Galumphing Speed. The Bandersnatch's speed is almost unmatchable, granting it advantage on Initiative rolls, and it can hide, disengage or dash as a bonus action.
Frabjous Evasion. If the Bandersnatch is subjected to an effect that allows it to make a Dexterity saving throw to take only half damage, it instead takes no damage if it succeeds on the saving throw, and only half damage if it fails.
Whiffling Senses. The Bandersnatch has advantage on Wisdom (Perception) checks that rely on hearing or smell.
Uffish Pounce. If the Bandersnatch moves at least 15 feet straight toward a creature and then hits it with a Claw attack on the same turn, that target must succeed on a DC 14 Strength saving throw or be knocked prone. If the target is prone, the Bandersnatch can make one Bite attack against it as a bonus action.
Frumious Regeneration. The Bandersnatch regains 10 Hit Points at the start of its turn. If the Bandersnatch takes damage from a Vorpal Weapon or a Winxy Pistol, this trait doesn't function at the start of the Bandersnatch's next turn. The Bandersnatch dies only if it starts its turn with 0 Hit Points and doesn't Regenerate.
Sneaky Snicker-Snack. If the Bandersnatch attacks from stealth or has advantage on it's attacks, it's opening attack deals you can deal an extra 2D6 damage.
Manxome Camouflage. The Bandersnatch has advantage on Dexterity (Stealth) checks made to hide in forest terrain. While it remains motionless, in a forested area, it is indistinguishable from a Tumtum tree.
Multiattack. The Bandersnatch makes multiple attacks, one with its Bite & two with its Claws or one with it's Bite and one with its Tail Whip.
Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +6 to hit, reach 10 ft., one target. Hit: 11 (2d6 + 4) piercing damage. If the target is a creature, it must succeed on a DC 14 Strength saving throw or be knocked prone.
Claw. Melee Weapon Attack: +6 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 7 (1d6 + 4) slashing damage.
Tail Whip. Melee Weapon Attack: +6 to hit, reach 15 ft., one target. Hit: 7 (1d6 + 4) slashing damage and an additional 1D6 poison damage. If the target is a creature, it must succeed on a DC 14 Constitution saving throw or become poisoned until the start of the Bandersnatch's next turn.
Description
The Bandersnatch is a curious creature and vicious predator who stalks the dark forests of the Feywild, using it’s blistering speed, stealthy hunting tactics and almost sapient intelligence to hunt lost explorers in the shadow-shrouded woodlands they call home. There is something altogether uncomfortable about the appearance of a Bandersnatch; aspects of their bodies resemble large cats, like lions, especially the males who tend to have long-hairy or downy manes, but their humanoid or ape-like hands and avian or crocodilian bone structure make these uncanny creatures unlike any other. They are monsters who could only find a home for themselves in the deepest, darkest parts of the Feywilds.
Blurry Beaks and Fleet of Foot. Speak to any denizen of the Feywild in regards to the frumious Bandersnatch and a plethora of wildly conflicting and horrifying stories are likely to pour out of them, but the only consistency about their tall tales will be the creature’s blistering speed. Some believe that they were cursed in the same way that the Quicklings now find themselves, others will tell you that they can only run when they aren’t being looked at directly, making their speed a mystery. The truth of the origins of their speed is unclear, but quicklings who have had the chance to get a good look at this beast and live, tend to never venture close to forests again.
Ambush Predators. The Bandersnatch is an ambush hunter, preying on groups of adventurers and lost wanderers who have the misfortune to find themselves alone amongst the Tumtum trees. They move at break-neck speeds and tend to launch an attack by surprising and trampling their foes with a slash and a bite before slithering away before enemies have a chance to retaliate, only to return over and over again, whittling down their opponents’ health little by little, only to pick off the weakest member of the group, one by one. A Bandersnatch can seemingly hibernate, staying motionless for months at a time between meals, conserving all of their energy for their missile-like attacks when prey is within reach. Given the chance to hunt a meal, they are utterly relentless. None can outrun a Bandersnatch, and hiding from them is also nearly impossible, as these supernatural predators can seemingly fly, to avoid traps, difficult terrain and to elude hunters hoping to track their footprints.
Beware the Tumtum Forest. Tumtum trees are an essential part of the Bandersnatch’s life-cycle. The skin of the Bandersnatch very closely mimics the Tum Tum’s bark, the creature’s feathers bare more than a passing resemblance to the leaves of this tree, and when motionless, these creatures can take on a more tree-like appearance allowing them to effortlessly camouflage themselves in the forests of their homeland. For most creatures, camouflage is a defence mechanism to avoid predators, but for the Bandersnatch, these trees obscure their presence from their prey, allowing them to stalk their food as a tiger might use their stripes. A Bandersnatch start their lives in these trees. Adults will lay a single egg among the branches of a Tumtum tree; the egg itself very closely resembling the pine cone-like seed pods of the plant. This egg will slowly sink into the main trunk of the tree, where it will grow and gestate for several years until the fledgling Bandersnatch will grow to hollow out the tree, bursting forth from its bark when it expands beyond the confines of the tree’s dimensions. Bandersnatch parents do not raise their young, as their offspring emerge almost fully grown and perfectly capable of hunting for themselves.
Vorpal Death. The metabolism and healing of the Bandersnatch is as swift as their pace on the ground, causing them to regenerate from almost any wound, if an attack can even be cleanly made against them. As a result, it is believed that only a Vorpal sword or a Winxy Pistol can land a killing blow on a Bandersnatch. A mortal blow must be clean, immediate, thorough and fundamentally magical to guarantee the death of a Bandersnatch. Why specifically these two items fit that bill are not well known to the Fey, but it is known that none should hunt a Bandersnatch without one or both of these legendary weapons. It is said that the creation of a Vorpal sword can only be performed if it is anointed in the blood of a Bandersnatch after forging, and that the blade must be forged in a fire who burns the wood of the Tumtum tree; so in many ways, the Vorpal Blade is essentially a part of the Bandersnatch.
Arcane Forge. While the originator of the Bandersnatch is the author, Lewis Carroll, these particular stats, lore and the accompanying image were produced by Josh of the Arcane Forge Youtube channel. Make sure to check out the Arcane Forge for more lore about this creature, and for monster art and mythology videos every week!
Comments