Alter Aeon The Great Library

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Note - as with any topic, researchers should question the reliability
and veracity of these texts.  The library's aim is to preserve
documents, not verify accuracy.

AABN:  13784
Title: The Necromarcanorum Volume V: Mummification

 This scroll is made from black leather, rolled around a waxed rod of
darkwood. The text is large and blocky, written with dense white chalk that
is sealed into the leather:

"Mummies were probably the oldest deliberately created undead, and they
account for a large proportion of spontaneously rising undead as well.

Early mummies were produced before the preservation spell was developed.
Corpses were instead kept from rotting by embalming. This process involved
the application of herbal compounds to dessicate the corpse and the removal
of internal organs to prevent bloating from tearing the flesh. Corpses were
often wrapped in specially treated strips of cloth, bark or leather to
prevent further decay.

The special processes used to preserve the corpse made them last much, much
longer than untreated bodies. This provided more time for the natural
processes that result in undead to work. Later, it became common,
especially after the preservation spell became widespread, to create
mummies as tomb guardians. The herbal anti-rotting compounds were replaced
with spell components with affinities to curses. These rituals survive into
modern times. Mummies created using these techniques are hardy, resistant
to magic and can inflict enemies with a barrage of crippling curses and
offensive magic.

Some mummies retain dim memories of their former life, and can employ
skills and spells they once knew.

Mummies sometimes arise with no special preparation, particularly in
dessicating environments such as large salt deposits and extremely arid
deserts. Rarely they may arise in oxygen poor environments that prevent
decay, such as deep in caves or within stagnant bogs."