Monster Monday - Massacre Bug

The barbarian scowled at his companions who looked at the brutal warrior expectantly. After a moment, he sighed but grumbled as he trudged towards the bodies piled up against the wall of the dungeon. Forms in varying states of decay, they wore tattered accoutrements on armor and adventuring gear, some of which even looked to still be usable. As the druid recited some prayers to the abandoned dead, the barbarian inched closer and grimaced as he began to reach for a necklace hanging from the neck of one corpse.

Before his fingers could curl around the chain of the amulet, the pile shifted and an oversized needle suddenly stabbed into his hand. An undignified shriek ripped from him, startling his teammates as he leapt back and grasped tightly at his forearm. He grunted as his veins pulsed and an acrid green fluid leaked from the wound. His focus was soon pulled back towards the pile as it shifted further, some of the bodies crashing to the ground to reveal a hideous, oversized insect. Sizzling fluid dripped from its needle-like proboscis and the only thing in its eyes was a callous hunger.

Massacre Bug by SethMonster

Covered in corpses, this colossal crawler creeps in crepuscular caverns, crouching under cadavers until cavaliers and their companions carouse too close.

The video on the massacre bug is a little educational, so check it out if you want to learn a little about assassin bugs!

A glass cannon creepy-crawly, the massacre bug follows the proud tradition of other giant insects that have been about since the dawn of D&D. Unlike those that simply slap the 'giant' descriptor to the type of insect they are, the massacre bug is a renamed version of the oversized assassin bug - an insect that has fascinated me since I was in high school. These buggy Buffalo Bills are infamous for garbing themselves in the corpses of their kills as a cadaverous camouflage. However, in making the massacre bug a giant, I had to accept that most humanoids would be a little weirded out at the sight of a pile of bodies waddling towards them. So I had to change its hunting tactics to being more of a wait-and watch type predator that remains beneath the corpses until new prey draws close.

The basis of this is codified under the massacre bug's Corpse Pile ability. In addition to letting the massacre bug hide with a Stealth DC inspired by abilities of creatures such as the skull peeler and mimic with the latter's ability to trick others as objects. The covering aspect of these bodies also gives the massacre bug some temporary Hit Points to shore up its otherwise low HP. However, while the massacre bug may be a little fragile, it is far from feeble. It has some decently deadly Strikes, which feature a high attack bonus and moderate damage even at its lowest. On top of that, a massacre bug can start a fight off with an Assassin's Strike. This grants a Strike but if this Strike is a critical success, which isn't too unlikely against an off-guard enemy with the massacre bug's high attack bonus, it gets an additional effect based on the Strike used. In the case of the leg hitting, the massacre bug can use a Grab, but in the case of its proboscis, it can use Inject Acid. This is a standard ability that can serve as a follow-up to any successful proboscis Strike and simply applies persistent acid damage to the creature. Given the fact that this acid is being injected into the creature, attempts to provide assisted recovery don't really do much to stop it. The entire concept of this comes from how assassin bugs will stab prey and then inject their digestive juices to turn their victims into slurry.

In addition to these more offensive powers, the massacre bug has Warning Rasp. Stridulation is the act of producing sound by rubbing specific body parts together, which is perhaps best known for crickets. Where most creatures stridulate as part of a courtship or to declare territory, assassin bugs are among those that do so to threaten and warn away others. I sought to represent this with a two-action ability that requires a high DC Will save from creatures around it and makes them some variant of frightened - as well as off-guard as long as they fail. On top of that, I wanted to represent the 'warning' aspect of this sound by adding a special effect on a critical failure that requires creatures to attempt a moderate DC Will save to even move closer to it. This just felt like a unique method of expressing fear in a character that I thought was fun and I didn't really want to use fleeing. However, if this adds too much complication to its design, feel free to swap in fleeing for a single round.

PF2e Massacre Bugs

Blue's D&D Massacre Bug

ENCOUNTER HOOKS

Burial Mound: The easiest encounter to set up is going to be the massacre bug's go-to hunting method. You could have the heroes come across a pile of corpses in a battlefield or one in a dungeon, but make sure to make note of some apparent treasure in it - maybe something even pings if they detect magic. Obviously, a massacre bug lurks within, waiting for the heroes to approach before it springs its trap.

Bug Out Your Dead: A necromancer has managed to tame a massacre bug, teaching it to serve as a mount and also a collector of corpses that it brings back to the dark mage. The heroes may come across the insect and necromancer in the midst of their dark deeds or be asked to investigate the disappearing corpses. The necromancer is able to raise the dead that the massacre bug carries, which may continue to hang on its back or drag themselves free at their master's command.

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Have a monstrous Monday!