Trapper
There are worse things than being chased by the dead. Being caught by them, for instance. Being held in place while something pins you with bone spurs and drains the life from your body, unable to move, unable to break free, while your companions do not even know you are missing. That is what a Trapper does. That is all it does, and it does it with a patience that makes Hunters look impulsive.
Trappers are Lurking Threats, classified as both Aberrant and Zombie. They possess the elevated intelligence common to their class, but their application of it is narrower and more specialized than their kin. A Hunter stalks across open ground. A Rad Hunter advances in the open. A Trapper finds a ruin, a narrow corridor, a choke point in the forest, and it waits. It does not need to chase. Sooner or later, someone walks through.
The danger is compounded by the Trapper's choice of victims. Field reports consistently note that these creatures are especially effective against those who are less likely to call for aid: the solitary, the stoic, the ones who would rather fight alone than burden others with a cry for help. When a Trapper seizes a target in a confined space, it pins them with bone protrusions that jut from its own body, then begins absorbing flesh from the immobilized victim. The process is not fast. It does not need to be. No one is coming.
Countermeasures center on avoidance. Do not enter confined spaces alone. Maintain voice contact with companions when moving through ruins, forests, or any terrain with restricted sight lines. If you must clear a building, do it in pairs with a clear fallback plan. Trappers have limited mobility and rely entirely on prey coming to them. In open ground, they are manageable. In the places they choose to wait, they are among the most lethal things in the wasteland.
Trappers are Lurking Threats, classified as both Aberrant and Zombie. They possess the elevated intelligence common to their class, but their application of it is narrower and more specialized than their kin. A Hunter stalks across open ground. A Rad Hunter advances in the open. A Trapper finds a ruin, a narrow corridor, a choke point in the forest, and it waits. It does not need to chase. Sooner or later, someone walks through.
The danger is compounded by the Trapper's choice of victims. Field reports consistently note that these creatures are especially effective against those who are less likely to call for aid: the solitary, the stoic, the ones who would rather fight alone than burden others with a cry for help. When a Trapper seizes a target in a confined space, it pins them with bone protrusions that jut from its own body, then begins absorbing flesh from the immobilized victim. The process is not fast. It does not need to be. No one is coming.
Countermeasures center on avoidance. Do not enter confined spaces alone. Maintain voice contact with companions when moving through ruins, forests, or any terrain with restricted sight lines. If you must clear a building, do it in pairs with a clear fallback plan. Trappers have limited mobility and rely entirely on prey coming to them. In open ground, they are manageable. In the places they choose to wait, they are among the most lethal things in the wasteland.
Basic Information
Anatomy
The first thing you notice is the bone. Not the usual exposed skeleton of a decayed corpse; this is something else. Jagged protrusions of splintered bone jut from the arms, ribs, and shoulders, piercing through the skin at unnatural angles. They look like they grew from within and forced their way out, or like the skeleton itself is trying to escape the flesh that contains it. The spikes are not decorative. They are functional: sharp enough to puncture, angled to catch and hold.
The flesh between the protrusions is leathery and toughened, a natural armor that absorbs punishment that would destroy lesser undead. The overall silhouette is wrong in a way that triggers instinct before recognition. Something crouched in a doorway, bristling with spines, more cage than corpse. By the time you identify what you are looking at, you are already closer than you should be.
The flesh between the protrusions is leathery and toughened, a natural armor that absorbs punishment that would destroy lesser undead. The overall silhouette is wrong in a way that triggers instinct before recognition. Something crouched in a doorway, bristling with spines, more cage than corpse. By the time you identify what you are looking at, you are already closer than you should be.
Biological Traits
The Trapper's ability set is built around a single tactical loop: catch, pin, consume. Ground and Pound grapples a target and nails them in place on contact. Absorb Flesh drains body from any restrained victim at a steady rate, converting the target's life into sustenance. Abduct allows the creature to physically relocate a seized victim deeper into its chosen territory, further isolating them from help. Stealth keeps the Trapper hidden until the moment of engagement.
Leathery Flesh provides a layer of natural armor that absorbs significant punishment, and Melee Damage Reduction on top of that makes close-quarters fighting a losing proposition. Higher-ranked Trappers add Mangle to cripple limbs, No Escape to shut down any attempt to flee, and Sturdy Corpse to render the creature immune to knockback and similar disruptions. The practical takeaway: if a Trapper gets hold of you, breaking free without outside help is nearly impossible. Ranged attacks bypass the Melee Damage Reduction and remain the most effective approach. Double Tap the body when it drops, because a Trapper that escapes will simply find a new chokepoint and begin waiting again.
Leathery Flesh provides a layer of natural armor that absorbs significant punishment, and Melee Damage Reduction on top of that makes close-quarters fighting a losing proposition. Higher-ranked Trappers add Mangle to cripple limbs, No Escape to shut down any attempt to flee, and Sturdy Corpse to render the creature immune to knockback and similar disruptions. The practical takeaway: if a Trapper gets hold of you, breaking free without outside help is nearly impossible. Ranged attacks bypass the Melee Damage Reduction and remain the most effective approach. Double Tap the body when it drops, because a Trapper that escapes will simply find a new chokepoint and begin waiting again.
Behaviour
Trappers follow the three-phase behavioral pattern of all Lurking Threats, but the execution is heavily weighted toward the first two phases. The Unaware state may persist for hours: a motionless shape in the corner of a room, pressed against a wall in a narrow passage, crouched behind debris. The Stalking phase is less about movement than positioning. A Trapper creeps into an ideal ambush location and holds it with the stillness of something that has no need to breathe.
The Attacking phase is sudden and final. Ground and Pound pins the target in place, bone protrusions driving into flesh to nail the victim where they stand. Absorb Flesh begins immediately, draining life from the immobilized prey in a slow, relentless feed. If discovery comes, if reinforcements arrive, the Trapper follows the Lurking Threats protocol: Rise Again to escape, flee toward other undead, and find a new ambush position. It does not fight prolonged engagements in the open. It does not need to. There will always be another doorway, another ruin, another survivor who thought it was safe to go in alone.
The Attacking phase is sudden and final. Ground and Pound pins the target in place, bone protrusions driving into flesh to nail the victim where they stand. Absorb Flesh begins immediately, draining life from the immobilized prey in a slow, relentless feed. If discovery comes, if reinforcements arrive, the Trapper follows the Lurking Threats protocol: Rise Again to escape, flee toward other undead, and find a new ambush position. It does not fight prolonged engagements in the open. It does not need to. There will always be another doorway, another ruin, another survivor who thought it was safe to go in alone.
The bones are not decoration; they are the cage it builds around you.
Threat Class
Lurking Threats
Counts As
Aberrant and Zombie
Body Range
50-75 across ranks
Key Threat
Immobilization and flesh absorption
Average Physique
Stocky, armored with bone protrusions and leathery hide
Body Tint, Colouring and Marking
Decayed flesh with splintered bone jutting through skin
