with-as is their world view, twisted by the chaotic and
rorrupting influence of the Demon Queen of Fungi.
Upon her arrival in the Underdark. Zuggtmoy found
\everlight Grove and took up residence there. The
myconids welcomed her. sealing their fate. Through
telepathically shared dreams, corruption has taken root
deep within the colony, warping the myconids' normally
placid and peacf'ful nature into something restive and
rapturous./\ few realize what is happening and try to
resist. but internal strife is alien to the myconids they
.viU not prevail without outside aid to save them.
- FUNGAL WILDS
The myconids cultivate this stretch of wilderness as
·heir first line of defense, crealing a living palisade.
Fungal creatures and wild Underdark beasts for m a rich
ecosystem here.
Pale c ream and beige s talks g row thick and tall,
resembling a surface world forest. Fungi grow in
profusion everywhere, and it's hard to find a nyt hing
resembling a path between them. The giant caps of
zurkhwood mushrooms obscure your view of the
cavern's ceiling, but luminescent fungi there give off a
sh1mmering aura. With each step taken on the soggy
ground, a rank scent of decay nses around you.CIRCLE OF HUNTERS
\circle mound sits at the edge of the wilds but still
illside them. It belongs to the Circle of Humers-
myconids that pursue creatures in the wilds. l n spite of
.heir name, the hunters don't kill their prey, but merely
:rack down creatures that have died near the grove. The
hunters bring the remains of such creatures back to be
~eanimated by their sovereigns. until they are eventually
allowed to rot and join the cavern's detritus bed.
Loobamub. The circle leader of the hunters, this
:all and lean myconid shu res Basidia's concerns about
Phylo's new way, though it is still capable of resisting
?hylo's corrupted meldings when it joins with the Tnner
:ircle. Loobamub keeps its opinions to itself, but its
·ariness spreads to the other hunters when they meld.
ementing their loyalty to Basidia. Loobamub redirects
he spore servants and awakened zurkhwoods Phylo
reates away from its circle's territory.
Loobamub is happy to enlist the party's aid in dealing
--ith a few unwelcome monsters that have found their
ay into the fungal wilds. In particular. the circle leader
..:sks the adventurers to kill a grick alpha and then take
ts carcass to Basidia for reanimation. A shambling
mound is also exhausting the soil in the grove and
::eeds to be put down for the good of the colony. These
encounters can occur wherever you wish.- NORTHERN TERRACES
-he terraces lining the northern walls are suffused with
J..Jerzress. and the myconids reserve these a reas for
ultivating certain fungi.
Water trickling from the walls of this vast cavern are
channeled into a crude but effective terraced irrigation
system. A th1ck, sweet smell fills the air from the
thousands of fungi of all colors and sizes, many glowing
w1th a strange, inviting light.CIRCLE OF B u i LDERS
This circle is found in thf' middle terrace. but its
members travel to thf' top and the edges of the cave to
harvest the resilient fungi used in their craft.
Gasbide. The builders' circle leader is a pioneering
would-be architect and a supporter of Sovereign Phylo.
Already driven mad by Zuggtmoy's spores, Gasbide
dreams of bizarre, elaborate structures no myconids
would ever need, inspired by visions of Abyssal palaces.NEVER LICHT GROVE: GENERAL FEATURES
Visitors encounter the following features th roughout
Neverlight Grove.
Underground Marsh. Water trickles into the large cave rn
from many places, forming terraces, pools, and streams.
This creates an underground marsh ideal for the growth of
fungi and the myconids.
Abundant Fungi. Mushrooms, molds, and fungi grow
in abundance in Neverlight Grove, creating a bizarre yet
beautiful tapestry of color.
Quiet Cacophony. Mycon1ds don't speak. They
communicate telepathically by emitting their rapport
spores. As a result, they live quiet lives. Strange music and
singing echoes from the large cavern behind the grove,
just loud enough to be noticeable.
Otherworldly Light. Lummescent lichen grows across
the cavern and spreads to the larger mushrooms, bathing
the grove in soft hues of yellow, blue, and violet. Dim
light suffuses the entire grove and lends the grove a
d reamlike quality.
Sentinel Mushrooms. To defend themselves, myconids
have cultivated and guided the growth of awakened
zurkhwoods (see appendix C) to serve as a kind of
palisade around the grove.
Zuggtmoy's Spores. This malevolent disease is spre ad by
myconids transformed by Zuggtmoy's demonic influence
(see "Myconids" in appendix C).
A transformed myconid can release the spores in a cloud
that fills a 10-foot·radius sphere centered on it, and the
cloud lingers for 1 minute. Any flesh-and·blood creature
in the cloud when it appears, or that enters it later, must
make a Constitution saving throw. The save DC is 8 +
the myconid's Constitution modifier+ the myconid's
proficiency bonus. On a successful save. the creature can't
be infected by these spores for 24 hours. On a failed save.
the creature is infected with a disease called the spores
ofZuggtmoy and also gains a random form ofindefimte
madness (determined by rolling on the Madness of
Zuggtmoy table in appendix D) that lasts until the creature
is cured of the dtsease or dies. While infected in this way,
the creature can't be reinfected, and it must repeat the
saving throw at the end of every 24 hours, ending the
infection on a success. On a failure, the infected creature's
body is slowly taken over by fungal growth, and after three
such failed saves, the creature dies and is reanimated as a
spore servant if it's a type of creature that can be (see the
" Myconids" entry in the Monster Manua~.CIIAPrlR 5 I NEVERL!GHT G ROVE