Skull of the Coward

"*Found hiding away from his squad outside RatQueen Gardens.*
*"*

―Skull description

The **Skull of the Coward** is the first Skull obtained in *Zapling Bygone*.

## Lore

The Coward grew up in Grimtown, and often spent time pondering the city's creation. At some point he was sent to RatQueen Gardens as part of a squad, presumably to attempt to clear out the Rats, which were becoming a problem for the miners.

Ultimately, he abandoned the rest of his squad out of fear and fled to a cave in the Plains, where he died due to unconfirmed causes, most likely from injuries sustained in the Gardens. Even postmortem, he remains scared of the Gardens, though he solely blames himself for what happened.

## Obtaining

The Skull of the Coward is obtained at the beginning of the tutorial and must be picked up to progress further.

## Gameplay

Skull of the Coward has 2 slots for Mutations, both being circular. It succeeds no other Skulls, but is succeeded by Sewer Slumberer, A Damned Shame, The Shared Burden, Skull of the Narcissist, Bird, Bilson, Teacher, Hard Hat, Skull of Discord and Skull of a Generous Backer.

## Legacy Information

In older versions of *Zapling Bygone*, Skull of the Coward had an additional Triangular Mutation slot.

## Trivia

* Out of every Skull in the game, Skull of the Coward is succeeded by the most others, for a total of 10.

## Dialogue

### Plains

* (Directly above where the Skull was obtained)
	+ "Where am I?""
	"...what am I?"
* (At the RatQueen Gardens entrance)
	+ "Please don't take me in there."

### RatQueen Gardens

* (Where Rat Queen was watching the player)
	+ "I think we were being watched."
* (Near a group of skeletons behind a fake wall)
	+ "The Burdened Council sent raiding parties to clear the infestation."
	"There is a fine line between courage and desperation."
* (In front of a Monolith)
	+ "Desperate fathers and sons came to the mines in search of Deathrock."
	"Most didn't return."
* (Near a minecart)
	+ "The city relied on this mine for Deathrock, the only cure."
	"If you can call it that."
* (Near a group of skeletons above Rat Queen's arena)
	+ "Here's the rest of my squad. They got further than I expected."
	"Perhaps with a little more man power they would have made it."
	"I should have been here with my comrades, I could have made the difference."

### Mountain Path

* (In the first room)
	+ "These things have been dormant for centuries, no one knows their original function."
	"They seem to activate to your touch, maybe we should leave."

### Ancient Sewers

* (Near a group of Skeletons)
	+ "I heard rumors of this place. Many left the cold wind of the city to live here instead."
	"By the looks of it they suffered a similar fate."

### Grimtown

* (Near The Painter)
	+ "It's amazing what we can get used to. Believe it or not I thought of this place as my home. When I look at it now I just feel empty.
* (Near The Tester)
	+ "I used to sit here drenched to the core and just watch the city, wondering who could have made it. They must have been giants to build the place, but small enough to inhabit it."
	"If I could meet them I would ask so many questions, starting with the most important. Where did they go?"
* (Near a large amount of hanging skeletons)
	+ "This place was blocked off since before I was born. Anyone found trying to sneak inside was killed, and hung outside the gates to deter others."
	"I used to hear explosions from inside and lights flash above the walls. I guess they tried everything they could to destroy it."

### Ratking Gardens (Legacy)

* (Near a lone skeleton behind a fake wall)
	+ "I knew him. He was nice."
	"I wonder if he died alone."
* (Near a group of skeletons behind a fake wall)
	+ "When these mines became too dangerous for the miners, the council started sending raiding parties to clear the infestation."
	"It was hopeless. The rats bred quicker than they could be slain."
* (Upon entering the room where Rat Queen first appears)
	+ "Be careful, this place gives me the chills"[sic]
* (Near a lone skeleton above a Monolith)
	+ "As the city began to starve it got desperate, sending prisoners to the mines to bring back handfuls of resource at a time to sell for scraps."
	"How much time has passed? I dread to think what the city has become."
* (Next to a minecart)
	+ "The city relied on this mine for everything, it was its only income. Its only chance for survival."
* (Near a lone skeleton across some spikes)
	+ "Nobody knows for sure what caused it, but the rats became dangerous, larger and more vicious."
	"Some believed it was a witchdoctors curse, I think it was just an unlucky mutation. Natures way of taking the mountain back"[sic]