Titannica
Advertisement
Gonchong
Gonchong
skill 5
stamina 5
Habitat Anywhere their victim is
Number Encountered 1
Type Monster
Reaction Hostile
Intelligence High

A Gonchong was a parasitic monster known for controlling others.[1]

Description[]

A gonchong had a superficial resemblance to a spider crab, although it possessed eye-stalks, a proboscis, and considerable intelligence.[2][3]

Origins and Distribution[]

It is not known whether the gonchongs were either the result of a natural evolutionary process or perhaps of dark sorcerous experiments, or perhaps a mixture of both. gonchongs could be practically found anywhere, lurking in ambush and waiting until a suitable victim presented themselves.

The hac-quel-rat of the Isles of the Dawn was "thought by some to be related to the parasitic Gonchong".[4]

A gonchong somehow managed to infest the leader of the lizard men tribes of Fire Island, deceiving him into sacrificing his free will for almost unlimited strength. However, the outpost was ultimately overthrown and the gonchong, together with its equally evil host, slain by a hero using one of the Lizard King's own fire swords.[5]

The wizard Gerlekus Zagor once retrieved a special chalice for use in a ritual. This chalice was guarded by mutant gonchong-infected undead giants, on an uncharted island in the depths of Lake Nykosa.[6]

Special Abilities[]

Lizardking

A gonchong attached to a lizard man.

A gonchong was a powerful jumper. Should it succeed on leaping on its victim's head, its proboscis would be forced through its skull and allow the gonchong to control its host. Consequently, the host - usually an intelligent humanoid in a position of authority - became a mindless entity that would obey every command given to it by the parasite.

In combat, a gonchong that had possessed a host could only be killed by fire, whether it be normal or magical.[7] This malevolent abomination could also be killed through the mere severing of its proboscis if it was still connected to a host, but succeeding in doing this was no easy feat. The gonchong imbued the unfortunate creature with supernatural strength, increasing both its skill and stamina, and making it just as immune to almost all forms of weaponry as it was itself.

However, the host was still subject to any innate fear or discomfort its race might have.[8] When the host of a gonchong is killed, the gonchong could be killed by severing its proboscis while the proboscis is still embedded in the victim's skull. However, if this does not happen, then the Gonchong would quickly leap off it's victim's corpse and search for another target. If another humanoid is present, the Gonchong will attempt to leap onto the humanoid's skull to possess the humanoid. The Gonchong's target must roll under his or her skill score on two dice. If this roll succeeds, the Gonchong will fall to the floor, where it can be attacked and killed with normal weapons.[2] However, if the roll fails, the Gonchong will land on its target's skull and the target will become the Gonchong's next host.[2]

Further Notes[]

  • There was a magical painting on the ship of the Riddling Reaver, the Twice Shy. This painting depicted an adventurer threatened by a lurking gonchong.[9]

Further Information in Canon[]

More information can be found at:Source[10]
Out of the Pit (Large) (pg62#*)
Island of the Lizard King (paraCover*, para22, para54, para67, para82*, para120, para123, para127, para131, para153, para188, para199, para201, para214, para244, para260, para283, para296, para320, para326, para369, para384, para400)
Night Dragon (para238*)
The Riddling Reaver (pg107)

See Also[]

Appendix[]

Gallery[]

Appearances[]

Adventures

Novels

Sourcebooks

Video Games

References[]

  1. The Riddling Reaver - ???
  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 Out of the Pit - p.150
  3. Advanced Fighting Fantasy – The Roleplaying Game - p. 125
  4. "Hac-Quel-Rat", Beyond the Pit , p.65
  5. Island of the Lizard King - 214, 153
  6. Skullcrag - p.???
  7. Out of the Pit - p.150; Skullcrag - p.139
  8. Island of the Lizard King - 272, 296
  9. The Riddling Reaver -???
  10. Complete list of references catalogued by FF Titan Bestiary
Advertisement