Terrors From the Undersea: The Church of Blue Rot

Murgen's deal with **Mafera** the town blacksmith continues swimmingly (ha, get it? cuz its an oceanic
campaign) while Imara continues doing odd jobs for the elderly among town. Murgen also makes the acquaintance of **Krag**, the town's gravedigger and loremaster, as he needed help with a book's translation. Krag agreed to call in a favor to get a copy of this book on rock gnome style firearm development in common if Murgen or his group could do a **favor** for him. Murgen agreed to look into the matter.

A couple weeks go by when several of the dwarven miners in town approach Murgen and Imara asking your group to look into the increase in waterlogged zombies coming out of the mines. You grabbed your old friend Alvok and your newer friend Kukana and went to the mine HQ. You met with councilwoman **Manistrad** **Copperlocks** who got right down to business stating that she believed their to be some sort of rift into the Undersea causing these undead to stumble into the mines, so far they haven't lost anybody but one of the miners said they saw one of the dead having **barnacles** growing from their body. She promised each of you 250 gp or your choice of a magical gem pulled from the mines in return for finding the source of the undead and destroying it with a **special** **explosive**, immune to fire, but set off with the slightest amount of radiant damage.

You set off for the mines, walking through the dark tunnels beneath the earth you encountered an elemental creature called a **Xorn** creatures who hunger after metal, especially gems, gold, and silver. This creature, burrowing up from the earth, attracted to the scent of your metal began to salivate as it slid over to you. Murgen, acting quickly, grabbed 3 pieces of gold and shouted "You want it? Go get it!" throwing the money in the opposite direction. The party ran as the Xorn hastily rushed over
to the money, slobbering it down with glee.

Continuing, you eventually noticed a collapsed section of wall trapping a corpse. Kukana, opening up her senses with the eyes of the grave examined the figure who she remarked was previously undead. Imara, using her divine sense was guided towards cracks in the ceiling where she was able to warn the party of skeletons preparing to lay an ambush. They clung from the ceiling dripping salt water and lunging with long claws but you easily felled them. When you cleared the rubble away you came upon a tunnel that was filled with the loud, repetitive rushing of a tidal current. You moved forward clearing the zombies in the tunnel and waded into the dark, cold water, or in the case of Alvok, rode on the shoulders of Imara.

You found the center of the room where the water rushed from and drinking your vials of water breathing descended into the breach, navigating the narrow walls and sharp rocks. When you reached the bottom several undead, wielding rusty blades lurched at you with a speed and ferocity unheard of. They were guarding a smooth black alter and ushering in undead who drifted into the chamber through a crack in the wall. These three were coated in thick blue barnacles and as they attacked with rusty blades, Kukana and Murgen contracted the disease **Blue Rot**, while Imara was immune and Alvok got lucky. You killed the drowned blades and read the inscription on the alter which twisted in several tongues. Imara noticed that it was in celestial, and Kukana noticed that as well as its inscription was also in infernal. The words dedicated this alter and area of desecration to the **Church of the Blue Rot**. The alter described the disease as one that infects the body with large boils that look like barnacles, they give the victim intense pain when in sunlight as well as the ability to and desire to breath underwater. Eventually the boils burst and spread and eventually take over the body entirely. When that happens the creature rises as a drowned one, a being telepathically linked to its new kin driven forward by a desire to spread its affliction.

When you made your way back to town Murgen and Kukana succumbed to the blue rot as the boils eroded their bodies and minds. Eventually the two could not go on as marching along the road brought on pure agony, so the party pulled off into the shade. Sending Alvok ahead to go get help from Wolfgang, Imara struggled to keep them lucid and patched up. Murgen attempted to treat Kukana at Imara's behest hallucinated phantom wounds and began happily bandaging her uninjured leg while Kukana hummed to herself, happy to be in the shade. The disease continued progressing as Wolfgang, riding Yams found the trio. He began applying disinfectants and salves to ease the pain while he waited for Olhana and Alvok to search for the herbs he needed.

Olhana made her way the fastest as she burst out of the underbrush carrying a bundle of herbs, he chest heaving with hard breaths. Wolfgang crushed the herbs in a mortar and pestle and combined them with a fluid contained in the barrel around Yams's neck. After making sure Kukana and Murgen drank every drop the two quickly began to recover.

After a night of recuperating you went back to the office of Manistrad for your reward. Imara taking a **pearl of power** and Murgen taking the large sum of money.