Oozing Blob

When you don’t know what kind of monster you want, why not try a loosely defined blob of ooze! How on earth does a character deal with this mess?

Descriptions of a Blob

The blob of ooze expands as it consumes junk (including children) in its path. It is a voracious consumer and its acidic, caustic, toxic composition make it not very delicious to predators.  Nice thing is, you can probably outrun it…

• greasy, oily, gooey, slimy, fuzzy, icky, goopey,
• pulsating, undulating, throbbing, ebbing, flowing, oozing, slithering, dripping,
• large, gigantic, monstrous, vast, wide, colossal,
• green, yellow, pistachio (coloured, not flavoured), mossy, caramel, ochre, pink, midnight, gray, sickly, spotted, mottled, transparent,
• vibrant, dull, glistening, matte, glowing,
• porous, translucent, hollow,
• soft, crusty, spongy, metallic,
• acidic, toxic, caustic, corrosive, evil, electric,
• colloidal, foam, emulsion, sol,
• rotting, stinking, molding, decaying, festering, putrid, smells like death,
• spitting, gurgling, snarling, spluttering, fuming, flaming, spraying,
• demonic, possessed, haunted, animated,
• wretched, bedeviled, besotted, ghastly,

Environments

• dark, dank, musty passages of dungeons, the underground, deep chambers, oubliette,
• temperate rain forest, bog, swamp, bayou, delta, heath, lowland,
• sewers, tunnels, vents, drainage, gutters, downspouts,
• places of the dead: cemetery, barrow mound, ancient sacred grounds, family tomb, catacomb, crypt,
• pits, holes, festering well,
• valleys, ravines, defiles, gullies, gulches, gorge,
• in a crate deep in a ship’s hold, any box marked “Do Not Open,” in a jug of water,
• lands of blight, disease, curses, death, pestilence, evil, corruption,
• mounds, piles,
• places of bad magic, evil sanctums, dens, cultish communes,
• ancient battlefields, sites of terrible pain or anguish (corners of torture chambers), areas haunted by lost souls,
• battle arenas, real cruel gladiator rings, execution pits,
• young planets (primordial ooze), derelict space craft, planets laid waste by radioactive war, post-apocolyptic worlds,
• some layers of hell, the underworld, demons’ haunts, anywhere a devil may leave them behind,
• magma, lava flows, primeval mud, metamorphic molten rock, a spawning pool,
• deep in the hearts of evil men (released in a most distressing manner)
• lands of the lost, hopeless,
• wastelands, barrens, places of blight, disease, pestilence, famine, and death… or a really greasy diner.
• back alley puddle,
• forest road bog, hanging from trees in a dense jungle,
• the attic, at the bottom of grandma’s dead budgie’s cage,

Stuff

• blobs can be in containers:
  • boxes, jars, ewers, urns,
  • coffins, chests, vaults,
  • rotting piles, compost, sewage,
  • chest cavity of a corpse, inside a mummified head,
  • water,
  • in the hollow of a statue,
• blobs may contain all kinds of things they consume in their ooziness:
  • treasure, coins, gems, stones, chains, amulets,
  • weapons, knives, swords, mace, brass knuckles, ray gun, Luger,
  • people, a gnome, a child,
  • skeleton, bones, skull, animal pelt,
  • big rocks, little rocks, gravel, sand, silt, grit, mud,
  • a small car, a cow, a piano, Winibego (in a really big blob), rickshaw (and driver… or their skeleton),
  • a scroll, potion, wand, a magic doodad,
  • tree ornament,
  • hockey puck, frying pan, left shoe, guitar (still in tune),
  • dairy can, fence post, rabbit, pair of fuzzy dice,
  • all those socks you lost in the dryer (that’s where they are!)
  • a pumpkin, leaves, biscotti (still rock hard and edible),
  • tuxedo, suit of armor (rusted), french horn, cast iron stove,
  • tub of lard (still sealed), jar of pickles, wheel of cheese in wax,
  • bag of rubber bands,
  • steel wool, wrench, hammer, screwdriver, saws-all, pipecutter, chainsaw,
  • hairbrush, tooth brush, razor, pair of underwear,
  • fishing net, lobster trap,
  • tarnished silverwear, granny’s china plate collection,
• Stuff Oozing Blobs may spray at you:
  • pus, festering bacteria, infectious slime, diseased mucus,
  • acidic muck, burning, phlegm,
  • venom, poison, numbing gel,
  • alcohol, vinegar,
  • methane,
  • yeast, mold,
  • spikes, tiny needly spines,
  • fire, water, electricity, cold ray, laserbeam,
  • primordial goo,
  • dirt, sand, grit,
  • anything it happens to have consumed (see above)

Oozy actions and effects

• corrode metal, melt metal, electrify metal,
• dissolve leather, fabric, clothing,
• consume wood, rot wood,
• climb, swim, float,
• sweat, steam,
• grab, stretch, grip, adhere to, seize,
• release toxic gas fumes, smoke, spit acid, splutter,
• chew (with a thousand tiny teeth),
• creep, ooze, flow, slime along, slither,
• fit through cracks, seep under the door,
• burn, ignite,
• spit, stream, ooze, spray, explode, burst,
• speak, command, warn,
• intimidate, threaten, rise up,
• turn to vapor then back to liquid, turn solid,
• the ooze may emit a mesmerizing song and before you know it, you’re asleep and the blob is consuming you in its warm embrace.

Cool Notes

• an ooze can be explained scientifically, as in: “the illegitimate child of GMOs,” a biological deformity, a chemical reaction, an alien life form, a bacterial colony,
• an ooze can be rationalized magically as in: the creation of a mad sorcerer, the byproduct of magical activity, side effect of magic,
• an ooze can be the embodiment of evil as in: the collection of all negative thought or dark idea ever in existence come back to plague humankind
• an ooze can grow from strange forces or from simply consuming material or maybe energy
• an oozing blob can be the manifestation of waste from humanity serving as a figurative representation of the nature of consumerism (or whatever)
• think of cool ways that your oozy blob could be destroyed and tie this somehow to its reason of origin:
  • burn it in fire,  expose it to sun,
  • freezing, hardening
  • zap it with a classic ray gun,
  • magical attacks, dispelling its magic, cancelling or destroying its source of magic creation
  • righting the evil that created it, smiting it with divine power, ritual,
  • special scientific concoction needs to be found or made,
  • find its heart in its massive form,
  • blast it into space, teleport it,
  • contain it, cage it, catch it, confine it,
  • talk it down from its anger, tame it, domesticate it,
• an ooze can emit strange fumes that can intoxicate victims before they even realize what is happening (roll 3d6 to see how the vapours work on unsuspecting characters see DICE section for more details)
• an oozing blob can easily split into two or more pieces, each functioning successfully as an independent unit… making them a formidable opponent, indeed.
• a race of ghastly humanoids may find a way to harness the blobs and use them as mounts
• oozing blobs are great creatures to throw into lots of great genres: science fiction, fantasy, horror, B-movies, cult horror,

Developments

• at an appropriate time, a character can step in a smallish puddle of ooze and as it attaches to the character its life in the narrative can begin… imagine the havoc!
• when a character is in a desolate land and believes they’ve found water… why not make it a blob of ooze instead! Yeah, things can get worse!
• an oozy blob can be a simple foe for a character to defeat or it could be an epic monstrosity of monumental importance to your narrative… either could work (and has worked in various fictional representations).
• a great sorcerer was killed and from his ashes rose this embodiment of his evil ways… the Sorcerer’s Blob!
• Rick the Blob, a favorite attraction at the city’s “Zoo of Oddities,” is tired of being a captive and has secretly been planning a revolt (or escape, or kidnapping, or hunger strike).
• a magic powder is given to you and you are told to always keep it dry; one day, of course, you get the powder wet and it begins to reconstitute into a deadly, ever-growing blob! Ya shoulda listened!