Spirit Tigers, also known as Tigris Spiritus, are a massive feline superspecies in the MonsterVerse created by Legendary Pictures that first appeared in the graphic novel Kingdom Kong.
Name
Spirit Tigers are named for their tiger-like appearances and their elusive, almost mystical nature. While initially being classified as "Holy Tigers" or Icarus Tigris, by the events of Kingdom Kong, they have been reclassified as Spirit Tigers, or Tigris Spiritus.
Design
Appearance
Spirit Tigers resemble giant white tigers with maroon stripes running throughout the creature's body. The eyes are foggy and white, and most notably, they adorn an impressive pair of stag-like antlers atop their heads. Like conventional tigers, all four feet are armed with razor-sharp claws.
Monarch estimates Spirit Tigers to be around 15 feet in length, although Kong encounters and kills a particularly gigantic one in the Kingdom Kong graphic novel.
Roar
According to Monarch Files 2.0, the roar of the Spirit Tiger is similar to that of a regular tiger.
Personality
Spirit Tigers are elusive and almost mystical creatures. They are predatory in nature, mostly hunting creatures smaller than themselves. They are fearless and ferocious in combat, battling until the bitter end as shown when a Spirit Tiger was snatched and killed by Kong. Spirit Tigers are described as "the most elegant, ethereal, and mysterious" creatures on Skull Island. Little is known about their ecological behavior.
Origins
One of the most elegant, ethereal and mysterious creatures we have encountered upon the island, the Spirit Tiger was thought by many in our party to be a hallucination on first sighting. At one with the forest, the serrated stripes running the length of its body are composed of epidermal leaves that shimmer in the soft breezes of the higher peaks. When drawing closer to observe the Spirit Tiger, our entire party experienced a number of unusual physical phenomena, including dizziness, euphoria, and the ability to hear the creature's heart, audibly beating at the center of our heads. Iwi markings show a deep reverence for the Spirit Tiger, giving it a name that roughly translates as "Majesty of the Winds".
The creature's predation and breeding patterns remain an elusive mystery.Monarch Creature Profile
History
Kong: Skull Island - The Official Movie Novelization
In the novelization of the film, James Conrad observes the tracks of an animal while trekking through the jungle. Due to its characteristics, the tracks were possibly left by a feline, which he estimates to be at least one-and-a-half meters long. However, the creature itself is never seen by the group in Skull Island.
Kingdom Kong
As a team of Monarch soldiers patrols Skull Island, they encounter a gigantic Spirit Tiger. The creature lunges after them, crushing and eating several soldiers in the process. Before it can finish off the survivors, Kong grabs the feline by the nape of its neck and lifts it. The Spirit Tiger struggles furiously, biting and clawing at Kong's hand before the ape grabs and twists the tiger's head, breaking its neck and killing it.
Abilities
Camouflage
The stripes on the Spirit Tigers' body allow them to blend in with forested environment of Skull Island.
Euphoria/nausea inducement
For reasons that have yet to be fully understood, anything in the vicinity of Spirit Tigers experience unusual physical phenomenon such as dizziness and euphoria.
Strength and combat
Spirit Tigers can use their teeth and claws as formidable weapons that can easily tear humans to shreds.
Gallery
Videos
List of appearances
Comics
- Kingdom Kong (First appearance)
Novels
