The Mantle Wurm: it comes up under you.

What it is

Forty metres of basalt rings with magma seams, swimming through solid ground beneath the deserts and ash plains. It is felt before it is seen: the ground rumbles as it closes in. Then it breaks the surface, rears up and opens its four-petal maw to strike. It is based on real worms, which tunnel through soil by swallowing it. This one swallows rock.

Where and when it comes

• It lives in the hot sands and ash wastes of a world, and comes up beside a player who is walking on the ground.
• Out in the world it comes only a small share of the times it could. Where you first meet it becomes its lair, and there it comes every time it can. See Lairs and how legends come back.

Stats

Thing	Value
Health	900
Rings	16, each a joint of its body
Bite	26 damage, from a range of about 3.6 metres
Slam	14 damage
It gives up	130 metres away

How the fight works

1. Rumble. The ground shakes as it swims closer. Move away from the rumble.
2. Breach. It breaks out of the ground in an arc over its prey, or rears up beside them.
3. Strike. It opens its maw and lunges. A bite from the open maw is its big hit.
4. Retreat. It sinks back into the ground and comes round again.

Where to hit it

• Only parts that are out of the ground can be hurt. Nothing below the surface takes a blow.
• The open maw takes double damage.
• The armoured rings take less.

Wait for it to breach, then hit the maw while it is open.

Tips

• Stand on open ground, not on a ledge, so there is somewhere to run from the arc.
• Keep a clear line to the maw. A ranged weapon works well when it breaches.
• Dig a pit or a trench where you expect it to surface if you are fighting in a group.

What it drops

Drop	Amount
Trophy	Mantle Wurm Tooth

The tooth is hard and dense, which makes it a good head for a weapon or tool. Be near when the Wurm falls and its trophy counts in your Collection.

← Back to the wiki · Last updated 25 October 2026. Mantlenaut is in alpha, so things change.