The Handcollector is a hivecreature of myth and legend, who has stalked our cities since time immemorial. At this point, he might as well be just a being of folklore. But the Handcollector is real, and he could be a very serious threat to your safety. In this educative document, you will learn to understand the Handcollector, and how to keep yourself safe from this mysterious creature.

What is the Handcollector?

We have yet to identify what caste this Jakeopod actually belongs too, but it is certainly Fleshcobbled. No true photographs have been taken of the entity, only artistic depictions based on eye-witness reports. Allegedly, the Handcollector as a creature is an enormous colony of lengthy, hair-like worms who pilot an amalgamated corpus of limbs. The Handcollector has a humanoid body plan, although it moves by “sliding” across the ground. This Jakeopod is one of the only ones currently documented to lack any form of communication or intimidation flaps. Its most defining feature is its butcher-like right hand, which ends in a sharp blade and is the Handcollector’s only way of attack and defense. This weapon is its primary method of collection.

The Handcollector, fundamentally a colony of thin worms, is suspected to spend the majority of its time in sewer systems or near/in riverbeds. Although it has never been spotted in its “natural” habitat, and has only been seen by victims of its “Limbhunts”. Inconveniently, the Handcollector always seems to perfectly evade capture and disappears into the night just anti-Jakeopod countermeasures arrive.

What will it do to Me?

The Handcollector is a singular entity and as such the probability of the creature actually attacking You is slim. Of course, in the realm of Jakeopods, slim is always a higher chance than you may think. So, knowledge of this creature’s methods may be necessary for your survival. Read or listen closely, if you value your life in the face of the Handcollector.

The Handcollector will only attack during aforementioned “Limbhunts”, where it will leave its habitat and select a series of victims. Limbhunts only occur at night, when the Handcollector is extremely hard to see due to its “charred-black” coloration. It can apparently enter housing through the smallest of crevices, and worms that have fallen off the colony have been found in ventilation systems, sticking through screen doors, and at times even stuck in small cracks in walls.

If the Handcollector is successful in home intrusion it will immediately begin searching the building for prey: humanoids. It will ignore pets and small children unless they provoke it, but the Handcollector has allegedly stolen limbs from mannequins. If the Handcollector finds someone legible for the Limbhunt in their home who is awake, it will kill and eat them. If the Handcollector finds a sleeping victim legible for the Limbhunt, it will use its armblade to surgically remove the arms from the victim. These arms are then grafted to the Handcollector’s gargantuan left arm.

Handcollector attacks on sleeping victims are usually non-lethal, as its blade is coated in an hyperclotting compound to prevent bleeding. As to why the creature spares its victims, that is unknown. The Handcollector seems to only attack on certain days of certain months, especially around holidays.

How to protect Yourself

The Handcollector is fundamentally a stealthy, home-invading Jakeopod. However, its methods are more sophisticated than those of other Jakeopod castes. Suggesting some sort of elevated intelligence or possibly even independence from any Hive. Anti-Pod home-protection services are available at Department of Jakeopod Awareness facilities for cheap prices, we will send an engineer over to install them right away! If you cannot afford our premium products, sealing your windows and doors at night with strong woods or metals is a fine alternative. Additionally, it is suspected as a vermiform colony, that the Handcollector may be vulnerable to dehydration from salt. Although this has never been tested.

The Handcollector’s limbhunts usually only occur around the winter months, especially around the holidays taking place around them. This creature has a tendency to target houses with more people in them, and it can steal dozens of limbs in a single night.

If the Handcollector invades your house, know that your belongs, children, and pets, are safe. The Limbhunt is the Collector’s only priority and it will ignore any non-adult non-humanoid lifeforms in pursuit of ideal appendages. If you see the Handcollector in your home before it sees you, play dead. The Handcollector will think you are asleep and steal your limbs instead of killing you outright. Prosthetic appendages are expensive, but a life is even more so.

Conclusion

The Handcollector is a holiday horror that has caused a wide variety of injuries and traumatic incidents. However, the mortality rate spurring from Handcollector encounters is surprisingly low, and the hivecreature is seemingly easy to survive. Remember, if you see the Handcollector, would you rather lose your hands, or your life?

If you find the Handcollector in its natural habitat, please report the sighting to your nearest Jakeopod Awareness booth for we can deal with the problem.