Hi there!

Talking about submissions that were not accepted for the Book of Shadows,

the text below is my personal contribution for the List. While I do agree

with the Kargatane that the subject has been covered in other products -

"evil monster takes shape of comely female, seduces lonely man and than

feasts on it" - I think it might be interesting for the Listmembers to meet

the Kabyro Ti-Ante.

This creature comes from a local native legend, told by some tribes that

inhabit the Bananal Island, the largest river island in the world, nested in

the Araguaya River, at Brazilian's Midwest. So, here it goes, I hope you

like it:

KABYRO TI-ANTE

Life can be quite hard in the swamps, and it is not uncommon for a traveler

to get lost. When this happens, any inhabited place, even a small hut, might

be considered a safe harbor in the middle of such an inhospitable place,

specially when there is a good meal and a lovely singing woman waiting

inside. But sometimes the unwary visitor may find that the dangers of the

marsh are nothing compared to the evil of his rescuer’s heart. It is always

so in the case of the kabyro ti-ante, a fiendish female crocodile that lures

men to their last meal – and then they become the meal.

Climate/Terrain: temperate and tropical swamps

Frequency: very rare

Organization: Solitary

Activity cycle: any

Diet: carnivore + special

Intelligence High (13-14)

Treasure: nil

Alignment: Chaotic evil

# appearing: 1

AC 7 (3/7)

Movement: 12, Sw. 18

HD 6+3

THAC0 15 (14 w/ Strength bonus)

Attacks 2 or 1

Damage: 2d4/2d6, 1d4/1d4 or by weapon + strength bonus

Special attacks: energy drain, Charisma drain, charm ability

Special defenses: +1 or bronze weapon to hit, summoning ability,

regeneration

Size: M (humanoid) / L (crocodile)

Morale: steady (11-12)

Magic resistance: nil

XP 2000

The Kabyro Ti-Ante (kah-BEE-row TEE-ant) are a race of evil female

shapeshifters that delight in slowly enfeebling male humans or humanoids and

later eating them. The name by which they call themselves means “Devil

crocodile-woman” in a long forgotten idiom from their world of origin,

although all members of this race can only be found in Ravenloft, such is

their evil.

In her human form, the kabyro can look like a comely female of any humanoid

race varying in size from 4 feet to 7 feet. She always takes on the most

pleasant image in the eyes of the first male she meets (Charisma/Appearance

16-19). If males from more than one race are together, she will usually

assume an appearance that conforms with the major race in the group. She

prefers to look human, though, as humans are easier to lure and seduce, and
she finds some humanoid races very ugly. Once she assumes one shape, she

will stay like that for at least 24 hours, unless she starts to feed before

that time (see below).

In her true shape, the creature is a black female crocodile of 8 to 15 feet

in size. Her yellow eyes glow red right before changing shapes or when she

is hungry.

COMBAT: The kabyro prefers to rely on her seductive skills to separate one

man from the rest of the group. If she spots the party wandering through the

swamp, she may decide to show herself to only one of them and lure him away

from the others. If there’s only one solitary man lost in the marsh, she

will promptly invite him to “have a meal in her cozy home”. All the while,

she sings a soft lullaby that enthralls male humanoids (females are immune),

imitating the effects of the charm person spell. She tries to take her

chosen victim to an isolated hut that she claims to be her home – normally a

hut she has invaded and taken from a previous victim.

Once alone with her charmed prey, she will cast create food and drink. She

can do this once per day, and the food and beverages created are common to

the region she is current living in, but always of superior quality. She

will then offer him the meal and try to engage him in activities of passion.

She will then start to feed on his life energy, at a rate of one HD/level

per turn in direct physical contact. The victim is so captivated that will

only notice the drain if successful in a Wisdom/Intuition check with a –3

penalty. Once the victim has reached 0 HD, she changes to her true form and

attacks. The transformation takes one round and during that time the kabyro

can take no other action. Anyone that witnesses the creature changing shapes

must make a fear check. Horror checks might also be required at the DM’s

choice.

This draining attack alone usually wastes away most of her mates, but

sometimes they are still able to defend themselves, as she has not drained
their Strength or Dexterity. However, it is quite difficult to defeat the

kabyro in crocodile form. Her sharp teeth cause 2d4 points of damage on a

successful bite, and a natural roll of 20 indicates that a limb has been

severed (choose randomly), inflicting additional 1d6 points of bleeding

damage and forcing the victim to succeed in a system shock roll or die

immediately. The wound keeps bleeding for 1d6 points of damage until treated

– in a 0-level human one bite might mean certain death. In the same round

the creature can use its massive tail as a blunt weapon and cause 2d6 points

of crushing damage. The kabyro usually attacks two opponents per round in

this fashion, but if there’s only one she will refrain from using her tail,

as the fight will most probably be over in a minute and she doesn’t want to

break anything within her “lair”, nor call unwanted attention. In crocodile

form her tough scales give her AC 3, but her soft belly is somewhat easier

to strike (AC 7).

One would believe the monster to be harmless in humanoid form. Nothing could

be far from the truth, for the kabyro ti-ante is a wicked opponent. Her

fragile appearance is a ruse, as she has the equivalent to a score of 18

Strength/Muscle and 17 Dexterity/Balance, that counts for her lower Armor

Class in humanoid form. She has retractable claw-like nails that she can use

in two attacks per round to rend an opponent for 1d4+3 points of damage

(Strength bonus included), and the victim has a percentage chance equal to

the amount of damage taken of permanently losing one point of

Charisma/Appearance. The kabyro normally saves such attacks for beautiful

women.

In either form, only magical weapons can seriously harm her, while weapons

made of bronze can cause half damage, rounded down. Fire-based attacks cause

her half damage, while electrical and lightning-based attacks cause her 50%

more damage (she saves normally, then the additional damage is calculated).

Cold-based attacks cause double damage and affect her as a slow spell for

1d4+1 rounds unless she succeeds in a save versus spell. When she changes
back to human form, she can regenerate 1d6 x 10% of all damage suffered

while in crocodile form, except damage caused by acid or electricity. She

greatly fears spellcasters and prefers to call allies to fight them.

Once per day the kabyro ti-ante can summon 1d10 normal crocodiles or 1d4

giant crocodiles (if available in the vicinity), that come to her aid in

1d10 rounds and fight to the death with a moral of 20, even if she uses them

to cover her escape route.

HABITAT/SOCIETY: All kabyro ti-ante are female. Whenever a chosen mate

survives long enough to fecundate her, she may try to keep him alive for a

short period of time before killing and eating him. If the offspring is male

(30% chance), gestation takes the same time of a normal pregnancy of the

father’s race. The baby will be left in the nearest settlement of the

father’s race, as a tribute to what the creature thought was a “worthy

meal”. The monster has no maternal instinct towards a male offspring and can

even attack him if he returns to her territory as adult.

If it is female (70% chance), in three weeks the creature will lay a large

egg and bury it like a normal crocodile. After three months the egg hatch

and a new kabyro is born. She keeps her crocodile shape for about one year,

then she becomes able to assume a humanoid appearance. This first year is

the worst for the creature, as it is unable to feed on life energy and when

it can finally do that she is maddeningly starving. Once it has reached

adult life after the first year, the creature lives about 20 to 30 years,

but its humanoid appearance never changes age, unless desired.

Kabyro ti-ante are solitary creatures and do not form communities. In fact,

whenever a crocodile-woman enters another’s territory (about one square mile

in diameter), the two will either fight to the death for dominance of the

area or each will try to trick the locals into believing that the other is

responsible for the disappearances of men in the vicinity. However, if the

invading kabyro is a relative, she will be “politely” contacted and invited

to leave the area in 24 hours – this usually means placing a human head in

her parlor. If the advice is not followed, then a combat – either through

melee or by subtler methods – will soon begin.

The Kabiro Ti-Ante legend is sung at night by some few elder people of

Rokhusima, Sri Raji, Necropolis, Tsuu-Y-Teke and Souragne. The Vistani also

disseminate the tales, as these creatures seem to be slowly spreading their

evil presence to other swampy areas. The story changes from place to place,

but in general it is like this:

A long time ago, in a vast swampy area surrounded by a thick jungle in a

land far beyond the Mists, the only humans were uncultured aborigines,

scattered in small tribal communities at the rivers’ shores. All men would

go out to hunt and fish for two or three days in a row, while all women

would raise the children, prepare food and do the housecleaning. Females

were not treated as equals to males, but were generally shown respect and

kindness, as if they were little more than beloved servants, and such was

their culture, as it had been for generations.

Then everything slowly changed, as men started to get lazier and weaker,

despite the excellent meals women prepared and served them. The tribes’

shamans began to lose their powers, as if something were draining their

abilities. Meanwhile, all women, even the younger maidens, were becoming

more attractive and somehow stronger with each passing day. Soon they began

taking the canoes and disappearing for two, sometimes three days in a row,

coming back with lots of fish with no marks of arrows in their bodies. Men

were too tired and weak to investigate.

One day the women proclaimed themselves the new leaders and stated ordering

men into cleaning, making meals and taking care of the children. They also

said all marriages were ineffective and now they would take any men they

wanted for their “harems”, even close relatives. Even further, sometimes the

women would take two or three of the strongest males and leave the village

with them at night, coming back in the morning. The accompanying men would
never return.

Then, one day, the eldest shaman, a man that lived isolated in the jungle

and had managed to avoid the vitality loss that affected all other males,

took a boy and gave him a magical charm that would enable the shaman to hear

everything the boy heard. He then hid the boy in one of the largest canoes

and left for his cottage, taking with him the bravest men left in the

villages right after the women had gone fishing.

Through the hidden boy’s amulet they heard strange sounds, as if the women

were chanting or saying prayers in a strange language. They also heard the

horrible sound of an inhuman creature that laughed and whispered words of

passion to the women, and muffled sounds that reminded the men of the

previous nights when their own spouses and relatives had started to become

more and more seductive.

Suddenly, they listened with horror in their hearts, as a cry of warning

from one of the women announced the boy’s discovery. The heard him plead for

his life and his screams going louder and louder as the laughing creature

approached with obvious intentions. Then there was only silence.

For the next two days, the men of all villages gathered and devised a plan.

The shamans worked together, with the elder leading them, and prepared

enchanted weapons to fight. When the women returned, the men feigned

ignorance of what had happened and served their “new leaders” a good meal –

poisoned to make them weaker and dizzy. Then they attacked.

There was a terrible battle, as once close relatives and friends took lives

of each other. Many men were killed or badly hurt, but many women were

injured as well. They took the canoes and went back to their swampy refuge,

with the remaining men in pursuit. There, deep in the marsh, they met the

responsible for everything, a huge male black crocodile-like fiend.

The monster taunted the warriors, telling them how it had seduced and

convinced the women to take “what they deserved” from them, and how it had

used magic to give them fish in exchange for love and human vitality. That
was too much for them to bear. Men and women fought once again against each

other, but this time the demoniac creature was fighting, too, and against it

the males had no chance. Even the shaman’s spells were weak to harm the

monster.

However, during the fight some women had come to the conclusion that they

had been nothing more than tools at the fiend’s hands, no more in control of

their own actions as they had been under what they considered “the male

tyranny” before. And they decided that there was no space for two leaders,

and only women should lead.

As the battle came to an end, and the severely wounded but still strong

crocodile killed the eldest shaman, the female gathered around it and made a

surprise attack with the magical weapons crafted by the shamans. As the

monster gave in a shocked and anguished death cry, it cursed them to never

again find power in numbers, never again find peace and love among mankind,

but only feed upon passion and flesh. The Mists surrounded the surviving

women, most of them pregnant from the continuous meetings with the monster,

and scattered them through several different swampy areas throughout the

Demiplane.

ECOLOGY: The kabyro ti-ante do not contribute to the improvement of the

environment. They prefer to live in the vicinity of a human or humanoid

community in the swampy areas, often taking the hut or cottage of one of

their first victims as a headquarters, but their true lairs are hidden in

the swamp, resembling crocodile lairs in small patches of dry land. They do

not hoard treasures taken from victims, instead scattering it carefully

beyond their territorial limits, to avoid susp