FREQUENCY: Rare
FREQUENCY: Rare ([Cold Wilderness Hills], [Cold Wilderness Desert])
FREQUENCY: Very rare ([Cold Wilderness Plains])
FREQUENCY: Rare ([Temperate Wilderness Hills], [Temperate Wilderness Desert])
FREQUENCY: Very rare ([Temperate Wilderness Plains])
FREQUENCY: Rare ([Tropical Wilderness Hills], [Tropical Wilderness Plains], [Tropical Wilderness Desert])
FREQUENCY: Uncommon ([Dungeon Level VIII])

NO. APPEARING: 1-2
ARMOR CLASS: 6
MOVE: 9"
HIT DICE: 15
% IN LAIR: 30%
TREASURE TYPE: [B], [Q] (x 5), [X]
NO. OF ATTACKS: 1 and 1 ~ 8
DAMAGE/ATTACK: 2-24/2-8
SPECIAL ATTACKS: Swallow, poison sting <edit: whole>
SPECIAL DEFENSES: Nil
INTELLIGENCE: Non-
ALIGNMENT: Neutral
SIZE: L (50' long)
LEVEL/X.P. VALUE: VIII | 4900 + 20

Purple worms burrow deep beneath the ground in a constant SEARCH for food.
They sense vibrations at 60' and move to attack. Generally only adult
specimens, 8'-9' in diameter and 40'-50' long, are encountered.

Young are 1' in diameter and about 5' when they hatch, a typical hatching being 10-20, each with 1 HD + 4 HP.

They return to their lairs to REST, and there they expel such indigestible waste as metal and mineral crystals.

Swallow: A purple worm attacks by biting (2-24 points of damage), and any hit 20%
over the required score (that is 4 or more over the required number) or a
100% (die roll of 20) score in any case indicates the creature has engulfed
its victim. A mature purple warm can swallow, whole, a creature as large
as 8' or so tall and up to 6' wide, or vice versa. Any creature swallowed
will be dead in 6 melee rounds. The worm will digest its meal in 12 turns,
and at that time the creature is totally gone and cannot be raised from the
dead. Note, however, that a creature swallowed can try to cut its way out
of the purple worm's stomach. The inner armor class of the 'worm is 9,but
each round the creature is in the worm it subtracts 1 from the damage each
of its attacks does. This subtraction is cumulative, so on the second melee
round there is a -2, on the third a -3, etc.

Poison Sting: Additionally, the purple worm has a poisonous stinger in its tail. This
weapon is only used in rear defense, however, or if the 'worm is fighting
large or numerous opponents in a very spacious area which will allow it
freedom to use its stinger. The sting causes 2-8 hit points of damage when
it hits, and if the victim fails its poison saving throw it is killed by the purple
worm's poison.

weird: (young purple worm): umber hulk

Mottled Worm  (Marine Worm)  (Water Worm):

FREQUENCY: Rare ([Temperate Saltwater Depths])

The mottled worm is an aquatic variety of the purple worm.
It inhabits shallow bottom muck but will surface for prey.
It otherwise conforms to the characteristics of the purple variety.
    by Steve Marsh