Displacer beast
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| Dungeons & Dragons creature | |
|---|---|
| Displacer beast | |
| Alignment | Lawful Evil |
| Type | Magical beast |
| Source books | |
| First appearance | Monster Manual (1st edition) |
| Based on | the Coeurl |
A displacer beast is a fictional creature from the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game. It was inspired by the coeurl, a feline-like creature from the 1950 science fiction novel The Voyage of the Space Beagle by A. E. van Vogt.[1]
Contents |
[edit] Publication history
The displacer beast has been included in every edition of the Monster Manual, from the very first one in 1977 to the latest in 2003.
[edit] Licensing
The displacer beast is considered a "Product Identity" by Wizards of the Coast and as such is not released under its Open Gaming License.[2]
[edit] Ecology
Displacer beasts are fierce and vicious, and hate all other creatures. These sentient, magical cats often kill purely for pleasure, though they never fight among themselves. This beast uses a magical displacement ability, a form of illusion which causes it to appear to be a few feet away from where it actually is. This makes the creature hard to hit, while it attacks with its long tentacles. The displacer beast is the natural enemy of the blink dog.
The hide of a displacer beast has many useful magical properties, making it highly sought after by wizards and alchemists. Many thieves use the eyes of a displacer beast as good luck charms, believing that they will protect the bearer from detection.
[edit] Environment
Displacer beasts primarily live in temperate hills or mountains. [3]
[edit] Typical physical characteristics
A displacer beast is a magical beast resembling an emaciated black puma with a pair of powerful black tentacles sprouting from its shoulders, and two to four additional forelimbs. Displacer beasts are coloured blue-black, like a dark panther. The tentacles are tipped with horny edges which can inflict terrible wounds and resemble the club-shaped catching tentacles of a squid.
[edit] Alignment
Displacer beasts are lawful evil.
[edit] Society
[edit] Displacer beasts in Eberron
In the Eberron campaign setting, the displacer beast is the heraldic beast of the dragonmarked House Thuranni.
[edit] Footnotes
- ^ (2007) DRAGON Monster Ecologies. Paizo Publishing.
- ^ Frequently Asked Questions. D20srd.org. Retrieved on 2007-02-23.
- ^ (July 2003) Monster Manual: Core Rulebook III v.3.5. Wizards of the Coast, pg.66. ISBN 0-7869-2893-X.
[edit] References
- Cook, David, et al. Monstrous Compendium Volume One (TSR, 1989).
- Mickelson, Bill. "Ecology of the Displacer Beast." Dragon Magazine #109 (TSR, 1986).
- Greyhawk set (1974)
- D&D Basic Set (1977)
- D&D Expert Set (1981)
- D&D Expert Set (1983)
- Dungeons & Dragons Rules Cyclopedia (1991)
- Monstrous Manual (1993)
- Monster Manual (2000)
- Monster Manual v.3.5 (2003) (also includes a Pack Lord)
- D&D Miniatures: Harbinger set #41 (2003)
- D&D Miniatures: War of the Dragon Queen set #29 (2006) (Displacer Beast Pack Lord)
- D&D Miniatures: Unhallowed set #37 (2007) (Displacer Beast Manhunter)
