One of the creepier animals of Neu Samara, the Spindle Death stilt through the Spindle Tree forests lining the rivers of Pasternak, their troops picking out the weak and the old from the herds of wild grazers - and now, the colonist's flocks as well.

Despite striding along at nearly nine feet tall, and massing almost 900lbs, these frightening beasts use a paralytic poison to subdue prey, scissoring off chunks of meat with their claws and sucking up blood and soft tissues with their prehensile 'tongue'. Because of the gravity of the planet, they're relatively fragile animals.

Due to their flighty nature and lack of suitable teeth, Spindle Deaths consume less of their prey than similar carnivores. This results in some species of scavenger following troops on the move, patiently waiting for the sated, picky Spindles to finish what they can eat.

Troops of Spindle Deaths pick their prey carefully and rarely stand long in the face of a determined show of defiance - from creatures equal or greater than their mass, unfortunately. Homesteaders and settlement-fringe farmers routinely hunt them out of the area with extreme prejudice.

While bipedal and vaguely humanoid, Spindle Deaths aren't sentient or even pre-sentient, though individuals have shown some minor problem solving abilities - including figuring out how to get into barns and sheds guarded with only a latch or chain and padlock, using hardwood levers.

Traveller Stats
River Animal Encounter (Pasternak Continent)
Spindle Death, Chaser, 400kg, Hits=4/3, Armor=none, 2 Stinger, A0F4S2