It is the April Midmonth Donation Pet and can be found in the Donation Shop.
Creature 1496: Lava Snail
Obtained by: Donation Shop
Sprites: Mysfytt
Description: Kestrad
Element: Fire
This egg has a strange scaled, rocky skirt around its base.
Hatchling: m/f (no dimorphism)
Spoiler
Lava snail hatchlings are inquisitive and friendly from the moment they hatch, which is somewhat ill-advised, as they do not yet have the metallic coating that makes adults so hardy. In their natural habitat, they are protected by virtue of usually being surrounded by magma. However, at the Keep, magi must keep a careful eye on their hatchling to make sure it does not get eaten by any creatures it tries to examine. Lava snails do not eat in the conventional sense, getting their energy directly from heat instead, and hatchlings require recharging very frequently. Since the Keep does not tend to have a ready supply of magma for hatchlings to bask in, magi raising lava snails must keep a fire stoked for their hatchling to return to at all times. Since lava snails most commonly hatch near the end of spring, this is not always a pleasant endeavor, especially if it is a warm year.
Spoiler
Lava snails can grow to be quite large, the largest barely fitting into two hands. However, most stop growing at significantly smaller, easily nestling into an adult person’s palm. Strangely, they like to hoard gold like dragons do, and adults often have little stashes of gold they have come upon in their explorations. Magi bribe their snails to go on expeditions to cold places with gold, as lava snails do not particularly enjoy the cold. Being somewhat less fearsome than dragons, though, it’s not uncommon for their small hoards to get discovered and looted, so lava snails rarely have particularly large gold stashes. Adult lava snails molt the red gems on their shells every few years, which are too fragile to be used for jewelry, but retain a less potent version of their heating ability for a while. If a magi can’t bribe a lava snail to go somewhere cold with them, bringing some of the gems with them is usually an adequate if fragile substitute.
Spoiler
Found mostly in the magma-filled cracks abundant in Voltar, lava snails are easily mistaken for gem-encrusted rocks whenever they venture onto solid ground. It’s not uncommon for treasure hunters and adventurers to pick up a sleeping snail, only to be surprised by the curious creature poking its head out. Adult lava snail bodies are coated with a thin layer of metal and remarkably indestructible, their shells even more so, and so they have very little to fear in the way of natural predators. As a result, they are curious and friendly, more interested in seeing what is disturbing their nap than fleeing. The person picking one up is usually rather less enthused, as lava snails passively warm anyone they touch, and so instead of the expected gems, treasure hunters receive an excellent heater in an already sweltering land. However, for this very same reason, lava snails make excellent companions for traveling through cold lands, as long as there is a fire for them to sleep in and recharge overnight.
