Yuan-ti of Athas Part Five: Ssapha

Sapha (Halfbreed) Climate/Terrain: Any Frequency: Very rare Organization: Nation or Tribe Activity Cycle: Any Diet: Carnivorous Intelligence: High to Exceptional (13-16) Treasure: C Alignment: Any evil No. Appearing: 1 - 4 Armor Class: 4/0 Movement: 12 or Slither 9 Hit Dice: 7 or 8 + Class (if applicable) Thac0: 13 No. of Attacks: 1 or 2 Damage/Attacks: See Below Special Attack: Psionics + Class abilities (if applicable) Special Defense: Class abilities (if applicable) Magic Resistance: 10% Size: M Morale: Elite (14) XP Value: Varies based upon hit dice, characteristics, and class level (if applicable)

Psionic Summary
Level: 1
Dis/Sci/Dev: 1/1/3
Attack/Defense: 1/1
Score: 15
PSPs: 21
Telepathy: Mindlink, Aversion, Contact, (Any one mental attack devotion)



Ssapha are part human and part snake. Roll a d6 twice on the table below; a duplicate roll produces no result, but is not rerolled. Ignore unworkable combinations. This is a general guide; the DM can invent his own combinations of snake and human.
Roll          Feature                                 Effect
   1            Snake head                           Bites for 1d10 damage
   2            Flexible Torso                      +1 to saves using Dexterity
   3            No legs, snake tail                Constricts for 1d4 damage
   4            Snakes instead of arms         Each bites for 1d6 damage
   5            Scales instead of skin           Armor Class 0
   6            Legs and a snake tail            Constricts for 1d4 damage
Ssapha smell dry and musty, but their smell is not strong enough to over-ride other pungent smells in the area. The snake features of the scaled varieties vary greatly from simple green and brown scales to wild patterns of stripes, diamonds, and whorls in reds and blues.

Combat
Ssapha are very intelligent and fight as such. They plan elaborate traps and utilize their surroundings in combat. They prefer ambushes to direct confrontation. In a mixed group, the least valuable and powerful attack the opponent first. The group leader may order particular members forward before others if it provides for a better strategy.
Ssapha, if they have hands, usually use weapons or other items, preferring weapons with an edge. They use poison, if available. A Ssapha must have a human head in order to become a defiler.
Ssapha have a +2 save throw bonus to avoid the effects of non-magical poisons. However, their reptilian nature makes them slightly slow and sluggish in cold areas, like night in the desert, and they add +2 to their initiative rolls in areas of cold. 

Habitat/Society
Ssapha are evil to the extreme. They believe themselves above all, except the ssuddha. Ssapha speak the yuan-ti language. They can also speak with any snake or snakelike creature. Those with humanoid heads speak other languages as well. Although Ssapha cannot become neta, they are generally treated with great esteem and often have leadership positions.

Ecology
Ssapha are strictly carnivorous, eating any warm-blooded creature they can catch. They have a special taste for birds and human flesh. They keep flocks of erdlus and kitsus for feeding on. Ssapha can live for up to one thousand years.

Class Restrictions and Level Limits: Fighter 17, Gladiator N/A, Ranger N/A, Defiler 13, Preserver N/A, Cleric 15, Druid N/A, Bard N/A, Thief 10, Trader 8, Psionicist Unlimited.