Adlet
ArcticDog-leggedInuitPredatorCoast
Lore
Adlet is a cryptid from Inuit oral tradition: a swift, dog‑legged humanoid that travels with an uncanny long stride, more built for pursuit than for lingering. In the field it carries the smell of wet fur and salt—brine and musk layered with the faint iron of spent breath. Sound is a key cue: a rhythmic panting and the clack of hardened pads on rock or ice, sometimes a low, urgent growl at the edge of hearing. Temperature around an Adlet reads warm and compact—not the cold whisper of a spirit but the hot, muscular presence of a predator compacted into a lean frame. Observers note a lithe, economical gait and a tendency to favor broken shoreline, narrow ledges, and the seams between ice and land.
Origin: Inuit (Kalaallit / Nunamiut) • Arctic — Greenland & Arctic Canada
Classification: Cryptid
Field Notes
Observations
- Paired tracks: elongated canine hind prints set well beyond shorter, human‑like fore impressions and a tread that betrays sudden bursts of speed.
Encounter Advice
- avoidance: Avoid solitary travel along coastal ledges and ice margins at dawn or dusk; travel in groups, keep clear sightlines, maintain a steady fire or bright lights, and do not leave food or small children unattended near likely ambush points.
- defense: If confronted, prioritize escape and mobility: put distance between you and the beast, gain higher or open ground, use fire and continuous noise to dissuade pursuit. If retreat is impossible, entangle or slow its hind legs with nets, ropes or improvised barriers to reduce its speed and seek rescue rather than close combat.
Abilities
- Dog-Leg Gale-StrideUses its canine lower limbs to sprint across ice, tundra and shoreline at unnatural speed, overtaking sleds and scattering tracks into a blurred smear.
- Pack-Fjord AmbushOperates in coordinated kin-packs to encircle coastal camps or boats, dragging victims into water or deep snow before help can arrive.
- First-Catch ClaimResponds compulsively to a ritual offering of the first portion of a catch, accepting the gift and altering its behaviour toward the gifter.
Weaknesses
- Oath of the First CatchBound by legend to accept the 'first catch'—presenting the first portion of a seal or fish can compel them to withdraw or honour a bargain.
- Hearth and SmokeAvoids entering dwellings with a tended indoor hearth; sustained fire and smoke force them to keep distance and break ambushes.