Karukugi

**Karukugi** were the souls of a dwarf who passed while lost in a forest or mountain, usually due to exposure and unable to pass on due to spite. They are primarily found by wandering adventurers within the Torveil Highlands.

Karukugi were commonly created after a dwarves body was so lost, his kin declared him unrecoverable. They are usually malicious, driving more people to become lost, as to leave a trail of disappearances to their own body.

## Description

Karukugi were traditionally described as a mass of moving plant like material such as vines, with two large clawed hands. Karukugi would always carry a symbol of who they were, usually from their own corpse. Dwarves and adventurers who have been lucky enough to view a Karukugi and survive have reported them carrying objects from clothing to backpacks.

## Personality

Karukugi were actively malicious to intelligent creatures, they tended to prefer seeing the mental anguish of their target before killing them. Some Karukugi didn't even partake in physically harming the victim, rather just enjoying seeing them become lost on their own and waiting for them to meet a similar fate.

Karukugi were especially fierce to those who attempted to find their bodies, going out of their way to pick apart expeditions attempting to find them. This was believed to be as a toll payed for the ultimate disrespect of not burying a kin, most dwarves see Karukugi as a manifestation of their unloyalty to their brethren.

Karukugi were notoriously shy however, only willingly appearing in full to no more than two people. Karukugi were also usually scared of the opposite of what killed them, taking offense that they were only now offered such privileges.

## Abilities

Being a form of undead, Karukugi had no need for the air, food, drink, or sleep that they formerly required in life. Their main methods of transport were by natural terrains, such as hopping treetops or swimming in waters much faster than other creatures. Having ghostly forms, they were also capable of disappearing or teleporting short distances. Some were known to use these abilities to invoke senses of dread and being watched.

They were said to snatch people who couldn't see them, grabbing them and pulling them away from their companions. Being touched by a Karukugi made the victim completely silent, disabling all verbal spells, and attempts to make ruckus as to notify their company.

## Society

Because of the existence of Karukugi, death has become an important part of Dwarvish culture. Dwarves were instructed to never leave comrades behind as to not endanger the masses. This has reinforced the dwarves into a stalwart and honor driven lifestyle, even in warfare. As a larger extension, dwarves were one of the first races to develop methods of Warfare with violations and crimes associated with it. These are listed within the Tomes of Honor.

## Notable Karukugi

* Yagrim the Betrayed, the Karukugi of an abandoned dwarf soldier who died after a rival soldier wounded him with an arrow, leaving him stranded deep within the Regagri Mountain Pass.
* Ekmo, the Karukugi of a Dwarf wizard who became maddened after a duel with an Enchantress and was unable to return home.

## Trivia

* The Karukugi was believed to be a malicious creation of Haangvir, the Dwarvish God of Death, to punish dwarves for leaving behind a kin.
* The work Karukugi derives from Dwarvish, Karuk meaning Terrain, and Ugi meaning a creature especially of a ghostly type.