In Skirmisher Publishing’s Swords of Kos Fantasy Campaign Setting, the island nation of Crete was one of the places most devastated by the Great Cataclysm, and event that, among other things, spawned the creation of terrible monsters of various sorts. One of these is the Mirror Lizard, a dangerous predator adapted for a landscape that features large areas of glassy rock in its terrain as a result of exposure to searing heat. In one of the official playtest campaigns for the In the Footsteps of Hercules system-free sourcebook, the characters travelled to Crete and, while they were there, met and battled one of these aggressive monsters. Size Large and Huge variants are presented here.

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Cretaean Mirror Lizard

A Cretaean Mirror Lizard is a species of mutant beast that has a thick, stony hide that looks as if it is covered with an array of reflective, mirror-like plates and scales. These dangerous predators are adapted for landscapes that feature large areas of glassy rock as a result of having been subjected to blasts of searing heat at some point (e.g., from meteor strikes, pyroclastic flows, or powerful magical effects). Small ones tend not to venture outside and those encountered tend to be at least man-sized as sometimes even as large as elephants.

          Predatory by Day. Creatures of this sort typically spend much of the day absorbing sunshine and hunting for giant insects, an activity that has led to their powerful jaws becoming adapted to tearing through and crushing both natural and manufactured armor. Mirror Lizards are, in fact, likely to mistake armored humanoids for the monstrous beetles, scorpions, and centipedes they relish dining upon and to attack them accordingly (and to enjoy any ensuing meals just as much).

          Sluggish by Night. Such beasts slow down considerably at night, with those exposed to nighttime chills having their movement halved and attacking at disadvantage, and typically find subterranean places to rest and continue to hunt. While almost underground areas will suffice for these purposes they are especially drawn to those warmed by geothermal activity.

          Strange Housemates. Mirror Lizards on the island of Crete often share lairs with Ghouls, as neither sort of creature finds the other palatable, with the undead monsters using such areas during the day and the lizards coming in to replace them at night. Even in in the cases of such cohabitation, however, the lizards will generally have dedicated spaces for their eggs and young.

 

Cretaean Mirror Lizard

Large beast, unaligned

Armor Class: 16 (natural armor)

Hit Points: 30 (4d10+8)

Speed: 30 ft., Climb 30 ft.

 

STR             DEX             CON             INT               WIS              CHA

17 (+3)         11 (+0)         14 (+2)         2 (-4)            10 (+0)         7 (-2)

 

Skills: Perception +2, Stealth +2

Damage Resistances: Fire

Damage Vulnerabilities: Cold

Senses: Passive Perception 11

Languages: —

Challenge: 1 (200 XP)

 

Armor-Piercing. A Mirror Lizard receives a +2 bonus on attacks against opponents that are wearing armor or which have a natural armor bonus (but not against those protected only by shields). This is reduced to +1 if the opponent only has one point of armor bonus.

Fire Resistant. A Mirror Lizard is not immune to fire but very resistant to it, not just having damage from fire attacks halved but also receiving advantage on saving throws against fire effects.

Glassy Camouflage. A Mirror Lizard has advantage on Dexterity (Stealth) checks to hide in terrain that has glassy or reflective features (e.g., fields of fulgurite material, exposed mica veins).

Reflective Hide. Any time the Mirror Lizard is targeted by a line spell or a spell that requires a ranged attack roll, the caster must make a DC 10 saving throw against their spell-casting ability score. On a failure, the lizard is unaffected and the effect is reflected back at the caster as though it originated from the monster, turning the caster into the target.

Sensitive to Chills. A Mirror Lizard exposed to reduced temperatures, such as those caused by nightfall or the rapid onset of storms, has its movement halved and has disadvantage on its attacks. Likewise, a Mirror Lizard that suffers cold damage will have its movement halved and make its attacks at disadvantage for a full round after taking such damage.

ACTIONS

Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +5 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 7 (1d8+3) piercing damage.

Crushing Jaws. If a Mirror Lizard hits an opponent, the victim must make a DC 13 Dexterity saving throw. If the victim fails this saving throw, the Kawekaweau will clamp onto it and take the attack action each round thereafter to automatically inflict 7 (1d8+3) points of piercing damage until either the victim dies or the lizard is killed or somehow incapacitated. The victim can attempt a DC 13 Strength save each round as an action to escape the creature.

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Cretaean Mirror Lizard

Huge beast, unaligned

Armor Class: 18 (natural armor)

Hit Points: 76 (8d12+24)

Speed: 40 ft., Climb 40 ft.

 

STR             DEX             CON             INT               WIS              CHA

21 (+5)         10 (+0)         16 (+3)         2 (-4)            10 (+0)         9 (-1)

 

Damage Resistances: Fire

Damage Vulnerabilities: Cold

Senses: Passive Perception 11

Languages: —

Challenge: 5 (200 XP)

 

Armor-Piercing. A Mirror Lizard receives a +2 bonus on attacks against opponents that are wearing armor or which have a natural armor bonus (but not against those protected only by shields). This is reduced to +1 if the opponent only has one point of armor bonus.

Fire Resistant. A Mirror Lizard is not immune to fire but very resistant to it, not just having damage from fire attacks halved but also receiving advantage on saving throws against fire effects.

Glassy Camouflage. A Mirror Lizard has advantage on Dexterity (Stealth) checks to hide in terrain that has glassy or reflective features (e.g., fields of fulgurite material, exposed mica veins).

Reflective Hide. Any time the Mirror Lizard is targeted by a line spell or a spell that requires a ranged attack roll, the caster must make a DC 11 saving throw against their spell-casting ability score. On a failure, the lizard is unaffected and the effect is reflected back at the caster as though it originated from the monster, turning the caster into the target.

Sensitive to Chills. A Mirror Lizard exposed to reduced temperatures, such as those caused by nightfall or the rapid onset of storms, has its movement halved and has disadvantage on its attacks. Likewise, a Mirror Lizard that suffers cold damage will have its movement halved and make its attacks at disadvantage for a full round after taking such damage.

ACTIONS

Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +8 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 14 (2d8+5) piercing damage.

Crushing Jaws. If a Mirror Lizard hits an opponent, the victim must make a DC 15 Dexterity saving throw. If the victim fails this saving throw, the lizard will clamp onto it and take the attack action each round thereafter to automatically inflict 14 (2d8+5) points of piercing damage until either the victim dies or the lizard is killed or somehow incapacitated. The victim can attempt a DC 15 Strength save each round as an action to escape the creature.