Cactus, Pit Prickle

Class:Vegimal
Hab: Arid wastes
Fre: Uncommon
Num: 6-36 in area
Lair: 95%
Size: 500-5,000 lbs.
Move: Serpent-swift limbs but slow crawling body
Def: Mostly buried, very tough skin
Att: 3-6 limbs, each covered in dagger-like thorns
Int: Basic beast
Spec: Hordes liquid
Posns: Plentiful incidental luncheon leftovers + liquids

Pit Prickle Cactus

The pit prickle creates a funnel-pit rather like that of the ant lion, and may, in fact, share a pit with a giant ant lion. When some hapless creature comes within the pit, the fleshy pads of the pit prickle fling sand up upon the slope. The loose sand acts like innumerable wee ball bearings and triggers a sand avalanche, tumbling its prey into the pit. The pit prickle then whaps with its pads, harsh thorns scratching. The pads are encased in thick, leathery skin tough enough to keep the prickles from hurting itself.

Buried under the vegimal horror are those indigestible remains of its meals, a motley collection of teeth and metal objects. Perhaps more valuable in the desert, the body of a cactus, once slain, can be squeezed to express half its weight in fluid, which, if rather slimy and unpleasant, is nonetheless potable.

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Apr 4, 2006