Background/Hook
The local chieftain, Ulfrik the Unconquerable, comes to the party in tears. His daughter, Deanna the Swift, was captured by the swamp dwelling "Sisterhood of Buzzing Wings". The player characters will be rewarded handsomely if they can retrieve her. If pressed as to why he doesn't lead his own warriors to reacquire Deanna, Ulfrik will shamefully admit that he has a terrible fear of mosquitoes. As a boy he nearly died after being bitten by one which infected him with the Purple Pestilence.
GIF SAFE
Description of the Dungeon
The temple itself is located deep within the Swamp of Suffering, taking a day's ride by canoe. Along the way, the party may encounter giant leeches, alligators, or human-sized murderous crawdads. The temple is a semi-submerged ruin covered in vines and moss. The air is buzzing with hundreds of thousands of mosquitoes within the vicinity of the building. It appears to have once been a place of worship for some more conventional faith, but all the holy symbols and relics have been crudely defiled, replaced with the silhouette of a mosquito.
Monster Encounters
A group of monstrous, dog-sized mosquitoes crowd around the nearly desiccated corpse of a deer. They lumber towards the party somewhat sluggishly upon noticing them, still thirsting for blood even after their previous meal. If one is killed it will explode into a shower of warm deer's blood.
A group of masked and robed cultists take communion of blood from a golden goblet. Upon drinking, each one manifests a new mosquito trait, such as a compound eye, chitinous clawed hand, long proboscis, etc. They are armed with daggers made to resemble the face and proboscis of a mosquito.
A cult priestess adorned with ornate jewelry is preparing a ritual chamber for a human sacrifice. She is accompanied by a number of lesser cultists who she is directing to arrange optics and clean the room. The priestess wears a golden diadem which allows her to control swarms of mosquitoes, and is mutated to possess a pair of wings and compound eyes
Traps/Hazards
A pool of murky water fills the room, though through the muck one can see a shiny gold necklace in the water's center. Disturbing the stagnant water attracts hundreds of bloodthirsty leeches which will swiftly drain the life out of any foolhardy adventurer.
The wall of a long hallway contains a recently constructed mural depicting a swarm of oncoming mosquitoes. Each mosquito's proboscis is actually a spring loaded poison dart, and stepping on the pressure plate firing mechanism causes it to launch towards the unfortunate viewer.
"Empty" Rooms
A stagnant fountain contains thousands of harmless mosquito larvae, along with a few handfuls of gold coins.
This room smells awful, the stench originating from under a tarp in the corner. Removing the tarp reveals an unceremonious pile of corpses, the blood drained from their veins.
A statue depicts what used to be an angel, but it has been crudely modified to sport a set of compound eyes and a mosquito's proboscis.
Special
A large cask swarms with mosquitoes. Uncorking it causes blood to come pouring out of it. This is the same blood used by the cultists for ritual purposes, and drinking it causes one to gain a mosquito mutation (roll 1d6 below)
1. Compound eye
2. Chitinous, clawed hand
3. Wings
4. Blood sucking proboscis
5. Ability to climb on sheer surfaces
6. Antennae
Non-Player Character
A young woman wearing chain mail hides in the corner of a locked cell, avoiding sight. She is Deanna the Swift, but will be hesitant to interact with the party, thinking them to be cultists playing some trick. Deanna has been forced to partake in the tainted blood, and has a compound eye as a result. The key to her cell is on a nearby table.
Great take on the mosquito-hybrids from darkest dungeon, you've nailed it!
ReplyDeleteI can totally imagine mad vampire-slayers tracking the Deanna the Swift or party members afterward if they don't hide well enough their mutations.