Mummy's Crypt
Mummies, from loyal guardians entombed with their masters to power-hungry priest-kings vying for the return of their earthly powers, strike fear into their enemies’ hearts. Many ancient societies inter their dead in this respectful way in the belief that someday they’ll rise again.
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Outside the Lair
The cloying stench of decay mixed with pungent spices fills the air.
The crushed exoskeletons of thousands of beetles lie thick underfoot.
Strange, ancient writing adorns the walls. (They warn of dire punishment for tomb robbers.)
Disturbing carvings depicting a funeral procession of dog-headed people decorate the walls.
What’s Going On?
The mummy stands silent, in eternal vigil, in a small alcove. Its gaze is fixed on the entrance to the area.
The mummy lies wrapped in a shroud and surrounded by masses of iridescent beetles scuttling about the floor.
Plodding footsteps echo through the air; the mummy patrols its tomb.
The mummy is carefully placing clay plaques covered in scripture into an ornate chest.
Major Lair Features
Several bodies wrapped in bull rushes and paper lie on low plinths. Perhaps the ritual to inter them properly was not completed.
Crumbling statues of sphinxes lie tumbled and smashed on the floor. The statues stand on stone plinths. (Some plinths might hide secret stairs, burial niches or treasure vaults, but the statues’ rubble could make finding and opening them tricky).
Long scraps of parchment and strong-smelling spices fill large urns standing in every room.
Herbs and spices spill from broken jars and stain the floor of this room. A disgusting, musky and cloying aroma fills the air.
Minor Lair Features
Intricate murals once depicting worship have been mostly defaced by heavy tool-wielding grave robbers.
A piece of filthy bandage is snagged on a sharp rock; it stinks of pungent spices and decay.
A huge fist has crushed an iron helm into the floor. Whoever wore it narrowly escaped an awful death.
The intact clawed feet are all that remains intact of a marble statue; the rest of it lies scattered nearby.
Mummy’s Appearance
The mummy wears a tattered shroud. Its desiccated skin is as tough as mahogany.
The mummy wears crumbling and ancient gold-chased leather armour.
Grave dust and spices fill the mummy’s crumbling chest cavity. They fall to the floor as the mummy moves about.
The mummy wears a breastplate of polished brass and cracked blue enamel.
Treasure
The mummy’s golden headdress glows with an unearthly, magical radiance.
This ancient sickle-bladed sword is still sharp and deadly after years uncounted.
Beautifully crafted scale mail shines like fish scales. The stone statue of a snarling warrior wears the armour. The warrior also holds a yet razor-sharp battleaxe grounded at its feet.
A jackal-headed mace, its fangs stained with dried blood, hangs from the mummy’s belt.
Trinkets & Trash
Long ago given gifts of food and wine lie rotten and decayed on and about stone plinths. The faint smell of rot hangs over them.
A faded, unreadable name is inscribed on the lid of a wooden scarab-shaped box. The box contains a few polished shells and pebbles.
Perfectly symmetrical shells of purest white are laid out on shelves. Faded paintings on the walls show slaves diving into a deep river to fetch the shells for their cruel-faced masters.
Thick lamp oil remains at the bottom of two large earthenware jars. Both jars are missing their lids.
Credit
This is a short system-neutral extract from Monstrous Lair #10: Mummy’s Crypt by Steve Hood.
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