#hydra head

Here's one for you Dm's who wonder what happens to decapitated hydra heads

The Hydra head, it's the head of a hydra (obviously). Most of the time when a hydra has one of it's heads cut off, it will die, however on rare circumstances it will live on & become a hydra head. This hydra head can't reform into a hydra body, but can still form into a head with stubby legs & a tail. It's kind of cute looking, misusing the fact that it's still pretty hostile.

Stat

Cr: 4

AC: 15

Hp: 89

Str: 18

Dex: 8

Con: 18

Int: 2

Wis: 10

Chr: 7

Movement: 20 feet

Attribute: 

-Hold Breath: Can hold its breath for 1 hour.

-Natural Regeneration: Heals 2 hp per turn.

Attacks:

-Bite: |to hit +4| Damage 1d10+4

Pelican: The Fire in Our Throats Will Beckon the Thaw (2005)

a.k.a. Portrait of the blogger/photographer as a blurred reflection on the mirror-like record cover.

When Pelican emerged out of the Chicago suburb of Des Plaines (*), post-metal was still a fairly fresh proposition, and wholly instrumental bands were quite the novelty, no doubt contributing to the group’s immediate critical appeal.

But let’s be honest, in retrospect, even their best efforts, this being one of them, were no match for the likes of Isis or Neurosis, whose vocals brought so much emotional heft to their stimulating, elongated sonic architecture.

Don’t get me wrong: rolling, roiling, suitably atmospheric, and melodically cascading numbers like “Last Day of Winter,” “March to the Sea,” “Red Ran Amber” and “Aurora Borealis,” do everything right, but nothing spectacular, nor even all that differently, than all too many post-metal bands.

However, Pelican do strike upon something special, or at least distinctive, with  “Autumn into Summer” (not nod to George Winston), which manipulates delicate textures at the start, before suggesting what the Smashing Pumpkins would sound like as a post-metal ensemble.

Beyond this, the cryptically named “•” is notably acoustic (post-acoustic? Post-folk?), and the closing “Sirius” crescendos so beautifully, not even this finicky old curmudgeon can resist its charms.

Nevertheless, I still can’t believe that the staff of Decibel magazine named The Fire in Our Throats Will Beckon the Thaw their No. 1 album of 2005, probably proving they really needed to get out of the house more.

* For three-plus years I worked my first record label gigs in that town, at Polygram Group Distribution, then A&M Records.

First listen. Very excited.