Intestine Men

No. Encountered: 1d6+5
Alignment: Chaotic Evil
Size: M
Movement: 30
Dexterity: 3
Armour Class: 7 (intestine 5)
Hit Dice: 3 (intestine 10 HP)
No. of Attacks: 1 strangle or claw/claw/bite
Damage: strangle (1d4+1, special), claw/claw/bite (1d4+1/1d4+1/1d4+1)
Saving Throw: 15
Morale: 12
Experience Points: 125
Treasure: nil
 
Originally created by the Ixian necromancer Yileenda, these wretched beings are animated corpses used by evil sorcerers as guardians and kidnappers. From a distance, intestine men present as common zombies, mouth ajar and slowly, awkwardly fumbling forward. Within 20 feet, however, illumination (and a careful eye) may reveal a large stitched seam running from neck to waist – and snake-like writhing movements beneath the stomach skin. At 15 feet, the seam bursts open, releasing foul, bile-oozing intestines that unravel through the air to entangle foes with unnatural strength, anchoring them to the intestine man. Once entangled, the victim is slowly strangled until he passes out. The intestine man then carries him off for his master’s interrogation, punishment and grisly experimentation.
 
Explorers and tomb robbers especially fear intestine men, as they are easily mistaken for less dangerous varieties of undead. Nevertheless, rumors of their presence is often met with excitement, as the bile can be used to create valuable poisons effecting paralysis and death. Even more appealing to many adventurers, legend has it the intestine man creation ritual requires a diamond worth at least 10,000 gold coins… though some dismiss this as a fiction designed to lure the foolish to their doom. Scattered reports claim the existence of man-machine hybrid intestine men, supposedly the remnants of otherworldly explorers, deep in the bowels of the Spiral Mountain Array. These reports have not yet been confirmed.
 
Special:

- First strike, entanglement, strangulation: In combat, the intestine men will always attempt to engage enemies from a distance with their intestines’ 15 foot reach. Despite zombie-like slowness, the intestine men almost always receive first attack because of this great reach. After a successful attack, the victim takes 1d4+1 initial damage and then makes a save vs avoidance. If unsuccessful, the intestines coil tightly around the victim, impairing his actions. Half movement is possible on a successful test of strength. Attacks are possible, but at -4 penalty to hit and damage. Spell casting is not possible. Additionally, for each round that the intestines remain clenched, the victim must save vs death or forfeit his turn to gagging and vomiting as the intestines’ disgusting black bile leaks onto him. After three rounds, the victim must successfully save vs death or pass out from strangulation. The intestines can be hacked off upon receiving 10 points of damage (blunt, piercing and thrusting weapons cause half damage) and manually disentangled with an extraordinary feat of strength. If their intestines are destroyed, the creatures attack with their bacteria-ridden claws (1d4+1/1d4+1) and bite (1d4+1), though these attacks are only as a last resort, as their primary goal is to incapacitate foes (rather than kill them).

- Immune to poison, paralysis, fear and cold-based attacks.

- Arrows and bolts inflict but 1 hp of damage (plus bonuses, if applicable); other piercing/thrusting weapons cause half damage (damage dice halved, with bonuses added afterwards).