Birthday Party is coming, and I'm still fucking around with GADD – sometimes I just hate myself. By the way, here's another hex-map, which should resemble the old one, although it looks much more Science Fantasy to me (and this is what this blog was meant to be about, right?) So I'll keep it. Can I key all this stuff in less than two days? Hell, no! But I'll do my best, starting from right now.
0202: The Black Ziggurat. Hidden in the deepest jungle and chocked full of giant mutated fungi lies a colossal obsidian ziggurat, so ancient that even legend forgot its existence. The Black Ziggurat is one of the aspects of the Blackest Tesserzigguract, and a door to all the worlds that host one. This Black Ziggurat, in particular, is also the tomb of the most powerful king of a lost Maya-like civilization (probably the same which built the Ruined City in hex 0403.)
0403: The Ruined City. Once known as Makapìchu, this ruined city now host a tribe of 400 cannibal aborigines. They speak their own, incomprehensible language (though a Magic-user would roughly understand what they say because of similarities with ancient, forbidden tomes of eldritch sorcery), and are ruled by The Superior Bone-cruncher, a Chaotic Human Evoker. They worship the Hungry Mother, a Spawn of Yog-Sothoth that dwells in a well in the center of the city, and feed her once a month with a female child.
0509: The City-state of Ibkah, ruled by Òzmul The Mad, also known as the Iridium Sorcerer. It's a port, featuring a flourishing slave trade, and one of the most famous Assassins Guild of all Yaqqothl. The inhabitants of Ibkah actively worship The Demon Lords of Sarnath, and the city hosts one of the most impressive temples of the cult, The Cathedral of St. Bérzul, lead by the self-proclamed Cardinal Azor. Azor is famous for his extreme positions and iron fist against heresy and the worshipping of false gods. Merchants and slavers are always in search of brave (and unscrupulous) adventurers to hire as mercenaries, the regular fee being 1gp per day for land travel, and 5sp per day for boat trips.
0603: Nest and hunting ground of a couple of mutated T-Rex. Their mutation consists of the fact that they are able to breath acid just like a Green Dragon (you don't want to try.) If stolen, their eggs can be used to produce great quantities of a powerful hallucinogen, or sold for the same reason (worth over 500gp each in Ibkah.)
0705: The Crystal Monolith. This weird monument is a sort of landing signal left by the Outer Ones, just in case of a trip back to Yaqqothl. It was made out of an alien, transparent, iridium gem, and holds no special powers. According to the rumors, it shows the way to the Black Ziggurat.
0907: The Monastery of Renewed Pain, ruled by Father Garxygyg. A group of about 100, mad monks live here, committed to prayer, copying old tomes of lost knowledge, cultivating the land and producing a fine malt beer. They are all devoted to the Demon Lords of Sarnath, and keep a vow of chastity.
1103: The Village of Tadék. Once an important commercial crossroad between Karzahd and Ibkah, nowadays a small, well-defended farm-community. The village is ruled by Sir Belziel, a Lawful Human Lord. The peasants avoid both the jungle and the mountains, for great perils lurk therein. The most profitable activity is farming, and also the caravans of merchants who cross the valley to the north. Thus, the valley is full of bandits (there's also a tribe of nomad barbarians, but they don't attack the caravans, although it is commonly believed that they are responsible of all the attacks.)
1203: The Fallen Gates of Karzhad. Once a fortress of the Mole-men, it was abandoned eons ago. Some says the Mole-men still live beneath the mountains, others that they dug too deep and too greedily and eventually awakened He Who Must Not Be Disturbed. Whichever way it went, during the curse of thousands of years many, nightmarish creatures have crawled into the darkness beneath, to avoid sunlight and look for easy prey to eat. None have dared to enter here from time immemorial.
1209: The Forgotten Temple of the Toad Demon. Hidden in the deepest recesses of the Venomous Marshes lies this temple, which once attracted thousands of faithful. During its decline, the most fervent believers refused to leave the cult, and over the course of hundreds of years evolved into primitive sub-humans, totally bound to the Toad Demon. They still celebrate obscene ceremonies and sacrifices in his name.
Encounters and more soon!
