New Oe/BX/1E Monster: Giant Shock Snail

This is one of those creatures that feels stereotypically "old school" to me. 1) Take a standard creature (usually benevolent), 2) make it giant, and 3) give it a special ability. The other thing I like is that even though the giant shock snail's movement is slow (almost worthless), it throws a rather threatening lightning bolt. Fun stuff!

DESCRIPTION A shock snail, like other giant snails, has an exposed, fleshy area (AC: 6) and a hard-shelled area (AC: 3). Due to the pliant nature of the body’s thick, rubbery surface, the fleshy area of a shock snail is not susceptible to damage from blunt weapons and, therefore, can only be hit by piercing, bladed, or magical attacks. The shelled area, however, is susceptible to all forms of attacks but benefits from a lower armor class rating. Shock snails are immune to the effects of electrical-based attacks, regardless of where they hit. The bite of a shock snail does 2-12 points of damage. However, given a shock snail’s rather limited movement ability, its preferred form of attack is a form of lightning bolt the shock snail can “throw” from its antennae at a target up to a distance of 50’ away. Each antenna acts as an electric “pole” (one positive, one negative), with the electrical bolt forming between the two. A shock snail may only use this electrical attack every second round, as it takes that long for the attack to recharge. Each of these electric bolts does 3-18 points of damage. A successful saving throw (vs. wands) will half the damage.

Oe/1E STATS FREQUENCY: Rare NO. APPEARING: 1-6 ARMOR CLASS: 6/3 MOVE: 3” HIT DICE: 7 % IN LAIR: Nil TREASURE TYPE: Nil NO. OF ATTACKS: 1 DAMAGE/ATTACK: 2-12/3-18 SPECIAL ATTACKS: Electricity SPECIAL DEFENSES: See below MAGIC RESISTANCE: Standard INTELLIGENCE: Non- ALIGNMENT: Neutral SIZE: L (7’ long) PSIONIC ABILITY: Nil Attack/Defense Modes: Nil BX STATS ARMOR CLASS: 6/3 HIT DICE: 7 MOVE: 30’ ATTACKS: 1 bite or 1 special DAMAGE: 2-12/3-18 NO. APPEARING: 1-6 SAVE AS: Fighter: 5 MORALE: 10 TREASURE TYPE: Nil ALIGNMENT: Neutral