MONSTERS

Monsters include not just zombies, but fish, dogs, moose, Mi-gos, manhacks, and even stationary installations like turrets. They are defined in JSON objects with “type” set to “MONSTER”:

{
  "type": "MONSTER",
  "id": "mon_foo",
  ...
}

The "id" member is the unique identifier for this monster type. It can be any string, but by convention has the prefix mon_. This id is referenced in monster groups or in mapgen to spawn specific monsters.

For quantity strings (i.e. volume, weight) use the largest unit you can keep full precision with.

Monster properties

These properties are required for all monsters:

Property	Description
name	(string or object) Monster name, and optional plural name and translation context
description	(string) In-game description of the monster, in one or two sentences
ascii_picture	(string) Id of the asci_art used for this monster
hp	(integer) Hit points
volume	(string) Volume of the creature’s body, as an integer with metric units, ex. "35 L" or "1500 ml". Used to calculate monster size, size influences melee hit chances on different-sized targets.
weight	(string) Monster weight, as an integer with metric units, ex. "12 kg" or "7500 g"
symbol	(string) UTF-8 single-character string representing the monster in-game
color	(string) Symbol color for the monster
default_faction	(string) What faction the monster is allied with
bodytype	(string) Monster’s body type, ex. bear, bird, dog, human, insect, lizard etc.
speed	(integer) Monster speed, relative to human speed 100, with greater numbers being faster

Monsters may also have any of these optional properties:

Property	Description
copy-from	(string) Inherit monster attributes from another. See JSON_INHERITANCE.md
categories	(array of strings) Monster categories (NULL, CLASSIC, or WILDLIFE)
species	(array of strings) Species IDs, ex. HUMAN, ROBOT, ZOMBIE, BIRD, MUTANT, etc.
scents_tracked	(array of strings) Monster tracks these scents
scents_ignored	(array of strings) Monster ignores these scents
material	(array of strings) Materials the monster is made of
phase	(string) Monster’s body matter state, ex. SOLID, LIQUID, GAS, PLASMA, NULL
attack_cost	(integer) Number of moves per regular attack. If not defined defaults to 100.
diff	(integer) Additional monster difficulty for special and ranged attacks
aggression	(integer) Starting aggression, the monster will become hostile when it reaches 10
morale	(integer) Starting morale, monster will flee when (current aggression + current morale) < 0
aggro_character	(bool) If true the monster will always attack characters when angry.
mountable_weight_ratio	(float) For mounts, max ratio of mount to rider weight, ex. 0.2 for <=20%
melee_skill	(integer) Monster skill in melee combat, from 0-10, with 4 being an average mob
dodge	(integer) Monster’s skill at dodging attacks
melee_damage	(array of objects) List of damage instances added to die roll on monster melee attack
melee_dice	(integer) Number of dice rolled on monster melee attack to determine bash damage
melee_dice_sides	(integer) Number of sides on each die rolled by melee_dice
grab_strength	(integer) Intensity of grab effect, from 1 to n, simulating n regular zombie grabs
melee_training_cap	(integer) The maximum melee skill levels learnable by fighting this monster. If not defined defaults to melee_skill + 2.
armor	(object) Monster’s protection from different types of damage
weakpoints	(array of objects) Weakpoints in the monster’s protection
weakpoint_sets	(array of strings) Weakpoint sets to apply to the monster
status_chance_multiplier	(float) Multiplier to chance to apply zapped when electric damage is dealt (no other effects are implemented at this time)
families	(array of objects or strings) Weakpoint families that the monster belongs to
vision_day	(integer) Vision range in full daylight, with 50 being the typical maximum
vision_night	(integer) Vision range in total darkness, ex. coyote 5, bear 10, sewer rat 30, flaming eye 40
tracking_distance	(integer) Amount of tiles the monster will keep between itself and its current tracked enemy or followed leader. Defaults to 3.
trap_avoids	(array of strings) trap_id of traps that are not triggered by this monster. Default behaviour is to trigger all traps.
luminance	(float) Amount of light passively emitted by the monster, must be >0 to have any effect
death_drops	(string or item group) Item group to spawn when the monster dies
death_function	(array of strings) How the monster behaves on death. See JSON_FLAGS
emit_fields	(array of objects) What field the monster emits, and how frequently
regenerates	(integer) Number of hit points the monster regenerates per turn
regenerates_in_dark	(boolean) True if monster regenerates quickly in the dark
regeneration_modifiers	(effect id, integer) When monster has this effect, modify regenerates by integer value (i.e. -5 reduces a regen value of 40hp/turn to 35hp/turn). Cannot reduce regeneration below 0.
regen_morale	(bool) True if monster will stop fleeing at max HP to regenerate anger and morale
special_attacks	(array of objects) Special attacks the monster has
flags	(array of strings) Any number of attributes like SEES, HEARS, SMELLS, STUMBLES, REVIVES
fear_triggers	(array of strings) Triggers that lower monster morale (see JSON_FLAGS.md)
anger_triggers	(array of strings) Triggers that raise monster aggression (same flags as fear)
placate_triggers	(array of strings) Triggers that lower monster aggression (same flags as fear)
chat_topics	(array of strings) Conversation topics if dialog is opened with the monster
revert_to_itype	(string) Item monster can be converted to when friendly (ex. to deconstruct turrets)
mech_weapon	(string) If this monster is a rideable mech with built-in weapons, this is the weapons id
mech_str_bonus	(integer) If this monster is a rideable mech with enhanced strength, this is the strength it gives to the player when ridden
mech_battery	(string) If this monster is a rideable mech, this is battery’s id. Does not support objects or arrays (i.e. ONE battery id only)
starting_ammo	(object) Ammo that newly spawned monsters start with
mount_items	(array of objects) Mount-specific items this monster spawns with. Accepts entries for tied, tack, armor, and storage.
upgrades	(boolean or object) False if monster does not upgrade, or an object do define an upgrade
reproduction	(object) The monster’s reproductive cycle and timing
baby_flags	(array of strings) Seasons during which this monster is capable of reproduction
special_when_hit	(array) Special defense triggered when the monster is attacked
attack_effs	(array of objects) Effects applied to the attacked creature when the monster successfully attacks
path_settings	(object) How monster may find a path, open doors, avoid traps, or bash obstacles
biosignature	(object) Droppings or feces left by the animal or monster
harvest	(string) ID of a “harvest” type describing what can be harvested from the corpse
zombify_into	(string) mtype_id this monster zombifies into after it’s death
fungalize_into	(string) mtype_id this monster turns into when fungalized by spores
shearing	(array of objects) Items produced when the monster is sheared
speed_description	(string) ID of a speed_description type describing the monster speed string
petfood	(object) Data regarding feeding this monster to turn it into a pet
absorb_ml_per_hp	(int) For monsters with the ABSORB_ITEMS special attack. Determines the amount in milliliters that must be absorbed to gain 1 HP. Default 250.
absorb_move_cost_per_ml	(float) For monsters with the ABSORB_ITEMS special attack. Determines the move cost for absorbing items based on the volume in milliliters of the absorbed items. Default 0.025f.
absorb_move_cost_min	(int) For monsters with the ABSORB_ITEMS special attack. Sets a minimum movement cost for absorbing items regardless of the volume of the consumed item. Default 1.
absorb_move_cost_max	(int) For monsters with the ABSORB_ITEMS special attack. Sets a maximum movement cost for absorbing items regardless of the volume of the consumed item. -1 for no limit. Default -1.
absorb_material	(array of string) For monsters with the ABSORB_ITEMS special attack. Specifies the types of materials that the monster will seek to absorb. Items with multiple materials will be matched as long as it is made of at least one of the materials in this list. If not specified the monster will absorb all materials.
split_move_cost	(int) For monsters with the SPLIT special attack. Determines the move cost when splitting into a copy of itself.

Properties in the above tables are explained in more detail in the sections below.

“name”

(string or object, required)

"name": "cow"

"name": { "ctxt": "fish", "str": "pike", "str_pl": "pikes" }

or, if the singular and plural forms are the same:

"name": { "ctxt": "fish", "str_sp": "bass" }

Name displayed in-game, and optionally the plural name and a translation context (ctxt).

If the plural name is not specified, it defaults to singular name + “s”. “str_pl” may also be needed if the unit test cannot determine if the correct plural form can be formed by simply appending “s”.

Ctxt is used to help translators in case of homonyms (two different things with the same name). For example, pike the fish and pike the weapon.

“description”

(string, required)

In-game description for the monster.

“categories”

(array of strings, optional)

Monster categories. Can be NULL, CLASSIC (only mobs found in classic zombie movies) or WILDLIFE (natural animals). If they are not CLASSIC or WILDLIFE, they will not spawn in classic mode.

“species”

(array of strings, optional)

A list of species ids. Properties (currently only triggers) from species are added to the properties of each monster that belong to the species.

In mainline game it can be HUMAN, ROBOT, ZOMBIE, MAMMAL, BIRD, FISH, REPTILE, WORM, MOLLUSK, AMPHIBIAN, INSECT, SPIDER, FUNGUS, PLANT, NETHER, MUTANT, BLOB, HORROR, ABERRATION, HALLUCINATION and UNKNOWN.

“volume”

(string, required)

"volume": "40 L"

The numeric part of the string must be an integer. Accepts L, and ml as units. Note that l and mL are not currently accepted.

“weight”

(string, required)

"weight": "3 kg"

The numeric part of the string must be an integer. Use the largest unit you can keep full precision with. For example: 3 kg, not 3000 g. Accepts g and kg as units.

“scents_tracked”

(array of strings, optional)

List of scenttype_id tracked by this monster. scent_types are defined in scent_types.json

“scents_ignored”

(array of strings, optional)

List of scenttype_id ignored by this monster. scent_types are defined in scent_types.json

“symbol”, “color”

(string, required)

Symbol and color representing monster in-game. The symbol must be a UTF-8 string, that is exactly one console cell width (may be several Unicode characters). See COLOR.md for details.

“size”

(string, optional)

Size flag, see JSON_FLAGS.md.

“material”

(array of strings, optional)

The materials the monster is primarily composed of. Must contain valid material ids. An empty array (which is the default) is also allowed, the monster is made of no specific material.

“phase”

(string, optional)

It describes monster’s body state of matter. However, it doesn’t seem to have any gameplay purpose, right now. It can be SOLID, LIQUID, GAS, PLASMA or NULL.

“default_faction”

(string, required)

The id of the faction the monster belongs to, this affects what other monsters it will fight. See Monster factions.

“bodytype”

(string, required)

The id of the monster’s bodytype, which is a general description of the layout of the monster’s body.

Value should be one of:

Value	Description
angel	a winged human
bear	a four legged animal that can stand on its hind legs
bird	a two legged animal with two wings
blob	a blob of material
crab	a multilegged animal with two large arms
dog	a four legged animal with a short neck elevating the head above the line of the body
elephant	a very large quadruped animal with a large head and torso with equal sized limbs
fish	an aquatic animal with a streamlined body and fins
flying insect	a six legged animal with a head and two body segments and wings
frog	a four legged animal with a neck and with very large rear legs and small forelegs
gator	a four legged animal with a very long body and short legs
horse	a four legged animal with a long neck elevating the head above the line of the body
human	a bipedal animal with two arms
insect	a six legged animal with a head and two body segments
kangaroo	a pentapedal animal that utilizes a large tail for stability with very large rear legs and smaller forearms
lizard	a smaller form of ‘gator’
migo	whatever form migos have
pig	a four legged animal with the head in the same line as the body
spider	an eight legged animal with a small head on a large abdomen
snake	an animal with a long body and no limbs

“attack_cost”

(integer, optional)

Number of moves per regular attack. Higher values means the monster attacks less often (e.g. a monster with a speed of 100 and an attack_cost of 1000 attacks about once every 10 seconds).

“diff”

(integer, optional)

Monster baseline difficulty. Impacts the shade used to label the monster, and if it is above 30 a kill will be recorded in the memorial log. Monster difficult is calculated based on expected melee damage, dodge, armor, hit points, speed, morale, aggression, and vision ranges. The calculation does not handle ranged special attacks or unique special attacks very well, and baseline difficulty can be used to account for that. Suggested values:

Value	Description
2	a limited defensive ability such as a skitterbot’s taser, or a weak special like a shrieker zombie’s special ability to alert nearby monsters, or a minor bonus to attack like poison or venom.
5	a limited ranged attack weaker than spitter zombie’s spit, or a powerful defensive ability like a shocker zombie’s zapback or an acid zombie’s acid spray.
10	a powerful ranged attack, like a spitters zombie’s spit or an turret’s 9mm SMG.
15	a powerful ranged attack with additional hazards, like a corrosive zombie’s spit
20	a very powerful ranged attack, like a laser turret or military turret’s 5.56mm rifle, or a powerful special ability, like a zombie necromancer’s ability to raise other zombies.
30	a ranged attack that is deadly even for armored characters, like an anti-material turret’s .50 BMG rifle.

Most monsters should have difficulty 0 - even dangerous monsters like a zombie hulk or razorclaw alpha. Difficulty should only be used for exceptional, ranged, special attacks.

“aggression”

(integer, optional)

Baseline aggression, modified by anger/placation triggers dynamically and tending towards this value otherwise. Anger above 10 triggers hostility (gated by monster factions and character aggro), anger below 0 means ignoring or fleeing when not at max HP.

“morale”

(integer, optional)

Baseline morale, modified by fear triggers dynamically and tending towards this value otherwise. At negative morale the monster will flee unless its anger + morale is above 0 and it has more than a third of its max HP.

“aggro_character”

(bool, optional, default true)

If the monster will differentiate between monsters and characters when deciding on targets - if false the monster will ignore characters regardless of current anger/morale until a character trips and anger trigger. Resets randomly when the monster is at its base anger level.

“speed”

(integer, required)

Monster speed. 100 is the normal speed for a human being - higher values are faster and lower values are slower.

“mountable_weight_ratio”

(float, optional)

Used as the acceptable rider vs. mount weight percentage ratio. Defaults to “0.2”, which means the mount is capable of carrying riders weighing <= 20% of the mount’s weight.

“melee_skill”

(integer, optional)

Monster melee skill, ranges from 0 - 10, with 4 being an average mob. See GAME_BALANCE.md for more examples

“dodge”

(integer, optional)

Monster dodge skill. See GAME_BALANCE.md for an explanation of dodge mechanics.

“melee_damage”

(array of objects, optional)

List of damage instances added to die roll on monster melee attack.

Field	Description
damage_type	one of “pure”, “biological”, “bash”, “cut”, “acid”, “stab”, “heat”, “cold”, “electric”
amount	amount of damage
armor_penetration	how much of the armor the damage instance ignores
armor_multiplier	multiplier on armor_penetration
damage_multiplier	multiplier on amount

Example:

"melee_damage": [
  {
    "damage_type": "electric",
    "amount": 4.0,
    "armor_penetration": 1,
    "armor_multiplier": 1.2,
    "damage_multiplier": 1.4
  }
]

“melee_dice”, “melee_dice_sides”

(integer, optional)

Number of dices and their sides that are rolled on monster melee attack. This defines the amount of bash damage.

“hitsize_min”, “hitsize_max”

(integer, optional )

Lower and upper bound of limb sizes the monster’s melee attack can target - see body_parts.json for the hit sizes.

“grab_strength”

(integer, optional)

Intensity of the grab effect applied by this monster. Defaults to 1, is only useful for monster with a GRAB special attack and the GRABS flag. A monster with grab_strength = n applies a grab as if it was n zombies. A player with max(Str,Dex)<=n has no chance of breaking that grab.

“armor”

(object, optional)

Monster protection from various types of damage. Any damage_type id can be used here, see damage_types.json.

"armor": { "bash": 7, "cut": 7, "acid": 4, "bullet": 6, "electric": 2 }

“weakpoints”

(array of objects, optional)

Weakpoints in the monster’s protection.

Field	Description
id	id of the weakpoint. Defaults to name, if not specified.
name	name of the weakpoint. Used in hit messages.
coverage	base percentage chance of hitting the weakpoint. (e.g. A coverage of 5 means a 5% base chance of hitting the weakpoint)
coverage_mult	object mapping weapon types to constant coverage multipliers.
difficulty	object mapping weapon types to difficulty values. Difficulty acts as soft “gate” on the attacker’s skill. If the the attacker has skill equal to the difficulty, coverage is reduced to 50%.
armor_mult	object mapping damage types to multipliers on the monster’s base protection, when hitting the weakpoint.
armor_penalty	object mapping damage types to flat penalties on the monster’s protection, applied after the multiplier.
damage_mult	object mapping damage types to multipliers on the post-armor damage, when hitting the weakpoint.
crit_mult	object mapping damage types to multipliers on the post-armor damage, when critically hitting the weakpoint. Defaults to damage_mult, if not specified.
required_effects	list of effect names applied to the monster required to hit the weakpoint.
effects	list of effects objects that may be applied to the monster by hitting the weakpoint.

The effects field is a list of objects with the following subfields:

Field	Description
effect	The effect type.
chance	The probability of causing the effect.
duration	The duration of the effect. Either a (min, max) pair or a single value.
permanent	Whether the effect is permanent.
intensity	The intensity of the effect. Either a (min, max) pair or a single value.
damage_required	The range of damage, as a percentage of max health, required to trigger the effect.
message	The message to print, if the player triggers the effect. Should take a single template parameter, referencing the monster’s name.

The coverage_mult and difficulty objects support the following subfields:

Field	Description
all	The default value, if nothing more specific is provided.
bash	The value used for melee bashing weapons.
cut	The value used for melee cutting weapons.
stab	The value used for melee stabbing weapons.
ranged	The value used for ranged weapons, including projectiles and throwing weapons.
melee	The default value for melee weapons (bash, cut, and stab). Takes precedence over point and broad.
point	The default value for pointed weapons (stab and ranged).
broad	The default value for broad weapons (bash and cut).

The armor_mult, armor_penalty, damage_mult, and crit_mult objects support all damage types, as well as the following fields:

Field	Description
all	The default value for all fields, if nothing more specific is provided.
physical	The default value for physical damage types (bash, cut, stab, and bullet)
non_physical	The default value for non-physical damage types (biological, acid, heat, cold, and electric)

Default weakpoints are weakpoint objects with an id equal to the empty string. When an attacker misses the other weakpoints, they will hit the defender’s default weakpoint. A monster should have at most 1 default weakpoint.

“weakpoint_sets”

(array of strings, optional)

Each string refers to the id of a separate "weakpoint_set" type JSON object (See Weakpoint Sets for details).

Each subsequent weakpoint set overwrites weakpoints with the same id from the previous set. This allows hierarchical sets that can be applied from general -> specific, so that general weakpoint sets can be reused for many different monsters, and more specific sets can override some general weakpoints for specific monsters. For example:

"weakpoint_sets": [ "humanoid", "zombie_headshot", "riot_gear" ]

In the example above, the "humanoid" weakpoint set is applied as a base, then the "zombie_headshot" set overwrites any previously defined weakpoints with the same id (ex: “wp_head_stun”). Then the "riot_gear" set overwrites any matching weakpoints from the previous sets with armour-specific weakpoints. Finally, if the monster type has an inline "weakpoints" definition, those weakpoints overwrite any matching weakpoints from all sets.

Weakpoints only match if they share the same id, so it’s important to define the weakpoint’s id field if you plan to overwrite previous weakpoints.

“families”

(array of objects or strings, optional)

Weakpoint families that the monster belongs to.

Field	Description
id	The ID of the family. Defaults to proficiency, if not provided.
proficiency	The proficiency ID corresponding to the family.
bonus	The bonus to weak point skill, if the attacker has the proficiency.
penalty	The penalty to weak point skill, if the attacker lacks the proficiency.

"families": [ "prof_intro_biology" ] is equivalent to "families": [ { "proficiency": "prof_intro_biology" } ]

“vision_day”, “vision_night”

(integer, optional)

Vision range in full daylight and in total darkness.

“luminance”

(integer, optional)

Amount of light passively output by monster. Ranges from 0 to 10.

“hp”

(integer, required)

Monster hit points.

“bleed_rate”

(integer, optional)

Percent multiplier on all bleed effects’ duration applied to the monster. Values below the default of 100 mean a resistance to bleed, values above 100 make the monster bleed longer and more intensive. 0 translates to bleed immunity.

“death_drops”

(string or item group, optional)

An item group that is used to spawn items when the monster dies. This can be an inlined item group, see ITEM_SPAWN.md. The default subtype is “distribution”.

“death_function”

(object, optional)

How the monster behaves on death.

{
    "corpse_type": "NORMAL", // can be: BROKEN, NO_CORPSE, NORMAL (default)
    "message": "The %s dies!", // substitute %s for the monster's name.
    "effect": { "id": "death_boomer", "hit_self": true }  // the actual effect that gets called when the monster dies.  follows the syntax of fake_spell.
}

“emit_fields”

(array of objects of emit_id and time_duration, optional) “emit_fields”: [ { “emit_id”: “emit_gum_web”, “delay”: “30 m” } ],

What field the monster emits and how often it does so. Time duration can use strings: “1 h”, “60 m”, “3600 s” etc…

“regenerates”

(integer, optional)

Number of hitpoints regenerated per turn.

“regenerates_in_dark”

(boolean, optional)

Monster regenerates very quickly in poorly lit tiles.

“regen_morale”

(boolean, optional)

Will stop fleeing if at max hp, and regen anger and morale.

“flags”

(array of strings, optional)

Monster flags. See JSON_FLAGS.md for a full list. These are IDs that point to a "monster_flag" object, which usually can be found in data/json/monsters/monster_flags.json.

“fear_triggers”, “anger_triggers”, “placate_triggers”

(array of strings, optional)

What makes the monster afraid / angry / what calms it. See JSON_FLAGS.md for a full list

“chat_topics”

(string, optional)

Lists possible chat topics that will be used as dialogue display when talking to a monster, done by examining it and chatting with it. The creature in question must be friendly to the player in order to talk to it, or have the CONVERSATION flag. Alternatively an EOC spell/special attack between a player and monster can start a conversation using the open_dialogue effect, see NPCs.md for more details. Monsters can be assigned variables, but cannot trade with the exchange interface. Listing multiple chat topics will cause the game to crash. This must be defined as an array.

"chat_topics": [ "TALK_FREE_MERCHANTS_MERCHANT" ]

“revert_to_itype”

(string, optional)

If not empty and a valid item id, the monster can be converted into this item by the player, when it’s friendly. This is usually used for turrets and similar to revert the turret monster back into the turret item, which can be picked up and placed elsewhere.

“starting_ammo”

(object, optional)

An object containing ammo that newly spawned monsters start with. This is useful for a monster that has a special attack that consumes ammo. Example:

"starting_ammo": { "9mm": 100, "40mm_frag": 100 }

“upgrades”

(boolean or object, optional)

Controls how this monster is upgraded over time. It can either be the single value false (which is the default and disables upgrading) or an object describing the upgrades.

Example:

"upgrades": {
  "into_group": "GROUP_ZOMBIE_UPGRADE",
  "half_life": 28
}

The upgrades object may have the following members:

Field	Description
half_life	(int) Days in which half of the monsters upgrade according to an approximated exponential progression. It is multiplied with the evolution scaling factor (at the time of this writing, 4).
into_group	(string, optional) The upgraded monster’s type is taken from the specified group.
into	(string, optional) The upgraded monster’s type.
age_grow	(int, optional) Number of days needed for monster to change into another monster. Does not scale with the evolution factor.
multiple_spawns	(bool, optional) If using into_group, the selected entry spawns a number of monsters based on the entry’s pack_size.
spawn_range	(int, optional) Mandatory when multiple_spawns is true. Determines how far away from the original monster the upgraded monsters can spawn.
despawn_when_null	(bool, optional) For into_group, when mon_null is selected as the group entry upgrade, the monster will despawn leaving no trace when this is true. Otherwise the monster “dies” naturally. Defaults to false.

“reproduction”

(dictionary, optional)

The monster’s reproduction cycle, if any. Supports:

Field	Description
baby_monster	(string, optional) the id of the monster spawned on reproduction for monsters who give live births. You must declare either this or baby_egg for reproduction to work.
baby_egg	(string, optional) The id of the egg type to spawn for egg-laying monsters. You must declare either this or “baby_monster” for reproduction to work. (see JSON_INFO.md rot_spawn)
baby_count	(int) Number of new creatures or eggs to spawn on reproduction.
baby_timer	(int) Number of days between reproduction events.

“zombify_into”

(monster string id, optional)

When defined the monster’s unpulped corpse will rise, zombifying into the defined (different) monster. For mutated animals (including giant arthropods) the mon_meat_cocoon line of monsters should be defined, depending on the monster’s weight: No cocoon below 10 kg; 10 - 35 kg monsters zombify into the tiny cocoon; 36 - 100 kg monsters turn into the small cocoon; 101 - 300 kg monsters turn into the medium cocoon; 301+ kg monsters turn into a large cocoon.

“baby_flags”

(Array, optional) Designate seasons during which this monster is capable of reproduction. ie: [ "SPRING", "SUMMER" ]

“shearing”

(array of objects, optional)

A set of items that are given to the player when they shear this monster. These entries can be duplicates and are one of these 4 types:

"shearing": [
    {
        "result": "wool",
        "amount": 100        // exact amount
    },
    {
        "result": "rags",
        "amount": [10, 100]  // random number in range ( inclusive )
    },
    {
        "result": "leather",
        "ratio_mass": 0.25   // amount from percentage of mass ( kilograms )
    },
    {
        "result": "wool",
        "ratio_volume": 0.60 // amount from percentage of volume ( liters )
    }
]

This means that when this monster is sheared, it will give: 100 units of wool, 10 to 100 pieces of rag, 25% of its body mass as leather and 60% of its volume as wool.

“speed_description”

(string, optional)

By default monsters will use the "DEFAULT" speed description.

"speed_description": "SPEED_DESCRIPTION_ID"

“petfood”

(object, optional)

Decides whether this monster can be tamed. %s is the monster name.

"petfood": {
    "food": [ "CATFOOD", "YULECATFOOD" ], // food categories this monster accepts
    "feed": "The gigantic %s decides not to maul you today.", // (optional) message when feeding the monster the food
    "pet": "The %s is enjoying hunting the red laser dot." // (optional) message when playing with pet
}

“special_when_hit”

(array, optional)

A special defense attack, triggered when the monster is attacked. It should contain an array with the id of the defense (see Monster defense attacks in MONSTER_SPECIAL_ATTACKS.md) and the chance for that defense to be actually triggered. Example:

"special_when_hit": [ "ZAPBACK", 100 ]

“attack_effs”

(array of objects, optional)

A set of effects that may get applied to the attacked creature when the monster successfully attacks. Example:

"attack_effs": [
  {
    "id": "paralyzepoison",
    "duration": 33,
    "chance": 50
  }
]

Each element of the array should be an object containing the following members:

Field	Description
id	(string, required) The id of the effect that is to be applied.
duration	(integer or a pair of integers, optional) How long (in turns) the effect should last. When defined with a pair of values the duration will be randomized between those.
intensity	( integer or a pair of integers, optional) What intensity the effect should be applied at, when defined as a pair the intensity will be randomized between them. Can’t overwrite effects that derive their intensity from their duration via int_dur_factor.
affect_hit_bp	(boolean, optional) Whether the effect should be applied to the hit body part instead of the one set below.
bp	(string, optional) The body part that where the effect is applied. The default is to apply the effect to the whole body. Note that some effects may require a specific body part (e.g. “hot”) and others may require the whole body (e.g. “meth”).
permanent	(boolean, optional) Whether the effect is permanent, in which case the “duration” will be ignored. The default is non-permanent.
chance	(integer, optional) The chance of the effect getting applied.
message	(string, optional) Message to print when the effect is applied to the player. Supports dynamic lines with the syntax %s = <the monster's name>.

“path_settings”

(object, optional)

Field	Description
max_dist	(int, default 0) Maximum direct distance of path
max_length	(int, default -1) Maximum total length of path
bash_strength	(int, default -1) Monster strength when bashing through an obstacle
allow_open_doors	(bool, default false) Monster knows how to open doors
avoid_traps	(bool, default false) Monster avoids stepping into traps
allow_climb_stairs	(bool, default true) Monster may climb stairs
avoid_sharp	(bool, default false) Monster may avoid sharp things like barbed wire

“special_attacks”

See MONSTER_SPECIAL_ATTACKS.md