Creatures Creature Families Creature Abilities
Creature Adjustments Creature Templates

SFS Standard Ksarik Creature 4

Originating as mindless plants from Castrovel, ksariks developed rudimentary intelligence and uncanny adaptive abilities after millennia of exposure to psychic energy expended in the conflicts between formians and lashuntas. These 12-foot-long quadrupeds have up to a dozen face tentacles and see through two eyestalks that protrude from either side of the tentacular mass. Ksariks' mutable forms might temporarily develop webbing, wings, and other adaptations after they siphon off genetic code from their prey.

Originally scavengers, ksariks have evolved into deadly hunters capable of weaponizing their digestive and reproductive systems. The internal acid ksariks use to digest prey can be projected as lethal spittle. The dozens of thorns along their sides carry their genetic code and can be launched as projectiles, allowing ksarik saplings to feed off a victim as they grow. This easy transmittal of their young and their environmental adaptability have allowed ksariks to spread far beyond Castrovel.

Elite | Normal | Weak

Elite Weak Ksarik Creature 4

Image of a ksarik
Source Alien Core pg. 103
Recall Knowledge DC 18 19 20 •
Plant (Nature)
Perception +11 (low-light vision, scent (imprecise) 30 feet)
Languages Common, Elven, Lashunta; (can't speak); adapted languages
Skills Acrobatics +10, Athletics +12, Stealth +8, Survival +10
Str +5 Dex +2 Con +3 Int -3 Wis +2 Cha -1
Adapted Languages A ksarik understands up to 3 languages from among the prevalent languages spoken by those it has most recently attacked.
AC 20
Fort +14
Ref +10
Will +8
HP 60, fast healing 5
Immunities poison
Speed 30 feet, climb 20 feet
Melee [one-action] tentacle +14 (reach 10 feet), Damage 2d6+5 bludgeoning plus ingested adaptation
Ranged [one-action] acid spit +12 (range increment 30 feet), Damage 2d4 acid plus 1d4 persistent acid
Ranged [one-action] thorn dart +12 (range increment 20 feet), Damage 2d4 piercing plus carrion spores
Carrion Spores (disease) Saving Throw DC 18 Fortitude; Stage 1 carrier with no ill effect (1d6 hours), Stage 2 stupefied 1 (1 day), Stage 3 stupefied 2 and clumsy 2 (1 day), Stage 4 unconscious (1 day), Stage 5 1d10+10 ksarik seedlings erupt from the victim's body, dealing 1 piercing damage per seedling and ending the disease
Ingested Adaptation A ksarik's tentacle Strike siphons the target's genetic code and psychic resonance. On a successful Strike, the ksarik gains one of the target's abilities, chosen from the following.
  • The amphibious or aquatic trait
  • A new precise or imprecise sense
  • A resistance to one damage type (up to resistance 7)
  • A burrow, fly, or swim Speed (up to 30 feet)
  • The ability to wield a category of melee weapons (simple, martial, or advanced) in its tentacles that the target is trained in (using its tentacle Strike bonus)
  • Altering the type of damage dealt by its acid spit to a type (cold, electricity, fire, poison, or sonic) dealt by one of the target's Strikes or other abilities
The ksarik can't duplicate abilities from equipment. It can maintain one adaptation at a time, which it retains for 24 hours or until it uses ingested adaptation again.

Learning Ksariks

Some Pact Worlds scientists suspect that traces of a ksarik's gained adaptations live on within its genetic code. In theory, this could lead to permanent changes when a ksarik repeats the same adaptation enough times. For instance, a ksarik that consumes a lot of amphibious or aquatic wildlife might permanently gain the amphibious or aquatic trait. Rumors of specimens with leafy wings or fiery mucus further support this hypothesis, and some believe they could “train” a ksarik for a specific purpose if they expose the creature to the right stimuli.