Giant Werebat [Lycanthrope]

Giant werebats are the evil kin of the benevolent wood giants, born with the power to become enormous bats whenever they wish. A true giant werebat has three shapes. As a giant it is tall, lean and ghostly pale, dressed in loose garments that fall away fast when it needs to change. As a beast it becomes a huge bat (a mobat) in every respect, except that it has 8 Hit Dice (a normal one has 4-6) and adds +2 to its THAC0. The hybrid is the most frightful: smoke-gray skin bristling with short black hair on the shoulders and legs, arms stretched into wings spanning 12-16 feet, and a pair of long, vampire-like fangs.

Every true giant werebat can use all three forms. An infected one has a 75% chance of being limited to two, humanoid plus either the hybrid or the bat.

Any form can fight, but the hybrid is the favorite. As a giant the creature uses whatever weapon it likes, often smearing the blade with poison, and as a bat it fights exactly like a huge bat. The hybrid is deadliest, raking with long claws for 2d4 each or biting for 3d4. Each point of damage it deals carries a 2% chance of passing on lycanthropy to any humanoid. Wood giants infected this way become giant werebats themselves, which is the creatures' preference; other humanoids turn into ordinary werebats marked by the same smoky coloring.

Once per turn, the hybrid can let loose a shrill shriek at the start of a round, which costs it no attack. Everyone within earshot automatically loses initiative that round, and anyone who fails a save vs. breath weapon is left stunned for 1d4 rounds.

These lycanthropes live in tribal flocks in mountain caverns, typically 1d12+3 males, twice that many females and 2d6 young. A single despot, larger and stronger than the rest, rules with an iron claw, with one extra Hit Die, a +1 THAC0 bonus and +2 damage. Flock life revolves around eating and breeding and little else. In 60% of flocks, 1d10 common werebats serve the flock as scouts and lackeys.

Each mating yields a single child, always of the parents' kind, though 5% cannot take one of the three forms (usually the bat) and 2% cannot change shape at all. Those born without the gift are generally driven out and live as embittered hermits. A pairing between a giant werebat and a wood giant has an even chance of producing a giant werebat; if the baby is a wood giant instead, it has a further 50% chance of being an infected lycanthrope.

They occupy a place much like their wood giant relatives, but live more crudely and eat far more meat, so cattle and other big herd animals grow scarce near a flock's cave. Wood giants are their only natural foes, and that feud is about hatred rather than food. The other threat is the flock itself: when hunting is poor, giant werebats will eat their weak and old.