Spheroid in shape, the hangman is approximately one meter in diameter, and fully one quarter of its bulk is taken up by its mouth. Its body is ringed by between four and six vine-like tentacles, each ending in a barbed 'leaf', which it uses for both locomotion and capturing prey. The hangman clings under the tree canopy with some of its tentacles, short range from the ground, and relaxes its remaining tentacles until they hang about one meter from the surface - looking for all the world like the jungle's ordinary vines. Though the hangman has no eyes, its tentacles are extremely sensitive to vibration and can detect the tremors of approaching prey through both air vibrations, and those from the trees that it clings to.
When prey comes within range, the hangman attempts to grab it and, retracting its elastic-like tentacles, hoists the victim up to its waiting mouth (it must spend two actions to do this). That accomplished, the hangman will bite its victim until it stops moving, at which point the creature will let its digestive enzymes finish the job over a period of several days.
For the traveller who has never encountered a hangman before, detecting it among Barsol's ordinary jungle vines requires a Daunting Perception roll to spot the danger. A traveller who has survived an encounter with these creatures never quite forgets it, and will thereafter be able to recognize the creatures' 'vines' with an Average roll.
On the bright side, hangmen are entirely unaccustomed to armed resistance. If a hangman suffers a critical hit or receives wounds greater than half its wound threshold, it will drop its victim and, slowly, flee the scene - if there are enough neighbouring trees to allow it. For some reason, a hangman will allow itself to be killed rather than touch the ground.
Skills: Athletics 2, Brawl 2, Cool 3, Stealth 3.
Talents: None.
Abilities: Sluggish (maneuver costs for moving are doubled, and hangmen may never make more than one maneuver moving per turn.
Equipment: Tentacles (Brawl; Damage 1; Critical 5; Range [Short]; Ensnare 3), Maw (Brawl; Damage 6; Critical 2; Range [Engaged]).
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