Knockers, Whisperers of the Deep Stone
“Tiny pickaxe-wielding spirits of the deep, Knockers tap out omens of fortune—or your doom—just before the mine goes silent forever.”

Knockers are small, wiry fey resembling ancient miners twisted by stone and shadow. Their skin is mottled gray, like old granite, and their large, pitch-black eyes reflect even the faintest light. They dress in ragged mining gear—patched leather, corroded buckles, and tiny helmets forged from tin, bone, or old iron. Each carries a miniature pickaxe, etched with runes and faintly glowing when near ore.
In darkness, their bodies seem to flicker between solid and spectral, their outlines blurred like heat-haze over stone.
Habitat
Knockers dwell deep underground in forgotten mines, collapsed tunnels, and ore-rich caverns. They prefer natural stone environments over worked areas, building hidden dens from splintered timbers, broken tools, and bits of scavenged gear. Their lairs are winding, labyrinthine, and unnavigable to most humanoids.
They are especially drawn to regions once mined and then abandoned—places where human greed faded and silence returned.
Behavior
Highly territorial, secretive, and capricious, Knockers walk a line between trickster and guardian. While not inherently malicious, they hold a deep reverence for the earth and expect the same from any who trespass in their domain.
Knockers communicate through tapping, creating strange, rhythmic knock patterns that echo through stone walls like coded messages. This habit gave rise to their name.
Their moods are difficult to predict:
- A humble miner may receive aid in the form of distant tapping toward a hidden ore vein.
- A greedy intruder may find their tools sabotaged or lanterns snuffed in absolute darkness.
Modus Operandi
Knockers avoid direct conflict when possible, instead using subtlety and sound to control their environment:
- Echoes to mislead intruders or mimic familiar voices.
- Tapping warnings before a structural collapse—or to guide explorers away from danger.
- Minor sabotage, such as loosening support beams or hiding tools.
- Rarely, blessings of luck for those who offer food or show genuine respect.
Only when cornered or enraged will they fight, striking with razor-sharp picks and calling upon the earth itself to shield them.
Motivation
Knockers are wardens of the deep, bound not by laws of men but by the primordial covenant between stone and spirit. They are driven by:
- Protection of the Earth’s hidden riches, especially unmined veins.
- Retribution for arrogance, greed, or desecration of sacred ground.
- Reward for humility, generosity, and respectful mining practices.
Some sages believe they are fey manifestations of the mountain’s will. Others whisper they are the souls of lost miners, reshaped by grief and stone magic.
Knockers 5e
Knockers, Pathfinder
Knockers 3.5
Knocker

Small Fey, Chaotic Neutral
Armor Class 13 (natural armor)
Hit Points 27 (6d6 + 6)
Speed 30 ft., climb 20 ft.
STR | DEX | CON | INT | WIS | CHA |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
8 (–1) | 15 (+2) | 12 (+1) | 11 (+0) | 14 (+2) | 10 (+0) |
Saving Throws Dexterity +4, Wisdom +4
Skills Stealth +6, Perception +4, Insight +4, Survival +4
Damage Resistances bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing from nonmagical attacks
Condition Immunities frightened
Senses darkvision 120 ft., tremorsense 30 ft., passive Perception 14
Languages Terran, Gnomish; understands Common
Challenge 1 (200 XP)
Proficiency Bonus +2
Innate Ore Sense
The knocker can sense the presence and location of unrefined ore or gemstones within 60 feet, even through stone or soil.
Miner’s Ghost
The knocker moves through stone or earth-based difficult terrain without penalty. It has advantage on Stealth checks while underground or in dim light.
Echo Tap (1/Turn)
As a bonus action, the knocker knocks on a nearby surface, producing an illusory sound anywhere within 60 feet. The sound can mimic tapping, footsteps, distant voices, or mining tools. Creatures that hear the sound must succeed on a DC 12 Wisdom (Insight) check or misjudge its source and direction.
Actions
Pickaxe Strike
Melee Weapon Attack: +4 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target.
Hit: 6 (1d6 + 2) slashing damage.
Dust Collapse (Recharge 5–6)
The knocker causes a section of loose rock or ceiling within 30 feet to collapse. Each creature in a 10-foot radius must make a DC 12 Dexterity saving throw, taking 7 (2d6) bludgeoning damage on a failed save, or half as much on a success. The area becomes heavily obscured until the end of the knocker’s next turn.
Stone Meld (1/day)
The knocker magically merges with adjacent stone or earthen surfaces for up to 1 minute. While melded:
- It gains resistance to all damage.
- It has advantage on Stealth checks and can move through stone as if it were difficult terrain.
- It cannot attack or cast spells, but may continue using Echo Tap.
Tactics
Knockers prefer subterfuge and environmental manipulation over direct combat. They observe intruders from the shadows, using Echo Tap to confuse, separate, or delay enemies. In combat, they exploit their terrain: triggering collapses, obscuring visibility, and retreating into the stone when threatened. They will not pursue enemies far beyond their lairs and rarely kill unless provoked or defending their territory.
Lair Effects (Optional)
In mines or natural caverns inhabited by a group of knockers, the environment may develop the following regional traits:
- Echoing Whispers: Sounds carry unpredictably, mimicking distant voices, footsteps, or tapping.
- Structural Instability: Beams shift, tools break more easily, and mining checks made without care or respect suffer disadvantage.
- Superstitious Favor: Miners who leave small offerings—crumbs, coins, or polished stones—are less likely to encounter hostile knockers and may gain advantage on their next Survival or Investigation check while underground.
Lore (History or Nature DC 13)
Knockers are ancient fey spirits rooted in the oldest mining traditions of the mortal world. In some regions, they are said to be the souls of lost miners; in others, embodiments of the mountain’s will. Their relationship with mortals is complex—they punish arrogance and greed but may reward humility and reverence. Tapping sounds in the dark, both feared and revered by miners, are believed to signal their presence—either a warning or a hidden gift.
Knockers

This creature looks rather like a gnome with slate-grey skin. His hair and beard are faintly metallic, perhaps copper greying to iron at the edges.
Monster Encyclopaedia I: Ravagers of the Realms
Author August Hahn, Gareth Hanrahan, Lizard
Series Monster Encyclopaedia
Publisher Mongoose Publishing
Publish date 2004
Knockers are a minor race, often mistaken for dwarves, Gnomes or even kobolds by those who do not know them – and few know the knockers, for they are among the most secretive of folk. They dwell in the lowest reaches of the underworld, only occasionally coming to the surface. The underworld is a place of terrible horrors and fearsome monsters, so the little knockers are forced to hide and avoid other creatures. They favour sealed caverns with no ingresses, which they themselves can access using their earth walk ability.
Knocker tribes consist of a few dozen members, who practise the high art of the knockers – mining. Unlike other species, they do not treasure the wealth of gold or silver or the other resources of the earth; they appreciate them solely for their beauty. Knockers dig up gemstones, carve them, polish them, admire them – then bury them again for future generations to find again. The knockers dislike the mining practises of dwarves and men, but only take action against the largest mines that delve too close to knocker villages.
Each village is ruled by a headman, who is generally also a cleric of the knocker deity, the World Stone. clerics of the World Stone may take the Earth and Protection domains.
Knocker | |
Small Monstrous | |
Humanoid (Earth) | |
Hit Dice | 1d8+2 (6 hp) |
Initiative | -1 |
Speed | 20 ft. (4 squares) |
Armour Class | 12 (+1 size, -1 Dexterity, +2 natural), touch 10, flat-footed 12 |
Base Attack/Grapple | +1/-2 |
Attack | Slam +3 melee (1d4+2) |
Full Attack | Slam +3 melee (1d4+2) |
Space/Reach | 5 ft./5 ft. |
Special Attacks | – |
Special Qualities | Darkvision 60 ft., earth walk, stonecunning, tapping |
Saves | Fort +4, Ref +1, Will +2 |
Abilities | Strength 13, Dexterity 8, Constitution 15, Intelligence 11, Wisdom 10, Charisma 8 |
Skills | Craft (stonecutting) +3, Knowledge (architecture & engineering) +2, Listen +3 |
Feats | Great Fortitude |
Environment | Temperate hills and underground |
Organisation | Solitary, gang (4-9) or village (20-50) |
Challenge Rating | 1/2 |
Treasure | Standard, double gems |
Alignment | Usually neutral |
Advancement | By character class |
Level Adjustment | +0 |
Combat

Knockers have strong little stony fists and can make a surprisingly good accounting of themselves in a fistfight. When forced to defend themselves, they also use wickedly sharp little shortswords and wear finely made chainmail.
Earth Walk (Su): Once per day, a knocker can earth walk for one minute. While earth walking, the knocker can pass through earth and stone freely, moving at its normal movement through the obstacle. The knocker must keep moving and cannot stop within the stone, but can move in circles and can spend multiple rounds immersed in stone.
Stonecunning (Ex): A knocker has the same stonecunning ability as a dwarf.
Tapping (Ex): All knockers know the secret language of their race, which they can use to communicate over long distances underground. This code is tapped onto the stone; the knocker must make a Craft (stonecutting) check at a DC equal to 5 x the distance transmitted in miles to successfully communicate it.
Knocker

CR 1
XP 400
Male knocker
CN Small fey
Init +3; Senses darkvision 120 ft., low-light vision, tremorsense 30 ft.; Perception +7
DEFENSE
AC 15, touch 14, flat-footed 12 (+1 natural, +3 Dex, +1 size)
hp 13 (2d6+6)
Fort +1, Ref +6, Will +5
DR 5/cold iron
Resist electricity 5, sonic 5
Immune fear
OFFENSE
Speed 30 ft., climb 10 ft.
Melee masterwork pickaxe +4 (1d6–1/×4)
Special Attacks dust collapse (1/day), echo tap
Spell-Like Abilities (CL 3rd; concentration +3)
- At will—ghost sound (DC 11), detect metals and minerals†, mending
- 1/day—meld into stone (self only)
†Functions as detect magic, but reveals only unrefined metals, gems, and mineral veins.
STATISTICS
Str 8, Dex 17, Con 12, Int 10, Wis 15, Cha 11
Base Atk +1; CMB –1; CMD 12
Feats Weapon Finesse
Skills Acrobatics +7, Climb +7, Perception +7, Stealth +11, Survival +6, Knowledge (dungeoneering) +4
Languages Common, Gnome, Sylvan, Terran
ECOLOGY
Environment underground (caves, mines, ancient tunnels)
Organization solitary, pair, or clatter (3–8)
Treasure standard (ore fragments, semi-precious stones, rusted tools)
SPECIAL ABILITIES
Echo Tap (Su):
As a standard action, a knocker can strike a nearby stone or metal surface, producing an illusory sound at any point within 60 feet. This sound can resemble tapping, mining, whispered voices, or footsteps. Creatures within range must succeed at a DC 12 Will save or misjudge the direction and proximity of the sound for 1 round. This is a mind-affecting figment. The save DC is Wisdom-based.
Dust Collapse (Su):
Once per day, a knocker can cause a sudden cave-in of loose rock or debris within 20 feet. All creatures in a 10-foot radius must make a DC 13 Reflex save or take 2d4 bludgeoning damage and be dazzled for 1 round. A successful save halves the damage and negates the dazzled effect. The affected area is lightly obscured until the end of the knocker’s next turn.
Ore Sense (Ex):
A knocker can detect unrefined ore or mineral deposits within 60 feet, functioning as detect magic, but only for raw metals and gemstones. The knocker instinctively understands the type and direction of the material.
Stonecunning (Ex):
Knockers gain a +2 racial bonus on Perception checks to notice unusual stonework, including hidden doors and mechanical traps involving stone. This ability functions like the dwarven racial trait.
DESCRIPTION
Knockers are secretive, fey creatures that haunt the depths of the earth. They are commonly associated with old mines, sealed tunnels, and collapsed shafts—places where the line between the natural and the supernatural has worn thin. Their appearance resembles that of small, wiry miners, with ashen skin, oversized black eyes, and patchwork gear cobbled together from lost equipment and scavenged relics.
Miners tell countless stories of knockers—some speak of whispered warnings and helpful guidance, while others recount sabotage and sudden disappearances. Most agree on one thing: disrespect the mine, and the knockers will make their displeasure known.
Though not inherently evil, knockers are fiercely protective of the subterranean realm and deeply offended by greed or recklessness. They favor stealth and trickery over violence, often using sound to confuse and mislead intruders. However, when enraged or cornered, they can call upon the mine itself to strike down their foes.
Superstitious miners often leave offerings—crumbs of food, coins, or polished stones—to appease the knockers. Whether this brings luck or simply wards off mischief, none can say for sure.