Lake Leeches (5e Hazard)
Lake Leeches[edit]
Bodies of water containing these creatures typically contain no other fauna, due to the ravenous hunger of leeches. Worse, the leeches can hibernate for years between meals, allowing them to lay dormant in murky bodies of water, before being awoken by the smell of blood. As the leeches fill the water with blood, they will wake up more of their brethren and excite each other to more savage attacks.
When a character suffers piercing or slashing damage while in an area infested with Lake Leeches, the leeches will be awakened. Characters with a passive perception of 18 or higher will be able to detect the awakening, by the slight vibrations in the water. After 1 round of the leeches being awake, all characters in the water will then suffer 5 (2d4) piercing damage at the start of their turn. After 2 rounds of being awake, the damage will increase to 10 (4d4). After 3 rounds of being awake, the damage increases to 20 (8d4) and after 4 rounds of being awake and for every round after, the damage will be 40 (16d4).
Lake Leeches will follow vessels containing bleeding characters, such as boats. Fire damage will cause them to disperse from a 30-foot sphere of water for 1 round, but when they return, the amount of damage inflicted will still increase normally.
The Lake Leeches will ignore Constructs, Plants, Oozes, and Undead characters without flesh.
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