Mucky Loon (Tunnels & Trolls)

A General narrative about Mucky Loons can be found here. What follows are stats for the game of Tunnels and Trolls.

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Mucky Loon: Str: .25, Con: .5, Dex: 2, Lk: 1.5, IQ: .75, Wiz: .75, SP: 2, Chr: 1.5.

Height: .2, Weight : .2.

Language(s): Mucky Loons speak Avian. They can understand but not speak, Sylvan.

Mucky Loons have the following special qualities.

  • A Mucky Loon has a natural missile attack in the form of an acidic spit. Each time a Mucky Loon does this, a Mucky Loon spends 1 point of her Wizardry, just as if it had cast a spell. It’s range is equal to 1” per point of the creature’s Constitution. The spit does 1d6 in initial damage +1 per level of the Mucky Loon (subject to the normal effects of armor). Note that Mucky Loons of 2nd level or higher can choose to spend extra Wiz points up to their level to increase the number of 6 sided dice they roll for this damage). So, a 4th level Mucky Loon could theoretically spend 5 Wiz points to generate 4d6+4 in initial damage. As this is acidic damage, it continues to burn for 1 round afterwards per point of the Mucky Loon’s Strength, doing 1 point of damage on each of these rounds. Any one trying to stamp out the acid must make a Luck Save at a target equal to the initial attack roll. Doing so without a rag or water, or something else to help remove the acid inflicts a penalty of -3 on the roll.
  • A Mucky Loon can travel at three times the normal rate of speed.
  • A Mucky Loon can make a special Luck Save to avoid damage versus 1 missile or the damage from general combat. To do so it makes a Luck Save against the total damage it would take from the source of damage. Success reduces the damage taken by the Mucky Loon by 1 point + 1 more for every time its total roll can be divided by the damage in question.

Standard Monster Rating: 20.

Mucky Loons

© Daniel S. Wall, April 17, 2026.

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“These bizarre little creatures have defied the narrative skills of far more eloquent people than yours truly, but I shall try my best to explain. If you can imagine a duck… now take away its wings and its feathers, lengthen it’s feat just a little bit, and replace its beak with a small elastic mouth capable of forming into a shape not unlike that of a tiny bugle. Now make the creature brightly colored. It can be any hue, but it will always be bright and, well, colorful… If you’re still with us on this, now just imagine about a dozen of them frolicking about a meadow, running around at high speed and causing all kinds of mischief. Imagine all that, and you have the general idea, sort of.

“Mucky Loons do not speak, though they use a range of toots and honks to communicate basic emotions with one another. The overall effect of their appearance and behavior is usually one of such homeliness that it somehow passes over into cuteness.”

– Arglemis Schmee, Gnome Story-teller.

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Mucky Loons generally keep to themselves, and avoid sentient beings as much as possible. They spend their lives eating plants and small bugs and playing in the meadows and forests. When threatened, a flock of these creatures can become quite dangerous, however, swarming about a foe and bombarding it with acid spittle until even the bravest and toughest of creatures beats a hasty retreat. For most of these little creatures, that is enough, but the occasionally mean-spirited loons have been known to chase down and slay retreating foes. Most survivors will lick their wounds (carefully) and eventually go on about their lives. Should an opponent reveal himself to be a serious danger Mucky Loons will generally scatter and run away at great speed.

Specific rules for playing a Mucky Loon in Tunnels and Trolls can be found here.