Skull City is a massive illithid city in the heart of Flayer Territory in the Underdark. Most notably, it houses The Bleak Academy. The city is surrounded by a massive swamp. The Elder Brain of the city is often called "The Devourer".
About
The city is also notable for being utterly surrounded by a massive graveyard, most of whom are buried victims of The Bleak Academy's eldritch experiments. Several artifacts, either stolen or deemed too dangerous, can also be found for sale at the city's famous "Bleak Market".
Due to the powerful eldritch activity at the Academy, there are several quirks at Skull City not found in other Illithid populations.
- The swamp surrounding the city gives rise to an unending mist
- It is impossible to command the undead within the city, and attempts at necromancy simply fail.
- Creatures who die in or around the city have a 20% chance of immediately being reawakened and controlled by eldritch energy as a dark form of undead.
Population
A haven of Naga before the Illithid moved to the area, the naga have fallen vicitm to the dark experiments and victimization of the Mind Flayers. Now they guard the city's edges in their enhanced dark forms.
Besides Illithid, the city also houses a notable Vampire population, especially in the sewers and underbelly of the city. The vampires share a collection of "Rings of Invisibility", which (when combined with their natural ability to hide and transform) lets them get by undetected by the Illithid population.
Behind the Screen
- Skull City and the Black Academy draw their inspiration from the famous module "Return to the Tomb of Horrors" The Morning towers were re-purposed into sewers, and the Tomb of Horrors was re-purposed as the housing dungeon for the city's Elder Brain.
