Continuing with the (sort of) swarm theme that has devloped this week, and thanks to a suggestion from Sarah, who pointed out this video, today's monster is a humble bunny—one that can create earthquakes, on its own or in a hundreds-strong group, that is. They can create terrain they have no difficulty traversing, and I imagine their territory would look somewhat apocalyptic with all the upheaved ground.
I hope you enjoy the seismhare, and I'll be back tomorrow for an actual Frightful Fridays! entry. I imagine I'll keep going with the swarm theme. Thanks, as always, for reading!
This slate-grey rabbit stands as tall as a horse. As it thumps one of its oversized back paws in agitation, the ground shakes.
Giant Seismhare CR 7
XP 3,200
N Large magical beast
Init +3; Senses darkvision 60 ft., low-light vision, tremorsense 120 ft.; Perception +9
Defense
AC 20, touch 12, flat-footed 17 (+3 Dex, -1 size, +8 natural)
hp 85 (9d10+36)
Fort +10, Ref +9, Will +6
Offense
Speed 50 ft., burrow 40 ft., earth glide
Melee bite +13 (2d6+5/19-20), kick +13 (2d8+5)
Space 10 ft.; Reach 5 ft.
Special Attacks trample (3d6+7, DC 19), tremor
Statistics
Str 21, Dex 17, Con 18, Int 5, Wis 16, Cha 8
Base Atk +9; CMB +15 (+17 bull rush); CMD 28 (30 vs. bull rush, 32 vs. trip)
Feats Acrobatic Steps, Improved Bull Rush, Improved Critical (bite), Nimble Moves, Power Attack
Skills Acrobatics +15 (+23 jump), Perception +9, Stealth +7
Ecology
Environment temperate or warm plains
Organization solitary, pair, rumble (3–6), or quake (7–18)
Treasure none
Special Abilities
Tremor (Ex) As a full-round action, a giant seismhare stamps its feet on the ground to create one of two effects: it can render a 10-foot-radius area difficult terrain or it can trip all creatures in a 30-foot radius (making a single combat maneuver check using its CMB for the trip attempt). This ability has no effect on magically-treated stone.
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As this group of little slate-gray rabbits moves in unison, it leaves behind cracks in the ground.
Seismhare Swarm CR 5
XP 1,600
N Tiny magical beast (swarm)
Init +8; Senses darkvision 60 ft., low-light vision, tremorsense 60 ft.; Perception +10
Defense
AC 18, touch 16, flat-footed 14 (+4 Dex, +2 size, +2 natural)
hp 51 (6d10+18)
Fort +8, Ref +9, Will +4
Defensive Abilities swarm traits
Offense
Speed 30 ft., burrow 20 ft.
Melee swarm (3d6)
Space 10 ft.; Reach 0 ft.
Special Attacks distraction (DC 16), tremor
Statistics
Str 7, Dex 19, Con 16, Int 3, Wis 14, Cha 10
Base Atk +6; CMB —; CMD —
Feats Acrobatic Steps, Improved Initiative, Nimble Moves
Skills Perception +10, Stealth +16
Ecology
Environment temperate or warm plains
Organization solitary, pair, shifting (3–6)
Treasure none
Special Abilities
Tremor (Ex) As a seismhare swarm moves, it renders all squares through which it passes difficult terrain. This ability has no effect on magically-treated stone.
Even though seismhares in a swarm and giant seismhares seem to be related animals of the same species, they actually represent different growth stages in the same animal. Through attrition, usually due to flying predators, a swarm dwindles in size, but the individual hares grow proportionately, as do their tough hides. The surviving hares burrow during the winter and undergo exceptional growth. When they finish their hibernation, they pair off and produce prodigious numbers of offspring before dying. The young must fend for themselves, typically by gathering in the hundreds—or thousands—with other abandoned seismhares.
Rumors claim seismhares descend from animalistic earth elementals trapped on the Material Plane millennia ago. The fact that they are nominally herbivores but eat very little to account for their incredible growth, seeming instead to absorb the ground around them, supports these rumors. However, they are flesh-and-blood creatures; in fact, many plains people consider seismhare meat a delicacy.
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