In the Dungeons & Dragons

Dungeons & Dragons

Dungeons & Dragons is a fantasy role-playing game originally designed by Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson, and first published in 1974 by Tactical Studies Rules, Inc. . The game has been published by Wizards of the Coast since 1997...

fantasy

Fantasy

Fantasy is a genre of fiction that commonly uses magic and other supernatural phenomena as a primary element of plot, theme, or setting. Many works within the genre take place in imaginary worlds where magic is common...

 role-playing game

Role-playing game

A role-playing game is a game in which players assume the roles of characters in a fictional setting. Players take responsibility for acting out these roles within a narrative, either through literal acting, or through a process of structured decision-making or character development...

, the rast is an outsider

Outsider (Dungeons & Dragons)

In the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, an outsider is a type of creature, or "creature type". Outsiders are at least partially composed of the essence of a plane other than the Prime Material Plane....

 from the Elemental Plane of fire.

Publication history

The rast first appeared in second edition for the Planescape

Planescape

Planescape is a campaign setting for the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, originally designed by Zeb Cook. The Planescape setting was published in 1994...

 setting in Planescape Monstrous Compendium Appendix III (1998).

The rast appeared in the third edition Monster Manual

Monster Manual

The Monster Manual is the primary bestiary sourcebook for monsters in the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game. It includes monsters derived from mythology, and folklore, as well as creatures created for D&D specifically...

(2000), and in the 3.5 revised Monster Manual (2003).

Description

A rast has an odd appearance. There is a central body, about the size of a large dog, with as many as 10 to 15 spindly spider's legs coming out of it. Each of these legs is tipped with a claw. The head is almost exactly the same size as the central body, and resembles a cross between a snake

Snake

Snakes are elongate, legless, carnivorous reptiles of the suborder Serpentes that can be distinguished from legless lizards by their lack of eyelids and external ears. Like all squamates, snakes are ectothermic, amniote vertebrates covered in overlapping scales...

, a vulture

Vulture

Vulture is the name given to two groups of convergently evolved scavenging birds, the New World Vultures including the well-known Californian and Andean Condors, and the Old World Vultures including the birds which are seen scavenging on carcasses of dead animals on African plains...

 and a goblin

Goblin (Dungeons & Dragons)

In the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, goblins are a very common and fairly weak race of evil humanoid monsters. Goblins and Kobolds are commonly non-human monsters that low-level player characters will face in combat. In D&D, goblins aren't smaller cousins of orcs, but are a part of...

 (some would say it is almost monkey-like). The central body and legs of the Rast are brown, while the head and claws are rust red.

The rast attacks with a paralyzing gaze. When fighting a group, it tries to paralyze as many as possible. If there are any left, it moves in and attacks with its claws. For some reason, it can only use four of the 10 - 15 claws at once. It can also bite, grab and grapple, and drain blood from its opponents. Due to limited information, little else is known about the creature.

Rasts cannot speak.

They are regarded as neutral in alignment.