Gremlin
From SpiralKnights
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Gremlins are a type of monster found in the Clockworks.
Traits
Gremlins are a race of small, mischievous humanoids that are fascinated with machinery and endlessly tinker away at any they can find. The gremlins were brought to the Clockworks by an unknown means and serve as its builders and repairmen. However, their efforts are often marred by their own tendency to break what they try to fix — or in many cases blow it up completely (they're fond of explosives). It is believed that gremlins get their orders from The Core itself, but for now their secret is safe, as the gremlin language is completely indecipherable to any other intelligent race.
All enemy gremlins belong to the colony, which serves King Tinkinzar. King Tinkinzar is said to be a great ruler and a mechanical genius who is responsible for the vision of the Clockworks. The king is never seen by common gremlins (nor has he ever been seen by the Knights, rather his orders are carried out by his Crimson Order, a fearful and zealous band of gremlins who alone share audience with the king.
There exists a small band of gremlins who are outcasts from King Tinkinzar's colony. The outcasts have taken refuge in the subtown of Emberlight, but at the cost of being hated by their own kind.
Types
Clans
Tenderfoot
The first clan of gremlins encountered, Tenderfoots are the weakest gremlins in game. They are only found in Tier 1.
- Thwacker: A regular melee attacker, the thwacker can throw his axe when enemies are out of reach. They are easily defeated by most players.
- Mender: The gremlin version of a healer, Menders heal their injured allies, gremlin or otherwise. Keep in mind that they are not passive healers, as they can easily hit unprepared players with their wrench wands.
- Scorcher: These gremlins wield small flamethrowers which let them set players on fire. They can fire bullets if their flames are unable to reach enemies.
- Demo: These gremlins carry around packs of bombs and run around placing them. They are very agile and can throw bombs that can stun you.
Ironclaw
The second clan of gremlins, Ironclaw gremlins are generally harder to defeat than Tenderfoots. They are encountered only in Tier 2.
- Thwacker: Ironclaw thwackers are more agile, and they can dash and dodge a knight's attack. They can also swing their axe a second time after their initial overhead swing. The second attack propels the thwacker forward, and can surprise unprepared players.
- Mender: Ironclaw menders can now area mend and are more agressive, sometimes even using ember bolt two times in a row.
- Scorcher: Ironclaw scorchers have a more rugged and tough appearance, and they can occasionally shoot a spread of three bullets.
- Demo: Ironclaw demos are now faster and dodge around more frequently. They can also throw packs of bombs.
Darkfang
The third clan of gremlins, more formidable than the Tenderfoot and Ironclaw clans. They are encountered only in Tier 3.
- Thwacker: Darkfang Thwackers now wear a shield on its back, blocking all attacks from behind.
- Mender: One of the most notable moves is the Mender's auto-bubble. The bubble is activated when the Mender is low on health. The bubble will disappear over time, or when a Knight breaks it down. They also gain the ability to resurrect other gremlins.
- Scorcher: Darkfang Scorchers gain a new and much more dangerous attack - their wave of fire covers more area and can also travel larger distances than its regular stream attack. Darkfang Scorchers may also spill oil making the fire hazard more dangerous.
- Demo: Darkfang demos move more unpredictably and drop bombs when hit. They are also extremely agile.
Strategy
Due to their wide range of abilities, Gremlins can be among the most challenging enemies in the game. The following observations can form the basis of an effective strategy to counter their advantages:
- All Gremlins are weak against shadow damage. If you do not have a weapon that deals shadow damage, equip a weapon that deals normal damage instead.
- Most gremlins will try to dodge your gunshots, so it is recommended to attack them with a sword. However, you are advised to keep your distance from Gremlin Scorchers.
- Thwackers will start to idle when low on health. Knock them down with a slash from your sword.
- Thwackers in higher tiers will idle in corners (usually on spikes or brambles) and will recover themselves if left alone. This is particularly annoying when done by Darkfang Thwackers as they are immune to rear attacks and often end up facing the wall.
- Thwackers have a short recovering time after their charged melee attack. Take advantage of this by counterattacking the Gremlins.
- Gremlin healers (menders) are exceptionally powerful, with the ability to heal hundreds of hit points worth of damage in quick succession. If you are adventuring alone, it is strongly advised that you kill the healer before turning to other units, as it may not be possible to deal damage fast enough to counter the healing spells otherwise.
- Menders on higher tiers will use Ember Bolt more often and without warning. Knights with low elemental resistance should be wary of this.
- When in a party while fighting a group of enemies accompanied by a Mender, have someone deal damage to the other monsters. The mender will stay put casting his healing spells instead and will become an easy target.
