| Climate/Terrain: | Ocean depths |
|---|---|
| Frequency: | Very rare |
| Organization: | Solitary |
| Activity Cycle: | Any |
| Diet: | Carnivore |
| Intelligence: | Animal (1) |
| Treasure: | Nil |
| Alignment: | Neutral |
| No. Appearing: | 1 |
| Armor Class: | 1 |
| Movement: | 3, swim 12 |
| Hit Dice: | 8 |
| THAC0: | 13 |
| No. of Attacks: | 1 |
| Damage/Attack: | 2-12 |
| Special Attacks: | Cold generation |
| Special Defenses: | Luminous cloud, immunity to cold |
| Magic Resistance: | Standard |
| Size: | Huge (20' across) |
| Morale: | Fearless (20) |
| XP Value: | 3,000 |
The hide is a bottom-dwelling octopus of enormous size, with comparatively short tentacles. In basic appearance, it resembles a dirty floor mop or an opened umbrella, and in general is quite a disgusting sight. It can be of any color, changing hues frequently.
Combat: The hide will try to get close enough to a victim to bite it, its beak inflicting 2-12 hp damage. In order to disable a target so it can close in for the kill, it generates a cone of cold 10' wide and 30' long, which causes 3d6 hp damage. As a side effect, it is immune to all cold-based attacks, but if the battle goes against it anyway, and it loses three-quarters of its hit points, it can cover its retreat with the same sort of blinding cloud the octo-jelly produces. The dimensions of this creature cloud, though, are 40' high by 60' wide by 60' long.
Habitat/Society: These creatures are solitary, due to the virtual impossibility of the deep sea providing enough food for more than one in a small area. The mating season is brief, and the eggs are abandoned as soon as they are laid.
Ecology: The hide has the same uses to both Man and Nature as the octojelly. In the natural world, it preys on both swimmers and bottom-crawlers, while its ink has the same value as a scroll-ink ingredient.