Bestiary of the Aetherium

A comprehensive guide to the creatures, flora, and fauna of the shattered world

Table of Contents

• Rot-Beasts - Creatures corrupted by the Sky-Rot
• Constructs - Pre-Shattering automatons and machines
• Fauna - Natural and adapted creatures
• Flora - Plants and plant-based entities
• Star-Touched - Beings transformed by constellation contact
• Humanoid Threats - Bandits, pirates, and other humans
• Insectoid - Giant insects and swarms

Rot-Beasts

Creatures corrupted and transformed by the Sky-Rot. Dangerous, infectious, and spreading.

Common Rot-Beasts

• Rot-Hound - Corrupted canines, pack hunters (CR 3-5)
• Rot-Swarm - Collective insect entity, flesh-stripping (CR 5-7)

Aerial Rot-Beasts

• Shadow-Griffon - Silent aerial predator (CR 7-9)

Incorporeal Rot-Beasts

• Gloom-Wraith - Shadow entity, life-draining (CR 10-12)

Advanced Rot-Beasts

• Hollow-Walker - Stage 4 transformed humans (CR 6-8)
• Amalgam-Beast - Fusion horror (CR 12-15)
• Whispering Mass - Collective consciousness

Constructs

Pre-Shattering automatons that continue to function centuries after their creation.

• Scrap-Golem - Standard automaton guardian (CR 5-7)
• The Architect - BOSS - Self-improving master golem (CR 15)

Fauna

Natural creatures and those adapted to life in the Aetherium.

Aether-Dwelling

• Aether-Fish - Common void fish, food source
• Aether-Jellyfish - Electric floating hazard (CR 2-4)
• Cloud-Hoppers - Small aerial mammals
• Sky-Rats - Ubiquitous pests

Massive Creatures

• Void-Whales - Peaceful singing leviathans (non-hostile)
• Aether-Leviathan - Aggressive territorial hunter (CR 10+)

Apex Predators

• Storm-Serpents - Lightning-riding serpents (lore)
• Storm-Serpent (Old Lightning) - BOSS - Legendary hunt (CR 15)

Flora

Plants, trees, and plant-based entities of the Aetherium.

Passive Flora

• Aether-Vine - Floating vine networks
• Sky-Kelp - Aether-filtering plants
• Star-Blossom - Constellation-aligned flowers
• Ice-Lichen - Cold-adapted growth
• Void-Lotus - Deep-dwelling plant

Dangerous Flora

• Ironwood Trees - Extremely hard wood (passive)
• Ironwood Treant - Animated corrupted tree (CR 5-7)
• Murk-Root - Corruption-spreading roots
• Flesh-Fruit - Carnivorous plant
• Weeping Willow-Rot - Corrupted weeping tree

Star-Touched

Beings transformed by direct contact with the constellations or reality-warping forces.

• Constellation-Touched - Star-blessed oracles (CR 8-10)
• Void-Touched Hollow-Walker - Periphery-warped (CR 10+)

Humanoid Threats

Humans and human-like threats that pose danger through organization and intelligence.

• Bandits - Desperate outlaws (CR 2-5)
• Sky Pirates - Aerial raiders (CR 5-8)

Insectoid

Giant insects and insect-based threats.

• Murk-Crawler - Giant centipede ambush predator (CR 2-4)
• Rot-Swarm - Corrupted insect collective (CR 5-7)

Threat Levels

CR 2-4 (Early Game) - Murk-Crawler, Aether-Jellyfish (weak), Bandits (weak), Rot-Hound (weak)

CR 5-7 (Mid Game) - Rot-Swarm, Scrap-Golem, Ironwood Treant, Shadow-Griffon, Sky Pirates

CR 8-10 (Late Game) - Constellation-Touched, Hollow-Walker, Aether-Leviathan, Gloom-Wraith

CR 11-15 (Boss Tier) - The Architect, Storm-Serpent (Old Lightning), Amalgam-Beast

Geographic Distribution

Windmere Farms

• Bandits, Rot-Hounds, Murk-Crawlers, Ironwood Treants

Ironhold

• Scrap-Golems (ruins)

Glimmering Spire

• Scrap-Golems, Rot-Hounds, Gloom-Wraiths, Ironwood Treants
• The Architect (underlayers boss)

Murky Chasm

• Rot-Hounds, Gloom-Wraiths, Shadow-Griffons, Rot-Swarms, Hollow-Walkers

The Hollow

• All elite-tier Rot-Beasts, Amalgam-Beast

The Deeps

• Aether-Leviathans, Aether-Jellyfish (strong)

Veiled Heights

• Constellation-Touched

The Periphery

• Void-Touched Hollow-Walkers

Howling Expanse

• Storm-Serpents, Old Lightning (boss), Sky Pirates

Aether Currents

• Aether-Jellyfish, Sky Pirates, Void-Whales (peaceful)

Combat Encounters

For game mechanics and combat statistics, see: - /data/combat/enemies.json - Full enemy stats - /data/combat/encounter_tables.json - Location-based spawns

“The Aetherium is filled with wonders and horrors in equal measure. Some creatures adapted to the Shattering. Others were created by it. And a few… a few were here all along, waiting. Know what you face. Respect what you hunt. And never underestimate anything that’s survived 287 years in this broken world.”
—From Bestiary of Horrors