Kuntilanak

We turned out flashlights to the laughter and saw her. Floating between the trees. Beautiful. Glowing. A white gown clung around her round belly, so full it looked like she was bound to give birth at any time. Wind whipped her long hair. And claws reaching from her fingertips to her ankles. We were too terrified, too mesmerized, to move. “Oh God,” Daniel said in a harsh whisper. “She knows what I’ve done.” Before we could ask him what he meant, in a blink she was on us. A veiny brown proboscis lashed from her mouth, striking Daniel in the face. He clutched his eye, rivets of blood leaking through fingers. He fell backward and as he did, those claws ripped him open. Insides piled on the ground. She, it, fell to her knees, drinking up the offal through the proboscis. “Ke-ke-ke-ke,” she laughed. 

Alternative names: Pontianak, Sundel Bolong, Langsuir

Kuntilanak are created when a pregnant person is murdered or dies an unjust death before they can give birth. For some, their rage and despair are so powerful it draws the attention of the most violent aspects of the feminine forces of nature. The corpse returns to life as the embodiment of raging nature, bathed in blood. The kuntilanak exists to plague those that abuse women, harm the pregnant, and despoil virgin wild spaces, particularly those that are sacred to female gods. Most often this is achieved by plucking out the offender’s eyes, spilling their belly and slurping up the contents. Though men are a kuntilanak’s most common prey, they are not discriminate killers, dispatching anyone that gets in their way. The only exceptions are the expectant. 

Sometimes, kuntilanak steal babies hoping to replace the child they were deprived. They are not attentive mothers, however. The children often die of neglect and mistreatment. 

There are rituals to bind Kuntilanak as servants. This requires driving a nail into the nape of the kuntilanak’s neck. Few attempting it survive. Rituals also exist to intentionally create and bind kuntilanak through the sacrifice of a pregnant person. The newly formed kuntilanak will turn on its creators if it ever escapes its bounds. Their deaths are lengthy, drawn-out affairs. 

Cackle: kuntilanak issue a sound that is a mix of sobbing and maniac laughing. It is incessant, even while feeding. Anyone hearing the cackle for the first time loses 1/1D2 Sanity. 

Eerie Aura: nature flees in terror from the fury of a kuntilanak. Within 100 feet of a kuntilanak, birds and insects cease singing. Livestock and pets whine, pace, and may even lash out at people. A sickly-sweet scent hangs in the air, a mix of rot and floral fragrances. 

Kuntilanak, rage resurrected

Average Hit Points: 13

Average Damage Bonus: +1D4 

Average Build: 1

Average Magic Points: 10

Move: 9/9 flying

ATTACKS

Attacks per round: 1 (claw)

Kuntilanak slash with their claws in combat, attempting to eviscerate their opponents. 

Eye Suck: the kuntilanak’s proboscis strikes the face of a victim. The victim must make a successful Luck roll or lose an eye (1D2 Hit Points, permanent loss of the eye). Otherwise, the victim loses 1D2 hit points. 

Organ Pierce: the kuntilanak stabs the victim with one of its claws, piercing and extracting organs. The victim suffers the maximum possible damage of 1D6 + damage bonus plus an additional 1D6 damage. Even if the victim survives, they are likely to suffer lifelong consequences.

Skills

Track 70%

Armor: None, but due to being undead creatures all non-magical attacks due minimum damage. 

Spells: None. 

Sanity Loss: 1/1D6 to encounter a kuntilanak.

Bruce Priddy

Bruce is a sociology student and co-host of The Crypt Keepers podcast