The Squelching Maw

Roots feed on the marrow of the nameless dead.

7 roomsGrimy, mossy dungeon. Mass Gravemedium

A subterranean complex of moss-slick stone and crumbling gothic arches where the city once dumped its plague victims. The air is thick with humidity and the smell of wet earth and rot.

Constant dripping of brackish water from the ceiling, walls covered in slick, bioluminescent moss, and the rhythmic squelching of shifting piles of bone. The lighting is a dim, sickly green glow emanating from fungal patches.

☠ Threat

The Rotting Blight-Heart, a sentient, necro-fungal entity that has puppeteered the remains of the dead. It seeks to expand its root system into the sewers above to feed on the living population, using the mass grave as a concentrated source of necromantic energy. Its presence causes nearby flora to turn aggressive and the water to become toxic.

History

Originally a sanctified crypt for a forgotten sect, the Maw was converted into a mass grave during the Great Blight. As the dead piled up, an ancient subterranean fungus took hold, animated by the lingering despair and magical runoff from the city above. Now, the roots and the dead have become one inseparable entity, slowly consuming the foundations of the world above.

Encounter Table

CR
2CR
Grickx1

A worm-like scavenger with four tentacles and a hard beak, perfectly camouflaged against the stone.

1/4CR
Swarm of Blight-Ratsx2 swarms

Rats with mushroom caps growing out of their heads, driven by a hive-mind hunger.

1/2CR
Gray Oozex1

A liquid-like predator that looks identical to a puddle of dirty water.

Rumours & Whispers

1

The water in the town's east well has started tasting like wet earth and iron.

2

Beggars living in the old tunnels have gone missing, leaving only mossy footprints behind.

3

A local herbalist is offering gold for any 'glowing emerald fungus' found in the depths.

4

Strange, squelching noises can be heard beneath the cathedral floors during midnight prayer.

Quest Hooks

1
The Missing ApothecaryInvestigation

Quest giver: Lydia Elwyn

Master Elwyn went into the tunnels to find rare mold and hasn't returned. His daughter fears the worst.

Selection of potions and 200 gp

2
Purify the SourceHeroic

Quest giver: Captain of the Watch

The city's water supply is being corrupted by a fungal growth from the old mass graves. It must be destroyed.

A writ of passage and a pouch of gemstones

Corridor Notes

Corridors between Room 3 and Room 4

Large, bulbous roots hanging from the ceiling like stalactites, dripping a sticky, translucent sap.

Main junction near Room 7

A trail of rusted iron shavings and small bone fragments leading toward the Sanctum.

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