Necrum

Necrum is an ancient Mudokon necropolis in Eastern Mudos. It has since then been invaded by the Magog Cartel, who are excavating the sacred grounds as a source of bones for SoulStorm Brew. Necrum appears in Oddworld: Abe's Exoddus and its re-imagining Oddworld: Soulstorm.

Oddworld: Abe's Exoddus[]

For centuries, Necrum served as a holy resting place for the Mudokon race, as well as a domicile for the Mudomo and Mudanchee tribes. However, this sacred purpose was violated when a Glukkon organization known as the Magog Cartel established Necrum Mines, sending Mudokons who had their eyes stitched shut there to mine out bones. The Mudokons were blinded so that they neither knew what they were digging up or why. Displeased by the Glukkons deeds, three ancient Mudokon spirits known as the Three Weirdos/Those Guys Who Are Now Dead visited the Mudokon messiah, Abe, in a dream and begged for him to save Necrum so they could resume their peaceful slumber.

Abe took a group of his friends and infiltrated the mines. When his friends became addicted to Soulstorm Brew, Abe realized why the Glukkons were digging up Mudokon bones: bones are a key ingredient of the brew. Continuing through the shafts, Abe destroyed a decent part of the mines by over-loading the boilers, accidentally breaking into the Necrum Jungle in the process. After being informed of the plights of the spirits in the vaults of the great tribes, Abe entered the sacred halls of the Mudomo and the Mudanchee, undid the Ghost Traps and put the spirits of the dead to peace. As a reward, he was blessed with the ability to cure sick Mudokons through an ancient chant. This allowed him to cure his friends and, with their help, the way to FeeCo Depot was opened.

Exterior[]

The Necrum Mines exterior consists of a mountainous castle-like structure. Towering statues of Mudokon warriors stand at the edge of the building, obviously not having been touched by the Glukkons in their effort to open the mines. Two FeeCo Depot railway lines, constructed by the Magog Cartel to transfer resources in and out of the mines, run into the base of the structure. The entire complex is surrounded by the vast desert that covers the middle of Eastern Mudos.

Interior[]

The interior of the mining site is built up of numerous caverns, tunnels, and shafts. Huge, non-natural items line the walls and roofs of these caves, including lights and scaffolding. 75 Mudokon employees are posted throughout the mines, along with many slig units. The Mine Cars are located deep within the site and are used by Abe as a way of easily traversing the tunnels while being safe from anything that would otherwise be a threat (sligs, mines, etc.). Hidden at the centre of the site is the Necrum Jungle, a place which houses the sacred vaults of the revered Mudomo and Mudanchee Tribes.

Locations[]

Indigenous Tribes[]

Mudomo (Extinct)
Mudanchee (Extinct)
Mudokon Undead (Mudombies) (Mentioned Only)

Levels[]

Oddworld: Soulstorm[]

In Soulstorm, Necrum serves the same purpose, both for the Mudokons who used to bury their dead, and the Glukkons who steal their bones. However, no Mudokons working there appear to have had their eyes stitched shut, as no effort is made to keep the Magog Cartel's operation a secret. This has led to Necrum gaining a uniquely terrible reputation among Mudokons as the place "nobody want to go". While there appears to be no oasis within, there is a secret hiding within the depths of this ancient site: the Necrum Sanctum. This sacred place holds the Keepers, the ones who keep the true history of the Mudokons in spite of the lies that the Glukkons constructed. The current mining operation is run by the Bone Baron Morguer, who, unlike Director Phleg, appears to be of equal (if not greater) status than Molluck.

At the start of Soulstorm, a lone worker escapes the mines with a map and an amulet, searching for Abe in order to inform him of the threat to Mudokon kind that Soulstorm Brew possessed. Along the way he was hounded by the Necrum security Sligs, and suffered a bullet wound to the stomach along the way. He unintentionally led them to the outer section of the Monsaic Lines, where Abe and the former employees of Rupture Farms were hidden. While the messenger collapsed just outside these sacred caves, he managed to succeed in his purpose of giving Abe both the map and amulet.

Later on, after the de-activation of the Slig Barracks Comm Tower, Abe began his infiltration of Necrum. At this time, Baron Morguer became alerted to the rumours of the rebellion, and began to attempt a discussion with the Brewmaster. Abe snuck his way into the core of Necrum, where he found the Sanctum and the current Keeper. The Keeper informed Abe of the purpose of the Sanctum, and well as kicking him down into the depths to face the Sleeches. Abe returned to the altar within the Sanctum, where he was gifted the knowledge of the Mudokon's true history, his chest scar, and the ability to use Shrykull once again. At this time, the Necrum command became aware of Abe presence, and hid all employees within their holding cells. Abe freed most of workers during his quest, leading them to board the train with him as he left for FeeCo Depot.

Exterior[]

While the exterior is never seen in game, concept art indicates that the site has a circular wall surrounding the caves. Plenty of Mudanchee grave lie outside, as well as the bird statues elsewhere found within the Sanctum.

Interior[]

Necrum is separated into several sections that have different purposes.

Primary Sector[]

While this sector has areas that are used for bone mining, most of it has already been stripped of all useful resources. If mining equipment is used, it's used to create more space for transportation and administration equipment. At the very top layer is the train platform and security check, where goods being shipped to or from Necrum are managed and screened. A layer down is the upper mine and lower mine; the only key distinction between the two layers is how large the mining equipment appears. Below that is the bone processing zone, where boilers and pressure systems are used to make the bones useable by Soulstorm Brewery and other such facilities. Below that is the heavily guarded entrance to the Deep Mines.

Deep Mines[]

This sector is where most of the mining work is done, where the largest mining equipment is used, and where most of the workplace fatalities happen. It is split into three levels, each needed one or two power stations to keep the system running. Produce Pounders are frequently used to relieve pressure, prevent passage through an area, or to flatten by-products of the mining process. Even deeper that level 3 is the restricted area, which is heavily guarded and under investigation, due a noticeable number of Mudokons escaping into the winding tunnels below.

The Sanctum[]

In the lowest depths of Necrum is the Sanctum, a sacred hall filled with the mummified remains of dead Mudokons, and one elderly female Mudokon. This is the grounds of the Keepers, a Mudokon class that keeps the memories of what happened to the Mudokon people. The main chamber has walls made of hexagonal structures containing the mummified Keepers, while the floor is covered in a lake of honey. Beneath the main chamber are the catacombs, infested with Sleeches. They guard the Fragon's Eye, a relic that allows Mudokons to receive the knowledge held by the Keepers.

The Keepers use the lake of honey as a means to measure the spiritual and ecological health of Oddworld. The better the bees of Necrum are doing, the more honey is produced, and the tide of the lake rises, indicating good health. The bees are heavily affected by pollution, meaning that the more pollution there is, the lower the tide will be. The Keepers specifically constructed the main hall so that when the fate of all Mudokons hanged in the balance, the face of the one known as Abe would be revealed, as well as the altar needed to give him the information he needed.^[1]

Prison Silo[]

On the same level as the Primary Sector are the silos. Once used to store bones to be shipped off to Bonewerkz, the movement of bone processing to Necrum itself has meant the silos were re-purposed into labor holding cells. A train platform at the top of silos allows for Mudokon workers to be easily shipped to Necrum. At maximum capacity, these silos can hold over 400 mudokon workers. Due to the risk of a riot leading to a mass breakout, these silos are heavily guarded.

Levels[]

Appearances[]

Triva[]

Necrum is derived from the Greek prefix, necro-, which means death.
Necrum's architecture was inspired by the ancient Aztecs and Mayans.
Lorne Lanning has stated that Necrum is one of the oldest Mudokon structures, existing long before the great tribes were formed as a place for Mudokons to bring their honourable dead.
The Necrum Sanctum introduced in Oddworld: Soulstorm may be a development of an unused concept for Necrum in Abe's Exoddus. The "Temple of Souls" would have contained "Memory Stones" that marked the site of a Mudokon's grave and told of their good deeds, with larger stones indicating a more honorable life. These memory stones may have been developed into the Necrum Keepers archiving the history within their literal memories through mummification.