MEAZEL

The meazel has skin which varies from light grey to dark green; irregular patches of an angry red color will occur on most (85%) individuals due to a skin disease — neither harmful to the creature beyond its disfiguring effect, nor contagious — prevalent in the-species, these patches giving the meazel almost a leprous appearance. The eyes are jet black and the feet partially webbed.

Solitary bipeds just less than man-sized, meazels are rarely encountered outside their lairs — either marshes or small, dank caverns underground.

They have natural thieving abilities at the 4th level of experience and will rarely attack openly, preferring to hide [40%] and, moving quietly [48%] and swiftly, attempt to strangle stragglers from behind or to pick pockets [55%] in search of the gold they love.

In combat they attack with their two claws, each inflicting 1-4 hit points of damage.

Alternatively, they use a piece of tough, thin cord to strangle their victims; a 'hit' indicates that the cord has been wrapped round the victim's neck and he will die from strangulation within two melee rounds unless he breaks free, or the meazel dies or is forced to release its hold (for example to defend against attack from another quarter). However the creature can only execute this kind of attack against a victim which is Man-sized or smaller and only if it can approach the victim from the rear undetected, achieving surprise.

Meazels rarely venture far from their lairs and take all corpses there to be eaten in safety. Piles of sacks full of bones are often to be found near a meazel lair (any gems the creature has found in treasure will be in these sacks, since it does not recognise the value of precious and semi-precious stones). For the same reason, there will be no gems in the lair.

Most creatures of the underworld will attack meazels, for they have a nasty reputation even among dungeon denizens. The meazel is a traditional enemy of orcs and kobolds.