Walker
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Basic Information
Anatomy
The species referred to variously as a 'Plainswalker', 'Treewalker', or simply 'Walker', is a roughly humanoid creature, with presumed full-grown specimens standing seven-foot tall when upright, or measuring nine-feet from head to the end of their tail.
The head of the walker is elongated, similar to that of an alligator, with sharp teeth and forward facing eyes. They have relatively large nostrils, and long, narrow, forked tongues. These features suggest a predator with strong olfactory sense. The shape and colour of the eyes suggests the ability to see as well in gloom as in light, and the other sense suggest that the walker would be capable of hunting even in complete darkness.
They sport two pairs of arms, arranged vertically, with overlapping pairs of chest and back muscles to support them. The upper pair of arms a proportional to the body, while the lower pair are smaller. Accounts of encounters with the creature suggest the lower arms are less dexterous, being used less for manipulating tools. The additional arms do not seem to be of much use when traversing flat ground, however when combined with the creature's claws they allow the Walker to climb vertical surfaces with ease, and to climb, swing and leap through the canopy of a forest incredibly quickly.
The four forelimbs end in 'hands', each with five digits. Similarly to some species of bird, both the first and last digit are capable of acting in opposition to the others, granting a thumb-like grip with either or both. Each digit ends in a sharp claw approximately one inch in length, except for the fourth, which ends in a much longer (three inches on the upper limbs, six inches on the lower) talon which curves through two-hundred-and-twenty-five degrees, and is razor sharp on the inside.1
The legs end in four digits, three facing forward with the outermost bearing another six inch claw, and one facing backward, formed from a fusing of the metatarsals and phalanges of what would have been the first and fifth digits.
The skin of the walker is an area which warrants further investigation. On the deceased specimens it seems like unremarkable reptile skin - made of ovoid overlapping scales of various sizes and in hues of brown and sand, often sporting darker stripes on the back, lighter and softer scales on the underside. However, according to accounts of interactions with the creatures, through some seemingly conscious method they are able to render their bodies invisible - or, functionally invisible. It is unclear whether this is a product of environmental mimicry as seen in chameleon or some types of sea creature, or something else. Even more interestingly, it seems that this quality is retained by dead skin - specimens have been verified wearing the cut and processed skin of members of their species, presumably as a form of protective armour, and it is claimed these items retained the walker's ability to become invisible.
Further investigation into the walkers' behaviour will be required to say for certain, but between the creatures' reptillian skin and the known extent of their territory being restricted to The Lamas Plains and the Northern reaches of The Swamps of Baycotte, it seems likely that they are cold-blooded.
1: It is unclear whether the minimalisation of the upper claws is a product of the walkers' tool use, or is the reason why the creatures prefer use of the upper limbs over the lower - which is the cause and which the effect is unclear.
The head of the walker is elongated, similar to that of an alligator, with sharp teeth and forward facing eyes. They have relatively large nostrils, and long, narrow, forked tongues. These features suggest a predator with strong olfactory sense. The shape and colour of the eyes suggests the ability to see as well in gloom as in light, and the other sense suggest that the walker would be capable of hunting even in complete darkness.
They sport two pairs of arms, arranged vertically, with overlapping pairs of chest and back muscles to support them. The upper pair of arms a proportional to the body, while the lower pair are smaller. Accounts of encounters with the creature suggest the lower arms are less dexterous, being used less for manipulating tools. The additional arms do not seem to be of much use when traversing flat ground, however when combined with the creature's claws they allow the Walker to climb vertical surfaces with ease, and to climb, swing and leap through the canopy of a forest incredibly quickly.
The four forelimbs end in 'hands', each with five digits. Similarly to some species of bird, both the first and last digit are capable of acting in opposition to the others, granting a thumb-like grip with either or both. Each digit ends in a sharp claw approximately one inch in length, except for the fourth, which ends in a much longer (three inches on the upper limbs, six inches on the lower) talon which curves through two-hundred-and-twenty-five degrees, and is razor sharp on the inside.1
The legs end in four digits, three facing forward with the outermost bearing another six inch claw, and one facing backward, formed from a fusing of the metatarsals and phalanges of what would have been the first and fifth digits.
The skin of the walker is an area which warrants further investigation. On the deceased specimens it seems like unremarkable reptile skin - made of ovoid overlapping scales of various sizes and in hues of brown and sand, often sporting darker stripes on the back, lighter and softer scales on the underside. However, according to accounts of interactions with the creatures, through some seemingly conscious method they are able to render their bodies invisible - or, functionally invisible. It is unclear whether this is a product of environmental mimicry as seen in chameleon or some types of sea creature, or something else. Even more interestingly, it seems that this quality is retained by dead skin - specimens have been verified wearing the cut and processed skin of members of their species, presumably as a form of protective armour, and it is claimed these items retained the walker's ability to become invisible.
Further investigation into the walkers' behaviour will be required to say for certain, but between the creatures' reptillian skin and the known extent of their territory being restricted to The Lamas Plains and the Northern reaches of The Swamps of Baycotte, it seems likely that they are cold-blooded.
1: It is unclear whether the minimalisation of the upper claws is a product of the walkers' tool use, or is the reason why the creatures prefer use of the upper limbs over the lower - which is the cause and which the effect is unclear.
Behaviour
If all the stories ascribed to the walker are to be believed, it is an incredibly dangerous, intelligent, often cruel hunter able to outmatch a human in terms of patience and persistence.
One story claims that a single walker harrassed a column of knights from The Kingdom of Somercrag for several days, randomly attacking the weakest in the column from ambush and using its speed and so-called 'invisibility' to dart away before any sort of response could be made. It supposedly harried them day and night, preventing them from stopping to rest for several days, until the knights reached an abandoned fort deep in the woods. They set up a watch inside the defenses and bedded down for the night, only to awake to find all of their beasts of burden slaughtered along with those on watch. They were not bothered by the walker again.
This story, however, suggests that the walker had some other motive for the attacks - it left behind the bodies of several oxen, horses, humans. It could have killed the sleeping campers easily, but instead only killed those on watch, and left their bodies strewn about the fort, seemingly as a warning.
Another account claims that, on the edge of the sands of The Great Waste, they encountered the carcass of a gazelle, butchered neatly, its internal organs laid out around it, decorated with bones and Rue flowers. The travellers decided to lay in wait for something to return to this strange display, and eventually encountered two walkers riding a Giant Landsnail in the fashion of the Plainsfolk but decorated with bones and furs.
Finally, claims come from the same party that The Great Rift caused by tectonic activity, and later by the coming of The King's Eye, has revealed a network of caves and structures below the sands of the waste where they claim the walkers live in a simple society.
One story claims that a single walker harrassed a column of knights from The Kingdom of Somercrag for several days, randomly attacking the weakest in the column from ambush and using its speed and so-called 'invisibility' to dart away before any sort of response could be made. It supposedly harried them day and night, preventing them from stopping to rest for several days, until the knights reached an abandoned fort deep in the woods. They set up a watch inside the defenses and bedded down for the night, only to awake to find all of their beasts of burden slaughtered along with those on watch. They were not bothered by the walker again.
This story, however, suggests that the walker had some other motive for the attacks - it left behind the bodies of several oxen, horses, humans. It could have killed the sleeping campers easily, but instead only killed those on watch, and left their bodies strewn about the fort, seemingly as a warning.
Another account claims that, on the edge of the sands of The Great Waste, they encountered the carcass of a gazelle, butchered neatly, its internal organs laid out around it, decorated with bones and Rue flowers. The travellers decided to lay in wait for something to return to this strange display, and eventually encountered two walkers riding a Giant Landsnail in the fashion of the Plainsfolk but decorated with bones and furs.
Finally, claims come from the same party that The Great Rift caused by tectonic activity, and later by the coming of The King's Eye, has revealed a network of caves and structures below the sands of the waste where they claim the walkers live in a simple society.
Additional Information
Perception and Sensory Capabilities
As mentioned above, the makeup of the walker's skull and sensory organs suggest a predator that can see well in even very low light conditions, while the olfactory organs would allow it to hunt well in total darkness.
Civilization and Culture
Average Technological Level
The walker-skin armour seen in use by some demonstrates that they have at least developed an understanding of fashioning armour - it is dried and cured, though the edges are left raw, and it is held in place with encircling straps and 'pins' made from teeth or shards of bone, absent any stitching or more complex buckles or fittings.
Similarly, some individuals are seen using simple weapons - spears made from fired wood and flint, bone, or in some cases Sandglass; simple clubs or hatchets made from similarly simple construction; javelins, and so on. Such weapons and tools have as much of their construction as possible bound in the walker skin.
Individuals can sometimes be seen wearing strings of colourful feathers, skulls of small animals, teeth and other bones. They also seem to decorate their surroundings similarly. According to accounts from the journey into The Great Rift, the structures encountered there even saw simple symbols and shapes painted on surfaces - mostly with dried blood, but occasionally in simple colours, presumably made from plants or berries.
Similarly, some individuals are seen using simple weapons - spears made from fired wood and flint, bone, or in some cases Sandglass; simple clubs or hatchets made from similarly simple construction; javelins, and so on. Such weapons and tools have as much of their construction as possible bound in the walker skin.
Individuals can sometimes be seen wearing strings of colourful feathers, skulls of small animals, teeth and other bones. They also seem to decorate their surroundings similarly. According to accounts from the journey into The Great Rift, the structures encountered there even saw simple symbols and shapes painted on surfaces - mostly with dried blood, but occasionally in simple colours, presumably made from plants or berries.
Sketches from Jaddon Vaith's notes on the walkers encountered on the edge of The Lamas Plains.
Average Height
7' (head to toe)
Average Length
9' (head to tail)
Geographic Distribution
Depicted In
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