Enhanced Scaladar

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Scaladar are scorpion-like automatons created by the archmage Trobriand, and are the most successful and useful of his artificial creations. The scaladar are generally used to guard strongholds or treasure in the many levels of Undermountain. The enhanced scaladar, which calls itself Squch, is an automaton especially created by Trobriand as one of his "most intellectually stimulating experiments in this century." With its magical metal construction, Squch is physically identical to a normal scaladar, aside from its intelligence, magic resistance, independent will, and a magical voicebox that allows it to speak Common and Drow. Created as a curiosity to interact with some of Trobriand's older "failures" (see Trobriand's Automatons), the enhanced scaladar is proving to be a singular menace that could lead to much trouble soon.
==Combat==
The enhanced scaladar can attack with both of its huge, pincerlike claws as well as with its sting-tipped tail, and can thus fight up to three opponents at a time. Each claw does 1d12 points of damage when it closes on a victim and continues that damage each round thereafter until the victim can break free. A victim can try to escape once with a successful bend bars/lift gates roll; failure means that the victim is trapped in the creature's grip until dropped. Moreover, Squch holds the victim in its vise-like grip and bludgeons the enemy with the unfortunate, dealing 1d4 points of damage to the bludgeoned foe, and an additional 1d6 points of damage to the tightly-held victim/weapon.
The enhanced scaladar's sting does 2d4 points of damage, and each successful "sting" adds an additional 1d12 points of electrical damage to the victim. Note that anyone trapped in one of the enhanced scaladar's claws can be automatically struck by the sting, with no attack roll required. Squch can generate this electrical attack only once per turn, unless it can be enhanced by any electrical or magical attacks cast against it.
Like its less-intelligent cousins, Squch can absorb all magic missiles and all electrical attacks. Each point of damage from an electrical attack is stored as 1 point of energy that can be discharged when the construct makes a sting attack. This energy cannot be discharged by the sting until a minimum of 12 points have been absorbed or generated. The magical energy released by magic missiles can be absorbed on the same round they hit to heal the scaladar rather than harm it. If Squch is unharmed, the magic missiles are absorbed with no effect.
Like all of Trobriand's constructs, the enhanced scaladar is immune to disintegrate, maze, crystalbrittle, and any acid- or cold-based spells. It takes only half damage from fire- and heat-based attacks, and half damage from any attacks with edged or piercing weapons. All attempts to mentally control Squch will fail unless they specifically use Trobriand's Master Ring (See Trobriand's Automatons).
==Habitat/Society==
The scaladar were created over a number of decades, and Trobriand created many other metal creatures that were deemed failures and teleported to empty caverns deep within the dungeon. Early on, Trobriand stopped instilling artificial intelligence within his constructs, as his experiments always seemed to go awry. Years later, after the successful creation of the nonintelligent and easily controlled scaladar, Trobriand ventured into the area where he dumped his "failures," looking for spare parts, and found a group of artificially sentient constructs that not only functioned, but were creating more of their own constructs.
Inspired by the unintentional success of his intelligent metal monsters, Trobriand wanted to create a construct that was intelligent and able to control the others, all "in the interest of magical curiosity." He created a unique, more heavily armored scaladar with some magic resistance and a new artificial intelligence based on the silversanns' internal components, allowing it to directly control its fellow constructs. Its primary magical "programming" instill in it a directive for control. Trobriand then placed it in his graveyard to watch its interaction with the other inhabitants. Squch named itself soon after its activation (after a squeak from its right claw) and its experimental intellect and ego soon went to work. It quickly proclaimed itself the commander of the constructs in Trobriand's Graveyard and formed its plans to conquer the Underhalls and all the Realms above and below. It does realize, however, that it and the other metal monsters are unquestioningly under the control of the "Metal Mage" himself (though Squch thinks it might have ways around that, provided enough magic . . . ).
Squch is intelligent and ambitious and is following its directive of control quite well. It has control of the Graveyard and it has now directed the other automatons to find a way out of the Graveyard. Squch has delusions of grandeur along with its control directive, and is intent upon finding a way to control Undermountain in preparation for taking over the Realms. Squch is ruthless and totally lacking in qualities such as compassion or curiosity. It wants only one thing: to further its ambitions and obey its "need" for control. It is driven by a mechanical logic and is too intelligent to fall for spurious arguments or unsupported threats. Unlike others of its kind, Squch does not kill blindly and automatically; each opponent is evaluated in terms of what Squch might gain from him or her.
Squch moves smoothly on level ground, but can climb rockpiles in a clumsy fashion. It knows that it cannot swim or float, and that its metallic body would eventually rust if exposed to water for extended periods of time, and so it remains on dry ground at all times.
==Ecology==
Squch eats nothing, and requires no fuel. Trobriand knows of its ambitions, but only finds them "amusing from an anthropological point of view." He also knows that the monster will obey him without question, due to his Master Ring. With matters at an apparent impasse, Trobriand continues to observe Squch and the society it has built in the Graveyard with much amusement and interest. Squch, on the other hand, works incessantly to gain control of the dungeon and itself (it wants to find magic that allows it to defy Trobriand's control).
Category:Creatures
Category:Constructs
Category:The Ruins of Undermountain II Creatures