Will'-O'-Wisp

Will-o'-wisps are malevolent, wispy balls of light that haunt lonely places and battlefields, bound by dark fate or dark magic to feed on fear and despair.

Hope and Doom

Will-o'-wisps look like bobbing lantern lights in the distance, although they can choose to alter their colors, or wink out completely. When they activate their lights, will-o'-wisps offer hope, hinting of safety to creatures that follow them. Will-o'-wisps lure unwary creatures into quicksand pits, monster lairs, and other dangerous places so that they can feed on the suffering of their prey and revel in their death screams. An evil being that falls prey to a will-o'-wisp might become a wisp itself, its woeful spirit coalescing above its lifeless corpse like a flickering flame.

Consumed by Despair

Will-o'-wisps are the souls of evil beings that perished in anguish or misery as they wandered forsaken lands permeated with powerful magic. They thrive in swampy bogs and bone-strewn battlefields where the oppressive weight of sorrow stoops even heavier than the low-hanging mist and fog. Trapped in these desolate places of lost hope and memory, will-o'-wisps lure other creatures toward dismal fates and feed on their misery.

Agents of Evil

Will-o'-wisps rarely speak, but when they do, their voices sound like faint or distant whispers. In the miserable domains they haunt, will-o'-wisps sometimes form symbiotic relationships with their wicked neighbors. Hags, oni, black dragons, and evil cultists work with will-o'-wisps to draw creatures into ambush. As their evil allies surround and slaughter creatures, the wisps hover above them, drinking the agony of a last breath and savoring the sensation as the light of life goes out in a creature's eyes.

Undead Nature

A will-o'-wisp doesn't require air, drink, or sleep.

Geographic Distribution

• Harunan Caves

Will'-O'-Wisp CR: 2

Tiny undead, chaotic evil

Armor Class: 19

Hit Points: 9d4

Speed: 0 ft , fly: 50 ft , burrow: 0 ft , swim: 0 ft , climb: 0 ft , can hover

STR

1 -5

DEX

28 +9

CON

10 +0

INT

13 +1

WIS

14 +2

CHA

11 +0

Saving Throws: None

Skills:

Ephemeral

The will-o'-wisp can't wear or carry anything.

Incorporeal Movement

The will-o'-wisp can move through other creatures and objects as if they were difficult terrain. It takes 1d10 force damage if it ends its turn inside an object.

Damage Vulnerabilities: None

Damage Resistances: Acid; cold; fire; necrotic; thunder; bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing from non magical weapons

Damage Immunities: Lightning, poison

Condition Immunities: Exhaustion; grappled; paralyzed; poisoned; prone; restrained; unconscious

Senses:

Darkvision: 120ft

Passive Perception: 12

Languages: The languages it knew in life

Challenge Rating: 2 ( 450 XP)

Actions

Shock

Melee Spell Attack: +4 to hit, reach 5 ft, one creature

Hit: 9 (2d8) lightning damage

Invisibility

The will-o'-wisp and its light magically become invisible until it attacks or uses its Life Drain, or until its concentration ends (as if concentrating on a spell).

Bonus Actions

Consume Life

As a bonus action, the will-o'-wisp can target one creature it can see within 5 ft of it that has 0 hit points and is still alive. The target must succeed on a DC 10 Constitution saving throw against this magic or die. If the target dies, the will-o'-wisp regains 10 (3d6) hit points.

Variable Illumination

The will-o'-wisp sheds bright light in a 5 to 20 foot radius and dim light for an additional number of feet equal to the chosen radius. The will-o'-wisp can alter the radius as a bonus action.