Scarecrow

The corruption tainting the Farmstead turns its human and animal victims into nightmarish constructs of crystal and stone. Some could take a faint measure of comfort, at least, from the idea that its victims can be contained by the poor men and women living on the estate as the Comet struck, or if not simply them, the poor wanderers and adventurers slain by the crystal shrapnel of the Crystalline Aberrations.

This is not a land of such comforts, however, as the Comet's power extends even to the wood-and-straw effigies strewn throughout the fields to protect them from the Hamlet's pigeons and the sprawling woods' ravens. These scarecrows, driven into a semblance of life by the crystals growing throughout them, stay stock-still at the front of enemy formations, avoiding the attention of their enemies by allowing their focus to be drawn to the more obvious threats. And then, as the heroes think themselves safe, the Scarecrow strikes, slashing at them with the blighted crystal needles that once were simple straw, revealing their shockingly luminescent forms to their aghast victims, commanding what vegetation remains to constrict and distract their foes, or even channeling their crystal's power to heal themselves and their allies. Ignore the Scarecrow at your own peril.

Abilities
Apprentice =

Veteran =

Champion =

* Lasts 2 rounds

Strategy
Though stronger and quicker than a simple Farmhand, Scarecrows start with two rounds of stealth, making a direct assault futile without first using a destealthing move like the Leper's Intimidate or the Shieldbreaker's Expose. Scarecrows are threatening, but not overtly so, and so it can often be more efficient to focus on clearing out the other enemies than spending a turn to use an attack that will only destroy the Scarecrow in remarkable circumstances, likely impossible outside of a Critical Expose on a Shieldbreaker whose damage has already been buffed. Unless you have a de-stealthing move and an extra turn to use it (such as a situation where a Vestal has a healthy team, is using Illumination, and has no stunnable target), it's often reasonable to wait out the Scarecrow's stealth before cutting it down. That said, if your team is heavy on multitarget attacks like Hew, Zealous Accusation or Impale, then you have a recipe for taking out most of its HP or even killing it outright before the stealth breaks.

Related Enemies
Shared
 * Thing From The Stars

Farmstead
 * Farmhand
 * Foreman
 * Plow Horse
 * Crystalline Aberration
 * Sleeper's Herald
 * Sleeper's Dream

Bosses
 * Miller
 * Frozen Farmhand
 * Fracture
 * Focus Point
 * Unfinished Aberration
 * Finished Aberration
 * The Sleeper