What happens to a big dead animal in the Underdark?

[Vurt]

And don't forget necromancers always on the lookout for giant corpses to animate and add to their herds. You can almost see their eyes light up and hear that >>click<< that goes on inside their head when they stumble across a veritable mountain of decomposing flesh.

"Yeeeessssss...."

Cheers,
Vurt

 

[Sir Brennen]

Makes me think of Whale Falls, where entire long-lasting ecosystems can spring up around the corpse of a large animal.

 

[Doug McCrae]

One thing D&D has no shortage of, is underground scavengers. In addition to those mentioned above:

Otyughs, rats, dire rats, rat swarms.

 

[Storyteller01]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pzi8cZ1I12U


Now imagine this happening to larger critters (alive or already dead, at your option).

 

[phindar]

Also, a carcass is a good find for tribes of humanoids. Since the underdark has very little in the way of non-stone natural materials, a carcass like that would be an invaulable find for quaggoths, grimlocks, orcs and so on. Hide for armor and clothing, bones for tools and weapons, meat for food, they can use the guts to weave string. Since there's very little in the way of wood or natural plant fibers underground, you have to take what you can get.

 

[Scott_Rouse]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pzi8cZ1I12U


Now imagine this happening to larger critters (alive or already dead, at your option).

That is so cool. Holy crap imagine if there was a human variant of cordyceps?

What's that growing out of Bob?

I don't know, but he sure has been taking a long nap.

 

[WD40]

My immediate responce to this threads title was:

"The same thing that happens to everything else."

Heh.

 

[lukelightning]

Necromancers show up and start squabbling over the corpse.

 

[Scott_Rouse]

I would imagine certain sections of the Underdark are fairly sterile and dry. A dead creature may dessicate (mummify) more than decompose especially in the presence of salt, calcium oxide (lime), or borax combined with a lack of moisture. Give this situation you could have a lot of fun with undead.

Libris Mortis has some stuff that would work for this scenario (Blood Amniote or Boneyard), You could also use the Evolved Undead or Mummified Creature templates.

 

[Scott_Rouse]

I was also thinking about an episode of the TV show Dirty Jobs that I watched this week. The host, Mike Rowe, was in a salt mine 700 feet below the surface and they blasted a huge section of wall. The dust from the blast was very toxic and would turn to acid when inhaled and combined with the moisture of your lungs.

What kind of nasty stuff could be inhaled by accident (yellow mold) that would affect the party or need to be avoided?