The Four Knights of the Four Pillars
Time waits for no one -- a phrase children learn before they can even comprehend the movements of an invisible hand. While that simple phrase may or may not be true, there are those for whom the opposite holds more power. Hidden away in the Raurin Desert are dreams to be realized for those willing to wait.
#FootOfTheMountain1500
This adventure comes free as a celebration for @mountain_foot reaching 1500 followers on twitter!. Foot has kindly supplied a map and given free rein to create whatever people wanted. This module utilizes the map for the basis of a one shot in Dungeons and Dragons Fifth Edition. The layout of this one shot was designed using The Homebrewery.
Artwork has been graciously donated from a couple artists. The first is found on page three and the piece is titled "Ziggurat Temple" by Nik Richards. The second is on page four and the piece is titled "Contrasts" by Grunlau Reiser. This particular piece was done for Puffeyes whose original character is in the picture. Links to their sites can be found at the end.
Desert Wanderers
While this adventure is set in the Raurin Desert, given its location of being deep within the desert as far away as possible from any location of interest, this may be used in any desert your adventurers may find themselves.
This one shot is ideally suited for a party of four or more fifth level adventurers who enjoy a hard challenge. Or, of course, for a DM who enjoys watching their players squirm under the pressure. Much of the difficulty depends upon how the players react to being "Champions." The imps are likely to celebrate creative violence, and become bored otherwise.
Having said all that, if you would like to change any aspects of this one shot to suit your group, please do so. If needed, the following background, and hooks are two ways in which the adventurers can be sent in the right direction.
Adventure Background
Locals on the outskirts of the desert, those combing the desert in search of sand swept artifacts, and the occasional adventurer seeking glory have heard of the Four Knights of the Four Pillars. They're never sure where the knowledge comes from, but most everyone that has set foot in this desert either knowns or finds out soon enough.
These adventurers from who knows when are meant to be suspended in time somewhere in the desert awaiting their "Champion." These Champions are meant to "decide" which of the four knights is most worthy. The worthy knight will then bestow a gift upon the champion which in turn allows the worthy knight to receive a gift of their choosing from The Arbiter. Ultimately, this place is pure entertainment for devils and was designed by unknown evil deities as such.
Hooks
What's in the Box? A DC15 Perception check, or for anyone with a high enough passive perception, reveals a body in the distance. It is a male human with one arm severed at the elbow. The cut looks clean enough but a DC 15 Medicine check indicates it wasn't quite as clean as there are a number of hesitation marks. The man's face has small pinprick bloodspots with visible swelling around these points. Five feet away, the man's arm rests in the sand.
For those interested in looting the body, the human wears simple clothes and not much else aside from carrying a small bag. A DC5 Investigation check empties the pockets and bag. This man had 12 silver, rations for two days in the way of dried meats along with a nearly full waterskin, and a scimitar with blood smeared along the blade.
A DC 20 Investigation check reveals a hidden pocket in the ankle of the man's trousers. This pocket has a small item inside and it was sewn shut. Cutting through, there is a Ring of Warmth (DMG pg 193). The pocket looks as though it has been ripped open and sewn shut several times.
Nearby there is a small wooden box, completely utilitarian in appearance, which has a visible catch from a trap that has been sprung. Anyone curious to know what the trap was can perform an Investigation check. A DC15 reveals tiny holes along the edge of the lid and a faint smell of poison. A slight shake harmlessly lets loose a poison needle that failed to fire.
Opening the box entirely reveals another severed arm which is possibly tiefling given a slightly reddish coloration. There is a tattoo of an 'X' on the arm. The first PC to touch the arm has the tattoo travel from the severed arm and onto their own. It will end up in the same exact spot on their arm as it was on the arm in the box. This tattoo is a cursed tattoo.
This 'X' will move as the PC moves and as they close in on the Oasis the 'X' will travel down the arm toward the hand. Once they reach The Arbiter, the 'X' will come to its final resting spot in the palm of the PC's hand before fading away entirely.
Butterfly Counter "The sun-drenched Drow, quite peculiar now that I think about it, told me to head east and count all the butterflies I come across. It was the best suggestion I've heard in some time. You've not seen any, have you? I've not seen any yet." You meet Argo Mabon, headed east through the desert and looking high and low for any butterfly he can find.
He is human and looks as though he was recently involved in a one-sided fight in which he was clearly not the victor. If he is questioned, he will provide somewhat vague answers as he is distracted in his quest to count butterflies. After each question he becomes more and more annoyed and worried he might be missing a butterfly. He will wander off and ignore any further interaction after a fourth question.
He is under the effects of Suggestion. This spell may be dispelled and if done, he is thankful and afraid the Drow might find out. He is able to roughly give the location of where he met the Drow. He warns that if you're brave or fool enough to visit the place, to "avoid biting the heads. He doesn't like it." This is the only information he is willing to give.
If pressed further, Argo's eyes go white and he begins speaking in a voice that isn't his own. He says the following before passing out: "We've been waiting for you and you've been coming to us for such a long time now." Argo is now unconscious and if revived has no memory of meeting the party before falling back under the power of the Suggestion spell. If the party wishes to engage again, repeat from the beginning.
Clockwork Oasis
Once on the path to the Clockwork Oasis, visibly, the desert is a vast nothingness. At some point on their travels if the adventurers are to make a sound-based DC20 perception check, they should be able to hear what sounds like a large number of birds flying well overhead. These invisble ravens are actually imps and are excited to see these adventurers.
They will follow them everywhere but will do everything in their power to avoid interacting with the adventurers. They know what's to come and sense that these adventurers are the ones who will finally set events in motion at the Clockwork Oasis.
As your adventurers reach the main location through whichever means, their first sight is of a cloaked figure, deep in meditation sitting by a small pool of water. This is The Arbiter. There is no telling how long The Arbiter has been waiting here for this exact moment but waiting a while longer still is no problem at all. The pool of water has several swords, axes, hammers, and clothes of various shapes and sizes at the bottom.
Any attempt to reach into the pool makes the bottom sink lower and lower. Going into the pool itself and looking inside, this shallow pool becomes an ocean with only the one light source from above being the opening of the pool. Nearby The Arbiter and this pool are four heads with their bodies completely buried in the sand up to their necks. They stare straight ahead.
One head looks as though it has recently been bitten by a humanoid as a slight amount of nearly dry blood hangs forms in a ring around their forehead. A DC15 Medicine check indicates this wound occurred in the last hour (See the Butterfly Counter hook). Other than the wound, there are no signs of discomfort, decay, or anything to worry about in general with regards to these four people as they are all alive but in a form of stasis.
Each one of these buried knights are human. From left to right they are Evander Cartwright, Athena Brooker, Reinisa, and Tryn Sandsweeper more information on each of them can be found in the NPCs section. They are The Four Knights of the Four Pillars. a DC20 History check turns up very little on them outside of a military myth that every now and then an exemplary soldier will simply vanish from the battlefield and all that is left in their home bed is a pillar of sand which when destroyed always reforms.
The Arbiter
Approaching the cloaked figure does not break their concentration. This person, deep in a meditative trance despite the heat from the sun, is a drow. The cloak the drow wears is a deep navy blue with silver embroidery around the border showing various moon phases. In the center of the cloak on the back is a black sun. This item is called Cover of Night and more information can be found in the Items section.
Speaking to The Arbiter is the only way to break the meditation. However, the drow will wait until the players are frustrated before responding. If the players interact with the drow in other ways, such as lifting the hood before the drow is willing to speak they will find a jade bird the size of a small brown finch sitting on its side in a nest made out of the drow's hair. Next to it is a gem in the shape of an egg that slowly and endlessly shifts color from blue to purple to red, repeating. Combined, these items are Hen and Egg.
If the adventurers take anything, the drow will wither before their eyes and turn to dust. The egg will then crack open after a moment, its yolk pouring out, its texture more slick than expected, and when it hits the ground the drow will reform in a way a melted candle would look like if its destruction were reversed from beginning to end. The drow will continue to meditate for a moment longer after this before speaking to the group.
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Champions
Once the drow is ready to speak the heads all turn and stare intently at every single movement The Arbiter's lips make. In appearance the lip movement is slightly out of sync with the words that come out. When the words do come out, the drow says the following:
"All this time and here you are. Not a moment too late, and judging by the dreadful sun, not a moment too soon. You may ask your question. One each. Please proceed."
Following this, The Arbiter is silent, but the heads shift their focus from the drow to the party, their mouths slightly open. At this point the party may ask a single question to each of the heads. Though there is no further instruction, as the drow resumes meditating, each of the heads are only able to provide a one-sentence answer.
No matter what question is asked, the heads will answer as succinctly as possible and to the best of their ability. As each head finishes answering a question, they close their mouth and resume watching the drow. If a question is addressed to the group instead of an individual, whomever the person asking the question looks at last in terms of the heads, that Knight will provide the answer as though it was its own question to answer.
Once all the knights have provided an answer to a question, The Arbiter speaks once more. Each party member is asked to choose one of the knights. If there are more than four party members it is of no consequence as each knight may have more than one champion but all four knights must have at least one champion. Once all four have been selected the characters need to make a Strength Save DC15 in order to remain on their feet and avoid falling prone.
The sand surrounding the heads opens and falls as though it is being funnelled down. From the waist below, the knights are still buried. The ravens that have been silent, invisible, and watching up until this point become visible and begin to circle overhead. The ground, which has been shaking since
the champions chose their knight, begins to sink in a large square, sound pouring down. This is the Ziggurrat and is the "battlefield" in which these champions will battle. See the MAP section for the layout. While the champions fight, the ziggurat is inverted and sinks below into the sand. After only one knight is left, the ziggurat will rise up and will be in its normal configuration above the sand level. While all this moves in and out of place, a sound-based DC15 Perception check reveals the sound of gears scraping against each other.
Even though the ziggurat sits inverted for the fight and rises afterward, there are four pillars that rise up and stay above the sand level throughout. From the pool of water that rested near The Arbiter, it begins to flow in a small stream and travels through the ziggurat's levels.
After everything is in place, The Arbiter performs a ritual, arms moving in cycles and waves in such a way that multiple new arms seem to appear. The adventurers, as they watch, suddenly begin to feel a connection to the knight they chose. Inherently they are aware that damaging the other adventurers will do no harm to them but to the knights. With this realization, The Arbiter speaks one last time, asking each of the knights as to whether or not they are happy to allow their champions to fight for their honour.
In turn, each knight confirms this. The Arbiter then asks what gift they will provide their champion if they are victorious.. Each speak in turn, again from left to right starting with Evander Cartwright, Athena Brooker, Reinisa, and finishing with Tryn Sandsweeper. See the NPCs section for this information.
The Ziggurat
The Arbiter becomes silent but watches everything intently at this point. Each adventurer sees a light that only they can see drawing them to a certain point in the ziggurat. Each level of the ziggurat is fifteen feet below the other. Each adventurer feels it in their bones, this warm glow letting them know the fight will not start until they are in position.
Once everything is set, the ravens, circling overhead come down slightly lower, and circle specifically over the knights. The knights pay no attention to this, instead, keeping their focus directly on their champion. Each of the knights has 52HP. Their AC plays no part in damage as all the attacks are directed at the other adventurers.
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At this point the adventurers should roll initiative and the fight will commence. Whatever skills and resources the adventurers use is entirely up to them. Absolutely no harm will befall them during this fight. Whatever damage they take is instead taken directly by their knight.
There are some signs that these knights are taking damage though each does their absolute best to handle the pain as any elite soldier would. As soon as a knight is reduced to zero hit points, they are released from the sand. They still have some power left. One by one after their release they head directly for a spot near the edge of the ziggurat.
If an adventurer’s knight drops and exits, they can still participate in the fight. They should be informed privately, if possible, that they now feel as though any damage done to them at this point comes at their own cost. If they wish to share this information it can be done on their turn.
Once there is but a final knight, they too are released and will make their way to the star marked on the map. Three of the pillars crack and crumble. The ziggurat raises, a whirring noise from underneath sounds and the adventurers must repeat the DC15 Strength Save or fall prone.
The victorious knight puts on their armor that appears and grabs their weapons, apart from Athena. They ask their champion(s) to come and receive their gift. Once the gift is handed over, the knight beseeches The Arbiter for their own gift. See the NPCs section for this information. The Arbiter smiles as the last pillar begins to glow a vibrant red.
The Arbiter speaks the following to the other three knights:
"We thank you for your time. Will you see the agreement through?"
The three defeated knights say nothing but shake their heads in agreement and remove their armor. The Arbiter motions toward the ravens. As they swoop toward the knights, they shift from their raven form into their Imp (Monster Manual pg. 76) form. They feast on the knights in a sickeningly joyous fashion. The knights accept their fate unless Athena is one of the defeated. She is deeply upset that the imps are doing this to her. Any attempts to intervene from the party will invite aggression from the imps who far outnumber the party.
The victorious knight comes down to sit beside the others and thanks them for their resolve. If this is Athena, she will pet one of the nearby imps. The imps make fairly quick work of the three and when sated, they fly up and once again become ravens. The pillar glows brighter now as they circle it near the top. Suddenly there is a chill in the air and the
ravens in flight become frantic. There is an enormous sound suddenly coming from the pillar.
The remaining pillar implodes, sucking in the ravens before violently expelling them in pieces. In the pillar's place a portal stands. The victorious knight walks toward the portal in order to receive their gift.
Evander's Gift
Should Evander win, before standing in front of the portal, he will ask the party if they are able to kindly heal him first unless he is already at full health. After this he moves directly to the portal and as he stands there, but a moment passes before a Flesh Golem (Monster Manual pg. 169) materializes and the portal closes. Evander is considered its creator. The Arbiter turns to dust and blows away. Evander speaks to his gift:
"Destroy everyone."
Initiative can be rolled again or kept from the previous fight with the new combatants included. If Evander is near full health, he will lead the charge himself against the party. Otherwise, he will attempt to keep the Flesh Golem between him and the party as best he can.
If the party manages to take down the Flesh Golem first, Evander will plead for his life. However, this is hollow as he will only do this in an attempt to gain an advantage. He has no intention to surrender. If the party manages to take out Evander first, the Flesh Golem will continue to attack.
If the party is victorious they watch as the ziggurat slowly and gently flattens and becomes just like any other area of the desert. They can hear the voice of The Arbiter in their minds. The Arbiter thanks them for preventing the knight from learning the secrets of this place and allowing others the chance to receive gifts in the future.
One final gift is now theirs as well. If they are to dig near the pool of water which remains, they will find a Bottomless Cup which will carry the pool of water. A sense of serenity falls over the party as the sun's rays feel less intense despite its position high up in a cloudless sky.
Athena's Gift
Should Athena win, she will quickly rush to the portal quite visibly upset. She will immdeiately change her mind about what gift she wants and tells The Arbiter:
"I wish to right a wrong instead!"
The Arbiter says nothing but gives a shake of the head. Athena turns toward the portal as a Cambion (Monster Manual pg. 36), and a Dretch (MM pg. 57) materialize. One imp also survived the portal's creation and flies down in raven form, becoming visible before landing on Athena's arm.
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The creatures look at Athena and she points her finger toward each of the party members saying first them, and then The Arbiter. Initiative can be rolled again or kept from the previous fight with the new combatants included. Athena will not fight but she will attempt to gather every single fragment of destroyed imp from the portal's creation and this occupies her total attention.
If the party is victorious, Athena will realize she did nothing to help whatsoever. She will be beside herself. While she has been gathering the imp parts, she has also been attempting to "reassemble" them. She looks over everything and rushes to attack The Arbiter. The party can interrupt or not, but once she is within 5ft. of the pool of water, The Arbiter snaps a finger and several tentacles reach up and grab Athena, pulling her down.
The ziggurat slowly and gently flattens and becomes just like any other area of the desert. The Arbiter goes back to meditating, ignoring the adventurers. If they begin to pester The Arbiter, there is another snap of the fingers. No tentacles appear this time, but one feather per adventurer floats down and lands in each of their hands. These are Ghost Arrows. They can hear The Arbiter's voice in their heads saying this is the last show of generosity.
Reinisa's Gift
Should Reinisa win, she will walk up to the portal with slow confident strides and turn to the group and ask:
"What say you? Air, earth, fire, or water?"
She will wait ten seconds for the group to answer. If they choose and tell her within that time, that elemental creature will appear. If they fail to answer within that time, she will choose herself. Roll a 1d4 where Air Elemental (Monster Manual pg. 124) is one (1), Earth Elemental (MM pg. 124) is two (2), Fire Elemental (MM pg. 125) is three (3), and Water Elemental (MM pg. 125) is four (4).
Whaetever the choice, that type of elemental will come out. She apologises to the party stating she must be able to understand her power before taking it back to her people. She asks them to choose who should be tested first. If they fail to choose within ten seconds she will select the party member she believes has the least amount of health and directs the elemental to attack them. Reinisa has limited control over the creature. Roll a 1d4 and on a four (4), the elemental ignores her command and instead will attack whomever is closest, even if it's Reinisa.
Initiative can be rolled again or kept from the previous fight with the new combatants included. On each of Reinisa's turns, she can attempt to give a new command to the elemental. If no new command is given, it continues to do what it was doing the previous round. Always roll a 1d4 whenever Reinisa gives a command, where a four (4) always means the elemental attacks the closest target. Should The Arbiter be the closest target, the elemental will spend its turn doing nothing though it looks as though it wants to attack.
If the party kills Reinisa first, whoever lands the fatal blow will sense a tenuous connection to the elemental and they too will be able to issue commands. If the elemental is killed first, Reinisa will break down and cry saying that she has failed her people. She will look at her hands in silence, turning them over and again trying to figure out how she failed.
If she is left alone then that is the end of the fight, otherwise she will continue to attack and defend herself. If the elemental ends up killing Reinisa it will then exclusively attack the party and not consider The Arbiter as a target. If the party survives, The Arbiter thanks them for their arrival and hopes they enjoy their last gift as they are now resistant to bludgeoning damage for one day. The ziggurat slowly and gently flattens and becomes just like any other area of the desert.
Tryn's Gift
Should Tryn win, he will approach The Arbiter carefully before kissing the drow on the forehead and attempting a warm embrace. Tryn whispers something and a sound-based DC20 Perception check reveals Tryn saying the drow is beautiful and does not deserve to be bound by this terrible place. The Arbiter closes the portal, gives a snap of the fingers, and grabs the shortsword and hand crossbow that suddenly jump from the pool of water. The Arbiter smiles and tells the party the following:
"You have truly earned this great honor of being the last."
The Arbiter tells Tryn that in order to carry out his request, there can be no witnesses. Tryn understands this. The Arbiter is an Elite Drow Warrior (Monster Manual pg. 128). Initiative can be rolled again or kept from the previous fight with the new combatants included. Both The Arbiter and Tryn will focus on the party member with the lowest amount of health. If Tryn is killed first, The Arbiter will spend their next turn asking for the fight to be momentarily suspended so that Tryn's body can be placed in the pool of water.
If they agree, The Arbiter will gently carry Tryn, placing the body in the pool of water and watching it sink down. After this is done, The Arbiter will pierce their left hand doing 1d6+4 piercing damage as a way of saying thank you before resuming the fight. If the party refuse to suspend the fight, The Arbiter will do an additional 1d6 damage per attack for the next two rounds.
If the party is victorious, the ziggurat crumbles around them. None of the knights carry anything special. All three special items The Arbiter had can be looted. The Bottomless Cup can be found with a DC20 Investigation check as the sand is raised in a slight mound near the pool. The sun's heat intensifies and the party feel slightly ill at ease. Far in the distance, they can see a dark spot in the sky which is ever so slowly growing larger. This is a mass of ravens coming to the site.
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MAP
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NPCs
Argo Mabon
Medium humanoid (human), neutral
- Armor Class 11
- Hit Points 11
- Speed 30ft.
STR DEX CON INT WIS CHA 11 (+0) 12 (+1) 12 (+1) 10 (+0) 10 (+0) 10 (+0)
- Senses Passive Perception 10
- Languages Common
- Challenge 1/8 (25 XP)
Actions
Bite Melee Weapon Attack: +3 to hit, reach 5ft., one target. Hit: 1d4 piercing damage
Argo Mabon
"Better when it's quiet. You know where everything's coming from. Nice to hear the juicy ones."
Argo is someone who is relatively new to the area. Having scoured other deserts repeatedly, this new setting provides new wonders to discover and possibly plunder.
Argo has clearly spent far too much time by himself and when not in a state of suggestion, he is skittish and touches his teeth as he speaks. These have been sharpened at the front as he relies on these as a weapon and to make it easier to chew through tough flesh. What little hair he has on his head is thin and wispy. Generally speaking he is on the frail side. He emits no odor whatsoever, surprisingly. He'll claim, if asked, that this is the result of enormous water intake.
However, it's actually the result of a wish spell he was granted after saving a powerful wizard entirely by accident. He has no idea what he had done to save this wizard and didn't believe this person knew magic after the fact. So, when presented with proof and a reward in the form of a wish spell, he asked to never give off a smell.
He will always look over someone's shoulder when he speaks making sure there is no danger. Though he's never satisfied he's not in any danger. He never travels with any possessions outside of the clothes on his back. When he does find something worth taking, he will painstakingly bring it "home" by moving it 100ft at a time, burying it, scouting the next area, then coming back to repeat the process.
The Arbiter
"The amount of revolutions I've witnessed, will witness? Every single one I carry with me and cherish."
Outside of the normal spells the Elite Drow Warrior (Monster Manual pg. 128) has access to, The Arbiter can also innately cast Suggestion and with such power that the effect will return if dispelled after a short time. The only way to end the effects of The Arbiter's suggestion spell, is to carry out the suggestion.
In terms of this drow's appearance, there is nothing in particular that stands out aside from the long, fine, white hair that always seems to be cascading downward with even the smallest movement. The dark grey skin appears vibrant, almost silvery. The way in which the drow speaks lends an air of refinement, and careful consideration for every word chosen.
There has only ever been one other Arbiter and this current one has been in power for hundreds of years. Time works differently around Arbiters as the same day happens over and over around them. This day though is outside of time which allows them to attract knights from whenever they wish.
The way in which Arbiters are chosen is relatively unknown but those that are selected, have this compulsion to live above the surface, as the "noise" becomes clearer the closer they are to the surface. They find that they are able to see through the eyes of great warriors. They are also able to pull these warriors toward them.
Their selection is largely the work of the unknown evil deities that have devised this little spectacle. However, they are blissfully unaware of this and assign the highest importance to the work they are carrying out. They will only ever act to ensure the safety of the knights and themself. They hold no grudges whatsoever. Given all this, their personal identity is largely irrelevant.
Four Knights of the Four Pillars
For each of the four knights, use the Knight (Monster Manual pg. 347) stat block. However, with Athena, the AC drops to 10 as she does not put her armor on, nor does she grab her weapons.
Evander Cartwright
"I've never met a question that couldn't be answered by my steel."
Evander is a cunning, devious, bastard and that's putting it mildly. Lies and deceit are his forte. There are often hidden meanings in the things he says and he is never one to make things clear when asked. Evander has never truly been a part of any one army. He'll often wait to find out which side stands to likely win, or win the most with the least amount of effort.
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In terms of his appearance, he looks rather baby-faced. The hardened looks most knights have are clearly do not show in his visage. He is entirely successful at never doing more than is absolutely neccessary. He is bald though it is not entirely clear that is by choice as the only feature that betrays his normally youthful look are scars that run across his scalp.
He's never been on the losing side of a battle. Though, he often puts himself in position to steal someone else's glory through whatever means necessary. When Evander felt the pull to come to this place, he took it as validation that he is the world's greatest ever soldier.
When the party ask him their question, he will find a way to tell them that he should be chosen by their finest warrior as he has much to learn from such a fine person. The way in which he gets around other questions is he will say "The better question is which one of you has the most they can teach me?"
Evander's gift is "Fortune's Ear" which will provide the champion(s) with an inspiration die. When it is time for him to request his gift, he says the following:
"I seek nothing but the best of what now rests here."
Ultimately, he wants a being that is strong enough to do his dirty work and is something that he can control.
Athena Brooker
"I understand pure things. There's a grace and a beauty in anything pure."
Athena has never been one to spend much time on her appearance outside of her hair. She has a short mohawk which is often dyed different colors depending on her mood at the time. She also has an incredibly muscular physique.
She was found by the side of a brook when she was a child. Every orphanage she was ever in as a child had a habit of burning down. She would spend hours at a time playing alone with nothing but the air from the point of view of those who cared for her.
These invisible beings were of course imps. She does not remember what formed her connection with these creatures as it happened before she was even just five years old. However, their relationship is so strong to her that she often took part in their mischief. Yes, mischief would often involve death and dismemberment of anyone who crossed these imps. Strangely, the imps don't seem to care for her as much, they simply seem to see her as one of them.
As Athena grew older, she learned that while she didn't have a problem with any of this, she knew she had to be a bit more careful as to who might see this. She was also keen to have as much "fun" as possible with the imps and decided that if they could fight alongside on a battlefield, no one would question anything. With the help of her imps, she was able to quickly establish herself as a fearsome warrior and was "granted" knighthood by a priest in exhange for his life.
Importantly, she has no sense herself of evil and good but understands that people react poorly to the things she does and this upsets her. If the party are to ask her why she should be chosen, she will do her best to avoid stating that she should be chosen. She'll typically point out the merits of selecting the others over her as she's not sure what it would mean to be worthy in the eyes of strangers.
Athena's gift is "Empathy" which will provide the champion(s) with the following one time action: Sacrifice 1d12 of your own HP and give that as temporary HP to a party member of you choosing. When it is time for her to request her gift, she says the following:
"I want that which made me pure."
Ultimately she seeks to understand why she is the way she is.
Reinisa
"When nature rises, I'll be a benevolent ruler."
Reinisa's face is heavily tattooed but in ink similar to her skin so it's easy to miss. It's hard to make out details of the tattoos given the ink and the fact many overlap. She has intricately woven braids that extend down to her waste. Generally, she always has at least a slight smirk on her face as well.
Reinisa heard the stories of this place from a young age and made it her life's mission to be selected. She spent every second she could learning from local fighters as they trained and studying any tactics she could pick up from passing armies that came her way.
No one took her seriously though at first as she had no idea what she was doing. Later, even though she progressed mightily, no one would accept her in an army because she had developed her own unique style which incorporated the mish mash of styles she had seen over the years.
Eventually, she did catch the eye of a recruiter for the Knights of the North. Every year that he would be in the area he would see this young woman constantly showing off her technique, trying to impress anyone willing to take her on in their army. What the recruiter, Indira Ulphrack, saw that everyone missed was someone who was able to combine elements of many different fighting styles into something that worked for her extremely well.
Through all this training she had done, she had never actually fought anyone, as she felt she wouldn't be ready until she actually received proper instruction. When the recruiter tested her there was a sense of disappointment as she continually fell. She never stayed down though and this resulted in her acceptance.
When the party speak to her and ask questions she will say that she should be selected as she owes a debt to those that took her in. They took a chance on her when no one else would and they were quick to accept her when she met the Knights for the first time. Her desire to become a Knight of the Four Pillars didn't subside, but it actually took a backseat to fully integrating in her new group.
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Reinisa's gift is "Patience" which provides the champion(s) with +2 to Wisdom. When it is time for her to request her gift, she says the following:
"I require power over the elements."
Ultimately, the bond she forged with this group is so strong that she wishes to be able to thank them and crush their foes using power gained from this place.
Tryn Sandsweeper
"There's something elegant in his features, don't you think?"
Tryn has long since retired from fighting and he is creeping into his fifties. Messy grey hair hangs upon his face. He does not look frail in the slightest and certainly looks like he could still fight. His eyes give the appearance though of someone who has seen much and most of it was not meant to be seen.
True enough, Tryn has witnessed many atrocities, and some he feels responsible for by his inaction. When he was young he was a squire for a cruel and vicious knight whose reputation showed him as a man who never spared anyone on the battlefield. Off the field he was much the same, and although he never harmed Tryn, he made Tryn clean up every single "mess" he left.
One night when the knight was fast asleep, he went to his bed with a knife in hand. As he stood there trembling, looking down at the sleeping figure, he closed his eyes and raised the knife high above his head. As he plunged downard, his knife went straight through a small pillar of sand which reformed.
Tryn eventually became a knight himself but in battle, he was never anything truly special and this is mostly due to his divided attention in trying to track down his former mentor, Gilland Thomas, and find out what exactly happened. Through all his tracking down of information, he became enamored with this mysterious being, The Arbiter.
He came to a key realization after finding some information regarding this place, that it is not a holy place and is more of a devil's playground. Though he was well into his retirement at this point, he did what he could to be "noticed" sometimes emulating his former master's cruel ways with the intent of being chosen. All for a purpose.
When the party ask him their question, he will explain as briefly as possible that this is all a cruel joke that is being played on everyone and that The Arbiter is an innocent.
Tryn's gift is "Determination" which give's the champion(s) +2 to initiative rolls. "When it is time for him to request his gift, he says the following:
"I wish to cleanse this place."
Ultimately, he is looking to destroy this place and free The Arbiter in the process.
Items
Cover of Night
Wondrous Item, very rare (requires attunement)
This cloak is a deep navy blue with silver embroidery around the border of the various moon phases. In the center of the cloak on the back is a black sun.
When worn, all sources of sunlight for the user become moonlight instead. Darkvision is increased by 60ft. but the user must already have darkvision. Once per day the user can cast Pass without Trace.
Hen and Egg
Wondrous Item, very rare (requires attunement)
These two items combined appear as a jade bird the size of a small brown finch along with a gem in the shape of an egg that slowly and endlessly shifts color from blue to purple to red, repeating.
During the attunement process, the bird will animate and build a small nest out of the user's hair and place itself and the egg there. Whenever the user takes a long or short rest, if anyone takes an item of theirs the user will wither and turn to dust.
The egg will then crack open after a moment, its yolk pouring out, its texture more slick than expected, and when it hits the ground the user will reform in a way a melted candle would look like if its destruction were reversed from beginning to end. No matter how much time has passed, the rest is considered complete in full.
Bottomless Cup
Wondrous Item, very rare (requires attunement)
This plain cup made of red clay and without any markings save for a distinct thumb print inside the cup at the base holds water that never spills unless deliberately poured out.
If the water is poured out onto the ground, it forms a pool of water with a five foot diameter. An unlimited number of items may be stored in this pool. Jumping into the pool reveals the inside is a vast uninhabited ocean, unless something living is placed in there of course. The bottom can never be reached and there are no walls.
It requires an action to take items out of this pool. Whoever is attuned must think of the item required and it will jump from out of the pool. If the cup is destroyed, the pool will vanish and anything inside at the time will be placed in a random pool of water in the world as small as a puddle and as large as an ocean.
Ghost Arrow
Wondrous Item, very rare (requires attunement)
This item appears as a simple feather. However, if the user throws this item it will turn into an invisible arrow. This requires an action and the following features are used (no proficiency required):
Attack: +6 to hit; Hit: 1d12 psychic damage
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Thank You
I would first like to thank @mountain_foot for coming up with the idea, entrusting me with said idea and then waiting patiently as that follow count rocketed past 1500 for me to finish this.
Special thanks to both Nik Richards for donation of "Ziggurat Temple" and whose website can be found here:
and to Grunlau Reiser for donation of "Contrasts" which once again features an original character of Puffeyes. Grunlau's work can be found here:
https://www.deviantart.com/omfgiforgotmynameoo
Thanks as well to the Homebrewery which is amazing!
https://homebrewery.naturalcrit.com
Finally, thank you for making it through all this. This is my first adventure that I've put together. For any hate mail, thanks, comments, questions, concerns, please DM me, @wrinklewroes
P.S. That horrible piece of artwork of The Arbiter was done by me.