"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

What would happen if a insane wizard and a powerful necromancer had a experiment together? The skeleton chimera is a close answer. With the best of both magical powers by not needing any kind of resources besides the necromantic energy the Skeletal Chimera is born. Not only is capable of the dreadful ways of perverting nature like the Chimera, the Skeletal Chimera perverts the way of the life itself. If the chimera was the worst sort of abomination affronting all natural life the skeletal chimera is an intentional way to affront all natural laws. Instinct: To do as commanded even after death

• To ensure obedience
• Arise dreadful allies

When the Arcane of the world doesn't know what to do, it makes frogs. Lots of frogs. These things get everywhere and alter reality in small, odd ways. Thankfully, they're just frogs--but it can be really hard to actually get rid of them. Instinct: to scatter

• spread wild magic
• bend reality to any extent
• croaking and crooning for pals

Dothi Inquisitors judge magic, but few have seen by what measure they do so. Few on words and low on patience, an Inquisitor will strike the ground hard much like their god did a few millennia prior. While not necessarily evil, few can say they appreciate the presence of someone so prone to violence and force. Instinct: to purge

• judge with a blade
• magic-canceling incantations

When encountered in somewhere far more literal, such as the more infernal realms, corrupt tends to manifest as a viscous - almost lava-like fluid, usually seen as a dark purplish hue of some kind. At times it manifests in a more concentrated form, usually in veins akin to veins of ore in the mortal world - and in this case tends to be more solid - if not crystalline - in nature. Few mortal alchemists would consider the idea but amongst the desperate and depraved that lurk in those places, some seek to refine concentrated corruption to an even greater degree. If that was possible one could (if so foolish) build an automaton out of such a substance, lashed together by fell magic and ill intent, such an automaton could be feared even in such a dark place. Luckily that is not only incredibly unlikely but also far beyond our own world... right? Instinct: To corrupt

• Corrupt or destroy with beams of corrupt energy
• Vomit forth abyssal magic beyond mortal comprehension
• Manipulate corruption and the corrupted

This is a ball of roots from a larger plant-creature that exists elsewhere in The World. It desires to maintain itself and can take simple actions to do so. This is mostly stationary- it is an obstacle, but if you defeat these roots, rest assured: you'll be dealing with the thorns soon enough. Instinct: to drink, as much water as it can manage.

• Entangle and Ensnare