Babes in the Woods (Red Bestiary)

"Beware the Babes in the Woods they said. Like some infants in the underbrush are anything to worry about..."

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Babes in the Wood
No. Enc.: 2
Alignment: Chaotic
Movement: 40' (20')
Armor Class: 6
Hit Dice: 1+
Attacks: Fear or 1d4x2 (Ghostly Scratching)
Damage: 
Save: MU 1
Morale: 12

Vengeful, restless spirits of young children cruelly murdered by infelicitous relatives, Babes in the Wood tend to haunt lonely back-roads, dismal glades and neglected homesteads. They tend to appear like translucent little children made up of milky-smoke, who come out at dusk or dawn to play, but sometimes can be encountered in a particularly gloomy or dimly-lit spot. At first they laugh and giggle playfully, but once they get within 10' of their intended victim they begin to weep and wail and scream uncontrollably. Anyone caught within 10' of them must then make a Save or suffer the effects of magical Fear. If one persists through the Fear effect to attempt to attack the Babes, only magical, silver or Plattnerized bronze weapons will affect these twisted little spirits, and then only do half damage. The Babes will focus their scratching attacks on anyone seeking to harm them, causing 1d4x2 damage, and negating all benefit of any DEX mods or metal armor. The wounds caused by the Babes heal at one quarter the normal rate and require a Blessing to avoid becoming infected.

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Source: Babes in the Woods or The Children in the Wood is a traditional children's tale, and as such is fairly morbid, consisting as it does an account of the murder of a pair of witless waifs out in the woods by their supposed benefactor and protector, in some cases an uncle. The excellent collection 'More English Fairy Tales' by Joseph Jacobs contains a version of the 'The Children in the Wood' story that is in the Public Domain and available via Wikisource.

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