Bone Needle, Lesser

Small beast, unaligned

Armor Class 12
Hit Points 10 (3d6)
Speed 20 ft., climb 20 ft.

STR	DEX	CON	INT	WIS	CHA
5 (-3)	14 (+2)	10 (+0)	1 (-5)	10 (+0)	3 (-4)

Damage Immunities psychic
Condition Immunities charmed, frightened
Senses darkvision 60 ft., passive Perception 10
Languages None
Challenge 1/4 (50 XP)

SPECIAL TRAITS

• Aversion to Daylight. Bone needles shun light. While exposed to natural (not magical) sunlight, they have tactical disadvantage on all attack rolls, saving throws, and skill checks.
• Bone needle Poison. The bite of a bone needle injects a syrupy neurotoxin that destroys flesh and weakens bone. A creature that fails its saving throw against bone needle poison gains the poisoned condition. While the creature is poisoned by bone needle poison, it also takes an extra 2 points of damage whenever it takes bludgeoning, piercing, or slashing damage. Cumulative bites do not increase the extra damage. The poisoned creature can repeat the saving throw after a long or short rest, ending the poisoned condition with a successful save. A lesser restoration spell will also neutralize the poison.
• Crowd. Up to three bone needles can occupy the same five-foot space.

ACTIONS

• Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +4 to hit, reach 5 ft., one creature. Hit: 5 (1d6 + 2) piercing damage and the target must make a successful DC 12 Constitution saving throw or suffer the effect of bone needle poison (see above).

ABOUT

Bone needles are eyeless, bone-white creatures that resemble a five-foot-diameter blob of semi-translucent flesh with eight spindly, spidery legs colored black or gold. These creatures feed on bone marrow, so their lairs are always scattered with the cracked, deformed bones of their victims, both humanoid and animal. A greater bone needle is a larger version of the lesser. They appear to be nothing more than lesser bone needles that have survived long enough to grow larger than their nest mates.

A bone needle’s mandibles are glossy-black and hollow, both to inject poison and to siphon out the dissolved flesh and bone from a victim’s corpse. While feeding, the bone needle’s fleshy form pulsates and expands. After feeding, its form becomes less translucent and takes on a greenish-yellow color.

Bone needles make their lairs deep underground to avoid natural daylight, though some brave the surface world by venturing from their lairs at night. Such surface encounters are rare and are always with at least a pack of greater and lesser bone needles. Bone needles flee natural daylight if at all possible.