sacrifice. Navis folklore even goes as far as claim entire ships to have disappeared in the Warp after being taken over by the hive-mind of these unnatural beings.

In small numbers, they are not particularly dangerous, feeding off other lesser creatures and protecting their breeding grounds. The profile below is that of an individual Warp-Rat.

WS 28
BS --
S 24
T 41
Ag 28
Int 17
Per 42
WP 27
Fel 10

Movement: 2/4/6/8 Wounds: 3
Skills: Awareness +10, Climb +10, Psynisciense, Silent Move +10
Traits : Acid Blood, Bestial, Blind, Puny, Unnatural Sense (30m)

Weapons: Acid Blood*;
Threat Rating: Xenos Minima

*If a Warp-Rat grabs hold of a target, it'll open sores on its own flesh, allowing for the acid blood to seep into its victim. Every turn that it remains attached will result in the loss of one armor protection in the area, and, eventually, 1d5+4 E damage each turn after the acid has spread and eaten through the armour. This is in addition to the normal effects of the Acid Blood trait presented on page 28 of the Gamemaster's Kit for Dark Heresy.

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Mostly, however, Warp-Rats attack in packs and attempt to outnumber opponents. Given their size and proximity to each other, a group of Warp-Rats can be treated as a single entity for the purpose of combat:

WS 30-50T
BS --
S 25-45T
T 42-62T
Ag 28
Int 17
Per 42
WP 25-45T
Fel 10

Movement: 2/4/6/8 Wounds: 3+T
Skills: Awareness +10, Climb +10, Psynisciense, Silent Move +10
Traits: Acid Blood, Blind, Disperse**, Fear 0/0/1/2, Puny(3)/Scrawny(4-10)/Average(11-20)/Hulking(20+), Unnatural Senses (30m).

The traits separated by a slash are dependent on the number of present Warp-Rats, Fear progresses in the same guideline numbered on the size traits.

Weapons: Acid Blood (as above);
Threat Rating: Xenos Majoris

**The creature can choose, as a full action, to disperse itself in a number of lesser creatures equal to its remaining wound levels. This happens automatically if it fails any Willpower Test or takes more than half its health levels in wounds from a single attack.

T:The number of Warp-Rats influence these stats. Add one to each of these stats for every Warp-Rat in the pack, up to the limit marked. As pack animals, they lend each other strength and resilience, but that only goes so far, except when it comes down to wound points, which swell to the number of Warp-Rats present. Remember to reduce the stats as the pack receives damage.


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THE WARP-RAT HOST
As Warp-Rats grow in number, their hive develops a collective consciousness, whose presence is distributed through every member of the hive and is the true source of their psychic powers. Warp-Rats are hermaphrodites and deposit eggs inside the hollowed out meat of bigger creatures, which may not be necessarily be dead for that to happen. In fact, more evolved hives seem to favour live hosts, this is the main objective of the hive-mind.

The Warp-Rat Host is capable of exerting its psychic might through (and over) any of the creatures as long as they are within a radius of Psy Rating^2 Kilometers of the hive grounds. It's still limited by the number of actions one can normally take each turn, though it may use more than one psychic power if those are reactions, free actions or half-actions, in this case, however, the Host is only allowed one free action. Psychic Phenomena are centered on the Warp-Rat that has been used as a channel.

The Host is centered upon the Hive, which is an area specially prepared as a breeding ground and always contains at least half of its Warp-Rats. This area presents a frailty in the fabric of space and is considered to be always under the effects of the Weaken Veil psychic power (Corebook, page 168), it covers an area as large as a single percentage of the influence radius of the Host and can be sensed by any character in this radius with a challenging Psyniscience test. Warp-Rats are terribly territorial against their own kind, and Hosts actively work against each other to disrupt their dominance. This, along with their carniverous needs and the requirement for fresh-meat to lay their eggs, prevents Warp-Rats from dominating the darkness between the stars.

A Hive may never be established planetside due to its connection to the Warp. Should a ship containing a Warp Host ever reach planetside the Warp-Rats will disperse and lose all but their most atavistic connections.

Use the following stats for the Warp-Rat-Host-Hive-Mind.

WS -
BS -
S -
T -
Ag -
Per 50
Int 42
WP 45
Fel 31

Skills: Awareness +10, Forbidden Lore (Warp), Scholastic Lore (Occult), Scrutiny, Search, Speak Language (Ship Dialect), Psyniscience +20.
Traits: Psy Rating (special).

The Host grows in power with each member, following the progression below. The numbers before the dash are the minimum benchmark for each rating:

Warp Rats / Psy Rating
27 /I
81 /II
243 /III
729 /IV
2187 /V
6561 /VI
19683 /VII
59049 /VIII
177147 /IX
531441 /X

The effects of Psy Rating VII + mirror those of Psy Rating IV-VI. Warp-Hosts tend to favour powers from the Telepathy Discipline, though circunstances may dictate other needs for the hive-mind. Each degree of Psy Rating beyond the first adds 5 to each of the Host's present attributes and provides it with two skills/talents. The creatures belonging to the Host develop a new skill/talent at each level (or improve an existing skill) and gain a single mutation.

Here comes my secound, the "Raubtyr"

The Raubtyr is similiar in build to our earth comodo varan, but about 3,50 meters long from nosetipp to the end of the 1m wide torso & a 1,5m strong and muscular tail. It´s head is huge and eyeless and sports wide, gaping maw with double-raws of sharp, shark-like teeth. While it looks a lot like a reptile, it is not.

The creature is quadrubed and each of its leg is strong&thick, ending in a three "fingered" hand-like manipulater with incredible strong suckers, allowing it to cling to most surfaces. The legs are in additon double-jointed, and is has no "soft underside". In fact, it seems to have no problem "re-orientating" it´s "up/down" position. The leathery hide is able to adapt colour to match it´s surrounding and it´s prefered method of hunting is lurking in a high position, waiting for suitable prey. Althoug cable of moving up&down on vertical surface, it can´t "cling" to them for a longer period of time due to its own body weight.

If prey shows up, the Raubtyr jumps or drops on its victim and tries to kill it with bites to the neck or the belly while grappling. Once the kill is done, the Raubtyr dislocks its jaws and swallows the prey whole. Afterward, it returns to a lair (mostly a high spot), vomits the prey out again and starts feeding. Since the Raubtyr is comparable slow and sluggish once it gorged a bigger (man sized) victim, it tends to attack large prey only when the prey is encountered alone (by instinct). A suitable hungry Raubtyr will (never the less) attack small groups of prey, trying to maim one of them (attacks to the legs) and scare away the rest with vicious bite attacks. While not the apex predator on its world, the Raubtyr does not seem to fear creatures up to its own size. It neither showed fear to gun/las fire, but tended to shy away from flames (but not to the extend of panic). Once seriously wounded (more then 10 wounds) it is likely to try and flee (70%), unless it is cornered. If cornered (or not fleeing) it will enter a death frenzy (like Frenzy Talent).

Stats for the Raubtyr

WS: 54 BS:- S:62 T:53 AG:50(10) INT:18 PER:43 WP:35 FEL:-

Wounds: 20 Armour: 3(Prim//Very Tough Skin) Dmg: 1w10+6 Pen:2 (Prim/Impaling//Bite); 1w10+3 (Prim/Impact// Lashing Tail)

Traits: Bestial, Quadruped; Unnatural Agility; Unnatural Senses (12m); Natural Weapons (see above); Natural Armour(see above); Massiv&Slow*; Hulking; Fear(1); Chameleon*; Gorging*

Skills: Awareness, Silent Move, Tracking, Concealment, Dodge

Talents: Sprint

Chameleon: The creature gains a +20 bonus on all concealment checks
Massiv&Slow: Due to its massive size, the creature only beneftis from "Quadruped" in speed calculation for a number of rounds equal to it´s TB+1w5. This reflects its ability to go for a short sprint, but over a long distance it loses speed.
Gorging: The creature can (and will) swallow prey up to "normal" size whole. After doing so, it´s Agility and Weapon Skill is halved and it loses its "unnatural agility". It takes 2 to 3 rounds to swallow prey and another 2 to 3 rounds to "vomit it out" again.

The creature in combat:
If it is able to ambush it´s victim, it will drop/jump on it and start to grabble. While grappling, it gets a normal attack with its bite. If it grapples its victim successfully, it will achieve automatic success on bite attacks against the head/neck of the victim.

If facing more then one opponent, the creature will not try to grapple. Instead, it will attack with biting while being able to attack with it´s tail against attackers from behind (-20 to WS). It will try dodge attacks by roling("tumbling") sideways, gaining benefit from its rapid re-orientation. (Unnatural agility bonus applies to dodge roll).