Lycanthrope, Werecrocodile

“Terrifying Transformation: Witness the Monstrous Might of the Fearsome Werecrocodile!”

Appearance: Werecrocodiles, cursed shapeshifters, seamlessly blend the predatory might of a crocodile with the sinister allure of lycanthropy. In their humanoid form, they exhibit an unsettling mix of human and crocodilian features, with sharp teeth, amber-hued eyes, and scaly patches on their skin. In their crocodile form, they transform into massive, muscular reptiles with glistening scales, a row of dagger-like spines along their backs, and eyes that glint with predatory intelligence.

Behavior: Combining the cunning of a human with the primal instincts of a crocodile, Werecrocodiles are stealthy and ruthless hunters. In their humanoid state, they often adopt a charming facade, concealing their true nature. As the moon waxes, their predatory instincts intensify, leading them to prowl the waters in their crocodile form, seeking victims for their voracious appetite.

Habitat: Werecrocodiles favor murky swamps, dense jungles, and labyrinthine river systems. These cursed beings are drawn to areas where the boundary between the natural and supernatural is blurred. They lair in hidden caverns along riverbanks, blending seamlessly into their surroundings to remain undetected.

Modus Operandi: A Werecrocodile’s modus operandi revolves around surprise and ambush. In human form, they often infiltrate communities, using charm to mask their true intentions. When the moon rises, they transform into crocodiles, stalking their prey with expert stealth. Striking from the water, they drag victims beneath the surface to drown or deliver a deadly bite, leaving behind a trail of mysterious disappearances.

Motivation: Cursed by lycanthropy, they are driven by an insatiable hunger for both flesh and power. Motivated by a twisted survival instinct, they seek to satisfy their primal urges, often leading to a cycle of violence and bloodshed. Some Werecrocodiles may embrace their monstrous nature, aligning with dark forces, while others yearn for a cure to break free from the curse that binds them to the dual existence of predator and prey.

Standing taller than a man, this humanoid figure wears filth-covered rags over cold, scaly skin, its crocodilian maw displaying razor-sharp teeth reeking of rotting flesh.

[This content was created by Paizo Publishing LLC for the Pathfinder rules but is not from the Pathfinder RPG product line.]

Werecrocodiles merge the ruthless determination of a crocodile with the intelligence and adaptability of a humanoid, creating a maliciously cunning creature with no doubt of its martial superiority. Lacking any culture or society beyond what can be gained through physical might, these creatures are solitary hunters. Natural werecrocodiles usually stand taller and broader than an afflicted member of their species. In humanoid form, specimens often have a slight rigidity to their skin, a green tinge around their lips, or vertically slit pupils.

The average male werecrocodile in human form stands 6 feet tall and has a powerful, muscular frame weighing up to 250 pounds, with females averaging slightly shorter and lighter.

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Werecrocodile (Human Form) CR 3

XP 800 Human natural werecrocodile fighter 2 NE Medium humanoid (human, shapechanger) Init +5; Senses Low-Light Vision, Scent; Perception +1

DEFENSE

AC 17, touch 11, flat-footed 16 (+6 armor, +1 Dexterity) hp 21 (2d10+6) Fort +5, Ref +1, Will +0; +1 vs. fear Defensive Abilities bravery +1

OFFENSE

Speed 30 ft. Melee battleaxe +5 (1d8+2/.3) Ranged longbow +3 (1d8/.3)

STATISTICS

Strength 15, Dexterity 13, Constitution 14, Intelligence 11, Wisdom 10, Charisma 10 Base Atk +2; CMB +4; CMD 15 Feats Endurance, Improved Initiative, Power Attack, Run Skills Perception +1, Stealth +2, Survival +4, Swim +6 Languages Common SQ armor training 1, change shape (human, hybrid, and crocodile; polymorph), lycanthropic empathy (crocodiles and dire crocodiles)

Werecrocodile (Hybrid Form) CR 3

XP 800 Human natural werecrocodile fighter 2 NE Medium humanoid (human, shapechanger) Init +5; Senses Low-Light Vision, Scent; Perception +1

DEFENSE

AC 23, touch 11, flat-footed 22 (+6 armor, +1 Dexterity, +6 natural) hp 23 (2d10+8) Fort +6, Ref +1, Will +0; +1 vs. fear Defensive Abilities bravery +1; DR 10/silver

OFFENSE

Speed 30 ft., Swim 20 ft.; sprint Melee battleaxe +5 (1d8+3/.3), bite +5 (1d8+3 plus grab and curse of lycanthropy), tail slap +0 (1d12+1) Ranged longbow +3 (1d8/.3) Special Attacks death roll (1d8+3 plus trip)

STATISTICS

Strength 17, Dexterity 13, Constitution 16, Intelligence 11, Wisdom 10, Charisma 10 Base Atk +2; CMB +5 (+9 grapple); CMD 16 Feats Endurance, Improved Initiative, Power Attack, Run Skills Perception +1, Stealth +2, Survival +4, Swim +7 Languages Common SQ armor training 1, change shape (human, hybrid, and crocodile; polymorph), lycanthropic empathy (crocodiles and dire crocodiles)

SPECIAL ABILITIES

Death Roll (Ex)   When grappling a foe of its size or smaller, a werecrocodile can perform a death roll upon making a successful grapple check. As it clings to its foe, it tucks in its legs and rolls rapidly, twisting and wrenching its victim. The werecrocodile deals its bite damage and knocks the creature prone. If successful, the werecrocodile maintains its grapple.   Hold Breath (Ex)   It can hold its breath for a number of rounds equal to 4 times its Constitution score before it risks drowning.   Sprint (Ex) Once per minute a it may sprint, increasing its land speed to 60 feet for 1 round.

ECOLOGY

Environment warm rivers and marshes Organization solitary, pair, or colony (3–12) Treasure NPC gear (battleaxe, longbow with 20 arrows, masterwork breastplate)

Ecology

Most werecrocodiles prefer warm rivers, coastlines, and swamps – ideally within a day’s travel of a humanoid community where they can stalk new victims. They favor fresh humanoid kills, but they also eat fish, small waterfowl, or anything else they can chase down and kill. Voracious predators, these creatures either kill and eat or otherwise drive away most other local, predatory species.

Werecrocodiles delight in the power their forms give them over others and enjoy nothing more than terrorizing their prey before the kill. Such creatures often pose as river guides or experienced woodsmen in order to lead their chosen targets away from the safety of civilization.

Once in the wild, a werecrocodile prefers to take the first opportunity it can to maim its victim before allowing the prey to escape. It then hunts the poor soul down, dragging it into the water and drowning it, then either devouring it or stashing the body in a mudbank for a later meal.

Werecrocodiles often join groups of adventurers in hopes of just such opportunities. If its secret is discovered before the trap is sprung, a werecrocodile fights until the tide of battle turns against it, then flees to stalk its chosen victims from a distance.

Habitat & Society

While werecrocodiles typically enjoy the solitude of their territories, small colonies of them can sometimes be found scattered throughout isolated swamplands. Most stories suggest that it takes a particularly strong and malicious werecrocodile to hold others of its kind in sway. Despite the believed preference for solitude, when these creatures do come upon each other, conflict is rare. As long as they heed one another’s territorial boundaries, individuals hold an underlying tolerance of each other.

However, when conflict does arise between werecrocodiles, such battles are typically to the death.

Any dispute relating to territories or mates has only one rule: the victor may do as he wishes with his prize. This amuses any female being fought over, as even when a challenger defeats an opponent, if the female is unamused or unimpressed, she often simply kills the victor and feeds on his remains before going on her way.

The borders of werecrocodile hunting grounds are adorned with skulls slung together with varying forms of aquatic vegetation and hung from trees along or across waterways. These blatant displays serve a dual purpose: to warn away any potential encroachers and to evoke fear and anxiety in intelligent prey as soon as they enter the lycanthrope’s territory. A werecrocodile’s prowess correlates directly with the size and number of the skulls displayed on the borders of its territory.

In areas where werecrocodiles are know to lair, locals often treat strangers met alone in the wilderness with extreme distrust. In some communities, a wanderer that approaches without first displaying an object of silver worn against the skin is shunned, or attacked outright if he seems aggressive.

Because of their fascination with the power that their forms give them over lesser races, werecrocodiles rarely turn others into lycanthropes. Any afflicted werecrocodile was able enough to escape his hunter and survive whatever wounds he suffered. Afflicted werecrocodiles are often more malicious and cruel than their natural brothers, masking their self-loathing and despair with blood-soaked acts of violence. Whether due to the werecrocodiles’ unremitting despair, or their inability to control their alternate form’s lust for violence and blood, these rampages end only with the death of the werecrocodile or the death of all innocents that the beast can find.

Section 15: Copyright Notice

Pathfinder Adventure Path #58: Island of Empty Eyes © 2012, Paizo Publishing, LLC; Author: Neil Spicer.