These reptilian monsters possess a gaze that enables them to turn any fleshy creature to stone.

Basilisk

The creature looks like a thick-bodied reptile with eight legs. Rows of bony spines jut from its back, and its eyes glow with an eerie, pale green incandescence.

A basilisk is a reptilian monster that petrifies living creatures with a mere gaze. Surviving a fight with a basilisk requires either careful preparation or considerable good fortune.

Basilisks are found in nearly every climate, and often in underground areas as well. They tend to lair in shallow burrows, caves, or other sheltered areas. The entrance to a basilisk lair is sometimes distinguished by lifelike stone statues or carvings, which are actually creatures that ran afoul of the creature’s gaze. They make effective guardians, if one has the magical or monetary resources to capture and contain them.

A basilisk usually has a dull brown body with a yellowish underbelly. Some specimens sport a short, curved horn atop the nose. An adult basilisk’s body grows to about 6 feet long, not including its tail, which can reach an additional length of 5 to 7 feet. The creature weighs about 300 pounds.

Combat

A basilisk relies on its gaze attack, biting only when opponents come within reach. Though it has eight legs, its slow metabolism renders it relatively sluggish, so it does not expend energy unnecessarily. Intruders who flee a basilisk rather than fight can expect, at best, a halfhearted pursuit.

These creatures tend to spend most of their time lying in wait for prey, which includes small mammals, birds, reptiles, and similar creatures. When not hunting, basilisks are usually sleeping off their latest meal in their lairs. Basilisks sometimes gather in small colonies for mating or for mutual defense in unusually hostile terrain, and a colony will attack intruders in concert.

Basilisk

Medium magical beast

Init −1; Senses darkvision; Perception +10

Defense

AC 17, touch 9, flat-footed 17 (−1 Dex, +8 natural)

hp 39 (6d8+12)

Fort +9, Ref +4, Will +3

Offense

Speed 20 ft.

Melee bite +8 (1d8+3)

Space 5 ft.; Reach 5 ft.

Special Attacks petrifying gaze (30 ft., Fort DC 15, turn to stone permanently)

Statistics

Str 15, Dex 8, Con 15, Int 2, Wis 12, Cha 11

Base Atk +6; CMB +8; CMD 17 (29 vs. trip)

Feats Blind-Fight, Great Fortitude, Skill Focus (Perception)

Skills Perception +10, Stealth +9

Morale mercenary (+0)

Ecology

Environment warm deserts

Organization solitary or colony (1d4+2)

Special Abilities

Petrifying Gaze (Su)

As flesh to stone. A basilisk is not immune to its own gaze; if it sees its own eyes in a well-made mirror, it will itself be petrified.

Skills

The basilisk’s dull coloration and its ability to remain motionless for long periods of time grant it a +4 racial bonus on Stealth checks in natural settings.

Basilisk, juvenile

The creature looks like a basilisk in miniature, but its proportions are somewhat awkward-looking, and its coloration brighter.

When a basilisk matures enough to gain a gaze attack, it begins to venture out on its own, without its parents.

Juvenile basilisks look much like adults, but the proportions are a bit different—larger head, shorter tail—and their coloration is more reddish-orange than that of adults. A juvenile basilisk’s body is about 3 feet long, with the tail adding another 2 to 3 feet of length. Basilisks at this stage of their life typically weigh around 40 pounds.

Combat

Juvenile basilisks fight much like adults do. They are sometimes quicker to pursue opponents, out of curiosity more so than aggression; still, a growing basilisk is often hungry, and will usually attempt to make a meal of any Diminutive or even Tiny animal it encounters.

Juvenile basilisks are not fully independent yet, so they do not stray very far from their lairs. Where a juvenile is found, the parents (and, usually, other young ones) are typically nearby. If threatened, they will use their gaze attacks, although juvenile basilisks are not as confident in the power of their gaze as adults, and so may be often be scared off by a threatening opponent.