A yearly tradition of mine is to draw a baker's dozen monsters for each day leading up to Halloween. It started off with just the classic spooks, but has since gone on to cover everything from mythological beasts to literary nightmares to unsung creepy things I think deserve more attention.
Halloween '19
Moloch
Moloch has the power to summon rainstorms, but he demands live human sacrifices as payment. And even then, only if he feels like it. In fact, Moloch really only does it to keep his bronze body from melting. As such larger offerings are more likely to call forth a shower, but not because the brazen bull is feeling charitable...
Moloch is quite the chatterbox, fond of dramatic speeches and long-winded essays on all manner of inane topics. But ironically Moloch lacks true speech — he doesn't have any sort of lungs despite having a rather sophisticated voice box — instead, he manipulates the screams of those burning alive in his guts.
The coffin lurks in the lairs of other monsters, disguised as part of the gothic furniture. Many poor unfortunate souls fleeing their "host" assume the casket would be a safe enough hiding place, never expecting it to be a flesh-eating sarcophagus.
A torture device of old, the mask twists the wearer's perception of reality. To the victim, dogs will meow, stop signs will say go, soap will smell like burnt plastic, ice cream cones will be literally made of ice cream and melt and get your fingers are sticky and cold. It's enough to make one lose their head...
The mask itself is of course able to discern the truth, yes. The sun having a face, totally an illusion.
... right?
Stingy Jack was a devious drunkard so conniving he even outwitted the Devil himself. Jack convinced the fallen angel to turn himself into a coin so Jack could pay his bar tab ("The barkeep is super religious, it'll be hilarious!"), only for Stingy Jack to pocket the satanic cash with a cross, freeing the Devil only when he promised to never take Jack's soul.
When he eventually died, Jack found himself barred from both heaven and hell (the Devil was all too keen to keep his promise). With no other option, Stingy Jack wanders the earth without end, harassing all he crosses paths with and occasionally carving faces in fruits he may or may not later hurl at onlookers. Basically just continuing from where he left off, really.
An old discarded umbrella that gained a life of its own, the Karakasa still helpfully offers itself as a shield against the rain. Unfortunately this bad-weather friend isn't particularly good at it. It's tattered canopy lets in rain while paradoxically also catching enough wind to go flying (often carrying the holder along with it), while the boot it happily lends others to wear has no matching pair. Most distressing of all, the Karakasa tends to attract all manner of strange ghosts and creatures seeking shelter from the storm.
And sometimes when the Karakasa decides to help, it simply never rains that day. A lucky break for humans, but the umbrella yokai is left feeling like it failed somehow.
Those who hear wood-chopping in the dead of night may soon find themselves face-to-face (so to speak) with the dreaded Hacha Nocturna, the sound coming from its ribcage constantly opening and closing. While most would do the sensible thing and run, those brave (or foolish) enough might instead charge right at it and grab the demon's heart, not letting go until the beast gives them plenty of rewards in return.
Of course, most of these brave fools never quite get that far. But a chance at fame and fortune is better than surviving as a coward... I guess.
Ella, Izzy, and Beth share a love of cooking and a willingness to try anything. Literally anything, regardless of whether it makes culinary sense or even if the ingredient is technically "edible." Candy corn pizza? Hell yeah! But wait, let's add on newspaper clippings of thumbs and squid armpit stink, then stuff it inside of something endangered, then microwave that with a metal pan for added zest!
With all their... experiments, the sisters have unwittingly become rather good at crafting magical concoctions with all sorts of neat added benefits. They'll happily sell their culinary creations to whoever wants them, but there's no guarantee that potential buyers will have the stomach for them. Or will have a stomach at all after trying them...
The vile Basilisk is capable of killing anything by simply making eye contact. Not even the Basilisk himself is immune, though Mama Rooster had the foresight to relocate the eyes into his cobra hood so li'l Basil wouldn't drop dead upon getting a drink of water. Naturally, the repugnant reptile has a lot of fun faking victims out, eager to see if they simply die of fright.
The Ring can grant the wearer the power to do anything, but it literally eats away at you in return. While it starts off rather fair, the Ring taking about as much as it gave, the cost steadily grows and grows. Many wielders eventually resort to using patsies, a tactic the Ring is more than happy to accept.
The Ring sometimes tries to persuade its wearer to find "its kin." Just who that is isn't particularly clear -- sometimes its a single mate, sometimes its nine siblings, but every time it involves a wild adventure that's sure to require a lot of magic to get through...
Erik was cursed with unholy looks, but blessed with unholy musical talents (and an awesome name ^_^ ). He haunts the old opera house, watching plays by day and writing his own by night. The so-called Phantom occasionally steals away a theater guest or two to take to his showings, though he inevitably kills them as he can't bear to let anyone see something so hideous. No, not himself, the play. One day it'll be presentable...
Many monsters revel in gross bodily substances — blood, guts, skulls, mucuses of all sorts — but Khepri the Dung Beetle takes a slightly different approach. Victims, rivals, and would-be monster hunters never see it coming, but they sure do smell it.
As so few dare touch the stuff, Khepri enjoys quite the monopoly on monstrous manure. Horror horticulture, fly farming, disgusting decor... it sure has its uses.
Tired of the daily grind? Overwhelmed by life's responsibilities? Wishing someone else could make all the hard choices? Then consider the assistance of one of Dapsen's Brain Bugs! Let one of these babies crawl up your nose (them splitting into two to go into both nostrils is perfectly normal!) and just enjoy the ride. Brain Bugs can even be specially ordered to gain new skills. No need for expensive classes or years of practice, you can gain lifetimes of experience in mere moments! No one will ever know you're having a "little" help.
WarningDonotconsumeinstantoatmealwhilethebrainbugisinoperationSomehostshavereportedanewfoundabilitytosmellcolors BrainbugisnotforweightlossbutmayhelpyoulosesomeweightIfyouwouldliketodiscontinueusingthebrainbugthensimply
All alone in the long-abandoned lab dwells the... well, nobody's quite sure just what it is, whether it's alive or dead or even if it's only junk that just happens to look like it was meant to be something. It does seem to follow you wherever you go, though. The eyeless eye sockets, I mean.
.... though wasn't the tank over there just before? No, couldn't be...
