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Bigshadowtentacle

Based on game build 714014 | Last updated: 2026-03-04

Overview​

The bigshadowtentacle prefab is a hostile shadow entity that acts as a combatant with auto-targeting capabilities. It is typically used in high-stakes encounters (e.g., boss fights or seasonal events) and relies on the combat, sanityaura, and inspectable components. It automatically selects valid targets from nearby characters, animals, or monsters while respecting tags and visibility rules, and reduces nearby players' sanity over time.

Usage example​

This prefab is used internally by the game and not meant to be spawned manually in most mods. For modders, it can be referenced as a template or extended via stategraph customization:

local inst = CreateEntity()
inst.prefab = "bigshadowtentacle"
inst:AddComponent("combat")
inst.components.combat:SetRange(TUNING.TENTACLE_ATTACK_DIST)
inst.components.combat:SetDefaultDamage(TUNING.BIG_TENTACLE_DAMAGE)
-- ... additional setup needed for full behavior

Note: Full behavior requires additional setup (e.g., sanityaura, inspectable, SGbigshadowtentacle stategraph, and physical/animation setup) as defined in the main constructor.

Dependencies & tags​

Components used:

  • combat — sets attack range, damage, period, retargeting, and keep-target logic
  • sanityaura — applies a sanity drain aura
  • inspectable — allows inspection via UI

Tags added:

  • "shadow"
  • "notarget"
  • "NOCLICK"
  • "shadow_aligned"

Properties​

No public properties are defined in this prefab's constructor beyond component-level state (e.g., inst.components.combat.target). Internal private variables _last_attacker and _last_attacked_time are declared but unused.

Main functions​

No public functions are defined in the bigshadowtentacle prefab itself. All logic is encapsulated in:

  • The factory function fn() (entry point to entity construction)
  • Three inner helper functions used by the combat system:
    • retargetfn(inst) — determines the next target
    • shouldKeepTarget(inst, target) — determines whether to continue attacking the current target
    • testremove(inst) — schedules entity removal after 30 seconds if idle

retargetfn(inst)​

  • Description: Returns a valid combat target from among nearby characters, animals, or monsters. Ignores dead or hidden entities (e.g., in a "hiding" stategraph state). Excludes the tentacle itself and entities tagged minotaur.
  • Parameters: inst (Entity) — the big shadow tentacle instance.
  • Returns: Entity? — a reference to a valid target, or nil if none found.
  • Error states: May return nil if no entities meet criteria or no valid path exists.

shouldKeepTarget(inst, target)​

  • Description: Evaluates whether the tentacle should continue attacking its current target.
  • Parameters:
    • inst (Entity) — the tentacle
    • target (Entity) — the current target
  • Returns: boolean — true if the target is valid, visible, non-dead, and within TUNING.TENTACLE_STOPATTACK_DIST, and is either a player or not currently hiding.
  • Error states: Returns false if target is nil, invalid, invisible, or hidden.

testremove(inst)​

  • Description: Checks if the entity is idle; if so, pushes a "leave" event to signal removal. Otherwise, rechecks in 30 seconds.
  • Parameters: inst (Entity) — the tentacle instance.
  • Returns: Nothing.
  • Error states: Recursively calls itself every 30 seconds until "idle" state is reached or the entity is destroyed.

Events & listeners​

  • Listens to: None directly (stategraph and combat system handle most state transitions).
  • Pushes:
    • "arrive" — fired on creation (post-construction).
    • "leave" — fired when testremove detects idle state and schedules removal.