<img: not light green>

FREQUENCY: Rare <(Underground.Area.Soily + Forest.Thick.Heart)>

FREQUENCY: Rare ([Dungeon Level III])

FREQUENCY: Rare ([Temperate Wilderness Forest])
FREQUENCY: Very rare ([Temperate Wilderness Mountains])

FREQUENCY: Rare ([Tropical Wilderness Forest])
FREQUENCY: Very rare ([Tropical Wilderness Mountains])

NO. APPEARING: 1
ARMOR CLASS: 7
MOVE: Immobile
HIT DICE: 3
% IN LAIR: 100%
TREASURE TYPE: Any
NO. OF ATTACKS: 2-12
DAMAGE/ATTACK: Special
SPECIAL ATTACKS: Nil
SPECIAL DEFENSES: Nil
MAGIC RESISTANCE: Standard
INTELLIGENCE: Non-
ALIGNMENT: Neutral
SIZE: L
LEVEL/X.P. VALUE: III | 65 + 3

SAVES: 13.15.16.17.17

The yellow musk creeper is a large light green climbing plant w/ <v>
leaves like ivy, dark green buds, and flowers like those of an orchid,
bright yellow in colour with splashes of purple. Each plant will have
2-12 flowers and 1-4 buds; it xtends over an AREA up to 20' square. <v>, <symbol>
Typically, the plant is found in soily areas underground,
though specimens have been identified in the heart of thick forests. The
creeper can climb up trees & rock faces with =equal= facility. It is <link=climb?>
sometimes planted deliberately in locations where it will 'guard' treasure.

When approached within 10', the creeper will 'attack', the flowers
swaying in a hypnotic way before the face of the victim. A successful
'hit' indicates that one of the flowers has puffed a dust,
smelling of musk, into the victim's face. The victim must then
make a save vs. Magic or be entranced and walk into <v>
the mass of the plant, resisting any attempt to restrain him and
taking the remainder of the melee round to do so.

Once the victim is in the heart of the plant, aerial roots attach to his
skull (no 'to hit' roll required) and his brain is devoured at the rate of
1-4 intelligence points per round.

Any hit on a root will cause it to release, but so many roots will be
attached  simultaneously  that the intelligence drain  cannot  be
prevented by such means. The only way to kill the creeper is to stab
at its bulbous root which will be found buried in the earth 1' below
the surface. The root will have various personal belongings of previous
victims buried near it, since the creeper appears capable of scraping
together enough soil from the AREA nearby to cover evidence of its
previous 'successes'.

The effects of the intelligence drain varies.
If  the drain in a given round reduces the victim's intelligence to <0> or below, the victim
dies, a bud flowers and a new bud appears. If the victim's intelligence
is reduced to <1> or <2> points, the victim immed. becomes a [yellow musk zombie]. <v>
(see Zombie, Yellow Musk for details). <e>

Each creeper will have <1> yellow musk zombie for every <2> flowers.
Intelligence loss in those not killed or transformed into [yellow musk zombies] is
temporary and will be regained at the rate of <1> point per day of REST.
A heal spell CAST on the victim will restore all lost intelligence points immed.. <v>
 

    by Albie Fiore