Magru

Magru Picture Level 37 Family magru family creatures Body Type Globoid Undead No Areas Found The Broken Lands BCS <Not Known> HP <Not Known> Armor [?]

Attack Attributes Physical Attacks pound +210 AS Maneuver Attacks stream of fluid acid

Defense Attributes Melee <N/A> DS Ranged <N/A> DS Bolt <N/A> DS Bard Base <N/A> TD Ranger Base <N/A> TD Sorcerer Base <N/A> TD Wizard Base <N/A> TD Cleric Base <N/A> TD Empath Base <N/A> TD Paladin Base <N/A> TD Major Elemental <N/A> TD Minor Elemental <N/A> TD Major Spiritual <N/A> TD Minor Spiritual <N/A> TD Major Mental <N/A> TD Minor Mental <N/A> TD

Treasure Attributes Coins ? Gems Yes Magic Items ? Boxes ? Skin None Other ?

The magru appears to be a huge, gelatinous red lump that pulses, swelling and shrinking slightly with a hypnotic rhythm. Its skin glistens with a dark, disgusting ooze.

Invulnerabilities

Any weapon attack except for one-handed blunt weapons is useless against a magru.

You swing your pink vultite maul at the magru, but when the weapon slices through the magru's flesh, the wound closes instantly leaving no trace that the magru was injured!

Magru are also immune to fire damage.

You utter a light chant and raise your hands, beckoning the lesser spirits to aid you with the Fire Spirit spell...
Your spell is ready.
You gesture at a magru.
You hurl a roaring ball of fire at a magru!
  AS: +265 vs DS: +75 with AvD: +70 + d100 roll: +86 = +346
  The magru scoffs at the heat!
The roaring ball of fire strikes a magru, blossoming into a much larger sphere of flame upon impact.
  The magru scoffs at the heat!

A burst of flame from your roaring ball of fire flies off and hits a magru.
  The magru scoffs at the heat!
Cast Roundtime 3 Seconds.

Stream of Fluid

More offensive stances are safer against the magru's stream of fluid attack, which causes acid damage.

• Successful dodge:

A magru pulsates violently and a stream of dark fluid shoots out in your direction!
You try to dodge out of the way and manage to avoid the stream of fluid.

• Mild hit:

A magru pulsates violently and a stream of dark fluid shoots out in your direction!
You try to dodge out of the way but you are struck by the stream of fluid!
Hit for 3 concussion points.
... 2 points of damage!
Bit of acid strikes your calf leaving bright red spots.

• Major hit:

A magru pulsates violently and a stream of dark fluid shoots out in your direction!
You try to dodge out of the way but you are struck by the stream of fluid!
Hit for 5 concussion points.
... 22 points of damage!
Acid dissolves the skin on the neck exposing the windpipe!
You are stunned for 6 rounds!

Looting Gems

• Perception plays a role in searching or looting them. Each search causes one minor hand injury and uncovers between zero and three gems. There is no known way to avoid the hand wound, so access to a good bundle of ambrominas leaf or Troll's Blood (1125) is recommended. Alternatively, one might be able to ignore the wounds allow the minors to accumulate to mediums, effectively maintaining two fractured and bleeding hands.

You reach out to search the magru.
As soon as you make contact with it, you feel an intense burning sensation! You are injured!
You do not find anything in the disgusting pile of jelly.
The remains of a magru evaporate away.

You reach out to search the magru.
As soon as you make contact with it, you feel an intense burning sensation! You are injured!
You find a white opal, a large black pearl and a turquoise stone concealed in the disgusting pile of jelly!
The remains of a magru evaporate away.

Behind The Scenes

Uthex Kathiasas named these "lug'shuk traglaakh" (Iruaric: "ugly fire cave makers" [possibly erroneous translation, formerly common usage]), which may have formed parts of the Dark Grotto. "shuk" would be plausibly derived from "shulu" as well, which is the Iruaric word for "wet", referencing their acidic sprays and gelatinous bodies. These were "other standard" (non-demonic) extra-planar entities from Rolemaster called Absorbers. They originated on a highly caustic "unearthly" plane of existence, and were always trying to escape to others, because there was almost no flesh left for them to absorb. They would use the mass of the flesh to replicate themselves, like v'reen morphs in the modern history. Whether "magru" was an homage to the grue trope can only be guessed.

While intelligent, they were utterly alien, so no one knew how to communicate with them. Absorbers would attack with acid, causing heat criticals, and were so caustic most weapons were useless on them. Their immunity to fire is unique to GemStone. They are not considered extraplanar beings for system purposes in GemStone IV.

Interestingly, "traglaakh" was probably a dark joke, because "trag" is not proper Iruaric. The Iruaric glossary in the Tomes of Kulthea used "laakh" to mean both "maker" and "lost", when the source material has maker being "lavan." It might have been an intentional typographical error, so the phrase would have a double meaning, referring to two separate properties. Since "trog" is cavern, and "shu" is fire, players interpreted it as "ugly fire cave makers." It would more literally mean "ugly fiery traag losers", or "made from traag", which were another kind of "other standard" extra-planar entity. Traags resembled huge black panthers, which were known for their demonic summoning, residing in subterranean chambers. Uthex was implying he had Traags, but the magru ate them all.

References

• Magru on Play.net bestiary

Near-level creatures

Level 35 barghest bog troll moor eagle shimmering fungus spectral black warhorse spectral shade spectral woodsman troll wraith water wyrd Level 36 arctic titan dust beetle fire giant krolvin slaver snow crone spectral lord undertaker bat writhing icy bush Level 37 Sheruvian initiate huge mein golem lesser moor wight magru shadow mare skeletal warhorse swirling spectre tusked ursian Level 38 frost giant grizzly bear krolvin corsair mud wasp shadow steed vesperti wood sprite Level 39 blackened decaying tumbleweed greater bog troll greater moor wight stone gargoyle storm giant vourkha