Crawling claws were the amputated and then reanimated hands of Mortalkind. They were employed by dark wizards and warlocks to perform watch duty or provide an extra set of hands. Using their fingers as legs, crawling claws could scuttle across the ground or maneuver on vertical surfaces. Crawling claws were lacking in intelligence, and could not perform complicated tasks by themselves. They lacked most of the memories of their past selves, leaving only an array of negative spiteful emotions to guide their actions
By themselves, crawling claws could only slash and pummel their opponents into submission. They were especially dangerous to those who had fallen over, as they could leap nearly six feet in a single bound. However, crawling claws were most dangerous when allowed to amass into a group of hundreds, swarming targets one by one in order to kill them. These swarms were known as "applauses" with no discernible front, back, or central body.