Salty Maude

A menacing sea hag with bird-like features. She assumes the form of a tall, frightful woman when dealing with others, including Kraggen.

Maude's Plan

Salty Maude is no normal sea hag and she wields old and terrible magic. Salty Maude should be a powerful and memorable enemy with unusual and unknowable magic. Familiarize yourself with the following information before beginning play.

Salty Maude is a mistress of ancient rituals – spells that run deep through the veins of the natural world, like sap in the roots of the oldest trees. Maude is one of a dwindling number of migratory sea hags, whose magic holds dominion over any birdlife in their territory. Having spent decades studying their peeptalk, Maude has learned how to bend the will of these creatures for her own nefarious needs. Birds are now her scouts and her army. A murmuration of starlings can sling her across the sky and seabirds flock and strike at her bidding.

Maude is infatuated with a male peryton called Kraggen who roosts in the nearby peaks of the Winterhost Mountains. That is, she’s enamoured with the man she believes the peryton is destined to become. Despite their monstrous physical appearances, perytons cast human shadows. Salty Maude’s bird-bone auguries prophesize that this peryton is destined to transform into a human and form a hellish union with her. Thus, she plots to hurry Kraggen’s metamorphosis.

A peryton’s egg is the key component for Maude’s transformative ritual. Kraggen has managed to snatch one from a mating pair in the mountains to the south. Maude intends to hatch the egg and then cast a spell to transfer Kraggen’s monstrous essence across to the hatchling as it matures to adulthood. Kraggen’s humanoid aspect will remain, leaving him permanently altered.

The egg, however, has been stolen. Having collected it from her betrothed, Maude was flying back to her lair when she dropped it somewhere in the swamps outside Moon Lantern. When the egg slammed into the water, the splash drew the attention of some children mudlarking nearby. Elated by their rare find, the children took the egg back to Moon Lantern.

The birds have told Salty Maude that the egg is somewhere in the vicinity of the town. Now she weaves her magic over the neighbouring bird colonies, causing outbreaks of aggression: gulls circle and swoop on fishermen in the bay and throngs of blackbirds peck and tear at people in the streets. Kraggen and the hag raid homesteads on the outskirts of town by night, slaughtering any unfortunates who dwell inside. The peryton sates himself on the hearts of his victims whilst Maude conspires with the birds for their next strike. With the egg due to hatch any day, the pair receive word that a gang of Moon Lantern urchins have it, and they connive to launch fresh assaults within the town itself.

Stats

Medium fey, chaotic evil

Armor Class 14 (natural armor)

Hit Points 26 (7d8 + 21)

Speed 30 ft., swim 40 ft.

• STR 16 (+3)
• DEX 13 (+1)
• CON 16 (+3)
• INT 12 (+1)
• WIS 12 (+1)
• CHA 13 (+1)

Senses darkvision 60 ft., passive Perception 11

Languages Aquan, Common, Giant

Challenge 2 (450 XP)

Amphibious. The hag can breathe air and water.

Horrific Appearance. Any humanoid that starts its turn within 30 feet of the hag and can see the hag’s true form must make a DC 11 Wisdom saving throw. On a failed save, the creature is frightened for 1 minute. A creature can repeat the saving throw at the end of each of its turns, with disadvantage if the hag is within line of sight, ending the effect on itself on a success. If a creature’s saving throw is successful or the effect ends for it, the creature is immune to the hag’s Horrific Appearance for the next 24 hours.

Unless the target is surprised or the revelation of the hag’s true form is sudden, the target can avert its eyes and avoid making the initial saving throw. Until the start of its next turn, a creature that averts its eyes has disadvantage on attack rolls against the hag.

Actions

Claws. Melee Weapon Attack: +5 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 10 (2d6 + 3) slashing damage.

Death Glare. The hag targets one frightened creature she can see within 30 feet of her. If the target can see the hag, it must succeed on a DC 11 Wisdom saving throw against this magic or drop to 0 hit points.

Illusory Appearance. The hag covers herself and anything she is wearing or carrying with a magical illusion that makes her look like an ugly creature of her general size and humanoid shape. The illusion ends if the hag takes a bonus action to end it or if she dies. The changes wrought by this effect fail to hold up to physical inspection. For example, the hag could appear to have no claws, but someone touching her hand might feel the claws. Otherwise, a creature must take an action to visually inspect the illusion and succeed on a DC 16 Intelligence (Investigation) check to discern that the hag is disguised.