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Let's Read Threats to the Nentir Vale: Hounds of Ill Omen
Copyright 2011 Wizards of the Coast. This post is part of a series! Click here to see the others.
We’ve already seen a bit of the history of the region known as the Gray Downs in other entries, for the [Barrowhaunts][2] and the [Gray Company][3]. The first tells us it was home to ancient hill clans, and the second tells us it’s also full of Nerathi ruins. This entry provides the missing link.
The Lore
The hill folk who once lived in the Gray Downs were one of the Vale’s indigenous peoples, which means they’ve been here since before recorded history. Now, recorded history isn’t very expansive on our setting, but even if they’re not that ancient, the fact is they were already living here when the first Nerathi expeditions arrived. In their heyday, these hill clans were famous for their formidable hounds, used in both hunting and warfare.
Nerath acted in the predictable manner of all empires, and waged war on the hill folk to annex their land. They soon found themselves fighting a determined opponent, who stayed and fought even after other people such as the Tigerclaw decided to flee to the frigid wilderness north of the Vale. In the end, though numbers won out and the hill folk where mostly annihilated.
Their hounds, however, were far too loyal to let a little thing like death stop them. They stood guard besides the corpses of their masters, and roamed the hills looking to inflict revenge on their killers. This only stopped when the Nerathi built a great barrow to honor the fallen. When the last body was buried, the hounds vanished… mostly. In those those dark nights when the moon looms large in the sky and the gray fog rises over the hills, they emerge to hunt again. Present-day inhabitants of the Vale call them “Hounds of Ill Omen”, because of the manner in which they hunt.
A hound will appear to its intended victim and let loose a baleful howl before vanishing into the fog again. From that point onwards, misfortune will plague the victim in everything they do. As calamity follows calamity, the victim flees in search of anyone who can help. Some believe that begging the gods or even the hounds themselves can save one from death. Most end up caught by the hound after suffering enough, and dragged beneath the earth to the barrows where the hounds’ masters can feast on the poor soul.
Sometimes a howl will echo over the hills, louder and longer than any other. That’s the voice of Bregga, their alpha female, an enormous hound who is rumored to have walked the hills even before the hill folk lived here. The same rumors and legends say she can see into the hearts of mortals, and sends her children to hunt the unjust, possibly seeking retribution for the sins of Nerath. When she howls, she calls her children to raise their masters so that all can hunt together.
The Numbers
We get stats for a typical hound, for Bregga, and for a sample hill folk shade of the sort the hounds can rouse.
Hound of Ill Omen
The typical Hound is a Medium Shadow Beast (Undead) and a Level 7 Soldier with 80 HP. It has Darkvision and a Speed of 8, which means it always catches you. It’s a ghost, so it’s immune to disease and poison and has both Insubstantial and Phasing.
The Hound’s version of Insubstantial makes it take half damage from all attacks except those that deal force or radiant damage. And if it takes radiant damage, the trait shuts down until the end of its next turn. It also projects an Aura of Ill Omen (2). If an enemy inside the aura spends a healing surge, they become slowed for a turn.
As with any dog monster, its primary attack is a Bite, which damages and marks for a turn. It a marked enemy willingly moves away from the hound, it can use Howl of the Pack as an interrupt. This targets the Fortitude of the triggering enemy. On a hit it deals thunder damage and makes the target grant combat advantage for a turn. Pretty nasty if you have other monsters in play who can exploit that.
Once per encounter the hound can use a Howl of Doom, a selective Close Blast 5 which targets Will, deals thunder damage, and inflicts the curse for which the hound is named. Cursed targets take 3 psychic damage whenever they miss every target with an attack. At the end of each extended rest the target can make a DC 16 Religion check to get rid of the curse. After the first failed check, the damage increases to 6. After the second, it increases to 9. And after the third the target dies.
Now, this kinda reminds me of the disease mechanics, but it’s a different thing. Going with the strict reading most 4e monster powers demand, the Religion check must be made by the target and no one else. I suppose allies can help using Aid Another, but they can’t make the check for the victim. Remove Affliction does work on it, since its description says it works on curses, but there’s a chance the party might not have access to it yet since it’s a level 8 ritual. This curse is particularly horrible to non-divine defenders and strikers, since most of their attacks are single-target and they are unlikely to be trained in Religion or have Int as their highest attribute.
Bregga
Some legends say Bregga lived in the Gray Downs since before even the hill folk arrived here. Her ghost is the leader of all the Hounds of Ill Omen, and some of those Religion checks are made as prayers to her to pretty please remove the curse, thank you very much.
Bregga is a Large Shadow Beast (Undead) and has all the same traits as a regular Hound, including her Insubstantial and Aura of Ill Omen. She is a Level 10 Elite Skirmisher with 212 HP.
Her basic bite damages with no riders, and she can also use a Clamping Bite that deals the same damage and allows her to shift half her speed while pulling the target along with her. Drag and Snap lets her use Clamping Bite and Bite against the same target, in that order. Her How of Doom works the same, but with higher base damage and a Religion DC of 18.
As a move action she can use Ghostly Travel to become invisible and move her speed, remaining invisible until the end of her turn. This recharges when she is first bloodied.
Hill Clan Apparition
The shade of a warrior from the ancient hill clans, raised from its grave by the howl of its faithful hounds. It’s a Level 8 Minion Soldier with ground and flight speeds of 6, immunity to disease and poison, and Resist 10 Necrotic.
The apparition is surrounded by the Chill of the Grave, slowing any enemy that starts their turn adjacent to it. Its basic attack is a Shadow Blade dealing physical damage, and it can shout a Call of the Dead as a ranged attack to deal a bit of psychic damage and pull the target up to 4 squares.
They’re minions, so you’ll always run into a small army of them. Their main goal is to disrupt the PC’s formation and bring their squishies closer to the much more dangerous hounds.
Final Impressions
As far as dog monsters go, these are pretty nifty. The lore tying them to the Nentir Vale setting really makes them stand out from the pack, so to speak. The Gray Downs where these hounds live also contain other monsters that interact with them in interesting ways.
They might end up helping the Barrowhaunts, since the latter are cursed to protect the barrows from outsiders. The Barrowhaunts entry even contains a few more minion stat blocks that could represent variant hill folk shades.
Another group that calls the Downs home is Gray Company, which the hounds would absolutely hate, since they claim a direct descent from the people responsible for slaying their masters. Hound and Barrowhaunt attacks might be one reason why Gray Company is having a hard time progressing towards their goal of rebuilding the empire of Nerath.
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Let's Read Threats to the Nentir Vale: Harken's Heart
Copyright 2011 Wizards of the Coast. This post is part of a series! Click here to see the others.
This vast Harken Forest takes up the entirety of the Vale’s southern border, and sprawls northward to completely enclose the barony of Harkenwold. It used to be even vaster, but successive waves of settlers cut it down some, just like it happened with the northern Winterbole forest.
This place is home to many creatures and dangers, though its temperate climate means their character is very different from the frost-aspected Winterbole. This article looks at one of its most important factions.
The Lore
The Vale’s first elves came to live here shortly after their people split from the Eladrin, settling in the Harken Forest. Some of these elves grew fascinated with the primal power of the forest, and formed a group they called Harken’s Heart to worship and protect it.
Harken’s Heart differs from a typical druidic circle in that they consider themselves to have a duty to Harken Forest as opposed to a more general duty to the balance of nature. Their interpretation of what constitutes an attack on the forest is paradoxically much broader than that of a typical druid circle. When war broke out between the treants of Harken and Winterbole forests, Harken’s Heart eagerly joined battle on the side of their “home team”, and behaved in such a ruthless and violent manner during the war that it shocked the independent druids who also lived there. In response to the circle’s behavior, a powerful independent druid named Eyton cast a curse upon the whole circle. The curse severed their connection to the primal spirits and left them powerless.
The druids of Harken’s Heart were dismayed and enraged at this, but their weakened state and their fear of Eyton’s power prevented them from taking direct revenge. Instead, they appealed to Melora, goddess of nature, and asked her to restore their power.
The deity decided to only grant part of their request, for her own mysterious reasons. Today, the druids of Harken’s Heart enjoy the full extent of their power while inside the borders of the forest. This power quickly wanes and disappears once they leave its confines.
In our narrative present, Harken’s Heart is made up of several hundred members, most of which were born into the circle and raised within its culture. They live in small camps scattered all through the forest, with some of them choosing to live alone. Their important structures are made of trees woven together by magic, and are hidden behind natural obstacles and features in the forest.
The leader of Harken’s Heart is known as The Hierophant, and is the group’s top negotiator, judge, arbiter and policymaker. Hierophants rule for life, and appoint their chosen successors. If one dies without a successor, the remaining druids hold an election to choose the next Hierophant.
Some Harken’s Heart druids look for a way to end the curse, while others instead look for a way to expand the boundaries of the forest. The Harken treants are very interested in this as well, and it’s rumored that they’re planning a huge land grab in the near future.
The Numbers
We get several stat blocks for different types of elven druids here. As elves, they all have low-light vision and the Wild Step ability, which lets them ignore difficult terrain when shifting. As druids, they all have Forest Walk and can Change Shape as a minor action take the form of a beast until they use the power again or until they die. Some of their attacks can only be used in beast form, some only in elf form.
Harken’s Heart Acolyte
A young elf who is still undergoing basic training, the Acolyte is a Level 7 Minion Skirmisher that already has all the common traits above. It fights with a Quarterstaff in elf form, and with a Claw in beast form. The claw attack is stronger and allows them to shift 1 square before or after the attack.
Acolytes have every reason to always fight as beasts.
Harken’s Heart Druid
A fully trained druid. This one’s a Level 7 Controller with 78 HP.
In elf form, the druid fights with a Quarterstaff and can cast a Wall of Thorns spell. As the name implies this is one of the very few monster attacks that uses the Wall rules. Creatures caught in the wall when it appears take some immediate and ongoing physical damage (save ends). The wall remains as a zone that counts as difficult terrain for creatures without Forest Walk. Any of these who enters the zone or ends their turn there also takes 5 damage. The spell recharges when the druid is bloodied.
In beast form the druid attacks with a Lunge that deals the same damage as the quarterstaff and lets them slide the target 2 squares as an effect.
In either form the druid can use Entangle, a non-damaging ranged spell that immobilizes (save ends).
Druids have more reason to change shape mid-fight. The beast form’s basic attack is better, but their big spell requires them to be in humanoid form.
Harken’s Heart Defender
Defenders are elite druids who are the first to confront any threats to the forest. They’re also responsible for training the acolytes. Defenders are Level 9 Soldiers with 95 HP.
They have a Quarterstaff basic attack when in humanoid form, but all of their cool maneuvers happen in beast form.
Their Mangle basic attack damages and slows for a turn. They can use a Primal Flurry that attacks enemies in a Close Burst 1 for the same amount of damage and knocks them prone on a hit. If those enemies try to stand up during their next turn, the defender gets to make a free basic attack against them. A miss deals half damage and knocks prone without the possibility of a free attack. This recharges once the defender is bloodied.
Once per encounter they can use Beast’s Pursuit as a move action, shifting their speed to a space adjacent to an enemy and gaining a +2 to hit until the end of their current turn.
Harken’s Heart Hierophant
This entry doesn’t give a specific name and personality to the current Hierophant, so you’re free to do that yourself to fit your current campaign. These stats work whatever their personality is, and can also be repurposed to represent other high-ranking Harken’s Heart druids.
The Hierophant is Level 10 Elite Artillery with the Leader tag and 166 HP. Unlike other druids, its best powers can only be used in humanoid form.
Their only basic attack is the Quarterstaff. At range they can attack with Earth Slam spells, which deal physical damage and can knock the target prone on a critical hit. They can also cast Lightning Storm spells (recharge 5+) which attack an area, deal heavy lightning damage, inflict ongoing thunder damage, and create a zone that deals lightning damage to those caught inside. Quite powerful!
The beast form is reserved for when the Hierophant is surrounded and needs to make a Frenzied Escape. This attacks enemies in a Close Burst 1, deals heavy immediate and ongoing physical damage, and lets the druid shift its speed to a space not adjacent to any enemies, gaining +4 to all defenses during this movement (in order to dodge PC defender attacks).
Finally, the Guardian of the Forest minor action can be used in any form. This non-damaging attack has a range of 20 squares, and on a hit it makes the target be marked by an ally of the Hierophant that’s also within 20 squares of it.
Final Impressions
A nice implementation of the classic concept of angry druids, with a surprisingly low amount of entangling vine effects in play. They’re extremists, so even nature-attuned PCs might get into conflict with them. The identity of the Hierophant being left as an exercise for the reader makes it easy to play stories where a hard-liner Hierophant gets replaced by a moderate or vice-versa, causing a sudden switch in the circle’s campaign role.
The Winterbole-Harken treant war is an important setting element that will appear here again. It affects not only the treants themselves but also factions allied to both sides. On the Winterbole side, open war is certain to bring the Frost Witches into the conflict, and either them or the Winterbole treants themselves might contrive a way to bring Bitterstrike in.
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Let's Read Threats to the Nentir Vale: Gray Company
Copyright 2011 Wizards of the Coast. This post is part of a series! Click here to see the others.
The Gray Company are a new, setting-specific faction.
The Lore
As far as history goes, the fall of Nerath is still a relatively recent event. Many humans alive today likely have a great-grandparent who was alive during the final days of that empire. Members of longer-lived species like elves, dwarves and eladrin might even have witnessed those days themselves.
So it’s no wonder that Nerath has it own share of revivalists who want to rebuild it to fit the glorious image in their head. In the Nentir Vale, the most prominent of those groups is known as the Gray Company. Many people in the Vale consider them nothing more than a well-equipped gang of bandits, but its members believe themselves to be working towards the rebirth of their glorious empire. Their singular focus on this goal makes them a dour and humorless bunch, seemingly always covered with the dust of ages even when their equipment is new.
The Company is made up primarily of humans, who were the dominant people of Nerath. It is led by one Halvath Cormarrin, a man who claims to be a scion of Nerath’s royal line. It recruits people from across the Nentir Vale, spreading stories of the glories of the old empire and inviting those most fascinated by them to join up. Once a recruit joins up, they’re in for life. Deserters are hunted down, executed by hanging, and left on display on crossroads, as the old law dictates.
The Company’s HQ is located in the Gray Downs, a region thick with Nerathi ruins and artifacts. Much of their time and effort is spent exploring these ruins and recovering these artifacts which they consider theirs by right. Cormarrin is particularly interested in finding old pieces of regalia like the Sword of Nerath and the Threefold Crown, since possessing them would increase the legitimacy of his claim.
Anyone who steals these objects (whether from Company itself or from the ruins they consider their territory) is ruthlessly pursued. Particularly resourceful thieves are invited to join up and lend their skills to the Company’s cause. Others, including those who refuse the invitation, are executed in manners prescribed by old Nerathi law.
Company members are trained, equipped and organized to the standards of the Nerathi military, or as close as Cormarrin can manage those. This means they also count plenty of battle mages among their number. Their magic specializes in controlling the pervasive mist of the Gray Downs, with a large side order of artifice (to get those recovered magic items working again) and necromancy (to get those old fallen heroes of Nerath working again).
Other chapters of the Gray Company have begun appearing in other regions of the Vale, each of them led by a self-proclaimed prince of old Nerath. If these groups all got together under one banner, they could become a formidable army with a real chance of achieving their goal… but they feud with each other as much or more as they fight their actual enemies, so their overall progress remains minimal. As some jokers say, this too is a grand Nerathi tradition.
The Numbers
Gray Company members are all in the late Heroic Tier, meaning they haven’t quite broken through to “regional power” status. All of the stat blocks here represent humans, which make up the majority of their soldiers.
Their signature trait is Grim Solidarity. If someone with this trait starts their turn adjacent to another creature with this trait, they can make a saving throw against one effect that a save can end. All Company members have this, which means they’re difficult to debuff when in formation.
Gray Company Recruit
Recruits joined relatively recent, so their training and gear is not yet up to the standards of the Company. They already have Grim Solidarity, though. They’re Level 7 Minion Artillery armed with short swords and short bows. If they score a critical hit, Inspired Fervor lets them make a free basic attack against the same enemy with a +2 bonus to hit.
Gray Company Soldier
A veteran who earned the right to carry a sword of genuine Nerathi make. Armored in plate, he’s a Level 7 Soldier with 80 HP. His basic attack with that Ancient Longsword has no riders, but whenever an adjacent enemy makes an attack that doesn’t include the veteran as a target, he can use Strike of the Ancient Blade to make a free sword attack against them that also pushes the enemy and knocks it prone.
If an ally of the soldier drops to 0 HP within 5 squares of him, he can react For the Glory of Old Nerath (encounter) and make an attack in a Close Burst 1 that deals more damage than a basic strike and inflicts 5 ongoing damage (save ends).
Gray Company Fallen Hero
Either an actual Nerathi soldier whose body was exhumed and reanimated, or a modern day Gray Company veteran who died in combat and was “re-upped” for a second term of service. In either case, this results in a sapient undead revenant who likely has no memory of its previous self. It’s a Level 6 Brute with 89 HP. It has Grim Solidarity, Darkvision and the standard undead traits (immune to poison and disease, resistant to necrotic, vulnerable to radiant).
The fallen hero’s Longsword deals necrotic damage and inflicts Vulnerable 5 Necrotic for a turn. It can invoke Nerath’s Vengeance to make a sword attack against every adjacent enemy, and this recharges once it’s bloodied.
Gray Company Mist Mage
Mist mages are responsible for getting those old magical items (and Fallen Heroes) back into working order. In combat, they use spells with a cold and mist theme, which goes well with the environment of the Gray Downs.
Mist mages are Level 9 Controllers with 95 HP. They have Resist Cold 5. They use Ice Daggers in melee, which deal cold damage and slow for a turn on a hit. They can also summon Misty Tendrils to attack enemies in a Close Blast 3 that deals cold damage on a hit and slides 1 square as an effect.
Once per encounter they can create a zone of Gray Mist (area 2 within 10 squares). Any creature that ends its turn in the mist takes a -2 penalty to attacks and is slowed for a turn.
They can also use a Freeze Mist spell as a minor action, which targets a slowed creature and immobilizes them for a turn on a hit.
Mist mages will likely start the fight by laying down Gray Mist, and then use Misty Tendrils to herd the PCs into the zone. They will then use Freeze Mist to keep these PCs immobilized as their buddies move in for the kill. Note that, as controller monsters, they’re quite capable of bringing the damage themselves.
Halvath Cormarrin
The leader of the Gray Company is a Level 8 Elite Brute with the Leader tag and 214 HP. In addition to having Grim Solidarity, he can exhort his underlings to fight Until the Last Breath, which acts as an Aura 5 that allows allies inside to make one last free attack when they drop to 0 HP.
Cormarrin wields an Ancient Rune Flail and can make Double Attacks with it. He can also use swing it around and have the Rune Flail’s Arc attack everyone in a Close Burst 1. A hit deals the same damage as a basic attack, pushes the target 1 square, and knocks it prone. A miss deals half damage and pushes 1 square. Good move to escape being surrounded.
Once per encounter, Cormarrin can use Cry of Glory to turn a normal hit by an ally within 10 squares into a critical.
Final Impressions
Like Dythan’s Legion, the Gray Company is a faction modeled after the army of a fallen empire whose main goal lies in the restoration of that empire. The Legion can more than match them man-for-man, but the Company probably has more soldiers, particularly if you tally all the different chapters together. They might skirmish near the shores of Lake Nen.
Other possible sources of conflict for the Company include the Barrowhaunts, who probably were Nerathi when alive, and also claim the Gray Downs as their territory. Other interesting monsters also make their home there, as we’ll soon see.
Ironically, if Dythan’s Legion ever decides the Gray Company is a threat that must be eliminated, the resulting large-scale confrontation is probably going to unite the Company’s disparate chapters around a common enemy and make that assessment into a self-fulfilling prophecy. As it is, I’m sure many of the Company’s “princes”, Cormarrin chief among them, would just love to hire the Gravelstoke family to help secure their claim as the true heir to Nerath. Whether the Family ever takes one of them up on the offer will depend on what you want for your campaign.
A truly unified Gray Company would finally become the regional power they want to be, and this might merit bumping their levels up to the Paragon tier. Do the PCs accept this new order, or to they fight it?
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Let's Read Threats to the Nentir Vale: Gravelstoke Family
Copyright 2011 Wizards of the Coast. This post is part of a series! Click here to see the others.
The Gravelstokes are a new threat with very specific ties to the Nentir Vale setting. They also serve as a reminder that Nerath wasn’t all sunshine and roses.
The Lore
The Gravelstokes used to be one of the most prominent noble families in old Nerath. They frequented the highest courts, had the ear of the royal family, and had holdings spread through all corners of the empire. The time of strife and backstabbing that followed the fall of Nerath’s government saw their fortunes and household greatly diminished. Despite paying such a heavy cost to end the family’s old rivalries, it managed to keep its deepest and darkest secret: all of that prestige and money they had during Nerath’s heyday came from their service to the Crown as assassins. One of the reasons they fell was because they no longer had a benefactor to support their work.
Their patriarch at the time, Lord Andrew Gravelstoke, retired to his last holdings in the remote Nentir Vale and took most of his surviving relatives with him. There he eventually passed and left his children to squander the last of the family fortune. All that remains is their bleak stone mansion in the Barony of Harkenwold, and a modest summer retreat just outside of Fallcrest.
The current patriarch is Andrew’s grandson Xander. After decades of bickering has managed to unite most of the family behind the singular purpose of recovering their old prestige and fortune. And they intend to do that by taking up the old family trade: murdering people.
Xander has been making contact with the family’s old business partners, former rivals, and anyone who is in need of a spot of murder to let them know the Gravelstokes are once again for hire. They’ve kept the old family techniques alive and even improved on them, so the quality of their service is assured.
The family’s main field operatives are Xander himself, his three younger siblings, and his son. Xander also takes counsel from his uncle Barin and his widowed sister-in-law Lenore. His young wife Regan is attractive, demure, and knows how to keep a secret, but doesn’t have any direct involvement in the “business”. She’s Xander’s third wife: the first two failed to meet his approval and suffered convenient accidents.
The siblings are named Mikus, Tovin, and Alesia. Mikus and Tovin are twins, and the trio is inseparable. They go everywhere together, whether on a job or just traveling for fun. There are dark rumors floating around about the carnality of their relationship and its “debased offspring”, but in a surprising twist for such a heavily Gothic Horror family, these rumors are all false. They are however competent and ruthless assassins.
Xander’s son Vincent is more of a serial killer than an assassin, an anti-social recluse who is very particular about whom he chooses to kill. Xander is at a bit of a loss about what to do with him, since this behavior is bad for business.
The Numbers
We get stats for all combatant Gravelstokes here. They’re all early to mid-Paragon threats, which likely means their customers are the kind of people who have designs on the whole of the Vale.
The Gravelstokes’ special training gives them several advantages over typical humans. They all have Darkvision, and they all know their signature technique named Stone Cold Killer.
Any creature killed by a Gravelstoke-trained assassin is petrified and cannot be raised from the dead while they remain that way. The killer can end this petrification by touching the victim and willing them restored, or someone else can do it by sprinkling a few drops of the killer’s blood on the statue. A restored victim is still dead, of course, but now they can be returned to life with a Raise Dead ritual.
Vincent Gravelstoke
Vincent’s tactics in a fight mirror his social behavior: he lurks at the edges and only steps in when a good opportunity for murder presents itself. He’s a Level 12 Lurker with 90 HP. His Poisoned Rapier does necrotic and poison damage, and if the attack is made with combat advantage it also inflicts 10 ongoing damage (save ends).
He can also perform a Shadow Strike, a standard action which removes him from play until the start of his next turn. At that time, he reappears within 10 squares of his previous position and can perform a rapier attack that deals heavy physical damage and prevents the target from spending healing surges (save ends). It does half damage on a miss.
If pressed, Vincent can Fade Into the Shadows as a minor action. This encounter power makes him insubstantial and grants partial concealment until the start of his next turn. The effect ends early if he attacks, or if he suffers radiant damage.
Finally, Vincent’s fencing skill lets him Parry melee attacks as an at-will interrupt that grants him +4 to all defenses against the attack.
Tovin Gravelstoke
One of the twins, Tovin is a deadly sniper. He’s Level 13 Artillery with 96 HP. He wields a Crossbow of Dread whose basic attacks grant him a +4 damage bonus against the target until the end of his next turn. Some of his bolts are Poisoned Shot (recharge 5+), doing the same damage as the basic attack and inflicting 10 ongoing necrotic and poison damage (save ends). The target also becomes immobilized after the first failed save, and after the second both effects are replaced with unconsciousness (save ends).
If hit in melee, Tovin can use Shadow Escape (encounter) as a reaction to deal 5 necrotic damage to the attacker and teleport 5 squares. If he can’t escape, he’ll fight with his Dagger of Death, whose attacks deal necrotic damage.
Mikus Gravelstoke
The other twin is much more fond of melee combat. He’s a Level 13 Soldier with 128 HP. His greatsword deals physical damage and marks for a turn. If a marked enemy within 5 squares of Mikus makes an attack that doesn’t include him as a target, he can use Shadow’s Curse to deal an automatic 10 necrotic damage to them, ignoring all resistances and immunities.
He can also use a spell named Incite The Blood, a selective Close Burst 3 that pulls targets 2 squares towards him and lets him make a strong melee attack against each one. In other words, it’s a goth version of Come and Get It.
Alesia Gravelstoke
Alesia is a bit older than the twins, but is still their steadfast sister and friend. She’s a Level 14 Controller with 140 HP. Her weapon of choice is a Bewildering Chakram that can be used for both melee and ranged attacks. An enemy hit by either takes 5 extra psychic damage for each square they move during their next turn. When used as a thrown weapon, the chakram returns to Alesia’s hand after the attack.
She can also perform a Reeling Chakram attack (recharges when first bloodied). This does about double damage, half on a miss, and also pushes the target 2 squares and knocks them prone as an effect. Plus she knows enough magic to cast a Toxic Tendrils spell (Area 2 within 10, recharge 5+), which deals necrotic and poison damage and slows (save ends).
Xander Gravelstoke
The patriarch of the family, and its most deadly combatant. Xander is a Level 16 Elite Skirmisher with the Leader tag and 304 HP. He wields paired short swords in a fight. The basic sword attack deals physical damage and slides the target 1 square. Xander can also Lunge (recharge 5+) which lets him shift up to half his speed before the attack and deals increased damage. Both attacks ignore 10 points of resistance, which is only likely to come up against targets that have Resist All since what I call “physical” damage is actually untyped.
Once per encounter Xander can use a Shadow Step to teleport 5 squares and gain partial concealment for a turn.
Xander’s minor actions are where his Leaderly and Elite-y maneuvers are. Off-Hand Swipe lets him shift 2 squares and then make a sword attack that deals slightly less damage than a basic one. Combining this with the basic attack lets Xander efficiently herd PCs. Once per encounter he can use Quick Rally to affect all allies within 3 squares. Affected allies can shift 2 squares and make a melee basic attack, though each of them must attack a different creature.
Final Impressions
Like the Barrowhaunts, the Gravelstokes are a party of Evil NPCs that pair very well with each other. Having one of the PCs’ enemies hire them to kill the PCs is the most obvious way to include them in the adventure, though there are other ways that can be as or more fun.
You might, for example, add them to your campaign much earlier, still in the early Heroic Tier, as a source of ominous foreshadowing. They do have a summer estate in Fallcrest where they can go to pose as slightly eccentric nobles while Xander and Uncle Barin negotiate new contracts. It’s also possible to have a Heroic Tier murder mystery where the victim turned to stone after death. The PCs might not be able to determine the identity of the actual killer beyond “a mysterious hired assassin”, and then the goal becomes finding the mastermind.
The family is not really interested in Nerath as an ideal - they care only about regaining their own prestige and wealth. That could happen in a reborn Nerath, or it could happen in an empire by any other name. So they might consider any of the “revivalist” factions as prospective clients or as deluded upstarts depending on how deep their purses are.
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Let's Read Threats to the Nentir Vale: Frost Witches
Copyright 2011 Wizards of the Coast. This post is part of a series! Click here to see the others.
This is another Vale-specific faction, and a cool one.
The Lore
The Winterbole forest takes up nearly the entire northern edge of the Vale. This snowy conifer forest is home to several different factions that exist in uneasy equilibrium, and the Frost Witches are one of the most powerful.
The Witches worship the primordial Cryonax, one of the Evil Elemental Princes, but no one outside their group knows about this. To most other inhabitants of the Vale they’re “merely” scary forest witches who manipulate and terrify others for their own benefit.
The Frost Witches count elves, humans, harpies and gnomes among their number. Every one of them knows how to use magic, and the vast majority are female. They increase their numbers mostly through active recruiting, which might mean kidnapping children from communities bordering the woods as often as it means inducting consenting adults into the coven. Their leader is the elf witch Clenderi, which rules the group with absolute authority second only to Cryonax himself.
The Witches are spread out through the whole Winterbole forest, in scattered huts housing either lone individuals or small groups of less than half a dozen. Their central headquarters is known simply as “Cold Camp”, and it’s important not only because it’s Clenderi’s home but also because it houses the source of their power, an artifact known as the Cold Cauldron.
The Cauldron is entirely made of ice, and a frozen flame burns eternally underneath it. Standing too close to it is hazardous to anyone who’s not a Witch, and it causes a wide area around itself to be covered in frost.
The Witches have no true friends outside their own group. Any alliances they make with others are opportunistic and likely to be temporary. They are absolutely willing to turn on these allies if circumstances change.
The Tigerclaw barbarians who also live in the Winterbole forest have been burned by this enough times that they now attempt to kill any Frost Witches they meet on sight. The Witches are wary around their territory but don’t consider them a serious threat. They maintain much better relations with the Winterbole treants, and are engaging on a subtle campaign of manipulation against the dragon Bitterstrike, intending to eventually convert her to the worship of Cryonax.
The Numbers
We start off with stats for the Cauldron, which will be relevant to any battle that happens inside Cold Camp. It’s 6 feet in diameter, so you could say it’s Large. Rules-wise it counts as an indestructible terrain feature, emitting an aura of Icy Flames (2) that deals cold damage to any enemy of the Witches who ends their turn inside. It also turns the terrain inside the whole of Cold Camp into Frozen Ground, which is difficult terrain for anyone without Ice Walk.
As you might expect, all stat blocks in this entry have Ice Walk and a lot of cold magic powers, along with resistance to cold and a vulnerability to fire. They also retain their racial traits, if any.
Icicle Swarm
This is a Medium swarm of Tiny, sharp ice elementals that the Witches known how to summon and control. It’s a Level 6 Skirmisher with 68 HP and all the standard swarm traits. Their Swarm Attack aura deals 5 cold damage to enemies inside, and their basic attack is an Icicle Stab that deals cold damage, allows them to shift 2 squares before or after the attack, and immobilizes on a critical hit (save ends).
Frost Witch
A typical member of the group. This one is human, but you can make her an elf or gnome by adding the proper traits. She’s a Level 8 Controller with 87 HP. She projects a Frost Aura (1) that makes enemies inside vulnerable 5 to cold. If the enemy was resistant to cold, this reduces their resistance, otherwise it increases any cold damage they suffer as normal.
The witch fights in melee with a Frost Staff that deals cold damage and slides 2 squares on a hit. At range she uses a Snow Blindness spell that deals cold and radiant damage. Cold resistance alone won’t protect you from it! Targets hit by the spell can’t see anything further than 3 squares away (save ends).
Once per encounter she can cast an Icy Blast (close blast 5) which deals cold damage, half on a miss, and turns the affected area into a zone of difficult terrain. This lasts a turn but can be sustained with minor actions.
Frost Witch Harpy
Harpy members tend to be a little stronger than the others, and their cold magic is geared towards enhancing their natural powers. They’re Level 12 Controllers with 123 HP. They add thunder resistance to the standard Frost Witch traits, and can fly with a speed of 8 (clumsy). Their Frost Aura has a radius of 2. They fight with Frost Claws that do cold damage, ranged Icy Stares that do cold damage and slow, and a Chilling Screech encounter power that hits a Close Burst 2, does cold and thunder damage, and if the target was slowed or immobilized also inflicts ongoing 10 cold damage (save ends).
They’re going to wait to use the screech once multiple players are slowed by their stare, or by their allies’ powers.
Frozen Cauldron Guardian
These elementals are made of frozen mist, and as their name implies they hang around the Cauldron to protect it from thieves and intruders. They’re Level 15 Brutes with 179 HP. Despite its misty look. Its diffuse nature makes it hard to hurt but that is represented by its high level and HP total - the creature is not insubstantial.
The guardian’s basic attack is called Cold Snap. It deals cold damage and causes the target to fall prone. It can also expand itself temporarily for a Enveloping Chill attack (recharge 4+), a Close Burst 1 that deals a bit less cold damage and knocks prone. It also has an extra rider: targets hit by the attack take ongoing 10 cold damage and are unable to stand up (save ends both).
Anyone fighting these things will stay prone for most of the fight, which makes every PC’s job more difficult. They pair really well with melee monsters that can exploit combat advantage.
Clenderi
The leader of the Frost Witches is probably one of the most powerful individuals in the Vale. Any fight against her will likely take place near the Frozen Cauldron, so she can expect help from a bunch of Guardians and any other high-ranking witches the GM cares to stat up.
Clenderi is an elf, and a Level 18 Elite Controller with the Leader tag and 344 HP. She projects a Frost Aura that inflicts Vulnerable 5 Cold on any enemies while they’re inside. She also has the usual elven Wild Step that lets her ignore difficult terrain when she shifts. She already ignores ice-based terrain anyway due to Ice Walk, but it’s also hard to restrict her movement in other ways. She can also benefit from Elven Accuracy once per encounter, which lets her reroll an attack roll that she dislikes and take the second result. In practical terms, she can reroll an attack she missed.
Clenderi’s Frost Staff basic attack works like that of the typical frost witch, dealing cold damage and sliding 2 squares. Her Icy Glare is an at-will ranged attack that deals cold damage and immobilizes. She can cast a Wind of Winter spell (recharge 5+) that deals cold damage in a selectice Area Burst 2 and creates a zone of icy wind that lasts for a turn. This is difficult terrain to creatures without ice walk, and allows Clenderi’s allies who are inside to spend a move action to teleport 10 squares to a space outside the zone.
Her ultimate technique is the Frostfall encounter power, a Close Blast 3 that deals cold damage and turns victims to ice! This is equivalent to being petrified, and is a (save ends) condition. On a miss, the target takes half damage and is restrained for a turn.
All of her spells target Fortitude, so most of the party’s squishies are going to be especially vulnerable to them.
Final Impressions
The greatest thing about the Frost Witches are their interactions with the other factions in the Winterbole Forest. The basic idea of an ice cult conspiring to take over the world really comes alive when you factor in those interactions and can see how they actually interact with the world around them.
If you need more Frost Witch stat blocks, there’s one back in the Bitterstrike entry for a Level 12 witch.
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