Sandman

Sandmen were rare creatures found in Zakhara. Originally from the Elemental Plane of Earth, these creatures were used by the dao to capture slaves on Toril. They were favored by the dao for this task because of their ability to capture targets without damaging them.

Description
These creatures literally resembled a man made out of sand. The sand comprising their bodies was held together by magical forces.

Abilities
Any creatures that came within of a sandman would fall asleep unless they were able to resist. Elves were more resistant to this effect than other races. Each touch from a sandman brought another wave of drowsiness that their opponents had to fight against or risk falling asleep.

This deep sleep lasted for at least half an hour, and no amount of noise or physical disturbance would cause the target to awaken during this time. Any victim falling asleep before a sandman would often wake up as a slave to the dao in their home city, the Great Dismal Delve.

Sandmen were immune to all forms of non-magical missile attacks. Projectiles simply passed through them as they would if they struck normal sand. Upon death, a sandman would crumble into a pile of sand.

Combat
These creatures were ambush hunters, typically preferring to attack at night.

Diet
Sandmen did not need to eat or sleep. They excelled at survival in harsh conditions. The only way to starve them was to keep them suspended in air for a length of time.

Homelands
Sandmen were primarily known to be found on the Elemental Plane of Earth and the Quasi-Elemental Plane of Dust. On the Prime Material plane they could be found in the land of Zakhara, and in the Raurin desert.

Relationships
Sandmen were typically slaves of the dao, but they had a chance of gaining freedom if they brought enough slaves to the dao mazeworks to replace them. The dao used magical amulets to control the sandmen when they were sent out from the Elemental Plane of Earth.

One organized example of this behavior was the Dream Brigade, a military unit of sandmen used by the dao in defense of the Sevenfold Mazework, mostly against slave revolts.

When it came to humans and demihumans, sandmen harbored a bitter hatred towards them and were liable to attack them on sight. This hatred stemmed from the fact that both would often use their remains in magical experiments.

Usages
Once killed, the sand that composed the bodies of these creatures could be used to create potions of dreaming or sand of truth. This sand could also be used as a material component for the spell sleep, which had the side-effect of doubling its effects.

Appearances

 * Adventures
 * Desert of Desolation