Naga

Intro

Nagas are a race of intelligent snake-like immortals with widely differing abilities and alignments. Dark naga are fey creatures who have human-like faces (with fanged mouths) on leathery, snake-like bodies. They usually work with other evil beings for mutual gain or survival. Dark naga tend to be black, purplish-black, or very dark blue in hue, and their crested heads and smooth, almost invisible scales make them look like gigantic eels more than snakes.

Dark nagas covet luxury, wealth, and power over others. With bodies covered by shimmering, eel-like black scales, dark nagas slither deftly through forsaken lands and abandoned ruins, scouring such places for treasures and weaker creatures they might force into service. Their forked tongues spread only lies, and others whom they can’t manipulate they destroy with their insidious poison and destructive magical abilities. A typical dark naga measures approximately 12 feet long and weighs upward of 300 pounds.

Arrogant and sybaritic, dark nagas seek to dominate lesser creatures, relishing the fear they inspire and power over other beings. While some manage to carve indulgent fiefdoms from tribes of goblins, orcs, lizardfolk, or other barbarous races, the luster of cosmopolitan fineries proves enticing as well, leading some to infiltrate city sewers and slums to gather an urban following. They particularly relish morbidly crafted jewelry and treasures, often adorning themselves with jeweled bands or taking their ease atop piles of treasure.

Dark nagas hate others of their kind, especially other dark nagas, seeing their brethren as deadly opponents to be dispatched swiftly and mercilessly—often rightly so.

Statistics

Stat	Level	Stat	Level
S	8	D	14	C	5
W	8	Q	14	M	10
Hgt	50	Wgt	30	HP	70
Skill	8+10	AP	10	R	14
Ready	2	Init	18+8	Damage	3 (Bite) 31 (Stinger)

Special Qualities

• Darkvision 60 ft.

Spells

Rune	Level
Thoughts	8
Desires	8
Lie	8
Break	6

Traits Rejuvenation: If it dies, the naga returns to life in 1d6 days and regains all its hit points. Only a wish spell can prevent this trait from functioning.

Dark naga have a (non-poisonous) bite and a poisonous tail-sting; the barbed stinger does physical damage, and any struck being must save vs. poison or take 1-2 hp additional damage and fall into a drugged sleep (onset time 1 round, sleep lasts 2d4 rounds). The most feared ability of dark nagas is their power to wield magic. A dark naga casts spells as a 6th-level wizard (4,2,2), and employs only verbal spells. In battle, a dark naga may use its sting and either a spell or a bite in the same round. If space permits, the naga can direct its sting and bite against the same foe, but it is quite intelligent enough to direct attacks at multiple opponents, even attacking foes in front of and behind it, simultaneously, if caught between them in a narrow passage.

Habitat/Society

Dark nagas lair in rocky places, such as caverns or ruins; they like to have a home where they can hide things (such as treasures and spellbooks), that has more than one entry or exit, and at least one place narrow enough that they can block it with their body, and singlehandedly fight off intruders. Dark nagas are fond of traps, and will devise these (or hire other creatures to install them) whenever possible. Dark nagas tend to be loners, but can form stable family groups of two or three; they are bisexual, and give birth to a squirming mass of many wormlike young which they promptly abandon to fend for themselves. Intelligent enough to know they can prevail against few creatures in the Realms alone, dark nagas work with other evil creatures, such as orcs, hobgoblins, drow, phaerimm, beholders, and the like. They like to fill a "commander and magical strike force" role, perhaps in a sergeant-like intermediary rank, under a more powerful ruler -- but they are wise enough to adopt the faith, beliefs, and rules of whatever group they join.

Ecology

Dark naga do not willingly eat other dark naga, but they will eat just about anything else, both alive and dead. They eat a few lichens and the occasional green plant, but their main diet is meat. They especially prize hot, still-fresh blood. Dark nagas spend their lives outwardly working with, or serving, others. Whenever possible, however, they also pursue private goals, which may be as whimsical and odd as some human goals ("cover this desert valley with trees," for instance), but always include increasing their personal power by acquiring new spells and magical items. Dark nagas are quick to plunder fallen foe, swallowing items, scrolls, and spellbooks to spit forth later -- for all dark nagas have a bag-like internal organ that they can use to carry things. This organ has thick, rubbery air-sac walls to protect the naga against sharp points and the like, but it also protects the cargo against digestive juices, and has the unusual side-effect of shielding magic from all detection spells.