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Let's Read Threats to the Nentir Vale: Peryton
Copyright 2011 Wizards of the Coast. This post is part of a series! Click here to see the others.
It’s possible perytons appeared in previous editions, but this is the first time I remember seeing them. I think they might be based in real-world folklore?
The Lore
Perytons are large predators that resemble big raptor birds with antlered, sharp-fanged stag heads. The feathers on the bird part are typically dark green, and the stag’s fur is blue-black. Both males and females have antlers, but males also have distinctive light blue feathers on their chests. Their shadows, interestingly enough, don’t correspond to their physical shapes and are instead humanoid. Perytons like to nest in tall mountain ridges, which in the Vale means the Cairngorm peaks and Stonemarch to the northwest, or the Dawnforge range to the east.
Some sages speculate that the first perytons were elves changed by some horrible curse, and there are enough sinister details about their behavior and lifecycle to lend credence to this even if you ignore the “humanoid shadow” thing.
Travelers are advised to keep their eyes on the sky when going through these mountainous regions, because perytons are a fairly common hazard there. Not only are they unafraid to attack people, they specifically go after humanoid prey due to a very suspicious quirk of their reproductive cycle: peryton females need to consume the fresh heart of a humanoid in order to reproduce. This will cause their shadows to reflect their true forms for a number of hours, during which they are fertile.
Perytons are classed as beasts because they look and behave like animals, but they’re also clever enough to keep victims alive in their nests until it’s time to eat, to ensure the freshness of their hearts. They can carry off victims as big as themselves and won’t generally stick around to keep fighting if they can make a clean getaway with a victim. However, they’re extremely stubborn and obsessive - once a peryton chooses someone as their prey, they will pursue and hunt that victim until they manage to kill it or carry it away, heedless of the danger and ignoring easier prey.
Peryton nests usually have an area for “storing” its captured victims, who have a hard time leaving because the surrounding terrain isn’t easy for a non-flier to traverse. These areas tend to be full of treasure in the form of former victims’ belongings, and some captives can end up finding a way to escape by using these things.
The Numbers
Perytons are Natural Beasts. Their signature traits are Peryton’s Prey, which allows them to designate a creature they can see at the start of their turn as their prey, and Unhindered, which allows it to pull any creature it has grabbed along with it when moving.
A peryton’s choice of prey lasts a turn - they must make the choice again at the start of each of their turns. It’s totally possible to keep choosing the same creature, and most perytons will do that, but if the PCs contrive to make that creature too hard to reach, they can and will make a different choice. This has no inherent effects, but several of the creature’s powers work best on its chosen prey.
Peryton
The basic model is Medium in size, and is a Level 4 Skirmisher with 54 HP. Its ground speed is a laughable 2, but its flight speed is 8. The peryton’s basic attack is an Antler Bash that knocks prone on a hit and deals extra damage to the peryton’s chosen prey. It can use it to make Flyby Attacks, flying its speed, attacking a target along the path, and not provoking opportunity attacks when it moves away.
Its other special attack is Claw Snatch, which can only target the peryton’s chosen prey, which must be Medium or smaller. The creature can fly half its speed before and after the attack. A hit deals damage and grabs the victim (escape DC 14). The grab automatically ends at the end of the peryton’s next turn, but that’s enough time for the beast to gain plenty of altitude or to fly over a convenient cliff drop. This recharges when the peryton is first bloodied.
Finally, the creature can use an encounter ability named Feast against a dying humanoid to automatically kill it and heal 15 HP. I imagine this involves eating the target’s heart. Never let these things take you to negative HP!
Peryton Elder
A larger, older, and stronger specimen, of the sort who ends up generating stories and legends about itself. It’s a Level 6 Elite Soldier with 144 HP.
The elder has upgraded versions of Claw Snatch and Feast. The first has a grab that doesn’t end after a turn, allowing the monster to carry its victim clear out of the fight if they’re unlucky in their DC 15 escape rolls. The second heals 20 HP instead of 15. It also has Antler Bash, but that’s more or less the same.
The elder also has a couple of new powers to better perform its soldierly duties. Cursed Bite is a minor action that deals physical damage and inflicts another 5 points if the target attacks a creature other than the elder on its next turn. Once per encounter, it can use Stealth Dive to charge its chosen prey if that prey makes an attack that doesn’t include the elder as a target.
Final Impressions
Despite their “natural” origin, these monsters are creepy and evocative. They’re much more threatening than their level indicates too, being one of the few creatures who will explicitly target and kill PCs who are down and out. Being carried off by an elder peryton sucks, too, but it could lead to a fun scene a captured PCs trying to improvise an escape route using the items found on the nest.
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Let's Read Threats to the Nentir Vale: Penanggalan
This post is part of a series! Click here to see the others.
No illustration this time. The book has one, but it’s quite gross.
The Penanggalan is a monster from Southeast Asian folklore (the name used here is Malay). It was first statted up for D&D in the Fiend Folio, and this is its 4e debut. This entry does make some effort to tie its lore to the Nentir Vale, but I still think it fits into the “generic monster” category.
The Lore
Legend has it that the first penanggalan was a young baroness in Harkenwold, who was very smart but “plain of face and scant of suitors”. She found a cache of old diabolism texts from Bael Turath one day, and decided to use them to improve her situation. She conjured a devil using the Turathi rituals, and made a deal where the devil would make her forever young and beautiful in exchange for eternal servitude.
The lady did become beautiful, but it was the sort of beauty that comes from a devil’s bargain: so beautiful she was that armies clashed for her hand, and that her father eventually decided to lock her up in a tower for protection. Alone in her tower, the baroness prayed to the gods and begged for forgiveness, swearing to do penance before them.
The devil that made the deal with her did not like this one bit, and before she could start atoning for her sins, he whispered the secret of her beauty in the ear of Harkenwold’s high priest. The priest was one of those “zero tolerance” types, so he had the lady hanged as a diabolist. Her body remained in the gallows until midnight, and then her head and entrails separated from it and went hunting.
All penanggalans have a similar origin: women who make dark pacts for immortal beauty and try to renege, but who die before completing their penance and freeing their souls. The creatures share some superficial similarities to vampires, in that they’re undead monsters who feed on the living. Some embrace their new nature, some keep trying to complete their atonement to perhaps find a cure, but all of them are afflicted by a powerful hunger for the purity that once rain in their veins. Even a penitent penanggalan can only resist this hunger for about three days before going berserk, so atonement is really hard for them.
The book doesn’t go into details on how they feed, but from what I see in Wikipedia the original legend does say they drink blood. You could interpret the book’s information to say they eat flesh instead. In either case their attacks are quite fatal because even the traditional blood drinker version spreads a wasting disease to its victims.
As long as a penanggalan’s original body is in good condition, she can squeeze back into it and disguise herself as a mortal woman. The creatures often look for jobs as midwives or nursemaids, making victims of young kids and their mothers. Others prefer seduction as a means to get potential victims alone with them in a private spot. The original legend also has this really neat (and gross) detail that the creature bathes its dangling entrails in vinegar to shrink them up and fit them through the body’s neck, but that’s not necessary in the D&D version.
If a penanggalan’s body is destroyed, the creature is forever stuck as a floating head, and usually becomes a lot more desperate and obvious in its attacks.
The Numbers
Penanggalans are Natural Humanoids with the Undead tag. Individuals with bodies are Medium while in mortal form. The floating head with trailing guts is Small.
As undead they’re immune to disease and poison, resist necrotic damage, and are vulnerable to radiant damage. They have darkvision and a ground speed of 6, as well as a flight speed of 8 in head form.
Penanggalan
The basic model is a Level 10 Elite Lurker with 162 HP. It has the Shapechanger tag and can switch between woman and head forms.
In woman form, the penanggalan can defend herself with a dagger, but she’s likely in disguise and will try to use her soothing voice to literally lull her victims into a false sense of security. This is an encounter spell that attacks the Will of everyone in a Close Burst 1, and while it does no damage it slows on a hit (save ends). After the first failed save, this worsens to unconsciousness!
I would say that Soothing Voice can be disguised as a song or conversation, since it’s supposed to be subtle. Targets might not notice something is wrong at first.
Once the jig is up, the penanggalan undergoes her Horrific Transformation, which is so gross it works as a Close Burst 2 attack vs. Will, dealing heavy psychic damage and dazing for a turn on a hit. This of course transforms the monster into its head form. The body is considered a corpse for game purposes, and the penanggalan can return to it with a standard action if it’s on the same space and the body is not completely destroyed.
In head form, the monster attacks with Bites that do physical damage and ongoing poison damage (save ends). It can also use its Grasping Entrails (recharge 4+) to attack up to two creatures at Reach 2. On a hit, this deals poison and necrotic damage and grabs the victim (escape DC 22). Targets grant combat advantage until they escape, and are exposed to Blistering Corruption (see below).
The penanggalan can use its Maleable Form as a standard action to gain phasing for a turn and shift up to its speed. If it starts its next turn hidden from all enemies, Graping Entrails recharges, and the monster can use both it and Bite in the same action when it next attacks.
Penanggalan Bodiless Head
A penanggalan who had its body destroyed a while ago and had to adapt to survive. It’s a Level 9 Skirmisher with 94 HP.
This monster attacks with bites that do physical damage, and also slow (save ends) if the target is granting combat advantage. It can also use its flailing entrails to deal poison damage and slide 1 square on a hit.
The penanggalan can perform a malleable rush with its move action, gaining phasing for a turn and shifting its speed. This recharges after it’s first bloodied. When it dies, it explodes, and the resulting Death Burst attacks a Close Burst 1, deals poison damage, and exposes victims to Blistering Corruption.
Penanggalan Head Swarm
Exactly what it sounds like, a pack of floating, starving penanggalan heads. It’s a Medium Swarm of Small creatures, and a Level 8 Soldier with 87 HP.
Its Swarm Attack aura (1) slows enemies caught inside. Its basic attack is a Swarm of Entrails that targets a Close Burst 2, deals light poison damage (or more if the target is slowed), and slides the target 1 square to a space adjacent to the monster.
Blistering Corruption
Turns out this version of the penanggalan also spreads a wasting disease. Blistering Corruption is like supernaturally-boosted measles or chickenpox, causing sores, blisters and boils to erupt all over the victim’s body. You get exposed to it through contact with penanggalan entrails, and must succeed on a save to avoid contracting it as usual.
This level 10 disease is resisted with Endurance, and has a Maintain DC of 13 and an Improve DC of 18. Its effects are cumulative. At Stage 1, it inflicts a -2 penalty to Fortitude. At Stage 2 it also halves your maximum HP (making you permanently bloodied) and healing surge value. At Stage 3, you gain an aura 2 that cannot be deactivated, and eats a healing surge from any creature that gets caught inside.
As with other diseases, you stop making recovery rolls once you hit stage 3. Blistering Corruption doesn’t kill you, but it makes you weak and unbearable to be around. Only Remove Affliction or equivalent powers can save you from this fate once you hit Stage 3.
Final Impressions
D&D’s penanggalan is surprisingly similar to the traditional story I saw on Wikipedia. The story has somewhat more varied origins for the creature, though the “woman who practiced evil magic and was cursed by it” is also there.
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Warforged Variants for Dungeon Fantasy
Illustration by Will-E-H Way back in the olden days of 2017, I published a post presenting the Warforged of D&D and Eberron fame as a racial template for the Dungeon Fantasy RPG. I’m still particularly proud of that post, and have used it in actual play, but I also think I can expand upon it a bit now. So here’s a couple variant warforged templates.
In this 2018 post where I explained how I came up with the stats for the peoples of Tamriel, I mentioned that I’m no longer a fan of including attribute adjustments and mental or cultural disadvantages in GURPS racial templates. The original 2017 Warforged template still includes both, even though it’s a bit more restrained with them. So our first variant is an updated template that removes those adjustments. It ends up being cheaper! Our second variant adds a lens on top of that.
Warforged (20 points)
All of the story-related descriptions remain the same as in the original post.
Advantages: Composite Plating 1 {5}; Doesn’t Breathe {20}; Doesn’t Eat or Drink {10}; Unsleeping Watcher {10}.
Disadvantages: Dependency (Mana, Constantly) {-25}.
As mentioned in the original post, Composite Plating is simply DR 1 without the Though Skin limitation, and Unsleeping Watcher is Less Sleep 4 with a +25% enhancement that allows the character to remain conscious during their sleep period. Check out the link for more flavorful and detailed descriptions.
Lens: Dreaming Doll (-2 points)
Illustration by Enijoi This lens represent living constructs that do require actual sleep, though they still require less of it than us fleshbags. This replaces Unsleeping Watcher {10} with standard Less Sleep 4 {8}. The character is not aware of their surroundings when sleeping, but they are capable of dreaming.
This is an interesting lens if you want a character who resembles the Doll from Bloodborne more than a standard Eberron warforged.
Warforged Gifts
These optional traits are available to any warforged. They are individual rather than racial traits.
The optional traits from the original article remain options here, and are still good to represent the social awkwardness of recently activated individuals.
Warforged with access to the proper tools could spend 5 points/level to increase their innate DR up to 3. The same tools might allow them to change their outward appearance and presentation in ways that let them acquire levels in the Appearance advantage.
Characters wanting more protection might buy the Accessory (Armor Hardpoints) perk for 1 point. This lets them use custom armor that weights 25% less than the normal humanoid version, but can’t be used by others or removed on the fly. Attaching or removing this custom armor can only be done in town. It costs the same as the normal equivalent. Warforged with the perk can still choose to wear normal armor, but can’t wear normal and attached armor together on the same location.
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Let's Read Threats to the Nentir Vale: Mooncalf
Copyright 2011 Wizards of the Coast. This post is part of a series! Click here to see the others.
This was the first time I saw these monsters, but it looks like they first appeared in Heart of Nightfang Spire, one of the modules in the official Third Edition adventure path.
The Lore
Mooncalves are creatures native to the Far Realm with innate dimensional travel powers. They look like giant bat-winged eyeless squids. Their life cycle is a mystery, but it seems to include regular trips to the middle world, where they spend a few weeks nesting at the top of a mountain or hill, hunting by night and resting by day. The Nentir Vale has a lot of mountains and hills, so they often end up there.
These creatures travel in groups of 2-5 individuals known as “grasps”, and arrive at the middle world roughly every 8 years. They’re not picky about their food and will hunt whatever is available. They do like the flesh of humanoids and their cattle, so if “what’s available” is a village that place will be in serious trouble while the incursion lasts, and might end up getting abandoned or decimated.
Nerathi sages knew how to predict mooncalf incursions with great accuracy, but the knowledge has been lost. All that’s left are the stories of past incursions. Of how Hammerfast was once tormented by a single individual of prodigious size and appetite, or how a hunter was accidentally saved from being eaten by a manticore when a mooncalf appeared and ate the beast instead.
The most popular mooncalf vacation spot, however, is Thunderspire. The things just love the permanent storm at its top, and descend from it to hunt in the surrounding region.
These creatures are intelligent but alien. They can communicate via telepathy but only those who know Deep Speech can even begin to understand their thought patterns. What they can understand ends up being mostly about killing and eating. They will definitely talk to each other and set up clever ambushes for prey, however, using psychic powers to lure their victims into the reach of their tentacles, or to conjure small localized storms.
The Numbers
Mooncalves are Large Aberrant Magical Beasts, with Resistance to Lightning and Thunder 10. They also have Darkvision, so I guess they’re not eyeless after all. Their ground speed is 6 and their flight speed is 8.
Their signature trait is Tentacle Snare, which lets them pull all grabbed creatures with them when moving.
Mooncalf
The base model, who makes up those grasps of 2-5. It’s a Level 10 Controller with 112 HP.
The mooncalf’s basic attack is a Reach 4 tentacle rake, and it can use Tentacle Grab to do a little less damage and grab the victim. The monster can have up to 2 grabbed victims, and can release a victim as a free action. The escape DC is 18, and grabbed victims take 5 ongoing damage while the grab lasts.
These tentacle attacks can’t target victims who are already grabbed. Instead, the mooncalf can use Vile Bite on them, which deal physical damage and prevent the target from spending healing surges for a turn.
The mooncalf’s psychic powers are both minor actions. Lure is a ranged attack that targets Will and pulls the target up to 5 squares on a hit. Stormwrack is an encounter power that creates a fireball-sized zone which deals 10 lightning and thunder damage to anyone caught inside. It lasts a turn but can be sustained with further minor actions.
Mooncalf Harvester
Rarely, a mooncalf will present a peculiar mutation that gives it teleportation powers instead of weather control. Harvesters are Level 10 Skirmishers with 107 HP.
Their physical abilities are all identical to the base model, but instead of Lure and Stormwrack they have Teleport, an encounter power that lets them teleport 10 squares and take all grabbed victims with them.
Mooncalf Sire
A mooncalf that managed to grow to a prodigious size and spawn progeny. It will usually be found in the company of that progeny, a group of three or so standard mooncalves.
Sires are Huge in size, and are Level 12 Elite Controllers with 262 HP. They have the same physical attacks as a standard specimen: Tentacle Rake, Tentacle Grab, and Vile Bite. The main different is that they are Reach 6 instead of 4, and are generally more effective due to the beast’s higher level. The sire can use Double Attack to perform any combination of two of these attacks with one standard action.
Sires also have Lure, and their weather control abilities take the form of two different encounter powers. Call Lightning is an attack that targets enemies in a Close Blast 5, does lightning damage and slows for a turn. Fury of the Storm is an interrupt that triggers when the sire is bloodied, and causes it to project an aura (1) that deals 10 lightning and thunder damage to enemies caught inside. This lasts for the rest of the encounter.
Mooncalf Rogue
Sometimes, a mooncalf is separated from its kin. These loners might team up with other creatures capable of understanding them, such other aberrant monsters or mortal spellcasters with strong connections to the Far Realm. These use standard stat blocks. A rogue is something else.
Mooncalf rogues are outcasts among their kind and are adamant in their desire to remain alone. They attack even other mooncalves who trespass upon their territories. The isolation, or perhaps something they do to themselves, causes them to grow far beyond the size of a standard mooncalf, and to develop powers not seen among those more gregarious individuals.
These creatures are also Huge in size, and are Level 15 Solo Soldiers with 620 HP. They have two additional traits: Psychic Veil makes them invisible to creatures more than 6 squares away from it, and Superior Brain ends any dazing or stunning effects on them at the start of their turn.
Their Tentacle Rake is upgraded to a Tentacle Slam that also knocks prone on a hit. The other two attacks are the same, with bigger damage and Reach 6 instead of 4. Multiattack lets the rogue perform three melee attacks against different targets with the same action.
They can call up a Windwrack aura as a minor action (recharge 5+). This lasts a turn, prevents any creatures inside from shifting, and knocks them prone if they end their turns inside. If an enemy escapes the rogue’s grab, it can react with a Tentacle Flurry that lets it attack every enemy in a Close Burst 1.
If you can see this thing at all, it can reach you with its tentacles. I guess they would typically try to grab a couple of PCs and fly away to eat in peace, but it’s also excellent at playing a more traditional soldier role and protecting squishy artillery from PCs.
Final Impressions
Delightfully weird and horrific, and an excellent out-of-context problem to throw at the PCs when they’re busy dealing with something else. They go somewhere to face a more mundane threat, and suddenly discover it’s mooncalf season.
Rogues work very well as the Thing From Beyond that a Far Realm cult might be trying to summon. They’re threats on par with an adult dragon or a titan, but are completely impervious to negotiation.
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Let's Read Threats to the Nentir Vale: Mages of Saruun
Copyright 2011 Wizards of the Coast. Another faction pulled from the Thunderspire Labyrinth module.
The Lore
Thunderspire Mountain is a famous landmark in the Vale, a lone mountain whose peak is shrouded by a permanent storm. In the Vale’s distant past, a minotaur civilization build an underground city beneath it, and named that city Saruun Khel. They thrived there until the worship of Torog began spreading among its inhabitants.
This angered their official patron, the demon lord Baphomet, who cast a curse over the whole city that made his worshipers enter a homicidal berserker rage. Saruun Khel fell in short order as its inhabitants tore each other apart.
About twenty years ago, the ruins of the city were discovered by three mages who were interested in finding a reliable route to the Underdark. They found it there and moved in, establishing their headquarters inside a building known as the Tower of Saruun.
The mages were as interested in trade and diplomacy with the Underdark as they were in its mystical secrets, so they turned Saruun Khel’s city square into a trading post known as the Seven-Pillared Hall. The hall is open to trade delegations and enclaves from both the surface and the Underdark, and is one of the few places in the world where civilizations from both of these realms have regular peaceful contact.
That doesn’t mean the place isn’t dangerous, however. Big stuff like theft and murder is forbidden, and the mages enforce that very vigorously, but there are few other hard-and-fast rules. The mages take turns playing the role of Ordinator Arcanis, a mage with a black cloak and a golden mask that teleports in to solve any disputes or rule breaches that happen here. They use powerful divination and scrying magic to quickly get to the truth of the matter, and usually blast the offending party into atoms, or sic one of Saruun Khel’s ancient minotaur-shaped bronze constructs on them.
The three original founders eventually brought in colleagues and apprentices to join their order. Then they disappeared into the Tower of Saruun and were never seen again. The cycle has repeated itself a few times since then, so the current crop of Mages is a few generations removed from those founders. No one knows what happened to those disappeared mages, and the mages themselves ain’t telling. Some claim there have only ever been three mages who keep disguising themselves as new people, others talk about a mage civil war that happened in the Tower, and some who have journeyed from the deep Underdark whisper of surface mortals who have gone down there and learned the forbidden secrets of the primordials and the deep gods.
The Numbers
The Mages of Saruun contained in this entry are at an early to mid Paragon power level, significantly stronger than the ones from Thunderspire Labyrinth. If I remember correctly, the ones you see in the adventure are all low-ranking members who are the only ones available while the more senior mages are out. These would be those senior mages.
Saruun Apprentice
Apprentices are fairly weak, so I’m guessing they only fight in self defense and are not directly involved with keeping the peace in the Seven-Pillared Hall. They’re Level 8 Minion Controllers.
Apprentices know how to use a dagger, and they can cast an at-will Ice Patch spell that knocks the target prone on a hit. The spell only does damage on a critical hit, in which case it also immobilizes the target for a turn.
Saruun Bat
The aggressive bats that make this cave system their home are often used as familiars by the Mages. These Tiny Natural Beasts are Level 10 Minion Skirmishers with a ground speed of 2 and a flight speed of 6 (hover).
Saruun Bats can See the Unseen, which act as an aura (1) that prevents enemies inside from benefiting from any concealment. They lack a basic attack, but can make at-will Shrieking Dives that let them fly their speed and make an attack at any point along the movement. On a hit, this deals thunder damage and inflicts a -2 to-hit penalty for a turn.
If an enemy damages an ally of the bat that’s in the same space or adjacent, the bat can use its Shielding Familiar encounter power as an interrupt. It makes the ally take only half damage, and drops the bat to 0 HP.
Mage of Saruun
This is a fully trained Mage of Saruun, likely one of those who currently run things in the Seven-Pillared Hall. They’re a Level 12 Controller with 116 HP. Their basic attack is a quarterstaff blow that deals physical damage on a hit and slides 1 square as an effect. They can cast Empowered Magic Missiles as basic ranged attacks, which hit automatically, deal a flat 10 force damage, and push 2 squares. They can also cast Noxious Shroud spells, which attack a Close Blast 3, deal poison damage, and create a damaging zone that lasts for a turn.
Their encounter spell is Cloying Flames, basically a fireball that also immobilizes and deals ongoing fire damage. This deals half damage on a miss and recharges when the mage is first bloodied.
The staff and magic missile attack are a little weak for the mage’s level, which is compensated by the fact that they always either hit or do something interesting. Still, you want to pair them with things that do more damage, such as those described by our next entry.
Bronze Warder
The famous construct guards of the Seven-Pillared Hall, originally build by the extinct minotaur civilization and refurbished by the Mages of Saruun. At least one of those accompanies every mage when they make a public appearance, and they’re often employed as enforcers by the Ordinator Arcanis. They look like big bronze minotaurs.
Warders are Large Natural Animates and Level 10 Elite Soldiers with 168 HP. They have a ground speed of 5 and their Ponderous gait means they can’t shift, but their Inexorable Movement allows them to enter the spaces of Medium or Small enemies.
Warders fight with Greataxes that damage and mark for a turn on a hit, and they can make Double Attacks. They can also Rampage, which lets them move 3 squares and knock down any enemy whose space they move through. At the end of the movement they make an axe attack that’s about 50% stronger.
Warders are linked to rune-covered control amulets, and consider the bearer of the amulet to be their master. When they’re within 2 squares of that master, they can use an interrupt to take half the damage of any attack directed at the master (who still takes the other half).
Saruun Underdark Adept
A mage who focuses more on those forbidden Underdark secrets than on traditional arcane magic. This is dangerous and a bit unhealthy. Adepts are Level 10 Artillery with 79 HP.
Their basic attack is a Reach 2 Shadow Whip that deals light physical damage on a hit and slides 1 square as an effect. They can cast Darkfire Bolts that do fire and necrotic damage. Unlike magic missiles, these require an attack roll but crit on a roll of 18-20, weakening the target when they do so (save ends). Their big spell is a Corrupting Ray that deals heavy necrotic damage and blinds (save ends). It does half damage on a miss and recharges when the adept is first bloodied.
They can also cast Force Shield as a minor action, becoming immune to ranged and area attacks for a turn. This recharges when they take damage from one of those attacks.
Warped Mage of Saruun
A mage who dug too greedily, and too deep. The order sees this as a fail state and is usually careful to avoid such a fate. When it does happen, they try to deal with the result, which might involve discreetly asking for outside help. Warped mages are Medium Aberrant Humanoids and Level 14 Elite Brutes with 346 HP.
Their basic attack is a Reach 3 Shadow Tentacle that deals physical damage and grabs on a hit (escape DC 21). When a creature fails to escape the grab it takes 10 damage.
They can also use at-will Tentacle Lashes to attack enemies in a Close Blast 3, damaging and knocking them prone on a hit. Once per encounter they can use a Psychic Burst to attack enemies in a Close Burst 2, dealing psychic damage and dazing on a hit (save ends). A good power for when they’re surrounded.
When a warped mage is stunned or defeated, they undergo a process of Arcane Release. The energies attack a Close Burst 2 deal damage with four types: cold, fire, lightning and thunder. They also deal half damage on a miss.
Final Impressions
As mentioned above, the mages’ damage on their at-wills is a bit on the low side, so they really need some beefy bodyguards.
Thunderspire Labyrinth has plenty of details about stories that can happen in the Seven-Pillared Hall and the subterranean complexes that link to it. The Blackfang gnolls feature prominently there as well. The mages from this entry would probably be a distant and vaguely threatening presence until the PCs reach their power level.
And of course, things would get mighty interesting around the Hall if the Hunter Spiders ever learned that it leads to a reliable route into the Underdark.
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