Baazrag

A baazrag is a hump-backed omnivore of the rocky barrens, no more than 2 feet long with a 5-inch tail. A bony mask shields its face, wrapping the sides of the head and the nose with openings for eyes and nostrils, though the mouth and lower jaw are bare. A hard shell covers its back and protects a fluid sac beneath. Its four slender legs are made for darting between hiding places. Young ones are red-brown, green, yellow, or orange, fading to sandy gray with age.

Alone, a baazrag flees or hides from anything, even a creature its own size, and seldom strays from its one-animal burrow in the rocks. Its bite deals 1-3. Two bites on the same target in consecutive rounds inject a toxin that cuts all natural healing to 20% of normal for six hours; an adventurer carrying 15 damage who gets gnawed for 5 more would need 100 days rather than 20 to recover. Neutralize poison or any magical healing cancels it.

If the baazrags are not killed or driven off within 5 rounds, the whole pack swarms in, 2-16 (2d8) more arriving each round from round 6 on until all are present. They flee once they have taken 80% or more casualties.

Packs gather only to defend territory and otherwise keep apart. In the desert world's city-states, noble houses tame baazrags to clear out vermin and insects, and harness them to wagons. Each can pull 50 pounds; a 100-pound wagon loaded with 500 pounds needs 12 of them and moves at 9, while twice as many reach 15, the top speed for a harnessed team. The city's templars keep a squad of several dozen swimming baazrags to clean out infested sewers.

Females bear litters of 2-6 (2d3) that stay with the mother until grown. A single birth is very rare and alarming, because it always means a boneclaw, and the pack quickly relocates. An adult yields 25 pounds of meat, and its back sac holds 1-4 (1d4) pints of water tainted with the healing toxin; drinking it causes 1-6 (1d6) hours of sickness unless purified by purify food and water or neutralize poison. Live, undamaged captives sell as pets or draft animals for 10 cp in city markets.