Carrion creepers

Carrion creepers
Carrion creeper, from Ultima I manual
First appearance:	Ultima I
Last appearance:	Ultima II

The carrion creeper is an insectoid monster found in the dungeons of early Sosaria.

Description

Dungeon dwellers that feast upon the remains of the dead, carrion creepers greatly resemble overgrown centipedes or millipedes, with large eyes and sharp mandibles. These stealthy arthropods use their many legs to travel swiftly along labyrinth corridors, attacking the unwary from on high. As startling as their appearance can be, these scavengers proved relatively easy to defeat. During the Stranger's first adventure, questing to defeat the wicked Mondain, the lord of Castle Rondorin sent the hero on a mission to slay one of these foul beasts, bestowing advice and an important green gem upon the returned victor once this was completed.

After the death of Mondain, these creatures were not seen again in the lands which would become Britannia.

Lore

“	These loathsome worms inhabit the deeper reaches of most dungeons, where they feed on the corpses of any luckless creatures they encounter. The numerous legs on their segmented bodies are equipped with small barbs that allow them to move quickly on walls and ceilings, as well as along corridors. Carrion Creepers should be avoided at all costs. – from The First Age of Darkness (Ultima I)

Trivia

• Carrion creepers are almost certainly derived from the "carrion crawlers" from early installments of the table-top role playing game, Dungeons & Dragons. The carrion crawlers first appeared in the Greyhawk supplement for the game in 1975, and are described similarly to the creepers of Ultima, possessing a millipede-like body and a scavenger's diet.

Gallery

• 

  The carrion creeper as it appears in the FM Towns-port of the Ultima Trilogy

See Also

• Ultima I monster data
• Ultima II monster data