Dungeon Crawl Classics VIR& AMP& DP
Module – The MuckPit knightsinthenorth.com
This document contains the DCC module the Muck Pit.
THE MUCK PIT
A Holy Place of the Great God Morgon
A DCC Adventure for Levels 0-2
“In the dark, dank places of the world ferments the Great God Morgon,
his unknowable thirst stirring the juices of men,
his syrupy essence calling for torture and pain.”
Module Specifications Getting the players involved
The Muck Pit is an adventure for the Dungeon Crawl • The characters meet Haidul, a priest of
Classics system. It is best suited for character levels 0- Loptir while traveling in a forest. The poor
2. clergyman beseeches the adventurers for aid,
for his traveling party was attacked by
The module potentially contains lurid descriptions of brutal robbers.
disgusting bodily functions, violence and torture, and
• A priest of Loptir runs into the tavern the
as such may not be suited for all audiences.
party is carousing in. Weathered and bruised,
he tells a story of a violent robbery just
This is version 1.0 of the adventure, made available
outside of town, where two of his friends
free of charge on the Knights in the North blog.
were taken hostage.
The module references the description of the Great • The party hears rumours of a strange sect,
God Morgon heavily, and the article on KitN should worshiping unknown gods in the forest
be considered required reading for Judges running nearby. As they investigate, they find the
the adventure: remains of a campsite, with tracks leading off
into the forest, and a half-dead, comatose
Morgon, the God of Torture and Bodily Fluids priest of Loptir, the god of Hearthfire.
Adventure Basics Whether given as support by a weary priest, or looted
from the body of an unconscious one, as the
A mad halfling cult worshipping the Great God adventure starts the group should have two bottles (1
Morgon has kidnapped two priests of Loptir. It is up litre each) of the Holy Distillant of Loptir : a powerful
to the party to put a stop to their nefarious grain alcohol that acts like holy water, and has
machinations. special uses later in the adventure.
1
NOTE: You can find a larger copy of the map at the end of the document.
Dwarves immediately notice that the construction is
Getting Started very close to methods used by halflings to build their
burrows.
Assuming the party bites the hook, they will easily
be able to follow the tracks of the kidnappers into the Passages between chambers are roughly 1½m wide
forest. Eventually, they discover the camp at Area Z and 2m high (5’x6’). The rooms themselves vary in
(not pictured on the map, located above Area A). size, but are never much higher than 2½m (~8’). The
whole dungeon has a claustrophobic, unfinished feel.
Notes on the Muck Pit
There is a water-filled passage below most of the
After the campsite, the group will descend into the dungeon, which is home to the blood jellies of
Muck Pit. Most of the interior of the dungeon is Morgon (Area X). There are multiple pit traps in the
made of slimy, packed earth, with streaks of grey dungeon which lead to this tunnel.
clay holding the cavernous construction together.
There are clumsily placed wooden beams set in Note that the whole warren is dark: the halfling
critical places holding the ceiling up. servants of Morgon all have an infravision of 30’
(~10m), and the ooze-creatures hunt by strange,
unknowable instincts.
2
The Muck Pit travelers. Init +2; Atk 2x hand axe +1 (d6); AC 13; HD
d6; HP 3; MV 20 ;́ Act 2d16; SP halfling traits; SV Fort
+2, Ref +2, Will +0; AL C.
Area Z – A Camp in the Woods1
“The first hint of the camp ahead is the hearty smell of
halfling cookery wafting on the soft breeze.
Ahead, among some ruins, you spy a makeshift tent, and two
small forms crouched around a fire.”
The camp consists of a large tarp spread over the only
standing corner of a ruined house. There is a huge
bearskin spread on the ground before the tent, and a
small fire with a cauldron hanging above it. The
cauldron is full of sweet-smelling, tasty stew. Mushy
and perfectly cooked, it’s hard to tell what went into
the pot to begin with.
Inside the tent there are two open bedrolls and an
unlocked chest which contains the personal effects of
the lost priests of Loptir - two sets of simple woolen
robes, two holy symbols of Loptir, and some
traveling gear2.
The halflings are worshipers of Morgon. If
approached civilly, they will invite the characters to Area A – Antechamber
share their stew, but will turn on them as soon as
opportunity arises, with the goal of either subduing “The dark chute down is narrow and cramped, and the
or killing them. rough walls of packed earth glisten with moisture and
the writhing forms of fat, bulging earthworms.
There is a trap door hidden under the heavy bearskin Luckily, the ladder attached to the wall seems solid
(which is itself worth 20 gp). The chute leads down to enough.”
Area A. It is cramped and the rough, earthen walls
are writhing with earthworms. There is a makeshift The chute leads down roughly 10m (~30’). There is a
ladder attached to the side of the chute, and the room pit trap covered with animal hide and a thin sheet of
below is dark. dirt right below the last rungs of the ladder (DC 15
Ref save to avoid, no save needed if trap is
Halfling Robbers: Armed with hand axes and a bad uncovered). Unwary or clumsy delvers fall 3 m (~10’)
attitude, these hide-clad halflings prey upon unwary into the Tunnel of the Blood Jellies (Area X).
1 Note that the camp is directly above Area A, and not The Antechamber is an ovoid room, with an open
depicted on the dungeon map.
cave passage leading to the west (Area B) and a rough-
2 For this, Judges are encouraged to use the random item
generation tables found in the Extended Equipment List hewn humanoid statue along the north-eastern wall.
article on KitN, rolling 2d3 times d100 from the table.
3
One of the kidnapped priests of Loptir lies bound and
gagged in front of the statue.
When released from his bindings, the poor priest
desperately grabs the nearest character and utters:
“Juices of the body,
Screams of the soul,
All holy,
To the Great God Morgon..!”
After this pained articulation he slumps down dying, Area X – Tunnel of the Blood Jellies
apparently due to a gaping wound on his back.
“You find yourself suddenly chest deep in cold, oily
Especially intrepid or benevolent adventurers may be water, in a dark tunnel below ground.
able to save the priest if magical healing is applied
quickly (one attempt, at least 5 points of healing Slick walls surround you, and a feeling of dreadful
required; the priest counts as neutral and has a hit die panic grips the pit of your stomach.”
of d8 for purposes of lay on hands). Regardless, the
priest remains unconscious and comatose after The tunnel runs as a bow below Areas A, B and C,
uttering the mantra of Morgon. starting at the pit trap below the ladder in the Area
A, and ending at the pit trap in the corridor between
The statue on the eastern wall s a crudely carved Areas C and D. Each pit trap is a 3 m (~10’ drop), with
stone effigy, depicting a towering, malformed a DC 15 Ref save to avoid. All traps are hidden simply
humanoid form. There are five holes in the torso of with a dirt covered animal hide, and can be detected
the statue. These holes vary in shape, but each is manually (DC 5 check for thieves).
roughly the size of a fist Their position and
placement does not obviously correspond to any The tunnel itself is roughly 2m (6’) high, and about
known anatomical logic. the same in width. It is filled with mucky, cold water
which reaches to chest level for an adult human.
The statue hides a secret door to Area G. If five
different bodily fluids or secretions are placed into The tunnel is home to four blood jellies, amorphous
the holes in the statue’s torso, it recedes awkwardly gifts from the Great God Morgon given to the cult to
out of the way, revealing a passage to the east, sloping further his juicy endeavours. The jellies are entirely
deeper into the earth. Dim green light can be seen hidden below the filthy waters of the tunnel, only
eerily glinting from the depths of the narrow tunnel perceivable by the slight ripples of the liquid as they
leading down to Area G. move around.
There is a pit trap in the corridor to the east (leading Luckily, the jellies are slow to react. Any adventurers
to Area B), which drops delvers into Area X (3m/~10’ stuck in the tunnel have one round to escape before
drop, DC 15 Ref save to avoid). The pit trap is hidden getting attacked by a jelly. After this, the jellies gang
with an animal hide and some dirt, and can be found up on the unlucky delver: beginning from the second
easily with a spear or a 10-foot pole (DC 5 check for round the delver is stuck in the pit, one jelly reaches
thieves).
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their position and attacks, until all four are
converging on the hapless individual. The gluey secretion on the floor can be neutralized
with the Holy Distillant of Loptir or clear water. The
Blood Jelly: Blood jellies are blobs of blood animated vomit slimes will not follow the group out of the
by Morgon's will to protect holy places and the cult's room.
followers. They slink slowly on the dungeon floor,
but attack with surprising swiftness when trying to Vomit slime: Vomit slimes are repulsive, smelly
crush and suffocate their victims. Init +0; Atk devour things, gliding towards their targets with ill intent.
+0 (d6); AC 12; HD d8; MV 20 ;́ Act 1d12; SP immune They are Morgon's foot soldiers and are often found
to mind affecting effects and blindness; ooze-senses; guarding the god's altars and other holy objects. Init
half damage from piercing and slashing weapons; SV +0; Atk devour +2 (d8); AC 14; HD 2d8; MV 30 ;́ Act
Fort +4, Ref +1, Will +2; AL C. 1d16; SP immune to mind affecting effects and
blindness; ooze-senses; half damage from piercing
Area G – The Guarded Room and slashing weapons; SV Fort +6, Ref +2, Will +4; AL
C.
“You creep along the low tunnel, following the alluring
green glare at the other end. Morgon’s Beacon: A glowing emerald the size of a
halfling’s head, Morgon’s Beacon glistens with an
Soon, the corridor opens up into a room with a low dais oily secretion, and seems to produce its own faint
at the eastern end. A massive emerald is stood upon the light. It is worth 300 gp as a gemstone, and could be
podium, caged inside an iron jail.” used as a light source (the glow is equivalent to that
of a candle). It is however tainted with the touch of
The emerald on the dais is Morgon’s Beacon (see
Morgon. Prolonged contact with the gemstone causes
below), a holy relic of the chaotic god. It is locked
the carrier to become disgusting: their bodily
inside an iron cage set in the stone podium. The only
secretions are increased ten-fold to normal, and
ways to access the treasure are to pick the lock (DC 16)
eventually they become sweaty, snotty messes. The
or break the wrought iron cage (DC 22).
effect becomes permanent after a week of contact,
and at that point it can only be removed by extensive
The room has small holes in the floor, and larger
purification rituals involving a lawful cleric.
apertures in the ceiling: this is evident to anyone on a
simple search (no roll required).
If the emerald is removed from its cage, the holes in
the floor secrete a fine mucilage which covers the
floor. This adhesive substance makes movement
impossible for those caught in it, unless a successful
Strength check (DC 20) is made at the beginning of
every round.
Simultaneously, the holes in the ceiling slowly spew
out three vomit slimes, which attack anyone in the
chamber. The slimes take 2 rounds to reach the floor,
after which they start moving and attacking suitable
targets.
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Area B – The Liminal Vestibule
Between suffering bleats, she painfully produces a
“You stalk warily into a large room. It smells of earth, variety of bodily fluids: blood, sweat and other secretions
maggots and blood. Everything is quiet.” all drip down into the maw of the cauldron below.
The Liminal Vestibule is a large chamber, with A heavily armoured halfling gambolls around her, all
passages leading to the east and to the south (Areas A the while scooping and skimming her secretions into the
and C). There is nothing of interest here, apart for the iron orifice with a long wooden ladle.”
pit traps in each passage, but Judges should feel free
to add quiet, sloppy sounds and disgusting smells to The woman suspended upon the cauldron is a priest
unnerve the party. of Loptir. She is alive, albeit badly tortured by the
horrid halfling acolyte. If recovered, she can be made
Both corridors have pit traps, which drop delvers into stable with simply tending to her wounds, but she
Area X (3m/~10’ drop, DC 15 Ref save to avoid). They will remain unconscious for a duration of the
are inexpertly hidden with animal hides, and can be adventure.
found easily with a spear or a 10-foot pole (DC 5
check for thieves). The glowing embers below the cauldron give the
room an eerie, hellish half-light, and the mood is
Area C – Chamber of Clear Waters further accentuated by the whimpers of pain from
the priest of Loptir above the cauldron and the
“As you enter, you hear the slow trickle of water in the
cackling of the mad halfling.
dark, muddy chamber beyond.”
The south-western wall of this large chamber is The halfling is an acolyte of Morgon, set to the task
scabrous, perforated rock, and trickles water down to feed the recumbent Morgon’s Ambrosia inside the
into a clear pool alongside it. Next to the pool there is vessel below. He fights to the death, with zealous
a large wooden tub. There are passages leading to the fervour.
north and to the east (Areas B and D, respectively).
The Morgon’s Ambrosia in the massive iron
There is nothing else of interest in the room. Slippery cauldron is a disgusting mass of smelly goo. It is
slopping sounds of glee and pain may be heard from currently dormant, and can be pre-emptively
the chamber to the east. destroyed by pouring a tub of clear water on it, or by
expending one of the Holy Distillants of Loptir. If the
Both corridors leading from the chamber have cauldron is tipped, the Ambrosia awakens and
hidden pit traps, which drop delvers into Area X (3 attacks.
m/~10’ drop, DC 15 Ref save to avoid). They are
inexpertly disguised with animal hides, and can be Apart for the priest, the cauldron and the disgusting
found easily with a spear or a 10-foot pole (DC 5 halfling, the room contains two racks of torture tools,
check for thieves). set in the southern wall. The racks contain whips,
ropes and chains, along with other simple torture
Area D – Hall of Juices implements.
“A grisly sight meets your eyes. At the center-point of Both racks hide secret doors leading to the monastic
this round room there is a massive cauldron, above which cells (Area H) and to the Shriekmonger’s chamber
is suspended a naked, female form. (Area I), which can be discovered with successful
6
checks (DC 10, each door requires a separate check, damage from piercing and slashing weapons; SV Fort
but the mechanism on both racks is the same). +8, Ref +3, Will +6; AL C.
The room has passages to the west and to the east Area H – The Monastic Cell
(Areas C and E), and the western corridor hides a pit
trap (3m/~10’ drop, DC 15 Ref save to avoid, leads to “The rack of torture tools swings open, revealing a small
Area X). chamber strewn with bedding and personal effects.”
The small room contains bedding for multiple
halflings, along with food and miscellaneous personal
effects; a persistent search rewards characters with
d100 silver pieces, stashed in various pockets and
nooks in the chamber.
The food found in the monastic cells smells delicious
and enticing, and Judges should feel free to
emphasize the stark contrast between the quality of
the comestibles with the drab, mucky interior of the
low warren.
The food is perfectly safe and edible, although wary
players may be suspicious of its quality. If looted, the
halfling larder provides the party with a month’s
worth of provisions (i.e. the equivalent of 30 iron
rations).
Area I – The Shriekmonger’s Chamber
Halfling Torturer: Mad with glee and religious “More opulent than any area in the warren so far, this
fervour, this halfling has clearly lost his marbles. He floor of this chamber is lined with soft furs, and the
is clad in scale mail, and carries two hand axes. Init furniture here is high quality.”
+3; Atk 2x hand axe +2 (d6+1); AC 14; HD 2d6; HP 8;
MV 20 ;́ Act 2d16; SP halfling traits; immune to This chamber is more lavishly decorated than any so
mind affecting spells; SV Fort +4, Ref +2, Will +0; AL far. Floors are lined with furry animal hides, and the
C. room boasts a large, four poster bed along with an
ornate, full-body mirror.
Morgon’s Ambrosia: The peak of Morgon's juicy
power! Morgon's Ambrosias are made of at least five The western wall has a large shelf with pots, jugs,
different bodily fluids. They are huge globules of sacks and bags, all full of tasty, nourishing victuals.
disgusting sludge, squashing anyone foolish enough The food equals to two weeks worth of provisions
to cross their god's path. Init +0; Atk devour +6 (d10); (equivalent of 14 iron rations), but is tainted by the
AC 14; HD 4d8; MV 40’; Act 1d20; SP immune to touch of Morgon. Anyone partaking in the tasty
mind affecting effects and blindness; ooze-senses; half treats suffers horrid nightmares of blood and torture,
7
and suffers exhaustion on the following day (-1d to occult treatise detailing the worship of the horrible
all actions due to lack of sleep). god (see below).
There is a small chest hidden under the bed, which The mirror on the north-eastern wall detects as
contains 50 gold pieces. magical, and hides a secret passage to a para-
dimensional space beyond. The only way to activate
Area E - Sanctum Succorum the secret door is to use a large mirror (such as the
one found in Area I) to create an endless path, by
“The large chamber before you is a chaotic scene of setting it opposite of the one on the wall. If
worship. successfully opened, the mystical passage leads to
Area F.
There are large, haphazardly placed wooden chairs all
over the western half of the room, and you can notice
irregular, small pits in the floor, each filled with some
variety of bodily secretion. The place reeks.
In the eastern end of the room there is a wooden
table, and a large mirror covers a portion of the
north-east wall.”
There are three halfling warriors here, along
with the Shriekmonger of Morgon: a halfling
clad in an ornate, leathery robe and a skull
mask.
If the party has managed to pass quietly
through the previous rooms, the faithful of
Morgon are focused on whatever disgusting
acts of worship the Judge deems fit. If not,
they are lying in wait, and will attempt to
ambush the party (it should be noted here
that the room is completely dark unless the
party brings in a light source, and the
halflings should have an easy time hiding in
the darkness).
As combat begins, on his first action the
priest will awaken the Morgon’s Ambrosia in
Area D (no check needed, automatic success),
and the ooze-monster will tip the cauldron
and join the battle.
On the wooden table there is a golden chalice
(worth 100 gp) and the Book of Morgon, an
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Morgon’s Faithful: Juice-mad halflings, clad in scale The only way to heal, and thus liberate, the dying
mail and brandishing hand axes. Init +2; Atk 2x hand spirit is to feed it earthworms (found in the walls of
axe +1 (d6); AC 14; HD d6+2; HP 6; MV 20 ;́ Act 2d16; the chute leading down into the dungeon, in Area A).
SP halfling traits; SV Fort +2, Ref +2, Will +1; AL C.
If healed, the spirit will award the party with a
The Shriekmonger: A crazed halfling priest, magical book, seemingly crafted out of large feathers
empowered with the juices of his master. He wields a (the Feathery Book of Mother Goose, see below). If the
staff, and is dressed in the holy vestments of Morgon: party fails to solve the riddle, the spirit perishes,
a robe of flayed skin, and a mask made from the leaving behind a single, glowing tail-feather
skull of a man. Init +2; Atk staff +2 (d4); AC 12; HD (Goosemother’s Feather, see below).
2d6+2; HP 10; MV 20 ; Act 1d20; SP halfling traits; can
cast Blessing on allies with a +5 bonus to spell check The Feathery Book of Mother Goose: Bound and
(DCC rulebook pg. 255), spell manifests bodily as crafted out of colourful feathers, the strange book
dripping, thick juices; SV Fort +2, Ref +2, Will +4; AL contains songs of natural healing. Lawful clerics can
C. invoke its power to re-roll a lay on hands check once
per day, and reading passages from it brings happy
The Book of Morgon: Bound in demi-human skin, thoughts to all who listen.
and written in what appears to be a variety of
colourful bodily fluids, this disgusting treatise Goosemother’s Feather: The last remnant of a
contains the tenets of Morgon, along with strange, powerful nature spirit, a lawful cleric can use the
esoteric alchemical patterns. The book can be used as feather to re-roll a lay on hands check, after which
Judges see fit, either to entreat chaotic characters into the power of the feather is spent and it dissipates into
Morgon’s worship, or to learn suitable spells (Breathe dancing light.
Life as it pertains to the creation of ooze-creatures, or
Make Potion come to mind as suitable suggestions,
see the DCC rulebook for details). Wrapping up
Area F – The Oubliette After the adventure is over and the party returns to
civilization, they are rewarded with a healing
“As you step through the eerie mirror-passage you arrive draught, plus one more healing draught for each
into a small chamber of hewn stone. Imprisoned within priest of Loptir alive at the end of the adventure
is a white, glowing being, in the shape of a large goose.” (maximum of four). Healing draughts allow the
imbiber to heal 1 HD of damage instantly.
The goose is a lawful nature spirit, imprisoned by the
cult for their own nefarious ends. It is almost dead, Additionally, the Judge may see it fit to award the
due to malnourishment and torture, and will surely party with a few bottles of Loptir’s Firewater3.
perish soon.
If the party tries to communicate, lawful characters
can hear the spirit’s riddle as a quiet whisper:
“My food, ‘tis not male, nor female, but both.”
3 A powerful magic item, described on KitN in Loptir's
Firewater.
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