Shatterstone Maw
The earth itself hungers for the warmth of the living.
Shatterstone Maw is a jagged network of limestone caverns filled with bioluminescent fungi and the constant sound of grinding stone. Thick veins of quartz run through the walls, glowing with a faint, unsettling amber light.
The air is cold and smells of wet slate and ozone. Distant grinding noises echo through the halls, and the only light comes from patches of glowing amber moss.
☠ Threat
The Shard-Heart, a massive, crystalline earth elemental, dwells in the deepest chamber. Its presence causes localized tremors and animates the very stone of the cave to defend its territory from intruders.
History
Once a site of pilgrimage for the Lithos Circle druids, the caves were corrupted a century ago when a rogue acolyte attempted to bind an earth elemental. The ritual failed, shattering the druids and leaving the caves inhabited by the elemental's fractured essence and the scavengers that follow it.
Encounter Table
CRA massive arachnid that drops from the ceiling to cocoon its prey.
Bat-like mosquitos that seek to drain the blood of the living.
A humanoid shape made of shifting gravel and sharp flint.
Rumours & Whispers
Miners say the walls of Shatterstone Maw bleed gold if you strike them in the right spot.
Old Man Hobb claims he heard the stones themselves screaming during the last full moon.
A group of druids went into the cave forty years ago and never came out.
They say a giant crystal heart controls the tremors that shake the nearby village.
Quest Hooks
Quest giver: Elara the Blacksmith
A local miner went into the Maw looking for the gilded vein and hasn't returned.
100 gp and a masterwork tool.
Quest giver: Mayor Thorne
The tremors from the cave are threatening to collapse the town's well; the source must be destroyed.
A plot of land near the river.
Quest giver: Archdruid Glyn
A modern druid circle wants the ceremonial sickle recovered from the old vestry.
Three Potions of Greater Healing.
Corridor Notes
Patches of bioluminescent moss that dim when approached.
Narrow crawlspaces where characters must move single file.
A small underground stream that tastes metallic and cold.
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