Louse

Louse is a tiny 1 HP parasite (internally known as Lice) that bites with LiceBite. Individually trivial to kill, Lice are almost never encountered alone. They typically appear in swarms, and their collective bite damage can overwhelm a cat through sheer volume of attacks if the infestation is not cleared quickly.

Each Louse bite slowly drains health from infested targets, and with multiple Lice attacking the same cat, the cumulative damage adds up fast. Their 1 HP makes each individual Louse die to any hit, but the time spent killing them one by one is time not spent dealing with more dangerous enemies. Lice swarms serve as action-economy drains, forcing you to spend turns cleaning them up.

Area-of-effect abilities are by far the most efficient way to deal with Lice swarms, clearing multiple 1 HP parasites in a single action. Fire-based terrain effects can also eliminate them passively. In encounters where Lice appear alongside a spawner enemy, prioritize the spawner to cut off the supply. Otherwise, ignore individual Lice when possible and focus on high-value targets, only clearing them when the cumulative bite damage becomes significant.