Garrug the Grabber, Eternal Vagrant of Tartu

 

Even the strangest of things become mundane when they happen over and over again. The same can be said about Garuug the Grabber. Any shock or astonishment one might feel when first seeing this bizarre creature will eventually be replaced with the knowledge that Garuug carries with him quite a lot of valuable loot.

Every now and then, in different parts of the continent, Tartu's inhabitants encounter a rather odd wanderer. The creature has off-color violet skin, enormous pointy ears, and a large hooked nose. It's dressed in crude hides and is carrying a large sack. The beast's very appearance is enough to frighten a hardened soldier let alone a peaceful peasant. But to any good warrior, fear is just a part of the job. And once a warrior conquers his fear, he usually rushes at Garuug, mistaking him for an unusual skrag dragging a sack full of loot.

There are some valuable items in Garuug's possession indeed, but he's in no haste to part with them. Having no weapon other than the bag, the Grabber uses it to fend off the enemy until the first opportunity to flee the battle presents itself. Persistent warriors of Adan do their utmost not to lose track of the monster, but Garuug himself has a couple of tricks up his sleeve. The Grabber possesses enviable endurance that allows him to defend himself and exhaust the enemy by running around long enough so that most assailants give up. Only when Garuug realizes that he has stumbled upon a warrior who won't back down does he decide to try a different approach: bribing his way out of trouble.

Taking a random item from his bag, he tosses it at the feet of the stubborn attacker, using this simple diversion to give himself enough time to summon magical forces and disappear. From time to time the Grabber uses some pretty valuable stuff to cause distractions. This is why most warriors can't wait to meet "the freak with the bag." Wizards of Adan have even studied his aura to create a special "Garuug's Compass" item that helps locate the creature. So now, his every appearance on Tartu causes overall excitement.

The sun rises and sets every day, but only a few care to ask where the heat and the light that it brings come from. Everyone knows that Garuug always comes back sooner or later, his bag filled with new valuables. Almost no one wonders where these things originated from or why no skilled warrior ever defeated the creature in combat. One can only speculate. Some claim that the elusive Garuug is a powerful skrag shaman, disfigured by a magical accident. Others guess he's the last representative of the long-extinct race of the Ancients, or one of the Creator's avatars, put in this world for some unknown reason. In any case, there is no singe story about which everyone can agree. The only thing that the inhabitants of Tartu agree on is that the nature of the creature is mysterious indeed. Even the Dragons who remember the Second Great War with Shaab have recollections from their youth of warriors who roamed the world, searching for a strange being dressed in hides that, according to the old tales, might reward the truly patient adventurer with a gift.

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