"Mighty Koron! Hurl him off! Rend him with your claws! Break his bones with your teeth! Poison his blood with your sting!"
- Sanpao to Koron
Koron is one of the Evil Beasts controlled by Sanpao in his first attack on Avantia. The Beast has highly dangerous acid that is exuded from his fangs. He is armed with fangs, claws, and a tail like that of a scorpion, as well as being heavily muscled. Koron is loosely based on the manticore, removing the wings and swapping the lion aspects for a more tiger-like appearance (however his card still brands him a lion Beast), but keeping the scorpion tail as it is. The Complete Book of Beasts suggests that Koron is the favourite Beast studied by Horrick, the scribe who wrote the book in-universe.
The Pirate King[]
Koron was an Evil Beast of an unknown kingdom (the Complete Book of Beasts places the Jaws of Death in the Beasts of Avantia section, however this may only be due to so few realms being studied, meaning the true realm of the Beast is not present. He may also be a Beast of Makai, explaining how Sanpao was able to locate Koron). When Sanpao prepared to pursue the Tree of Being to Avantia to claim the remainder of its power, he used the branch he had already taken to enchant seven powerful beings: Koron, five other Evil Beasts, and Avantia's wizard Aduro. Koron was presumably kept on the ship with the other Evil Beasts.
Koron attacking Abraham and Blizzard.
When the Pirates of Makai were informed by Aduro that the Tree of Being would next appear in the Central Plains after the defeat and loss of Balisk at the Western Ocean, Koron was sent ahead slightly of the ship to keep people away and be on lookout for any who could stop them from reaching the Tree of Being. As the Jaws of Death made his way to the Tree, he came across Abraham, a horse tamer trying to tame Blizzard. Koron leapt at the pair, being spotted by Blizzard, who threw Abraham from her back in panic. The Evil Beast landed before the horse tamer, raking the ground while snarling and revealing both his acidic spittle and scorpion tail. Koron padded forwards and with a furious roar, leapt towards them, striking Abraham on the shoulder and raking his claws down Blizzard's back. The horse tamer began to strike Koron's flank with his staff, however the Beast grabbed it in his jaws and clamped down, breaking it. Blizzard struck the Beast with a kick from her hind legs, making Koron yowl in pain before turning to face her, raising his tail. At Abraham's order, Blizzard fled and was pursued by Koron, who proved unable to catch her, however aided the Pirates of Makai in hunting her, who branded her and left her, more focused on bringing Abraham under Sanpao's control to trick Tom and Elenna.
Sanpao leaping onto Koron to face Tom and Tagus.
Koron and Sanpao battling Tagus and Tom.
After the Pirates of Makai's ship crashed into the ground, occupying most of the men with repairs, Tom, Elenna, and Tagus turned their attention to Sanpao and Abraham, who had found the Tree of Being and were preparing to chop it down. As the Pirate King spotted the approaching Good Beast, he called out to Koron, who quickly arrived. Roaring, he bounded over to Sanpao, who leapt onto the Evil Beast's back. The Jaws of Death charged towards Tom and Tagus, lashing his tail side-to-side as he approached. The two charging Beasts slammed into each other, striking with their claws and hooves respectively as they allowed their riders to attack. Koron and Tagus separated, with each Beast continuing to try and strike each other as they moved away. The Jaws of Death raised his tail to strike the Horse-Man, however Tagus was able to force it away with his hands. The two Beasts turned and charged again, silently watching each other as neither went into the other's reach. After Tom used Balisk's Claw to disarm the Pirate King, Koron leapt towards the Beast and rider, striking out with his tail, which hit Tom's shield but the blow failed to unseat him. Tom tried to slash through the stinger, but the Beast turned away from the attack, spraying Tagus's face with his acid in the same motion. Blinded and in agony, the Horse-Man tripped over a small rock, throwing Tom from his body.
Koron stabbing Tom's shield with his tail, trying to force him from his back.
Sanpao leapt from Koron to mock the Good Beast and prepare him to be bent to his power by the Tree of Being while Koron charged at Tom. The Jaws of Death sprayed his foe with his acid, being deflected by his foe's shield, which was able to survive due to being made of the same wood as the Tree of Being. Crouching, Koron snarled as Tom and Sanpao spoke, then leapt at the warrior, landing a short distance from him and being struck in the throat lightly as Tom lunged, bringing his tail down instantly but not quickly enough to strike the Avantian. The Jaws of Death twisted to face his foe, raking his claws down Tom's shield. Tom sidestepped and lunged at Koron's throat again, but the Beast twisted so the flat of his enemy's blade struck his snout instead. The Evil Beast shook his head with a snarl as he retreated a few steps. Following Sanpao's earlier feat, Tom leapt onto the back of the Jaws of Death, who quickly began to thrash and buck to throw his foe off. Yowling and spitting madly in distress. Koron raised his tail and lashed it at Tom, which was blocked by the warrior's shield. The Jaws of Death drew his tail back and struck the shield again, spraying venom. Tom raised his sword to slash at the stinger, but the Evil Beast jerked his tail, striking Tom's sword and throwing it from his hand. Koron repeatedly raised his tail and slammed it down into Tom's shield, the two quickly meeting a stalemate. Furious and being ordered by Sanpao to kill his foe immediately, Koron raised his tail again and struck it down with immense power and speed, however Tom leapt off of his back as he did so and he was unable to stop the tail from plunging into his back. Howling with pain, the Beast tried to turn to bite at his stinger but was unable to, falling onto his side and with a final miserable whine, dissolved into a grey dust, leaving a fang behind as a token.
Powers, Abilities and Weaknesses[]
Powers and Abilities[]
- Acidic Fangs: Koron's fangs exude acid which can blind even Beasts.
- Natural Weaponry: Koron has sharp fangs, claws and a scorpion tail which is stated to be as fast as a whip.
- Enhanced Durability: Koron has enhanced durability, as he can survive battling against Tagus and being kicked by a horse.
Weaknesses[]
- No Immunity to his tail: Koron isn't immune to his own tail, so he can be killed if he is tricked into stabbing himself with it.
- Limited Potency of acid: Koron's acid cannot burn through wood from the Tree of Being.
A - Z of Beasts[]
"This Beast is well named: hidden behind his black lips are teeth like daggers. Koron's muscular body is like a tiger's, and claws as sharp as the deadliest blade will tear your head from your shoulders. Most terrifying of all, he has a scorpion's tail that can dart forward as fast as a whip to attack his victims."
Compass Text[]
"Koron's fangs drip a burning spittle that nearly destroyed Tom's shield!"