Savage Bloodshadows: Blood of Tarrian Wilderness Creatures
“You don’t see a Pounder Fish until your boat is already sinking.”
The Pounder Fish are enormous swamp predators resembling monstrous catfish, though no natural catfish has ever grown to such impossible proportions. Adults commonly reach fifteen feet in length and weigh several tons. Their broad heads are flattened like river stones, their mouths lined with countless rasp-like teeth capable of stripping flesh from bone, and their backs are armored in thick, black-green scales resembling overlapping plates of slate. Thick whiskers trail from their jaws, sensitive enough to detect the heartbeat of anything floating on the water.
Despite their size, Pounders rarely hunt by biting first. Instead, they charge upward from beneath the murky water with explosive force, smashing their armored backs or skulls into boats. A single impact can split the hull of a skiff; repeated blows are enough to overturn ferries or swamp barges. Survivors who make it into the water quickly discover the collision was merely the beginning of the attack.
The creatures appear especially agitated by rhythmic vibrations. Experienced swamp pilots know never to hammer on a boat’s hull or run steam engines at full pressure through known Pounder territory. The slow, irregular push of a pole boat is often the safest means of travel.
Habitat
- Deep swamp channels
- Geothermal rivers
- Boiling sinkholes connected by underwater caverns
Behavior
Pounders are solitary, highly territorial predators. They patrol stretches of water for years and seem capable of recognizing the unique vibrations of boats that have previously escaped them.
Rumors
A Pounder’s whiskers are prized by witches as components in divination rituals involving water.
Some old captains claim the oldest Pounders carry moss-covered shells and entire ecosystems on their backs.
Pounder Fish
Large Swamp Predator (Wild Card)
Pounder Fish are massive catfish-like leviathans that haunt the waterways of the Boiling Swamps. They rarely attack creatures directly unless hungry. Instead, they ram vessels with tremendous force, capsizing boats before picking off struggling survivors one by one. Their broad skulls are reinforced by thick bone and their backs are protected by overlapping scales hardened by mineral-rich boiling waters.
Attributes : Agility: d8, Smarts: d4 (A), Spirit: d6, Strength: d12+2, Vigor: d10
Skills: Athletics d10, Fighting d8, Notice d10, Stealth d8
Pace: 8 Swimming Pace: 12. Parry 6. Toughness 13 (4)
Special Abilities
Aquatic: Cannot function out of water for more than a few minutes. Swimming Pace 12.
Armor +4: Heavy scales along its back and skull provide +4 Armor.
Size +3: Typically 15–18 feet long and weighing over two tons.
Echolocation: Ignores darkness, murky water, fog, and Concealment when detecting creatures or vessels in contact with the water.
Hardy: Extra Shaken results do not cause Wounds.
Hold Breath: Can remain submerged for hours.
Improved Frenzy: If it hits with its bite, it may immediately make a second Fighting attack.
Keen Vibrations: The Pounder Fish detects rhythmic movement through the water with uncanny precision. It gains +2 Notice to detect boats and +2 to Tracking creatures through water. Loud engines, hammering, or repeated impacts may attract Pounders from miles away.
Attacks:
Bite – Damage: Str+d8 AP 2 On a Raise, the target must make a Strength roll or become Grappled in the creature’s jaws.
Hull Ram: Instead of attacking a creature, the Pounder Fish may ram a boat or floating structure. Move at least 6″ in a straight line. Attack against the vessel. Damage: Str+d10 Heavy Weapon If the attack Shakes or Wounds the vessel:
- Everyone aboard makes an Athletics roll.
- Failure: Knocked Prone.
- Raise on the attack: Victims must also make an Agility roll or fall overboard.
Small boats are often destroyed outright.
Death Roll: A Grappled victim may be dragged underwater. Opposed Strength roll. If successful:
- Victim is dragged 2d6″ underwater.
- Victim becomes Entangled.
- Begins drowning normally.
Special Rules
Boat Hunter: The Pounder Fish instinctively targets boats first. It generally ignores individual swimmers until a vessel has been disabled.
Territorial: Each Pounder Fish claims several miles of waterways. If driven away, it often returns within 1d6 hours.
Steam-Tolerant: Boiling water, sulfur vents, and geothermal pools do not harm the Pounder Fish.
Weaknesses (Soft Underbelly): Called Shots against the creature’s pale underside ignore its Armor. Usually only possible when the fish breaches, rolls, or attacks from below.
Land Bound: Outside water – Pace 2, Cannot Run. Automatically becomes Fatigued after one minute.
Tactics: Pounder Fish are patient ambush predators. A typical attack proceeds as follows:
- Shadow the boat beneath the surface.
- Ram the hull without warning.
- Circle while victims panic.
- Ram again if necessary.
- Attack swimmers individually.
- Drag victims beneath the surface with a Death Roll.
Experienced swamp pilots know that once a Pounder has committed to an attack, stopping the boat is often worse than fleeing. The creature relies on surprise and panic; maintaining momentum may be the only chance of reaching shallow water.
Alpha Pounder (Veteran)
The oldest Pounders become legends among the Quahogs. Increase:
- Strength d12+4
- Vigor d12
- Toughness 16 (6)
- Size +4
Gain: Improved Hardy, Improved Sweep (Tail): Instead of biting, the Alpha may lash its tail in a Medium Burst Template behind it. Damage Str+d6 Targets are automatically knocked prone or thrown from boats.
Adventure Hooks
The Silent Channel: A major trade route has gone eerily quiet. The culprit is an Alpha Pounder that has learned to target the steam engines of river barges first, leaving entire convoys stranded.
The Quahog Hunt: A Quahog pirate flotilla offers safe passage through the Boiling Swamps if the heroes help them slay a legendary Alpha Pounder whose armored skull has become coveted as the prow of a new flagship.
The Living Reef: Rumors speak of an ancient Pounder so old that moss, reeds, and even small trees grow along its back. Travelers mistake it for an island—until it begins to move.
This makes the Pounder Fish an excellent Seasoned threat that is far more dangerous in its element than on a battlefield. It also reinforces one of the defining themes of the Boiling Swamps: the waterways themselves are as deadly as the monsters that inhabit them.