Matundu Waits
Cursed Matundu gapes in the southern wilderness of Salmagunderland like a rocky gullet that swallowed a few hundred acres of jungle. Matundu’s opening covers roughly one-half a square mile (which is a bit more than a square kilometer), and it drops nearly 600 feet to a deep pool of foul water littered with boulders and detritus, the latter washed into the pit by frequent rains.
Generations ago, this dark pit did not exist. Instead, a village stood on the site, ruled by dwarfish witchdoctor called Matundu. Chilling evil twisted Matundu’s heart, and he ruled his people through fear and poison until a heroine rose up to put an end to Matundu’s wicked reign. This heroine, Shujaa, led several adventurers in a rebellion against Matundu. After days of conflict that raged throughout the jungle around the village, Shujaa and her companions eventually gained the upper hand.
Matundu retreated to his stone huts, guarded by his most elite and fanatical warriors. In this sanctuary, Matundu proved impossible to reach, and so Shujaa called upon the powers of the heavens. Angelic creatures answered her prayers, roaring around Matundu’s stone huts like a tornado until their walls buckled and their roofs collapsed.
Still, Matundu did not die. Trapped beneath the rubble of his sanctuary, the witchdoctor bound his foul soul to his ruined body with terrible necromantic spells. When the angelic creatures pronounced their final judgement, Matundu should’ve been sent screaming into the underworld, but only the wicked dead can suffer such a fate. And, so, the very land itself retreated from the heavens, collapsing into the massive pit that now bears the name of that evil witchdoctor.
Undead Matundu seethes in darkness, trapped in twisted tunnels and caves accessible through the pit. Matundu’s will, however, is not as confined as his body. It reaches out, slithering through those tunnels and caves, and even up the walls of the pit to the surrounding jungle. By means of his will, Matundu seeks to lure those with more courage than sense into the pit. Sooner or later, someone is bound to free Matundu.
Impulse: To draw in the weak-willed
Grim Portents
* Tuur Wöllem of Imperial Cartographical Society receives a vision of Matundu’s location.
* Wöllem hires adventurers to help find Matundu.
* Adventurers descend into the pit.
* Matundu is freed.
Impending Doom: Matundu, undead and vengeful, escapes from his prison.
Description & Cast
* Tuur Wöllem and his hired adventurers
* Navkdol, orc shaman
* Cirkad, cursed wanderer
Custom Moves
When you stand at the edge of Matundu for the first time, roll+WIS: *On a 10+, you recognize the dangerous nature of Matundu’s attractions. Take +1 forward when acting upon this recognition. *On a 7-9, choose 1.
* Matundu reveals to you a safe way down to the bottom of the pit.
* Matundu grants you a vision of a desirable treasure’s location within the pit’s caverns.
* Matundu warns you of a monster or monsters lairing within the pit’s caverns.
