Constriction-Snake
Beast -- Large -- Dense undergrowth, ruin substructure, canal margins, flooded cellar networks
It had the dog before we saw it -- had it and was already moving away from the noise. Veth said it would not fight for the kill if we pressed it and she was right. It released when we got close with the light. Left the dog and went into the water so fast it seemed like the water ate it. I keep thinking about the speed of that first movement. The part before it was already gone. We did not see that part.
-- settlement patrol log, outer canal district
Ecology
The Constriction-Snake is a large ambush predator that inhabits any environment combining warmth, cover, and access to prey in the medium-to-large range. It is not aggressive in the sense of pursuing threats; its whole behavioral profile is built around one short explosive motion from concealment and the controlled mechanical process that follows. The Bite establishes the hold, the Constrict action applies the pressure, and the snake is waiting for the end of the process, not managing an ongoing fight. It does not want a fight. It wants prey that cannot move.
The Restrained condition applied by Constrict is the core of the encounter. A Restrained creature has Disadvantage on attack rolls against the snake and cannot escape without a successful STR check against DC 14. The snake, meanwhile, can apply 6 (2d4 + 1) Bludgeoning damage automatically each round the hold lasts. This is not high per-round damage -- it is guaranteed, armor-irrelevant, accumulating damage that the target cannot stop by fighting harder. The danger of a Constriction-Snake is not that it will kill the character quickly; it is that it will kill the character slowly while the rest of the party tries to attack something that is pressed against their ally.
They are not social animals and do not compete in packs, but multiple individuals in the same environment are not unusual -- a ruin substructure with the right thermal conditions and enough rodent or small-animal prey to support one snake will support several. They do not coordinate, but finding one in an enclosed space raises the question of whether there are more using the same corridors.
The Miasm interaction is thermal rather than behavioral: the nanite saturation in warm substrate zones elevates ambient temperature slightly, and Constriction-Snakes have been documented clustering in high-saturation cavities during cold seasons. A chamber that runs warm and dry in a cold ruin is a habitat indicator.
Stat block
| AC | HP | Speed | Initiative |
|---|---|---|---|
| 12 | 13 (2d10 + 2) | 30 ft., Swim 30 ft. | +2 (12) |
| STR | DEX | CON | INT | WIS | CHA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 15 (+2) | 14 (+2) | 12 (+1) | 1 (-5) | 10 (+0) | 3 (-4) |
Senses Blindsight 10 ft.; Passive Perception 10
Languages None
CR 1/4 (XP 50; PB +2)
Melee Attack Roll: +4, reach 5 ft. Hit: 5 (1d6 + 2) Piercing damage, and the target has the Grappled condition (escape DC 14). Melee Attack Roll: +4, reach 5 ft. One creature that is Grappled by the snake. Hit: 6 (2d4 + 1) Bludgeoning damage, and the target has the Restrained condition until the Grapple ends.Bite
Constrict
Encounter use
A Constriction-Snake encounter is a time problem for the party, not a damage race. The snake itself is CR 1/4 -- something that can kill the snake is not in danger from the snake. The danger is to whoever it grabbed first. Once Restrained, that character is accumulating damage every round while the party attacks something pressed against them. Melee attacks on the snake hit a target adjacent to an ally; ranged attacks risk the Restrained character. Use this geometry deliberately: position the snake in a confined space where the party cannot spread out around it, and let the Restrained condition do the work. A snake that has grabbed a Mage or a lightly-armored character is a higher-priority problem than its CR suggests. It releases and retreats if it takes significant damage -- it does not fight to the death over prey.
Salvage
The skin is durable and flexible in ways that distinguish it from mammal hide -- the scale structure provides mechanical resistance without the weight of heavier armor materials, and the texture has applications in grip surfaces for tool handles and climbing equipment. The venom gland is vestigial in Constriction-Snakes (this lineage abandoned venom in favor of mechanical kill), but the jaw musculature structure is studied by researchers working on compression-based mechanical systems. Coastal communities that harvest them for food consider the meat a secondary product; the skin trade is the primary economic driver.