THE CRAWLER'S COMPANIONpatch notes for the apocalypse

Grimaldi's Traveling Circus

First seen: Book 2, Chapter 4

A ruined circus on floor 3, once one of the Over City's favorite attractions before a toxic cloud devastated the floor centuries ago. Its feral, transformed performers, including the Former Circus Lemurs and Terror the Clown, still stalk its ruins. Subject of Carl's first on-page quest, The Show Must Go On, triggered just by wandering close to it.

RuinsAttack Canceled

Appearance

Big Top Entrance:

Shaped like the mouth of a giant clown, per Carl's own description watching Signet step into it; a massive calliope, source of the circus's ever-present music, sits right outside the tunnel exitB2C11

Where

Passed again at dawn on the way out: the tents are gone, and so is every dead crawler's corpse marker. A staircase down to floor 4 has appeared in the middle of the park, right underneath where the big top stood, hidden until now per MordecaiB2C12

Carl enters the big top's interior for the first time, alone, past a tunnel guarded by Clammy the Clown; performers inside carry on their acts as if the siege outside isn't happening and ignore him completelyB2C10

Approached much closer this chapter, first from a building overlooking its walls, then again from a darkened street about a block and a half out after nightfall. Still never enteredB2C6

A few streets over from the lemur ambush site, visible from a rooftop as a cluster of big top tents in what looks like a parkB2C5

Connections

Carl:

Goes in alone using his Big Top Ticket, the only way past the magic sealing the interior off from Signet and her army; finds Grimaldi filling the center ring and tries the poison-blood trick against himB2C10

Watches its clowns and stilt-clowns fortify its walls with skins and barbed wire and load mortars into cauldrons, then gets ambushed twice more on the way to a safe room, once by mortar fire and once by its own circus animals released on Tsarina Signet's signalB2C6

Triggers his first quest, The Show Must Go On, just by wandering into its edge; ambushed by its Former Circus Lemurs and Terror the Clown before reaching a safe room, without ever entering the circus properB2C4

Donut:

Scouts it from a rooftop after the ambush: spots at least three giraffes wandering it and hears circus music playing, but no clowns. Neither she nor Carl goes in this chapterB2C5

History by chapter
Book 2
Chapter 4
  • TAG Ruins: Floor 3's ruined circus grounds; discovered by wandering close to it, never actually entered
  • RELATIONSHIP Carl: Triggers his first quest, The Show Must Go On, just by wandering into its edge; ambushed by its Former Circus Lemurs and Terror the Clown before reaching a safe room, without ever entering the circus proper
Chapter 5
  • LOCATION Location: A few streets over from the lemur ambush site, visible from a rooftop as a cluster of big top tents in what looks like a park
  • RELATIONSHIP Donut: Scouts it from a rooftop after the ambush: spots at least three giraffes wandering it and hears circus music playing, but no clowns. Neither she nor Carl goes in this chapter
Chapter 6
  • LOCATION Location: Approached much closer this chapter, first from a building overlooking its walls, then again from a darkened street about a block and a half out after nightfall. Still never entered
  • RELATIONSHIP Carl: Watches its clowns and stilt-clowns fortify its walls with skins and barbed wire and load mortars into cauldrons, then gets ambushed twice more on the way to a safe room, once by mortar fire and once by its own circus animals released on Tsarina Signet's signal
Chapter 7
  • TAG Attack Canceled: This night's planned assault is called off, per Signet, once her own summon fails; a few mortars still fire harmlessly as Carl and Donut retreat out of range
Chapter 10
  • RELATIONSHIP Carl: Goes in alone using his Big Top Ticket, the only way past the magic sealing the interior off from Signet and her army; finds Grimaldi filling the center ring and tries the poison-blood trick against him
  • LOCATION Location: Carl enters the big top's interior for the first time, alone, past a tunnel guarded by Clammy the Clown; performers inside carry on their acts as if the siege outside isn't happening and ignore him completely
Chapter 11
  • PHYSICAL Big Top Entrance: Shaped like the mouth of a giant clown, per Carl's own description watching Signet step into it; a massive calliope, source of the circus's ever-present music, sits right outside the tunnel exit
Chapter 12
  • TAG Ruins: No longer standing as of this chapter; whatever remains isn't described beyond the missing tents and corpses
  • LOCATION Location: Passed again at dawn on the way out: the tents are gone, and so is every dead crawler's corpse marker. A staircase down to floor 4 has appeared in the middle of the park, right underneath where the big top stood, hidden until now per Mordecai