The Tongue Thief (Ostrakonskelos glossaklept, “hard-legged tongue-thief”) is not a fighter — it is a body-horror parasite, mirroring Earth’s tongue-eating louse Cymothoa exigua. It disguises itself as prey until an Epicurean swallows it, then latches onto the host’s tongue and secretes a satiety-blocking chemical. The host can no longer feel full, so it feeds constantly and turns hyper-aggressive — this is why infected Epicureans behave like “starving tanks”.
It reproduces inside the host’s mouth; juveniles travel the digestive tract to colonise new hosts, and the databank explicitly warns they may attempt oral infestation of humans. They cluster in the runoff pools of the Karakorum Metal Farms.
Counterplay: a lodged Tongue Thief is expelled with the Sonic Resonator — the Survival Multitool will not remove it. Avoid the runoff-pool swarms, where infection rates are highest.