Grimace

The grimace is an undead creature of Ym, named after the tortured facial expression invariably worn by the reanimated corpse. Apart from that, grimaces appear much as they did at the time of their death, though with a stiffness and pallor that betrays their deadness. Unlike some undead, grimaces generally look intact; they quickly heal any damage—so soon, in fact, that they even heal injuries in the middle of a fight.

Though grimaces usually move quite slowly, walking in an awkward-looking gait with their arms held still at their sides or straight out in front of them, they are capable of surprisingly quick movement when necessary—the sudden change from sluggish plodding to a flurry of rapid motion often catching those unfamiliar with the creatures by fatal surprise.

Exsuscitation

Grimaces arise when a person dies in pain, and in bitterness over that pain. The grimace generally arises between two and five days after its death. The body that is to become a grimace does not decompose between the individual's death and exsuscitation, although it does grow somewhat more sunken and sallow. Some morticians and others have made use of this fact to predict what corpses are likely to rise as grimaces, and to dispose of them accordingly, either destroying the bodies or interring them in especially secure vaults. Such measures may have prevented the formation of more grimaces; they may also have hastened the unfortunate demises of some sick and comatose individuals mistaken for dead.

Immediately after its exsuscitation, a grimace is possessed of many times its mortal strength. This extra strength fades within minutes, but in the meanwhile allows the grimace to claw its way out of a burial plot or break down the door of a crypt. Even afterward, a grimace has somewhat more strength than a mortal man, but it never again attains the incredible peak of strength it had just after its exsuscitation.

Behavior

Maddened by remembered torment and perhaps thirsty for vengeance, grimaces are unfailingly malevolent, seeming to exult in the suffering of mortal creatures. This does not necessarily mean their deaths; while grimaces have no qualms about killing, they are more driven to inflict pain, and prefer to prolong their victims' agony as long as possible before they die. If they can find a way to place a victim into perpetual torture without killing them, so much the better. A grimace's compulsion involves direct physical pain; they are not generally interested in causing mental anguish or in any more abstract or psychological tortures.

Accompanying their hatred for unafflicted life, grimaces do possess a strong sense of self-preservation, which prevents them from essaying such unsubtle tactics as simply storming towns and openly harrying their residents. Rather, grimaces prefer to work in the shadows, lurking in little-frequented places where they can catch lone travelers by surprise, or, if they do decide to assail a settlement, doing so in a way that allows them to come and go undetected except by their unfortunate victims.

Many grimaces operate alone, wandering lonely wildernesses and underground complexes in the hopes of waylaying passersby to torment. Some few establish permanent lairs for themselves, which they outfit with various devices of torture and where they may keep unfortunate subjects for prolonged periods of time, the better to multiply their agonies.

Powers

In addition to their rapid healing, grimaces have several other powers that enable them to better pursue their algetic goals. For one, their claws inject a venom that causes acute pain in the victim, more so than the mere wounds alone would, pain that lingers for hours after the lesion is inflicted. Perhaps worse than its claws, however, is what it can do with the palms of its hands. If a grimace gets both its hands on a victim's bare flesh, it can through them produce a magical effect that paralyzes the victim for about an hour, leaving them fully conscious and aware but unable to move. Many grimaces use this power to keep victims helpless while they work their torments upon them, free to cause as much pain as they want without the possibility of their victims fighting back. The duration of the paralysis is not an issue, because before the time is up the grimace can easily simply place the palms of its hands on the victim's flesh again and renew the enchantment. Some grimaces, however, dislike using this power except in self-defense, feeling in attempting to fight back the victim will weary himself and add to his pain.