Krampus

"Hello, foul creature of the underworld."

- Wendy

Krampus (pl. Krampi) is a neutral Monster that steals the player's items and anything left on the ground in the player's vicinity. He will spawn if the player kills too many "innocent" Animals (either with weapons or in the inventory) and exceeds a certain naughtiness, or "karma" rating, detailed below. As the player is getting close to Krampus spawning, there will be a hissing noise, warning the player each time more innocent creatures are killed. The player will hear a unique piercing noise upon Krampus' spawn. Not acting "naughty" for a while gradually decreases the naughtiness rating by one per minute.

Krampus takes 3 blasts from the Ice Staff to be frozen and 1 shot from a Sleep Dart to be put to sleep. When killed, Krampus will drop two pieces of Charcoal, one Monster Meat, and very rarely, his Krampus Sack.

Behavior
Krampus will break Chests, then proceed to steal everything before retreating. Krampus will also pick up items lying on the ground prior to destroying chests. In order to get their items back, players must kill it and pick up the items. Krampus will not steal the Eye Bone, Lucy the Axe, Willow's Lighter, Abigail's Flower, Pile o' Balloons, Codex Umbra, Wooden Thing components (Ring Thing, Crank Thing, Box Thing, and Metal Potato Thing), and Divining Rod.

Krampus moves fairly fast and deals 50 points of damage per hit to unarmored targets, which can kill most characters in three hits. Krampus has a 1% chance of dropping its item sack upon death, which can be equipped like a Backpack. It yields 14 inventory slots rather than the Backpack's 8, and it doesn't slow the character like the Piggyback.

When killed, Krampus will drop all the goods he stole, along with one Monster Meat and two pieces of Charcoal. Krampus also behaves similarly to a Gobbler when being pursued. He will disappear into his sack if the player doesn't kill him fast enough.

Krampus will keep running around the player until no more items exist on-screen.

Naughtiness


Krampus will come and steal a very naughty player's items. He can break containers and steal entire stacks of items, then escape by paradoxically jumping into his own bag. One or two Kramps can spawn at the same time after day 50, and two or three after day 90.

Each minute of restraint (⅛ of a day) reduces naughtiness by 1, meaning the player can reduce their naughtiness by 8 points by not attacking anything innocent for one day. Once the player reaches a threshold of naughtiness, a random number between 31 and 50, Krampus will come and steal their items. After Krampus appears, the naughtiness level is reset to 0.

It is worth noting that setting creatures ablaze will not award the player with naughtiness points. This is because the fire is considered to be the killing factor. The same goes for Tooth Traps, Bee Mines, Gunpowder, and Slurtle Slime as they are considered to be environmental damage.

Another thing worth noting is that fishing for Fish does not count as a naughty act. This means that players who fear Krampus may just feed on fish and vegetables.

Killing Strategies

 * By far the easiest method to kill Krampus by luring him over to a Pig Village then letting the Pig hit him to death.
 * Alternately, the player may kill Krampus in direct combat. This can be done by first using ranged weapons such as a Boomerang or a Blow Dart to strike Krampus, which will cause Krampus to engage the player. Then the player may lure Krampus into hazards such as Tooth Traps. Krampus can simply be put to sleep with a Sleep Dart or Pan Flute, then he be killed with a Spear or Tentacle Spike.
 * If the player keeps track of their "naughtiness", they can set a trap for the Krampus before its arrival. The player should place a Chest with a few dummy items between where they will do the final act. Then the player should surround it with Bee Mines. The Krampus should go to the Chest, trigger the mines, and die from the bees. A player without traps or mines can directly engage Krampus while it's busy with the chest.
 * One way to farm Krampus is to kill Rabbits with Traps, and when the loud hissing sound is played, get a Rabbit, go away from the camp, place a random item or two on the ground and kill the Rabbit. As Krampus spawns, it will take away the items. If the player fails to kill Krampus when it is taking the item, drop another one, though Krampus may have disappeared already.
 * In the Reign of Giants DLC Glommer can be killed if one wishes to summon Krampus immediately.
 * One of the most effective ways to kill Krampus is by putting a small stack of Killer Bees into a remote chest, and then letting it destroy the chest, setting off the bees.
 * A good way to get items back is to make Krampus run into some Frogs: their tongues will make Krampus drop its stolen items, which can be picked up at will.
 * The player could also lead it to a nearby tallbird nest. Sense the tallbird is defensive of the egg, the tallbird will attack Krampus
 * If the player is aiming to get Krampus' Sack, the Fire Staff works well, since the sack doesn't burn. Krampus' other drops will be turned to ash, but since they are common drops, this isn't a big deal.

Below is the number of hits it takes with each weapon to kill Krampus when playing with characters with a default damage modifier.

Trivia

 * Krampus is a beast-like creature from the folklore of Alpine countries, thought to punish bad children during the Yule season. Krampus is said to capture particularly naughty children in his sack and carry them to his lair. Krampus' contrast to Saint Nicholas is reinforced by the Charcoal he carries; traditionally, naughty children are punished with coal in their stockings.
 * Krampus might also have some references to the Scandinavian Yule goat, an old pagan tradition originating from Norse mythology. Note that Krampus' horns resemble ones of an ornamental straw goat and in Finnish tradition, young men used to wear goat heads made out of straw (notice the Krampus' figure) in the Yule season, while going house to house demanding food and alcohol. The Finnish version of Santa Claus still has the name of the Yule goat.
 * Krampus also appears similar to reports of the Jersey Devil, a winged red horse with horns. However, Krampus has no wings and has a much thicker tail than a horse, more like a kangaroo or lizard. It also fights similar to a kangaroo's "kickboxing", standing on its tail and kicking with both feet.
 * Krampus was added in Naughty and Nice.
 * In Six Feet Under, Krampus was given a new look. He was retextured with white eyes and a purple "mouth".

Bugs

 * Hitting Krampus as he jumps into his bag will cause him to reappear and become invincible. In this state, Krampus cannot move and cannot be killed, but he can still be frozen and put to sleep just like normal.

Gallery
Krampus Крампус