"Good morning," the Thing in the Well calls, "And how are we doing this morning Mrs. Westmen?" -- "Just wonderfully. How have you been keeping, Thing?" -- "Fine, fine. A little peckish, a bit in the mood for, you know, a nibble, a bite to eat. But don't worry yourself, perfectly fine." -- "It's quite alright Thing, I was just thinking I should bring by some lunch. How does a ham sound?" -- "You are too kind Mrs. Westmen, just too kind..." -- The Thing in the Well has lived in the village for longer than anyone can remember. It is traditional to fix regular meals for the Thing, and to present it with a sheep or pig on special occasions. Years ago a boy went down the well on a dare. He never returned. The subject has not been broached in the presence of the Thing. Instinct: To devour

• Politely collect tribute
• Leverage townspeople through secrets
• Purify water
• Hide in darkened waters

Scarabaeus pyractomena! What a delightful creature—see how its carapace glitters in the light of our torches? Not too close now, they’re temperamental, you see. The fire in their belly isn’t just metaphorical, no. Watch as I goad the beast. Aha! A spout of flame! Unexpected, isn’t it? One of these creatures alone, if it comes up from below, can be a hellish nuisance to a farmstead or village. A whole swarm? There’s a reason they call it a conflagration of fire beetles. Instinct: To enflame

• Undermine the ground
• Burst from the earth
• Spray forth flames

"The Old Ones, they knew much. Not the alchemy of man nor the sorcery of warlocks and the like. No, this is the magic of gears and pulleys, the sorcery of science. Watch your every step in the tower: be wary or you may call to life the ancient defense systems. You'll know the Defenders have awoken long before you face them, that's for sure; they're louder than a stomping giant and their hulls scrape the stone walls. You'll hear them coming, I'm sure you can avoid them, go on in the tower. Me? I... I'll stay out here. Got to have a lookout post, right?"

Instinct: Destroy all Intruders! *click* Defend the domain!

• Display immense and uncaring strength
• Soldier on, ignoring all damage until the last
• Reveal a hidden function from the depths of its gearworks

Each individual shadow is actually a swarm of tiny, dust-sized demons. No one is quite sure where they come from, or how to kill them, but it is known that children of every species on every plane of existence know to fear the darkness . . . Instinct: To spread

• Devour flesh
• Impersonate voices
• Absorb knowledge from those it kills

Some are wont to lump these little, rat-like dragon-men in with goblins and orcs, bugbears and hobgoblins. They are smarter and wiser than their kin, however. The kobolds are beholden slaves to dragons and were, in ancient times, their lorekeepers and sorcerer-servants. Their clans, with names like Ironscale and Whitewing, form around a dragon master and live to serve and do its bidding. Spotting a kobold means more are near—and if more are near then a mighty dragon cannot be far, either. Instinct: To serve dragons

• Lay a trap
• Call on dragons or draconic allies
• Retreat and regroup

The Golem of Repugnata Jagyydshaep. It is a disgusting mass of flesh twisted into shapes that should not be able to locomote and yet it shambles as quick as any man walks and operates tools with its bone-plated extremities. Fear not its horrid form if you see it, as it is merely a husk, designed to house a soul, Repugnata's in particular. That is, of course, unless it glows wickedly with a pulsating green light. Then you should be very, very afraid. Instinct: To rebirth herself from the body of a magically gifted descendant.

• House Repugnata Jagyydshaep's soul
• Manipulate people to do her bidding

Repugnata Jagyydshaep is an ancient sorceress who ruled over the City of Dawn with a blood-drenched fist. Rumor has it that she disappeared one day, miraculously ending her tyrannical reign over the city, but no one knows just what happened to her, though many believe her to be dead. Any who looked upon her felt their eyes ache as a dim, sickly green light rhythmically pulsated from her very being, and her shadow flickered in and out of existence. She spoke slowly and pointedly, emphasizing the last syllables in most words. Instinct: to rule with a blood-drenched fist

• Perform wicked rituals
• Manipulate people to do her bidding
• Cast strange, geometric spells
• Creates strange, geometric golems of flesh and bone to catch her soul in the event she dies

Instinct: Lebenskraft konsumieren um Kraft zu sammel

• Bringe die Welt der Lebenden aus dem Gleichgewicht
• Erschaffe schattenhafte Trugbilder
• Rufe schmerzliche Erinnerungen hervor
• Umschließe einen Bereich und transportiere ihn in eine andere Dimension

A bard's group on a tour have fans. Some fans are insistents. Thus a bodyguard. Instinct: To protect

• Knock out danger
• Save his client

The large, hulking corpse of a wolf beast, inhabited by a disgusting eldritch parasite that emerges from the corpse's mouth. It has a halo of writhing, beckoning tentacles around its head, and more where its tail should be. The parasite's eyes are hollow and empty; it sees from an eye protruding from the center of its exposed ribcage. It has large, sharp claws and a maw full of long, jagged teeth. It seems to speak directly into your head, whispering secrets it never could've known about you - maybe that you never knew about yourself. Instinct: to be worshipped

• Corrupts your thoughts
• It has seen countless empires rise and fall, and knows the ways men, dwarves, elves, and all tend to think.