The temple of the Earth Mother is one of many temples to the seven Primer Gods that can be found across the eastern hill of Bliss within the great city of Alran Aethel. It is from here that much of the relief efforts are being staged for those refugees who have now begun to flock into the poor districts of Bliss in the thousands. It is here that dozens of priests and clerics work tirelessly to stave off the growing plague that has begun to spread within the hill of Bliss which has now been quarantined by the city watch. But for as many as these priests heal it feels that at least a hundred more sick and dying peasants appear to take their place, some have begun to wonder if the plague is simply the wrath of the gods, sent down to punish the Duchy for their past sins against humanity. To make matters worse, across the three hills there have been growing reports of missing persons, the city watch has tried to keep things quiet as to not ignite a panic, but many people have begun to think that it is truly the end times and that the gods have fully abandoned the Duchy.
City Sewers
Descending down the stairs from the alleyway, you will be met with a rather well-lit chamber. The room is massive and has dozens of branching passageways and outlets to allow for the efficient and safe flow of water throughout the city's sewer system. This cistern is one of many throughout the city and is often used by the many temples as places to transport the disgraced dead into the underground catacombs. This specific cistern has been retrofitted to house various bulk items for the Temple of The Earth Mother, tables and boxes a scattered across the chamber and are attended to by several temple acolytes and priests. At the far end of the chamber is a wall that has twin stone doors adorned with skull and plant life engravings. The doors are not locked, but the right one is trapped with a deadly magic trap, it is a DC 18 wisdom saving throw and deals 10d10 necrotic damage on a failed save or half the damage on a successful save.
Elven Catacombs
The left door opens to a small entry chamber that extends out to a small hallway. The hall connects to two additional halls that move further to the left. Down the hall that stretches before you, is a closed door with small amounts of light coming from the other side, peaking out underneath the door's lip. The first hallway begins as a wide hallway before shrinking down to a narrow passage that leads into the main burial chambers and catacombs for the temple above. The passage is flanked by four chambers, the walls of which are lined with burial nooks and constructed of hardened mud and skulls. At the center of each chamber is a large coffin that is ornately carved with a strange figure unique to each one. At the far end of the passage is a set of dark stairs that delve down into the cold darkness below.
The furthest hallway starts with a small connecting chamber door to its left, the chambers is blocked by a closed stone door, but the light emanating from the bottom of the door indicates something beyond the door. The door is locked with a DC 13 lock, opening it will trigger a loud latching sound that will alert anything inside the chamber. The chamber is a small room that appears to be used for the embalming of bodies before burial or internment into the catacombs, bodies and coffins line the left most wall while a long table rests along the flanking wall of the chamber, a bloodied body resting upon it roughly halfway through the embalming process. A single figure resides in the room and is facing you as you come in, he quickly pushes something that looks like a warped pinecone into the chest of the corpse which makes it begin to writhe and spasm to life.
At the far end of the last hall is a stone door on the right wall that leads to another chamber, the door is unlocked and the room beyond is a subterranean well house used for collecting water for the embalming process and for the creation of holy water to bless the bodies before internment. Three buttons mark the walls halfway down the hall, two of these buttons trigger a trap which releases a ward of lethargy upon the party, it is a DC 15 wisdom saving throw and failing it will give the party one level of exhaustion. The last button opens the secret door that leads to the burial chamber of a forgotten elven noble, the lost sister of the late duchess of the kingdom. The chamber is unlit and appears to have not been touched for at least half a Milenia, though two censers of incense still burn gently within the room, giving it a noticeably pleasant smell.
Elven Catacombs Lower Crypts
The stairs lead down to a large tunnel system that has many grave nooks and chambers that are filled with bones and mass graves. In the center is a narrow passageway that leads to an urn housing space.
City Aqueducts Entry Way
The right door leads to a small entry chamber that itself leads to a large room that is empty save for the massive statue that lies at the direct center of it. The statue depicts a tall woman cloaked in a hooded robe that billows down to her feet, clutched in the figures hand is a massive stone staff that is topped with a ruby orb roughly the size of a loaf of bread. Behind the statue is another that is inlaid with the far wall of the chamber, it is the image of a man wearing a crown and adorned in fine clothes outstretching his hand as if to offer something to the woman, or to receive something from her. The chamber is lit by several torch sconces which illuminate several doors and hallways on either side of the chamber. The two nearest hallways at the bottom of the chamber mirror each other and each lead to wooden doors that are unlocked and lead to the living quarters of the cultists. The two furthest doors of the chamber differ from one another, the left most door is made of stone and is locked with a DC 14 lock, which opens to a small chamber which is the living quarters for the higher-ranking members of the cult. The rightmost door leads to the dining area for the cultists.
The statue at the far end of the chamber is concealing a hidden door, to open the door the players must move down the orb atop the central statue's staff and place it within the outstretched hand of the statue upon the wall. The orb can also be placed into a small nook on the left wall of the chamber, which will open a secret treasure room within the higher-ranking quarters. Once the party removes the orb from the central statue, they will have roughly 1 minute to place it into either alcove before they are hut with a lethal trap. Arks of lightning emit from the empty staff of the central statue and hit all players and NPCs within the chamber, all affected targets must make a DC 15 dexterity saving throw or take 10d10 lightning damage. Once the orb is within the statue's grasp the secret door will be revealed and the party will be able to press onward into the final areas of the dungeon.
City Aqueducts
The secret door opens to another small entry way that itself leads to a massive chamber that smells of fresh water, and moldy plant life. The air in this chamber is thick with pollen and humidity, as the heat of the subterranean catacombs merges with the abundance of plant life and root systems that stretch across the entirety of the chamber. There is no light within this chamber, save for the dim glow of the root systems that break through the cracks of the chamber walls. The chamber is massive and largely empty, the only noticeable markings of it are the six pillars that hold up the roof some 60 feet overhead, and the five great pools that swirl and churn with the life water of the city. The pools are fed by large pipes that spew fresh water from the subterranean aqueducts that filter the water from the sewer system, in this room the water goes through its final filtration and then is slowly drained below into an unknown area deeper underground. Large roots crack through the floor, ceiling and walls of the chamber, and absorb the water as it come pouring out from the pipes, and as it does it leaves a strange green film within the water that is then drained with the water down below.
The Encounter
Inside the chamber is a Fungal Abomination, four fungal zombies, and two cultist fanatics. They will immediately begin to attack the party once they notice them within the room. Once the Abomination gets down to its last few attacks it will use both its mauls to slam into the ground beneath it and collapse the floor, dragging it and the party down into a dark abyss. It is an 80-foot drop from the floor of the aqueduct chamber to the floor of the chamber below, a DC 16 dexterity saving throw will have to be made to limit the amount of damage taken by the party from the fall. The fall and subsequent debris will kill the straggling enemies from the previous encounter, including the abomination.
The Blight Heart
The chamber that the party finds themselves in has no light, save for the dull green glow of a massive form in the furthest shadows of the chamber. The form appears like a mass of tissue, fibers and vines, large sacks protrude from tightly woven sinew that stretch across the surface of the mass like vile green webbing. Taking in the full scope of the mass it appears like a massive, deformed glowing heart that is imbedded into the walls of the chamber. The air within the chamber is still and musty, and a foul stench is carried upon it and envelops the party like a choking cloud. The chamber is filled with a silence, that is only periodically interrupted by the beating of the heart, and with each beat the party can't help but grow more and more unnerved by the mere presence of it. A figure stands before the great heart, it will quickly turn to face the party which will make the heartbeat faster, the figure will yell and scream in agony as two abominations form from the growths within the walls and charge forth toward the party.
The Encounter
The Heart has its own unique stat block and can only attack through legendary actions and lair actions. The figure will appear almost corpse like and have great vines and barbs protruding from its head that connects it like a morbid puppet to the heart, giving it the ability to use the legendary actions of the heart. If the figure dies before the heart, then the tendrils will lash out and attempt to find another host.
Treasure
800cp, 6,000sp, 2,000gp, 100pp.
5 (25gp) art objects, +1 shield, Eversmoking Bottle
These treasures can be found across the dungeon in various chests and secret areas.
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