Behind the Scenes: Howl of the Werewolf - The Malice

WARNING - SPOILERS!

If you've not read Howl of the Werewolf yet - or you haven't finished it - and you intend to, stop reading now!

You have been warned!

WARNING - SPOILERS!

During your exploration of the land of Lupravia you can happen upon some mysterious ruins where, in the past, an unroly rite was enacted. This event, and its consequences, were so appalling that they have left an indelible mark on the place. The longer you spent exploring the ruins, the greater your chance of meeting the Malice!

The Malice was inspired, in part, by the Malus, a malevolent alien entity from the Fifth Doctor Who story The Awakening. I certainly had the creature's distinctive gargoyle face in mind when I wrote that particular passage of the book.

In this particular Fifth Doctor adventure, the Malus (Latin for 'bad', in case you didn't know) was responsible for creating a time link between the year of 1984 and the events from the English Civil War.

As well as inspiring the Malice's ultimate malign form, another image of the Malus from The Awakening also appears in the book (although it was not illustrated separately), with the stone imps that you can encounter in the ruins - the Grinnygogs. And for anyone who was a child during the early 1980s, yes, I was also thinking of The Witches and the Grinnygog when I wrote this. Now that is a show I would like to see again!