#Drawlloween #Inktober 29 - Scarecrow

There may not be crows in the Darkhive, but new arrivals will recognise the presence of stuffed fabric humanoids around the outskirts of many settlements. Though the name means nothing here, the term "scarecrow" is still used to describe these figures.

Scarecrows are sometimes mounted in the fungal farmlands surrounding smaller settlements to artificially inflate the numbers of people that might be perceived by mutants, shellbrood or other predators. But in many cases, stationary scarecrows aren't enough. Some innovative and mechanically inclined farmers connect the scarecrows to systems of ropes and pulleys to make the scarecrows move and seem more lifelike.

Other scarecrows are somewhat more sinister, they are not stuffed with ferns and fungus, but are actually filled with a living being in a semi-stasis. These scarecrows are criminals, mutants and heretics, sentenced to years or even decades tied to metal frames on the outskirts of military compounds and strategically important locations. These scarecrows are draped in a psychic amulet, and for every warning they issue to the local authorities regarding incoming attackers or raiders, their sentence is reduced. On the down side, sometimes scarecrows don't survive those very encounters they are warning the authorities about.

Occasionally, one of these living scarecrows is rescued from their sentence, but this is often the quickest way for a new criminal to be sentenced as a Scarecrow.

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