Riffjaw Shredfin
common
3–10 SP
The Riffjaw Shredfin is a rare biomechanical predator believed to have evolved—or perhaps been engineered—around strange metallic wreckage scattered across the deepest ocean trenches. Its skeleton has fused with what looks unmistakably like an electric guitar. Six strings run through its armored body and emerge directly through its enormous jaw, while pickups, frets, tuning hardware, and bridge components have become functioning organs.
Submariners disagree about its origin. Some believe discarded instruments from a lost underwater civilization somehow bonded with native deep-sea life. Others claim the Shredfin was deliberately created as a living weapon. The strangest theory says music came first: an unknown underwater signal caused metal, bone, and marine life to assemble themselves into the creature.
When threatened, the Riffjaw doesn't simply roar—it plays.
An adult is approximately 18–25 feet long, although Submariner sonar has detected unidentified specimens potentially exceeding 35 feet. Despite its appearance, it isn't constantly aggressive. It patrols territories slowly until vibrations from submarines, engines, drilling equipment—or especially music—attract its attention.
Its signature sound begins as a low underwater electrical hum. As it approaches, the strings running through its body vibrate sympathetically, producing something resembling a heavily distorted guitar chord heard through thousands of feet of water. During an attack, its jaws open and the strings scream into a rising feedback shriek before it charges.
Curiously, playing guitar back at one may change its behavior. Matching its riff can cause the creature to stop, circle the submarine, and answer with another sequence of notes.
That has given Submariners one important rule:
If you hear a guitar solo outside the submarine, don't run. Listen for the next note.
AI Kills
