Wezer

Wezers are enormous flying insects that make underground hives in the desert tablelands. Though of animal intelligence, they are highly social creatures, structured into several distinct classes by both social function and physical characteristics.

Water fetcher, worker, and soldier wezers all have wings, multifaceted eyes, and six thin limbs extending from their abdomen. Soldier's are slightly larger than the menials, and are colored a shade of yellow brighter than their fellows. The brood queen is much larger - she, too, has wings, but they are insufficient to lift her into flight. The brood queen has a huge abdomen for laying the hive's eggs.

Combat: Water fetcher and worker wezers each have a single stinger attack that inflicts 1d4 points of damage. A soldier can attack with its stinger twice per round, each hit inflicting 1d4 points of damage and requiring the victim to save vs. poison to avoid being paralyzed by its venom. The paralyzation will take effect 2d6 rounds after the failed save and will last for 2d4 days.

The brood queen can attack twice per round with her stinger and each hit causes 1d6 points of damage. A successful hit by the queen's tail injects an egg into the victim's stomach, causing an additional 1d6 points of damage. The victim may save vs. poison, if successful the egg dies and will not hatch, although the victim still suffers the injection damage. If the save fails, the egg begins to grow. Unless it is removed surgically (causing an additional 1d10 points of damage) or a cure disease spell is cast upon the character, the egg hatches in five days. As the emerging larva feeds, it permanently reduces its host's Constitution score by 1d4 points each day. Once the victim dies, or the larva has fed for ten days, it leaves its host's body via the ulcerous injection wound, and attempts to continue feeding on him from without. Eggs and larva have no attacks and can easily be destroyed.

Habitat/Society: Wezers build colonies beneath the sands where they protect the brood queen and allow her to lay eggs. From the surface, their hives appear to be a series of domes that vary from three to eight feet tall, but that are all about five feet in diameter. The domes are constructed by the workers, made from sand glued together with a bonding resin they secrete. Only one dome actually has an entrance from the surface that leads into the rest of the tunnels.

There is 50% chance that the inside of any dome reeks of decay and contains a slain creature. The dead beast is bloated and foul, with an ulcerous wound in the abdomen. A single white wezer larva feeds on the body. Every chamber has a four-foot tunnel leading down, hidden beneath a six-inch plug of sand and wax (treated as a hidden door).

The colony tunnels are cool, humid, and six feet in diameter, just large enough for half-giants to crawl through. Humans, muls, thri-kreen, elves, and half-elves suffer a -2 penalty on their attack and damage rolls in the tunnels. Half giants suffer a -6. Halflings and dwarves suffer no penalty.

Beneath the ground is a series of chambers connected by these tunnels. Chambers are used to store larva and additional food. The brood queen spends all of her time in the brood chamber.

Water gatherers fly in the vicinity of the colony in search of water. They either store water directly in wax balls, or they use water to create honey that they store the same way. They hang both types of wax balls in the colony chambers to feed the rest of the adults and to nurture the young. Each sphere contains one gallon of either honey or water. The contents are apparent by the shade of the sphere (water is light, honey is dark).

In addition to any other treasure found in a wezer lair, there are usually about 35 one-gallon wax balls of water and 20 balls of honey hanging from the honey-combed ceiling of the brood chamber. Any character can carry three spheres with him. The wax lasts one full day outside the hive before melting and spilling. Each day that a character eats at least a quart of the honey, he heals 1d8 points of damage.

Ecology: Workers are charged with construction and maintenance of the domes, chambers, and tunnels of the colony. Water fetchers must collect water and store it as either water or honey for the others. The soldiers use poison to fetch live creatures for the queen to lay eggs in. The brood queen herself is the matriarch of the colony. She is mother to all the colony's members, and as such is protected to the bitter end. If the colony moves, it moves on the brood queen's command only.