Slake Hound

Slake hounds are ugly, dog-like beasts with human-like hands, rear hooves, wrinkled skin, and a large mouth. Their backs are covered in flexible spines, similar to catfish whiskers. These pack animals are dull, violent, and always thirsty, and use their strange spines to steal fluids from their prey—hence their name.
==Abilities==
=== Keen Senses ===
Aside from their moisture-sapping abilities (see below) they can also sense vibrations in the air with their spines (their actual "ears" are vestigial), and have a keen sense of smell. Slake hounds have excellent night vision, but are effectively blind in normal sunlight.
=== Moisture Sapping ===
Slake Hounds can suck moisture and life from a creature. If the hound makes a successful grapple, they can leech away moisture, causing 2 FP damage every turn (which can only be recovered through rest and drinking water). When the victim reaches 0 FP, this deals HP damage instead! For every 4 FP or HP lost, the victim also loses 1 HT, until the loss is healed.
Clothing interrupts the attack by one turn, and armor prevents the attack by DR amount of seconds. While Tough Skin doesn't work at all, Sealed DR and any kind of force field stops the attack completely.
===The Bile Organ===
Slake hounds have a special organ that processes fluids like a stomach. It takes up most of their torso, and can be terribly dangerous if punctured—both for the hound and the attacker. Any piercing, cutting or impaling attack over 6 points of damage (after wounding modifiers) will puncture this organ, causing acid to spray everywhere.
Note that slake hound hide is immune to slake hound bile.
== Tactics ==
Slake hounds are opportunistic predators, preferring to watch and wait until they can strike. They are likely to attack like wolves, although they are more interested in sapping a creature and scampering off, possibly leaving their prey alive. 
Attacks and counterattacks: Slake Hound jaws are disproportionately strong, and they tend to bite creatures that defend themselves against their tendrils. As such, even a simple walking stick will allow one to "bonk" the noggin of a slake hound without letting the beast counter. 
Positioning: Melee-only creatures who rely on flanking are particularly vulnerable to counter-positioning such as having one's back to a wall or corner. Likewise, while slake hounds can climbspeculation on their limbs, they are not particularly good at it, and will struggle to "gang up" on a target if they must move single-file up a tree or stairway.
== Dead Monster Bits==
=== The Bile Organ Again ===
==== Using Science ====
The bile organ can be quite valuable to alchemists and such, but requires a Veterinary-2 or Surgery-5 roll to remove without rupturing. It must be transported gently—even a single point of damage can burst it! This organ stays potent for about 1d+1 days, but may last longer in a cooler or magically preserved. This isn't just useful for acid—its very presence can be "tapped" for 200 points of energy for acid-based enchantments, like Acid Ball, Acid Jet, Rain of Acid, and Spit Acid.
==== Using Magical Science ====
One can also tap the organ for its acid using Alchemy-2 or Chemistry-2 roll.
==References==
*Creatures of the Night, Vol. 1, p.19-20
Category:Monsters
Category:Pack hunters
Category:Has DMB