Hostile creatures encountered in the Shadowfell alongside the husks after the fungal cow's scream. They are larger and more dangerous than husks, and the party learned that defeating the brute is the key to ending the combat. One brute used Rampage, forcing strength saves from nearby characters. Gren misidentified a giant puffball mushroom on its neck as its head, sinking his axe into the fungus instead. Vash shot one through the skull, heavily wounding it.