Basilisk

A basilisk is a reptilian monster that petrifies living creatures with a mere gaze. Surviving a fight with a basilisk requires either careful preparation or considerable good fortune.

Basilisks are found in nearly every climate, and often in underground areas as well. They tend to lair in shallow burrows, caves, or other sheltered areas. The entrance to a basilisk lair is sometimes distinguished by lifelike stone statues or carvings, which are actually creatures that ran afoul of the creature’s gaze. Basilisks are omnivorous and able to consume their petrified victims. They make effective guardians, if one has the magical or monetary resources to capture and contain them.

A basilisk usually has a dull brown body with a yellowish underbelly. Some specimens sport a short, curved horn atop the nose. An adult basilisk’s body grows to about 6 feet long, not including its tail, which can reach an additional length of 5 to 7 feet. The creature weighs about 300 pounds.

A basilisk relies on its gaze attack, biting only when opponents come within reach. Though it has eight legs, its slow metabolism renders it relatively sluggish, so it does not expend energy unnecessarily. Intruders who flee a basilisk rather than fight can expect, at best, a halfhearted pursuit.

These creatures tend to spend most of their time lying in wait for prey, which includes small mammals, birds, reptiles, and similar creatures. When not hunting, basilisks are usually sleeping off their latest meal in their lairs. Basilisks sometimes gather in small colonies for mating or for mutual defense in unusually hostile terrain, and a colony will attack intruders in concert.

Petrifying Gaze (Su): Turn to stone permanently, range 30 feet; Fortitude DC 13 negates. The save DC is Charisma-based.

Skills: *The basilisk’s dull coloration and its ability to remain motionless for long periods of time grant it a +4 racial bonus on Hide checks in natural settings.