The giant Portuguese man-o-war was a species of monstrously sized aquatic creature,[2] a sort of giant jellyfish.[1]
Description[]
These creatures had largely transparent bodies, which were difficult for most creatures to detect unless they could perceive invisible objects. They typically sported around ten to forty tentacles, with their length varying depending upon the specimen's size.[2][1]
The smallest specimens were 2 feet and 0.5 inches (0.622 meters) in diameter and typically had ten tentacles that each measured 10 feet (3 meters) in length. The largest specimens were 10 feet (3 meters) in diameter and typically had forty tentacles that each measured 40 feet (12 meters) in length.[2][1]
Abilities[]
The tentacles of these creatures were coated in a paralytic poison. They used this to stun their prey for easier meals. When tentacles were sliced off it did no harm to the central body of a giant Portuguese man-o-war and the tentacles would regenerate over the course of several days.[2]
Ecology[]
Giant Portuguese men-o-war were known to live either alone or in groups of up to ten members,[2] though they primarily lived solitarily.[1]
Habitats[]
These creatures were primarily found in warm, tropical oceans,[2] in shallows. They were rarely found deeper than 30‒40 ft (9.1‒12 m), the range in which light could easily penetrate the water. They often washed up on beaches during storms, where their tentacles became partially buried.[1]
In the Realms, they were only known to inhabit the seas and ocean around the Moonshae Isles.[3]
Relationships[]
When beached by storms, sea birds and crustaceans would prey upon their helpless bodies.[1]
Usage[]
Some sahuagin would place these creatures within their lairs to act as traps against any would-be intruders.[4]
History[]
Around the 12th century DR, the famed pirate captain Immurk and his men transported two giant Portuguese man-o-wars to an underwater grotto in the Egg of the Isles, a small islet in the Pirate Isles, to act as guardians of his treasure.[5]
Appendix[]
Appearances[]
- Adventures
- Dungeon #48, "The Oracle at Sumbar"
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 Jon Pickens ed. (1995). Monstrous Compendium Annual Volume Two. (TSR, Inc.), p. 74. ISBN 0-7869-0199-3.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7 2.8 Gary Gygax (December 1977). Monster Manual, 1st edition. (TSR, Inc), p. 79. ISBN 0-935696-00-8.
- ↑ Douglas Niles (November 1987). Moonshae. Edited by Mike Breault. (TSR, Inc.), p. 19. ISBN 0-88038-494-8.
- ↑ Gary Gygax (December 1977). Monster Manual, 1st edition. (TSR, Inc), p. 62. ISBN 0-935696-00-8.
- ↑ Paul Culotta (July/August 1994). “The Oracle at Sumbar”. In Barbara G. Young ed. Dungeon #48 (TSR, Inc.) (48)., p. 49.