Splintercat

A spotted cat with a massive head hurtles through the trees at astonishing speed.

Originally Posted by Charlie Bell of the Paizo forums.  
On this Thread

Around the campfire, the loggers of tell tales of the ferocious splintercat. A splintercat’s diet consists of tree-dwelling insects and mammals such as bees, termites, squirrels, opossums, and raccoons. It gets at these by flying headlong at tremendous speed into any tree in which its prey might be found, smashing the trunk with its thick, blunt head. The splintercats’ hunting ranges are littered with destroyed tree trunks. The uninitiated often misattribute its handiwork to lightning or wind, but seasoned loggers can tell the difference and know to avoid a splintercat’s range.

Although splintercats do not normally hunt humanoids, their method of smashing trees with their heads causes them considerable headaches. As a consequence, splintercats are notoriously ill-tempered and territorial. A splintercat encountering an interloper in its hunting grounds usually begins its attack by ramming nearby trees to catch opponents in a shrapnel-like hail of wood fragments. Then it will circle around again for another charge, its thick head crashing into the enemy like a living cannonball. If its opponent survives the cat’s head-butt charge, it will circle around a final time, pouncing on the foe with its strong-jawed bite and razor claws. A splintercat fights tenaciously, even when injured or outnumbered, and rarely backs down when provoked.

Though superficially similar to a large bobcat or lynx, a splintercat is no natural animal, as evidenced by its supernatural ability to fly. A splintercat has a brutish, thick-skulled head, a faintly-spotted, dark brown coat, and a long, bushy tail, almost like a fox’s. An adult splintercat measures about five feet long and weighs about 140 pounds.

Splintercat CR 3

XP 800 N Medium magical beast Init +2; Senses darkvision 60 ft., low-light vision, scent; Perception +8

DEFENSE

AC 14, touch 12, flat-footed 12 (+2 Dexterity, +2 natural) hp 30 (4d10+8) Fort +6, Ref +6, Will +2 Defensive Abilities ferocity

OFFENSE

Speed 40 ft., climb 20 ft., fly 80 ft. (good) Melee slam +7 (1d6+3 plus hard-headed) or bite +7 (1d6+3 plus grab), 2 claws +7 (1d4+3) Space 5 ft.; Reach 5 ft. Special Attacks pounce, powerful charge (slam, 2d6+6), rake (2 claws +7, 1d4+3), splinter burst

STATISTICS

Strength 16, Dexterity 15, Constitution 14, Intelligence 2, Wisdom 13, Charisma 6 Base Atk +4; CMB +7 (+11 grapple); CMD 19 (23 vs. trip) Feats Death from Above (Ultimate Combat), Skill Focus (Perception) Skills Acrobatics +10, Climb +11, Fly +10, Perception +8, Stealth +6; Racial Modifiers +4 Acrobatics SQ hard-headed

ECOLOGY

Environment temperate forests Organization solitary or pair Treasure none

SPECIAL ABILITIES

Hard-Headed (Ex) A splintercat’s blunt, thick-skulled head crushes wood with ease. Its slam attack ignores the hardness of wooden objects and is treated as bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing for overcoming damage reduction possessed by creatures of the plant type. A splintercat cannot attack with its slam in the same round it attacks with its bite.   Splinter Burst (Su) A splintercat can cause trees to explode in showers of sharp splinters. To activate this ability, a splintercat must make a flying charge with its slam attack against a tree of adequate size (generally, a tree large enough to provide cover to a Medium creature is big enough). The tree takes normal damage (including the splintercat’s powerful charge ability) from this attack. The exploding wood fragments deal 3d6 points of damage to all creatures within a 10 foot radius burst (Reflex DC 15 half). The save DC is Strength-based.