Polisher Wurm

Introduction
For beings that live their entire lives in the black depths of the earth, under the crushing weight of countless tonnes of rocks and dirt, finding a group of warm-blooded prey within close proximity is a stroke of good luck. In this regard, from the point of view of tunneling monsters, the Dungeon may as well be paradise. The only setback to these creatures’ daily quest for satiation is the speed at which they can eat, and the Polisher Wurm has adapted an elegant solution to this ‘problem’.

Appearance
The average Polisher Wurm is 2.5m tall and wide, and up to 28m long depending on age and food supply. Its teeth are a valuable and sought-after prize, as they are nearly indestructible.

Ecology
The rate of digestion of a Polisher Wurm is exactly equivalent to its movement speed: roughly 0.7m/s. That is to say, when the wurm encounters a living creature small enough for it to eat, it simply passes over it without stopping or slowing. The Polisher Wurm’s maw is an always-open spiral of diamond-sharp teeth, and it's linear digestion is so efficient that it takes roughly 40 seconds to convert a Denizen standing one on side of it into a pike of glistening bones and metal on the other. Likewise, there is no difference in rate of movement when a Polisher Wurm is moving through empty space compared to when it is tunneling through dirt and stone.

Combat "Bio-Engine: As the Polisher Wurm’s digestion is near-instant, its movement is equivalent"

Treasure
As it only digests organic matter, the Polisher Wurm is the reason that ‘random piles of  treasure’ can occasionally be found in the Dungeon, especially in the Grinder Dwarves’ network of tunnels. Although the vast majority of wurms are not intelligent enough to set up planned traps, many Denizens are still wary to approach treasure which is shiny and wet. Some more cowardly and crafty creatures, such as the scavenging Punji Goblins, use piles of Polisher Wurm ‘leavings' as bait to lure in desperate or greedy Denizens into ambushes.