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Drowner:
Drowners, inhabit both natural and artificial bodies of water, from rivers and lakes to mill ponds and city sewers. It is commonly thought that these creatures are drowned men, somehow arisen from the dead to prey on the living. This opinion is as widespread as it is false, for the beasts are in fact another post-Conjunction relic.
Details:
A drowner resembles a corpse dredged from the bottom of a pond. It is sickly blue or green in color, with slime and sludge oozing out of every pore and the acrid stench of rot wafting off of it. That is why it is often thought drowners - along with their more dangerous cousins: vodniks, mucknixers and drowned dead – arise from the bodies of those who drown in shallow water: lost travelers falling into bogs, children who swim too far from the shore or, in the case of vodniks, inebriated peasants who stumble off narrow swamp trails.
Like so many other beliefs about monsters, this one is false. While drowners do look like humans from a distance, witchers, who have the dubious pleasure of examining them from close quarters, have reported the numerous ways in which their anatomy differs from our own. Their scaly skin, gills and dorsal fins suggest drowners and their like are an entirely foreign species.
Counters:
Drowners, mucknixers, vodniks and drowned dead all live in putrid, rotting filth, and so have developed a high resistance to poison. Though humanoid in form, they are primitive creatures no more intelligent than carp or pike. That is why spells affecting the mind, the Axii Sign included, are ineffective against them. Yet they are particularly vulnerable to magic drawn from the element of fire, including the Igni Sign.
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Nekker:
Imagine a drowner that burrows tunnels, climbs trees, is more vicious than usual, and when ambushing its prey, it does so with many of its kin. Now you have a good idea of what a nekker is. These primitive creatures are the bane of the wilderness - the inhabitants of forest villages fear them, and animals give their nests a wide berth. Nekkers are social creatures, gathering in something akin to tribes, for they can only repel the attacks of stronger assailants en masse.
Details:
A lone nekker is harmless. Five are dangerous. Ten can kill even a veteran monster slayer. Particularly troublesome are the larger, stronger individuals known as warriors, as well as the rare breed of nekkers known as phoocas.
Nekkers and phoocas live in the dark woods that grow in damp, mist-filled valleys, in colonies of one to several dozen individuals. They dig deep burrows for lairs and connect them with a network of narrow tunnels. Using these passageways they are able to move at great speed within and around their colonies.
Nekkers always attack in groups and by surprise. They try to surround their prey as quickly as possible, cutting off all escape routes. Luckily their attack is for the most part disorganized, for nekkers are not gifted with great courage and individual nekkers will often hesitate before overcoming their fear and striking. When fighting them one can use this moment of hesitation to kill the braver individuals before finishing off those who remain in the back.
Counters:
Individual nekkers are weak, easy marks compared to other monsters; nekkers do not tend to fight as individuals. If you see one, expect anywhere from 2-10 more. Nekkers overwhelm their targets through sheer numbers, surrounding them, then pummeling and clawing victims to death. Even veteran witchers can fall prey to this.
When facing large groups of nekkers, take advantage of bombs such as Northern Wind or Dancing Star. Sufficiently powerful explosives can help thin out a nekker swarm with ease.
Aard can knock a nekker to its back, allowing for swift execution. Aard can also knock over several nekkers at once, a good way to break through large groups of attackers.
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