SkinhouseReport
English：Skinhouse · Locations
Two Skin Bandit outposts in the Sonorous Dark, each one fitted with Peeler Machines. Humans knocked out here do not die on the spot — they get carried into a machine and turned into clothing, one layer at a time.
A skeleton, I see... If you want to join us, the doctor can cure you of your skinless ways. You'll need to speak to Savant. Savant is the greatest master of science in all the land, he has shown us the way, the truth of the evil skeleton and how we can undergo the skinning transformation in human's purest form. — Skin Bandit, to a Skeleton player character
Skinhouses are outposts controlled by the Skin Bandits, located in the Sonorous Dark. There are two of them in the zone, alongside the separate Skinhouse HQ.
What separates them from every other bandit camp on the continent is on the building list — every Skinhouse contains Peeler Machines.
What happens here
The Skin Bandits are Skeletons. They hunt humans not for meat but for skin, which they turn into clothing, and because human skin rots quickly the hunting never stops.
They knock organic members of other factions unconscious, carry them back to a Skinhouse, and put them in a Peeler Machine. That machine works in three stages.
- Any clothing worn by the victim is destroyed over time
- It then deals cut damage to the limbs until every limb is below 0 health
- Only then does it begin damaging vitals
What the machine produces is Animal Skin — even from skeletons. That is the game's own description, not a joke.
As of update 0.99.5 (experimental) the Peeler Machine blueprint can be acquired from Savant.
What to bring
The open ground also spawns Skin Bandit patrols of 8 to 20 while Savant is alive, plus Skeleton Legion scouts, Old Machines spider groups of 4 to 18 Iron Spiders, and the occasional Black Gorillo.
Buildings and garrison
In the game data each Skinhouse location is made of 5 Skin House buildings, each holding 8 to 12 Skin Bandits. That puts the full garrison in the fifties — not individually strong, just numerous.
Loot
In relative order of likelihood.
- Grog
- Iron Plates, Tools, Wrench
- Armour Plating, Book, Capacitor, Electrical Components, Gears, Hinge, Leather, Robotics Components, Skeleton Repair Kit
- Building Materials
- Skeleton Eye, Skeleton Muscle
- Fuel, Fabrics, Steel Bars, Copper
World states
Skinhouses change hands with world state.
| Condition | Result |
|---|---|
| Savant killed or imprisoned | Both Skinhouses are taken over by the Southern Hive, garrisoned by 12 to 15 Armoury Droneguards |
| Savant and the Queen of the South both killed or imprisoned | Both Skinhouses fall to ruins |
Why the player cares
The Skinhouse is a warning, not a destination. The loot is ordinary, with only Skeleton Eye and Skeleton Muscle worth real money. The actual point is that you must not get knocked out in the Sonorous Dark.
Being knocked out in Kenshi is usually survivable — slavers can be escaped, cannibals can be raided. The Skin Bandits are one of the few cases where the rescue has to be fast, because the machine does not wait for you to wake up.