Sapromnemes,or fungal ghosts,are a normally non-intelligent type of airborne fungus,similar to a gas spore. They have more of a jellyfishlike appearance, however,with a broad central mass similar to the cap of a toadstool from which depend twenty or so thin tentacles. The cap holds two black eyespots along its rim,granting the creatune 60' infravision.
Sapromnemes move by an innate form of telekinesis,hovering up to 10 feet above the surface of the ground. A sapromneme stretches about 6 feet from the top of its central mass to the tips of its tentacles; its central cap has a diame-ter of about 3 feet.
Sapromnemes reproduce,only indeath, exploding into a puff of spores when slain.The spores drift off in the currents of the Underdark; those fortu-nate enough to land on a dead organ-ism break down its decaying flesh and expand its form into that of a fully grown fungal ghost.
Those spores that happen to land upon a slain intelligent being do more than just absorb the nutrients from its body; they also absorb the slain victim's memories and intelligence. When fully grown into the jellyfishlike form of a sapromneme, the creature has, fo rall intents and purposes, the mind of the dead being whose decaying body gave "birth" to the fungal ghost.Many sapromnemes believe themselves to be reincarnations or magically altered ver-sions of their "predecessors," somehow polymorphed into their present shape.
Intelligent sapromnemes have an unconscious ability to alter their own bodies during the growth stage,twist-ing their normal growth to create a pair of vocal organs and a lunglike organ deep in its cap,through which it can"speak." Sapromneme speech is stilted and strange,with little tonal quality and no inflections (modern-day listeners would compare a sapromneme's voice to that of a robot), but it allows the fungus-being to communicate with others,and even allows those sapromnemes with spellcasting predecessors to castspells with verbal components.
Sapromneme tentacles are highly flexible and dexterous; they serve admirably in place of hands. Saprom-nemes have no difficulty "translating"remembered hand movements into the proper tentacle movements, whether the action be swinging a sword or cast-ing a spell with somatic components.
As fungal lifeforms, sapromnemes eat by absorbing nutrients from decay-ing flesh through their tentacles.They can also "drink" through their tentacle tips. (This allows them to drink the con-tents of a magical potion vial.)
Sapromnemes have no racial lan-guage.Once a fungal ghost achleves consciousness,it "remembers" the initial language spoken by its predecessor.If the predecessor knew more than onelanguage, the sapromneme can remem-ber only one of the languages at first but can recall additional languages as it increases in level. Languages must be purchased with nonweapon proficien-cies as per the normal rules.
A sapromneme can be played in one of two different ways: Either the crea-tuire knows what it is,or else it believes itself to be its predecessor,somehow warped in form.
In the latter case,the sapromneme spends much of its time trying to find a"cure" for its present condition.It hates what it has become: a lowly form of life no better than a flying mushroom.These PCs offer an interesting roleplaying challenge,as the sapromneme repeatedly insists upon searching for a way to reverse its transformation,a quest that cannat be achieved (although it might be possible with wish-level magic, at the DM's discretion).These fungal ghosts often have the sharpest memories of thetr "former life," and they have diffieulty accepting that things are no longer what they were.
Sapromnemes that realize that their intelligence is the result of having devoured another's memories use their predecessor's life as a template and pattern themselves after the predecessor to the best of their ability, They do no ,however,believe (or expect others to believe) that they are the same being.
Their predecessors are revered in a manner similar to ancestor-worship,although sapromneme priest PCs wor-ship their predecessor's deity. (Whetherthe deity accepts the worship of the sapromneme depends upon the indi-vidual deity: most recognize fungal ghost priests as they would the prede-cessor.)
Many sapromnemes (especially those aware of their existence as a separate,fungoid species) are heavily superstitious, giving great credence to the whims of Fate.After all, they realize that it was only a matter of luck that their spores happened to land where they did and provide them with a self-awareness,even if it is patterned after that of a deceased individual. How easily they could have landed elsewhere,on the non-intelligent corpse of a lower animal or upon some barren rock somewhere
A sapromneme's opinions of other Underdark races is heavily influenced by the opinions of its predecessor.A fungal ghost with the memories of a surface elf, for instance,is not likely to have much regard for the drow.Simi-larly, a sapromneme whose dwarven predecessor was killed by duergar might have an irrational fear of or hatred for members of that race. Oddly enough, intelligent sapromnemes do not seem to enjoy association with other fungal ghosts; since each intelligent sapromneme has the memories of a member of a standard humanoid species,the sight of a floating,jellyfish-like mushroom-being seems strange to them.(Most of these sapromneme avoid mirrors for the same reason.)
边栏
The Sapromneme ResurrectionA sapromneme represents a unique way for the DM to return a player's favorite PC to the party once slain.Perhaps the Underdark adventurers have recently lost a dwarven fighter to a fall down a seemingly endless chasm. The other party members grieve thelr fallen comrade but never expect to see him again, for retrieving his body would be nigh impossible.Imagine their surprise when several weeks later a fungal ghost floats up to them,claiming to be none other than their old pal Bjorgas Battleblade,ready to pick up where he left off!
Sapromneme Proficiencies 6 HitsWeapon Proficiencies: Any，as allowed by character class,with an overall length of 8 feet or less. Longer weapons are difficult for the saprom-neme to wield，as they play havoc with a sapromneme's abilty to balance itself telekinetically.A sapromnemepatterns lts weapon selection uponthat of Its predecessor.
Nonweapon Proficiencies: Recom-mended: Alertness,Artistic Ability.Blind-fighting,Close-quarter Flghting.Danger Sense, Directlon Sense,Endurance,Forgery, Herbalism,Hld-ing (usually above, among stalactites or the shadows of cavern ceilings).Observation, Reading/Writing.Sur-vival
Avallable Kits: (Warrior) mine rowdy,sellsword, wilderness protector:(wiz-ard) hedge wizard,humanoid scholar(priest) oracles,war priest: (rogue)scavenger. tunnel rat，shadow. Note that sapromneme believing them-selves to be transformed humans or demihumans will not have a humanoid kit but possibly the kit of their prede-cessor instead, as allowed by the situ-ation and the DM.
Sapromneme Basic Game InformationAbllty Score Adjustments，A sapromneme PC gains a +1 bonus to Dexter-ity and suffers -2 penalty to Charisma.
Class Restrictions：All sapromneme class restrictions are based on those of the oreature's pre-decessor's race.
Hit Dice.Sapromnemes receive Hit Dice per character class but have a"cap" of 6 hit points per die（？这里印刷模糊不清了）. That is,a sapromneme fighter rolls 1d10 for its hit pointe, and a roll of 6.7,8,9, 10 is trested as a 6,
Alignment. Sapromnemee can be of any alignment, depending upon the alignment ot thelr predecesaor.
Natural Armor class. 9
Average Height and Weight.Height：65+1d12. Weight 10+1d4.Saprom-nemes are asexual.
Age. starting Age: 1 year.Maximum Age Range:55+1d10. Average
Maximum Age: 80 yeare, Mlddle Age:30 year.,Oid Age: 40 yeare: Venerable: 55 yesrs.
Special AdvantagesSapromnemes are immune to all other fungal-based attacks,including the spores of yellow and russet mold and the touch of a violet fungl's branches.They are likewise immune to cold-based attacks,magical or otherwise,Their innate ability to hover at a height of up to 10 feet above the surface below them allaws them to pass harmlessly over covered pit traps and even bodies of water.They can "climb" a wall by staying in contact with the wall's surface with their tentacles and hovering upward. As fungoid life, they do not requilre air to breathe (although air must be present to allow them to speak aloud).
Special DisadvantagesBecause their telekinetic flight depends upon a lightweight body, sapromnemes cannot wear armor or carry significant amounts of weight. (Fifty pounds is about the maximum a fungal ghost can carry and still maneuver.) Because of their body structure, they cannot wear most magical items,although the DM should allow magical rings to be worn at the tip of a tentacle. (The standard maximum of two magical rings being worn at the same time should likewise be enforced.)
All sapromnemes give off a slight smell of decay, noticeable within a 10' radius.They feast upon decaying fleah;their odor is worsened immediately after having consumed such fare.These traits,combined with the fungal ghost's alien appearance, combine to create an initial reaction penalty of +4.
