Tar Baby

The Tar Baby is a ranged enemy found in the Jurassic chapter of Act 3. It is a moderate-HP enemy (9 regular, 18 champion) that creates environmental hazards as its primary combat strategy. Rather than dealing high direct damage, it coats the battlefield in tar, making it one of the few enemies that can meaningfully reshape the terrain of a fight.

The Tar Baby lays Tar tiles as it moves and also places them through its ranged attack, gradually covering the arena in slow terrain. Tar tiles impede unit movement, turning positioning-heavy fights into sluggish attrition battles. Its champion form is a reference to Ash from The End Is Nigh. With movement 4, it is reasonably mobile for an environmental-disruption enemy.

Prioritize killing the Tar Baby before it can spread too many tar tiles, as the accumulating terrain will hamper your cats' movement throughout the rest of the fight. Fire-based abilities can burn tar tiles, clearing the board and potentially countering the Tar Baby's strategy. Fast melee cats with high movement can close the gap before too many tar patches appear, though they risk being slowed mid-charge if tar tiles are already laid along the approach path.