The Slithering Stalker

Sightings of the Slithering Stalker are rare, indeed. It can even be said that no gnome alive has seen the creature. Numerous sightings of it over the course of a few centuries were recorded, however, although they were always mere glimpses of this horrifying creature. While some think that it might well have moved on to other places, or perhaps even reached the end of its life, there are indications that it is still around, waiting in the shadows of the trees to strike again.
-Orbri Cobbleshort, gnomish sage

Summary

The Slithering Stalker is said to have been spotted in only one place: The Spooky Forest. It first made its appearance just a few years after the fiends invaded, slithering through the trees to look for unsuspecting victims. No living creature is safe from the Stalker, its malevolent hunger undeterred by even the most intimidating prey.

Historical Basis

The Slithering Stalker is a creature concocted by the gnomes of the Spooky Forest (formerly the Laughing Forest) as part of their campaign to give their home a more forbidding tone after the fiendish invasion. Determined to discourage visitors that might wish them harm, they decided that the presence of a deadly creature would be the best way to accomplish this, and so they put their heads together to invent one.

Spread

On the continent containing the Spooky Forest, the tales of the Slithering Stalker are well known, but beyond that, very little is heard of it beyond the stories of a deadly creature that preys upon denizens of the forest.

Variations & Mutation

Gnomes tend to have fertile imaginations and love embellishment, and so numerous changes have been made to the Stalker over the centuries. At first, it was simply a large serpent with huge fangs that could easily swallow anything gnome-sized whole. Over time, it morphed from a serpent into some form of unnatural beast that some gnomes liken to a legless lizard while others describe it as being more draconic. Eventually, the creature was said to be of fiendish bloodline, with a terrible thirst for the flesh of humanoids and a poisonous bite that kills slowly while the Stalker feasts.

In Literature

Nothing has been written about the Slithering Stalker, but gnomish bards have been known to tell a tale or two orally.

In Art

The only art related to this creature is that of the gnomes within the forest, who have drawn and painted pictures of their perception of the creature. A few small sculptures have also been created. None exist beyond the forest, however.

Related Locations

• The Spooky Forest