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Soundtrack for areas 31-36

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Overview

Previous: Areas 1-6, Areas 7-12, Areas 13-18, Areas 19-24, Areas 25-30

31. The Canopic Maze

This confusing series of chambers is linked together in ways that defy the conventional laws of physics. Each contains one or more of the canopic jars of Zothotep, gigantic urns sloshing with ancient alchemical reagents and the organs of the Hyperlich. The walls are adorned with hieroglyphs in an unknown tongue.

• The Fodder Clan use the Canopic Maze as a pantry; there is a 10% chance in each chamber of encountering 2d4 goblins with a bone ladder and spears fishing organs out of the canopic jars.

• Each chamber has six exits. If one departs from one “wall” of the maze, one ends up at the other side: so, for example, if one exits the southwest door in 31B, one would emerge at the northeast door in 31F. The exceptions are certain doors in chambers A, H, and F.

• The hieroglyphs on the wall are in Cinis, language of the Abject Imperium. If translated, they reveal themselves to be a series of a titles – Pharoah of the Lightless Sun, King of the Orchidaceous Realm, Archon of the Medusoid Throne, Grand Vizier of the Lunar Caliphate, Patriarch of Yawgmar, Witch-Pope of the Seventh World, and countless more. These are the many titles held by Zothotep during his long unlife.

• An Intelligence check confirms the identity of the various esoteric Unspeakable Ones whose images are borne by the canopic jars.

• Each jar is also labelled in Cinis, identifying the organ held within.

• The organs within endlessly regenerate themselves so long as the phylactery in area 34 is intact. If the contents are consumed, the jar will “refill” over the course of 24 hours.

• If the jars are broken, a consumed or destroyed organ regrows inside the Hyperlich instead.

• Samples of the Hyperlich’s organs (and his flesh from chamber 36) might be very valuable to the Académie Macabre or to Fiend’s College. Each decently sized unique sample (2 encumbrance) yields 200 guineas, another 50 gp for duplicate samples.

• If the Fodder Clan become aware of intruders, a hunting party of 8 goblins begins stalking the party through the Canopic Maze, performing hit-and-run attacks, laying ambushes, and generally making the lives of those in the Maze miserable.

• Consuming any of the organs requires a Constitution save to avoid gaining Corruption equal to the amount by which you failed (20 on a critical failure). Corruption has effects as tracked below. Fodder Clan Goblins have advantage on this save. Corruption reduces at a rate of 1 per day, reducing at double the rate for Fodder Clan Goblins. Detoxify reduces it by 1d12 and Heal Disease by 1d20. Eating a proper meal (and keeping it down) reduces it by 1d10 and drinking Holy Water reduces it by 1d4. As with Radiation (see area 4), these effects are cumulative.

Corruption Level	Symptoms
1-5	Your stomach roils as abreal matter is incorporated into your body. You have trouble digesting regular food and must pass a Constitution save to do so; on a failure, you vomit up the meal. Strange, vermiform things squirm in your sick, flickering in and out of reality.
6-10	Your queasiness intensifies as your body tries to reject foreign contaminants. At this stage, your Constitution is lowered by 2. You regain this Constitution if your Corruption drops below 6 or rises above 50.
11-15	You are ravenous, your body crying out for calories and protein as your cells quicken with unwholesome energies, something squirming beneath the surface of your skin, struggling to transform you, to remake your flesh in its vile image. You must eat double the normal amount to keep from starving. This does not make eating non-corrupt food any easier.
16-20	Eldritch fluids flow through your veins, replacing your blood. Terrestrial poisons no longer afflict your body in the same way. You have advantage on saves against poison, though this does not extend to Corruption effects.
21-25	Your flesh creeps and shudders with strange growths. You develop a mutation – roll on the mutation table (see area 27). This mutation atrophies if your Corruption drops below 21, either absorbed by your body or desiccating and falling off.
26-30	Your body craves this alien uncleanliness now, addicted to the uncanny substances your glands are secreting. If you lose Corruption, you suffer from violent withdrawal, losing 1 Hit Point for every point your Corruption drops below 26. Only if your Corruption drops to 0 does this effect dissipate.
31-35	Your skin is constantly itching, flaking. It is being replaced. Your mutation has become permanent. Even if your Corruption lowers below 21, the mutation lingers unless removed through magic or extensive surgery.
36-40	Your bones ache. They are growing, rearranging according to some grotesque design beyond your fathoming. Your Hit Point maximum is reduced by 1 per HD until your Corruption passes 50. You develop a second mutation. Re-roll duplicates. Your body loses this mutation if your Corruption falls below 36.
41-45	You can feel your organs shifting, rearranging themselves. They burble and groan, as if speaking in alien voices. The threshold for your Corruption withdrawal rises to 41. Saves made to keep down normal food now have disadvantage.
46-50	You are coughing up blood an unsettling amount. Your Constitution lowers another 2 points and can only be regained if your Corruption drops below 6 or rises above 50.  Your second mutation is now permanent. Even if your Corruption lowers below 36, the mutation lingers unless removed through magic or extensive surgery.
51-55	Most of your body is now an alien thing. You no longer recognize yourself in the mirror; the face that gazes is something other – something monstrous and unclean. You regain your lost Constitution and indeed gain an additional 2 points of Constitution. You lose 2 points of Charisma.
56-60	The changes are becoming more extreme. Whatever you were before, you are something very different now. You gain 1 Hit Point per Hit Die. You develop a third mutation. Re-roll duplicates. Your body loses this mutation if your Corruption falls below 56.
61-65	You are becoming something wondrous and beautiful. Something was latent in your ever-changing tissues, something that yearns to be reborn. The threshold for your Corruption withdrawal rises to 61. You have resistance to mind-influencing effects, gaining advantage on saves against them.
66-70	Your muscles and bones flow like molten wax. Your third mutation is now permanent. Even if your Corruption lowers below 56, the mutation lingers unless removed through magic or extensive surgery. Regular food no longer reduces your Corruption.
71-75	The thing growing inside you is very voracious, insatiable. You develop a fourth mutation. Re-roll duplicates. Your body loses this mutation if your Corruption falls below 71. You must eat triple the normal amount of food to avoid starvation.
76-80	You are being eaten from the inside out. You must feed the creature you are becoming. The threshold for your Corruption withdrawal rises to 71. You no longer lose Corruption naturally over time.
81-85	You will never be the same; you have been altered, irreparably, fundamentally. Some might look on you and flinch, look away, but when you peer at your warped form, your remade eyes see something enthralling. Your fourth mutation is now permanent. Even if your Corruption lowers below 71, the mutation lingers unless removed through magic or extensive surgery. Detoxify no longer lowers your Corruption.
86-90	The changes are happening much faster now. You develop 1d4 additional mutations. Re-roll duplicates. These mutations do not disappear even if your Corruption falls. Holy water no longer lowers your Corruption.
91-95	Nothing can stop this. There is no turning back. The threshold for your Corruption withdrawal rises to 91. Every 24 hours, roll an additional 1d4 mutations until you possess all available mutations.
96-100	You have succumbed to Fleshflux, your body becoming a twisted, ever-shifting protoplasm of semi-liquid biomatter (see area 31D). Your mind is filled with seething appetite, reorganizing into a furious swirl of animal urges and the insatiable desire to consume more flesh. Unless your Corruption is lowered over the next hour, this effect becomes permanent. Only divine intervention or powerful magic can restore your previous form.

31A. Cirrus

The lid of a huge jar is topped with a sculpture of a lamprey maw surrounding by squirming tendrils.

• The deity depicted is the Thousand-Suckered-One, god of change and adaptation, whose enormous temple looms large amongst Hex’s various basilica and cathedrals far above.

• Inside the jar, the curious, tentacular tongue of the Hyperlich twitches as if remembering the taste of ancient spells. Anyone who consumes the Cirrus gains 2 Charisma and gains facility with Aklo, Deadspeech, Diabolic, Deadspeech, and Lacunal for 24 hours.

31B. Metagigarium

The huge jar in this room is topped with a figure resembling a mass of folded, membranous wings.

• The jar containing the Metagigarium bears the image of the Star-Eater, a predatory Unspeakable One said to consumes whole galaxies, a deity of consumption and appetite.

• The metagigarium is an endlessly twisting knot of tissue, a gizzard like an optical puzzle made flesh. Anyone who consumes it gains the ability to eat any other substance, organic or otherwise, and find nourishment in it, for 24 hours. They become immune to ingested poisons for this time. This grants advantage on Constitution saves to keep a meal down.

31C. Apeiroviscera

Two large canopic jars have been placed in this chamber instead of one. One bears the semblance of a twisting worm, the other a bizarre tangle of jagged polyhedral shapes.

• The jar containing the apeiroviscera is topped with the semblance of the Pallid Worm, known also in Hex as Mordiggia, the Charnel Goddess, a deity of entropy, decay, and death.

• The entrails of the Hyperlich loop back on themselves endlessly and can be infinitely unspooled. Eating a meal’s worth of the apeiroviscera feeds the eater for three days.

• The jar containing mazelungs – moved from area 31D – bears a representation of the Cachinnation, an esoteric god of madness and impossibility, which some theologians hold is an avatar of the Antinomian.

• The ludicrously intricate mazelungs of the Hyperlich flutter and gasp if removed from their suffocating jar. They respirate not merely oxygen but a range of other energies and substances. If consumed, the mazelungs allow the eater to breathe in a vacuum, converting nebulous dark energies into fuel in a fashion analogous to oxygen. This ability persists for 24 hours.

31D. Mazelungs

The doors to this chamber are closed and sealed with sigils drawn in blood. These wards constitute a Wizard Lock inscribed by one of Greybreath’s predecessors. The shaman knows the passcode – a High Goblin phrase meaning “Bless the Unfortunate Ones.” She comes by and feeds the creature within once a week.

There is a sound of wrenching bones, of tearing flesh, of gashing teeth. The stench of skin gone bad, a cancerous reek. Shapes flutter. Something lurches towards you, scuttling on many legs, some hoofed, some clawed. A mass of appendages clutches the air, melts into bubbling flesh, reforms as a mass of tentacles. Mouths open and close like bubbles in liquid. The thing that mewls and cries and groans and lashes the air with its manifold appendages should not be, could not be. It cries out with an insatiable hunger.

• This is the result of a goblin who has succumbed to Fleshflux. When other goblins become too physically unstable due to rampant mutation, they are brought to this room, to be eaten by the creature – though, rarely, such a sacrifice has triumphed, killing and eating the horror within and so becoming the chamber’s new occupant.

• This chamber once held the mazelungs, now kept in 31C.

• If released, the Unfortunate One attacks the nearest creature, fleeing only if badly outnumbered and injured. It will rampage through the Canopic Maze and the rest of the Apocalypse Archive devouring all it comes across.
  
  Unfortunate One, 6 HD (30 Hit Points), Armour 1d4, 2d4 Grasping Appendages (Str, 1d8 + 1d8 Corruption), Speed 30 ft., Infravision 120 ft., Str 16, Dex 8, Con 18, Int 6, Wis 12, Cha 8.
  • Big: The Unfortunate One has a 10-foot reach.
  • Devour: If the Unfortunate One consumes a corpse, it gains Hit Dice and Hit Points equivalent to those of its victim. For every 3 Hit Dice it adds to its own, it gains another 1d4 attacks per round.
  • Ever-Changing: The Unfortunate One is immune to any magic that seeks to change its shape.
  • Regenerating: The Unfortunate One heals 1d6 Hit Points every round unless damaged by holy water.

31E. Pseudohearts

The jar here is topped with sculptures of strange, tumorous, protoplasmic forms. There is an occasional rhythmic thud from within.

• The deity depicted is the Progenitrix, sometimes nicknamed the Polypous Princess or Allmother in Hex, a deity of primal fecundity who, according to the myths of the Elder Species, produced all life throughout the multiverse, an act of tremendous beneficence and ultimate cruelty.

• Zothotep did not have a true heart, but rather thirteen pseudohearts, similar to a worm’s, distributed through his torso. These gnarled organs still beat in their canopic jar every few seconds. Each is about three times the size of a human heart. Anyone who eats one of the pseudohearts heals all current Hit Points and replenishes all spent Hit Dice. If they have a serious injury, that injury is healed.

31F. Ichor Nodes

The canopic jar in this chamber is topped by a sculpture of a monstrous, vaguely leech-like creature.

• The figure represented is the Unslakable Thirst, also known as the White Leech, said to be twin to the Star-Eater, one of the spawn of the Thousand-Suckered-One. It is rumoured to be the mate of the Titan Nyx, and to be the Father of All Vampires (though the brood of proto-vampiric specimens on Level Five of the Apocalypse Archive might contradict this myth). The Unslakable Thirst is a god of desire, instinct, and parasitism.

• Six pulsating orb-like structures convey eldritch fluid throughout Zothotep’s body, with one at this neck, four at his armpits, one at his groin. Eating an ichor node increases the Strength of the eater by 1 for 1 hour.

31G. Acroamatic Gland

A bizarre, spiralling design adorns the top of this jar.

• The deity depicted is the Endless Spiral, a deity of obsession and infinity.

• The bizarre spiralling organ in the jar belongs at the base of Zothotep’s skull. Consuming the acroamatic gland imparts a rush of esoteric knowledge. The Intelligence of the eater increases by 2 for 24 hours and grants advantage on Intelligence checks to keep spells from fading from memory. All spent spell slots expended are immediately replenished, spells returning to the mind of the caster. However, if the Constitution save against Corruption was failed, the eater suffers from a severe headache and disorientation, temporarily losing 2 points of Wisdom for 24 hours.

31H. Astral Eye

The jar in this room is topped with an inhuman, eyeless visage.

• The deity represented is the Eyeless Watcher, a supposedly omniscient being whose knowledge of the multiverse, past and present is absolute and total, allowing it to perceive all actions past and present. Its followers are typically profound fatalists.

• The astral eye is a curious blob of grey matter that occasionally flickers in and out of phase with this reality. It belongs in the deepest part of Zothotep’s brain. Consuming the astral eye increases the Wisdom of the eater by 2 for 24 hours and function as per the spell Ghostsight, allowing them to peer into layers of reality beyond those normally perceived. The next time they dream, the eater finds themselves in a disembodied state as per the spell Subtle Body, tethered to their body by a silver cord and capable of traveling to the Astral Void between planes, or to other planes of existence, shifting planes using a Wisdom check.

31I. Noculi

The jar in this room is topped with a faceless visage swathed in a fleshy cowl.

• The god depicted on the lid is the First Darkness (see area 10 for details on this Unspeakable One).

• The nine noculi are huge, jet-black eyeballs, each the size of an ogre’s head. They roll to and fro in the canopic jar. Eating one of the noculi grants a creature Infravision for 60 feet or extends existing Infravision for 60 feet. Then creature gains sunlight sensitivity, however, rolling with disadvantage on attack and defense rolls and on Wisdom checks in direct sunlight. If it already had sunlight sensitivity, it becomes more acute, direct sunlight leaving a creature completely blinded.

31J. Triencephelon Lobes

A tentacled, brain-like entity is depicted on the lid of this jar.

• This Unspeakable One is the Eldest Mind, a being of pure thought, perhaps the totality of thought itself, said to have come into being as the universe became conscious of itself.

• The gigantic organ equivalent to Zothotep’s brain is contained here. It brims with spells, synapses crackling with eldritch energy. Anyone who eats any of the triencephelon lobes has disadvantage on the usual save against Corruption and accrues double the Corruption they normally would on a failure. They temporarily gain one the spells Zothotep has memorized (see area 36 – roll 1d10 to determine). Spellcasters can attempt to copy this spell into a codex, grimoire, or spellbook with an ability check using their spellcasting ability, rolling with disadvantage since they do not have a written copy. In addition, they absorb a small amount of Zothotep’s consciousness.

• Anyone who absorbs a fragment of the Hyperlich’s mind will find that Zothotep begins speaking to them, urging them to revive him and promising lavish rewards. The Hyperlich proposes to make the character one of his disciples, an archwizard of incomparable power and eventually a lich in their own right. They will be given governorship over this world, dominion over all those within it, provided they swear fealty to the Hyperlich. Their wildest imaginings will be made a reality.

32. Throne Room

A gigantic throne fills most of this chamber, fashioned of glass or stone blacker than the emptiness between the stars.

• Strange, abstract shapes dance inside the reflections within the Throne of Zothotep, as if something were trapped inside.

• Climbing to the Throne requires a Strength check with disadvantage. The throne cannot be penetrated by pitons, and indeed is virtually indestructible save through powerful magic.

• If a solitary creature is seated on the Throne, they are capable of issuing commands as per the spell Edict. Those resisting the effects save with disadvantage.

• Moving the Throne of Zothotep would require magic to shrink it and transport it; it is currently Gigantic. However, it would be worth in the region of 10,000 guineas to buyers like Master Melchior’s School of Thaumaturgy & Enchantment, the Temple of the Thousand-Suckered-One, the Order of St. Monstrum, and a handful of others.

33. Treasury

This chamber is filled with an eclectic assemblage of objects – the grave goods of Zothotep. These include:

• Shabti Golems: These six carven figures are each the size of an ogre, hewn from what looks like black bone. They evince a variety of grotesque forms, each a monstrous amalgam of appendages, tendrils, mouths, and eyes. They shift in shape when no one is looking at them. Should any of the grave goods be touched, the Shabti Golems animate to attack the thief. The Shabti Golems always know the location of the grave goods and will pursue thieves unerringly, returning all stolen treasures to the Treasury – though if treasure passes the Sacred Seal (area 27) the Golems will be unable to follow unless physically transported across themselves. Those who bear a piece of the consciousness of Zothotep from eating his triencephelon lobes or those who have a Corruption of at least 50 (the Shabti Golems “read” such individuals as Zothotep himself) are ignored by the Golems.  If a Shabti Golem is destroyed, it re-forms in 1 minute unless its individual pieces are permanently destroyed or somewhat kept from recombining – for example, by being thrown into an extradimensional space.
  
  Shabti Golem, 3 HD (20 Hit Points), Armour 1d4, 1d3 Claws (Str, 1d8), 1d4 Bites (Str, 1d6), and 1d2 Tentacles (Str, 1d10), Speed 30 ft., Infravision 120 ft., Construct (immune to mind-influencing effects, disease, poison), Str 14, Dex 8, Con 15, Int 2, Wis 12, Cha 8.
  • Attacks: A Shabti Golem has between 3 and 9 attacks per round: roll as indicated to determine how many of each attack it gets every round.
  • Big: Shabti Golems have a 10-foot reach.
  • Regenerating: Shabti Golems regenerate 1d10 Hit Points per round unless damaged by holy water.

• Box of Stasis: This gilded reliquary contains a pocket of frozen time. When the lid is closed, no time passes inside the box; when it is opened, time resumes. The box currently contains the mummified head of Xerxophon (see below).

• Exhumation Disc: This black disc, some 3 feet across (the size of a coin relative to Zothotep), is adorned with unwholesome hieroglyphic marks and carvings which depict an army of the dead climbing from their graves. If buried, the disc causes all bodies within a 500-foot radius sphere to reanimate as skeletons or zombies, clawing their way to the surface. These undead creatures attack mindlessly; those killed within range of the disc rise themselves. Command Undead and similar spells can exert control over those reanimated by the disc.

• Figurines representing the sovereigns deposed by Zothotep. There 700 of them. Each would be worth about 5 guineas to the right buyer.

• Mirror of Time Reversal: Anyone who gazes into this large mirror – big enough to serve Zothotep as a hand-mirror – will experience a kind of localized time-reversal as they look at their reflection. Wounds are healed, Corruption or Radiation removed, damaged equipment repairs itself, and the like, disappearing as the character peers into the mirror an amount of time equal to when a given injury or other effect occurred – so, for example, if a wound was inflicted ten minutes ago, looking into the mirror for ten minutes would heal the wound. However, a Charisma save with disadvantage is required each hour to also avoid losing memories of past time. If an entire session is “rewound” in this way, another Charisma save is required to avoid losing experience. If the mirror is shattered, those who looked into it must pass a Constitution save to retain its effects.

• The Mummified Head of Xerxophon, once a wizard-king in his own right, preserved in the Box of Stasis. His world, Gnossus, was conquered by Zothotep in the dim mists of time. The alien head can be revived using Speak with Dead and similar spells and contains a vast wealth of knowledge, with an Intelligence of 20 and advantage on any checks to recall arcane lore or identify spells. It also has versions of the following spells memorized: Pocket Dimension, Scry, Shadow Army, Volcanic Eruption. Xerxophon is cantankerous and deeply bitter. He longs for vengeance against Zothotep, and will trade his arcane knowledge for assistance in obtaining a body – if he is sewn to any roughly humanoid, decapitated corpse, he can use his power to attach to the corpse and reanimate it. He will stop at nothing to destroy Zothotep’s phylactery.

• Night Urn: This huge, jet-black urn is about five feet in height and seems to absorb all light. If opened, it slowly plunges the area around it into night, similar to a very powerful version of the spell Crepusculate, night spreading at a rate of 10 feet per round in all directions for every round that the urn remains open. It remains night so long as the urn is open and intact, night eventually spreading to blanket an entire planet. If shattered and the pieces left unattended, the urn repairs itself in 1 minute, though the spell is disrupted if the urn is destroyed.

• The Peridot Keystone, which is not originally part of the treasury but has been kept here. It can be removed from the treasury without activating the Shabti Golems.

• The Sanguineous Stone: This reddish-black stone the size of a human head permanently transmutes any liquid it touches to blood. This includes poisons and potions, although magical liquids have a 50% chance of resisting transmutation. Transmutation occurs rapidly, beginning with 5 cubic feet of liquid but expanding quickly. If immersed in an ocean or river an entire waterway can be contaminated over a period of times – days or weeks for a river, months for an ocean. If the Sanguineous Stone is removed the transformation halts but does not revert.

• Six ornate treasure chests containing coins and jewels plundered from throughout Zothotep’s dominion. These alien objects have no value as currency, but would be worth 1000 guineas per chest to the Museum of Magical Arts and Antiquities, independent collectors, or the Metamorphic Scholarium. Each chest is very heavy, with 4 Encumbrance worth of contents per chest.

34. Phylacterium

Hovering within a rectangle of glyphs is a massive polyhedral object whose exact contours defy humanoid perception. Its facets seem to shift and flicker in and out of reality. Looking at the object is painful, but one gains the impression of a jagged mass of intersecting angles and planes formed from glimmering crystal.

• Attempting to cross the circle without the Black Spiral Glyph activates a spell which reverses time and returns the consciousness of the trespasser to the moment they entered the chamber.

• Merely looking at the Phylactery is dangerous, requiring a Wisdom save to avoid 1 psychic damage per round and bleeding from the eyes, ears, and nostrils. Anyone with over 50 Corruption is immune to this effect.

• Touching the Phylactery is similarly ill-advised, requiring an immediate Constitution save to avoid 2d6 damage as the intruder is twisted and contorted by the reality-shifting field the Phylactery exudes. They gain Corruption equal to the damage sustained.

• Entering the Phylactery on the Ethereal Plane is even worse: Zothotep’s soul swirls within, a hideous, pulsating consciousness which will attempt to devour the spirit or anyone who touches it. Contact with Zothotep’s soul requires a Charisma save opposed by Zothotep’s (see area 36 below) to avoid 1d6 Charisma drain. A creature totally drained of Charisma is absorbed by the Hyperlich.

• No known magic has been devised capable of actually destroying the Phylactery. Any spell cast at the Phylactery requires a spellcasting check with disadvantage; on a failure, the spell rebounds and hits the caster instead. Although spells such as Annihilate appear to destroy it, the Phylactery is unstuck from time and so simply winds time backwards to avoid being destroyed. Theoretically, the Phylactery could be destroyed if it could first be anchored in time. If the Phylactery is taken into an Antimagic Zone, it rewinds time to avoid being placed there.

35. Antechamber

There is an intense cinnamon reek, barely disguising a fouler mustiness. A huge, desiccated, alchemically embalmed sphinx-like creature with a tentacled, skull-like visage and membranous bat-wings watches over this chamber – or it would if it weren’t slumbering, purring eerily, its tendrils twitching in its sleep.

• The mummified horror, the Cephalosphinx, wakes and attacks if it detects intruders unless the intruder recites the many titles of Zothotep without pause. It allows those who bear a piece of the consciousness of Zothotep from eating his triencephelon lobes (such as Greybreath and her disciples) or have a Corruption of at least 50 to pass unmolested. Most goblins will not venture into this chamber.
  
  Cephalosphinx, 5 HD (30 Hit Points), Armour 1d2, 2 Claws (Str, 1d8) plus Tentacles (Str, 1d10), Speed 40 ft., fly 40 ft., Infravision 120 ft., Undead (immune to mind-influencing effects, disease, poison), Str 15, Dex 10, Con 15, Int 2, Wis 16, Cha 10.
  • Big: The Cephalophinx has a 10-foot reach.
  • Mummy Mould: Anyone hit by the Cephalosphinx’s attacks must pass a Constitution save or become infected with Mummy Mould. Their wounds fester with musty spores, stiffening and slowly becoming undead. Natural healing ceases to function and magical healing is only half as effective unless the disease is removed, either by amputating infected limbs or through Heal Disease or similar magic. A fresh Constitution save with disadvantage is required each day. On a failure, the disease lowers the Hit Point maximum of the afflicted by 1. Three consecutive successes fight off the disease. A creature killed by Mummy Mould rises as a mummy in 24 hours, a puppet of the fungal infection.
  • Terrifying Gaze: The empty eye sockets of the Cephalosphinx bore into the mind of whoever the sphinx looks at. The target must describe their greatest fear and make a Charisma. On a failure, visions of this fear fill their mind and they are paralyzed with terror for a number of rounds equal to the amount by which they failed. The sphinx can only target one foe at once with this attack; if it breaks its gaze, the effect ends.

36. Tomb of the Hyperlich (Containment Chamber)

There is a 25% chance of finding Greybreath the shaman, a 25% chance of finding 2d4 of her disciples, and a 10% chance of finding both, offering thanks to the Hyperlich for allowing the Fodder Clan to feed on his ancient form and cutting flesh from his body to return to the village (area 30) as a kind of communion.

The translucent, crystalline structure that fills this chamber is not immediately recognizable as a sarcophagus – it’s simply too large. But then your eyes adjust, take in the massive, inhuman limbs, the snaking facial tendrils, the mummified alien flesh, the empty sockets gaping sightlessly from the fractured lid. A bone ladder is set against the side of the structure.

• Greybreath and her disciples consider this a holy place and conduct elaborate ceremonies here involving wild, ululating chants.
  
  Disciple, HD 2 (Hit Points 9), Armour 1 (Leather), Dagger (Dex, 1d4), Speed 30 ft., Infravision 120 ft., Fey (advantage on saves versus charm or magical sleep), Str 8 Dex 12 Con 10 Int 11 Wis 11 Cha 13.
  • Mutant Resilience: Disciples have advantage on saves against poison.
  • Nimble: Disciples may Run and Hide as a single action.
  • Sunlight Sensitivity: Disciples have disadvantage on attack and defense rolls and Wisdom checks relying on sight when in direct sunlight or its equivalent.
  • Small: Disciples have advantage on attack and defense rolls against Big creatures.
  • Spells (casts with Charisma): Apotropaic Circle,* Heal Wounds, Jinx,*Omen, Slime, Slumber,* Wound.*  *Currently prepared.
    
• If Zothotep’s ichor nodes, mazelungs, pseudohearts, and trincephalon lobes are returned to his body, the Hyperlich partially revives. He has disadvantage on all checks and saves unless his other organs have been similarly returned, he cannot cast spells without his cirrus, his astral eye, and his acroamatic gland, and without his noculi he is blind. If he lacks his metagigarium and his apeiroviscera he has disadvantage on Constitution saves. If all organs are restored, however, he will be returned to his full and former power.

• Should he be revived, Zothotep selects a creature to interrogate, demanding to know what world he is on and how long he has been dormant. He magically reduces his size to navigate the Canopic Maze and discover the boundaries of his cell. Should he discover that the goblins have destroyed his library, he will destroy the entire Fodder Clan out of vengeance. Although he cannot physically pass the protections the Librarians placed on his tomb, he will either take advantage of the Stonephasing doors to find an exit or use Possess to gain control of another’s body. If not stopped, he will eventually reach the surface, at which point he disguises himself as a mortal wizard to learn more of Hex and the planet he is on as he schemes to restore his empire to its lost glory.
  
  Zothotep the Hyperlich, HD 20 (120 Hit Points), Armour 2d6, 2 Tentacles (Str, 2d6 + 2d6 Corruption) and Slam (Str, 2d6), Speed 40 ft.,Infravision 120 ft., Undead (immune to poison, diseasemind-influencing effects), Str 18, Dex 10, Con 18, Int 20, Wis 14, Cha 18.
  • Gigantic: Zothotep is Gigantic. Attacks against him by smaller creatures hit automatically. He has a 30-foot reach.
  • Undying: Zothotep’s body reforms after 1d6 days even if it is totally destroyed so long as his phylactery remains intact.
  • Maddening: The horrific form of Zothotep destroys the minds of those who behold it. Merely observing the Hyperlich once he is revived requires a Wisdom save. On a failure, creatures lose 1d6 Wisdom. They recover Wisdom at a rate of 1 per day if they successfully rest. If reduced to 0 Wisdom they become catatonic, shutting down completely to avoid the primal horror of the Hyperlich. This save must be repeated every round.
  • Spells (casts with Intelligence): Though his library has been destroyed by goblins, Zothotep has the following spells memorized – Annihilate, Conjure Many-Angled Obscenity, Freeze Time, Malediction, Possess, Puissant Projectile (3^rd level), Reanimate Cadaver (6^th level), Shadow Army, Shrink, Time Spasm (3^rd level)
  • Telepathic: Zothotep can communicate telepathically with any creature within 100 feet.
  • Tesseract: Zothotep exists slightly outside of linear time. He takes an additional action at the start and end of each turn, before and after all other creatures act.