I got the chance to run my party out in the wilderness of the Borderland's wilderness and wastelands. They encountered a hunter's cabin and things went down hill from there as they lost one fighter and a cleric. If you'e running a Barrows & Borderlands session and want to drop in the "Warning Signs" from the 1980 cult classic Without Warning, you're looking at a high-lethality, low-profile hunter.
This isn't a world-conqueror; it’s a cosmic trophy hunter that treats the Borderlands like a private hunting preserve.
The Tall One (Alien Hunter)
Description: A towering, spindly humanoid with an oversized, pale, hairless cranium and deep-set eyes. It moves with a slow, methodical gait, showing little emotion even when taking damage. It doesn't use blasters or swords; it uses biology as a weapon.
Base Stats (B&B Scale)
Threat Level: High (Veteran Party recommended)
Armor Class: 14 (Thick, leathery hide)
Hit Points: 65
Senses: Darkvision 120ft, Tremorsense 30ft
Traits
Trophy Collector: The Hunter specifically targets the strongest member of a party first. It prefers to preserve the "meat," so it rarely uses fire or disintegrators.
Stoic Resilience: The Hunter does not check for Morale. It ignores the first 2 points of damage from non-magical piercing and slashing weapons.
The Sack: The Hunter carries a biological satchel containing $1d6 + 4$ Living Disks (see below).
Combat & Abilities
Primary Attack: The Living Disk
The Hunter flings a small, organic, pancake-shaped creature.
Range: 30/60 ft.
Effect: On a successful hit, the Disk latches onto the target's flesh.
Ongoing Damage: At the start of the target's turn, the Disk bores in, dealing $1d4$ piercing damage.
The Suck: While latched, the target is Slowed. The Disk has 5 HP; if killed or pried off (Strength check), it deals an immediate $1d6$ damage as its teeth rip out.
Special Action: Paralyzing Gaze
Once per encounter, the Hunter can lock eyes with a single target. The target must pass a Spirit/Will Save or be Paralyzed for $1d4$ rounds as they glimpse the vast, cold emptiness of the void.
Gemini said
Since you’re leaning into the "infestation" vibe, treating the Living Disks as a swarm makes them much more terrifying. Individually they are a nuisance; in a swarm, they are a death sentence.
In Barrows & Borderlands, a swarm of these "Bio-Serrated Parasites" functions as a single, shifting entity that can occupy the same space as your players.
Swarm of Living Disks
Description: A wet, flapping mass of organic, saucer-shaped organisms. They skitter across the ground like oversized ticks and fly with a jerky, unnatural rhythm. They smell of ozone and rotting meat.
Base Stats
Threat Level: Moderate (Perilous in groups)
Armor Class: 12 (Hard to hit due to erratic flight)
Hit Points: 35 (Represents the total number of disks in the cluster)
Movement: 10 ft / 40 ft (Fly)
Traits
Swarm Mechanics: The swarm can occupy another creature's space. It can move through any opening large enough for a tiny disk. It has Resistance to bludgeoning and piercing damage from non-area-of-effect attacks.
Vulnerability: The swarm takes Double Damage from fire or cold-based attacks.
Biological Link: If "The Tall One" (the Alien Hunter) is within 60 feet, the swarm gains +2 to its Attack Rolls.
Actions
Multi-Bite (Melee)
The swarm engulfs a target within its space.
Damage: slashing damage, or if the swarm is at half health or lower.
The Latched Condition: Any creature that takes damage from this attack is now Latched. At the start of their next turn, they must succeed on a Physical/Constitution Save or be Restrained as the disks weigh them down and burrow into joints.
Bio-Projectile (Ranged)
The swarm "spits" one of its members at a target up to 30 feet away.
Damage: piercing.
Effect: The individual disk stays attached (see "The Suck" from the previous entry). The swarm's total HP is reduced by 2 for every successful spit attack, representing the loss of a unit.
The "Infestation" Mechanics
If you want to use these as an environmental hazard rather than a direct combatant, use these Dread Rules:
The Skitter in the Walls: While exploring a dungeon or ruins, have players make a Perception/Notice Check. On a fail, they don't see the disks, but they find a "nest"—a local animal or NPC completely hollowed out, used as a brooding sac.
The Burst: If a player touches a brooding sac, the swarm gets a Surprise Round.
Silent Killers: If a player is reduced to 0 HP by a swarm, they don't just go unconscious; the disks begin to "process" the body. If not rescued within 2 rounds, the body is considered "Trophy Quality" and cannot be resurrected by normal means.
GM Tip: Use the swarm to flush players out of cover and toward the Tall One. The alien wants the players to run so it can practice its "marksmanship" with its primary disk-flinging ability.
Tactics for the Game Master
In the 1980 film, the alien is rarely seen in full light until the end. To capture that vibe in your RPG:
The "Plink" Sound: Before an attack, describe a wet, flapping sound. That’s a Disk flying through the air.
The Trophy Room: Let the players find a local shack or cave filled with NPCs they met earlier, hung up like cured meats. It sets the stakes immediately.
Vulnerability: The Hunter is arrogant. It relies on its Disks to do the work. If a player manages to get into melee range with a heavy weapon, the Hunter’s lack of a "Plan B" makes it vulnerable to aggressive burst damage.
GM Note: If the players manage to kill it, the biological tech it carries is highly volatile. Any "Living Disks" remaining in its bag will die and dissolve into caustic slime within $1d10$ minutes unless preserved in a specialized stasis field.
Since the Hunter in Without Warning doesn't just take heads, but also gear, biological samples, and "momentos" from across the galaxy, this table is designed to be a mix of the macabre, the high-tech, and the totally inexplicable.
Roll $1d100$ (or $2d10$) to see what’s hanging in the Hunter's "Locker."
The Hunter’s Trophy Table
| Roll | Trophy Category | Item Description |
| 01-05 | Local Macabre | A taxidermied head of a local Lawmaster, eyes replaced with polished obsidian. |
| 06-10 | Bio-Tech | A jar containing a Living Disk in stasis; it chirps when someone gets close. |
| 11-15 | Martial Honor | A shattered energy sword hilt. It flickers but cannot hold a blade (Worth 500gp for parts). |
| 16-20 | The Unlucky | A heavy leather jacket with a hole burnt through the spine; the name "Sarge" is on the tag. |
| 21-25 | Alien Flora | A crystalline flower that glows softly. It hums at a frequency that calms nearby animals. |
| 26-30 | Cybernetic | A detached metallic arm with hydraulic pistons. Still twitches if touched with a battery. |
| 31-35 | The Collector | A small bag of gold teeth and wedding rings from various species. |
| 36-40 | Unknown Tech | A triangular "Data Cube." Requires a high Intelligence check to realize it's just a 4D recording of a sunset. |
| 41-45 | Biological | A preserved spinal column from a creature that clearly had six limbs. |
| 46-50 | Weaponry | A serrated bone-dagger that deals an extra $1d4$ bleed damage (B&B stats). |
| 51-55 | Strange Gear | A pair of goggles that allow the wearer to see heat signatures (30ft) but cause a headache after 1 hour. |
| 56-60 | Bizarre | A perfectly preserved sandwich from a roadside diner, frozen in a time-stasis field. |
| 61-65 | Cosmic Waste | A chunk of "Star-Metal" (Meteoric Iron). Extremely heavy, perfect for forging a +1 weapon. |
| 66-70 | The Hunter's Map | A holographic projector showing a 3D map of the local Borderlands with "X" marks over player locations. |
| 71-75 | Vocal Trophy | A small device that plays back the last 10 seconds of a victim's screams. |
| 76-80 | Armor Scrap | A piece of iridescent plating. If sewn into leather armor, it grants +1 AC vs. Projectiles. |
| 81-85 | Regret | A locket containing a photo of a family from a planet with two suns. |
| 86-90 | Predator Tool | A "Whistle" that, when blown, mimics the sound of a wounded fawn (or local equivalent). |
| 91-95 | The Prize | A skull dipped in a strange chrome-like liquid that never dulls or scratches. |
| 96-99 | The Bait | A mechanical trap that sprays pheromones, attracting $1d4$ local monsters to the area. |
| 00 | The Ultimate Trophy | A Stasis Pod containing a high-ranking NPC the players thought was dead. They are unconscious but alive. |
Using these in Barrows & Borderlands:
The Weight of History: Many of these items are "Heat" items. If the players sell them, word might get back to the Hunter's kin—or the original owners' families.
Identification: Let players use their Lore or Science skills to figure out what the tech does. A failure might accidentally trigger the "Bait" (Roll 91-95) or break the item.
