Displacer serpent

A displacer serpent was a magical beast, a snake-like with a displacement-like ability.

Description
A displacer serpent resembled a snake some 8 feet (2.4 meters) in length and 200 pounds (90 kilograms) in weight. It had a soft scaly hide a deep blue-black in color. Down its flanks ran two bright, glowing violet stripes, which appeared almost to hover away some distance from the beast's body. Its eyes were glowing green color.

Behavior
The displacer serpent was sentient, though not very intelligent, and had a furtive manner, attacking if hungry or bored and fleeing if threatened. They were ravenous carnivores, however, able to eat any living creature. They preferred small prey but were not shy of hunting large creatures. They normally dwelt in warm forests and made nests of hair and detritus.

They spoke Draconic, but not well, and with a hissing tone. Some might be taught to say other words.

Abilities
The displacer serpent's key ability was its displacement-like power: it was permanently shrouded in a glamer than bent light and made it appear always to be in a slightly different location. It was thus very difficult to target or attack a displacer serpent, without a true seeing spell or effect.

The serpent was a skilled climber and swimmer.

Combat
Displacer serpents were unimaginative in battle, simply attacking directly and fleeing when injured or scared.

History
A nest of displacer serpents inhabited the old ruins of a citadel north of Wheloon in Cormyr. When clerics of Shar came to construct a false Temple of Mystra on the site in the Year of Lightning Storms, 1374 DR, they confronted the beasts, but the serpents bowed their heads and offered to serve. The displacer serpents' coloring matched the symbol of their goddess, so the clerics saw this as a sign from Shar, and accepted. Thereafter, three displacer serpents occupied the altar room, feeding on the flesh of dead petitioners. They learned to say the goddess's name, as "Sharsssss".