Arik of the Hundred Eyes
by James MishlerTo add my own tidbit gleaned from modules, here is my rendition of Arik from B3 Palace of the Silver Princess, with the appropriate adaptation to material from my own campaign...
Arik
(Patron of Forbidden Secrets; Arik of the Hundred Eyes; The Bringer of Madness, Patron of the Lost)
D&D Characteristics
Game Statistics: Celestial, Sphere of Entropy. 18th level Immortal; AC -10; hp 280; HD 32; MV 150'(50'); #AT 3; D 3d6+8 (Punch); AM 60%; Save IM18; AL C; Str 33, Int 50, Wis 50, Dex 20, Con 50, Cha 50. Powers: Call Others, Height Increase, Howl, Leech.
Follower's Alignment: Neutral or Chaotic. Clerics must be Chaotic.
Special Cleric Powers: At 1st level, Arik's clerics gain the ability to cast one /Locate Object/ spell per day. This is a special power, in addition to their regular spells. Beginning at 7th level, Arik's clerics gain the ability to memorise the 4th level magic-user spell /Wizard Eye/ as though it were a 3rd level clerical spell.
In addition, Arik's clerics may also use any magic item (save weaponry) as though they were the correct user of that item; they may even cast spells from magic-user scrolls. However, every time they use an ability of a magic item they are not normally able to use they must make a saving throw vs. Death Ray or suffer 1d6 damage for every equivalent level of spell the magic item imitates. For example, a cleric of Arik tries to use a Crystal Ball to view a group of adventurers that just raided his temple; he fails the saving throw and suffers 3d6 damage. If he succeeded in using the /Clairvoyance/ ability and failed his save when he tried to use the /ESP/ ability, he would suffer 2d6 damage. Whenever a cleric fails the save, the magic item will not function for him or her again for at least 24 hours.
Special Cleric Limitations: Clerics of Arik are limited to the memorisation of 1st and 2nd level spells and the use of their gifted special powers unless they are within the range of effect of one of Arik's various Artifacts (see below). Spells already memorised may be used anywhere, inside or out of the range of the Artifact.
History: Arik was born in a faraway galaxy in the early ages of the Prime Plane's existence. Of an utterly inhuman species, Arik rose to become the ruler of his planet, and eventually embarked on the path to Immortality in the Sphere of Entropy. His final trial on the Path to Immortality was the condensation of all the magical knowledge of his people into one infernal collection; to achieve this he slew every living magic-user of his species and collected their intelligences together in one vessel. After rising to the ranks of the Immortals, Arik's inhuman followers then used this item, the Concordance of Lost Souls, to conquer their entire galaxy.
When the Entities from the Void Between the Stars gathered for war against the Immortals, Arik was one of the Immortals of Entropy that sided with the Entities, for he saw an opportunity to gain great and horrible knowledge from the Entities. While he did gain the knowledge he sought, he also shared in the fate of the conquered Entities, and he was subsequently consigned to the Prison Dimension. Arik was one of the first of the beings from that Dimension to contact and corrupt the Carnifex, many ages later. After the interposition of the Nightmare Dimension between the Multiverse and the Prison Dimension, Arik continued his efforts to return to the Multiverse, and has had some success through the use of the Nightmare Dimension.
In ages past, he corrupted the Beholders, who continue to be his servitors to this day. Arik also had a part in the corruption of the Nithians, as it was the knowledge that Arik's followers provided to the Nithians that helped them construct their horrible weapons of war and destruction. As with the case of the destruction of Nithia, Arik continues to follow in Thanatos' wake, as the plots of that Immortal often go hand in hand with his own. Arik is most successful in his plots in areas where chaos rules, but he also corrupts the innocent and plots against the forces of Law and justice.
Personality: Arik is utterly vicious and unyielding in his thirst for knowledge and power. He will sacrifice anyone and anything to get what he wants, though he will not do so wantonly nor stupidly. His priests on the Prime Plane tend to be insane due to the nature of their "communication" with their Patron, so many contribute this attribute to Arik as well (it must be remembered though that his priests are crazy, not stupid). His priests and followers strive toward the day of his release, and like their Patron, are willing to destroy anyone or anything to bring this about.
Allies: None. There are few Immortals who are foolish enough to deal with any being trapped in the Prison Dimension. Thanatos is not so much an ally as an unwilling accomplice; the chaos and destruction that Thanatos wreaks is a perfect ground for Arik to sow the seeds of insanity. There are a few Exalted level Fiends and other beings who have become his followers, as he promises them power beyond their wildest dreams should he be released. The Servitors of the Entities are also at his command, as are many of the denizens of the Dimension of Nightmares. On the Prime Plane, the Beholders are his main followers, along with several Human, Beastmen and Monstrous cults, which generally consist of drooling mad priests and worshippers (who are usually dominated by the Beholders or other Monsters).
Enemies: Pretty much everything else in the Multiverse despises the beings in the Prison Dimension, so his enemies are many and legion. There are a few Immortals, however, who guard against his cults and followers vigilantly, and these include Korotiku, who was his greatest enemy in the Great War between the Immortals and the Entities from the Void Between the Stars; Noumena, one of the more active members of the Council of Intrusion, who has made countering Arik and his activities a special goal; and Rathanos, who hates him for Arik's part in the corruption of the Nithians.
Appearance: Arik himself cannot appear in the Multiverse, as he is trapped in the Prison Dimension; he has, however, been able to create a "quasi-Avatar" that can survive only in the Nightmare Dimension, and the appearance of this entity is not unlike his own. This "quasi-Avatar" looks like a scaled, tremendously obese 22' tall Giant with eight tentacled arms and a hundred 10' long eye stalks in place of a head and neck. The "quasi-Avatar" is an Exalted level being, on par with a double-HD Roaring Fiend in power. Of course, when appearing in nightmares Arik can choose any appearance that suits his purpose.
Symbol: One or many eyes of fiendish cast; or a gemstone of any sort; or a figure of a giant with many eye stalks instead of a head; or a beholder.
Beholder Shamans: Beholder followers of Arik are able to become Shamans (clerics and magic-users) of Arik through a long and tortuous process, which in the end blinds their central eye and eliminates the Anti-Magic power of that eye. In return, the Beholder becomes a Shaman of Arik, and gains the ability to rise in power as a cleric (up to 10th level) and magic-user (up to 10th level). Shamans must reach 5th level as a cleric before they may start training as a magic-user. Beholder Shamans are not limited to 2nd level spell memorisation as other clerics of Arik are, due to their alien mind and spirit [It has been hypothesised that the Beholders evolved from a servitor race of the Entities].
Artifacts and Magic Items of Arik: To facilitate his release, Arik has discovered a way to create Artifacts and magic items and send them into the Nightmare Dimension and thence into the Multiverse (where they appear randomly). His most famous items, of course, are the Eyes of Arik, which appear as gemstones of surpassing beauty and value. There are many other items, of course, that are not so obviously extensions of his power, and his Artifacts and magic items take many forms. All of these items are designed to assist his followers in their attempts to free their Patron, and will have powers designed to further this end. However, they will also have half again as many Handicaps as a normal Artifact of equivalent power, rounded up, in addition to an extra Penalty!
These Handicaps and Penalties are part of the process that powers the effect that allow his clerics to have access to their higher-level spells (3rd though 7th). His clerics will be able to memorise spells above 2nd level if they are within a radius of an Artifact of Arik equal to 1 mile for every 10 PP of the artifact; thus, a Major Artifact of Arik with 600 PP would have a radius of 60 Miles. Clerics may cast spells memorised anywhere, but spells above 2nd level may only be memorised within the radius of one of his Artifacts. Arik's magic items allow the owner of the item to memorise spells above 2nd level, so long as it is in his possession (worn or otherwise held); this ability only works for the owner of the item, and may not be "shared". In return for this ability, the magic item bears a Handicap as though it were a Minor Artifact!
Note: Arik is listed as being a Celestial, an 18th level Immortal; actually, he is reduced to this level due to the large number of Artifacts and magic items that he has created and sent into the Multiverse. He is actually a Hierarch, a 36th level Immortal! Should he ever be released from the Prison Dimension he would endeavour to re-acquire as many of his Artifacts and magic items as he could in order to re-acquire their PP.
Now let's see what kind of
adventures can be generated using the simple description of this
fellow... A Contest! Win a No-Prize! Or, maybe, just maybe win the
accolades of your players as you put them through the ringer to see
what heights their adventurers can achieve!