Serpopards

Beings of pure rage, it radiates from them in palpable waves. They have the body of a great cat, with a head topping an always swaying snake-like neck. The tension in their muscles can be seen through their spotted fur. Their leopard-like faces are contorted, as if driven to an agonizing madness by their unending fury. Slobbering runs from their fanged mouths from their constant roaring and hissing.  

Alternative names: Serpent-Necked Lions, Rage of B’al-sot, Daughters of Bast

Ravenous, unrelenting, indiscriminate, and implacable killers. If what is written about their origins in the apocryphal Black Rites passages from the Scrolls of Bubastis is true, serpopards put lie to the notion that the Elder Gods are benevolent or even benign beings. According to the Black Rites, serpopards first descended upon the Earth in Ug-ili, a precursor to Sumer. For some unrecorded – or unspeakable – sin, the cat goddess B’al-sot set the serpopards upon Ug-ili. Innocent and guilty, young and old alike were slaughtered. Almost overnight the civilization was destroyed. 

Traumatic memories of the monsters filtered down through the millennia, represented in the art of ancient civilizations. Sumer and Babylon revered the monsters, perhaps in hopes of appeasing B’al-sot. The killing of such monsters was considered an event worthy of being memorialized the Egyptians. Certain totemic statues at Göbekli Tepe suggest Ug-ili may not have been the first time humanity felt the fury of serpopards. 

Fortunately, the serpopards are not common upon the Earth. They still appear on occasion, sent by B’al-sot to fulfil her incomprehensible and capricious wrath. The Black Rites is said to contain spells that can summon the monsters and bind them to a sorcerer’s will. Their venom is a powerful hallucinogen, valued by shamans, priests and sorcerers, though obtaining it can be a deadly prospect. Dying only through violence, serpopards captured and bound thousands of years ago may still dwell in tombs hidden beneath the sands of the Middle East and North Africa. 

Serpopards, rage incarnate

Average Hit Points: 19

Average Damage Bonus: +2D6

Average Build: 3

Average Magic Points: 10

Move: 7

ATTACKS

Attacks per round: 2 (claw, bite), or 1 (Pin, Venom Spray)

Pin (mnvr): if successful, the serpopard pulls a victim to the ground and gains a bonus dice on any bite attacks against the victim. The victim can escape on a successful Extreme STR roll. Otherwise, the serpopard will not release the victim until it or the victim is dead. 

Venom Spray: the serpopard unleashes a spray of venom from its neck. Anyone standing in a cone extending 20 feet in front of the serpopard must make a successful Luck roll or be hit. The venom can be absorbed through the skin and can seep through must clothing. Those struck must make an Extreme CON roll or be paralyzed with 1D4 hours as the venom burns its way through their system. During this time, the victim will suffer horrifying visions, often of cats and B’al-sot. They will lose 1 Sanity Point per hour due to the visions. Afterwards, the victim will become violently ill, suffering 1D3 CON damage.

Skills

Climb 85%, Listen 55%, 

Armor: None, but non-magical weapons and attacks do only 1 point of damage. 

Spells: None

Sanity Loss: 1/1D6 Sanity points to encounter a serpopard 

Bruce Priddy

Bruce is a sociology student and co-host of The Crypt Keepers podcast