Rot grub
(swarm)
A rot grub is an arachnid that spends most of its life cycle feeding in its larval form, in which it can quickly kill most living creatures by burrowing into their flesh.1
Habitat and ecology
An adult rot grub is a skittering, yellow arachnid that lives for only a few hours, which is long enough to lay dozens of eggs on a host corpse. The rot grub young can spend weeks growing when they only have a dead corpse to devour, but can grow to adulthood when there is living tissue to feast upon. The juvenile rot grubs quickly attack any living creatures that approach by burrowing into their flesh, sapping their health, and destroying major organs within a minute.1
Small numbers of rot grubs are usually hazards that occur near the corpse of a humanoid or similarly sized creature. Rot grubs occasionally infest the corpse of a mammoth, cloud giant, old dragon, or other huge creature. After the rot grubs devour all of the carcass's flesh, they erupt from the corpse as an enormous swarm that seeks creatures that they quickly kill and consume—including any adult rot grubs that have already matured.1
Giant rot grub
A rot grub rarely fails to mature to its adult form, especially after devouring dragon flesh. These grubs grow larger as they consume flesh and eventually develop into a halfling-sized, grub-like predator.1
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 . “Pathfinder's Journal: Hell's Pawns 1 of 6” in The Bastards of Erebus, 78–79. Paizo Inc., 2009
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