Astrosphinx

Astrosphinxes are a malevolent breed of sphinx whose origins are shrouded in mystery. Standing twice as tall as a man, the astrosphinx is covered with brass-colored scales like those of a dragon. A pair of huge black bat wings sprouts from its back. The head resembles a goat skull, with tiny pinpricks of violet light in its eye sockets. The head does in fact have flesh; it is just so pale, and stretched so tightly across the skull, that it seems invisible. Instead of forepaws, the astrosphinx has a pair of large, clawed human hands. The beast exudes a smell of ozone and offal.

Astrosphinxes are fiercely territorial and challenge all intruders to a contest of riddles. Those who answer incorrectly, or do not answer at all, are killed outright. Due to their dementia, the astrosphinxes challenge any living things, even birds, bugs, small animals, and plants. In melee the astrosphinx attacks homicidally, mindlessly until nothing living is still standing. As a rule, after its riddle is answered incorrectly the sphinx discharges its chain lightning followed, by its breath weapon, and then launches itself into melee. The astrosphinx attacks not only the person who got the riddle wrong but all companions as well.

The madness of the astrosphinxes renders their riddles unanswerable and illogical: "What is the speed of blue?" "How loud is down?" "What do a kobold and the Spelljammer have in common besides triangles?" Unfortunately, an astrosphinx slays anyone who does not answer its riddle correctly; so, an astrosphinx is usually the only creature on a given planet.

Some travellers, legend states, have solved an astrosphinx's mad riddle by giving an equally mad or nonsensical answer. This tactic seldom works. However, other legends say that if someone were to correctly answer the riddle of an Astrosphinx, it would kill itself and leave behind a clue to finding the legendary spelljammer.

The astrosphinx can survive in space without air. It lairs most often on small, barren chunks of rock. The sphinx eats anything, usually those who give wrong answers to its riddles.

The astrosphinx is a bizarre predator that all conscientious races believe is better off hunted down and killed. Not even the evil intelligent races have anything to do with it. Saving any piece of an astrosphinx as a trophy is considered a bad omen, and the owner of the grisly trophy winds up shunned by his fellows.