Cildabrin

Whether the cildabrin is a giant spider with scorpion traits or a giant scorpion with spider traits, nobody can say for sure, and the creatures themselves give a different answer every time, assuming they pause from trying to eat whoever asked. Its body is black and covered in fur, with eight turquoise eyes. The front pair of legs ends in scorpion claws, and a flexible, furred tail carries an 8-inch stinger. It sees 120 feet with infravision.

A cildabrin fights with pincers and sting. Anyone it hits with a claw must make a saving throw vs. bend bars or be held, taking an automatic 7-12 crushing damage the next round. The victim may try again each round, and stays pinned until he breaks loose, the cildabrin dies and its grip relaxes, or he passes out. The tail reaches over to strike any foe of man size or bigger that is in melee with it, and its sting carries type O poison.

It has no spinnerets, perhaps because of the tail, but makes up for that with innate magic. Three times a day each, one per round, it can cast silence 15' radius, web, and darkness 15' radius. It has a permanent spider climb effect and is immune to all web spells. Its favorite tactic is to lurk inside its own zone of silence, spring out after casting web, and keep darkness in reserve to cover its retreat.

These loners meet only to mate. Two found together almost certainly mean a clutch of 10-40 big purple eggs somewhere close, probably wrapped in darkness. Cildabrins understand what treasure is worth. They often leave some in plain view to lure prey, and use the rest to bribe or buy things they value or want protected, such as their eggs.

Any animal it can catch is food. Once the prey is dead or paralyzed, the cildabrin hauls it back to its lair, usually a warm, dark cave, to eat. It cannot digest anything inorganic, so armor, shields and weapons are peeled off and tossed onto a heap at the back of the cave or added to its bait piles.