House Hunter Mimic

House hunters are huge mimic relatives that traded some shapeshifting skill for life above ground. Their hard shells imitate stone, timber or thatch in the shape of buildings: sheds and outhouses for the young, cottages for adults, and inns, temples or ruined towers for ancients. Shells grow with their owners and are slowly shaped to copy buildings the creature has seen.

Door- and shutter-like bony plates, worked by clamlike muscles, hide the openings; an open doors roll forces one. Behind them wait the mouth, a tongue, two eyestalks and two tentacles, measuring 2 feet, 6 inches and 1 foot per Hit Die respectively. Layouts vary, and ancients often sprout extra tentacles on every side. Any opening can glow like candlelight, and the creature can fake homely sounds such as muffled voices, clucking hens or a temple bell. Underneath is an unarmored, slippery snail's foot. Adults and ancients speak crude Common and may be telepathic to 10 miles.

Each appendage attacks a different victim, at -2 from any side without an eyestalk. A hit snares the target, which takes damage at the end of every round until it seems dead or breaks loose. The victim must pass a Dexterity check at once or have an arm trapped too; failing by more than 4 pins both arms, preventing any counterattack. If one arm is caught, the DM randomly picks which, which settles whether the victim can fight back.

Musty slime coats the appendages, and escape takes a Strength check. A captive may try to escape or, with a free weapon arm, attack, but not both in one round. Anyone who stops resisting is assumed dead and dropped after five more rounds. Afterward the tongue pulls bodies in one per round, blind side first; someone faking death takes another round of crushing while lifted and gets one last chance to wrench free.

Inside, only stabbing weapons of short sword size or smaller work, against AC 10. A house hunter wounded from within spits the attacker out and squeezes again until five rounds of limpness, escape or death. Swallowed bodies are digested beyond recovery in 1d4 turns.

The appendages are pseudopods: one cut off regrows in 1d4 turns, restoring all damage it had taken. The shell reduces heat and cold damage, magical or not, by 1 point per die. Disliking sunlight, they travel by night, wait for dusk when they can, and suffer -2 on all attacks by day. Below 10 hit points one shuts up tight and tries to slip away.

House hunters hunt in packs, the young waiting for an adult to strike first. They hear well and feel the tread of man-sized or larger creatures 120 yards away, and they hold back for the richest prey, letting a lone scout pass if a big party follows. Their breeding is a mystery; one adult was seen digging a pit with its foot and leaving a single live young there, which climbed out and followed its mother.

Treasure lies in the gut or lodged in the shell: coins, gems and other indigestible leftovers, plus pearl-like shell lumps that are worthless. Adults have a 5% chance and ancients 10% of holding a magic item, 60% likely cursed, since victims with truly powerful gear usually escape. A scraped-out shell makes a rough shelter.