I have realized that writing, formatting and posting play reports from my campaign is not nearly as fun or interesting as running them. I’m still writing them up for the benefit of my players, so I’ll probably post them all eventually. In the meantime, I’ve been trying to think of ways to write more regularly.

            Spark tables are neat. I’ve been collecting a few off the internet, here and there. Somehow, all of this came from the prompt “germinating gorge.”

The Gorge of Akatum

            Between the Mountains of Melanaster and the Plangent Plains lies a great fissure in the earth. The nomads of the plains call it “Akatum,” the name of an ancient monster spawned by Maug, Lord of the Abyss.

            The gorge is several miles in length and runs north-northwest along the foothills of the mountains. It gradually slopes downward from its southernmost point to an eventual depth of roughly 3000 feet, and it varies in width from 500 to 2000 feet, with the widest section being in the center and narrowing at either end.

            The gorge is home to a unique, hybrid ecosystem of underworld flora and fauna. The terrain is often wet and marshy from the rainwater that flows into the gorge, and the ground is covered in pale blue moss. In some sections the moss sends up long stalks with spore pods on the end, visually similar to tall grass. There are also stands of primordial spore trees with segmented trunks and fan-like leaves in varying shades of purple and green.

Impressions

1. A thicket of purple and green spore trees, their spores falling like a gentle rain.
2. A makeshift altar of scorched human and animal bones, the remnants of an impromptu void-worshippers’ ritual.
3. An acrid stench and slithering sound emanates from a nearby talus, indicating the presence of CRABSNAKES.
4. The air is thick with long, cylindrical insects with a dozen pairs of wings.
5. The moss here is about to sporulate, the pale blue sporophytes taller than a man and as thick as tall grass.
6. A pack of SAWTUSKS feasts on the corpses of mutant outlaws.
7. A shallow creek trickling down the rocks, the mossy ground saturated with water all around.
8. A herd of mutant deer with white fur, spindly limbs, extra limbs and extra eyes.
9. Giant shards of bone-white chitin, the remains of a long-dead monstrous arthropod.
10. Dismembered corpses of a failed expedition, arranged into a trophy display by an ARMORED CORRUPTER

Questions

1. What do you hope to find within the gorge?
2. What eventually became of the monster Akatum?
3. What legends have you heard of the people who first encountered the gorge?
4. What do you think lives in this gorge that scares you the most?
5. Have you had any disturbing dreams concerning this place? What did you see?

Akatum’s Curse

The remains of an ancient monster spawned from the Abyss lines the depths of the gorge. These remains are still potent with foul, corrupting magic. It is hazardous to one’s health to remain in the gorge for a long period of time, causing you to become increasingly warped in mind and body.

Possible sources of exposure to the curse include, but are not limited to:

• When you Make Camp within the gorge.
• When you roll your Last Breath within the gorge.
• When you take damage from a gorge lion or an armored corrupter.
• When you eat the flesh of a creature of the gorge.
• When you first see the Plunge.

Any time you are exposed to the curse, roll+CON. On a 10+, nothing happens. On a 7-9, mark one corruption point. On a -6, mark two.

            When your corruption increases, and your new corruption score equals or exceeds your Wisdom score, roll+WIS. On a 10+, reduce your corruption score by 1. On a 7-9, nothing happens. On a -6, you are driven mad, and become an NPC under the GM’s control.

When your corruption increases, roll on the table below. If you roll a corruption effect you already have, roll again.

d12	Effect	d12	Effect
1	Your eyes become milk white, though you can still see.	7	Your internal organs are riddled with eyes and teeth. Reduce your Constitution score by 1d4.
2	Your hair becomes pure white.	8	Your head swells with murky fluid. Reduce your Intelligence score by 1d4.
3	Your skin becomes pure white.	9	You become unnaturally gaunt and thin. Reduce your Constitution score by 1d4, but you only need to eat and drink half as much.
4	Your fingers become abnormally long, and your nails sharp.	10	You are haunted by horrible nightmares every night. You even see horrible things when you close your eyes, or are in the dark. Reduce your Wisdom score by 1d4.
5	Your teeth grow sharp, and you gain the ability to unhinge your jaw like a snake.	11	You gain 1d4 extra arms. They are thinner and weaker than your usual arms, and cannot wield weapons, but they may be an asset for climbing, grappling, or other such tasks.
6	Your skin hardens into an exoskeleton, and your joints are segmented like an arthropod. You gain 1 natural armor.	12	You gain 2d6 extra eyes, not all of which may be on your head. You take +1 forward to Discern Realities, and can see in the dark.

Removing the Curse

            Even if the effects are purely cosmetic, players will likely want a way to remove the curse. Here are a few ideas:

Shamanic Purification Ritual – 15 coins

            Pay a shaman of the plains nomads to perform a folk-magic purification ritual. Takes one hour, and can remove 1 point of corruption per day.

Clerical Purification Ritual – 50 coins

            Travel to a cathedral with a proper font and altar, and pay an ordained priest to perform a purification ritual. Takes one hour, can remove 1d6+1 points of corruption. Can be repeated multiple times in one day.

Bath of Expurgatory Salts – 100 coins

            A skilled wizard or alchemist can concoct a particular kind of purifying salts which the afflicted may add to a hot water bath. As they scrub themselves clean, the curse will flow from them like common dirt. However, the wizard may wish to keep the bathwater to distill the curse-essence for “study.” Takes one hour, and sets a players’ corruption score to zero.

Divine Bounty

            If you harvest an intact Claw of Corruption from an Armored Corruptor, you can sacrifice it in a holy place ordained by any god inimical to Maug (which is most of them), and reduce your corruption score by 2d4 points.

    When your corruption score is reduced by any amount, by any means, select one of your corruption effects at random. If it resulted in a change to your ability scores, your ability scores return to normal after your next rest. Any cosmetic effects slowly fade over 1d6 days.

    When your corruption score is reduced to zero, all remaining corruption effects fade slowly over 1d6 days. If any resulted in a change to your ability scores, they return to normal after your next rest.

Points of Interests

Madman’s Rappel – A charted route down the side of the gorge with marked footholds and hazards, pitons driven into the rock, and fortified rest areas. A few run-down cabins at the bottom are all that is left of a long-abandoned base camp.

Poisoned Hut – This simple wooden hut was once the home of Wicked Reza, a heretical, void-worshipping witch. The hut now lies in the middle of a bog of unnatural, poisonous sludge, the residue of a failed experiment. Moans and screams echo from the hut at night, leading some to think that Reza’s ghost still haunts the area. The poison keeps would-be looters at bay, so there may yet be valuables within.

Sir Gilroy’s Grave – A renowned paladin once led an expedition into the gorge to route the Maug-worshipping cultists who lived within. They failed, and Sir Gilroy was slain along with most of his retinue. The retreating survivors barely had time to give Sir Gilroy a shallow grave, now marked with his sword and rusting armor.

Brynstan’s Hideout – Brynstan the Bandit was an infamous outlaw and highwayman who terrorized merchants and nomads on the plains for years. When the law caught up with him, he and his gang took refuge in the Gorge of Akatum, believing that their pilfered folk-magic talismans would protect them from the curse long enough for the heat to die down. This fortified camp built within a natural alcove in the wall is their hideout, now inhabited by crazed, curse-warped degenerates. Brynstan’s gang is mostly dead, but the hideout has become a haven for desperate outlaws who replenish their numbers.

The Plunge – The lowest point of the gorge is covered with a roof of stone, becoming a cave. At the very back of this cave is a smooth, straight shaft, perfectly circular and fifty feet across. The Dark Diver Cultists claim it goes all the way down past the Underworld, past Hell, and straight into the Abyss. The pit exudes a sinister magnetism, beckoning the subconscious minds of men to throw themselves in. Many of the Dark Diver Cultists do just that, as a sacrament to Maug.

Purifier’s Ruins – Ancient fort made of stone quarried straight from the gorge, very near the bottom. Once served as a home to an ancient sect of holy knights who fought the abyssal monsters that emerged from the Plunge. The stones are covered with deep gouges, as if assailed with pickaxes. Now a hideout of void-worshipping cultists.

Creatures of the Gorge

Crabsnake     3 HP    0 Armor
Horde, Small, Stealthy
Damage: Acid Spit (1d6, close, near, ignores armor)
            This loathsome creature has a thick, serpentine body longer than a man is tall, with a multi-legged crab-like structure for a head. It moves itself around with its thick tail, and clings to rocks and prey with its jointed legs. They lurk in the cracks in the walls of the gorge, and are fiercely territorial ambush predators. They spit acid both to defend themselves and to bore holes in the rocks to make their nests.
Instinct: To defend its nest
Special Qualities: Wall-climber
Moves:

• Attack without warning from a hiding spot.
• Slither into a crack in the rocks.
• Spit acid in the eyes, causing temporary blindness.

Dark Diver Cultists   6 HP    1 Armor
Group, Magical, Intelligent, Organized
Damage: Dagger (1d8, hand), Shadow Orb (1d6, close, ignores armor)
            The gorge is a sacred place to Maug, Lord of the Abyss, and Akatum is one of his most cherished offspring. These men and women have heard the siren song that tempts them to sweet annihilation, and embrace Akatum’s blessing. They seek to convert new followers to their cause, and new sacrifices to offer to the yawning maw of the Plunge. And failing that, they offer themselves, diving headlong into the Abyss in holy sacrament.
Instinct: To honor and worship Maug
Moves:

• Weave the gorge’s corruption into a spell
• Rally their fellow cultists to face a common threat
• Preach about the glory of Maug, and tempt others to annihilation

Sawtusk          6 HP    1 Armor
Group, Organized
Damage: Bite (1d8+2, close, messy)
            A pack-hunting organism originating in the strange, primordial environment of the Underworld. It looks like a strange arthropod with a long body of wide, curved segments and six spindly legs. It has multi-faceted black eyes on the end of eyestalks, and a pair of curved, tusk-like palps lined with serrated teeth. Despite their appearance, they neither spread the curse of Akatum, nor are they affected by it.
Instinct: To hunt
Special Qualities: Blindsight
Moves:

• Track prey by scent
• Summon the rest of its pack for aid with a shrill, rattling cry
• Gang up on the strongest foe

 
Gorge Lion    8 HP    0 Armor
Solitary, Small, Stealthy, Devious
Damage: Bite (1d8, close)
            These creatures are the descendants of curse-warped mountain lions, and are a common ambush predator of the gorge. They resemble a hairless mountain lion with bluish-gray skin, covered in a crazed web of bulging dark varicose veins. The contrast between the dark veins and lighter skin serves as natural camouflage, like a tiger’s stripes. These predators are particularly feared, not just because of the physical danger, but because their fangs bear the curse.
Instinct: To stalk its prey
Moves:

• Blend into its environment
• Move silently to stalk its prey
• Expose its prey to the Curse of Akatum with its bite

 
Corrupted Outlaws   3 HP    2 Armor
Horde, Intelligent, Organized, Hoarder
Damage: Spear (1d6, reach)
            Fear of the curse keeps all sensible people well away from the gorge. Desperate outlaws have long used this to their advantage, hiding where the law dares not follow. The curse has warped their minds and bodies. The new ones accept it as the cost of doing business. The older ones have long lost any sense of anything wrong, along with their humanity and desire to return to society.
Instinct: To steal
Moves:

• Demand tribute
• Perform a suicidal charge
• Flee, then return in greater numbers

 

Armored Corrupter  14 HP  4 Armor
Solitary, Divine, Hoarder
Damage: Claws (b[2d10]+2, close, messy), Tar Spit (1d6, ignores armor, near)
            The terrifying spawn of Akatum disgorged from the bowels of the abyss, the armored corrupter resembles a benthic isopod if were larger than a man and walked upright. It has a thick gray exoskeleton, tiny black eyes glittering with malice, and an ostensibly random assortment of barbed, segmented limbs, some of which are tipped with vicious, hooked claws. It doesn’t even need to eat; it kills prey for sheer pleasure and arranges their corpses in grotesque displays. It cements shiny trinkets from its prey to its exoskeleton with the thick black tar it spits, and it spreads the corruption to all it touches.
Instinct: To kill and corrupt
Moves:

• Inflict the curse through its attacks
• Rip its prey limb from limb
• Immobilize its prey with its many grasping limbs

Treasures of the Gorge

      

      Shamanic Anti-Curse
(50 coins, 1 weight)
            This crude clay pot is adorned with polished stones, feathers, and animal bones. It is consecrated with the shamanic magic of the nomads of the Plangent Plains to absorb the power of Akatum’s curse. Whenever your corruption score would increase, roll 1d6. On a 1-5, you take no corruption. On a 6, you take no corruption, but the vessel shatters, spilling black sludge.
 
Gorge Lion Fangs
            These are the fangs of the mutated mountain lions that live in the gorge. They can be attached to an arrowhead, manually inserted into a targets flesh, or ground into a powder and ingested. This exposes the victim to Akatum’s Curse.
 
God-Chitin Armor
(3 armor, worn, clumsy, 3 weight)
            This suit of armor is made from the pale chitin of some monstrous arthropod. Whenever you put it on, you are exposed to the curse. However, you are immune to the curse as long as you wear it, and no subsequent exposure can increase your corruption score.
 
Darkdream Spores
            A bag of spores collected from a certain underworld moss. When you inhale the darkdream spores and then go to sleep, roll+WIS. On a 10+, ask one question from the list below. On a 7-9, ask a question, but also increase your corruption score by 1. On a -6, increase your corruption score by 1, and you gain no useful information.

• What is the most likely thing to kill me in the near future?
• What is the worst thing that is likely to happen to me in the near future?
• What is my enemy’s darkest secret?
• Where is the nearest holy place/worshipper of Maug?

 
Blood Magic Ring
            This ring is carved from chitin, and has a tiny barb on the inside which pierces the skin. Whenever you cast a spell while wearing this ring (or spell-like ability, per the GM’s discretion), you may choose to sacrifice 1d4 hit points. You may re-roll the relevant check, or re-roll the damage dealt/healed, and take the better result. You can choose to use this before or after making the roll.
 
Claw of Corruption
(hand, +2 piercing, 1 weight)
            A chitinous, hooked claw harvested from an armored corruptor, suitably intact to use as a weapon. Alternatively, it can be sacrificed on a consecrated altar to show your deity that you have vanquished a beast of Maug. The claw is lost, but you reduce your corruption score by 2d4.