Landryn Teriak
Shadow Lord, Wraith Lord
Landryn Teriak first came to Denagoth thirty years before the time of this adventure. Vanquished and overthrown in his own realm to the east, Landryn Teriak fled across the Plains of XXX in a race for his life, for close on the evil magic-user's heels was a gold dragon that had played an important part in the evil one's defeat. At last the dragon swooped down on the magic-user and burned him down in a terrible blast of fire.
For two days the body of the evil one lay under the sun, a charred and blackened corpse. But the fates are capricious at times and so it was that a passing pilgrim, a cleric, chanced upon the remains. In his compassion the cleric cast a Raise Dead spell upon the corpse, assuming that the deceased had been the victim of an evil dragon. The magic-user's soul and personality were restored but the body was beyond repair.
Treacherously, Landryn Teriak used a Magic Jar spell to seize possession of the cleric's body. The cleric, now trapped within an enfeebled shell of a body, could not protect himself and was killed by Teriak’s spells. Picking up the scarred remains of his old form, the evil one continued his journey west.
Upon entering Denagoth, Landryn Teriak found that he liked the primitive and barbaric country, a land ripe for the taking. Here in Denagoth he could make a new beginning.
Before many years passed he established another kingdom of evil. Things went well for Teriak except in one respect. To his horror the magic-user discovered that his new body was slowly degenerating. He tried everything to restore the deteriorating flesh but no spell or potion worked to forestall or reverse the corruption of his body. The power that had raised him was then a divine curse upon him.
Landryn Teriak returned to his homeland, to the bastion of evil called Drax Tallen. From his tower of Gereth Minar, the Shadow Lord fled to Essuria and the darkness of his old capital.
After using his wish to escape from Gereth Minar, Teriak found that the deterioration of his body was increasing rapidly. Too late, he realized that the dark powers from which he obtained the spell had warped the effects of the teleportation, and despite his elaborated medications, his body was weakening rapidly. Soon after reaching Drax Tallen, Landryn Teriak paid the final price for his evil deeds, lapsing into a horrid undead condition.
Now Teriak has fully embraced the darkness so akin to his soul as he roams about the shadowy halls of Drax Tallen in a new and even more terrible form - the Wraith Lord. Landryn Teriak, however, has not returned to Drax Tallen merely to remain a shadow of his own glory - in this monstrous inhuman guise the evil one pursues a new stratagem of conquest. The Wraith Lord seeks dominion over the realms of the undead so that he might raise a legion of unliving minions to do his bidding. To this end the Wraith Lord requires an ancient artifact, a magical rod of untold power.
The Blackstick, a Rod of Undead Rulership, has been lost for ages and its existence has passed from the memory of most men. But Teriak knows that it still exists and his lust for its power forms the premise of this adventure. The Wraith Lord begins his search for the Blackstick with Bensarian Kevar, the Sage of Wendar.
The Shadow Lord obtained the Wish by secret and forbidden means. In this adventure, he can use it for only one purpose - to escape from attackers (the PCs) if defeated in his fortress of Gereth Minar. The Wish is ignored in any situation other than the one in which it was meant to be used.
If the Elvenstar is still in Teriak's possession at the beginning of Adventure Two, he will be unable to use it in any way against the PCs. The Elvenstar's magic is linked to the preservation of life, and the gem had value to Teriak only so long as he had a living human form. Now that he has become an undead creature, the Elvenstar is useless to him. Its magic can still be used by the PCs, if they obtain it.
Magic Items:
Robe of Protection AC 5, Ring of Protection +3, Ring of Spell Storing, Staff of Power, Jade Mask (special).
Spell Books and Memorized Spells:
Spells followed with a double asterisk (**) come from his Ring of Spell Storing. The other spells are available in his spell book, if the Shadow Lord has a chance to study new spells overnight.
- Level 1: Charm Person, Tenser's Floating Disc, Hold Portal, Light, Magic Missile, Read Magic, Sleep
- Level 2: Continual Light, Detect Invisibility**, ESP, Invisibility, Mirror Image, Phantasmal Force**, Web, Wizard Lock
- Level 3: Clairvoyance, Dispel Magic, Fireball, Fly, Lightning Bolt, Hold Person**, Protection from Normal Missiles**, Water Breathing
- Level 4: Charm Monster, Dimension Door, Hallucinatory Terrain**, Polymorph Other, Polymorph Self, Wall of Fire, Wizard Eye
- Level 5: Animate Dead, Cloudkill, Hold Monster**, Magic Jar, Teleport
- Level 9: Wish**
Special Abilities:
Immune to sleep, charm, hold cold-based and mind related spells.
The Wraith Lord can cast spells as a 10th level magic-user.
Spell Book and Memorized Spells:
- Level 1: Charm Person, Tenser's Floating Disc, Hold Portal, Light, Magic Missile, Read Magic, Sleep
- Level 2: Continual Light, Detect Invisibility**, ESP, Invisibility, Mirror Image, Phantasmal Force**, Web, Wizard Lock
- Level 3: Clairvoyance, Dispel Magic, Fireball, Fly, Lightning Bolt, Hold Person**, Protection from Normal Missiles**, Water Breathing
- Level 4: Charm Monster, Dimension Door, Hallucinatory Terrain**, Polymorph Other, Polymorph Self, Wall of Fire, Wizard Eye
- Level 5: Animate Dead, Cloudkill, Hold Monster**, Magic Jar, Teleport
- Level 9: Wish**
The Wraith Lord needs his spell book to memorize the spells that he uses. In this regard his dependency is the same as a living magic-user.
The Wraith Lord can only be hit by magical or silver weapons, the latter doing half damage. This horror can be turned by a cleric at the lame level of difficulty as a vampire, but with a - 5 penalty to the die roll. Thus, clerics under level 8 cannot turn the creature, and all other levels need at least a score of 6 or more to turn the creature. He cannot be automatically turned or destroyed, whatever the level of the cleric.
A Raise Dead spell will cause the Wraith Lord to lose two thirds of his current hit points if he fails his saving throw (the creature is destroyed if he has less than three points at the time the spell is cast).
The Wraith Lord can give some of his spells to undead creatures under his control, for their own use. He can bestow one memorized spell to one creature (when this is done in the adventure, it is noted). The bestowed spell is available for an hour after which it is either negated or automatically triggered, whichever is appropriate for the spell. Spells bestowed this way are considered as cast by the Wraith Lord. A creature to whom a spell is bestowed does not acquire any other abilities or penalties as a magic user, and cannot memorize the bestowed spell on its own.
Once per week the Wraith Lord can cast a nightmare illusion. It is a powerful illusion similar to a Phantasmal Force with the following differences: it cannot be dispelled and will not disappear when first touched. The illusion can fill a 60’x60’x60’ volume, and last a maximum of 8 hours after which it fades away. The illusion created is usually that of a hideous monster of any shape. The illusory monster cannot be harmed, and can attack any number of targets within the area of effect, as a 3HD monster. Any damage, however, is never fatal to the victims. A d10 turns after the combat, wounds will fade and the "dead" characters revive. At that point, the true nature of the illusion is revealed, and the nightmare illusion, if still in effect, is treated as a normal Phantasmal Force spell.
Relationships
Dead
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