Shock serpent

Version 0.14: This article may not be up to date for the latest stable release of Crawl.

shock serpent S
HP	34-62
HD	9
XP	730
Speed	15
AC	2
EV	15
Will	36
Attack1	24 (bite: electricity: 9-12)
Resistances	rElec+++
Vulnerabilities	None
Habitat	Land
Intelligence	Reptile
Uses	Uses nothing
Holiness	Natural
Size	Medium
Type	snake, shock serpent
Flags	Cold-blooded Silence immune

A sinuous serpent whose body crackles with volatile electricity. Its electric shroud inflicts a painful shock on anything that injures it, and if allowed to gather sufficient charge, can be unleashed by the serpent as a powerful torrent of electric energy. “The latter lived in the country, and before his house there was an oak, in which there was a lair of snakes. His servants killed the snakes, but Melampus gathered wood and burnt the reptiles, and reared the young ones. And when the young were full grown, they stood beside him at each of his shoulders as he slept, and they purged his ears with their tongues. He started up in a great fright, but understood the voices of the birds flying overhead, and from what he learned from them he foretold to men what should come to pass.” -Pseudo-Apollodorus , _Library and Epitome_, 1.9.11. circa 150 BC. trans. Sir James George Frazer, 1913. “A snake, with mottles rare, Surveyed my chamber floor, In feature as the worm before, But ringed with power.” -Emily Dickinson, “In Winter In My Room”. circa 1860.

Useful Info

Shock serpents are snakes which can gather electrical charge for a few turns, and release a powerful torrent of lightning (2d29). The following message will be displayed when a Shock serpent is almost ready to release its electrical charge:

The shock serpent bristles with a violent electric nimbus!

However, when they take more than 4 points of damage, they will lose all the accumulated charge dealing some minor damage to any creature near them. They are also able to shoot weaker bolts of electricity (2d15), similar to those fired by electrical eels. They can be found in the Snake Pit.

History

Shock serpents will be added in 0.14.