Terminer

**Terminers** are the strongest and most rare type of Feral in the game. They are also the main antagonist. They are used as boss enemies at the end of the quests in each biome, and they can begin to appear in raids starting at camp level 7. They are the only type of Feral that will not spawn during an ambush, and they cannot be spawned by a Feral Nest.

## Lore

The Terminers were originally part of what was the Terminer Court, responsible for investigating and combatting what they refer to as the Invisible World, which is inferred to mean The Hollow and its inhabitants. They are responsible for the detainment and imprisonment of many people accused of being witches and using the forces of the Invisible World against "normal" people, including Sarah Howe. They eventually find their way into The Hollow while chasing Howe, after she escapes custody, and they discover a method of harnessing the power of The Hollow for themselves using something known as the Mirrorstone, but doing so not only corrupts them, but the entirety of The Hollow as well.

Since then, The Terminer have become the source of the corruption in The Hollow, known as the aether, which twists creatures into various types of Feral, and consumes the land. When The Protagonist arrives in The Hollow, there are only a few islands left untouched by the fog of the aether, and they are in danger of disappearing unless the corrupting magic of the Terminers is reversed.

## Behavior

Terminers have a melee swipe attack, a ranged projectile attack, can shield themselves from damage and dodge away, and can summon both minions and aether brambles.

The melee swipe attack has around the same range as that of the Stalker, but deals much more damage. The Terminer can surge forward immediately before using this attack, so keeping your distance is advised.

The ranged projectile attack looks similar to that of the Fang, but it has a shorter animation before firing, the orb travels faster and will attempt to track the movements of its target, and it deals more damage. It is unknown if this attack can be deflected back like the Fang's can.

Instead of attacking, the Terminer may summon up to three small aether brambles on the ground near itself, which will begin to slowly grow and spread if not dealt with. Aside from creating areas in which players can become affected by the aether, this attack is incredibly dangerous if used during a raid, as it will summon an ambush if the aether brambles grow on top of one of your waypoints.

When dealt any amount of melee damage, the Terminer will usually dodge far away and to the side, often preventing any follow up hits.

After dealing a certain amount of damage, Terminers will put a shield around themselves, making them immune to damage, and summon two grunts and a stalker. The Terminer will remain immune to damage until their summoned minions are killed, at which time the shield will disappear and they can be damaged normally again.

## Combat Strategies

Care should be taken if the Terminer summons any aether brambles, as stepping into the aether under them while trying to dodge could result in a player being hit. If you are fighting the Terminer near any waypoints, you also run the danger of an ambush being spawned in the middle of your fight, which could place Feral inside of an otherwise well defended camp.

When using their shield and summon tactic, there is a short delay between when the shield appears and when the damage reduction goes into effect. If hit enough during this window, it is possible to kill a Terminer before killing their summoned minions.

## Trivia

The Terminer Court is a reference to a real world style of court known as an Oyer and Terminer. This was the type of court used in the United States that heard and judged cases from the Salem Witch Trials, a historic event that is referenced often in the lore notes found throughout campaign mode.