So, I set up a side adventure for two of my players since they

Necromancy collapses, all remains are now appropriately claimed by the earth so no one can raise anything anymore

>>52603328
That makes sense, and I can actually use that for the main plot here.

But I'm really wondering what should happen to the players who chose to side with the Recently Unsealed Dark God of Rot that they signed up with.

>>52603652
They. Rot.

>>52603652
Congratulations on your new miniboss NPCs!

>>52603652
Being blessed by a dark god attracts certain beings with swords that can smite evil.

>>52603652
Use the CoC approach. "Good job guys! Your characters are so far past normal, that they are now NPCs. Make new ones."

>>52603652
Going from a high level here, but necromancy is unnatural, the barbarians are inherently nature oriented, the dark god may not be nice, may not be kind, or even good, but is something that will restore a sense of order, in a very roundabout fucked up way. Even if that sense of order is not asked for.

So give them quests, by little slips of paper, during the main game. If they obey the rot god's orders or whims, they are rewarded, if they do not, they are punished further. The more they buy into the obediance, the further their rewards are physically manifested for all to see. At first they just feel dirty, but they may start to look very pale, and smell bad.

These are things that you dont need to dial in too hard, but mention at camp scenes or have an npc complain about. The party will probably go "lolz stupid dirty barbarians."

Eventually they will have a really fucked up rash, or just look sick. They might have to wear more and more armor to hide what is happening to their bodies.

Eventually...they might have to betray their party, but only if it makes sense from the perspective of obeying a rot god. Maybe they will lead them into service as well, with the above narrative being slowly explained and accepted. Everyone likes free gifts right?

>>52603152
What sort of rewards do you get from a god of rot and decay, because I honestly can't think of anything they can give that you would want.

>>52603328
Maybe that's why the necromancer sealed him up in the first place.

>>52603731
I really like this idea. Especially since one of the two Barbarians didn't make many choices (very low Int and mediocre Wis) and just went along because of those free gifts.

It may even devolve into them trying to convince the others to join them, or trying to find some way to get rid of the corruption planted in their brains.

>>52603776
One got a boost to Int and understands Deep Speech, and a the other got a low tier magic weapon that does poison damage. And magical fungus implanted into their bodies (My Dark Gods are closer to Outer Gods than the main pantheon which are more traditional fantasy deities)

>>52603776
He gives rot and decay. It's his entire thing. Only the demented madmen of his many cults think this is a form of blessing, hence why they are mad, this is heresy and every single one of them has to be purged with searing, radiant light.
Your Barbarians rot. They became the enemy, and the rest of the party needs to purge and cleanse this evil.

>>52603855
There some useful shit in those domains. Control of flies and mushrooms and other shit that breaks things down. Maybe summon some horrible fly-like attendants that work for him. Withering touches. The ability to undermine peoples faith by introducing some spiritual decay. Worthwhile stuff, if you don't mind rotting a little faster than than your body already is.

So, since there is definitely a path to corruption here, my next question is this.

What sort of things would recently awakened Rot God ask of his two new followers beyond just 'kill necromancers and get me some carrion' ?

>>52603855
Fire dieties ofyen give protection from their element. It wouldn't be far fetched to make them resistant to opposing forces of poison/negative energy/disease (not deigned by their patron) checks

They could also gain boons against certain enemy types (plants, organics) or make so wound they inflict festers and cannot be healed

>>52604422
Have them work to overthrow the forces of opposing portfolios (beauty, healing, unlife, growth (can even make this almost "Good" by having them fight chaotic [read: Cancerous] growth)

Calling their enemies Malignancies, Tumors, a Cancer could be flavorful

>>52604422
Fucking up any of the more positive nature gods around is a way. Defile temples, corrupt sacred places, kill harbingers of good fortune. The could infect crops, shit in the town well, give all the young girls divine aids.

>>52604422
He should set them working on raising his profile in ways that won't get them immediately destroyed. I don't doubt that there's some sect of evil (or even neutral) druids that see some positive aspect in this god, as well as some hidden sect of followers that have been worshiping in secret all this time. These two are essentially his top guys and they need to make it knows to any interested parties that the big man is kicking around again.

>>52603152
As >>52603328 points out, a god of rot and decay should be opposed to necromancy, since raising undead stops the cycle of decay and rebirth.

Of course, this isn't the Good God of Rot and Decay. This is a Dark God. He was sealed away for a reason, and now that he's free, he's going to fuck shit up.

Yes, necromancy will stop. But the cycle of rot will speed up, with trees withering and dying and being born anew increasingly fast. Crops will rot away. Giant maggots and other decomposers will roam the countryside.

People will also age faster, specifically the two infected characters. They may gain the power to accelerate the rot of something or age it up, but they themselves have a limited time to live. Give them a timed mission to find a cure or suffer this horrible fate.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=36WEn-9zs1U