In the frontiers outside the light of civilisation, there prowls a terrifying man-eating beast: the Manticore. With the large and powerful body of a lion, coloured the rusty red of cinnabar, a long, thick tail like a scorpion and the face of a savage man; the Manticore is as ugly to behold as it is dangerous to encounter. While the beast enjoys devouring the flesh of man with its triple rows of teeth, it is the scorpion-like stinger that is its most feared weapon.
These stings can pierce armour when close by, but the Manticore has the curious ability to launch these stings like arrows at those it hunts or the few brave hunters that come after it. The tail is the beast’s strongest weapon, but is also its weakest point. Strong as cannon, fragile as glass. Manticore hunters know to target the beast’s tail first, and then close in to finish off the beast.
| Combat | 65 | Social | 35 |
| Explore | 55 | Mental | 45 |
| P. Wounds | 5 | M. Wounds | 3 |
Perk: Final Sting: Roll a Combat Skill Check or spend a Sigil to make an attack against a target within range of your equipment that deals 150 damage (regardless of the roll if you made a Check). This may be reduced by the target’s armour, Opposed Skill Check, or other means. Your limb/Hit Location that held the equipment for this attack also suffers 150 damage.
Quirk: Achilles Heel: Choose one Hit Location to permanently be classified as your “weak spot”. Whenever this weak spot is hit by an attack, the Wound is automatically increased by one step. Any attack that hits the weak spot will always at least do a Minor Wound, regardless of your armour, Opposed Skill Check or other means of reducing damage.
Equipment: The Manticore does not need equipment to hunt men; what nature gave it is more than enough. While its hide is tough, it is still classified as having an Armour rating of 0. The Stinger on its tail may be used as a Medium Melee weapon, or a Medium damage Near Ranged weapon. The Manticore’s tail is also classed as a separate Hit Location.
Sanctuary: The Manticore makes its home in the wild deserts far from civilisation. Here, wherever one of its Stings land, 2d10 more will have sprouted by the next morning, creating a bush of venomous reeds; the Manticore also begins each round in combat regardless of initiative order, and has the first turn of combat; and when first spotted in its sanctuary, the GM rolls a d100. On a 1, this Manticore has wings and may fly.