Tide Corrupted Seagull

Not even the gulls are safe. Or sane.

Description

About halfway across the rocky rise, you spot dozens of oversized, haggard seagulls nesting among the stones. Their feathers are patchy and dull, their bodies slick with tide-corrupted slime. The nests are littered with mottled eggs, shredded fish, and... something more human.

These gulls do not scatter when approached.
They watch—with too many eyes, too long.

Creature Type

Beast (Corrupted)

Alignment

Chaotic Neutral

Challenge Rating

1/4

Environment

Coastal cliffs, tide pools, ruined lighthouses

Group Behavior

Hive-like swarm, territorial defense

Abilities

Swarm Instinct
Gains a +2 bonus to attack rolls for each other tide-corrupted gull within 10 feet.

Dive Shriek
When this creature hits with a dive attack, the target must succeed on a DC 11 Wisdom saving throw or become frightened until the end of their next turn.

Slime Coating
When struck by a melee attack, the attacker must succeed on a DC 10 Constitution saving throw or have disadvantage on their next action due to the disorienting slime.

Traits

to be discovered.

Harvest & Use

Mottled Eggs

• Can be harvested (1d4 per nest)
• Alive and intact: Worth 25 gp to the right alchemist
• Stored in flask (preserved): Worth 10 gp
• Damaged or older than 1 week: Worthless

Slime Residue
Slime cannot be stored without alchemical suspension. Loses potency quickly.

Identification Checks

• Nature DC 10: Clearly mutated seabirds
• Nature DC 14: Slime appears unnatural or magical
• Arcana DC 15: Related to tide-corruption and psychic mutation

Lore & Player Hooks

• Often appear near The Graytower Beacon — may be a warning sign of greater corruption
• Rumored to be egg carriers for something else
• Alchemists, cultists, or smugglers may want them for ritual reagents or fear-based poisons