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• Dec 22, 2022

  Let's Read Threats to the Nentir Vale: Dark Drake of the Moon Hills

  

  This post is part of a series! Click here to see the others.

  Another original monster!

  The Lore

  The largest human settlement in the Vale in our narrative present is the city of Fallcrest, which is more or less exactly in its center and connected by roads to the other major towns. It’s a big point of light, but the darkness starts just beyond it. Those roads are dangerous, and even the areas just outside the city’s walls contain their own threats.

  Take the Moon Hills, for example, which are just to the south of the city. On the blackest of nights, a fearsome beast is said to roam the hills and moors of that region, hunting the unwary. No one has ever seen the Dark Drake and lived to tell the tale - its existence is only known by the gruesome remains it leaves behind.

  The Dark Drake is in some ways Fallcrest’s pet monster, as it features in many stories told in taverns or to children. These tales attribute all sorts of weird abilities to it, and also talk about its extensive brood. These “lesser” drakes have been frequently spotted in the area, and they’re also clearly more dangerous and malignant than simple natural animals, but the Dark Drake itself has remained elusive for decades, evading even experienced monster hunters. Serious scholars dismiss it as just a myth. It doesn’t help that opportunists from Fallcrest sometimes stage hoaxes to make a buck or cover up a more mundane murder. Nevertheless, these smaller drakes and hoaxes can’t explain all the bodies found on the Moon Hills.

  The Numbers

  The entries below assume that the Drake does indeed exist, and that it has some connection to its “brood”. You are likely to find them together. They’re all Natural Beasts with the Reptile keyword. As a reminder, “Natural” only means it’s native to the middle world, and “Beast” means it looks and behaves like an animal. We’re still dealing with a weird mystical creature here.

  Dark Drake of the Moon Hills

  The Drake itself is Large, and a Level 8 Elite Lurker with 148 HP. That’s a hell of a thing to meet just outside the Vale’s premier “starting town”. It has Darkvision and a speed of 6. Its basic Bite is quite strong for a lurker, and it can use Double Attack to bite twice in an action. Instead of biting, it can use the Ghost Drake ability to gain insubstantial and phasing for a turn, move its speed, and then become invisible until the end of the encounter or until after it makes an attack.

  Being invisible allows the Dark Drake to use its Unseen Killer power, a melee attack that targets Will and does heavy psychic damage - about double that of a bite. It can also use its Terrible Aspect as a weapon, a minor-action melee attack against Will that pushes the target 1 square and immobilizes them for a turn. This recharges whenever the drake hits with any of its other attacks.

  The Dark Drake can sustain the same damage output whether it decides to stand and fight or to employ the more lurkerish tactic of alternating Ghost Drake and Unseen Killer. The latter is still a bit better since as a lurker its defenses and HP are a bit low for its level.

  Hellghost Dark Drake

  One of the two “dark brood” stat blocks we get in this entry. Hellghosts are Large Natural Beasts and Level 6 Brutes with 85 HP. It has Darkvision, a Speed of 8, and Fire Resistance 5. It projects an aura of Ghostfire Radiance (1) that makes creatures inside Vulnerable 5 to fire. I wonder how that interacts with a tiefling’s natural resistance.

  The creature uses a Fiery Bite as its basic attack, which deals heavy fire damage even before you account for the aura. Once per encounter it can use Ghostfire Rampage, which is a standard “trample” ability: the drake moves its speed and can cross enemy spaces. Every time it does so, it makes an attack against that enemy. On a hit, it deals fire damage, knocks prone, and inflicts ongoing 5 fire damage (save ends).

  Also once per encounter, when the drake is immobilized, restrained, or stunned, it can use Pulsing Ghostfire to attack a Close Burst 2. On a hit it deals fire damage and knocks the target prone, on a miss it still deals half damage.

  Adderbrood Dark Drake

  This one is highly venomous. It’s a Medium Natural Beast, and a Level 7 Skirmisher with 79 HP. Its bite deals poison damage and slows for a turn. It can attack these slowed targets with a Venomous Strike that deals the same amount of poison damage and inflicts ongoing poison damage (save ends). After the first failed save, the victim also becomes immobilized. A successful save clears both this and the ongoing damage.

  Adder’s Mobility ensures that enemies slowed or immobilized by the drake cannot make opportunity attacks against it, and that the drake can enter their spaces. So it can, say, bite a defender and move through them to reach the squishies.

  Final Impression

  The Drake’s lore sounds a bit commonplace at first, and its stats while mechanically interesting are far from the most powerful thing we’ll see even in this book… but the full impact of it all hits when you look at a map of the Nentir Vale.

  If you’re starting a campaign in the Nentir Vale, there’s a very high chance that Fallcrest will be your PC’s starting home base. It’s big enough to offer all the standard services, and it’s centrally located so they have plenty of choice of where to adventure. The only reason not to start here is if the GM has a more specific campaign or module in mind.

  And the Moon Hills are right beside it, to the south. The road connecting Fallcrest and the Harkenwold goes through them! If you still hold any notion of D&D being “like a MMO” that demands every fight be “fair” after reading this far, this is where you drop them. A MMO would surround the starting town with low-level trash enemies you can grind for levels. This book puts a level 8 elite newbie-killer where those would be.

  If deployed by a cruel GM against Level 1-2 players, the Drake is a terrifying threat they must escape from. It can kill a PC in one round of attacks no matter which approach it chooses. Against a party of experienced monster hunters who are closer to it in level, you’ll want to deploy the Drake alongside some of its brood to make a proper boss fight.

• Dec 20, 2022

  Let's Read Threats to the Nentir Vale: Daggerburg Goblins

  

  This post is part of a series! Click here to see the others.

  Goblins have always been in the game, as we already know. This is a specific group of them operating in the southern regions of the Vale.

  The Lore

  Between the Witchlight Fens and the Harken Forest, roughly on the south-central region of the Vale, there is a hidden fort named Daggerburg. It belongs to a large band of goblin brigands, who ride out of it to raid and pillage the surrounding area. Their operation is quite successful because they’re far away from the territories of more powerful monsters, and because their very diverse membership has been extensively trained in guerrilla tactics by their leader Delderosh.

  The band also includes a number of remarkable individuals beyond Delderosh himself. There’s Kabo Bomble, a massive bruiser nearly twice the size of a typical goblin; and there are the Mistmane Bugbears, a cult who trains in a fighting style that combines unarmed combat and necromantic magic.

  Delderosh really hates enemy spellcasters and likes collecting their eyeballs as trophies. He likes spellcasters just fine when they’re working for him, though, which is why he’s allied to the necromancer Gokof (from the Cadaver Collector entry) and has several war mages on his payroll.

  The Daggerburg goblins have become more daring of late, and have been pushing deeper into the Harkenwold region north of the Harken forest, even going so far as to raid settlements. However they haven’t yet worked up the courage to strike at the Woodsinger elves who also live in the same region.

  The Numbers

  The Daggerburg gang tends to be a cut above your standard MM/MV goblins, their levels covering the latter half of the Heroic Tier instead of the earlier one. Most of them also have at least one of the following signature abilities representing their training:

  Combat Adept gives them a +1d10 damage bonus against enemies who haven’t yet acted this combat. Anyone with this trait really likes rolling high for initiative.

  Daggerburg Tactics replaces the generic Goblin Tactics trait. When a creature with this is missed by a melee attack, the attacker grants combat advantage to them in this next turn.

  Battle Worg

  The Daggerburg goblins raise a distinctive breed of giant wolf for use as mounts in battle. Despite being called “battle worgs”, they’re not sapient like standard worgs, and are a little weaker. Their mechanics are still similar, though.

  Battle Worgs are Large Natural Magical Beasts and Level 5 Brutes with 78 HP and a speed of 8. Their Frigthful Growls acts as an aura (1) that inflicts a -1 to-hit penalty on enemies caught inside. Their mount trait is Slavering Lunge, which lets the worg move half its speed as a free action when their rider rolls initiative. Their reach 1 Bite damages and inflicts ongoing 5 damage (save ends).

  A lot of the people who could use battle worgs as mounts in this entry are higher level than them, but it’s a simple enough task to level up the worgs to match their riders if you want them to last longer in the fight.

  Daggerburg Ruffian

  An experienced raider, this goblin is a Level 4 Soldier with 58 HP and a speed of 5. It’s armored in mail, wields a light shield and spear combo in melee, and a light crossbow for ranged combat. It has both Combat Adept and Daggerburg Tactics.

  The spear and crossbow are used in basic attacks, and the spear can also trip up an enemy, doing the same damage as a basic attack and knocking the target prone.

  Ruffians are perfect riders for the battle worgs we just saw.

  Daggerburg Theurge

  Theurges seem to be goblin spellcasters with a witchy theme. They’re Level 5 Controllers with 64 HP and both signature traits. They’re listed as Medium, but should be Small instead.

  They fight in melee with spiked clubs, and once per encounter they can call down a Brimstone Rain that works as an area burst 2 attack. It deals immediate and ongoing fire damage (save ends), half on a miss.

  Their most fun power, however, is the at-will Slimy Transformation. Ranged 5 vs. Fortitude, does no damage, but turns the target into a frog (save ends)! This is a mundane Tiny frog, not a giant variety. Frogged targets are considered slowed, and can’t use powers - not even basic attacks. The only limitation here is that the theurge can’t cast this on someone who’s already transformed by it.

  So yeah, they are sure to open up with Brimstone Rain and then stay away applying the Transformation to as many PCs as possible while their buddies do the actual damage.

  Daggerburg War Mage

  Another mage, this one a more straighforward hobgoblin elemental adept. It’s Level 6 Artillery with 58 HP. They have Combat Adept but not Daggerburg Tactics.

  War mages fight with their staffs, which also work as implements. At range they can hit you with an at-will Stabbing Flame that does immediate and ongoing fire damage, or with a recharge 5+ Icy Stream that does cold damage and slides the target 3 squares.

  Daggerburg Slayer

  A beefy hobgoblin with a big axe. It’s a Level 6 Brute with 85 HP. It has Combat Adept but not Daggerburg Tactics. Their greataxe is their sole attack, but it has some riders: it deals +5 damage while the slayer is bloodied, and it deals another +5 damage if the strike bloodies the target.

  Once per encounter the slayer can use its Hobgoblin Resilience to immediately roll a save against an (save ends) effect as a reaction.

  Daggerburg Zealot

  A bugbear trained with the glaive. Not one of the Mistmanes, those are below. Zealots are Level 7 Skirmishers with 78 HP. They have Combat Adept.

  The glaive is a solid Reach 2 basic attack and their Mobile Attack ability allows them to shift half their speed and make a glaive attack at any point during the movement. Once per encounter, when an enemy within 5 squares of the zealot attacks one of its allies, the zealot can use Dagerburg Zealotry shift up to 5 squares and hit the attacker with its glaive as a reaction.

  A very mobile combatant with a reach weapon, who will use both of these things to get at the party’s back lines and mess up their squishies.

  Daggerburg Captain

  This hobgoblin officer probably serves directly under Delderosh. It’s a Level 7 Soldier (Leader) with 78 HP. The captain is clad in mail and wields a bastard sword and a shield.

  The bastard sword makes attacks that damage and mark for a turn. While the mark persists, the target also grants combat advantage. Once per encounter, and once again after it’s first bloodied, the captain can yell Follow Me! and charge an enemy. Two allies within 5 squares of its starting position can then make a free charge against different enemies.

  The captain has none of the signature traits from the start of this section. Instead, it has an improved version of Hobgoblin Resilience named Daggerburg Resilience, which works the same but can be applied either to the captain or to an ally within 5 squares of it.

  Daggerburg Reaper

  A hobgoblin who specializes in the use of the scythe. It’s a Level 7 Lurker with 64 HP. The scythe can make decent basic attacks, and once per encounter the reaper can use a Blinding Sweep that targets a Close Burst 1, deals heavy damage, and blinds for a turn on a hit. A miss does half damage.

  As a move action, the reaper can Stalk, which allows it to shift 1 square and then move its speed. If it ends in a space at least three squares from any other creatures, it becomes invisible until the start of its next turn or until it makes an attack.

  These abilities are interesting but the reaper has no powers that specifically exploit them. It’s a very skirmishery lurker.

  Mistmane Bugbear

  These bugbear adepts received their name from the constant misty aura they project, which disrupts teleportation and can confuse enemies’ minds. Their claws are laced with necromantic energy. They’re Large Natural Humanoids and Level 8 Elite Soldiers with 172 HP.

  They have Combat Adept, and their Arcane Mist aura (2) prevents creatures from teleporting as mentioned above. Their basic attack is a Rake with their claws, which damages and marks for a turn. If a marked enemy makes an attack that doesn’t target the bugbear, they take 5 necrotic damage. As elites, they can use this for Double Attacks.

  Once per encounter as a minor action they can use the Bewildering Mist ability, attacking the Will of every enemy in a Close Burst 1. A hit dazes the target for a turn.

  Mistmanes are excellent front-line fighters, able to keep two PCs marked at once.

  Kabo Bomble

  One of the Daggerburg gang’s champions, Kabo Bomble is a giant of a goblin, twice as tall as the typical member of the species. This puts him well into Medium size. He fights with a morningstar in one hand and a spiked gauntlet in the other. Kabo is a Level 9 Brute with 116 HP. He has both Combat Adept and Daggerburg Tactics.

  Kabo’s morningstar and gauntlet do about the same damage, with the first being a basic attack and the second targetting Reflex and dazing for a turn on a critical hit.

  Twice per encounter, Kabo can use a Furious Attack ability to attack with both weapons in a single action. If both hit the same target, it is dazed for a turn.

  Once per encounter, Kabo Bomble can Roar as a minor action, attacking the Will of all enemies in a Close Burst 2 and inflicting a -2 defense penalty on a hit (save ends).

  Warlord Delderosh

  

  Delderosh is the leader of the Daggerburg Goblins, and is likely to be found leading their biggest raids or at the center of Daggerburg itself surrounded by his personal guard. This hobgoblin is a Level 10 Skirmisher (Leader) with 200 HP.

  Delderosh’s custom traits are Ambush Leader, which gives a +5 to the Initiative rolls of every ally within 5 squares of him at the start of the fight; and Combat Advantage, which gives him some bonus damage when he has that against a target.

  Delderosh carries a spear for fighting in melee and a shortbow for ranged attacks. The spear attack allows him to shift 1 square as an effect and it can be used to Skewer (recharge 5+), which deals the same damage as a basic attack and inflicts ongoing 10 damage (save ends). As an effect, it also makes the target grant combat advantage for a turn.

  Finally, he has the same Daggerburg Resilience reaction power as the Captains working under him.

  The warlord is depicted riding a battle worg here and he would certainly benefit from the thing’s traits, but you’ll likely need to increase the level of his personal mount from the base 5. Everyone else in the encounter where he appears should have Combat Adept to maximize the benefit they get from his initiative bonus.

  Final Impressions

  The Daggerburg goblins don’t differ much in concept from the “generic” band of goblin brigands, but they’re a very nice worked example of the trope, with several memorable named NPCs. They also show us how to stretch classic goblinoids into a threat that can keep PCs occupied for the whole of the heroic tier.

  The band might get involved in factional conflicts with the Iron Circle, a foreign mercenary army that has been moving into Harkenwold. And the druids of Harken’s Heart would be among the groups they avoid. Both of these get their own entries later on.

• Dec 16, 2022

  Let's Read Threats to the Nentir Vale: Clan Bloodspear

  This post is part of a series! Click here to see the others.

  This is an original entry about a specific group of antagonists.

  The Lore

  Clan Bloodspear is a large clan of orcs who make their home in the Stonemarch, a desolate region to the northwest of the Nentir Vale, separated from it by the Cairngorm Peaks. From what I understand, they’re pretty well adapted to it and don’t really need to raid their neighbors for resources. However, Gruumsh still exerts his divine influence to make sure they form a huge horde and ravage the surrounding lands about once every century.

  The clan was founded by the eponymous King Bloodspear, who in the distant past slew the elder dragon Kulkozsar in single combat and made a throne of his skull. The glory from his deed attracted many followers, and they made the dragon’s former lair into an entire underground city that kept being expanded and improved over time. In our narrative present it includes multiple forges, arenas, and slave pens. Their technology and production base is significantly higher than that of other orc clans, though they still rely on slave labor to power a lot of it.

  The last time the Bloodspear marched forth was ninety years ago, when they attacked Nentir Vale and practically erased the civilizations within it. The land and its inhabitants have yet to fully recover from that attack, and yet it seems they’re getting ready to do it again. Gruumsh has selected a new champion among the Bloodspear, and that champion is hard at work in forging them into an invading army.

  In an uncharacteristic move for the patriarchal Bloodspear, this new champion is a woman: Queen Msuga. She’s an extremely formidable warrior and general, and has defeated enough challengers to her legitimacy that all of them now accept her rule. Msuga is always accompanied by her sister Rohka, who is also known as the Blood Witch. As a high priest of Gruumsh, she commands vast mystical powers despite her withered body. Some rumors say Rohka is the true power behind the throne and Msuga is just a puppet. Whatever the truth is, it’s clear the two sisters are united in purpose.

  And this purpose is an ambitious one: the sisters are preparing not to simply raid the Nentir Vale, but to conquer and annex it as part of their nascent Bloodspear Empire.

  In addition to their powerful leaders and their large numbers of combat-ready orcs, Clan Bloodspear also contains a small but significant percentage of individuals of mixed orc and troll or ogre descent. The book described this as a “breeding program” overseen by Rohka and calls the results “vile half-breeds”, but I don’t like this language at all and would probably explain it as a natural consequence of them sharing space with ogres and trolls over on the Stonemarch.

  The Numbers

  Clan Bloodspear would mostly be made up of orcs fitting the standard profiles listed on the Monster Vault, but they also have some combat traditions that are unique to them. We also get stat blocks for the half-troll and half-ogre (ogrillon) members of the clan. You could conceivably add full-blooded ogres and trolls to their numbers as well.

  As a reminder, orcs are Medium Natural Humanoids with a speed of 6 and Low-light vision. Their signature trait is Savage Demise, which lets them take a standard action for free when they hit 0 HP. Some of the stat blocks here play with that standard template a bit, and I’ll point out when they do so.

  Bloodspear Grenadier

  

  The Bloodspear like their explosives! Grenadiers are Level 4 Artillery with 44 HP. They carry 2 handaxes to fight in melee or to throw, and 4 fire bombs that act as area burst 1 attacks and deal fire damage. Once per encounter when an enemy ends their movement adjacent to the grenadier, they can shift 2 squares and drop a load of caltrops in a close blast 3 pattern. This creates a zone that damages anyone who enters it or ends its turn inside.

  Grenadiers replace Savage Demise with Blazing Fury, which deals 5 fire damage to all adjacent creatures and lets them throw a fire bomb for free.

  I guess if these grenadiers manage to use up all of their ammo, they’ll probably retreat from the fight, since the Bloodspear are supposed to be a well-coordinated and more disciplined force than your standard orc band. You might want to add a feature like a supply cart to the battlefield that would allow them to reload, and would also be very flammable.

  Bloodspear Krull

  

  Krulls are named after a famous 80s fantasy movie that featured a weapon called a Glaive, because they are Bloodspear martial artists who specialize in glaives. That’s it. That’s the joke.

  The “glaive” from the movie was a cool throwing star thing, but the weapon Bloodspear Krulls use is the equally cool real glaive, a polearm with a single-edged sword blade at the end. They’re Level 5 Brutes with 78 HP.

  The glaive can be used to make strong Reach 2 basic attacks, and it can also be used in a Charging Sweep (recharge 6+) maneuver. This is a Close Burst 2 attack that deals the same damage as a basic attack, pushes targets it hits 1 square, and knocks them prone. As the name implies, it can be used as part of a charge.

  When the krull bloodies an enemy, its Frenzied Strike ability allows it to make a free extra attack against that enemy. And when they drop to 0 HP, their Charging Demise ability lets them recharge and immediately use Charging Sweep one last time.

  Bloodspear Ogrillon

  

  Orgillons are half-orc/half-ogres. They’re smaller and smarter than a full ogre, and almost as strong. These are Level 5 Elite Brutes with 156 HP.

  Orgillons fight bare-handed. Their slams do strong physical damage, and do bonus damage against prone targets. On a critical hit, they knock the target prone as well. As elites they can make Double Attacks. They lack a Demise ability, but their Brutish Retaliation allows them to use a slam against an enemy in reach that hits them with a ranged or area attack as a reaction. This sounds a bit redundant when these attacks already provoke opportunity attacks, but it at least lets the ogrillon save their opportunity action to attack someone else. Or to hit the offender again when they try to move away after landing that attack.

  Bloodspear Shiv

  Skilled knife-fighters, shivs are Level 6 Skirmishers with 75 HP. They carry no less than 12 daggers, which can be used in melee or thrown. Their Shifting Shank ability lets them shift their speed and make a dagger attack at any point during the movement. If this attack bloodies the target, they can make a second free attack against that target.

  They have the standard Savage Demise ability as well.

  Bloodspear Half-Troll

  

  Like ogrillons, half-trolls are smaller and smarter than their troll parent, and almost as strong. They also retain the infamous trollish regeneration abilities. They are Level 8 Soldiers with 92 HP.

  Half trolls have Regeneration 5 and Troll Healing, which lets them rise again with 11 HP a turn after they drop. Acid or fire damage can prevent them from healing for a turn, and can prevent them from rising.

  The half-troll’s claws damage and grab on a hit (escape DC 16), and it can grab up to two creatures at once. If a grabbed creature attacks the half-troll or escapes the grab, the half-troll can bite them as a reaction, an attack that deals light physical damage. It also has the standard version of Savage Demise, which could potentially trigger several times during the battle if the PCs are too slow with their acid and fire.

  Bloodspear Savage Throng

  A large unit of orcs with an unfortunate name, for use during the late Heroic tier. It’s a Huge Swarm of Medium Natural Humanoids, and a Level 9 Brute with 117 HP. It follows all the standard swarm rules: half damage from single-target attacks, 10 extra damage from area attacks, can occupy the same space as other characters, and can move through any opening big enough for a single Medium creature.

  The throng’s swarm attack aura (1) is relatively weak, inflicting only 4 damage on anyone caught inside. As it also occupies the swarm’s own spaces, though, it covers plenty of squares. Its basic attack is a Mob of Swinging Axes, and once per encounter it can pull off a Savage Frenzy that attacks every enemy in a Clost Burst 1, doing half damage on a miss. As with the aura, the burst should also catch anyone who is inside the swarm.

  Once at the start and once when first bloodied, the throng can make a Trample maneuver, which works as usual: move their speed and make an attack against any enemy whose space they move through. The attack deals physical damage and knocks prone.

  Queen Msuga

  

  Msuga is a Level 10 Elite Soldier with the Leader keyword and 212 HP. Her usual speed of 6 becomes 8 when she charges. If the PCs fight her, she will surely be alongside her sister Rohka and a sizable honor guard.

  Msuga’s greataxe marks the target for a turn on a hit, and she can perform a Sweeping Blade (recharge 5+) maneuver that attacks every enemy in a Close Burst 1 for more damage than a basic attack, and even more against bloodied enemies. This also marks everyone it hits for a turn.

  As a minor action, she can use Furious Onslaught to order an ally within 10 squares to charge or make a basic attack as a free action. If a marked enemy within 5 squares makes an attack that doesn’t target her, she can shift 5 squares to make a greataxe attack aggainst the offender as a reaction.

  When Msuga drops to 0 HP, Queen’s Demise allows her or an ally within 10 squares to use a standard action for free.

  Rohka the Blood Witch

  

  As mentioned above, Rohka is most likely to be found alongside her sister Msuga, and accompanied by a sizable honor guard besides. She is a Level 10 Elite Controller with 216 HP. She has the usual ground speed of 6 and an effective teleport speed of 10.

  Rohka fights in melee with her claws, but she prefers to stay at range and fling spells. Her go-to is Chaos Displacement, an area burst attack that targets Fortitude, deals psychic damage, and slides targets 3 squares. Every so often she can use the Baleful Eye of Gruumsh (recharge 5+), which targets 1 or 2 creatures and attacks Will. A hit deals psychic damage and slows (save ends). After the first failed save this worsens to immobilization, and after the second failure the target is dominated instead.

  If someone hits Rohka with a melee or ranged attack and an ally is nearby, she can use I Need a Volunteer (encounter) to teleport and swap places with the ally as an interrupt, making the attack target the ally instead of her. This does mean the attack could miss the ally if their defenses are higher. She also has the standard version of Savage Demise.

  Final Impressions

  Overall I like this portrayal of Clan Bloodspear. They make a solid choice for opposition because they’re ambitious and highly militarized imperialists with a penchant for enslaving others. In fact, they make me think of Rome’s mythical founding, since they’re led by two divinely-chosen siblings who are setting out to build an empire where before there was “nothing” (i.e, a bunch of civilizations who were minding their own business and were made targets for invasion).

  Combining the stat blocks from this entry with the standard orc stats in the MV gives you enough opposition to last you the whole Heroic tier. The book still uses the word “savage” a little too often for my tastes, and there’s the “vile half-breeds” thing, but I intend to change this if I ever use them in a game.

• Dec 13, 2022

  Let's Read Threats to the Nentir Vale: Calastryx

  

  This post is part of a series! Click here to see the others.

  When someone in the Nentir Vale points behind you and shouts “Look out, a three-headed dragon!” you should always look.

  The Lore

  I mentioned in earlier posts that the Vale was first settled by people from Nerath about three hundred years ago, and that the first area they settled is now known as the Old Hills.

  What we hadn’t learned yet was that this settlement process was far from peaceful. Back then, the Dawnforge mountains that make up the Vale’s eastern border were home to a small community of chromatic dragons who considered all they saw to be their domain. The first few attempts by human settlers to build villages in the Old Hills were thwarted by dragon attacks, with great loss of life and material.

  It was only when the settlers asked the dwarves for help that they succeeded in establishing a foothold. The next wave came accompanied by a sizable dwarven military force, which was quick to build the fortress of Hammerfast and use it as a base to fight off the dragons. It didn’t take long for them to meet the creature that was ultimately behind these attacks: Calastryx, the three-headed red dragon.

  Calastryx was too powerful for even the dwarven army to defeat, but they gave the wizard Starris enough time to cast a curse upon the dragon, placing her in a slumber that was supposed to be eternal. This allowed Nerath to finally settle the Vale, and Hammerfast to eventually grow into one of its major cities. To this day, no one knows the dragon’s history or why she has three heads. Does she suffer from a genetic or magical mutation? Is she the creation of a cruel god or of some other entity? Answers are thin on the ground, but your PCs just might get the chance to ask her.

  You see, that curse held strong for three centuries but it’s starting to weaken. It’s possible Calastryx will awaken in the near future. The region of the Dawnforge mountains where her lair used to be is currently inhabited by the Emberdark kobold tribe, who have their own share of historical beefs with the Hammerfast dwarves. Their priests have begun receiving visions from Kurtulmak, one of Tiamat’s Exarchs, speaking of Calastryx’s imminent awakening. The kobolds have starting raiding nearby travelers and settlements with the aim of gathering a treasure trove they’ll use to bribe their future mistress into accepting their loyalty. You can already see some of their warriors wearing shoulder pads that mimic extra heads, in honor of Calastryx.

  The Numbers

  The star of the show here is clearly Calastryx, but we also get a stat block for an Emberdark-specific kobold that you can mix in with the standard kobold stat blocks.

  Emberdark Kobold Pillager

  Apparently the Emberdark are pretty fond of fire, because this kobold here is something of a fire-themed paladin of Tiamat. It’s a Level 4 Soldier with 55 HP which, given the usual kobold level range, makes it one of their most powerful champions. It has Speed 6 and Darkvision.

  The pillager fights with a Flamebiter Spear that deals fire damage, marks for a turn, and makes it so targets that ignore the mark take 5 fire damage. They can also cast Fire Dart spells that do fire damage and mark for a turn, though they don’t have a “punisher” rider attached to them.

  When the pillager hits 0 HP, it goes out in a Blaze of Glory, making one final spear attack as a free action.

  I would probably turn the “take fire damage if you ignore the mark” rider from the spear into a trait that applies to both attacks, because things can get fiddly if you have to remember if a mark from the pillager has it or not.

  Calastryx

  Our star is a Huge Natural Magical Beast (Dragon) and a Level 14 Solo Brute with 684 HP. Level-wise she’s an adult red, but her actual stats differ quite heavily from the standard dragon template.

  She still has the standard draconic Action Recovery trait that ends any dazing, stunning or dominating effect on her at the end of her turn. The new bit here is that her Multiple Heads give her three turns per round, at fixed initiative counts of 30, 20, and 10. The only limitation here is that she cannot delay or ready actions (something monsters rarely do in my experience) and she only has one set of immediate actions between these turns.

  Her Reach 3 bites damage and slide 3 squares. Her Breath Weapon (recharge 6+) does light fire damage, half on a miss, and creates a damaging fire zone for a turn. She can also fire single-target Inferno Shots at will to deal heavy fire damage. Finally, Rip and Tear is an encounter power that allows her to bite up to three targets for slightly less damage than the basic bite.

  These actions seem a little weak, and they indeed are, fit more for a regular monster than a solo. But remember that Calastryx get three full turns per round to use them in. Each of her heads has a fully independent mind and they’re in perfect coordination. The Power of Three means each of them tracks their Breath Weapon and Rip and Tear powers separately. So she actually gets three uses of Rip and Tear per encounter, and three independently recharging uses of her breath weapon.

  Once she is first bloodied, Calastryx immediately grows a fourth head, which from then on acts on initiative 40 with its own independently tracked breath weapon and encounter power.

  Calastryx might be much more wrathful than your typical red dragon, but she’s still very smart. She will fight the PCs in places where she can herd them into tight spaces to ensure they’re all hit by her breath weapons and bites.

  Final Impressions

  Calastryx shows us how far we can stretch the mechanics and still end up with something that feels like a dragon, and I love her for it. Story-wise she’s pretty much your standard slumbering kaiju. She could be an awesome final boss for a campaign that ends at level 10, or a memorable “welcoming gift” for PCs who just made it to paragon tier.

  A lengthier campaign focusing on Calastryx could present the threat of her awakening early, and have its early conflicts be against the Emberdark kobolds. It might even be possible to reach a diplomatic resolution with them and get them onboard as allies against Calastryx when she finally awakens. I mean, your typical dragon already doesn’t have a great track record of treating its kobold lackeys very well, and Calastryx is even less inclined to do so no matter the size of the tribute they present her with.

• Dec 11, 2022

  Let's Read Threats to the Nentir Vale: Cadaver Collector

  

  This post is part of a series! Click here to see the others.

  I’m pretty sure I saw these in a 3e supplement somewhere, but there’s a nifty bonus stat block here that ties them to the Nentir Vale.

  The Lore

  Cadaver Collectors are specialized constructs first built by ancient necromancers to provide them with a supply of corpses. Their metal-plated bodies are covered in long spikes that they use to impale collected corpses for transport and delivery. They were commonly sent to “clear” battlefields after a battle had ended.

  Like many other constructs they’re pretty good at performing the job they were designed for and at following instructions related to it, but they can’t do anything else well. This is why no one sent them to fight in those battles. They only follow the orders of their current master, or those of a person who also serves that master.

  The original recipe for cadaver collectors was repeatedly lost and rediscovered over the ages. No one in the Nentir Vale knows how to build one in our narrative present, but there are several old ones still around in the wild. Many of them are located somewhere within the Witchlight Fens, a swampy region in the south-central Vale.

  When a collector’s master dies it will usually fulfill the last order it was given and then stand by waiting for more. If someone happens to die in their assigned area in the meantime, they will dutifully go out to collect the bodies. If someone manages to convince the collector they work for the collector’s master, the creature will obey their orders.

  After enough time waiting for orders that never come, their programming might mutate a bit, giving them a bit more initiative. Some collectors decide to go looking for a new master to serve. Others decide to broaden their mission parameters and consider living creatures valid targets for collection.

  There’s a hobgoblin necromancer named Gokof living in the Witchlight Fens who is unusually skilled at convincing ancient cadaver collectors to work for him. He’s nominally a member of the Daggerburg goblin tribe but spends most of his time away from them and in the company of his collectors and undead servants. He rarely has more than two collectors working for him at any one time, but never seems to have trouble finding more to replace them.

  The Numbers

  We get two stat blocks here, one for a cadaver collector and one for Gokof.

  Cadaver Collector

  These constructs are Large Natural Animates and Level 9 Elite Soldiers with 200 HP and a speed of 8. They’re immune to charm, disease, and poison, and have Resist Lightning 10. They are somewhat weak to thunder damage: whenever they take thunder damage, they become slowed (save ends).

  Collectors attack with Slams that deal physical damage and grab on a hit (escape DC 20). They can grab one Large creature or up to four Small creatures at once. As an elite it can perform Double Slams.

  The collector can also spend its action to Impale a grabbed creature. This deals massive damage, pulls them into the collector’s space, restrains them, and inflicts 10 ongoing damage (save ends all). When the collector moves, the creature is pulled along, and when the effect ends, the creature reappears in an adjacent space.

  You might have noticed that there’s a limit to how many creatures a collector can grab, but not to how many it can impale. It’s not going to matter much in practice, because it’s highly unlikely a collector will impale the whole party at once. However, if it ever becomes relevant I’m inclined to say their impaling limit is the same as the one for grabs. A fully loaded collector would have four Medium cadavers impaled and another four grabbed. And would probably have more than the two arms depicted in the illustration.

  Finally, the collector can Trample once per encounter like the big chungus it is. The rules are as usual: it moves its speed and can cross enemy spaces while doing so, making an attack that deals heavy physical damage and knocks prone against every enemy whose space they cross.

  Collectors fight by pretty much applying their programming to the PCs. Grab impale, repeat. When fully loaded, trample to retreat.

  Gokof, Hobgoblin Necromancer

  Gokof is a Level 9 Controller (Leader). He has speed 6 and low-light vision from being a hobgoblin. He wields a Staff as both weapon and implement, and has an array of necromantic spells at his disposal.

  His basic ranged attack is a Necrotic Ray that deals necrotic damage on a hit and slows for a turn as an effect. Anything that happens “as an effect” always happens, regardless of whether the attack hits or not! Less often (recharge 5+) he can cast Sapping Tendrils as a ranged area attack. This is not selective, and on a hit it deals necrotic damage, immobilizes, and inflicts ongoing necrotic damage (save ends).

  Instead of casting a spell, Gokof can use Command Animate to order an animate ally to make a melee basic attack as a free action. Cadaver collectors are animates, of course, and so are a lot of undead.

  Once per encounter, when an enemy within 5 squares of Gokof regains HP, the necromancer can use Dark Healing to automatically deal them a chunk of necrotic damage and recover 24 HP himself.

  Final Impressions

  If you think about it, the existence of cadaver collectors shows that necromancy in D&D requires an ideological commitment to the spread of undeath. These constructs are more powerful and have a less ethically questionable nature than most “servant” undead. They also take more skill to build, but their original builders clearly had that skill. And yet chose to task their constructs with collecting corpses for turning into zombies.

  I like the addition of Gokof to this entry. It helps establish a concrete situation where cadaver collectors appear in the Nentir Vale. It’s also an example of how a less “ideological” necromancer would come to control these creatures. This is more than even most other setting-specific monster books do. Those usually just say “these monsters exist in this setting”.

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