Dire Wraiths Creatures
The Dire Wraiths called upon various creatures to attack or defend against the Spaceknights and other enemies. Some were native to the Wraiths' Dark Nebula, but others were of their own creation. Below are the primary ones revealed during Rom's time on Earth.
Deathwings
First Appearance: Rom #1
Origin: Presumably naturally occurring creatures that lived
in the black sun of the Dark Nebula.
Deathwings were a type of energy being shaped much like a pterodactyl or other avian dinosaur. They could fly through space or a planet's atmosphere and could apparently survive in any environment. Deathwings were immaterial and any being engulfed by them experienced extreme cold, even colder than space itself. For most beings, such an encounter meant death.
Magically inclined Dire Wraiths were able to summon Deathwings, but not control them. However they could apparently suggest a target that the Deathwings would, in most cases, attack. Once summoned, a Deathwing usually would not return to its place of origin until it had killed some being.
It was the Deathwing queen that destroyed much of the Galadorian fleet when it entered the Dark Nebula. The Deathwing queen was then slain by Rom during the Dire Wraith attack on Galador (Rom #1). It was the first being Rom had ever killed (Rom Annual #2). Numerous Deathing "hatchlings" still inhabited the Dark Nebula's black sun afterwards, but are presumed to have been killed with Rom negated the Worldmerge spell that was drawing Wraithworld and it's black sun to the Sol system (Rom #65). However, a Deathwing was encountered by the third generation Spaceknights in the Spaceknights limited series.
Hellhounds
First Appearance: Rom #5
Origin: Product of Dire Wraith technology and magic
Hellhounds of the Dark Nebula were one of the creatures most commonly used by the Dire Wraiths. Hellhounds began as normal Earth dogs, but were changed using a combination of Wraith technology and sorcery. They were fashioned after some wolf-like creatures native to Wraithworld. Wraiths seemed to prefer using Doberman pinschers to create Hellhounds, but were known to use other canines at times, such as white wolves.
Hellhounds had two forms. First, there was their original dog form. In this form they simply appeared as strong, mean dogs, but with their eyes missing. This form was used in the presence of humans to avoid suspicion. Hellhounds could track their prey in this form, not using their sense of smell, but a special telepathic sense to follow the psychic trail of their prey. It is unknown how long such a trail stayed fresh.
The Hellhounds more dangerous form was humanoid and often called their "phantom" form. They (generally) had dark purple skin, odd markings on their faces (which seemed to lack a nose), and red hoods. In this form, Hellhounds could become immaterial and "phase" through solid matter. Phasing through a living being could be painful. Hellhounds were also able to fly in this form, although not very fast. It is possible they simply glided on wind currents while phasing, similar to the Vision, a synthezoid Avenger capable of controlling his density.
Hellhounds also had limited spell casting abilities. They were able to move things magically in a fashion similar to telekensis. They could also create impenetrable force fields around small objects. Such a force field could be dispelled by a powerful physical attack by a Spaceknight, but doing so would require almost all a Spaceknight's energy.
After taking over from the males, the female Dire Wraiths preferred to use Hellhounds over any other type of creature.
Thornoids
First Appearance: Rom #7
Origin: Unknown
Thornoids were giant, mobile, animated, purple plants that fed on the carrion left after a Dire Wraith attack. They were almost entirely covered in thorns, hence their name. Wraiths were able to magically summon them, but they could not control them. Thornoids were rarely summoned on Earth. The first time known was when Rom had, after a fight with two Hellhounds, absorbed too much energy and his armor shut down. The Thornoids were summoned to finish him off. At the time, Steve Jackson was attempting to revive Rom while Brandy Clark and Artie Packer looked on. Rom was revived in time to save Steve and Brandy, but not Artie ( Rom #7). No Thornoids were known to be summoned again until the Wraiths began their all-out war on Earth's humans (Rom #53).
Watchwraiths
First Appearance: Rom #16
Origin: Product of Dire Wraith science
Watchwraiths were mechanical, humanoid-shaped sentries created by the male Dire Wraiths. Standing between eight and ten feet tall, they were incredibly strong and rugged. In addition, they were able to shoot Wraith plasmifire, a substance similar to napalm, from their hands and energy beams from their eyes.
The first Watchwraith seen on Earth was accidentally activated by some children entering the abandonded mines near Clairton, West Virignia recently abandonded by the Wraiths. It went on a rampage in the town and Rom was called to stop it. He ultimately defeated it by boosting the power of an ice cream parlor freezer to freeze the Watchwraith (Rom #16).
The last activated Watchwraiths seen on Earth were when the males and females faced off at the United Nations. The males used the Watchwraiths as their escorts while the females used Hellhounds. In the end, the males and their Watchwraiths were no match for the females, their Hellhounds, and the Deathwings they summoned (Rom #48).