The Nurglur

Full Description

The Nurglur stand taller than a man, though they are stooped and hunched so their faces lie at a height similar to ours. Their bodies are slim with a muscled, wiry strenght and their feet are turned with three bird like talons. Their legs, empowered by almost unnatural muscle can leap taller than a man in their race to hunt down their prey.
A Nurglur's face is overlarge with the skin pulled taut, twisting their face oddly in an almost skull like grin.
The head is framed by shaggy black manes that runs down their backs. The eyes are deeply set, milk-white and without pupil. They have sharp, fanged teeth, behind which lies a long, black tounge that slides and caresses their razor toothed mouths.

Common view

The Nurgwhat? Listen, I've got crops to harvest, go bother someone else with yer ghost stories.

Orvast Helm- Farmer

Owt in shaden wodespan, dwelt the murdrus beaste. Stalkin `tween the leafen glade, preyin `pon the weake. Be fangs and claws for you, my ked, if sunfall shrouds you here.

Rudi- Asylum inmate

There are stories, but of course, there are always stories. Tales of whole villages that go missing, their folk never seen again. These missing towns are invariably located near cave systems, mines or holes leading underground. Never mind that crops fail, wars rage and sometimes people are forced to move on. No, it always has to be the Nurglur, carrying off whole villages underground. I say it's all nonsense to frighten children into behaving. "Be still or I'll give you to the Dark Ones," has hushed more than few unruly brats I'll warrant.

Joseph- Town Elder

The Nurglur are simply a blasphemous cross-breeding between Men and Ape. They are a living proof that men should not manipulate nature by the means of science or magic.

Jonathan Nirvell- Witch Hunter

At first I thought it was a wolf, come to feed on the dead, but it was no child of winter. It hissed at me as I came near, but instead of running like any natural creature might, it gathered itself on it's two feet and charged me. Yellowed incisors the size of daggers and dead eyes gleamed in my torch's light as it rushed towards me. I barely had time to ready my sword before it was upon me. I fought heedless of my own life and even though I managed to cut it deeply several times it didn't drop. Only when the cries of my friends rushing up the slope to help me were heard did it retreat into a hole in the ground. It left me a nasty wound in my left arm. The wound went bad so swiftly that I lost my arm.

Kastor Meyhg- Mercenary

Additional Information

The Nurglur are horrible creatures indeed, abominations of nature. Dwelling underground in deep caves, only at night do they creep out of their mouldering halls. They are scavengers by nature but hunt when nothing dead is to be found.
They are usually fairly cunning and malicious, but they're prone to cowardice. They are confident only in large numbers, when they greatly outnumber their opponents. they're obsequious to those they consider stronger than themselves. They have keen senses that are best suited to a nocturnal habitat. They can walk on two, but mostly scuttle along on four in underground tunnels.

History

A lifespan ago a forbidden school was created by a scientist and magician named Nur-Uglur. Nur was truly obsessed with the idea of creating a servitor race to mankind. Creatures that could be helpful in both labour and war. A being that could be commanded to do things that could lead to his own death, no questions asked. Only obedience.
The school was constructed underground, hidden from the authorities. Nur gathered many bright and mad minds, all bent on a common goal. Creating something that would help mankind into a new era.

They used magic, alchemy, surgery and cross-breeding.
History has it that Nur-Uglur used humans, apes and even eagles in his sinister experiments.
Exactly what, and how it happened no one knows. The authorities finally discovered the underground laboratory and compound only to discover the halls littered with broken bones.

Years later stories began to drift of a new menace. A creature ghastly and animalistic. Infesting the sewers and underground tunnels. Dragging children into the dark cellars of the earth. Raping and killing women, killing livestock and scavenging battlefields. But always escaping those seeking to prove it's existence. The church quickly connected this new threat to Nur-Uglur and his blasphemous rituals and named the menace Nurglur.
Commonfolk and peasants did not distinguish between the Nurglur and other creatures of the night, earth and dark.
They received many names across the lands; The deep ones, Beastmen, Undermen and so on. To people it was all the same, underground terrors.

Behavior

The Nurglur beasts can get confused when they meet humans, somewhere in their brain is a spark of recognition.
Many different reactions are possible-

*They might get up on their hind legs trying to communicate, but they only drool when they try to speak, their tounge hanging out. When people respond with fear it angers them and provokes an attack.

*If hungry or desperate they attack humans on sight.

*They are known to kidnap men, women and children. Take the unfortunates to their lair where they will ultimately die of abuse, mistreatment and violence.

*If confronted with a larger number of humans they will flee or hide no matter what.

The conspiracy theory

Scholars that are aware of the connection between the Nurglur and the underground experiments so many decades ago are worry that the Nurglur might be a part of some mad masterplan for domination over the kingdom of men. Some go as far as claiming that there are Nurglur tunnels stretching over the entire continent, lairs under every city.

The Core

Nurglur are beings of experiments gone wrong, they have mixed instincts and are ultimately very confused beasts.
Violence and abductions are usually a result of mis-communication. Instincts switch on and of like burning matches, terror or sadness might transform into black rage only with a wrong gesture or look.

Plot Hooks

The Classic
The PC's hear that coffins have been torn open and the contents eaten for some time now at the cemetery. No one has managed to catch the heretics. Guardsmen patrolling at night have gone missing. Even the mourge was attacked last night, leaving the place a mess. Only a gravedigger survived maddened by what he has witnessed.

The world saving
The PC's chance upon the lost diary of Nur-Uglur. It tells the whole tragic story of a misfortunate race in detail. It even reveals means to end their existence.