Temple of Primordial Evil

GM Note: The name "Temple of Primordial Evil" is the mortals' label. The structure is, at its core, Aerom Latan's home — built by the Mother of Monsters as a permanent seed of her presence in the South Forest.

Origin (~3200 AR)

Built ~3200 AR — the same year the Peace of Terenei established trade stability across the continent. The Mother of Monsters used the window of diplomatic distraction to dispatch Aerom Latan, her child husband, to the South Forest with a permanent anchor.

His purpose: ensure the Mother always has a seed in this region, regardless of mortal agreements.

The communities of Bulb and Scrambledough grew slowly around the temple's strange energies over the following centuries. Bulb was originally an imperial army supply node — a town designed to support armies moving along the Nordwall–Hodoronk trade route. The Mother built an intricate cult religion around the site, and its degenerate lifestyle was quickly embraced by Bulb's transient, army-adjacent population.

Aerom Latan

A Shadow Fey Dragon — Aerom manifests in many forms, but always has flowers growing across his body. He is the child husband of the Mother of Monsters and one of the few entities she has placed on the material plane as a permanent agent.

He is not a true elemental spirit. Most surviving cult documentation misidentifies him as a high elemental power — a misclassification the Mother has never corrected.

Four-Level Structure

Ground Level — Temple Building

The public-facing structure. Large and architecturally imposing; serves as the cult's visible presence and the administrative center for the surrounding settlements.

Level 1 — Earth Temple (Administrative Layer)

Weakest elemental temple in combat terms. Administrative chambers, shared stores, armories — built as a logistics layer for deeper ritual operations.

Level 2 — Elemental Rivalry Layer

Three competing temples: Air, Water, and Fire. Shared but contested spaces include mess halls, research chambers, and ritual rooms. The three cult blocs competed continuously for influence and access to the level below.

Level 3 — Grand Temple of Aerom Latan

Elite priest quarters, libraries, laboratories, servant barracks. The northern section holds Aerom Latan's personal sanctuary and the controlled route to Level 4.

Aerom Latan has remained sealed here since ~4504 AR. One of the four seals has already been broken — the ground-level seal was destroyed ~4700 AR by an adventuring party from Scrambledough who forced the main doors. See The Scrambledough Seven.

Level 4 — The Gate

Access requires the Golden Skull assembled with four elemental gems.

Once per year on Allbirth — the 31st of the tenth month, the Mother of Monsters' high holy day — the gate opens. Historical doctrine: Aerom descends to commune with the Mother, and their union during Allbirth generates the next generation of monsters.

The Sealing (~4504 AR)

Prince Eltram led the final crusading campaign into the temple complex with the goal of sealing Aerom Latan permanently. The cost: by fighting against the terms of a divine compact, the mortal armies forfeited their right to leave. Eltram and his entire host were sealed inside alongside Aerom Latan.

If the seal ever breaks, the compact is void — and Prince Eltram walks free.

Iceflame Occupation (4723 AR)

Iceflame-aligned forces covertly reactivated the temple approximately one year before the current campaign. Occupation depends on subversion, proxy actors, and infernal-adjacent administrative systems.

Temple control is incomplete: legacy mechanisms and seal architecture remain outside Iceflame's full command.

Rumors Under Active Investigation

Excavation networks are extending under River Bonk.
The temple is being repurposed as a continental gateway key.
Iceflame's long-term objective is not territorial retention but ritual-positioning leverage.