Howl of the Buried Regent
This necromantic haunting lashes the air with a keening death-song that gives motion to the dead sand around the sarcophagus. The spirit does not merely attack intruders. It defends its burial secrecy, raising zombies from every drift and pushing the living toward the hidden chamber where the true remains rest. Until the anchor is found and destroyed, the howl renews itself with each breath of wind.
Howl of the Buried Regent
Defenses
Detection
“A cracked sarcophagus lies half-buried beneath drifts of pale desert sand, ringed by toppled funerary pillars and blackened incense bowls. When the wind stills, a mournful shape gathers above it: a translucent priest or queen in ragged wrappings, mouth stretched in an endless howl. Each cry stirs the sand into graves, and desiccated hands claw upward as zombies drag themselves free.”
Standard Engagement
A living creature opens the sarcophagus, disturbs the sand around it, or speaks a burial oath incorrectly within the chamber.
On its initiative, the haunting emits a death howl and raises sand-born zombies. If no living creature is in the temple chamber, the spirit instead drifts toward the secret room, leaving a trail of cold wind and disturbed sand that can guide determined explorers to the anchor. While the remains remain intact, the haunt continues to use its routine even if reduced to 0 Hit Points, reforming at the start of its next turn unless the hidden remains are destroyed.
The haunting resets 10 minutes after it is disabled, unless the hidden remains are destroyed. If the remains are destroyed, the hazard is ended permanently.
Each round on its initiative, the spirit howls. All living creatures in a 30-foot emanation must attempt a DC 28 Will save. On a failure, a creature is frightened 1 and takes 3d6 negative damage. On a critical failure, it is frightened 2, takes 5d6 negative damage, and is pushed 10 feet directly away from the sarcophagus if possible.
After the howl resolves, two sand-choked zombies heave themselves from adjacent sand drifts or burial debris, appearing in spaces the GM chooses within 20 feet of the sarcophagus. They act on the haunt's initiative and use simple zombie statistics appropriate to a level 9 encounter, with their number reduced to one if the hazard has taken half its Hit Points or fewer.
A creature damaged by the howl or a zombie's clawing sand is entangled by clinging burial grit until the end of its next turn. A successful Acrobatics or Athletics check to Escape against DC 28 removes the effect.
If a character spends an exploration turn hunting for the secret room, the GM can allow a Survival, Society, or Perception check to notice clues in the temple's layout. On a success, the character identifies the most likely wall, floor, or passage leading to the hidden chamber. On a critical success, the group also learns that the spirit's howl points toward the anchor rather than away from it.
Destroying the remains in the secret room immediately ends the haunting and prevents any further zombie manifestations from this hazard. If the party reaches the room before fully disabling the haunt, the spirit becomes desperate, gaining a +2 circumstance bonus to its save DCs until the end of the next round.
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