Ugly Pet

You are the jailer. Behind the bars waits an egg — and soon, something hideous. Hatch your own monster, give it a name, and keep it alive. Feed it rats and three-week herring. Hose off the slime. Shovel up what it leaves behind. Pet it when it snarls — or poke it with a stick and see how long the bars hold. Care for it like it matters. Hunger, Rage and Filth creep up while you are away. Neglect it and it gets sick. Push it too far and it breaks out — and The Dungeon Gazette will report what it did to the village. Watch it grow. From a twitching egg to a full-grown beast in about a week of good care. Waiting is part of the game: check in a few times a day, no alarm clock needed. Dress it up. Bows, monocles, wool socks — one for every leg. Some outfits calm a monster down. Some make it furious. Eleven creatures of myth — from Iku-Turso of the Finnish swamps to Fenris on spider legs. Slimy, grotesque and a little bit tender. Raise something hideous.