Giant Toad

These are simply toads blown up to monstrous size. Details differ by species, but the hide is always dry, rough and covered in warts, in shades anywhere from dull brown to rusty red. Unlike their small, bug-eating relatives, giant toads try to eat anything that looks like food.

A giant toad can hop a distance equal to its full movement in a single round, clearing obstacles up to a third as tall as the jump is long, and it may attack either mid-leap or on landing. It hunts by sitting perfectly still until prey wanders close, then springing; the victim rolls for surprise at -3.

They thrive in most regions and like living underground, where the air stays damp and food is plentiful. Temperate land near water for egg laying suits them best, though they cope with surprisingly dry or chilly places. Farms draw them to raid goats, chickens and even sheep, and cities battle sewer toads, bloated giants fattened on rats, pets and the odd civil engineer.

They hoard nothing, but valuable items they could not digest sometimes turn up in their dung. Their hide makes serviceable leather armor whose smell is as memorable as its looks.

Fire Toad: About 4 feet long, red with rough purple warts, it avoids water and prefers dry ground. Its only attack is a small fireball spat up to 30 feet, bursting in a 5-foot radius for 2-16 damage (save vs. spell for half). It seldom fights unless threatened, harassed or defending its lair. Fire attacks against it lose 1 point per die, while cold or water attacks gain 1 point per die. Splash any liquid on it, even plain water, and it retreats, though it breathes on the attacker twice during that round.

Ice Toad: Fully intelligent, it lives in frigid lands or deep underground. Besides biting hard, every other round it can give off cold in a 10-foot radius, dealing 3-18 damage to all creatures that do not use cold themselves (save vs. spell for half). Ice toads speak their own bizarre language and collect gems and jewelry, diamonds above all.

Poisonous Toad: It looks exactly like an ordinary giant toad but carries a weak hemotoxin. A bitten creature saves vs. poison at +2; on a failure it slips into a coma and dies within 24 hours without treatment.