Combat
Hyrdas are direct combatants that attack their opponents by attacking and biting with their many heads. Due to their great size, the bite attacks of a hydra ignore most deflection bonuses from armor. When entering combat a hydra typically starts with a charge, attempting to crush as many of its opponents as it can under its great weight. Opponents behind a hydra are subjected to regular sweeps of its large tail.

• Bite attacks: A hydra's bite attack is considered a touch attack for creatures that are less than half the size of the hydra.
• Trample: If a hydra has at least 2 movement actions worth of distance to close between it and its opponents it can attempt a trample. All creatures with a size score lower than the hydra's SIZ/2 within the area of effect must make a Dodge(75) or suffer the crushing damage which bypasses most shields, armor, and protective magics.
• Tail attacks: A hydra's tail attacks can sweep through multiple opponents up to a maximum number of size points equal to the dragon's STR. Anyone struck by the tail must make a SIZE(Damage x10) test or be knocked prone.

Defeating a hydra
Hydras are extremely difficult to defeat. The surest method to kill a hydra is to sever each of its heads. A head will possess an equal portion of the creature's full hit points. Thus, a 5 headed hydra with 75 wound and 75 bludgeon points will have 15 points per head. Once a head is severed, the creature's hit point total is reduced by that amount.

Magical attacks against hydra are relatively ineffective since all magic attacks are considered to target the body (including area effect spells) and not individual heads.

Common hydra traits

• Heavy body armor: A hydra possesses extremely tough armor on its body and all damage absorbsion effects on the body are doubled.
• Fast Healing: Each round hydras heal (10 + # of heads) points of the most sever damage inflicted to their main body. Severed heads may reduce the maximum hit points the creature can obtain.
• Head regeneration: Hydras will slowly regrow their heads at a rate of one per day until they reach their maximum number of heads.
• Mental Resistance: A hydra gains a +5 AV bonus to Resist Mental and Resist Fear checks for each conscious head it possesses. Additionally, when targeted with a spell that is resisted with the Resist Mental or Resist Fear skills, the hydra is allowed one resistance check per active head. If a single head succeeds the entire beast succeeds.
• Stun/pain resistance: A hydra ignores all stun/pain penalties from wounds inflicted to its body. Each of the individual heads has it's own stun/pain value independent from each of the other heads.
• Multi-head alertness: For each active head a hydra gains a +5 AV bonus to spot, listen, and smell skill checks.

Lernanian Hydra Variants are a form of extremely dangerous hydra that grow their heads back at an even faster pace.

• Heavy body armor: A Lernanian hydra possesses extremely tough armor on its body and all damage absorbsion effects on the body are tripled.
• Head regeneration (Lernanian): When a head is severed, a Lernanian hydra grows back two more heads (up to a maximum of double it's normal heads) within 1d6 round. The only way to prevent this from happening is by cauterizing the wound with an attack that the hydra is weak against. Extra heads will shrivel up and fall off within 24 hours.

Desert Hydra Variant: While most hydras are aquatic in nature, some live in the dry deserts. They tend to be smaller and quicker than other types of hydras.

• Fire Breath: Desert Hydras can breathe fire up to 6 times per day. The flame gout is 6 yards deep and 4 yards wide at its widest point. It inflicts 2d8[30W, fire] fire damage to all creatures in the area of effect. A Dodge(90) test will reduce the damage by half. A successful Dodge(140) test will avoid all damage.
• Fire resistance: Desert hydras ignore the first 20 points of fire or heat damage and gain a +100 AV bonus when resisting heat and fire based effects.
• Vulnerable: Desert hydras are vulnerable to cold, water, acid, and electricity, all of which can cauterize their neck stumps.

Sea Hydras: Sea hydras are rarely encountered except those rare times when they visit shallow waters or attack small ocean vessels and boats. While they can not trample opponents, they will attempt to smash a boat open by ramming it in order to crack the hull and get the screaming food inside. This type of hydra is slightly venemous with a toxin that causes the loss of feeling, agility, and strength in the limbs.

• Water Breathing: Sea hydras are amphibious creatures that can breathe both in air and in water.
• Venom: Anyone bitten by a sea hydra who takes damage must make a CON(110) test or suffer the effects of the poison. If struck multiple times, each subsequent CON test difficulty is +5 TAV higher. Refer to the section on Monster venom for a detailed description of the poison's effects.

The severed head of a sea hydra can be milked for 3d12 doses of venom. A single dose can fetch a price between 1 and 3 crowns in towns and cities. While some assassins may use this, most would prefer almost any other kind of poison due to the non-lethal nature of sea hydra poison.