Note, however, that he's never actually mentioned or referenced in any Greyhawk materials -- his Oerth backstory is entirely a Ravenloft retrofit.
I have heared that he was now a kind demi-god in Greyhawk and had gained his demi-lich form, but I find it hard to believe since he is still trapped in Ravenloft. Does any of you know if this is true or not? Maybe it is just some kind of "devloppers confusion".
That's Vecna you're describing. He was in Ravenloft but broke the rules and escaped.
Azalin is a different lich who rules Darkon in Ravenloft and only wants to escape.
One of the many changes I will have is that the Grand Conjunction lasts for far longer across the multiverse. The PCs can travel to distant campaign settings for maybe a month or two in campaign timem seeing the destruction Azalin's plan wreaked across the multiverse.
Eventually, they will be deposited on Oerth and have to research Azalin's past to find him. When they do find him, he will have gained two levels and be on the verge of Epic conversion, which is why they have to trap him back in Ravenloft as soon as they can.
One tool they use will be his Ravenloft phylactery. Azalin upon returning to Oerth discovered his old phylactery (a child's skull) intact and thought all was back to normal. But the PCs have his Ravenloft phylactery and Strahd's Holy Symbol, and they can use these as leverage to bring Azalin back to the bargaining table with Strahd.
The adventure ends with the reconstitution of Ravenloft, after Inajira the Arcanoloth gives the PCs a carefully-worded Wish spell to cast on the two relics, binding the Darklords to the plane once more and releasing the soul of Hyskosa.
That's Vecna you're describing. He was in Ravenloft but broke the rules and escaped.
Azalin is a different lich who rules Darkon in Ravenloft and only wants to escape.
I know the difference between these two... but it was what i was told
I told the guy that it was probably Vecna he was talking about... but I believe you more then this guy, it makes more sense!Strangely, one of his priorities was to restore his rapidly decomposing body... perhaps in 1st edition, liches were concerned with that moreso than they are now.
That's Vecna you're describing. He was in Ravenloft but broke the rules and escaped.
Azalin is a different lich who rules Darkon in Ravenloft and only wants to escape.
woah, vecna was in ravenloft? and he escaped? wow. where does it say that?
Thw Ravenloft Campaign Setting 3rd edition says that Azalin entered ravenloft and formed an uneasy alliance with Strahd in 542 BC. This is shown in the moduel House on Gryphon Hill which takes place in Mordent before it was a domain in ravenloft. It says that Mordent became a domain in 579 BC. Does this mean that Mordentshire was origionally part of Oerth? Perhaps Azalin took residence there and the darklords made it his domain, and it faded into the mists to join the Core. Then he left and went to Darkon?
Originally, he was the second son of the Count of Knurl and a vassal of the Overking of Aerdy. When he took power, he declared his fief effectively independant from the rule of Rauxes and conquered several surrounding fiefs in the Flinties, Bone March etc. The weakness of the incumbant Rax overking allowed this to happen (the Bandit Kingdoms were calving off from the Empire about the same time). He was undone however, when his armies marched on Innspa. His lieutenant betrayed him and he was forced to flee into the Adri, where the Mists whisked him off to Ravenloft (429 CY).
The interesting thing is, Azalin first appeared in "The House on Gryphon Hill" as a minion of Strahd, and his role was mostly minor in that. He served as a diversion for the PCs, where they were expecting to fight a vampire, he would suddenly loom out of the shadows and blast them with spells.
Strangely, one of his priorities was to restore his rapidly decomposing body... perhaps in 1st edition, liches were concerned with that moreso than they are now.
He also would have been a native of whatever world Mordentshire was in, since Strahd met him shortly after his arrival at Gryphon Hill, and not before. :D
This raises questions that go beyond just Azalin, and illustrates a few weaknesses (or inconsistencies) with how the Mists are portrayed. But I'll give it a stab nonetheless.
THoGH took place in Mordent, which is (I believe) a standalone province not connected to any preexisting world. Azalin was, according to that module, a native of Mordent - Strahd found him in the domain and did NOT take him there with him. At the end of the module, the PCs could kill Strahd if they were lucky or canny enough. Azalin just disappeared.
This has been retconned in the current campaign setting. Azalin got his Oerth backstory in "From the Shadows", the 2nd ed. adventure where PCs assault his castle. He got his Ravenloft (working with Strahd) backstory in the 2nd ed. Core Boxed Set, thus firmly placing him in Ravenloft before the formation of either Mordent or Darkon.
Mordent became part of the Core as per the 2nd ed. Black Box. However, it is unclear whether the domain itself still exists in its original, unnamed world.
If you take a look at Roots of Evil, after the Grand Conjunction occurs, Strahd is able to leave Ravenloft's Barovia, and travel to his native world, where another version of Barovia exists, with a king and a queen very similar to Barov and Ravenia (his parents). This is at odds with the people who are brought into Ravenloft - they do not have copies made of themselves back at home. This is also the only example where they state clearly that the domains are mirrored back in the original world. In "Castles Forlorn" and other single-domain-centric additions, it is intentionally left vague as to whether the lands are actually transported to Ravenloft (leaving a void in their wake) or copied across.
woah, vecna was in ravenloft? and he escaped? wow. where does it say that?
The adventures 'Vecna Reborn' & 'Die, Vecna, Die!'.
Angrydwarfwithhammer and Mortepierre:
THoGH took place in Mordent, which is (I believe) a standalone province not connected to any preexisting world. Azalin was, according to that module, a native of Mordent - Strahd found him in the domain and did NOT take him there with him. At the end of the module, the PCs could kill Strahd if they were lucky or canny enough. Azalin just disappeared.
I agree that the authors intended Mordentshire to be a stand-alone mini setting. In the HoGH module it claims that Mordent shire is close to a city called Osterton.
"You and your party have been requested by the Church of the High Faith in Osterton, a major city three days travel to the north, to investigate a small matter. As all of you have some debt, large or small, to the Faith you agreed to the task, and soon set out on the road south."
so if anyone knows of a setting with a major city of that name then thats where he was supposed to be from before the rewrite that made him from Oerth
Also the other reason Strahd is there is because he was drawn to the love The Alchemist shared with his fiance; it reminded Shrahd of his lost Tatyana (one of his goals is to torment her.) He allied himself with Azalin by promising him a new body-and it worked because, as previoiulsy posted- because his was rapidly decomposing, and Azalin made a good double of Strahd and threw the heroes off Strahds trail.
also, i looked up those adventures with Vecna. they look REALLY tough.
If you take a look at Roots of Evil, after the Grand Conjunction occurs, Strahd is able to leave Ravenloft's Barovia, and travel to his native world, where another version of Barovia exists, with a king and a queen very similar to Barov and Ravenia (his parents). This is at odds with the people who are brought into Ravenloft - they do not have copies made of themselves back at home.
I don't see the problem with this. Strahd's bloodline simply endured on his native world after he was taken away to Ravenloft. Yes, finding a king & queen similar to his parents was a weird twist of fate but not unlogical if they shared a common ancestry.
And the Queen from the module was another Tatyana-duplicate, not a copy of Strahd's mother. (One should certainly *hope* it's not the latter, since Strahd tried to impersonate her husband and seduce her in the course of that adventure, and he's a sick-enough puppy as it is.... :p) The odds of having a Tatyana-clone appear *outside* of Ravenloft, where the DPs don't call the shots, makes me personally doubt if the 'Grand Conjunction' *really* linked up to the Material Plane at all -- perhaps the Dark Powers merely created a false "Barovia" to yank the darklords' chains, making them *think* they'd escaped
-- but that's just my personal theory.I don't see the problem with this. Strahd's bloodline simply endured on his native world after he was taken away to Ravenloft. Yes, finding a king & queen similar to his parents was a weird twist of fate but not unlogical if they shared a common ancestry.
The problem is not so much in the people, it's in the land. Barovia clearly has a duplicate on the Prime Material plane. But do other lands get "copy & pasted" or just "cut & pasted" into Ravenloft. IIRC, Kalidnay disappeared entirely from Athas when it entered Ravenloft. Do we know of other realms that were copied, or cut?
Second, the "copy & paste" vs "cut & paste" idea: I'd personally go with "cut." Otherwise, my basic principle of what the DPs are and why they do what they do (http://boards1.wizards.com/showpost.php?p=8732392&postcount=4) doesn't make any sense; copies would be intrinsically tainted, and as such, the experiment would be invalid. Also, traveling into the Mists would - could, anyway - leave a copy in the stead of the traveler, and the Law of Conservation of Matter and Energy would go ker-POOF, thus negatin' all existence, to quote the Metatron. Imagine spending a few months trapped in the bleak hell of Ravenloft, returning bruised, battered, and deep-fried, only to find a perfectly healthy and continuity-friendly version of yourself there, still happily living your life and firmly believing - possibly correctly - that HE is the REAL you.
I love this board.
Show me he who is more demented than me!
The odds of having a Tatyana-clone appear *outside* of Ravenloft, where the DPs don't call the shots, makes me personally doubt if the 'Grand Conjunction' *really* linked up to the Material Plane at all -- perhaps the Dark Powers merely created a false "Barovia" to yank the darklords' chains, making them *think* they'd escaped
Once again, I'm smellin' what the Rotipher's cookin': The Grand Conjunction was corrupted, and the DPs simply created a land that fulfilled all Strahd's deepest, most screwed-up fantasies all at once, all in order to simply dangle it in his face all carrot-style, then snatch it away after one good nibble. Fulfilling his Oedipus complex AND his lust for Tatyana in one fell swoop makes my inner psychologist just drool with disgusted glee. THIS is why I am not allowed to ascend to godhood.
But do other lands get "copy & pasted" or just "cut & pasted" into Ravenloft. IIRC, Kalidnay disappeared entirely from Athas when it entered Ravenloft. Do we know of other realms that were copied, or cut?
Frankly, the two are possible but methink it's the former rather than the latter. One might argue that it's the reverse. After all, Sachmet's tomb (the Awakening) was apparently cut/pasted into RL, right? However, methink local gods would object to this kind of behavior. It's one thing to "kidnap" a few hundred natives and transport them to RL. It's quite another to "steal" part of a Prime Material world. Moreover, this would leave too obvious a trace for the sneaky way the Dark Powers act.
"Say, what happened to that valley with the castle on the hill?"
"Nobody knows. One day it just went POOF!, leaving a big hole"
Moreover, it's also possible that apart from the darklord himself, every other inhabitants of his realm is either a creation of the DP OR a copied & pasted version of someone still living his life on the Prime. The latter would be easier to accept for the local deities as they would "lose" only one individual (the darklord) who was too wicked for his own good anyway.
Regarding Kalidnay, I seem to recall reading that the ruins of that city still exist on Athas but I could be wrong. The DS board would be the best place to inquire about it.
As is mentioned elsewhere, Darkon as a domain has the power to reformat the memories of visitors; who's to say that Azalin isn't a visitor? He was a lich, plain and simple, from Mordentshire; his boundless ambition gave him a hook the DPs chose to exploit; a phenomenally intrusive mindwipe from the DPs later, and suddenly, Azalin is a great and mighty king! He's never mentioned in any Greyhawk lore because it's simply untrue.
I wouldn't care to go that far, myself, as eliminating Azalin's past kingship would also remove the event -- his willing execution of his own son, for the "crime" of being too compassionate for his father's tyrannical standards -- that makes him deserve darklord status in the first place. But it's not necessary to tie his past to the world of Oerth, or to make his role in that world's history as prominent as he remembers; perhaps his campaign to conquer all the surrounding lands and loot their magical secrets hadn't actually gotten off the ground, when he was Mist-napped, making his "glorious reign" too trivial to merit inclusion in the history-books or the Greyhawk products. (Now wouldn't *that* tick him off, to be ignored...? ;-D)
Moreover, it's also possible that apart from the darklord himself, every other inhabitants of his realm is either a creation of the DP OR a copied & pasted version of someone still living his life on the Prime. The latter would be easier to accept for the local deities as they would "lose" only one individual (the darklord) who was too wicked for his own good anyway.
FWIW, I've toyed with the notion that the Dark Powers avoid deities' annoyance at their abduction of people by selecting people who were already slated to die, on their worlds of origin. While a given Mist-napped victim's personal patron deity might be miffed at this, the other deities of their homeworld might see it as prolonging their chance of winning that person's soul for themselves, if they continue to survive on another (albeit a scarier) plane.
The classic example that inspired this idea is, of course, Strahd's original fall from grace. If you read the full history of the tragedy at Sergei's wedding, you find that pretty much every person who wound up in Ravenloft would, had the Dark Powers not influenced events, have died in the massacre instigated by Leo Dilisnya or in the retaliatory pogroms that presumably would have come after it. Strahd, Sergei, Tatyana, the wedding guests would all have been assassinated, and the surviving brother (Sturm) would've mustered the Von Zarovich vassals to take down Leo and his servants, in turn. None of the named participants who ended up in Ravenloft would have remained alive on their home world, even if Strahd's fall had never taken place.
Similar examples can be seen in other Ravenloft NPCs' history, as plenty of folks like Gondegal or Claude Renier -- or Azalin himself for that matter -- were snatched up _just_ before they could get hunted down by enemies, etc. So perhaps the deities don't inhibit the DPs' stealing of people because they only choose those who'd have been killed within days or hours, anyway. Indeed, perhaps it's only such doomed individuals which they're *capable* of abducting ... which, FWIW, provides a non-metagame explanation for why so many adventurers (hardly the safest insurance-risks out there! ;-D) are numbered amongst the Mists' victims.
Yet in Roots of Evil, Barovia is specifically stated as being a "copy" of Prime Material Barovia.
Flying monkeys have struck again!
In Feast of Goblyns the (admittedly specially-created) domain of Daglan is not a copy of the original. The adventure module actually specifically states that it is the real deal - that the Mists of Ravenloft absorbed it.
why does it have to be one or the other?
I always thought that it was established that The Dark Powers could Cut, Copy and Create whole cloth depending on which best suited their whims at the time.
thats whatthe Fraternity Of Shadows FAQ has always said, and I believe the Kargatane (or Kargat, I get them mixed up :embarrass ) said so before them (don't quote me on that)
I thought that was a waste. Why not strike true terror into other worlds and campaign settings by having the Grand Conjunction last months or even years? Now characters in all campaign settings have to deal with stronger undead, powerful curses, Fear/Horror/Madness checks, and Ravenloft Dark Powers checks!
So I rewrote Roots of Evil to take place after some time has passed. The PCs also learn that time passes differently on different planes, so Azalin has returned to Oerth and actually had the benefit of several hundred years of study to brush up on his magic skills. Most of this time is spent researching new spells, but he has gained enough experience through it to go up two levels in ArchMage. The PCs had to locate him in his hidden lair near Knurl (which under his secret rulership had transformed into a very powerful city-state which commanded tribute from Nyrond and parts of the Great Kingdom) and then gently remind him that there was business left to finish... a certain vampire lord was waiting to challenge him again.
(This is copied and pasted from the Darklords thread.)
Azalin, Post-Conjunction Lich Lord, former Darklord of Darkon
Male human Lich Rank 4 (Lich Lord) Wiz18, ArchMage2: CR 29; Size M undead (5’11” tall); HD 20d12 +80 (Cha bonus); hp 225; Init +0; Spd 30’; AC 23 (touch 19, flatfooted 23); Atk +14/+8 melee touch (4d8 +4 [Will save for half DC 31] and paralysis, negative energy) or +11/+5 ranged touch (by spell); SA damaging touch, fear aura, spells [DC 21 + spell level, +1 if necromancy or evocation], paralyzing touch, modify memory, undead dominion, agonizing gaze does damage as touch, coldfire does 3d6 fire/cold damage through touch, greater coldfire channels arcane energy for 560’ ray 4d12 negative energy + 1d12 per level of arcane spell used; SQ +2 to all caster checks to overcome SR; undead, damage reduction (20/bludgeoning and epic), immunities (cold, electricity, mind-affecting, polymorph, turning), lich sight, alternate form, imp familiar (“Squalimous”), fast healing 20 (doubled if 400’ near phylactery), SR 33; AL LE; SV Fort +11, Ref +11, Will +24 (-4 to all w/o Robes); Str 17, Dex 10; Con -; Int 33; Wis 16; Cha 18.
Skills and Feats: Bluff +12, Concentration +20, Diplomacy +17, Disguise +7, Hide +8, Intimidate +15, Knowledge (arcana) +26, Knowledge (alchemy) +23, Knowledge (history) +13, Knowledge (Ravenloft local) +20, Knowledge (the planes) +13, Knowledge (Ravenloft) +30, Knowledge (undead lore) +12, Listen +11, Move Silently +8, Search +19, Sense motive +16, Spellcraft +34, Spot +19, Knowledge (Greyhawk local) +23, Knowledge (Greyhawk geography) +19; Brew Potion, Craft Magic Arms & Armor; Craft Wand, Craft Wondrous Item, Empower Spell, Enervate Spell, Forge Ring, Iron Will, Scribe Scroll, Spell Focus (Evocation), Spell Focus (Necromancy), Skill Focus (Spellcraft), Spell Mastery (dimension door, scrying, sending, steal vitality, telekinesis).
High Arcana: Mastery of Counterspelling (counterspells as spell turning). Mastery of Shaping (area-effect spells minimum of 5’, creates safe areas 5’ cube).
Languages: Darkonese, Balok, Draconic, Dwarven, Elven, Old Oeridian (Greyhawk), Infernal, Mordentish, Vaasi.
Wizard Spells per Day: 4/7**/7**/7**/6/6/5/5/5/5. Base DC = 21 + spell level, +1 if necromancy or evocation. Azalin uses his Rings of Wizardry to double his daily allotment of spells for any two levels from One through Three.
Spellbook: See below for a complete list of Azalin’s spells.
Signature Possessions: Ring of Wizardry I, II, III; Wand of Ice Storm (level 18); Wand of Emotion (level 18); Crystal Ball with Telepathy; Black Robe of the Archmagi; Stone of Controlling Grave Elementals. Scrolls of practically any spell needed are available, provided he has time to prepare. He also has an extensive collection of magical items, including cursed items, which he allows his foes to ‘acquire’.
Undead Control: Azalin can Animate Dead of 8 HD or lower in a 2-mile radius by thought. These monsters respond to his orders as if he had cast Control Undead. All such undead have +6 turn resistance, and he can see, hear, and act through any of them as needed. These undead also have burning red eyes, like their master, and can use this as a gaze attack to force a Fear check at the start of combat.
Tactics: In combat, Azalin prefers area-affect spells that he can shape around himself and his allies, such as Horrid Wilting, Circle of Death, Acid Fog, and Meteor Swarm. Certain low level spells such as Fireball, Ice Storm, and Cloudkill can be Empowered and/or Enervated. Whenever enemies fall in battle, Azalin automatically animates them as undead creatures. Against strong enemies, Azalin will use single-target spells such as Power Word – Kill, Finger of Death, or Polar Ray. Azalin also likes to prepare an Empowered, Enervated Death Throes spell, which causes devastating damage to living creatures who kill his physical body: 20d8 hp, increased by 50% twice. If seriously injured, Azalin will devote his efforts to escaping and regenerating himself through his negative energy plane touch attack (like most undead, he gains hit points when targeted with negative energy).
Spellbook
Level: Canon PHB/GazII -- non-canon PHB/GazII -- non-canon Spell Compendium.
Level 0: Resistance, Acid Splash, Detect Poison, Detect Magic, Read Magic, Daze, Dancing Lights, Flare, Light, Ray of Frost, Ghost Sound, Disrupt Undead, Touch of Fatigue, Mage Hand, Mending, Message, Open/Close, Arcane Mark, Prestidigitation -- Amanuensis, Caltrops, Launch Bolt, Launch Item, Silent Portal, Stick.
Level 1: Alarm, Animate Rope, Change Self, Charm Person, Comp. Languages, Enlarge, Floating Disc, Hold Portal, Identify, Magic Missile, Message, Obscuring Mist, Ray Enfeeblement, Silent Image, Unseen Servant -- Shield, Mage Armor, Mount, True Strike, Detect Secret Doors, Sleep, Burning Hands, Shocking Grasp, Color Spray, Magic Aura, Chill Touch, Erase, Feather Fall, Magic Weapon -- Backbiter, Benign Transposition, Blood Wind, Dispel Ward, Mage Hand Grtr, Remove Scent, Summon Undead.
Level 2: Alter Self, Arcane Lock, Darkness, Daylight, Flaming Sphere, Invisibility, Knock, Locate Object, Magic Mouth, Minor Image, Mirror Image, See Invisibility, Shatter, Spectral Hand, Hideous Laughter, Web -- Obscure Object, Fog Cloud, Detect Thoughts, Touch of Idiocy, Continual Flame, Blur, Leomund's Trap, Blindness/Deafness, False Life, Ghoul Touch, Bear's Endurance, Bull's Strength, Cat's Grace, Eagle's Splendor, Fox's Cunning, Levitate, Owl's Wisdom, Spider Climb, Misdirection -- Bonefiddle, Curse ... Blades, Dark Way, Disguise Undead, Earthbind, Earthen Grasp, Ethereal Chamber, Hurl, Infernal Ward, Phantom Foe, Portal Alarm, Quick Poison, Ray of Sickness, Ray of Weakness, Shadow Mask, Shadow Spray, Stolen Breath, Stone Bones, Summon Undead 2.
Level 3: Clairaudience/voyance, Death Sight, Dispel Magic, Fireball, Fly, Gaseous Form, Haste, Hold Person, Lightning Bolt, Magic Circle vs Good, Nondetection, Suggestion, Summon Monster 3, Wind Wall -- Explosive Runes, Protection from Energy, Phantom Steed, Snake Sigil, Stinking Cloud, Arcane Sight, Tongues, Illusory Script, Invisibility Sphere, Major Image, Gentle Repose, Vampiric Touch, Blink, Flame Arrow, Magic Weapon Grtr, Secret Page, Shrink Item, Slow -- Analyze Portal, Anticipate Teleportation, Chain Missile, Corpse Candle, Curse ... Blades Mass, Diamondsteel, Enhance Familiar, False Gravity, Fortify Familiar, Healing Touch, Incorporeal Enhancement, Mage Armor Grtr, Reverse Arrow, Servant Horde, Shadow Binding, Shadow Cache, Shadow Phase, Skull Watch, Spell Vulnerability, Stony Grasp, Summon Undead 3, Suppress Breath Weapon, Suspended Silence, Telepathic Bond Lesser, Undead Lieutenant, Undead Torch.
Level 4: Arcane Eye, Bestow Curse, Charm Monster, Confusion, Contagion, Corpse Whisper, Dimension Door, Emotion, Black Tentacles, Eyes of Undead, Fire Trap, Ice Storm, Minor Globe Invul., Phantasmal Killer, Polymorph Other, Scrying, Shadow Conjuration, Stoneskin, Wall of Ice -- Bone Seizure, Minor Creation, Solid Fog, Detect Scrying, Locate Creature, Geas Lesser, Fire Shield, Resilient Sphere, Illusory Wall, Invisibility Grtr, Animate Dead, Enervation, Fear, Mnemonic Enhancer, Stone Shape -- Backlash, Burning Blood, Dispelling Screen, Force Missiles, Iron Bones, Know Vulnerabilities, Portal Alarm Improved, Ray of Deflection, Repair Critical Damage, Resistance Grtr, Scramble Portal, Sensory Deprivation, Spell Enhancer, Summon Undead 4, Sword of Deception, Wingbind, Wither Limb.
Level 5: Animal Growth, Animate Dead, Dominate Person, Feeblemind, Hold Monster, Magic Jar, Mind Fog, Passwall, Permanency, Sending, Shadow Evocation, Summon Monster 5, Telekinesis, Wall of Stone -- Break Enchantment, Dismissal, Private Sanctum, Cloudkill, Major Creation, Planar Binding Lssr, Teleport, Cone of Cold, Wall of Force, False Vision, Persistent Image, Blight, Symbol of Pain, Baleful Polymorph, Fabricate -- Ball Lightning, Blink Grtr, Cont. Energy Resist, Cyclonic Blast, Death Throes, Dimension Door Grtr, Duelward, Greymantle, Illusory Feast, Prismatic Ray, Reciprocal Gyre, Shadow Form, Shadow Hand, Spell Matrix Lesser, Summon Undead 5, Symbol of Spell Loss, Wall of Dispel Magic, Wall of Limbs, Zone of Respite.
Level 6: Acid Fog, Analyze Dweomer, Forceful Hand, Contingency, Disintegrate, Eyebite, Flesh to Stone, Geas/Quest, Guards and Wards, Legend Lore, Permanent Image, Planar Binding, Project Image, Reanimate, Steal Vitality, Stone to Flesh, Tree Seeing -- Dispel Magic Grtr, Globe of Invuln, Repulsion, Wall of Iron, True Seeing, Suggestion Mass, Chain Lightning, Freezing Sphere, Mislead, Programmed Image, Veil, Circle of Death, Create Undead, Symbol of Fear, Lucubration, Move Earth -- Ant. Teleport Grtr, Dreamcasting, Fleshiver, Ghoul Gauntlet, Hardening, Probe Thoughts, Ray of Entropy, Resistance Supr, Revive Undead, Ruby Ray Revrsl, Seal Portal, Shadowy Grappler, Sign of Sealing Grtr, Spectral Touch, Stone Body, Transcribe Symbol.
Level 7: Instant Summons, Finger of Death, Forcecage, Limited Wish, Power Word Stun, Spell Turning, Summon Monster 7, Teleport w/o Error, Vision -- Sequester, Phase Door, Plane Shift, Teleport Grtr, Teleport Object, Arcane Sight Grtr, Scrying Grtr, Hold Person Mass, Insanity, Delayed Blast Fireball, Prismatic Spray, Invisibility Mass, Project Image, Simulacrum, Control Undead, Control Weather, Reverse Gravity -- Antimagic Ray, Arrow of Bone, Avasculate, Awaken Undead, Dispelling Screen Grtr, Emerald Flame Fist, Energy Ebb, Energy Immunity, Energy Trans Field, Glass Strike, Planar Bubble, Prismatic Eye, Spell Matrix, Sword of Darkness, Synostodwoemer.
Level 8: Binding, Demand, Incendiary Cloud, Telekinetic Sphere, Maze, Prismatic Wall, Symbol, Trap the Soul -- Protection Spells, Discern Location, Power Word Stun, Polar Ray, Sunburst, Screen, Clone, Horrid Wilting, Create Grtr Undead, Temporal Stasis -- Avascular Mass, Excavate, Flensing, Invisibility Supr, Lightning Ring, Skeletal Guard, Spell Engine, Wall Grtr Dispel, Wrathful Castigation.
Level 9: Crushing Hand, Energy Drain, Foresight, Gate, Disjunction, Wish -- Create Quasimancer, Power Word Kill, Meteor Swarm, Soul Bind, Wail of Banshee, Time Stop -- Absorption, Awaken Construct, Black Blade Disaster, Effulgent Epuration, Eye of Power, Hindsight, Instant Refuge, Magic Miasma, Plague of Undead, Programmed Amnesia, Reality Maelstrom, Reaving Dispel, Replicate Casting, Spell Matrix Grtr, Sphere Ult Dest, Unbinding, Vile Death.
Phylacteries
Azalin’s Phylactery – Golden Dragon Skull
This minor artifact is a gold-plated dragon skull, with rubies set into the eye sockets and a permanent magical green flame burning in the jaw opening. It measures about 4 feet 6 inches long, and weighs about 1,000 pounds (size category M).
The skull can be reduced in size if a Dispel Magic is cast on it. This shrinks the skull to about the size of a small child’s skull, over the course of 20 seconds or so. Its reduced weight is still suprisingly heavy – about 10 pounds.
Before Azalin escaped Ravenloft, he infused his phylactery with positive energy, making his phylactery dangerous for undead creatures to touch physically. This served him both as a ruse and as a defence against his most likely enemies (which, like Strahd, were also mostly undead).
If touched, the skull can discharge positive energy equivalent to a Cure Wounds spell. The strength can be Minor, Light, Moderate, Serious, or Critical. It automatically selects the most suitable spell based on the health and nature of the creature handling it. In extreme cases, it can even cast a Heal spell. All spell effects are touch only, so the phylactery can be moved through telekinesis or by the use of constructs such as golems, without triggering these effects. Because this positive energy is primarily powered by Azalin’s life force, its spell-like abilities function as though cast by a cleric of the same level as Azalin (18 in Ravenloft, 20 outside of it).
For living creatures, it gauges the relative health of the creature and releases a spell that would most likely bring its hit points to full, or just above full. If a living creature touches it at full hit points, the phylactery discharges a Cure Minor Wounds spell. The creature gains 1 hit point above its maximum, and immediately loses it again, which typically alerts intelligent creatures to the curative nature of the phylactery.
If undead creatures touch the skull, it unleashes the same spells, but according to a reverse criterion. The healthier the undead, the more powerful the healing spell. Of course, undead suffer damage from healing spells, so this frequently annihilates outright any corporeal undead that touch the phylactery. Note that vampires and other undead with shapechanging abilities may end up taking damage and then assuming mist form to escape. (This is what happened to Strahd von Zarovich when he touched the phylactery in Roots of Evil.)
The phylactery recharges itself at a rate of one dice of positive energy per round. So if it cast a Heal spell, either to heal a living creature or grievously injure an undead creature, it would take 15 rounds to be at full capacity again. However, once Azalin is inside the phylactery, he has control over whether the phylactery discharges the stored energy at all. Even more insidiously, he can choose to discharge Cause Wounds spells or Harm, using negative planar energy to do so. Frequently, he will do this to create a new corpse for him to inhabit. An adventurer who carries the phylactery around as a healing charm is in for a rude shock when Azalin slays him with negative energy and then takes over his body.
Azalin himself has used this power on several occasions, such as at the end of the adventure From the Shadows – he allowed himself to be knocked against the phylactery. Although this slew his physical form, his spirit essence immediately entered the phylactery as planned. The positive energy of his phylactery also safeguarded it against his nemesis, Strahd von Zarovich, who otherwise would have taken possession of it to destroy him.
Additionally, the skull serves as a tracking device, with the eyes glittering slightly whenever the skull points towards Azalin’s current host body. The glittering effect is more noticeable when the skull is full-sized, but at that size, it is almost immovable. At its shrunken size, the skull is easily turned from side to side, but the glittering effect is correspondingly harder to see. Most observers would need to make a Wis check of DC 20 just to notice the phenomenon. Determining its meaning is another task entirely.
Finally, when Azalin’s spirit essence is within the skull, he can immediately take possession of any corpse or corporeal undead within 60’, taking a full-round action to do so. (The corpse changes over the round to physically resemble Azalin.) As his spirit leaves the phylactery, it causes a gout of flame to burst forth from the jaws, filling a cone as long as the skull is long. (So if shrunk, the cone would only be a tiny jet about six inches long – this does no damage.) Full-sized, this flame causes 4d4+1 fire damage to those caught in its path. Azalin typically retains whatever spells he had memorized when his former body was killed – while in the phylactery, he cannot regain spells.
The skull has a hardness rating of 60, 40 hit points, and a break DC of 80. It is permanently warded by several spells to foil easy tracking. Nondetection causes divination spells trying to locate the phylactery to fail unless they make a DC check of 29. (If Azalin is currently inside the phylactery, the DC check is 34.) Even if the Nondetection is bypassed, a permanent Misdirection spell makes the phylactery identify as a Blessed dragon skull (caster gets a Will save to bypass). Finally a Nystul’s Magic Aura further confuses the issue by presenting the skull to be a powerful healing amulet (which it technically is) with no mention of being the phylactery of a powerful lich (which it also is).
Humans who find the skull usually do so with Azalin’s tacit permission. Azalin rightly believes the skull is almost indestructible to human means, and sometimes lets it fall into their hands if it convinces them they’ve cleared him out once and for all. Adventurers often keep the skull for its healing purposes, and the illusion of its power as a good artifact is often reinforced if Azalin is previously witnessed to have “died” after touching it. Sometimes, Azalin’s own detection spells will not locate his own phylactery – a fact which does not particularly worry him, since he can locate it unerringly by abandoning his current physical body and retreating to it as a spirit essence.
Through the years, more than one adventurer has disturbed Azalin at work, then walked home in triumph with the skull in his possession. Needless to say, Azalin usually found a readily available corpse to inhabit not long thereafter.
One particularly dangerous use of the phylactery could be as a healing amulet wrapped around the neck of a powerful living ally, such as Ebb or Gloom the Shadow Dragons. Given Azalin's propensity for raising undead on the battlefield, should Azalin's corporeal body ever be destroyed (such as through the casting of Death Throes), he can retreat back to his phylactery in one round and re-emerge by claiming another undead body. Enemies who correctly deduce the dragon's role in this cycle will find it hard to defeat Ebb or Gloom, especially as the dragon is constantly healed by Azalin's phylactery.
Azal'Lan’s Phylactery – Human Infant Skull
When Azalin first became a lich, his phylactery was a human infant skull. That phylactery remained where Azalin left it, untold centuries ago, when he entered Ravenloft. The Dark Powers granted him a second phylactery, in the form of the golden dragon skull outlined above.
It is up to the DM whether or not Azalin retrieved his first phylactery, but DMs who want to make Azalin a uniquely formidable foe may rule that he has two functioning phylacteries, both of which must be destroyed to eliminate him fully.
The original phylactery is Tiny and has 40 hit points, hardness 20, and a break DC of 40. In contrast to the golden dragon skull, this phylactery has no special powers, not even the divination-masking magicks of its larger brother. However, its greatest strength is in its remoteness: it is entirely possible that nobody, perhaps not even Azalin himself, remembers where it lies.
Finally, the PCs will have to hunt him down in Greyhawk and put a stop to his scheming and draw him back to fight against Strahd. I'm planning to have him based in or around Knurl, and well-ensconced. The most likely scenario is that he has become the power behind the throne, pushing the current leader to raise armies and conquer the surrounding territories.
Does anybody know what products deal with Knurl and the Flinty Hills and Nyrond? If we assume Azalin carves out a reasonably-sized kingdom in Greyhawk, such that he would surely pose a significant threat if not stopped soon, then what dimensions are we talking about?
Bear in mind that in my campaign, Azalin would carry along his 2nd edition powers of undead control (8HD or lower without saves in a 2 mile radius, no limit) as well as regain his ability to learn new spells.
Azalin will have his hands full if he desires to be the power-behind-the-throne in Knurl as that is a land overrun by humanoids. Though, with the Marquis dead, it might be easier than expected. Plus, there are certainly enough corpses around to "raise" (if you'll pardon the pun) a few undead armies.
Still, the old man is going to weep tears of dust when he discovers just how far his ancestral holdings have fallen.
Assuming he reconquers the whole area, he'll find himself facing powerful enemies. Between the armies of Nyrond, the zealot priests of the Theocracy of the Pale, and the (former) Great Kingdom, even his darklord powers might not be enough. Except that if he can still automatically control any undead coming in a certain range, that's going to have interesting consequences with the animus rulers of the GK...
Azalin's control undead power will be somewhat limited, so he can only control up to Level 8 or HD 8 of undead in a 2-mile radius. (That radius limits the undead he can will to rise and serve him. He can move away from them and they'll still do his bidding, even if he's more than 2 miles away.) So Azalin will not be able to control the animus rulers of the GK (assuming they're 8 HD or over) but he will be able to snatch away control of any undead armies they send his way.
I have the Living Greyhawk Gazetteer, and there really isn't much information about Knurl in it. I've found the (German and Greek) online community that roleplays in that area as per Living Greyhawk, and they have a little bit more. But otherwise canon descriptions of Knurl are few and far between.
However, it seems the most likely ruler would be Count Dunstan (who may or may not be alive). Knurl and the Bone March are under the de facto rule of various tribes of evil humanoids and barbarian races, many of which are controlled by ogres, orcs, and gnolls.
I'd imagine Azalin's return would first require him to find a desolate area where he can continue his research, now that he's free of his curse. His strategy would be to stay well out of sight, knowing how he was overthrown before, and let his minions do his work for him.
The next step of his campaign would be to cow and intimidate the humanoids nearest him and arrange them in some semblance of fighting order. Again, he might need to present himself to them, but would probably do so in many different guises and even races. For example, he might well appear in the illusion of a powerful ogre mage and slay the ogre leader in front of all the ogre clan's warriors, as a prelude to taking control over them. To take control of the gnolls and orcs, he might take different racial illusions... any steps he can to muddy and confuse the issue of who's really holding the strings here.
The final step of his campaign would be to overtake Knurl and solidify his position there. Once there, he can allow his inhuman and human chieftains to run their raiding business as they see fit, while he stays out of sight and researches magic. He knows he doesn't have a "people" to rule over, per se, and he probably feels little remaining emotional connection to the remnants of the kingdom from his mortal life, so he'll do what any self-respecting lich would do: learn new magicks and spells. Occasionally, he may be called upon to manifest himself in some illusion or another to provide motivation for his servitor troops (at least, the ones that are still living...) and he'll grudgingly do this. But the main reason he would have made this power grab is that he needs the resources of a province or city to fuel his magical research.
If you have seen The Red Hand of Doom, you'll know it's a war-campaign-based adventure, with inhuman and draconic enemies set across multiple battlefied engagements. I'm thinking of doing something similar. The PCs would arrive in Nyrond, a country that has suddenly suffered redoubled raids from the Bone March, and they have to find out a way to neutralize the attacks and to find out who's behind it all.
They would likely participate in several key battles defending Nyrond, then take the fight to the Bone March. After infiltrating the presumed leader of the tribes, they find that a shadowy figure is manipulating things behind the scenes, rather akin to the ex-darklord of Darkon...
Azalin would have gained two levels in ArchMage in my campaign, and be nudging up against epic level, so the PCs are even less likely to get through a toe to toe fight against him. Their whole purpose is to tempt him into facing down Strahd von Zarovich one last time, which will bring them the chance to reverse the Grand Conjunction.
Once there, he can allow his inhuman and human chieftains to run their raiding business as they see fit, while he stays out of sight and researches magic. He knows he doesn't have a "people" to rule over, per se, and he probably feels little remaining emotional connection to the remnants of the kingdom from his mortal life, so he'll do what any self-respecting lich would do: learn new magicks and spells.
I beg to differ.
a) Azalin is (well, was rather) an Oeridian nobleman. Those are born & bred to rule. Leaving that to a "minion" would not only run contrary to what's in his (dried up) blood but also to what he has been doing in Darkon ever since he got stuck in RL. I'm not saying he would insist on hearing every peasant complaining about a sick cow but he would devote part of his time ruling his country.
b) Azalin ruled his holdings on GH with harsh but protective hand. Oeridians generally don't ally themselves to humanoids (though in the last century, they have but then again they have fallen from their lofty height..). So, I doubt he would continue using them once he secured human henchmen. Probably would sacrifice them in a ritual or send them to their death on a doomed punitive expedition against an annoying neighbor.
The way I see it, a logical plan for him if he returned to GH would be:
Step 1: keep a low profile & gather intelligence (what has changed / who's in charge / who must be watched / who must be killed)
Step 2: secure a base of operation (can be done, as you suggested, by using the humanoids)
Step 3: regain control of the human population (either as the power-behind-the-throne or by using magic to convince them he is their rightful ruler, such as a long lost cousin of the late Marquis)
Step 4: get rid of the humanoids, restore the human lands, & fortify
Remember, the "little incident" with Death and the Requiem has taught him that it's dangerous to be so busy about your own business that you neglect your realm. It will only incite others to try to take it over.
Also, Azalin ruled over Darkon, which had far more demihumans than any other domain. There's no evidence he actively sought out orcs/goblins/ogres to serve him (or calibans, if you want to retcon 3rd ed races to Grand Conjunction history) but he has proven himself perfectly capable of working with intelligent undead and werebeasts, which he presumably did not do in Knurl.
From the sounds of it, Azalin's role in running Darkon was much more hands-off than his role in running Knurl, and with reason. Darkon was considerably larger than his home city was, and he had a baronal system in place to delegate through. Back in Knurl, he'd probably have some hands-on ruling for a while, in the (tiresome) multiple guises of various chieftain warlords, and then get a humanocracy running to take the tasks of rulership off his hands while he researches a few prestige levels in ArchMage and devours whatever spells he can get his hands on.