Description:
Necro Rot Root is a harbinger of death and decay, most often found in the deep hollows of forgotten graveyards, plague-ravaged ruins, or the sunless undercrofts of ancient crypts—but its reach stretches far beyond. Wherever grief has lingered, blood has dried, or memories fester unburied, the root may take hold. It coils like a dying breath, its twisted tubers pushing up through cracked stone, forest loam, battlefield ash, or even the floorboards of abandoned homes. Its color is a sickly pallor of pale greens and greys, with blossoms that pulse faintly like old wounds. Despite its necrotic reputation, it is studied by healers and death-priests alike, for in its rot lies strange potency.
Stems & Growth:
- Thrives in almost any environment steeped in sorrow, ruin, or decay—from swamps and ruins to windswept moors and burned-out villages
- Stems are hollow, twisted, and slick with a viscous, cold secretion
- Emits a rank, earthy odor—like wet grave loam mixed with decay
- Spreads in spiraling, concentric patterns, as if mimicking a slow, spreading rot
Leaves:
- Thin and mottled, with dark veins like dried blood beneath sallow flesh
- Edges curl inward unnaturally, as though recoiling from light
- Covered in a fine film that causes mild numbness on contact
Flowers:
- Small, bruise-purple blossoms that open with a wet, silent split
- Bloom in the still hours before dawn, typically during times of mourning or widespread illness
- Scent is musty, cloying—thick with notes of spoiled wine, damp stone, and dried herbs
- Each flower yields a black, shriveled pod containing marrow-white seeds
Folklore:
"Necro Rot Root is said to drink the grief of the dead. In some regions, it is believed to grow from the corpses of oathbreakers, traitors, or those who die with unfinished vengeance in their hearts. Gravekeepers whisper that it groans softly on stormy nights, and some swear to seeing it twitch beneath moonlight. To burn it is to invite specters. Yet, in controlled doses, death-mages and poison monks use it to numb pain, preserve the dying, or commune with the restless dead. Its petals are sometimes placed on coffins to 'bind' the spirit within."
Comments