Mallus

Mallus
Basic Information
Race	Slime creature Formerly: Human
Dates
Died	1372 DR Gradually killed by olive slime infection
Destroyed	1372 DR Slime creature form destroyed by Devlin
Rules Information
2nd Edition Statistics
Class	Fighter

Mallus was a tall human fighter in the late 14^th century DR who died while on an expedition in the Shining Sea after becoming infected by olive slimes.

History

In the Year of Wild Magic, 1372 DR, sometime around the month of Flamerule, a group of eccentric entertainers, entrepreneurs, and scientists embarked upon a colonizing expedition to an island they discovered in the Shining Sea off the coast of Chult, which they dubbed the "Forgotten Island". Led by a charismatic Waukeenar priest named Devlin, they sought to create a tourist attraction on the isle that would attract people from all across the Realms. Three months later, things began to go awry for the expedition.

On Marpenoth 11, five velociraptors infected with olive slimes attacked the campsite's messhall. The group managed to slay them all, but not without Mallus becoming injured and his fellow fighter Argus dying. Unbeknownst to the group, Mallus had become infected by the velociraptors with olive slime and would gradually infect all but Devlin. Sailing off the island began to be considered, but could not be pursued as heavy storms kept everyone in the campsite over Marpenoth 13 and 14. On the 14^th, well before dawn, Devlin observed Mallus devouring a day's worth of rations in the camp's kitchen. He later expressed in his diary that he felt Mallus had gone insane, but attributed it to possibly being a fever. When the storms finally let up on Marpenoth 16, the group went to the docks and discovered their ships were wrecked, thus stranding them on the island. All members of the crew were dejected by this turn of events, though Mallus was strangely calm over the matter.

The next day, it was noted by Devlin that Mallus had stopped sleeping and had spread his condition to Ledro Kile, and he had observed them together eating a dinosaur raw in the center of camp. Surmising that Mallus had likely spread his malady to everyone that shared the barracks, Devlin barred his villa door. The next morning, Marpenoth 18, Devlin looked out his window to find that Mallus had fully metamorphosed into a slime creature—his once handsome features replaced with a spongy, green substance. Recognizing that Mallus had lost his humanity, Devlin surmised it would only be a matter of time before he was infected as well. The rest of the camp recognized that Mallus had physically changed in some manner, but were too deluded by their own infections to be put off by it. Mallus went on to tell them all that Devlin had gone insane, before proceeding to burn most of the group's magic items at the camp's trashpit.

On the night of Marpenoth 19, Devlin snuck into the barracks and engaged the transformed Mallus in battle, who at that point only had parts of his skeleton remaining. After killing Mallus, Devlin proceed to murder everyone else in the barracks while they were in their beds. Examining their bodies, Devlin found bits of olive slime on all, confirming his suspicions. Devlin worked to scrape the ooze off all but Mallus, then burned the scrapings in a wicker basket before proceeding to burn the bodies of everyone inside the barracks. Before hanging himself the next day, Mallus's name and the names of the rest of the expedition crew would be recorded by Devlin in the last entry of his diary.

Appendix

Appearances

Organized Play & Licensed Adventures

A Land Remembered