The Red Growth Spreads

The underground city of Coprinop has been invaded by Dark Spawn! In response to the
attack, the Origin, leader of the Mycelia (magical mushroom folk), created the Red Growth, a
rapidly spreading poisonous fungus. The Red Growth repelled the Dark Spawn army, but also
infected most of the Mycelia, turning them into mutated husks. Coprinop is the home of the Mycelia, innately magical mushroom-like people that share a
collective conscience. Mycelia do not speak, instead they communicate telepathically by
Now, the Dark Spawn are regrouping in the Shadow Spire, the poisonous fungus spreads intricate root systems or airborne spores.
uncontrollably, and deadly creatures roam the subterranean wasteland.
A human, or other non-Mycelia, can communicate telepathically with the Mycelia by inhaling
one of their floating spores. Mycelia do not typically speak in full sentences, instead they
Flik Silverpen’s Guide to the Red Growth (FSG 06) is a hex-crawl adventure that works emanate feelings and intent through their thoughts. They are not good at hiding their motives.
great as a one shot or a fun continuation of the Dragon Town campaign. Specifically from
the “end” of the Emperor of Worms (FSG 05). Their complex network of roots extends through the rich soil floor from wall to wall. Three
spires support the ceiling of the cavern and act as cultural hubs for the Mycelia civilization.
It’s helpful to read through the entire guide (don’t worry, it’s short!) to get a good idea The city is illuminated by thousands of small glowing lights on the ceiling of the cavern, which
of how the factions in Coprinop will interact with the players and each other over the are actually tiny magical worms.
course of this adventure.
Recently, the Red Growth, an ultra-poisonous fungus has grown out of control, taking over
The Red Growth is a system neutral adventure that works for any level adventuring most of the cavern. Now, three factions battle over control of what remains of Coprinop…
party. Enemies listed don’t have stat blocks, but references to the world’s most popular
manual of monsters are given to help the balancing process. You may need to adjust
monster stats to provide your players with a more challenging encounter.

Adventure Hooks
1. A strand of poisonous red fungus has been
infecting innocents with a painful toxin.
No cure has been found. The strand leads
underground towards Coprinop.

2. Locals have been attacked by Dark

Spawn, minions of the Darkness Below.
Adventurers are needed to investigate their
origins underground.

3. Rare mushrooms with magical effects

grow deep underground. Wizards and
alchemists are willing to pay exorbitant
prices for these hard-to-acquire ingredients.

4. Escaping the Emperor of Worms (FSG 05)

leads into Coprinop.

2 3
 The Mycelia Origin
The First Mycelia
Description: The original Mycelia is a
powerful conjurer and defacto leader.
The Origin is stoic and judicious, speaking
(telepathically) in terse facts. They are
welcoming of friendly strangers, but not
forthcoming in their plans. If attacked
they will not fight back. And if destroyed,
the Origin can simply and quickly regrow
themselves from any spore or root in
Coprinop. (Illustration on pg. 3.)
The Origin is the only remaining Mycelia in
the Budding Spire (pg. 12).
Wants: To see Coprinop and all Mycelia
thrive and progress, even at the expense of
individual Mycelia who are not as important
as the collective cluster.
A Few Months Ago
When the Dark Spawn invaded Coprinop
from below, the Origin took swift action,
creating the Red Growth (pg. 8). It spread
quickly through Coprinop’s complex root
system and was extremely effective against
the Dark Spawn who mindlessly consumed
the magically crafted fungus. Unfortunately,
it also infected most of the Mycelia
connected to Coprinop’s roots, turning
them into mindless, mutated husks of their
former selves.
The Origin is sure in their decisions and
believes the Mycelia will easily regrow once
the Dark Spawn have been dealt with. If
the adventurers are willing to help destroy
the Dark Spawn left in Coprinop, the Origin
will stop the spread of Red Growth, cure
any infected adventurers, and grant them
the Origin’s Boon - A fungal mutation that
makes them resistant to heat and fire.
4 5
The Origin’s Knowledge
• The Origin will admit to feeling betrayed
by Lugus Faravald, a thousand year
old wizard whose job it was to keep
the Darkness Below trapped deeper
underground. The Origin is unsure what’s
happened, but the Dark Spawn attack is a
clear sign of the Darkness’ return.
• The Origin believes, and will state matter-
of-factly that “Mycelia create the soil from
which all life grows.”
• The Origin is glad the Severed Mycelia
were not infected by the Red Growth, but
doesn’t understand why they want to
destroy the Origin (even if it is impossible).
• The Origin is indeed infected by the Red
Growth, but is able to resist it’s mutating
effects.
• To cure the Red Growth’s poison, the
Origin can simply create a magically
mutated fungal remedy. But they will only
create the cure when the Dark Spawn no
longer threaten Coprinop.
• If the adventurers agree to help with the
Dark Spawn, the Origin can describe all of
the mushrooms growing in Coprinop and
their effects (see pg. 11).
When the Red Growth began to spread, a group of Mycelia disconnected themselves from
the collective conscious root system. They avoided mutation and took up arms to defend
Coprinop from the Dark Spawn, the Red Growth, and the Origin.
The Severed roam the Ruined Cluster (pg. 7), never staying in one place for long. They ride on
the backs of four-legged Mycelia that can jump or dig to avoid the Red Growth. The Severed
don magically hardened armor and spears that can cut through rocks.
Hyd Severed’s Mission
Severed Troop Leader
A group of Severed led by Hyd have tried
Description: A lean, bright blue and yellow several times to infiltrate the Shadow Spire
Mycelia covered in iridescent armor. Hyd (pg. 12) and finish off the last of the Dark
is a soft spoken and sincere commander. Spawn in Coprinop. But the cloud of shadow
They will never put their troops in danger if (Dark Locusts, pg. 13). and falling rocks have
victory is not assured. Hyd goes out of their thwarted their advance.
way to avoid fighting the mutated Mycelia,
but is not above using them to the Severed’s The Severed have set up camp near the
advantage in combat. Shadow Spire to tend to their wounded.
Wants: To save Coprinop and the Mycelia by They have captured and caged a 600 pound
destroying the Dark Spawn, the Red Growth, baby Magma Turtle. Prodding the turtle
and then the Origin. causes it to regurgitate mucousy molten
fire in anger. According to the Severed, the
Compare stats to a Myconid Adult, MM 232. turtle’s fire is the only substance hot enough
to burn away paths through the Red Growth.
Compare stats to a Red Dragon Wyrmling,
MM 98.
They welcome any help battling the Dark
Spawn and will eagerly make plans to
assault the Shadow Spire.
Severed Names
Barbrofor, Calvat, Cremini, Laetipor, Llaria,
Mulina, Parassis, Russula, Taria, Ullus,
Verpa, Xantha.
Dark Spawn are fractured pieces of the Darkness Below, whose sole purpose is to consume
magic (For more, see Flik Silverpen’s Guide to the Shadespear Mountains, FSG 02). While
searching for a pathway to the surface, the army of Dark Spawn were diverted to Coprinop by
their insatiable hunger for the overwhelming arcane energy that courses through all Mycelia.
After the Red Growth decimated the Dark Spawn’s numbers, those remaining fled to the
Shadow Spire (pg. 12).
Cloaked Void
Herald of Darkness Below
Description: Commander of the Dark
Spawn, who are completely obedient to the
Void. Its body is made of nothingness, quite
literally a cloaked void, with no descernible
features other than its sharp claws. The
void speaks in piercing screeches, yelling
prophecies of the Darkness’ return.
Wants: To find a way to break the spell that
holds the Darkness Below trapped further
underground.
Compare stats to a Banshee, MM 23.
In addition, the Cloak Void can move freely
through shadows and summon several
different types of shadow creatures:
Dark Orb
A floating sphere of condensed
nothingness. It shoots bolts of necrotic
energy at the closest source of light.
Dark Locusts
Swarming bits of shadow that create the
cloud around the top of the Shadow Spire
(pg 13).
Dark Hollow
A flying mass of shadowy tentacles. It flies
about the Ruined Cluster, easily avoiding
the Red Growth, looking for a way out of
Coprinop (pg. 8). (Illustration top left, pg. 7.)
6
The ultra-poisonous, fast-growing moldy fungus that covers most of Coprinop, making it
difficult to travel through the now ruined city.
The Red Growth is poisonous to the touch, instantly infecting any skin it comes in contact
with. It drains the adventurer’s life as the red fungus spreads, eventually covering the entire
body (Deal 1D6 damage per hour). If ingested the poison drains the adventurer’s life even
faster, causing immediate exhaustion and death within a couple of hours.
The Mycelia Origin, the Red Growth’s creator, is the only one who can cure the poison.
The Red Growth cannot be destroyed by normal means. It is resistant to fire (unless
exceedingly hot) and purification magic. It can be carefully cut from its roots, but it grows
back within a matter of minutes.
The Ruined Cluster
Once covered in fields of diverse
mushrooms, the central area of Coprinop
is now a maze of Red Growth. Abandoned
homes and farms have been overrun by the
poisonous fungus, but the Ruined Cluster is
not devoid of life.
When entering a new hex that is not one of
the three towers roll 1D6 to find out what
kind of encounter awaits. Then roll 1D8 on
the corresponding table:
1-2 = A Dangerous Encounter (pg. 8).
3-4 = An Environmental Encounter (pg. 9).
5-6 = A Safe Encounter (pg. 10).
A single hex = 1 mile, or 1 hour of travel.
(Slower than usual because
adventurers must wind
through the maze of
Red Growth.)
1 - 5 are mutated Mycelia. Unless noted
otherwise, compare their stats to a Violet
Fungus, MM 138, and add additional abilities
listed below.
1. Flyer - A swarm of small, winged, mutated
Mycelia. They swoop down and bludgeon
from above.
2. Screecher - Stumpy Mycelia with mutated
mouths. When they stumble upon non-
mutated creatures they let out a horrible
screech, alerting other mutated Mycelia in
the area.
3. Thorned - Gangly mutated Mycelia
covered in thorns. They lay perfectly still
until a non-mutated creature draws near.
They strike out, wrapping up the creature in
its thorny, poisonous grasp.
4. Glowing Brute - A hulking, mutated
Mycelia radiates red light. It’s footsteps fall
so heavily it actually clears a path through
the Red Growth. Their boulder-like fists
spread poisonous spores on impact.
Compare stats to a Hill Giant, MM 155.
8 9
5. Lurker - A mutated Mycelia that can
shrink and grow. It likes to hide in the
possessions of non-mutated creatures,
surprising them with a poisonous bite at
the most unexpected times.
6. Red Ooze - A 30 foot round ooze rolls
through the Red Growth, happily absorbing
its poison. Its path is erratic, plowing right
over obstacles, especially adventurers.
7. Arcane Worm - A pack of Dark Spawn
furiously scratch at a large flat rock wedged
in the ground. A tiny, glowing arcane worm
named Nugget has burrowed into the rock
and the Dark Spawn want to eat it. If the
adventurers save Nugget, he will ask to
accompany them on their journey. He isn’t
content just hanging around. Nugget glows
in the dark and can heal 1d8 damage once
a day.
8. Dark Hollow - A floating mass of tentacles
made from nothingness. It’s looking for an
exit that leads upward.
Compare stats to a Shambling Mound, MM
270, with the added ability of flight.
1. Dead end! The adventurers took a wrong
turn and are now surrounded by fast-
spreading Red Growth.
2. Spore Cloud - A cloud of fungal spores
sweeps over the area. It is impossible to
avoid. Roll 1D4 to determine its effects:
1. The spores burn.
2. Dizziness for one hour.
3. Invisibility for one hour.
4. The spores bolster the adventurers,
healing their wounds and curing
exhaustion.
3. Pipe Portal - A broken pipe rises from a
hill of Red Growth. The pipe leads further
underground, to a cavern filled with lava.
4. Acidic Rain - The air turns thick with
moisture before a sulfurous downpour. One
damage every 10 seconds. Take shelter!
5. Mycelia Graveyard - A field of dark crimson
capped mushrooms. Traveling here is less
difficult, but disturbing the mushrooms in
any way fills the air with spores. If inhaled,
the adventurer hears the lament of ghostly
Mycelia. “We were betrayed by our Origin…”
6. Bounce Pad - The ground is unusually
squishy. After walking for a moment, the
floor erupts as a giant mushroom cap
springs upward into the air. It launches
the adventurers in a cloud of slow falling
spores, landing in a random adjacent hex.
7. Geyser - A pool of sulfuric, bubbling water.
Once every few moments the pool erupts in
a spout of burning liquid.
8. A field of mushrooms. Roll on the Wild
Flora table (pg. 11).

1. The Soul-less - Three skeletons stagger
about, paying no attention to the Red
Growth. They are looking for their souls, but
don’t remember anything other than their
names: Hob, Piper, Wren. And one other,
“Lugus Faravald”.
2. Wounded Hunter - Mica, a Severed
Mycelia, is gravely wounded. Their troop
has left them to return to the earth. If the
adventurers help, they will be rewarded
with Mica’s only remaining possession. Roll
on the Magic Items table (pg. 11).
3. Mushroom Garden - Unaffected by
the Red Growth, an enormous blind bear
gingerly tends to her garden (see Wild Flora
pg. 11). She can easily smell and hear you, but
pays no head.
4. Hold Out - A curmudgeonly old Mycelia
named Furrow won’t leave their house,
even though it’s half covered in Red Growth.
Furrow will begrudgingly welcome visitors
and offer some day old fungal broth to sip
on. They spit petrifying spores.
5. Floating Eye - A floating eyeball follows
the adventurers’ every move. Someone from
deeper underground is watching.
6. Moldy Spell Book - A spell book with a
gold trimmed cover and illegible writing
sits in the middle of a Red Growth patch.
A compass drawn on the first page points
deeper underground.
7. Severed Ambush - A troop of Severed
Mycelia surround the adventurers. They
shake their heads to fill the air with
inhalable spores so they can communicate.
The Severed telepathically emanate feelings
of mild curiosity.
8. Misplaced Item - Roll on the Magic Items
table (pg. 11).
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Wild Flora
Most mushrooms in Coprinop are safe to
touch and eat with minimal effects (like
keener hearing or glowing eyes). They vary
in size, shape, and color. But be careful,
some varieties cause more potent reactions.
1. Scorching Spore - Small red caps that
cause burns and warts when touched.
2. Witherwort - White hairy bulbs that
cause saggy skin and brittle bones when
ingested. Lasts a few hours.
3. Prickly Puff - Purple and spiky orbs that
cause sharp spikes to grow from skin when
ingested. Difficult to eat. Lasts one day.
4. Beading Button - Sticky yellow bells that
cause palms to become wet and slippery
Magic Items
when touched. Poor grip lasts one hour.
1. Souse Shroom - Continually pulls water
5. Strider Frond - Thin dirty white sprout
out of the air and filters it of impurities.
that causes the ingester to grow an extra
Squeeze for a refreshing drink.
pair of legs. Hop on for a ride! Lasts one day.
2. Mycelium Staff - Hardened root of a giant
6. Shooshroom - Dark blue clamshell
mushroom. Can cast Image once a day.
that nullifies all sound produced by the
adventurer when ingested. Lasts a few 3. Cap Cap - A mushroom hat that increases
hours. the wearer’s defense. Mycelia disguise.
7. Mass Morel - Round red shroom with 4. Spore Whip - 15ft range. When struck, a
white spots that causes anyone who ingests burst of confusing spores erupts from the
it to grow a size. Lasts one hour. tip of the whip.
8. Lucky Cup - A rare small green toadstool 5. Bolete Bulb - Squeeze to release curative
with white spots. Feed this mushroom to spores. Heals 1D4 in 10 foot area.
someone who just perished, they will wake
up, with one hit point. 6. Glimmerpuff - A floating spore that gives
off warm green light.
11

Three massive supports reach from the soil rich ground to the rocky, glowing ceiling of the
Coprinop cavern.
The Mycelia have converted the spires into grand buildings. Huge, open entryways lead to
interiors that have been hollowed out. Beautifully complex irrigation systems push moisture
along wide spiraling staircases leading up.
Each of the spires held a unique function in the Mycelia society. But now, their purpose is lost
to Dark Spawn and the Red Growth.
The Budding Spire
Once a thriving university, the Budding
Spire is home to one remaining Mycelia, the
Origin. Now, the spire is overgrown with a
variety of mushrooms. A line of Red Growth
fungus stretches from the Origin’s living
quarters at the top of the spire, down the
spiraling staircase and out the entryway.
The Forsaken Spire
This spire filled with homes was the first
place the Dark Spawn attacked in Coprinop.
Now the Forsaken Spire is overrun with an
impenetrable wall of Red Growth.
A wide natural passageway leading deeper
underground is located near the spire, but
it’s completely covered by Red Growth.
The Shadow Spire
The Shadow Spire was once a towering
workshop where Mycelia created tools,
materials, furniture, and everything else
a city could need. Now abandoned and
derelict, the Dark Spawn have secured
the top of the tower as their stronghold in
Coprinop.
The Cloaked Void (pg. 6) has created a cloud
of impenetrable shadow at the top of the
spire (Dark Locusts) and has commanded
the Dark Spawn to dig upwards.
12
Random Encounters
Inside the Shadow Spire
Roll 1D6 to see what happens as the
adventurers climb the spiraling stairs to the
top of the Shadow Spire.
1. If the adventurers have communicated
telepathically with the Severed, they will
sense a feeling of fear coming from one
of the workshops. Days ago, Otus, a small
Mycelia, used a saw to defeat a single Dark
Spawn before hiding inside a cupboard.
2. A workshop filled with unfinished tools.
Roll on the Magic Items Table to see what
the adventurers discover hidden among the
debris.
3. A large rock has cracked an irrigation
pipe. Hot steam is spraying out, blocking
the path forward.
4. Look out below! A large boulder falls from
the shadowy cloud above.
5. A pack of Dark Spawn rush up the stairs
behind the adventurers, hungry for the
magic items they carry.
6. If the adventurers have not faced a Dark
Hollow in the Ruined Cluster, there is one
patrolling the inside of the Shadow Spire.
The Darkness Above
Near the top, the spiraling stairs disappear
into the cloud of Dark Locusts. They will
bite and scratch at intruders (one damage
per round) but will not break the cloud’s
obscuring shape. It is impossible to see
further than a few feet into the dense
swarm, but the locusts can be temporarily
dispersed with a bright enough source of
light.
Pushing through the swarm leads to the
top level of the spire where a large group
of Dark Spawn are digging a jagged tunnel
upward. Huge chunks of rocks bounce and
fall from above. Unlike typical Dark Spawn,
these have been commanded to dig. As long
as the Cloaked Void is nearby, even the sight
of a delicious magical item or the smell of an
enticing spell will not stop their excavation
upward.
The Cloaked Void waits impatiently in the
nearby workshop where it passes time by
studying a half eaten scrying orb. At the
slightest disturbance to the excavation, the
Cloaked Void will burst into the tunnel and
attack.
If the adventurers take too long stopping
the Dark Spawn, they will eventually
tunnel their way into the ruined Halls of
Netherdeep (see Flik Silverpen’s Guide to
the City of Eternal Night, FSG 04) and then
continue to attack the surface.
Continue the adventure at
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Flik Silverpen’s Guide to the Red Growth
(FSG 06)
by JP Coovert © 2022
First Printing January 2022
Thank You
Jacie, Scott, Brandon, Chris and Chris.
And all the patrons that helped make the
Red Growth real.
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