The World Of Khoras - Fauna and Flora - Fauna - Swamp


Other Names Floating Terror, Flying Maw
Climate/Terrain Swamps
Frequency Rare
Organization Solitary
Activity Cycle Any
Diet Carnivore

Physical Description

A skydrifter appears as a huge, bloated barrel shaped creature with four vertical fins. It's body is essentially one large air bladder that gives the creature bouyancy and allows it to drift on air currents effortlessly. Long glistening tentacles hang down from the bottom, endlessly twisting and writhing. At the center of the tentacles is a tooth filled maw. A skydrifter's body is typically 4 meters tall and 2 meters in diameter. The tentacles vary from 3 to 6 meters long. The body is symmetrical along the vertical axis. The surface of the body has various symmetrical bulges, protrusions, ridges and holes. It also has several dozen small, hair-like appendages. The creature's flesh appears rubbery and semi-transparent. Skydrifters are able to alter their color like a chameleon and can match the color of the sky. This camoflauge is not perfect and they are not invisible, but they are more difficult to spot than one would expect for such a large creature floating in the sky. The creature has no obvious eyes, but seems to be able to see in all directions at once. It makes no sense at all.


Skydrifters feed on anything they can catch. Birds, bats, lizards, fish small mammals and insects constitute the bulk of their diet. They are also known to attack humanoids. The skydrifter approaches silently and grabs its target with the tentacles. This stealthy approach is very effective at night as the skydrifter is almost impossible to see at night. The tentacles contain numerous stingers which inject a paralytic venom. This is enough to instantly paralyze a small mammal or bird. Humanoids afflicted with the venom become sluggish, numb and find it difficult to think. The tentacles pull the prey up, envelop it and inject more venom. The prey will be completely paralyzed and unconscious before the skydrifter begins to feed. Skydrifters are able to lift a fair amount of weight. They have been known to grab and lift full grown men into the air, although they seem to struggle to lift very heavy targets (an ogre, for instance, or a fully armored knight).

Geographic Distribution and Habitat

Skydrifters are found floating in tropical swamps and jungles, chiefly in Aggradar and Qeshir. They are rare creatures, found only in remote wilderness regions far from civilization. For unknown reasons, they are very common floating above the Sea of Ash. Dozens of these creatures endlessly circling around Mount Durrodis.


No formal studies have been done on the skydrifter and little is known of its life cycle. Some scholars speculate that the skydrifter is able to inflate itself with air and expel air through vents in a controlled fashion in order to move about. It is also believed that the small hair-like appendages can sense air currents.



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