with annotations by “S”

1
 What Is Kalidnay? CREDITS
Kalidnay is a domain of dread nested in the Writer: Catherine Evans
Mists of Ravenloft. More specifically, it is one Producer: Oliver Clegg
of the “Islands Of Terror”. Each “island” is Editing: Ken Carcas
surrounded by an environment that isolates it, Art: Thakok-An commissioned privately from
just as The Mists seal off Barovia. In the case Gretchen Meinzen, other graphics fonts and
of Kalidnay, this is a sea of silt - because in various assets from Licensed through creative
Kalidnay, a small, precarious, desert domain, commons, Adobe Stock Services, Unity, Creative
water is more precious than gold, and gold is Market and others, individual licenses available
as rare as a kind-hearted stranger. on request. Some artwork © 2015 Dean Spen-
cer, used with permission. All rights reserved.
The world that spawned Kalidnay is a harsh
one; all deserts, monsters, and powerful
sorcerer-kings willing to destroy the world
and its people in their quest for power. Magic
corrupts the landscape and kills onlookers,
but psionic powers are so common they’re not
worth remarking on. Residents of the domain You’ll find some of my notes
protect themselves with weapons made of bone throughout. they’ll look a little
or stone, and everything is dangerous. like this, though i do tend to write
The Darklord, Thakok-An, does what she can on whatever comes to hand.
to preserve the precarious state of nature that
lets life persist here, but it’s always
balanced on a knife-edge.
pay attention. i might just save
your life.
S
What to Expect
Unlike other domains of Ravenloft,
Kalidnay’s Darklord is only one
of the possible threats characters
will face here. The biggest
challenge is surviving in a world
where even water has a price.
Finding safety, and figuring out
how to exist without falling into
slavery or being sacrificed in the
arena, is an adventure in itself,
but corrupt officials with an iota
of power, twisted magic, and
desiccated undead all offer a range
of story possibilities. This is not
to downplay the danger Thakok-
An poses. Outsiders threaten the
status-quo she works so hard to
maintain. They can either serve
her or oppose her. And if they
oppose her, they cannot be allowed
to live.

A note on currency: there is not

enough metal in Kalidnay to
waste it on coins. Transactions
here are made in ceramic pieces
(1 ceramic piece = 1 gold piece)
and bits (1 bit = 1 copper piece).

2
 You know, in some ways I really do admire
Thakok-An, thakok-an. she has a vision, and she
executes it. naturally she executes a lot
Darklord of of people too, but that’s just the cost of
doing business.
Kalidnay
Is loyalty a crime? If so, it’s a disappointingly Thakok-An lost consciousness during the
rare one. But loyalty to the sorcerer-king Kalid- ziggurat’s collapse. When she recovered, she
Ma is what brought Thakok-An, and the city found little was left of Kalid-Ma’s kingdom.
she stewards for him, into The Mists. Kalidnay City, the distant lights of the farming
town of Artan-Ak… and little else. A few dozen
The world Kalidnay came from is a hard one. A miles of desert surrounded by the great,
desert wasteland, where city-states make war impassable, Silt Sea. Worse, Kalid-Ma had not
for power and resources and mighty sorcerer- ascended. He too was unconscious - and he
kings seek to become ‘Dragons,’ ascending to a did not wake up.
form more powerful than humans can conceive
of. Magic in that world draws its power from Kalid-Ma slumbers still, in a chamber beneath
the land, sucking it dry of life and fertility, and the palace, watched over by Thakok-An and the
the magic of the sorcerer-kings, being most most loyal of her Templars.
powerful, requires the most fuel. Most of these
rulers are cruel, selfish creatures who run Her only goals now are to steward Kalidnay
their kingdoms only as a means of channelling safely through this dark disaster, until its
resources to themselves. They care little for sorcerer-king awakes and restores things to
their cities, leaving their management to their the way they were. To do so, she keeps him
priesthood, the Templars. nourished on the life force of the people who
die in the city’s arena and ensures there is
Kalid-Ma was different. While his laws were something left for him to reclaim.
harsh, they were fair, and every citizen
was equal under them. There was little
corruption, nepotism, or privilege, and Kalid-
Ma was respected, if not loved.

None of that protected him from the

machinations of his fellow sorcerer-kings,
who grew concerned at the power he
wielded, and his subjects’ loyalty, and plotted
against him. At least, so Thakok-An claims.
And as his chief Templar and steward of
Kalidnay, she should know. Thakok-An saw
one obvious way to raise him above their
schemes: to hasten his draconic ascension.
All it would take was one almighty sacrifice.

And that, after much research and some

soul-searching, is how Thakok-An came
to murder all of her known blood relatives
on the highest platform of a stone ziggurat
in the centre of Kalidnay City. She timed
the murders to coincide with the nightly
ceremony Kalid-Ma performed in pursuit of
his ascension. Her ritual, and the deaths
of her family, should have thrust Kalid-Ma
immediately into his full power. Instead,
as the steps ran red with blood, a vicious
sandstorm whipped up, the ziggurat cracked
and collapsed, and the life-force was drained
from thousands upon thousands of the
citizens of Kalidnay.
3
 Thakok-An’s concern with preserving the up arena fights that nourish him with the life
fragile ecosystem of Kalidnay borders on essence of the fallen; hunting down any mages
obsession, and for good reason. There are - or suspected mages - before they can harm
perilously few water sources and the sleeping the land; rooting out any sign of resistance or
sorcerer-king defiles the land around the city, corruption that could make her job harder.
leaving Artan-Ak as the only place where crops
can be grown. A single drought could destroy The work takes its toll. Always pragmatic
everything Thakok-An has worked to maintain. and low on empathy, Thakok-An has become
clinically cold; it is usually easier to solve a
So could a single magic-user. Arcane magic is problem with a couple of judicious murders
not only banned in Kalidnay it is punishable than to untangle it. And the more she kills,
by death. Every citizen knows how precarious and rations food, and grows into a tyrant, the
their situation is, and very few would hesitate more she fears her people will turn on her. It’s
to turn a magic-user over to Thakok-An’s a vicious cycle and over time, she has come
Templars. The Templars, in turn, would likely to resent Kalid-Ma for forcing her into this
kill such a person on sight. position. She has begun to think of Kalidnay as
her city: after all, she is the one who sacrificed
Thakok-An has served her king loyally, and she her family and her happiness for it. While she
will continue to do so. No matter how many would never admit it, even to herself, she’s
people have to die to make it so. started to doubt whether she really wants
Kalid-Ma to wake up and take back the reins of
Appearance power.
Thakok-An is a handsome half-elven woman
in her early thirties with light brown skin and Tactics
straight, sandy blonde hair. Sharp, attenuated, Thakok-An is powerful, but she does not
features and pointed ears are clear signs of her think of herself as a fighter. She would much
elven heritage. She stands six feet tall, dresses prefer to leave the scene of any combat (using
in light, loose-fitting white robes, and carries invisibility as a legendary action or greater
an ornate bone spear as a ceremonial staff of invisibility and far step) and leave her loyal
office. Also ceremonial, she wears a headdress Templars to deal with any pesky adventurers.
of carved bone which forms three high ridges Thakok-An is accompanied by at least 4
over her skull. Templars inside the royal palace, and 2d8 + 4
outside of the palace walls.
Like many in Kalidnay, Thakok-An chooses
to partially cover her face. In her case, she She will stand and fight only if an adventuring
wears a gem-studded half mask made of party presents a major threat to Kalidnay
leather which covers her forehead and cheeks, (e.g. contains a powerful arcane spellcaster)
revealing only her yellow eyes. or Kalid-Ma. If this happens, Thakok-An will
alternate between buffing her Templars and
Personality dealing with spellcasters herself, while the
Thakok-An is truly a devoted caretaker of her Templars focus on martial characters. Her
king’s city. All that drives her, every day, is preference is to control and subdue enemies
ensuring there is something left for Kalid-Ma so that they can be executed later - preferably
to reclaim when - not if - he awakens. She will in the arena, where Kalid-Ma can benefit from
take any measures necessary to do so. Lining their life force.

4
 Settlements Leadership
Kalidnay City is Thakok-An’s stronghold and
seat of power. She is a very hands-on ruler, but
even she has to delegate. She is very careful in
her choices, relying on a Chief Templar she has

Kalidnay City - known since her youth, and the only woman
more obsessed with keeping the city running
than Thakok-An herself.
Silent Metropolis Thakok-An
The people fear me, but they do not realise: I am
only a caretaker, stewarding this skeleton of a Thakok-An is a pragmatic survivor who wants
city until Kalid-Ma wakes once more. only to safeguard Kalidnay until - or in case
---Thakok-An - Kalid-Ma wakes from his sleep. She has
learned that the best way to keep the city-state
On the night Thakok-An conducted her great in balance is to trust no one, as well as playing
sacrifice and the Dark Powers claimed the her enemies off against one another. Her
city-state, there were fifteen-thousand people greatest fear is magic-users. A single one would
living in Kalidnay City. Since the ritual, the be powerful enough to destroy Kalidnay…
population stands at around 2,500. Most of so she seeks them out and destroys them
the city is an empty, lifeless, monument to wherever she can.
former splendor. Dust and sand build up in
the streets and even the poorest city-folk live in Outsiders are of great interest to Thakok-An.
luxurious homes that they have claimed from Opening up the borders of the domain would
the dead. make Kalidnay a much safer, less precarious,
place to live. If people can get in, then there
Those in the districts that are still populated must be a way for her to reach out. Of course,
live well, compared to people elsewhere in if there is even the slightest hint that a party
the domain. The city still has working wells of adventurers contains mages, or might plot
supplying clean water, though it is rationed, against her, she will execute them in the arena
and most of the food produced in Artan-Ak first and ask questions later.
is sent here to feed the city-dwellers. There is
a marketplace, selling food and goods either For more information on Thakok-An, see
hand-made or plundered from the tomb-like Thakok-An, Darklord of Kalidnay.
empty sections of the city. Musicians, the
occasional bard, and of course the arena, Gennet
provide entertainment. The weekly day of arena Very few people could be said to have profited
combat is both the main public event and the from the cataclysm that threw Kalidnay into
way Thakok-An deals with criminals. Ravenloft, but Gennet (LE male mummy lord)
did. He is now Chief Templar, after all. He is
Kalidnay City is loyal to Thakok-An; it can’t unaware that it is Thakok-An who now grants
afford not to be. She ensures that water flows
and food trickles in, and she keeps her people
safe from magic that could end all life in
Kalidnay. And then, of course, there is Kalid-
Ma. The populace believes that Thakok-An still
hears from him in her dreams. Her orders are
his will made manifest, and the people would
prefer not to anger even a sleeping god.

p l a i n i n g about the
m
a lot of co dying of thirst. my
people do ’m
a t e r i n k alidnay. “i hree weeks.” and so
w t
b y h a s n ’t washed in v e t ho u g ht of that
ba ha
t h e y r e a lly should nts.
on. e came peasa 5
e t h e y b
befor
 him spells, as Kalid-Ma used to, and believes two types of combatants:
himself still in direct service to the Sorcerer • Prisoners - whose role is to die
King. If he ever learned that Kalid-Ma does not horribly to the rousing cheers of the
speak, even in dreams, he might finally start to audience
question Thakok-An’s leadership. • Gladiators - who are tough,
trained professionals with a track record
For the time being, Gennet is a loyal, tireless of victory and legions of fans. Citizens
servant of the state. To the extent that people send them love letters and gifts, and it is
dare jest about the Chief Templar at all, it is said that their sweat, properly collected,
joked that he never sleeps; that at any time of is a powerful aphrodisiac.
day or night, he might be found wandering the
palace or the streets, looking for any sign of There are roughly twenty professional
dissent or disloyalty. gladiators ‘stabled’ at the arena. Most of them
are relative newcomers: a short-lived attempt
And it is true. Gennet hasn’t slept since the at rebellion five years ago, led by the gladiator
night of Thakok-An’s sacrifice. Or breathed. Orek, gave Thakok-An and Gennet cause to
He died that night, every drop of life sucked execute many of the veteran fighters, and some
out of him and leaving a desiccated husk of a of their noble fans, too. Orek wanted to stop
person with leathery skin, fleshless lips, and the bloody, wholesale slaughter in the arena.
round, staring eyes. Death did not interfere That cannot be allowed. The blood must flow,
with his duty, however, and so he presses on. to keep Kalid-Ma fed.
While Gennet is conscious and rational, he
has absolutely no imagination and he does not
question orders. Once he has cause to suspect
someone of being a danger to the state, he will
not cease from hunting them down.

Inara-Ves
Inara-Ves (LE human female, Kalidnay
commoner) is the ‘Mayor’ of Kalidnay City.
While Thakok-An is theoretically responsible
for ensuring there are resources, and that
people survive to partake of them, Inara-Ves is
the woman who calculates water rations and
knows how many days away the city is from
famine.

Inara-Ves is totally loyal, honest, and dutiful.

But she understands the precariousness of
life here better than anyone else. The ground
around the city is barren (she does not know
that this is because its energy goes to nourish
Kalid-Ma), and the food supply from Artan-
Ak is insecure. Adding to her problems, the
population of the city and the whole domain
is getting older, which means fewer workers to
feed hungry mouths.

Inara-Ves is slowly and secretly working on

a plan to make sure that the food and water
don’t run out. It means culling roughly one-
third of the population, but it will keep the it’s not that i don’t like inara ves but she
others alive. She doesn’t like it, but she also
doesn’t like the prospect of starving slowly to
has this awful habit of turning up and
death in a dying world. interfering with perfectly utilitarian
necromancy. what was she even going to use
Local Celebrities: the Arena
There aren’t many causes for celebration in
those bodies for anyway? this would never
Kalidnay, but the spectacle of the arena has happen in darkon.
the power to unite the whole city. There are
6
The most noteworthy current gladiators are: Deep blue in colour, and distinctly lizard-like,
she inspires a mix of fear and fascination in
audiences. Her strange blend of charm and
Vortre strangeness means she makes friends quickly,
and that those wealthy, noble friends don’t
Vortre (N male human gladiator) fights with
worry too much about what they say in front of
shield and spear and is the undisputed
her. Kiri-Talat has blackmail material on most
champion of the arena. He has been a
of the Templars in the city; everything from
professional since before Kalidnay entered
water fraud to murder. She doesn’t desire to
Ravenloft. He even weathered the revolution
do anything with it, but she values her safety,
started by his lover, Orek, by taking shelter
and her friends’ safety; if she was ever under
with a noble patron until it, and the wave of
threat, she could throw the entire Templar
retribution that followed, were over.
order into chaos in a heartbeat.
Fans think Vortre is aging and losing his edge. The Hidden Order
In actual fact, he’s lost interest in his career
since his former friends and allies died. He Rumors abound of a secret order of mages
now takes money to throw fights (primarily operating somewhere in the city. These are
from a bookmaker called Borei, who operates tales told to scare children, but there is a grain
out of the marketplace when she is not at the of truth in them. Thakok-An knows that the
arena), working to stash away money until best way to find mages is through other mages,
he can buy himself a comfortable overseer so she allows a few of them to live in Kalidnay
position in Artan-Ak, where he can finally be City as long as they never, ever, make the
with Orek again. mistake of Defiling, and as long as they do not
grow too powerful. No one except Thakok-An
knows that the mage Kellar (LE human female
Nandis mage; additional spells - see Marketplace)
Nandis (CN human female assassin; remove and her two apprentices, Azzer and Lendri (N
crossbow). Nandis was one of the first nonbinary, female, apprentice wizards - see
gladiators to join the ranks after the rebellion. VGtM; 25 hit points and additional spells - see
She, like many of the new fighters, has less Marketplace), report to her. Anyone
of a conscience than the previous generation. who approaches them to buy
Nandis was a hired killer before she entered magical service comes
the arena, and she finds her new career far under Templar surveillance
less morally objectionable. within a day or so, and
anyone who identifies
Nandis has worked out how to build up a themselves as an
following in the arena. With a forked tongue arcane spellcaster is
and skin covered in brands and scars, she living on borrowed
looks like a monster. The audience loves to time.
hate her, and she thrives on it. Her specialty
is stalking terrified victims through the ruins When Thakok-
of the arena while the audience watches and An discovered this
cheers from above. She still occasionally takes small, cautious, cabal
contracts as an assassin, even though it’s of mages living in the
getting harder to pass discreetly around the shadows of her city,
city. she saw them

Kiri-Talat
Kiri-Talat (CG female blue dragonborn
gladiator; armed with net and trident) walked
out of the Empty Districts one day without
a word of explanation, presenting herself
at the arena looking for work. Mutations
occur infrequently in Kalidnay I can’t say for sure, but i would hazard
bloodlines - usually minor things, like that the mutations i witnessed in
an extra finger or a patch of scales
- but Kiri-Talat takes them to new
kalidnay were almost all the result of
levels. suppressed sorcerer bloodlines trying
to assert themselves. 7
 immediately as excellent tools. Kellar and the the arena. One is in the empty districts and
others know full well that their choices are is sealed over, being extremely hazardous to
loyalty to Thakok-An, or death. They are not reach. The other two are accessible for general
good people forced into a difficult position. use by the citizens. Except for the palace and
They are not desperately hunting for a way arena, rationing is in effect, but it is much
out of their deal. They agree with Thakok- more generous than in Artan-Ak.
An’s position on mages, fully believing that
mages should not be allowed to live, and count Not a drop to drink
themselves as the only exceptions. They form a
tight-knit family who trust one another as they Citizens of Kalidnay City are entitled to a ration
trust no one else. of water per person, per day. A single ration
is enough for drinking, food preparation, and
basic sanitation needs. A small number of
City Environment: the Wasteland businesses are allowed separate rations for
Nothing grows in Kalidnay City. There is not customers.
one single cactus, vine, or potted plant. The
land outside the city is utterly barren. This An individual can collect water on behalf
is common knowledge. Fewer people realize, of an entire household; people are simply
or understand, that corpses do not decay in asked to show their water tokens at the well.
the city: they desiccate and mummify, but the These ceramic rectangles are issued at the
microscopic organisms that would usually beginning of each month, and whenever they
feed on them are few in number here. Like the are presented at a well, a chip is knocked out
plants, their life force goes to feed Kalid-Ma. of them to mark off that day’s ration.

This has two important consequences. Firstly,

noble families usually have mausoleums
to lay their dead to rest, but most corpses
are burned. Secondly, when corpses rise as You wouldn’t believe the trouble I
undead, they do so as Kalidnay mummies,
not skeletons or zombies. Corpses animated had to got to in order to explain
by magic are exceptions to this rule, rising as to the local authorities that my
whatever creatures are specified by the spell.
zombie had escaped. they couldn’t
Water Sources seem to comprehend of an undead
There are five working wells in Kalidnay City. creature that didn’t have some
One is in the palace, for the use of Thakok- kinds of oedipal complex.
An, the Templars, and the servants. One is in

8
 Locations
If a person has no token, they get no water.
The authorities don’t particularly care whether
every person gets their share; their concern 1a. The Market
is that no more than the prescribed volume The marketplace is the literal and figurative
of water is doled out every day. This leads to centre of Kalidnay City. The round plaza is one
several major issues: of the few places that can ever be described
● Deprivation. Large households often as ‘bustling.’ The market is divided into three
do not distribute their water rations equally sections:
amongst members. Nobles bathe, servants
thirst. 1. The Main Market: reputable
● Resale. Some households deliberately stallholders sell produce brought in from
limit their own usage so that they can sell Artan-Ak - either in large volumes to other
water to others. This is the only way for those businesses, or in small amounts to individuals
without water tokens (which are issued only - and wares crafted in Kalidnay City itself.
to citizens registered at the palace) to obtain The latter range from clothing, to tools, to
drinking water in Kalidnay City, and prices are occasional weapons and armor. No metal is
whatever the vendor wishes to charge. available, and the flash of a metal coin - let
● Death and Disease. Heatstroke, alone metal armor or weapons - is enough to
dehydration, and unsanitary conditions kill attract the attention of serious, organised,
every day. bands of criminals (1d6+3 thugs and 1d4
spies).
Rumours on the Streets
We are all dead, but some of us don’t know 2. The Dust Market: this collection of
it. Somewhat true. Gennet is not the only traders fill the streets and alleyways that feed
mummy walking amongst the living. Anyone in into the main plaza. They sell goods scavenged
robes and veils that hide their face should be up from the empty districts. These can be
treated with suspicion. Unfortunately, between as innocuous as furniture or as exciting as
the climate and the prevailing fashion trends, ancient magical items. Whatever is on offer, the
this describes roughly half the population. vendor faced great dangers to obtain it (or paid
someone else to), and the prices run from three
Kalid-Ma speaks to Thakok-An less often to ten times higher than comparable items in
than he used to. Partially true, in that the the Player’s Handbook and other published
sleeping sorcerer-king doesn’t speak to Thakok- sources.
An at all. • Traders in the Dust Market
are frequently denizens of the Empty
We are running out of water. Water rations Districts themselves. Like everyone
fluctuate, based on Inara-Ves’ current level of who lives there, they are Kalidnay
paranoia, and there is a real long-term risk of mummies.
this, but it is currently not true. Occasionally
this rumor gains a stronger hold than usual, 3. The Slave Market: once every ten
at which point there may be riots - followed by days, all other commerce pauses, and the
arrests and executions. marketplace is taken over by the slave market.
Humans - and occasionally other races - are
Thakok-An feeds on the blood and fear of corralled in pens and auctioned off. Most of the
those who die in the arena. Not Thakok-An, people sold here are minor criminals (debtors,
but Kalid-Ma. vandals, or guilty of other crimes that don’t
justify death in the arena), slaves changing
There are mages in the marketplace. This hands, or the children of slaves. Human life is
is technically true but the mages in these cheap; an unskilled slave can often be bought
rumours are always either assumed to be for less than a nice piece of salvage from the
Defilers or revolutionaries, whereas they are in Empty Districts.
fact allies and informants to Thakok-An.
Rumour has it that magical services are
There are people living in the Empty available in the market too. This is true, up
Districts. Very much no. There are creatures to a point. Kellar and her apprentices Azzer
there, but they should not be described as and Lendri run a stall here, selling poisons
people or living. to kill vermin, basic medicinal supplies, and
cosmetics. Those who know the right way
to approach them - a specific hand gesture,
9
 or a few words of a spell carefully seeded Beggar
into a conversation - can obtain spellcasting
services for the following rates (plus the cost of
You’ve passed plenty of beggars in the
components, where listed in the spell):
marketplace. The sick or merely old; those who
cannot work. The kindness of strangers here
● Potions of Healing. 75 ceramic pieces. seems to be sorely lacking; few have any coin
● Cantrips. 50 ceramic pieces. Light, at all, and most look like they barely have the
mending, prestidigitation. energy left to move. The one who holds out
● 1st level. 200 ceramic pieces. their chipped, clay cup at you now has grimy
Comprehend languages, detect magic, identify. cloth bandages wrapped around their eyes
● 2nd level. 300 ceramic pieces. Arcane and ears, keeping their stringy grey hair in
lock, gentle repose, knock, locate object. place. Their parched lips move slowly:
● 3rd level (Kellar only). 500 ceramic
pieces. Dispel magic, nondetection, tongues.
“I can get you home.”

Market Encounters
Roll 1d6. This beggar is Andreea, a Vistana. The rest
of her family perished in the desert, and she
was badly ravaged by desert birds. She is
d6 Encounter convinced she can find a way across the Silt
1 Pickpocket Sea and back to Barovia - and offers to take
the characters with her if they will protect
2 Beggar her in the desert. Andreea is, unfortunately,
3 Escaping slave incorrect: she is unable to leave Kalidnay.

4 Dust market trader

5 “Mages”
6 Robbers

Pickpocket
Choose a character in the party at random.
Characters with passive Wisdom (Percep-
tion) of 14 or higher notice:

There’s a tiny hand on your purse. It’s

attached to a blonde child who can’t be more
than six. Or maybe they’re just malnourished.
They yelp as you notice them and try to take
off into the crowd.

Characters with a lower passive Wisdom

(Perception) roll randomly to determine
which of their possessions are missing.
Read or paraphrase:
if there’s one thing i’ve always
You see a tiny figure, barefoot and with appreciated about kalidnay, it’s
tousled blonde hair, weaving between the legs
of nearby shoppers. They move through the their dedication to fashion. the
crowd like a fish in the ocean. If you don’t act khopesh is a devilish addition to
soon, they’re going to get away. any wardrobe, and can be easily
hidden under a voluminous skirt,
should the need arise. I’ve used
one on more than one occasion to
decapitate an archrival, whilst
10 remaning undeniably
a la mode
Escaping Slave

Coughing isn’t uncommon in this dry, dusty

place. When it starts, no-one reacts. When
it continues and turns into wet, hacking
sounds, a space clears. A woman is on
her knees, fine robes and feathered mask
spattered in dirt. She clutches her throat, as
if that will do any good when she’s coughing
up blood.

Behind her, a slender, short, young man

with wide eyes and an obsidian slave collar
is backing away.

Choose a character at random. The young

slave stumbles into them. He has poisoned
his master and is attempting to escape as she
chokes to death. There would be a sizable
reward for his arrest, however…

Dust Market Trader

A hooded figure beckons you from down a

narrow, shadowed, side street. Covered by
black robes, and bracketed on either side
by armed, robed, figures, this trader doesn’t
even reveal his face.

“Want to earn some bits?”

This Dust Market trader (LE human male

commoner; accompanied by two NE human
thugs) would prefer not to scavenge in the
dangerous Empty Districts themselves. He has
a proposition for the characters: go and empty
out some abandoned houses, and he will pay
them well in ceramic pieces or even water psionics is a strange discipline,
tokens for the rest of the month.
but it’s almost as useful as real
“Mages” magic if you try hard enough.
Certainly, the adepts of kalidnay
Two women stand close together, half- have had enough time to twist
hidden by the corner of a stall. Both veiled their psionic powers to whatever
and robed, they seem wealthy and well-
fed; not the type who would need to sneak purpose suits them.
around and fear passers-by. One says to the
other: apart from creating water,
“I’ve heard there’s a woman who can find it of course. I suppose there’s a
for you. The ring. Before he knows you lost certain irony to that.
it. She’s here, in this very market. A mage…
but not one of the bad ones.”

If characters listen to more of the conversation,

they will learn about Kellar, and how to find
her (see previous section). 11
 the ground.

The gladiators, and a crew of servants and

trainers, live in a glorious villa close to the
Robbers arena. The compound is guarded to keep out
fans, rather than to keep the fighters in.
“I like your sword. I’ll take it.”
Arena Encounters
The voice is behind you. It belongs to a heavily Roll 1d6.
muscled man, wearing leather and bone spikes, d6 Encounter
and a cloak that hides most of him. There’s
another like him to his left. And his right. And 1 Fans
another, and another. You’re surrounded. 2 Nandis

Five bandits and a bandit leader have taken 3 Merchandise vendor

an interest in the characters, attracted to 4 Bookmaker
obvious wealth or metal. The characters will
probably be able to deal with them, but a fight 5 Job offer
will attract the attention of a patrol of five
6 Prisoners
Templars - who will probably bring unwanted
attention to the characters, especially if any of
them are spellcasters. Fans

1b. The Arena A small crowd is gathered around the back

gate of the arena, hot and weary under the
The Arena is far too large for Kalidnay City’s
sun. There is no fight scheduled today, or
current population. Once each week, it fills
even tomorrow, but that doesn’t seem to
up with almost every living person in the city,
have dissuaded them from their vigil.
ready to watch professional fighters dispatch
prisoners, rebels, and - in desperate times -
At your approach, a pair - dark-skinned,
slaves. It is never more than half full.
light-haired - break from the group focused
on the gate and turn to you.
The west side of the circular structure has
collapsed in recent years. There is no pressing
“Are you new?” asks the woman.
need to rebuild, and there aren’t enough people
in the city to undertake such a major project.
“New fighters?” asks the man.
And so it continues to sag and crumble, and
legends spread about the ghosts of executed
gladiators walking amongst the ruins. There is a lot of coin to be made, and a lot of
goodwill to be earned, by convincing these
While there are no ghosts, there is a pervasive passionate fight fans that the characters are
aura of oppression that haunts the
arena. It lifts only when the seats
are full, and the bloodshed is in
full swing. The tournaments feed
Kalid-Ma, and when the arena is
not full of new energy, it is dead and
lifeless, devoid of even hope. If the
tournaments were to stop, or slow
down, or become less brutal, Kalid-
Ma would unconsciously feed on
the city itself, stripping life from the
people just as he already has from

I considered running away and starting a new life as a gladiator once.

But I don’t think my patron would approve.

She is right.
12
gladiators, or about to be. It’s an excellent way
to make connections in noble families they Bookmaker
would not normally have access to. Of course, A huge, hulking, mountain of a man sits under a
it’s also a great way to make enemies when parasol that barely shades him. A stone casket
their new ‘fans’ learn that their story isn’t true, sits on the ground, one of his sandaled feet
and having rich, demanding fans who think resting on the lid. He calls odds into the empty
they are entitled to your time and attention has street: chances of victory, time until the first
its own problems. fatality; total number of bodies; long odds on
whether the gladiators will suffer a blow. There
Nandis is no permutation of the upcoming fights that
you could not bet on, if you wanted.
There is life amongst the rubble of the
arena’s ruined side. A figure with vividly Big money bets are the order of the day.
dyed blue hair, dressed for heat in plates Fortunes are made and lost at the arena every
of bone and slips of fabric cut to show week… but betting on deaths, maimings,
her muscles and tattoos. Not only is she and ruined lives can take its toll on a person.
watching you, but she is also sipping, Characters betting on the more macabre
openly, from a heavy-looking waterskin. It’s aspects of fights should make Dark Powers
asking for trouble in this city. checks at a relatively low DC.

“Lost?” she calls out to you. Job offer

“You look like you can handle yourselves.”

This is Nandis (see Local Celebrities). The
ruins are her turf, and she expects people The creature watching you is unlike any
to leave her be. She threatens anyone who is you’ve seen in Kalidnay. Scaly skin, a
disrespectful or doesn’t leave when instructed. reptilian snout with long, sharp, teeth and
Nandis has never been in a fight she couldn’t glittering golden eyes. She wears a loose
finish, and she is practically fearless. However, cotton wrap and no armor, but she leans
she won’t fight a large group head-on. She will her weight on a long, wickedly sharp trident
appear to leave, stalking them through the and there is a net bundled up on one hip.
shadows of the ruins, attacking from cover,
and picking them off one by one. “Looking for work?”

Adventurers might kill her, of course… but

killing a gladiator will not only draw the wrath This is Kiri-Talat, gladiator and trainer (see
of the Templars, it could turn the whole city Local Celebrities). She has two major interests
against them. in the characters: whether they would consider
a career as gladiators… and what they are
Merchandise vendor doing in Kalidnay. She hoards as much
There is a single blanket laid out, right outside information as she can - and, at a later date,
the front gate of the arena. Its stock of glass will ask the characters to do something for
bottles, braided circlets of hair, small cloth bags her. Place a large bet on a fighter she knows is
of unknown contents, is attracting a healthy going to lose, for example, or deliver a threat
crowd. In the market traders send children or - and some violence - to a Templar she can’t
assistants amongst the crowd, showing off blackmail, to stop them from scrutinising one
wares. Here, there is no need: people come of her nice, noble, friends too closely.
to the wizened old woman running the stall
without prompting. If there are dragonborn in the party, Kiri-Talat
will be fascinated by them, wanting every detail
The stall sells merchandise from lucky charms of their history and home; she has never seen
to potions promising virility, fertility, and another person like her.
general good health, all of them made from the
gladiators themselves. Everything from vials
of blood, sweat, and tears can be obtained,
along with clothes worn by these heroes, their
discarded weapons, and even nail clippings
and eyelashes. There is no guarantee that
any of these things are real, but they sell for
anywhere from 10-500 ceramic pieces.
13
 Prisoners Sorcerer-King.

Stone weights drag across the stone street. Null Field

A line of weary, slumped, shuffling men and Magic operates strangely on and around the
women are being herded towards the arena ziggurat. On it, and within fifty feet of it, it
by a patrol of Templars. It’s like watching is almost impossible to work arcane magic
a line of animals going to slaughter; the without defiling. The sleeping Kalid-Ma’s
chances of these people surviving, let alone thoughts - his craving for power, the fierce
winning a fight, is laughable. excitement at the working of magic - permeates
reality here and tempts spellcasters to test
The debtors and criminals being transported their limits:
inside the arena are the intended cannon ● To cast a spell of first level or higher
fodder for this week’s fights. They will die without defiling, the caster must succeed on an
unless the characters somehow help them Intelligence saving throw, with a DC equal to
escape, but what would be the point of 10 + the spell’s level.
angering the Templars, and turning a dozen ● Spells cast as defiling magic are
people loose to die in the desert or starve in automatically cast using the spellcaster’s
the Empty Districts? Even the prisoners would highest available spell slot.
prefer not to end their lives that way. ● Defiling always saps the energy of
creatures, as the ground is already dead.
● Defiling saps double the usual number
1c. The Ziggurat of hit points.
The mighty ziggurat where Thakok-An
sacrificed her family to fuel Kalid-Ma’s Wards and Guards
transformation still stands. The colossal
stone structure is cracked, as though hit Descending to Kalid-Ma’s underground resting
by lightning, and stained with the blood place is simply a matter of climbing down
of sacrificial victims. Nothing prevents an almost a mile of steps, and then breaking
individual from simply climbing to the pinnacle through the psionic and magical seals that
- except that it is hundreds of feet high and the make it impossible for anyone but Thakok-An
smaller, climbable steps, were swallowed by the to enter.
fissure that opened up; each step is almost six
feet high. Doing so requires dispel magic cast
simultaneously by a psionicist and a wizard,
There is nothing to see there, however, and to using 5th level spell slots; this alerts Thakok-
even approach it and linger for too long would An immediately to the presence of outsiders in
draw Thakok-An’s attention and suspicion. the chamber.

Kalid-Ma sleeps directly underneath the Standing in the presence of a Sorcerer-King

ziggurat. Directly. There is a staircase within means losing control of one’s own thoughts.
the ziggurat that descends to the vault where On stepping into the unlit, obsidian-
he sleeps, but it would require a psionicist at walled, octagonal room in which Kalid-Ma’s
least as powerful as Thakok-An, and a mage sarcophagus rests, visitors are assaulted by
equally as powerful, to force their way past the the Sorcerer King’s dreams:
wards and guards to encounter the sleeping

i often wonder if Thakon-an

realizes how dangerous kalid-ma
truly is, or the destruction he
would wreak should he wake

in the end, love makes us all

blind, dead or dragon food.
usually in that order.
14
 Kalid-Ma manifests as a dragon-like
form, fifty feet high (a fraction of the height of Thakok-An’s chambers are comfortable but not
the massive chamber) and shaped out of bone lavish. A pleasant place to relax and slough off
plates and leathery, copper-toned skin. This the cares of the day. She is a great reader, with
creation functions as per the illusory dragon many clay tablets covering legal codes, city
spell (XGtE), but has no duration: it lasts until history, and a range of philosophical topics,
dispelled. about the place.
The illusory dragon is aggressive
and enters combat immediately. It Kalid-Ma’s chambers are not the dwelling of
is, however, neutral to Thakok-An’s a human. Cold, stone, rooms are empty of
presence and largely ignores her. possessions except for a collection of reading
materials even finer than Thakok-An’s. There
Should characters somehow open the are no comforts here; those who enter find
sarcophagus (the lid of which weighs two- hard stone beds and seats, and no light
hundred pounds), they black out for 1d10 sources. The walls are, however, decorated
minutes and wake with three levels of with more scenes of Kalid-Ma’s triumphs (in
exhaustion and no memory of what they saw. which he is depicted as a human man who
towers several feet above his subjects). One
1d. The Palace wall contains a secret door which requires a
successful DC 20 Wisdom (Perception) check
Thakok-An’s – apologies, Kalid-Ma’s – palace is to notice it. The door opens onto a narrow,
a collection of stone buildings behind a curtain dark passage which runs the short distance to
wall that separates it from the city. Inside and the ziggurat, emerging into Kalid-Ma’s resting
out, every surface is beautifully decorated chamber.
with frescoes depicting the great deeds of
the Sorcerer-King; the passing of laws,
adjudication of disputes… the crushing of his
enemies, often non-humans, by his mighty
armies.

The palace is divided into buildings with

distinct functions. Once characters are inside
the palace, bystanders assume they have
permission to be anywhere but the Templar
Hall and Thakok-An’s private quarters.

Thakok-An’s quarters and the throne room sit

at the middle of the complex, with the other
buildings arranged around them in a circle.

Thakok-An’s Quarters; Throne Room

This round building is situated right in the
centre of the palace complex. The throne
room fills the entire structure above ground.
The throne room is 100 feet in diameter,
enclosed by carved columns rather than
walls, and holds only stone benches for
courtiers and petitioners; a massive dais, ten
feet off the ground, on which the polished
stone throne – big enough for something
much larger than a human – stands. Next to
the throne is a smaller stone chair, sized for
a human, in which Thakok-An sits when she
grants audiences.

Below ground level are Thakok-An’s rooms,

and below that, Kalid-Ma’s chambers.
Both are locked with arcane lock spells
and trapped with alarm spells that silently you don’t have to be pretty to
summon Thakok-An and a Templar patrol be a templar. but it helps.
(2d4 +2 Templars).
15
 Templar Hall Servants’ Quarters
This single-story, square, stone building Even the servants’ quarters are grand,
houses all of the Templars in the city (over 200, decorated with the legends of Kalid-Ma’s
though usually, no more than 50 are in the successes. Only the great kitchen is above
palace at any time), and Gennet. It contains ground, and it is full of servants at all hours
large dormitories, training rooms for combat (no slaves in the palace as Thakok-An does not
skills and meditation/spellcasting, and a trust them). Below ground are storerooms and
library dedicated to the rules and expectations sleeping quarters.
of the Templar order, plus histories of Kalid-
Ma’s reign. Administrative Block
The administrative block is where Inara-Ves
Guard Barracks and her small army of bureaucrats do their
The Guard barracks are next to the Templar work. Divided into shared offices, rooms full of
Hall and are similar in style and function, records on clay tablets, and Inara-Ves’ private
though they lack a library. There are rooms, this building is always a hive of activity.
approximately 100 guards in total, but only By day, over one-hundred people work there,
2d10 will be in the barracks at any given time, and there are usually anywhere from a dozen
of whom at least one will be a veteran. to fifty working up until midnight.

Inara-Ves keeps her plan for controlling the city

Treasury population in her office. It sits on her desk in
plain sight but is written in a code that only
This small, domed building is open to all,
she knows. It can, of course, be deciphered,
which should be enough to suggest that it
given 2-3 days of work by someone proficient in
is not home to the real riches of Kalidnay. It
Investigation, and with an Intelligence score of
largely contains gifts provided by city-states
at least 15.
in Kalidnay’s originating world, before it was
taken into Ravenloft. Treasures on display
include: 1e. The Empty Districts
Kalidnay City lost over four-fifths of its
• A 20-foot-tall white marble statue, population in Thakok-An’s ritual. The survivors
depicting an armoured warrior wielding a have migrated towards the city centre, nearer
lance and riding on a giant beetle. to the market and the arena. The outer
• A tiny fruit tree, pond, and flowerbed in districts are desolate and decaying, populated
a glass bell jar 2-feet in diameter. only by the dead.
• Two spears with shafts of polished
woods and iron heads, decorated with No one lives there but brave folk still venture
crimson tassels made from the hair of into the Empty Districts looking for salvage.
some sort of creature (perhaps something Resources are scarce, and it’s much easier to
equine). steal high-quality art, or furniture, or personal
• Templar regalia bearing the insignia of possessions, than to make them. There is
a different city-state, including a hood and always a market for salvaged goods as the Dust
mask lavishly decorated with rubies and Market struggles to meet demand.
opals
Of course, the Empty Districts would have
been picked clean already if they were safe.
The dilapidated buildings are unsound,
WHERE IS THE TREASURE?
liable to collapse under sudden weights, or
The real treasury, including the kilns
even in strong winds. The cranium rats that
and workshop where water tokens are
run unchecked through these areas are as
created each month, is in the basements
dangerous as some street toughs, but the real
of the administrative block. Details are
threat comes from the dead.
deliberately omitted: they are irrelevant
unless characters are planning a heist
Kalidnay mummies walk these districts
(in which case, Inara-Ves has the plans
freely, though they never leave them. Some are
of the entire building on an ancient
relatively peaceful, seeking only to continue
papyrus scroll in her office).
the existence they knew in life; others are
angry and violent, forming into groups to stalk
and kill outsiders. Even the less aggressive
mummies do not tolerate looters.
16
Empty Districts Encounters increasingly slim pickings of salvage.
Roll 1d6.
Cranium Rats

D6 Encounter
The hole at the bottom of the wall is glowing
1 Scavengers with a soft, white light that spills just a few
feet onto the street. It dims as soon as you
2 Cranium rats
notice it.
3 Mummy - single
If characters investigate, they find a swarm
4 Mummies - group of cranium rats. The rats, like every other
5 Building collapse denizen of the Empty Districts, do not wish
to be disturbed. If threatened, they attempt to
6 Psionic sandstorm confuse and dominate the characters to avoid
combat. Note that cranium rats in Kalidnay
Scavengers are not associated with Mind Flayers. They are
created from the concentration of psionic power
They’re just a bunch of children. Not one here.
of them is older than ten - or so you would
guess. But the small figures efficiently Mummy
appraising and selecting possessions from
the empty house on the corner of the block The house no longer has a front wall. It has
are armed to the teeth with sharpened stone crumbled and caved in, giving you a perfect
knives and slingshots. They’re clearly ready view of the inside, like a doll’s house. Three
to defend themselves. bodies sit at a table, dusty plates and
cups before them. They have been dead for
years, clothes rotting away, and every drop
These young scavengers (1d8 +4 CN male and of moisture gone to leave bared teeth and
female human Kalidnay commoners) are fully empty eye sockets. One of them has a clay
prepared to fight to chase the characters off tablet before it and, slowly, its withered
their turf. They distrust strangers; after all,
there is no reason for the living to be out in
the Empty Districts except to compete for the Like many of the Kalidnay mummies in the
Empty Districts, this one simply wants
to be left alone. However, if characters
approach respectfully, it may have
information relevant to their goals.

Mummies

It’s hard to say what first alerts you

as the dead are quiet. But you are
aware of presences. Three… no,
four… human-sized figures stepping
out of a tumbledown house. Their
skin is tanned leather, and dried
sinews crack as one of them opens
its mouth to speak.

“Despoilers. Return to the living, or

die here.” finger moves from one line
of text to the next.

no-one exits their own tomb

gracefully. i should know, i’ve This group of Kalidnay mummies
is used to dealing with looters
had to do it several times, once and scavengers, and they seek to
on the top of a moving carriage. defend their home from predators. If
characters are able to talk them down
through roleplaying or ability checks, 17
 they can offer useful information about the
Empty Districts. Otherwise, they will attack,
fighting to the death.
approaching the town
When the characters first approach Kalidnay
City, read or paraphrase the following:
Building Collapse
To approach Kalidnay City is akin to climbing
There’s a sound somewhere, streets away; atop a dragon’s skeleton. The land around
bricks falling as a building comes down. the city is beaten and brutalized from futile
It’s enough to shake the earth, and set the efforts to grow crops, and the earth is as
wall nearest to you shuddering. dry and red as the sun overhead. The city
sprawls like scattered bones, the outer circles
empty of people and full of red sand that
The buildings in the Empty Districts are whispers and shifts in the breeze. In the
fundamentally unstable. When one falls, centre, there is movement, like flies crawling
several fall. Characters must find shelter or on a corpse; not enough to pass for life, but
succeed on a DC 15 Dexterity saving throw most certainly animation.
to get out of the way of falling rubble. Those
who fail take 10 (3d6) bludgeoning damage, Despite its decay, Kalidnay City was
and those who succeed take half as much. The beautiful once, and some of its pulchritude
collapsed buildings, and the ones next to them, lingers yet in the great buildings decorated
are perilous to explore, requiring another with arches and awnings, thick with carved
successful DC 15 Dexterity saving throw to detail in frescos and ornaments. But all of the
avoid triggering another collapse. city’s glory, even the majestic stone edifice of
the palace, is dwarfed by the ziggurat that
Psionic sandstorm casts its shadow over the western zones,
reaching stubbornly into the hazy sky.
It starts as a whisper. The hissing of a
thousand grains of sand slithering and
shifting, whipped up into life by a breeze House Occupants
out of nowhere. The motion intensifies,
flurries of sand, then walls of it, whipping If the characters explore a residence, roll 1d20
up around you and cutting you off from the and consult the following table to determine its
rest of the street. occupants.

The characters have encountered a psionic d20 General

sandstorm (see NPCs & Monsters).
1-2 Empty house

2-3 Unattended children

4-9 Slaves at work

10-15 Citizen family

16-19 Noble family

20 Memorial

Empty House
Most of the houses in the Empty Districts,
and a few in the more populated areas of
the city, are unoccupied. They are in poor
repair, but the signs of lives lived here linger
on in faded fabrics, broken possessions, and
frescoes painted on the walls.

18
Roll 1d100: Noble Family
1-50 - there is nothing worth looting (other This large, spacious, villa is owned and
scavengers got here first). occupied by a noble family, plus their slaves
51-80 - characters can, if they wish, salvage and guards. At any time, there are 1d4
1d100 ceramic pieces worth of trinkets, adult family members (NE human Kalidnay
furniture, used clothing, etc. commoners), 1d4-2 children (CN human non-
81-95 - characters can, if they wish, salvage 50 combatants), 1d6 slaves (N human Kalidnay
+ 1d100 ceramic pieces worth of possessions commoners) and 1 guard (NE human thug)
(as above, plus art, jewellery, etc.). armed with an obsidian longsword (1d8/1d10
96-100 - there is nothing worth looting, and damage; Versatile) per adult family member
the building is home to a nest of cranium rats. present. Noble families are used to receiving
guests at home, and as long as characters look
Unattended Children the part (i.e. are well-dressed, well-spoken, and
This house is clean and lived-in, but currently, human), they receive a cordial welcome.
the only people home are 1d4+2 children (CN
human non-combatants) from several nearby If the characters display any magic whatsoever,
homes, playing games that primarily involve the family members order the guard(s) to
throwing rocks at other rocks and laughing at arrest them, or discreetly send slaves to fetch a
children who throw poorly. One slightly older Templar patrol (1d4 +2 Templars).
child (CN human non-combatant) is preparing
a meal. Memorial
This house is empty, but the people who lived
The children do not welcome strangers and here are not forgotten. Pictures of them adorn
inform the characters that their parents will the walls, drawn in bright chalk and charcoal,
be back from work soon. If characters do not and treasured possessions are arranged
leave, one of the children will run and fetch the beneath the drawings. Lines of poetry and
nearest Templar patrol (1d4 +2 Templars). ‘goodbye’ messages on the walls show these
people as sorely missed.
Slaves at Work
This large, elaborately furnished house is
d6 Empty Districts
occupied only by 1d6 slaves (LN Kalidnay
commoners), cleaning, preparing food, and
1-10 Empty house
carrying out other household tasks. They
initially assume characters are visitors and
11-15 Corpses
welcome them, only asking them to leave
when/if it becomes clear they do not know the
16-18 Mummies
homeowners. They are unwilling to talk much
about their work or life, but are clear that
19-20 Scavenger
they consider enforced service a better option
than dying in the arena, the only other option
presented to debtors and petty criminals. Empty House
Most of the houses in the Empty Districts,
Citizen Family and a few in the more populated areas of the
These homes are often lavish. Large, with good city, are unoccupied. They are in poor repair,
air circulation, and well-furnished. They are but the signs of lives lived here linger on in
usually far too large for the families occupying faded fabrics, broken possessions, and frescoes
them. At any time there are 1d6 adults (N painted on the walls.
human Kalidnay commoners) and 1d4-2
children, in villas that are meant for a dozen or Roll 1d100:
more. 1-50 - there is nothing worth looting (other
scavengers got here first).
They extend a courteous but cool welcome, 51-80 - characters can, if they wish, salvage
especially if characters have no reason to be 1d100 ceramic pieces worth of trinkets,
present. If the characters seem to present any furniture, used clothing, etc.
threat, or to be carrying luxurious possessions 81-95 - characters can, if they wish, salvage 50
or a substantial quantity of metal, a family + 1d100 ceramic pieces worth of possessions
member will excuse themselves and run to (as above, plus art, jewellery, etc.).
summon either a Templar patrol (1d4 +2 96-100 - there is nothing worth looting, and
Templars) or a group of local thugs (2d6 the building is home to a nest of cranium rats.
bandits and one bandit captain).
19
 Corpses
Not only does no one live here, but nobody has
removed the bodies of the people who once did.
The house contains the mummified corpses
of 1d4 adults and 1d4-1 children (all human).
Each one is carrying 1d20 ceramic pieces. In
addition:

1-50 - characters can, if they wish, salvage

1d100 ceramic pieces worth of trinkets,
furniture, used clothing, etc.

51-75 - characters can, if they wish, salvage 50

+ 1d100 ceramic pieces worth of possessions
(as above, plus art, jewellery, etc.).

76-90 - 1d6 +1 human scavengers (NE male

and female human Kalidnay commoners)
notice the characters’ presence and come to
fight for their territory.

91-95 - 1d4 +1 Kalidnay mummies notice the

characters’ presence and come to drive them
off.

Mummies
Many of the undead in the Empty Districts
continue their existence just as they did
before the cataclysm. This house contains 1d4
Kalidnay mummies reading, playing board
games, conversing, or simply existing quietly in
the same space as one another. They are not
necessarily opposed to the characters’ presence
and may be glad of the company, unless
characters attack or steal from them, in which
case, they will defend themselves.

Scavenger
The trouble with looting empty houses is that
there is an entire industry of other people
doing the same. This house contains 1d4
+1 scavengers (NE male and female human
bandits). They regard this house as theirs to
loot and attack immediately.

I once bought a full set of kalidnian leathers from

a falkovnian street merchant. When I got home, i
was disappointed to discover that they weren’t even a
little bit cursed.

Kalidnay sucks the fun out of everything, apparently.

20
Artan-Ak
achieves much.

This is a small town and a tight-knit

lifeblood of kalidnay community. There are only a few hundred

souls here, and even the wealthiest can only
aspire to live comfortably. Most folk are farmers
That town is like a tear on a cheek: too precious making a subsistence living; what doesn’t go to
to waste, but a traitor all the same. feed the city goes to tradespeople who provide
---Thakok-An vital goods and services, to the overseers, and
their guards. ‘Rights’ and ‘laws’ in Artan-Ak
Artan-Ak exists solely to keep Kalidnay City exist only insofar as the overseers can’t afford
fed. It has the best farmland in Kalidnay; to lose too many workers.
Thakok-An and her Templars recognise it as
their main lifeline and keep a death grip on
it. Farmers are in theory free citizens, but Leadership: The Overseers
they are overworked and kept in line by harsh There are many overseers in Artan-Ak,
punishments from the overseers, whilst all but three hold significant power… and vie
the while hating the city for the way they are constantly for more. Much of the discord that
treated. Specifically, they blame Thakok-An, keeps them fighting is fomented by Thakok-
believing she has usurped Kalid-Ma. An’s agents. She likes to keep them busy with
each other; dealing with organised, powerful
Over two-thirds of the crops grown in Artan- resistance from her breadbasket is not on her
Ak go to feed the city. Residents of Artan-Ak to-do list.
are acutely aware that they live in scarcity
so that the city-folk can eat. The city knows Astareh
exactly how they feel: caravans sent to collect
Astareh’s family have been overseers in Artan-
grain and other foodstuffs come bristling
Ak for generations. They once lived in relative
with guards and Templars to make sure their
luxury, but standards have slipped. Astareh
precious cargo makes it back across the desert.
has given up a lot of things her family once
valued - regular visits to Kalidnay City, the
Due to the populace’s sentiments and the
cosmetics and fabrics that used to be imported
town’s distance from the city, Artan-Ak is a
from other city-states, music, art, and the
hotbed of resistance activity. There are even
spectacle of arena combat. One thing she will
mages here, deep in hiding. Unfortunately,
not give up: meat.
the underground is riddled with Thakok-An’s
spies and so this promising resistance rarely

The sight of grass, the smell

of life. A honeypot, certainly.
Though it might seem like a
reprieve, artan-ak is merely one
in an endless line of examples
demonstrating an age old truth:
nothing is what it seems.

except the sandstorms. Those are

exactly what they seem like.

21
 There is no meat in Artan-Ak; water is for Astareh’s diet has begun to change her;
raising crops and keeping workers alive. No although she appears and considers herself
one’s wasting it on animals, and the wild human, she has monstrous strength and
animals that once existed have been hunted charm (see Monsters).
almost to extinction. But… rich, red, meat, is
life, and the sizzling of hot fat and the drip of Domitian
red blood down the chin is a beautiful thing.
Thakok-An executed Domitian’s entire family.
Astareh treats herself rarely. Artan-Ak is a All of them. Perhaps his sister and her family
small town, and if her secret were revealed really were traitors; perhaps there’s some
she knows she would not survive it. Only her truth in the rumour that Kalid-Ma cared
manservant and bodyguard Targus (NE male deeply about Domitian’s Templar nephew, and
human veteran), a hulking, hairless creature Thakok-An was jealous.
almost seven feet tall, said to have dwarven
blood somewhere in his ancestry, knows the Domitian (LN human male Kalidnay
truth, and only then because he shares in its commoner) is a broken man. While he owns
rewards. the majority of the land to the south of town,
he leaves its management to his servants. All
Targus usually preys on the “parasites” who he wants is to stay far from the city and to lose
are too sick to work, and who won’t be missed, himself in as much nakwa as he can lay his
snatching them from their homes – sometimes hands on. There aren’t enough hallucinogens
whole families at a time – and bringing them in the world to make him oblivious to what
back to Astareh’s compound where they are goes on around him, however. When his mind
imprisoned, slaughtered, and eaten. is clear, he’s been known to send resources
and information to the Resistance.
Between them, Astareh and Targus eat every
organ and scrap of flesh, and Astareh drinks Kalet-Am
their blood. The feasts have gone from a habit Sometimes Kalet-Am (LE male human
to a craving for both of them, and increasingly Kalidnay commoner) thinks he is the only
it feels as though nothing but meat sates their person who remotely cares what happens in
terrible hunger. Artan-Ak. The land he owns is poor, but he is
the mind behind both the irrigation system
and the Bone Garden. He has done more
to ensure the survival of Artan-Ak – and by
extension, Kalidnay – than anyone else. So he
is fond of saying.

With the responsibility of keeping the Bone

Garden filled, Kalet-Am and his servants keep
the town running. They supervise food, waste
collection… and law enforcement, which is
summary and better at supplying more mulch
for the fields than at providing justice.

Almost unique amongst the residents of Artan-

Ak, Kalet-Am is fiercely loyal to Thakok-An. He
believes the lie that Kalid-Ma speaks to her.
To please her is to please Kalid-Ma… and to
please Kalid-Ma is to one day rise to a position
of real power.

Counterculture:
The Resistance
Orek
not everyone has the Orek (CG male human gladiator) was once
opportunity to develop such a a gladiator in Kalidnay City. He was famous
sophisticated palate. there; he survived a hundred fights and soaked
the arena floor with the blood of his opponents.
22They should be grateful.
Thakok-An was pleased. Orek gained fame and Tiris
adoration and it rather went to his head. He Tiris (CN male half-elf psionicist - see
dared to suggest that perhaps the bloodthirsty Monsters) is an exile and a murderer. He’s not
murder of unwilling humans for sport was resisting Thakok-An’s power because of how
a poor form of entertainment. Many other she wields it. He just hates her. An expert with
gladiators agreed, and many of the gladiators’ psionics, daggers, and secrets, Tiris passes
wealthy fans were infatuated enough to go as a storyteller and, of course, a farm worker;
along with the idea. nobody survives in Artan-Ak by telling pretty
stories so he bides his time, and waits.
The rebellion was short-lived and bloody;
when it was over, the gladiators were herded Tiris is Thakok-An’s half-brother. They share
into the arena and put to death. Except for the same elven father, though neither of them
Orek. Thakok-An broke his mind with magic knows him except by name and reputation.
and banished him to the ignominious life of a Thakok-An became a Templar, Tiris’ mother
farmer in Artan-Ak. died of drinking dirty water. Thakok-An has the
ear of a Sorcerer-King, Tiris lost three fingers
He is widely assumed to be incapable of on his left hand for stealing. The unfairness of
anything more complex than picking crops their outcomes drives Tiris wild with jealousy.
and remembering to feed himself… but He would take Thakok-An’s place if he could,
that hasn’t been true for some time. Orek but failing that he will settle for seeing her
is alert, observant, and ready to seize any brought low enough that she has to grovel at
opportunity to work against Thakok-An. He his feet.
hasn’t made anyone else aware of this fact
yet; he’s been watching and he’s well aware Rumours
of how thoroughly Thakok-An’s spies have
Kalidnay City is about to attack. The city
compromised the Resistance. He’s whittling
has grown weary of the restless, recalcitrant
their numbers down through stealthy murder
population, and will kill them all and replace
and when he’s satisfied that it’s safe, he will
them with slave labour. Thakok-An thinks
contact the real Resistance members.
about this frequently, but having somewhere
the resistance think is safe is too useful to her
Cinta, The Dark of the Moon to want to really shake things up.
Cinta (N human female mage with 15 Strength
and proficiency with a spear) is eighteen years So-and-so is a Templar spy. There’s an even
old and one of Domitian’s house guards. She chance this is true. This usually results in the
is also one of the most powerful mages in Resistance causing a nasty accident.
Kalidnay. Very few members of the resistance
know this latter fact; she trusts no one, not So-and-so is a Defiler. This is almost certainly
even her own parents, with the knowledge. It not true but usually results in the overseers
would only get them hurt. and guards arresting and executing the
accused. Better safe than sorry.
She is self-taught, and apart from some small,
early mistakes, has worked out how to wield Someone is killing off Resistance members
arcane power without defiling the land around – secretly. True. This refers to Orek’s as yet
her. Her main goal is to keep learning, working unsuspected string of murders.
out spells that she writes in code, in knots tied
in cords and in patterns painted on the ceiling Overseer Astareh bathes in the blood of
of her bedroom. virgins. Partially correct. She eats them. And
other people.
Magic is a secondary passion for Cinta. She
focuses on organising the Resistance in town It’s not safe to go near the Bone Garden at
enough to steal and hoard food that can be night. Absolutely true. There is a small pack
shared out when times are leaner than normal, of ghouls that roams the silt near the Bone
and on keeping up friendships with the Garden.
caravan guards who come in from the city so
that she maintains a good flow of information Sometimes, at night, the screams of the
about what goes on there. people Thakok-An has hurt echo through
the desert. There is a banshee – Uran-Tor –
out in the wastes, so yes, this is true.

23
 Locations anything but its intended purpose – washing
dust and sweat from skin, sipping to soothe
a parched throat – is punished with enough
2a. The Bone Garden lashes to keep an adult hurt and healing for
The Bone Garden sprawls on the northern weeks.
edge of town, huge heaps of organic matter
slowly rotting down to mulch to fertilise the Sandstorms are the greatest threat to Artan-
fields. The waste heaps are a heady mix of Ak’s crops. They are less common here than
human waste, decaying wood, vegetation, and elsewhere in Kalidnay, but a few times each
bodies. year they rip through the town and destroy
a substantial amount of crops. This does not
The Bone Garden is where every corpse in lessen Kalidnay City’s demands; it just means
Artan-Ak – and most of Kalidnay City – ends Artan-Ak goes hungry.
up. A small crew of workers with strong
stomachs, and health too poor to work the 2c. Kiss-of-Shade-and-Cool-Skin
fields, spend their days hacking up meat and Alcohol is almost unknown in Artan-Ak.
grinding down bones. Most of them consume Brewing is a waste of water and dehydration
a huge amount of nakwa to keep themselves kills. When people want to slough off the
oblivious to the details of their existence. hardships of another day under the boiling sun
they go to the basement of a basket weaver’s
The Bone Garden is a dangerous place; the shop on the east side of the town for the simple
refuse piles are home to colonies of rot grubs pleasures of music, conversation, and the
and giant centipedes, and the Silt Sea beyond powerful hallucinogen nakwa. Nakwa is made
is the territory of a pack of ghouls that creep
in every night to feast on what
meat they can find, including any
workers foolish enough to be in the
Bone Garden after dark. It’s also
one of the few places in Artan-Ak
that offers privacy… so in spite of
the dangers, any number of dark
deals are made, and secrets traded
there, night after night.

2b. The Fields

During the day, the verdant fields
teem with life; more than half the
population of Artan-Ak works them,
digging and planting and picking.
Many of the rest work as overseers
and guards, walking amongst the
neat rows of crops and ensuring
workers are honest and productive.

Artan-Ak runs on farming, and

agriculture here is well managed.
There is always something growing, i hadn’t been in kalidnay
something ready to harvest, and
some land lying fallow, and crops long before some wag
are rotated regularly to keep the recommended me the bone
land healthy.
garden as the ideal place
The fields are irrigated by a system for a light lunch.
of canals that carry water from
reservoirs deep underground. These
are maintained with an almost
i was finding rot grubs
religious zeal, and every worker on in my things for weeks
the farms knows it’s an emergency afterwards. And the
if so much as a few drops are
spilled. Using that water for occasional centipede.
24
from the flesh of two different desert cacti and Approaching the Town
a certain type of weed that springs up amongst
When the characters first approach Artan-Ak,
the food crops and has to be harvested secretly.
read or paraphrase the following:
It throws users into vivid, waking, dreams,
always similar in form. They live, for a brief Artan-Ak is a mosquito-bite; a mud-brick
while, in a land where everything is green and farming town squatting under the baleful
fresh, where water drips from the sky and red sky. Refuse heaps form mounds outside
mist clings to the grass in the morning. The the town, organic matter rotting down to
dreams always show users the same images… compost to feed the hungry fields. But it is
and coming down from the drug always means green, like nowhere else in Kalidnay. Fields
watching the fall of civilisation: seas boil down of crops, carefully irrigated by pumps and
to silt, cities fall, and deserts swallow up the canals that wring water out of the depths of
fertile land. Is it history? Is it just that, by the earth, surround the houses and the air
now, every user knows what to expect and here is fresh. The town is deathly quiet, but
dreams accordingly? Is it, as some brave souls the fields teem with life: workers – mostly
dare to claim, tapping into the memories of the human – clean irrigation channels and pick
Sorcerer King Kalid-Ma himself? crops under the blistering sun, overseen by
muscular men and women with bone armor,
It’s a very welcome break from the mundane, obsidian flails, and little patience.
and it comes at a very low price. Nakwa is not
physically addictive but the escape it provides
is hard to resist. House Occupants
If the characters explore a residence, roll 1d20
Kiss-of-Shade-and-Cool-Skin is run by Metaira and consult the following table to determine its
(NG human Kalidnay commoner) but not at occupants:
a profit. She enjoys the community and the
feeling of being important to people. Only she
and her mute teenage son Balos (CG human d20 Occupant
Kalidnay commoner) know the secret of
producing nakwa, and they have no intention 1-2 None
of revealing it.
3-4 “Parasites”
2d. The Artan-Sar Spring
5-14 Worker family
The spring in the centre of town is a microcosm
of Artan-Ak. Beautiful, tantalising, and heavily 16-17 Tradesperson family
defended. Trapped behind a high stone wall
and watched over by no fewer than six guards 18-19 Overseer and family
at any given time. People walk by just to hear
the splashing of the water behind the wall, and 19-20 Resistance members
the line for water, doled out once a day, is the
best place to catch rumours and gossip.

Parasites
“Parasites” is the less than affectionate term
for those in Artan-Ak who cannot work. A
house of “parasites” contains 1d4-1 adults
(N human Kalidnay commoners), injured or
diseased, and 1d4-1 children (CN human non-
combatants). There is nothing of value in these
homes; all but the most essential furniture
has already been sold, and the children will
be the next to go. Residents are suspicious of
intruders and even more suspicious of charity,
though they will accept it. They know that their
choices are either to recover enough to work or
to die, and to die means to fertilise the fields.

If there are 0 adults and 0 children, characters

find 1d4 corpses (adults and/or children) who
25
 have recently died by suicide (usually either
poison or bloodletting).

Workers
By day most workers’ houses are empty.
There is a 10% chance that one is occupied
by an elderly person (N human Kalidnay
commoner) minding 2d6 children (CN
human non-combatants) aged under eight
years old (children of several local families),
all of whom are relatively friendly to visitors.
These are modest homes but well cared for,
with obvious personal touches, like wall-
paintings, woven decorations, and the like.

By night, there are 1d6+1 adults (N human

commoners) and 1d4-1 children (CN human
non-combatants). They are polite, but not
friendly, and show immediate deference to
characters who are armed or armoured. At
the slightest sign that characters have magic
of any kind, they are asked to leave. If they do
not comply, a family member will run for an
overseer and guards.

Tradesperson
The homes of tradespeople are slightly more
luxurious than workers’ housing. Some have
two stories, and all have a central courtyard
where business is done, where wares –
pottery, baskets or fabrics woven from plant
fibres, beverages extracted from desert cacti,
stone or wooden tools – are sold, or services
such as equipment repairs, or commission of
a caravan to cross the desert – are provided.
The house is occupied by 1d4 adults (LN
human Kalidnay commoners with Charisma
14 and Intelligence 13), 1d4-1 children (CN
human non-combatants) and 1d4-1 guards
(N human bandit) each armed with a bone
spear (1d6 piercing damage).

Characters with significant amounts of metal

on their person are treated with excruciating
obsequiousness … and overcharged by
a minimum of 200% for any purchases.
Tradespeople and their families are friendly
and welcoming, but extremely curious about
newcomers, and will report any suspicious
words or deeds to overseers within minutes of
characters’ departure. kalidnay is desperately deprived of
food, water, leather, metal and other
Overseer
These dwellings are as close to luxury as
resources, but makes up for it in the no
Artan-Ak gets. They are well built, well- doubt related abundance of amusingly
furnished with wares from Kalidnay City, underdressed gladiators.
and occupied by servants and guards as
well as family members. At any time, there
are 1d4 adult family members (NE human
26
Kalidnay commoners), 1d4-1 children (CN
human non-combatants), 1d6 servants (N
human Kalidnay commoners) and 1 guard
Bleak Knoll – No
(NE human thugs) armed with an obsidian
longsword (1d8/1d10 damage; Versatile) per Man’s Land
adult family member present. Overseer families It is mine, but only because there is no one to
are initially welcoming, assuming visitors come cede it to.
from Kalidnay City. They will overlook many ---Thakok-An
suspicious behaviours or lack of familiarity
with local customs based on that assumption, At the far north of Kalidnay, the desert gives
but if they begin to suspect characters have way once again to land that can still support
any magic, they will quickly order the guards life. Cacti sprout from the sands and the earth
to ‘arrest’ them. around the small, rounded, hill hosts sparse
grass and occasional trees.
‘Arrest’ is a colourful local idiom which here
means ‘murder as brutally as possible.’ Bleak Knoll is technically part of Thakok-
An’s domain, but in practical terms, it is far
Resistance Members from Kalidnay City, and dangerous for city-
From the outside, this appears to be a normal folk. Between the Oled’ar ranchers, the Bone
family home. Inside are 1d6+1 adults (CG Runner elves, and the rumours of monsters
human spies and thugs) 1d4-2 mages (NG beneath the mound, no one willingly ventures
human apprentice wizards – see Volo’s Guide out to Bleak Knoll.
to Monsters) and 1d4-3 Templar spies (NE
human acolytes) masquerading as resistance The Bone Runners
members. This group of elves roam the whole of Kalidnay
but returns to Bleak Knoll for certain seasonal
Resistance members are on edge, keen to rituals and major events, like the rites that
placate visitors and be left alone as quickly as mark the transition from child to adult. They
possible. If characters convince them they are tolerate the presence of the Oled’ar family; the
not allied with the overseers or Thakok-An, Bone Runners take their stock to Kalidnay City
they will be welcomed. Resistance members for sale, which gives them a plausible reason to
make strong, reliable allies (unless one of them be in the city, keeping an eye on the schemes of
is a spy for Thakok-An, in which case Templars the humans.
will arrive to ‘investigate’ in a couple of days).
It’s a tense truce at best and if the Oled’ar
so much as set foot on the knoll itself, there
would be war.

Safei
Safei (N female Bone Runner elf) is the current
leader of the Bone Runners. She is getting old,
not as fast as she used to be. Soon it will be
time for her to walk out into the desert to die,
and her bones will join those of her ancestors,
singing on the Bone Tree.

Except her sister’s bones are not there. Uran-

Tor’s body is somewhere in the desert and her
mournful spirit haunts the wasteland. Safei
wants to achieve two things before she passes
on to her rest. She wants to see Uran-Tor at
peace… and she wants to ruin Thakok-An. Her
sister’s rest is her top priority, but she knows
that humans broke the world, and the older
she gets, the more inclined she is to finish the
job. She doesn’t know how yet, but she’s sure
the psionicist the Oled’ar think they’re hiding
from her could do the job.

27
 Eldeyan that draw merchant caravans, thus aiding in
Eldeyan (CN male Bone Runner elf) is one the movement of goods between Artan-Ak and
of the few elves who goes into Kalidnay City. Kalidnay City.
He sells mrix on behalf of the Oled’ar family,
as well as doing a discreet trade in poisons, Thakok-An is right to be suspicious. The
secrets, and assassinations. He is Thakok- Oled’ar have powerful psionic talents in their
An and Tiris’ father. He doesn’t know of Tiris’ bloodline. With inbreeding the only practical
existence, but he keeps an eye on Thakok- way to continue their lineage, that power is
An from afar. He is… proud of her … after a growing more and more concentrated with each
fashion. Not her dedicated service to a human generation.
sorcerer, but her ability to lead, and preserve,
Kalidnay since his death. He might be the only The family values their privacy, mostly because
person in Kalidnay with any warm feelings they know Thakok-An will turn her attention
towards her, and the only person who would to them one day, and destroy what she can’t
stand between her enemies and her. control. For the same reason, they stockpile
the best weapons - and any magic items - they
come across, to prepare for the fight they
The other Bone Runners expect to face. Characters with magic items,
There are approximately fifty other Bone good weapons or armor, or any substantial
Runners. All except the youngest children quantity of weapons, are likely to get a warmer
have mastered surviving in the desert and are than usual welcome at the Oled’ar ranch… and
capable fighters. then be poisoned over dinner.

The Oled’ar Ranch Their home is a rough, poorly maintained,

Only one human family is bold enough to assortment of farm buildings arranged at the
live so far away from the other settlements. foot of Bleak Knoll.
The Oled’ar are insular and do not welcome
strangers. Thakok-An distrusts anyone who Oled’ar Ashari
lives so far from her control; she would have Oled’ar Ashari (NE human female druid) is a
done away with them years ago except that weathered, muscular, woman in her forties,
they breed and train the mighty mrix beasts with laughter lines and bright, sparkling,

I was rather excited, as you can imagine, when i

heard the tales of a gigantic gnoll.

my eventual disappointment was acute.

28
blue eyes. She is the Oled’ar most often seen It also helps that while Oled’ar Vit’s mind is
in public; she occasionally even travels into strong, his body is not. He doesn’t have his
Kalidnay City to buy the supplies the family grandfather and mother’s robust constitution.
can’t grow or make themselves. While she can He is fragile and prone to illnesses and spends
tolerate being around people other than her most of his life asleep.
family, she doesn’t like it. The presence of more
than one or two strangers quickly makes her If Thakok-An ever learned of Oled’ar Vit’s
short-tempered and suspicious. existence, she would not hesitate to destroy the
Oled’ar, root and branch.
Oled’ar Ashari wants her family left alone. She
is polite to characters who keep a respectful
distance; she might even sell them beasts.
The rest of the family
Anyone who takes an interest in her, or her There are about a dozen other members
family, or Bleak Knoll in general, makes an of the Oled’ar family living at the ranch,
enemy. And the Oled’ar’s enemies die, quickly mostly adults. All are NE human Kalidnay
and unmourned. Mrix will eat anything. commoners.

Oled’ar Ashari takes charge of training the Beneath the Mound

mrix. Every single one of the beasts in Bleak Knoll is older than Kalidnay City, older
Kalidnay knows and obeys her, to the point than Kalid-Ma, and older than the concept of
that on her command, they will charge and Sorcerer Kings. Opinions differ on what exactly
trample her enemies. is underneath the hill but virtually everyone
in Kalidnay has some personal theory. Some of
Oled’ar Stryom the most common are:
Oled’ar Stryom (NE human male Kalidnay A portal to another world. A desperate hope
commoner) has outlived every friend he ever prevails throughout Kalidnay that they are
had. He is almost a hundred years old and still not really cut off from the rest of existence;
hale and healthy. He takes it as a sign that he that there is something beyond the Silt Sea,
has some destiny yet to fulfil. whether that is the rest of their world, or
somewhere else. There is no evidence that this
Oled’ar Stryom regards himself as the king of is true, but Bleak Knoll attracts stories like
a very small domain, populated by his niece refuse attracts flies.
Oled’ar Ashari, his grandson Oled’ar Vit, and
the mrix. He does not recognise Thakok- Relics of a ‘green age.’ Some believe that
An’s authority in the slightest. The plan to Bleak Knoll is the dirt mounded over an
stockpile all possible weapons against her is ancient tomb, dating back to a legendary time
a product of his paranoid mind. He is also before Kalidnay and its world turned to arid
an expert poisoner. He thinks of himself as a desert. If this were true, there would be untold
friendly and personable fellow but in reality, riches below the hill, for the ancients were said
his conversational skills are rusty; attempts to to be expert engineers, and to have access to
‘talk’ with people are a mix of rambling stories the rarest of resources, metal.
- which he expects to be received like they are
words of wisdom - personal questions and A sleeping giant. Others think that whatever
absolutely irrational opinions. rests below Bleak Knoll is not dead, only
sleeping. Based on the hill’s size, ‘some sort of
Oled’ar Vit giant’ is a favoured theory.
Oled’ar Vit (TN male human psionicist) is
Oled’ar Ashari’s youngest son. He is all of Locations
twenty years old, and a psionicist of such
power that he scares his family. He’d scare 3a. The Oled’ar Ranch
them much more if they didn’t feel they had
The Oled’ar Ranch does not welcome visitors.
him fully under their control. Oled’ar Vit has
never met, or even seen, a human he wasn’t
related to, and he has been taught to fear 3b. Bone Tree
them; if he ever encounters them, the best The Bone Tree is the only sign that Bleak Knoll
course of action is to swiftly murder them, is Bone Runner territory, unless the elves are
unless his family says otherwise. present. They visit every solstice and equinox,
and there is a 1 in 10 chance (roll 1d10) that
they are present at any other time.
29
 Approaching Bleak Knoll
There is nothing inherently dangerous about
When the characters first approach Bleak
the Bone Tree. Most of the bones suspended
Knoll, read or paraphrase the following:
from the branches are long and slender,
marking them as elvish; some are animal,
and some are human. Apart from making It’s no paradise, but Bleak Knoll shows signs
eerie, sombre music when the wind catches of life. The ground is less parched here;
them, they are utterly mundane. However, the dry grasses rustle and cacti and twisted
tree is an important site to the elves, bearing trees spear up out of the ground. The low,
the bones of their dead, beloved companion mud-brick buildings of a farmhouse and
creatures - mostly birds or jackals, and the outbuildings curve around the west of the
occasional human they have adopted or hill but the knoll itself is pristine, marked
befriended. Defiling it in any way will earn the only by a single bare tree in the centre. The
enmity of the Bone Runners, which makes the tree makes its own music; the hollow bones
Kalidnay Desert an even more unfriendly place suspended from the branches sing in every
than usual. hot gust of wind.

3c. The Shaft

On the north side of the hill, and therefore
unseen by most, there is a cave at the base of
the slope. Within the cave, there is a passage
that leads steeply downwards. About 30 feet
down, it is blocked by a rockfall, but not before
the walls show signs of being deliberately
worked, lined with stones that have been
weathered over the year and still bearing the
traces of ancient paint.

Is there anything under Bleak Knoll? That is

for the DM to decide. Any of the rumours above
could be true, or there could be something else
there entirely. Only you can choose; do you
want players to find a way out of Ravenloft? Or
bring large amounts of metal or magic items to
Kalidnay? Or do you just want to tempt them
with the hope of such a thing?

d to
have you ever trie
ith
decorate a tree w
ly
bones? it’s actual
it
quite hard to do
nd
tastefully. I fou
the bone runners’
ite
attempt to be qu
30 charming.
.
postmodern, even
 pieces. A message is written on it in a
cypher.
Appendix A: There are no signs of any injuries, wounds,
or other cause of death, but a successful DC
Kalidnay Random 12 Wisdom (Medicine) check determines that
death occurred several weeks ago.

Encounters The message can be decoded with a successful

DC 15 Intelligence (Investigation) check, or
translated by any of the resistance members in
Artan-Ak or Kalidnay City. It reads:
2d8 roll Encounter
Vartek An-Satesh is a Templar spy. Neutralise
2 Desiccated corpse or remove. Abandon current stratagem
3 Animated corpses immediately.

4 Merchant caravan
3. Animated Corpses
5 Sandstorm
6 Psionic sandstorm A cluster of figures lurch across the trackless
7 Desert shrikes desert towards you, the sun behind them
showing them as nothing more than shadows
8 Burrower serpents against its blazing scarlet. They stumble,
9 Psychic mirage perhaps deranged by thirst, or heatstroke…
But no. As they draw closer to you, you see
10 Lightning storm that such concerns are behind them. Skins
turned to leather by the dry heat, pulled back
11 Elven hunters
from yellowed teeth and empty eye sockets,
12 Elven bard these people have been dead for years.
13 Colossal skeleton
14 Templar patrol The animated, desiccated, dead are Kalidnay
mummies. At the DM’s discretion, they may
15 Defiled area be encountered in any number from a couple
16 Defiler of ill-prepared travellers to an entire undead
caravan; do what you need to in order to
challenge your players. This is Ravenloft, and
2. Desiccated Corpse Ravenloft is never kind.

It might almost be a sand dune, except that 4. Merchant Caravan

it doesn’t shift and disperse as the hot wind
touches the desert. As you draw close and
It has been a long time since you heard
grains of sand scatter off its surfaces, you
laughter, but it rises up ahead of you as
see the shape off the path for what it is; the
welcome as the sound of water bubbling from
corpse of a traveller just like you, leather-clad
a spring. Sheltered in the shade of a rock
and wrapped against the wind. The desert -
outcropping are almost enough people to be
or something within it - has leached the life
called a village; guards armoured in leather
from its body, leaving a withered, desiccated
and armed in bone; merchants in veils and
form.
headdresses; servants in cheaper versions
of the same. There is food and water being
The corpse carries: shared, and even the huge, reptilian beasts,
• 25 ceramic pieces (equivalent value to recently unhitched from their wagons, seem
gold pieces, in Kalidnay only). at ease.
• An empty waterskin.
• Earrings, necklace, and bracelets of red
and gold scales (worth 60 ceramic pieces The merchant caravan is made up of 2d4+1
each, or 200 cp as a set). covered wagons, each drawn by an enormous
• A thin clay tablet cracked into three reptile called a mrix (see Monsters). Along
31
 with the wagons are 1d4 merchants (N Characters who don’t have shelter have half
human Kalidnay commoners), 3 guards a minute (5 rounds) to prepare before the
for each wagon, 3 laborers (drivers, mrix sandstorm is upon them. Their preparations
tenders, porters; Kalidnay commoners) for offer bonuses to their Constitution saving
each wagon, and 1 personal servant for each throws. Ultimately, the DM should decide what
merchant. bonuses to apply, but some suggestions are:

Caravans travel much more safely through the • Apply veils, masks, or other coverings to
desert than individuals; anything not scared protect their eyes, nose, and mouth (1
off by their numbers is dispatched by the action; +1 to saving throw).
guards. A merchant may allow characters to • Dig a ditch or make a bank to shelter in/
travel with the caravan in exchange for labour, behind (3 actions; +2 on saving throw.
extra protection, or services. If, however, a • Physically shelter another character (1
party gives them any cause to be suspicious, action; -2 on own saving throw, +2 on
most caravans will drive them off into the sheltered character’s saving throw).
desert - probably taking their water and • Create magical shelter e.g. rope trick,
supplies to make sure the party doesn’t live Leomund’s tiny hut (as per spell casting
long enough for revenge. Particularly cold- time, no save required).
blooded merchants might let the characters
rest near their fire, then kill them while they When the sandstorm arrives, each character
sleep. must make a DC 15 Constitution saving throw
each round they are exposed; failure results in
them taking 7 (2d6) bludgeoning damage, or
5. Sandstorm half as much on a successful save.

As the sun sinks and the moon rises, the

desert transforms from searing heat to bone-
chilling cold. Only the light of a campfire
and the stars above give any relief from the
jet-black wasteland of the desert by night.
Until, that is, the stars go out. The wind rises,
and the insistent, quickening, whispers of a
million grains of displaced sand promise you
a swift, cold death, unless you find shelter
from the impending sandstorm.

Characters who have camped in some

kind of shelter - a canyon, beside a rocky
plateau, etc. - are relatively safe from the
storm and will not be physically harmed.
There is a 25% chance for each character
that one of their possessions is ruined by
the storm. Roll 1d6 on the Equipment
Damage table to determine what is ruined:

d6 roll Equipment Damage

1 Water
2 Rations
3 Non-magical weapon
4 Non-magical armor
only a fool would
refuse to seek shelter
5 Non-magical piece of equipment
(player’s choice) from a kalidnian
sandstorm. There is a
6 Non-magical piece of equipment
(DM’s choice) malevolence to those
winds. I have seen it.
32
6. Psionic Sandstorm 8. Burrower Serpents
As the sun sinks and the moon rises, the
desert transforms from searing heat to bone- Hissssssss.
chilling cold. Only the light of a campfire
and the stars above give any relief from the That’s what it sounds like when you put your
jet-black wasteland of the desert by night. foot down and what you thought was solid
Until, that is, the stars go out. The wind rises, ground crumbles away underneath you as
and the insistent, quickening, whispers of a grains of sand rush away. But there’s still
million grains of displaced sand promise you something where the ground used to be.
a swift, cold death, unless you find shelter Something glistening and sinuous… and it’s
from the impending sandstorm. moving.

The characters have intruded upon the

Unlike its natural counterpart, a psionic structurally unsound home of a nest of 1d6
sandstorm (see Monsters) is intelligent and burrower serpents (see Monsters).
malevolent. It will find its way into any shelter,
and methodically destroy any intelligent life
it finds there, feeding on the intellect it sucks 9. Psychic Mirage
from its victims.
You smell water. The unmistakable fresh
If not dispersed by reducing it to zero hit scent of clean water. And you feel its
points, the psionic sandstorm moves on once presence, too. The air is… softer, less arid
it has drained 6 points of Intelligence from its and harsh. You even hear the gentle lapping
victims. of a current. Through the heat haze, you can
almost see it ahead of you: slender trees,
7. Desert Shrikes blue water like a jewel in the red desert. An
oasis.

You sit back, as close to sated from your

repast as anyone can be, on lean rations. Needless to say, this is not a real oasis. The
The twittering of birds is cheerful and characters have encountered a psychic mirage
innocent - and also completely unfamiliar. It (see Monsters).
goes quickly from cheerful tweeting to shrill,
piercing, shrieks. The red sky turns black
with birds - tiny, long-beaked things, that
would be sweet if they weren’t flying straight
towards whatever exposed skin they can
find.

Attracted by food, refuse, and soft fleshy

prey, the characters have drawn the
attention of a swarm of desert shrikes:
tiny, carnivorous birds out for eyeballs,
tongues, and anything else they can
snatch. The shrikes use the same stat
block as a swarm of bats, but replace
Echolocation with Keen Smell.

The thing about a mirage, is that you always see it coming.

alright, alright. You’ve made your point. I’ll stay away

from jokes.
Indeed. 33
 10. Lightning Storm 11. Elven Hunters

The sound of thunder rumbles overhead as Plumes of dust spring up from the sand,
though some great monster is tearing the sky accompanied by the rhythmic thunder of
apart. Again and again, it rolls and cracks… feet rapidly closing in on your position. The
and then comes the lightning. It strikes hard, spindle-limbed creatures racing across the
a little way ahead of you and the dull sand desert must be elves: they have the grace,
is transmuted to shimmering glass. It strikes the slenderness, the almost ethereal delicacy,
again, closer this time. A strike like that could but they are wind-burned, suntanned, lean
end a life, and there are more piercing down and wiry as serpents. With longbows on their
from the sky with every passing second. shoulders and spears and staves strapped to
their backs, they look deadly - and they are
Characters must make a DC 14 Dexterity coming your way.
save every minute they are out in the dry
storm. If they fail, they are struck by lightning, In theory, the Bone Runner elves have no
taking 16 (3d10) lightning damage. How near interest in a group of travellers. They are a
or far the characters are from cover is the hunting party - but there is very little prey in
DM’s decision, but assuming that they are the desert. Pickings are slim, and while they
five minutes’ run, reduced by one minute wouldn’t eat humanoid meat, there’s nothing
(minimum one minute) for every point above 10 wrong with blowing off some steam chasing
rolled on a Wisdom (Survival) check. them through the desert until they take a
spear to the skull or drop dead of exhaustion.

11. Elven Bard

The figure in front of you, perched on a

spire of rock and baking in the sun, is long
and gangly, marked as elven mostly by
the delicate length of their ears. In leather
leggings and vest, their tanned body covered
in tattoos, their ears and face adorned with
sharp, obsidian piercings, they are not a
welcoming sight. But they are playing music,
the wispy sound coming from a bone flute
pressed to their lips.

This androgynous figure is one of the Bone

Runners’ few bards. They travel from the desert
to the settlements, trading the weapons and
“happy” is not a word plants - many narcotic, all poisonous to some
degree - that they grow. As lethal as the bard
in the kalidnian can be, they are also an excellent source of
dictionary. There rumour, secrets, and forbidden substances.
are, however, four The bard can provide:
hundred and thirty- • Elven weapons (quarterstaffs,
one words for “sand”. longbows, and spears; prices as per
the PHB, but replacing gp with ceramic
pieces).
• Poisons:
1. A sticky, black substance used to
coat weapons; the first time the
wielder makes a successful attack,
the target must succeed on a DC
15 Constitution saving throw or be
Poisoned for 10 minutes; on the
second successful attack, the saving
throw is made at DC 13; after the
34
 second successful attack, the weapon 13. Templar Patrol
is clean. 20 ceramic pieces per dose.
2. A pale green poison designed to be
ingested. A creature who drinks “Get off the road!”
the poison must make a DC 13
Constitution saving throw. The The term ‘road’ is an inaccurate description
creature takes 30 poison damage, of the relatively stable, packed dirt, you’re
halved on a successful save. 35 walking on, but the meaning is clear. So is
ceramic pieces per dose. the purpose; the half dozen humans behind
3. A greyish powder designed to be you - burly, sun-weathered folk with bone
ingested. This is designed to slowly breastplates, ceremonial headdresses, and
poison a victim over time. One obsidian bladed spears - need the full width
dose can be administered each of the path for themselves.
day, requiring a successful DC 14
Constitution save. Every third failed
save lowers the victim’s Constitution These travellers are a group of Templars en-
by 1 point. A victim who reaches 0 route from Kalidnay City to Artan-Ak. The
Constitution dies. 5 ceramic pieces only other people who make the journey are
per dose. caravans moving food and supplies from one
• Information. The bard knows three place to the next. A group of adventurers,
rumours from Artan-Ak, and three from especially if they are strangely armed and
• Kalidnay City. There is no monetary armoured, is highly suspicious. The Templars
price for these; the bard will trade one have many questions for the party (who they
piece of information for another. are, why they are on the road, etc.) and any
misstep will lead to combat and a return to
Kalidnay in ropes and fetters, or maybe even a
12. Colossal Skeleton quick death at the side of the road.

If defeated, the Templars each have the

Bones jut out of the sand like a pale forest.
following:
The ribs, spine, tail, and skull of some
enormous beast, bigger than houses, are
• an obsidian spear.
splayed out before you. Under the light of the
• ceremonial headdresses worth 50
red sun, it almost glows.
ceramic pieces (although they cannot be
sold anywhere in Kalidnay).
This enormous skeleton is a figurative gold • wood and bead jewellery worth 20
mine - or, in Kalidnay, a ceramic mine. Bone ceramic pieces.
is used for tools, weapons, and armour… and
cutting and picking chunks of this bone pile
could be lucrative. 14. Defiled Area
Every hour of labour allows a character to
harvest 100 ceramic pieces worth of bone.
You’re traversing some high ground, a spine
Every hour of time spent this way also requires
of rock that overlooks the endless sea of
that characters drink an extra 2 pints of water.
sand, when you see it. A perfect circle of
A maximum of 10,000 ceramic pieces worth of
lifeless ground. Hard, grey, dirt with - of all
bone can be harvested in this manner.
the unexpected sights - the bleached skeleton
of a tree reaching up out of it like a clawed
hand.

This circle of dead ground, 30 feet in diameter,

is the aftermath of a piece of powerful defiling
magic (see Spells & Items). The area is now
magically, as well as physically, dead.

• Rituals take 10 minutes longer than

usual to cast.
• Cantrips require a first level spell slot to
cast.
• All other spells require a spell slot one
level higher than normal.
35
 The Limitations of Magic
There are advantages and disadvantages to
Any magic that creates food, water, or plants
loitering in this area. No other creature will
simply does not work in Kalidnay. This is
willingly venture into it. It is therefore safe
part of the land’s curse, and the Dark Powers
from all other desert predators, including
are stronger than any mortal spellcaster.
powerful creatures like Palik and Uran-Tor.
Spellcasters who have such spells prepared
However, spending more than an hour there is
may attempt to cast them, and the spell slot
emotionally draining; it leads to restless sleep
used is expended, but spells labelled ineffective
that night, weariness, and lethargy. At the end
have (predictably) no effect.
of the first long rest after visiting the defiled
area, each character must make a DC 13
The list of spells that are ineffective, or altered
Constitution save. If they succeed, they benefit
in effect, in Kalidnay includes:
from a long rest as normal. If they fail, they do
not.
• control weather: cannot increase the
likelihood of precipitation
15. Defiler • create food and water: ineffective
• create or destroy water: can only
destroy water, not create.
The ground is the grey of ash and cinders, • druidcraft: cannot be used to “instantly
cracked like a giant fist punched down onto make a flower blossom, a seed pod open, or
the desert. At the centre of the lifeless circle, a leaf bud bloom.”
two crouched figures cling to each other for • goodberry: berries each heal 1 hit
dear life. point, but do not cause the user to feel
sated
• maelstrom: ineffective
The two are a sorcerer newly come into her • plant growth: ineffective
powers, and a former companion, fleeing • purify food and drink: ineffective
Kalidnay City before the Templars can catch • tidal wave: ineffective
her. While fighting off some desert threat • tsunami: ineffective
- elves, undead, or desert wildlife - she • wall of water: ineffective
unknowingly pulled on the power of the • watery sphere: ineffective
land, and her companion… who is now a dry, • wish: cannot be used to simulate
lifeless husk. The sorcerer (N human female any of the spells on this list, nor can a
apprentice wizard) is frightened for her wish create food or water, or improve the
life and attacks if the characters approach, environment in any way
but can be talked down with relevant ability
checks. If characters kill her, they can take her The DM is strongly encouraged to add to
3d10 ceramic pieces and a half-full waterskin. this list any other spells which would allow
characters to, for example, conjure food or
water, avoid hunger and thirst, create or
enhance plant life, or alter weather, from third-
Appendix B: party publishers or new D&D releases.

Spells & Items

This limitation also applies to clerics’ Divine
Intervention ability. While in Kalidnay, it
cannot mimic any spells or effects that are
ordinarily prohibited within the domain.

Magic in Kalidnay is unique amongst all of the The same conditions apply to magic items. Any
domains of Ravenloft. The land’s devastation is item which offers characters a way to avoid the
part of its curse and cannot be circumvented. constant threat of hunger, thirst, or ecological
On the contrary, magic is a trap that can disaster simply will not function while in
actively damage the land further, sucking Kalidnay. You are encouraged to respond to
the remaining life from it. While magic is your players’ desperate attempts to bypass this
more limited and dangerous in Kalidnay than rule with delighted cackling that continues just
elsewhere, some compensation can be found a little too long to be comfortable.
in the form of psionic talents, which are
commonplace here. Defiling
Defiling is what made Kalidnay and broke
the world from which Kalidnay came. Defiling
36
refers to the act of drawing power from living remaining damage is applied to
creatures, or the land itself, as fuel for arcane the next nearest creature, and so
magic. It is powerful, easy, and terribly on.
dangerous. A single powerful spell can kill a  This damage cannot be healed in
human, and land that is so Defiled is dead any way except by a long rest.
forever.  If there are no living creatures
within 30 feet, the Defiler draws
The deaths of thousands of people in Kalidnay, power from the land instead (as
when the city transitioned to Ravenloft, was above).
an expression of Kalid-Ma’s powerful defiling
magic. Now that Kalidnay is within the Player characters are absolutely at liberty
mists, defiling is even more dangerous. The to use Defiling magic while in Kalidnay. In
destruction of a single stretch of fertile land fact, DMs are encouraged to offer them the
could jeopardise the food supply of hundreds, option every time they cast a spell. If they
even thousands, of people. are ever caught, or even suspected, they will
be immediately reported to the Templars (or
Any mage can be a Defiler; even if they’ve denizens of the domain might mete out their
spent their whole life as a ‘Preserver’ (one own ‘justice’). Killing their friends and loved
who does not use defiling magic), temptation ones, and destroying the world, is not the only
or fear could overcome them at any time. For risk, however. The Dark Powers take notice of
this reason, Thakok-An does not suffer arcane Defilers and provoke Dark Powers checks (see
magic users to live in her domain. Appendix XX).

Defiling in Play
Defiling magic is an option available for any
arcane spellcaster (wizards, sorcerers, and Appendix C:
bards). It is a choice that must be made
whenever a magic-user casts a spell more
powerful than a cantrip.
Psionics
Psionic talent is a way of life in Kalidnay. Every
Any spell cast with Defiling magic uses a spell man, woman, and child has some wild talent
slot one level lower than normal: but only a few are able to refine their gift into
● 2nd level spells are cast with 1st level something more powerful. These talented
slots; 3rd level spells with 2nd level slots, etc. individuals are akin to sorcerers in other lands;
● Spells can still be cast using higher-level focused on a relatively small set of techniques,
slots than necessary, with whatever benefits with a lot of skill in how they manage their
this conveys for the spell (e.g. an invisibility power, making them adaptable and flexible.
spell can be cast with a 1st level spell slot - or
cast with a 2nd level slot for an extra target).
● 1st level spells still require at least a 1st REPRESENTING PSIONICS
level spell slot, but the spell takes effect as if
cast using a 2nd level slot. In mechanical terms, psionics is a variant
branch of sorcery, and the Psionicist is
However, the consequences are dire: presented here as a Sorcerer subclass. The
● Defilers can choose whether to defile the key difference is a substantially revised
land, or other living creatures. Either: - and smaller - spell list to represent
o The Defiler despoils an area of classic psionic powers like telekinesis and
land immediately around them, in a telepathy.
circle five feet in radius, plus five feet
per level of the spell slot used (so a The flexibility of sorcery and the guarantee
total radius of 15 feet for a second that it will ‘play well’ with other game rules
level spell slot), or make it a solid choice for representing
o The Defiler draws power from psionics without inventing entirely new
the nearest living creature within subsystems. You can, of course, use the
30 feet, with this creature taking 5 ruleset of your choice (e.g. the Unearthed
points of necrotic damage plus an Arcana: Mystic) to represent psionics in
additional five points per level of the your Kalidnay adventures
spell slot used (so a total of 15 hit
points for a second level spell slot).
 If the damage exceeds the
creature’s current hit points, the
37
 Psionic ‘Spellcasting’ Awakened Mind
Psionicists cast spells similarly to other Starting at 1st level, you can touch the minds
sorcerers. They use verbal, somatic, and of other creatures. You can telepathically
material components as listed in a spell’s speak to any creature you can see within 30
description. However, they are flavoured rather feet of you. You don’t need to share a language
differently. Verbal components are not spells with the creature for it to understand your
but mantras and chants repeated to channel telepathic utterances, but the creature must be
their thoughts, and somatic components are able to understand at least one language.
simple, focused, gestures rather than arcane
hand-waving.
Intellectual Superiority
Psionicists differ from other casters in that You have refined your mind to ignore magics
they cannot use material components: they that attempt to shape your thoughts. When
must use an arcane focus. Components with you take this subclass at first level, you cannot
a gold piece value are still required if stated in be spoken to telepathically unless you permit
a spell’s description: they are assumed to be it, and you gain proficiency in Intelligence
used as a different ‘focus’ for that particular saving throws.
psionic power

Psionicist (Sorcerer Subclass) Mind Over Matter

Your disciplined mind extends to discipline
Psionicists’ innate ‘magic’ comes from the
over your body. At 1st level, your hit point
power of their mind. This is so common in
maximum increases by 1, and it increases by 1
Kalidnay, a land relatively barren in terms of
again whenever you gain a level in this class.
other magics, that very few ever consider its
origin and outsiders’ lack of psionic talent
leads to mild pity. Dominion of the Mind
Starting at 6th level, your thoughts can’t be
Thakok-An would like to think that all of the read by telepathy or other means unless you
truly gifted psionicists in Kalidnay are in her allow it, and you have advantage on saving
service as Templars and advisers, but there are throws to resist being charmed or frightened.
a number of self-trained individuals outside
her influence. Ironically, while psionics make
a person very valuable to Thakok-An and her Bodily Resilience
regime, they also make practitioners self- At 14th level, you gain the ability to push your
sufficient, well suited to surviving outside body far past its normal levels of endurance. As
Kalidnay City. a bonus action, you can remove from yourself
a number of levels of exhaustion equal to your
Psionics Features Constitution modifier (minimum 1).

Sorcerer Level Feature You cannot use this ability again until you
complete a long rest.
1st Variant Spell List, Awak-
ened Mind, Intellectual Su-
periority, Mind Over Matter Reserves of Power
At 18th level, when you roll for initiative and
6th Dominion of the Mind have no sorcery points remaining, you regain 2
14th Bodily Resilience sorcery points.

18th Reserves of Power

Variant Spell List

Your trained mind gives you access to radically
different techniques from others with innate
power. When you take this subclass at 1st
level, you replace the normal Sorcerer spell list
with the Variant Spell List presented here.

38
Psionicist Variant Spell Protection from Poison 6th level
See Invisibility
List Circle of Death
Spider Climb
Eyebite
Suggestion
Globe of Invulnerability
Zone of Truth
Cantrips Heroes Feast
Blade Ward, Harm
Chill Touch 3rd level Mass Suggestion
Control Flames Aura of Vitality Mental Prison
Friends, Blink Move Earth
Mage Hand Catnap Programmed Illusion
Message Clairvoyance Scatter
Minor Illusion Counterspell True Seeing
Primal Savagery Enemies Abound
Shocking Grasp Fear 7th level
True Strike Haste
Crown of Stars
Vicious Mockery Hypnotic Pattern
Divine Word
Life Transference
Force Cage
Locate Object
1st level Major Image
Mirage Arcane
Absorb Elements Power Word Pain
Nondetection
Animal Friendship Project Image
Protection from Energy
Beast Bond Sequester
Sending
Cause Fear Teleport
Slow
Charm Person Whirlwind
Tongues
Command Vampiric Touch
Detect Poison & Disease Water Breathing 8th level
Disguise Self Water Walk Antimagic Field
Dissonant Whispers
Antipathy/Sympathy
False Life
4th level Dominate Monster
Hideous Laughter
Glibness
Inflict Wounds Charm Monster
Mind Blank
Jump Compulsion
Power Word Stun
Longstrider Confusion
Telepathy
Mage Armor Divination
Sanctuary Freedom of Movement
Silent Image Greater Invisibility 9th level
Sleep Hallucinatory Terrain Astral Projection
Speak with Animals Locate Creature Foresight
Zephyr Strike Phantasmal Killer Invulnerability
Stoneskin Power Word Kill
2nd level Psychic Scream
5th level Time Stop
Alter Self
Weird
Arcanist’s Magic Aura (Nystul’s Antilife Shell
Magic Aura) Arcane Hand (Bigby’s Hand)
Barkskin Awaken
Beast Sense Commune
Blindness/Deafness Contagion
Blur Destructive Wave
Calm Emotions Dominate Person
Crown of Madness Dream, Enervation
Darkvision Far Step
Detect Thoughts Geas
Enhance Ability Hold Monster
Enthrall Mislead
Hold Person Modify Memory
Levitate Synaptic Static
Magic Mouth Telekinesis
Mind Spike Telepathic Bond
Pass Without Trace Wall of Force
39
 Appendix D: Monsters
Overview
In this chapter, you will find stat blocks and game
information for a host of creatures unique to Kalid-
nay.

While many monsters are new, most NPCs use

pre-existing stat blocks, for the DM’s ease of refer-
ence. To better reflect the harsh nature of Kalidnay,
you are strongly encouraged to give every NPC,
especially humanoids, the maximum possible hit
points instead of the average presented in the stat
block. Creatures adjusted in this way pose a greater
challenge to characters.

Remember also that if you are using a living human

or elf in Kalidnay, you should add a Psionic Talent
(see Kalidnay commoner) to their stat block. This
has been done for you for new creatures presented
here (e.g. Templars), but obviously not for any stat
block to be drawn from existing game sources.

40
Thakok-An
Medium humanoid (half-elf), neutral evil

Armor Class 17 (magical breastplate, Dexteri-

ty)
Hit Points 160 (20d8 +70)
Speed 30 ft..

STR 10 (+0) DEX 14 (+2) CON 16 (+3)

INT 16 (+3) WIS 20 (+5) CHA 18 (+4)

Saving Throws Constitution +7, Intelligence

+7, Wisdom +9, Charisma +8
Skills History +7 Insight +9 Intimidation +8
Investigation +7 Persuasion +8
Damage Resistances Bludgeoning, Piercing, or
Slashing from non-magical weapons, Psychic
Damage Immunities Necrotic
Condition Immunities Charmed, Frightened,
Stunned
Senses Darkvision 60 ft., Truesight 30 ft., pas-
sive Perception 15
Languages Common, Draconic, Elvish
Challenge 15 (13,000 XP)

Telepathic Communication. Thakok-An can

telepathically speak to any creature she can Cantrips (at will): blade ward, guidance, mage
perceive within 30 feet of her. She doesn’t need hand, message, minor illusion, resistance, thau-
to share a language with the creature for it to maturgy
understand her, but the creature must be able 1st level (4 slots): absorb elements, bane, bless,
to understand at least one language. command, cure wounds, detect magic, disso-
nant whispers, inflict wounds, magic missile,
Intellectual Superiority. Unless Thakok-An sanctuary, sleep
allows it, she cannot be spoken to telepathical- 2nd level (3 slots): blindness/deafness, calm
ly, and her thoughts can’t be read by telepathy emotions, crown of madness, detect thoughts,
or other means unless she allows it. hold person, invisibility, magic weapon, mind
spike, nystul’s magic aura, silence, spiritual
Legendary Resistance (3/day). If Thakok-An weapon, zone of truth
fails a saving throw, she can choose to succeed 3rd level (3 slots): aura of vitality, clairvoyance,
instead. counterspell, hypnotic pattern, dispel magic, en-
emies abound, fear, haste, magic circle, sending,
Spell Breaker. When Thakok-An restores hit spirit guardians, tongues
points to herself or an ally with a spell of 1st 4th level (3 slots): arcane eye, compulsion,
confusion, death ward, greater invisibility, leo-
level or higher, she can also end one spell of
mund’s secret chest, locate creature, phantas-
her choice on that creature. The level of the
mal killer
spell ended must be equal to or lower than the
5th level (3 slots): antilife shell, dominate per-
level of the spell slot used to cast the healing son, far step, planar binding, scrying, synaptic
spell. static, teleportation circle
Potent Spellcasting. Thakok-An adds 4 points Thakok-An also has higher-level spell slots
to the damage dealt with any cantrip. which she can use, though she knows no
spells of these levels.
Spellcasting. As a powerful psionicist and a
cleric of Kalid-Ma, Thakok-An casts spells as 6th level (2 slots): none
a 10th level spellcaster. Charisma is her spell- 7th level (2 slots): none
casting ability (saving throw DC 17, +9 to spell 8th level (1 slot): none
attacks). 9th level (1 slot): none
41
 Actions Legendary Actions
Banish. Thakok-An can destroy undead, and Thakok-An can take 3 legendary actions,
banish fiends, fey, and celestials from her do- choosing from the options below. Only one
main indefinitely. Creatures of CR 2 or lower legendary action option can be used at a time
are automatically destroyed/banished by this and only at the end of another creature’s turn.
ability. Creatures with a higher CR must suc- Thakok-An regains spent legendary actions at
ceed on a DC 16 Wisdom saving throw to avoid the start of her turn.
being destroyed/banished.
Move. Thakok-An moves up to her full move-
ment without provoking attacks of opportunity.
Reactions Cantrip. Thakok-An casts a cantrip.
See Magic Items Spellcasting (Costs 2 actions). Thakok-An
casts a spell of 1st or 2nd level.
Lair Actions Psychic suppression (Costs 3 actions). Tha-
kok-An intensifies her own presence to impede
While in the palace or ziggurat in Kalidnay another spellcaster’s abilities. She chooses a
City, Thakok-An can take Lair Actions as long spellcaster that she is aware of within 30 feet.
as she is not incapacitated. Her Lair Actions That spellcaster receives -2 to spell attack rolls,
call on the power of the sleeping sorcerer-king and their targets receive +2 to saving throws
beneath the city. against the spellcaster’s magic, until the start
of Thakok-An’s next turn.
On initiative count 20 (losing initiative ties), Psychic static (Costs 3 actions). Thakok-An
Thakok-An can take one of the following lair emits psychic interference that impedes vic-
actions, or forgo using any of them in that tims’ concentration. All creatures within 30
round. She cannot use the same action in two feet that Thakok-An chooses make Intelligence,
consecutive rounds: Wisdom, and Charisma saves, as well as Con-
● Kalid-Ma moves in his sleep, causing stitution saves to maintain concentration on
an earthquake that is centred on Tha- spells, with disadvantage until the start of Tha-
kok-An (but does not affect her). All kok-An’s next turn.
creatures within 30 feet of her must
make a DC 14 Dexterity save. Those who
fail fall prone, are Stunned, and take 7 Magic Items
(2d6) bludgeoning damage. Those who Ceremonial Armor
succeed take half damage, and are nei- Uncommon
ther Prone nor Stunned. Thakok-An’s carefully crafted, leather and bone
● Kalid-Ma senses the presence of power- armor counts as a breastplate +1.
ful creatures in his palace and reaches
out to claim their life force. 1d4 crea- Staff of Kalid-Ma
tures of Thakok-An’s choosing must Staff, legendary, requires attunement by an evil
make a DC 14 Charisma save, taking 14 spellcaster
(4d6) necrotic damage, or half as much The ceremonial bone staff Thakok-An carries
damage on a successful save). holds 8 charges. It allows her to cast the follow-
● Kalid-Ma’s dreams of apocalypse and ing:
power briefly leak out, causing fear and
confusion. 1d4 creatures of Thakok-An’s • As a Reaction: shield or counterspell.
choosing must make a DC 14 Intelli- • Casting shield expends one charge.
gence saving throw or lose their next • Casting counterspell as a 3rd level spell ex-
action. Creatures affected can still use pends 2 charges.
bonus actions, reactions and any addi- • Additional charges can be expended to cast
tional actions (e.g. from haste or Action counterspell at a higher level (1 charge per
Surge) as normal. additional level).

The staff regains all charges at dawn.

42
Astareh Bone Runner Elves
Astareh is the predatory, cannibalistic over- The elves of Kalidnay are not like the elves of
seer of Artan-Ak. She appears human; indeed, other worlds. They are perfect survivors. They
she is a spectacular beauty, with an hourglass are tall, fleet-footed hunters, members of a
figure, full, blood-red lips, shining hair, and tight-knit, insular community who protect one
bright, perfect teeth. Appearance is where her another at all costs, and synonymous with di-
similarity to humanity ends. saster and deceit to everyone who is not an elf.

Astareh Like most elven tribes in the world from which

Medium aberration, chaotic evil Kalidnay was plucked, the Bone Runners are
nomads. Before the Silt Sea surrounded Ka-
Armor Class 15 (natural armor) lidnay they were mostly rumours; they kept to
Hit Points 75 (10d10+20) themselves and meeting a group of elven hunt-
Speed 30 ft. ers was as noteworthy as it was lethal. With
less territory to roam and fewer creatures to
STR 21 (+5) DEX 12 (+1) CON 13 (+1) hunt, the Bone Runners are now a constant
threat to anything that sets foot outside the
INT 14 (+2) WIS 14 (+2) CHA 15 (+2)
settlements of Kalidnay City and Artan-Ak.
When times are especially harsh, they even
Skills Deception +5, Perception +5, Persuasion
raid human settlements. Elf raids are efficient,
+5 vicious, and deadly. The only saving grace is
Senses Darkvision 60 ft., Passive Perception 15 that they don’t take slaves. Nothing but an elf
Languages Common can keep pace with them.
Challenge CR 6 (2,300 XP)
Humans only ever see the worst side of the
Charm. One humanoid Astareh can see with- elves. Amongst themselves, they are passion-
in 30 feet must succeed on a DC 12 Wisdom ate, loving, and fiercely loyal. They are great
saving throw or be magically charmed for 1 creators, masters of dance and song, tellers of
day. The charmed target obeys Astareh’s verbal tales, and lovers of life. The Bone Runners live
commands. If the target suffers any harm or in the moment, to the point that they almost
receives a suicidal command, it can repeat the venerate ‘the now’. Life in Kalidnay is short
saving throw, ending the effect on a success. If and harsh, and Bone Runner philosophy holds
the target successfully saves against the effect, that the only thing that really matters is to live
or if the effect on it ends, the target is immune as fully and brightly as possible in that short
to Astareh’s Charm for the next 24 hours. time.

Actions Desert Runners. Elves are built to run. Their

stamina is legendary and put to good use. The
Multiattack. Astareh makes three attacks: one Bone Runners can run for days without tiring,
with her bite and two with her claws. even entering the traditional elven trance as
Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +8 to hit, reach 5 they run.
ft., one target. Hit: 15 (3d6 + 5) piercing dam-
age. Short-lived. Elves in Kalidnay don’t live as
Claws. Melee Weapon Attack: +8 to hit, reach 5 long as their kin elsewhere. Their lifespan is
ft., one target. Hit: 15 (3d6 + 5) piercing dam- comparable to a human’s. Of course, this is
age. rarely apparent; almost no one dies of old age
Crushing Hug. Melee Weapon Attack: +8 to in Kalidnay.
hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 36 (9d6 + 5)
bludgeoning damage, and the target is grap-
pled (escape DC 15) if it is a Medium or small- Bone Runner Elf
er creature. Until the grapple ends, the target
Medium humanoid (elf), any alignment
takes 36 (9d6 + 5) bludgeoning damage at the
start of each of Astareh’s turns. Astareh can’t
make claw attacks while grappling a creature Armor Class 15 (leather)
in this way. Hit Points 37 (5d8 + 15)
Speed 40 ft.

STR 11 (+0) DEX 18 (+4) CON 16 (+3)

INT 11 (+0) WIS 10 (+0) CHA 11 (+0)
43
 Skills Acrobatics +7, Nature +3, Perception +3,
Survival +3
Senses Darkvision 60 ft., Passive Perception
Burrower Serpents
There aren’t a lot of animals in Kalidnay. The
13 ones that are still there are well-adapted to a
Languages Common, Elven murderous environment and too mean to be
Challenge CR 2 (450 XP) hunted.

Elf Run. A Bone Runner elf can run contin- And that’s how you get burrower serpents;
uously for a number of days equal to their snakes that dwell beneath the desert, chewing
Constitution modifier (minimum 1), covering and burrowing through rock and sand, carv-
60 miles each day. They can use their Trance ing tunnels that eventually, inevitably, collapse
ability while running. When the Elf Run ends, and plunge unwary travellers into a pit of an-
the Bone Runner elf cannot use it again for a gry, offended, serpents.
full day.
Fey Ancestry. Bone Runner elves have advan- At least they’re not poisonous.
tage on saving throws against being charmed,
and cannot be put to sleep by magical means.
Trance. Bone Runner elves do not sleep. Burrower Serpent
Instead, they meditate, semi-conscious, for 4 Large beast, unaligned
hours per day. They may do this while on an
Armor Class 14
Actions Hit Points 37 (5d10 + 10)
Multiattack. The Bone Runner elf makes two Speed 30 ft., burrow 40 ft.
attacks with their longbow.
Scimitar. Melee Weapon Attack: +6 to hit, STR 15 (+2) DEX 14 (+2) CON 15 (+2)
reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 7 (1d6 + 4) piercing INT 1 (-5) WIS 10 (+0) CHA 3 (-4)
damage.
Longbow. Ranged Weapon Attack: +6 to hit, Senses Darkvision 60 ft., Tremorsense 60 ft.,
range 150/600 ft., one target. Hit: 8 (1d8 + 4) Passive Perception 10
piercing damage. Languages -
Challenge CR 1 (200 XP)

Actions
Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +4 to hit, reach 5
ft., one creature. Hit: 5 (1d6 + 2) piercing dam-
age.
Constrict. Melee Weapon Attack: +4 to hit,
reach 5 ft., one creature. Hit: 6 (1d8 + 2) blud-
geoning damage, and the target is grappled
(escape DC 14). Until this grapple ends, the
creature is restrained, and the snake can’t con-
strict another target.

44
Kalidnay 57-64
65-72
Primal Savagery
Shocking Grasp

Commoner 73-80
81-88
True Strike
Vicious Mockery
Kalidnay is a hard environment. Even everyday 89-94 Powerful Wild Talent: roll 2 more
farmers, tradespeople, and merchants have to times
be tough to survive there.
95-00 No wild talent
Psionic Talent. Almost everyone in Kalidnay
has some degree of psychic talent. Those with-
out are regarded as lacking something essen-
tial.
Mrix
These gigantic caravan-pulling lizards are rare,
Kalidnay Commoner expensive, and bred only by the Oled’ar family
Medium humanoid (any race), any alignment of Bleak Knoll.

Armor Class 11
Hit Points 16 (3d8 + 3) Mrix
Speed 30 ft. Huge beast, unaligned

STR 12 (+1) DEX 12 (+1) CON 13 (+1) Armor Class 13 (natural armour)
INT 10 (+0) WIS 10 (+0) CHA 10 (+0) Hit Points 95 (10d12 + 30)
Speed 50 ft.
Skills Survival +2
Senses passive Perception 10 STR 22 (+6) DEX 9 (-1) CON 17 (+3)
Languages Common INT 2 (-4) WIS 11 (+0) CHA 5 (-3)
Challenge CR 1/4 (50 XP)
Senses Passive Perception 10
Psionic Wild Talent. The Kalidnay commoner Languages --
has a Psionic Wild Talent (roll on the table Challenge CR 5 (1,800 XP)
below) which they can use a number of times
equal to their Intelligence modifier (minimum Trampling Charge. If the mrix moves at least
1) per long rest. Their spellcasting ability for 20 feet straight toward a creature and then
this is Charisma (save DC 10, +2 to spell at- hits it with a gore attack on the same turn,
tack rolls). that target must succeed on a DC 13 Strength
saving throw or be knocked prone. If the target
Actions is prone, the mrix can make one stomp attack
against it as a bonus action.
Fire Ray. Ranged Spell Attack: +7 to hit, range
120 ft., one target. Hit: 10 (3d6) fire damage.
Actions
Gore. Melee Weapon Attack: +9 to hit, reach 5
Psionic Wild Talents ft., one target. Hit: 24 (4d8 + 6) piercing dam-
Roll 1d100. age.
Stomp. Melee Weapon Attack: +9 to hit, reach
5 ft., one prone creature. Hit: 22 (3d10 + 6)
d100 Wild Talent bludgeoning damage.
01-08 Blade Ward
09-16 Chill Touch
17-24 Control Flames
25-32 Friends
33-40 Mage Hand
41-48 Message
49-56 Minor Illusion
45
 Kalidnay Mummy Dreadful Glare. The mummy targets one crea-
ture it can see within 60 feet of it. If the target
can see the mummy, it must succeed on a DC
Those who die in Kalidnay City do not decom-
11 Wisdom saving throw against this magic or
pose. They dry out and wither, but no more
become frightened until the end of the mum-
than that. Sometimes death doesn’t even slow
my’s next turn. If the target fails the saving
them down. They continue to exist, migrating
throw by 5 or more, it is also paralyzed for the
to the Empty Districts, and carrying on a rela-
same duration. A target that succeeds on the
tively peaceful routine there.
saving throw is immune to the Dreadful Glare
of all mummies (but not mummy lords) for the
Kalidnay Mummy next 24 hours.
Medium undead, lawful neutral

Armor Class 11 (natural armor)

Hit Points 58 (9d8 + 18)
Speed 20 ft.

STR 16 (+3) DEX 8 (-1) CON 15 (+2)

INT 10 (+0) WIS 10 (+0) CHA 12 (+1)

Saving Throws Wis +2

Skills Deception +7 History +6 Insight +7 In-
timidation +7 Persuasion +7 Performance +7
Damage Vulnerabilities Fire
Damage Resistances Bludgeoning, Piercing,
and Slashing from Nonmagical Attacks
Damage Immunities Necrotic, Poison
Condition Immunities Charmed, Exhaustion,
Frightened, Paralyzed, Poisoned
Senses Darkvision 60 ft., Passive Perception 10
Languages those it knew in life
Challenge CR 3 (700 XP)

Psionic Wild Talent. The mummy has the

Psionic Wild Talent it had in life. Roll on the
Psionic Wild Talents table (see Kalidnay Com-
moner), or choose from chill touch, mage hand,
or true strike.

Actions
rsed in
Multiattack. The mummy can use its Dread- if you are well ve
ancy
ful Glare and makes one attack with its Rot-
the art of necrom
ting Fist. academy
(and I passed the
ass)
Rotting Fist. Melee Weapon Attack: +5 to hit, at the top of my cl
ce
reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 10 (2d6 + 3)
bludgeoning damage plus 10 (3d6) necrotic
you learn to noti
s when
damage. If the target is a creature, it must superior specimen
t of you
succeed on a DC 12 Constitution saving they walk in fron
throw or be cursed with mummy rot. The your
cursed target can’t regain hit points, and its and try to steal
grated
hit point maximum decreases by 10 (3d6) hat. i still disinte
but
for every 24 hours that elapse. If the curse them , of course,
reduces the target’s hit point maximum to 0,
the target dies, and its body turns to dust. The i took a moment to
ndiwork
curse lasts until removed by the remove curse appreciate the ha
spell or other magic.
first
46
Palik Palik
Medium undead, chaotic evil
Palik is a thrax - one of the most dangerous
creatures found in the world that gave Kalid- Armor Class 15
nay to the Mists. Blood and flesh are common Hit Points 82 (11d8 + 33)
enough in Kalidnay; a thrax feeds on some- Speed 30 ft.
thing far rarer and more precious: water. A STR 20 (+5) DEX 13 (+1) CON 17 (+3)
thrax can suck every drop of moisture from a INT 12 (+1) WIS 14 (+2) CHA 11 (+0)
human body in ten minutes.
Skills Deception +3
Palik is the only thrax in Kalidnay, and that Damage Resistances Cold, Fire, Lightning,
is the only good thing that can be said about
Poison; Bludgeoning, Piercing, and Slashing
him. Even so, the thousands of inhabitants
from Nonmagical Attacks
of Kalidnay City are too small a herd for him
Condition Immunities Charmed, Frightened
to be able to feed safely and unobtrusively. He
starves himself, feeding only when the drive to Senses Darkvision 60 ft., Passive Perception 12
do so is overwhelming, and then gorging him- Languages Common
self on entire families or on big, strong, men Challenge CR 5 (1,800 XP)
like the gladiators in Thakok-An’s arena.
Regeneration. Palik regenerates 20 hit points
Palik knows that if the living residents of Ka- at the start of his turn, unless he took radiant
lidnay realise they have a thrax amongst them, damage since his previous turn.
let alone identify him, they will destroy him. He Shadow Form. Palik may use his action to
needs to get out. He has met enough outsiders transform into a shadow. In this form, he can-
to know that there are other realms surround- not take actions, speak, or manipulate objects.
ed by mist, and that some of them have hun- He is weightless, has a flying speed of 40 feet,
dreds of thousands of people and whole oceans can hover, and can enter a creature’s space
of water. He also knows that none of those and stop there. The shadow can pass through
places have the faintest idea of what a thrax is. a solid object, but can’t cross areas of bright
He wants out. light. It has advantage on Strength, Dexterity,
and Constitution saving throws, and it is im-
This desire to escape can make Palik an un- mune to all non-magical damage.
likely ally for an adventuring party in Kalidnay. Unnatural Power. Palik’s unarmed attacks
He knows a lot of what goes on in Kalidnay count as magical for the purposes of overcom-
City - he has to, to make sure there are no ru- ing resistances.
mours of his presence. Palik has travelled every Legendary Resistance (3/day). If Palik fails a
square foot of the domain. saving throw, he may instead choose to suc-
ceed it. He can do this up to 3 times before a
Almost Human. From a few feet away, Palik long rest.
looks like any living humanoid. Tall, well-built,
with the kind of muscles that could choke the Actions
life out of a person, including an assortment Multiattack. Palik makes two unarmed at-
of geometric tattoos. His sharp ears point at a tacks.
heritage that is not uniquely human. All that Cause Decay. Melee Weapon Attack: +9 to hit,
really gives him away close up is the way his reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 10 (3d6) necrotic
fingers terminate in disturbing suckers. damage. In addition, non-magical armour worn
by the target is partly dissolved and takes a
Shadow Hunter. Palik can switch between permanent and cumulative −1 penalty to the
corporeal form and Shadow-Form. In shadow AC it offers. The armour is destroyed if the
form, he cannot be perceived except by magi- penalty reduces its AC to 10.
cal means; he cannot enter or cross brightly lit Unarmed Attack. Melee Weapon Attack: +7
areas. to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 11 (2d6 + 4)
bludgeoning damage. On a successful hit, the
target must make a DC 14 Constitution saving
throw. On a failure, Palik attaches his suckers
to the target’s skin. The creature is grappled.
Water Drain. When Palik successfully grap-
ples a target, he immediately begins to drain
the water from its body, dealing (7) 2d6 points
of necrotic damage each turn.
47
 Psionic Sandstorm Psionic Sandstorm
Huge elemental, chaotic evil
Most sandstorms are simply dangerous, not
actively malevolent. But there is at least one Armor Class 17
- perhaps more - that has transcended mere Hit Points 82 (11d8 + 33)
lethality to become cruel and predatory. Speed 40 ft.

Granular intelligence. A psionic sandstorm is STR 7 (-2) DEX 16 (+3) CON 16 (+3)
an entity created from all of the lives lost with- INT 6 (-2) WIS 14 (+2) CHA 18 (+4)
in it. Its intelligence degrades over time; with-
out more food, it will disperse into harmless Damage Resistances Cold, Fire, Lightning,
grains of sand. It must, therefore, keep feeding
Poison, Bludgeoning, Piercing, and Slashing
on the intellect of sentient creatures to main-
Condition Immunities Blinded, Deafened,
tain its own sapience. This is why the psychic
Grappled, Poisoned, Restrained, Paralysed,
sandstorm whirls endlessly on, desperate to
perpetuate its existence. Prone
Senses Darkvision 60 ft., Blindsight 60 ft.,
Ruthless Intruder. A psionic sandstorm can Passive Perception 14
enter any space accessible to a single grain of Languages -
sand. It snakes and slithers and pries to find Challenge CR 7 (2,900 XP)
its way through the smallest crack in a wall,
gap in a door, drawn inexorably to the presence Granular. The sandstorm can occupy another
of intelligent creatures. creature’s space, and vice versa, and can move
through any opening large enough for a grain
of sand. The psionic sandstorm can’t regain hit
points or gain temporary hit points.

Scouring Presence. Creatures who start their

turn in a space occupied by the psionic sand-
storm take 11 (2d10) slashing damage, halved
on a successful Constitution save.

Actions
Subsume. One creature of the psionic sand-
storm’s choice, that shares a space with it,
must make a DC 16 Intelligence saving throw.
A creature who fails takes 18 (4d8) points of
psychic damage and its Intelligence is reduced
by 2 (1d4) points; a creature who succeeds
takes half the damage. Creatures who lose In-
telligence from this attack regain 1 point each
time they complete a long rest.

i dislike sand at the best of times. It gets all in your feet, and other
places, and it’s the devil to get rid of. My despair when i discovered that
the sandstorms in kalidnay were not only frequent but sentient was
something to behold. i killed my horse in rage.

48
Psionicist Psychic Mirage
While most Kalidnay natives have some de- In Kalidnay, if something appears too good to
gree of psionic talent, a few choose to dedicate be true, it most certainly is. For example, an
themselves to developing their gifts to their oasis in the distance might be a mirage… or it
fullest potential. Psionicists are often either might be a predator in a cunning disguise.
respected, influential, members of society or
solitary desert hermits. A Peaceful Demise. A psychic mirage lulls ob-
servers into a false sense of security, building
Psionicist up trust and charming them into approaching
Medium humanoid (any race), any alignment and resting. When they do, drifting into an
enchanted sleep, the mirage strikes, devouring
Armor Class 12 (15 with mage armor) them thought by thought.
Hit Points 40 (9d8)
Speed 30 ft. Symbiotic Bonds. Other creatures often hunt
around psychic mirages, dealing with the re-
STR 10 (+0) DEX 14 (+2) CON 11 (+0) mains of the mirage’s victims. Desert shrikes,
burrowing serpents, or undead - including Pa-
INT 12 (+1) WIS 12 (+1) CHA 17 (+3)
lik - frequently wait nearby to take advantage
of the mirage’s unconscious prey.
Saving Throws Constitution +3, Charisma +6
Skills Insight +6, Persuasion +6 Psychic Mirage
Senses passive Perception 11
Gargantuan aberration, neutral evil
Languages Common, telepathic within 30 ft.
Challenge CR 6 (2,300 XP)
Armor Class 12
Hit Points 287 (25d20 + 125)
Dominion of the Mind. The psionicist’s
thoughts cannot be read by telepathy or oth- Speed -
er means unless they allow it, and they have
advantage on saving throws to resist being STR 20 (+5) DEX 0 (-) CON 20 (+5) INT
charmed or frightened. 20 (+5) WIS 15 (+2) CHA 0 (-)

Heightened Spell (1/day). When the psionicist Saving Throws Intelligence +10, Wisdom +7
casts a spell that forces a creature to make a Damage Immunities. Necrotic, Poison; Bludg-
saving throw to resist its effects, the psionicist eoning, Piercing, and Slashing from Nonmagi-
can spend 3 sorcery points to give one target of cal Attacks
the spell disadvantage on its first saving throw Damage Resistances Cold, Fire, Lightning,
made against the spell. Thunder
Senses Blindsight 60 ft., Passive Perception 14
Spellcasting. The psionicist is a 9th-level Languages -
spellcaster. Its spellcasting ability is Charisma Challenge CR 12 (8,400 XP)
(spell save DC 14, +6 to hit with spell attacks).
The psionicist has the following spells pre- Inert. The mirage cannot move, and auto-
pared: matically fails Dexterity and Charisma saving
throws.
Cantrips (at will): control flames, mage hand,
message, vicious mockery Illusion of Safety. The mirage presents an
1st level (4 slots): disguise self, mage armor, illusion of fertile land, shady trees, and cool
sanctuary, sleep water. The illusion functions as per the arcane
2nd level (3 slots): detect thoughts, hold person mirage spell, with an indefinite duration.
3rd level (3 slots): clairvoyance, haste, vampiric
touch Insidious. Creatures believe the illusion im-
4th level (3 slots): confusion, phantasmal killer plicitly, with all of their senses. They will eat
5th level (1 slot): telepathic bond of the nutritious-looking plants and drink of
the water, meaning that they are consuming
Actions ounces, if not pounds, of sand. Two hours after
Quarterstaff. Melee Weapon Attack: +5 to hit, “eating” or “drinking” characters become sick
reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 3 (1d6) piercing and dehydrated, taking two levels of exhaus-
damage or 4 (1d8) piercing damage if wielded tion and becoming Poisoned for 1 hour. Char-
with no hands. acters gain another level of exhaustion every
49
 hour until they rehydrate, drinking at least a Templar
half-gallon of water and succeeding on a DC 12
Medium humanoid (human), lawful evil
Constitution save (to keep it down).

Legendary Resistance (3/day). If the mirage Armor Class 13 (studded leather)

fails a saving throw, it may instead choose to Hit Points 16 (3d8 + 3)
succeed it. Speed 30 ft.

STR 13 (+1) DEX 12 (+1) CON 12 (+1)

Actions INT 10 (+0) WIS 14 (+2) CHA 10 (+0)
Tranquil Repose. The mirage exerts a pow-
erful sense of peace and comfort. Those who Saving Throws Wisdom +4
spend at least one minute in the mirage must Skills History +2, Perception +4
succeed on a DC 20 Constitution saving throw Senses Passive Perception 14
or fall asleep over the course of 10 minutes. Languages Common
The mirage then drains 2 (1d4) points of the Challenge CR 1/2 (100 XP)
sleeper’s Intelligence every two hours they are
asleep. A sleeper wakes after 8 hours of sleep Psionic Talent. Roll on the Psionic Wild Tal-
or when woken by another creature’s deliber- ent table or choose from blade ward, friends,
ate efforts. A creature dies if its Intelligence is or true strike.
reduced to 0 by this effect.
Spellcasting. The Templar’s spellcasting
ability is Wisdom (spell save DC 12, +4 to spell

Templar
Thakok-An’s Templars are a
attack rolls). The Templar can cast the follow-
ing spells:

mixture of clerical devotion

and psionic talent. They are
all loyal to her because, so
far, only her ruthless dedica-
tion has kept Kalidnay func-
tional since it was stranded
in the Silt Sea. That loyalty
does not stop them scheming
against one another, however;
in fact, it is almost a require-
ment for a promotion.

Cruel, But Not Corrupt. Tha-

kok-An’s Templars believe in
her laws and her word. She
protects Kalidnay, and dis-
obeying her might jeopardise
the land’s fate. They are par-
ticularly committed to rooting
out any signs of defiling, or of
spellcasters who might be-
come defilers. They are brutal
in their ‘justice’, and almost
all take pleasure in exercising
their power, but they know
which lines not to cross.

Travel In Packs. Although

individual Templars are pow-
erful, enough angry citizens
could overwhelm them. They
usually move in patrols of 3-6
(1d4+2), or even more outside
Kalidnay City. Each patrol
includes 1 Templar Sergeant.
50
 Actions
At will: bane, sacred flame, thaumaturgy
4/day: command, detect magic, shield of faith Longsword. Melee Weapon Attack: +5 to hit,
2/day: silence, zone of truth reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 7 (1d8 + 3) slash-
ing damage, or 8 (1d10 + 3) slashing damage if
used with two hands.
Actions
Spear. Melee or Ranged Weapon Attack: +3 to
hit, reach 5 ft. or range 20/60 ft., one target.
Uran-Tor
Uran-Tor is an elven banshee who haunts the
Hit: 4 (1d6 + 1) piercing damage, or 5 (1d8 +
region around Artan-Ak. While Kalid-Ma ruled
1) piercing damage if used with two hands to
Kalidnay, Uran-Tor served Thakok-An loyally as
make a melee attack.
her second in command. Thakok-An, however,
never trusted her. No one in Kalidnay trusts a
Bone Runner, even, perhaps especially, when
Templar Sergeant they have elven blood themselves, as Tha-
Medium humanoid (human), lawful evil kok-An does.

Armor Class 14 (breastplate) The now-Darklord made absolutely sure that

Hit Points 58 (9d8 + 18) Uran-Tor was out of the way when she per-
Speed 30 ft. formed her ritual to empower Kalid-Ma and
hasten his transformation into a dragon. The
STR 16 (+3) DEX 13 (+1) CON 14 (+2) elf was out in Artan-Ak, breaking up the latest
INT 10 (+0) WIS 16 (+3) CHA 10 (+0) resistance ring when it took place. Even so, the
ritual drained her life force, the Dark Powers
Saving Throws Wisdom +6 extending her special notice, perhaps aware
Skills History +3, Insight +6, Perception +6 that Thakok-An would be delighted to see her
Senses Passive Perception 16 rival perish.
Languages Common
Challenge CR 4 (1,100 XP) While Uran-Tor died screaming as her life was
sucked from her, her spirit did not disperse.
Channel Divinity (1/day). As an action, the She roams the desert even now, driven by
Templar sergeant presents their badge of office, hatred and her thirst for vengeance on Tha-
and each creature of their choice that can see kok-An. She cannot enter Kalidnay City, or
or hear them within 30 feet of them must suc- Kalid-Ma will quite unconsciously consume the
ceed on a Wisdom saving throw. If the creature last traces of her, so Uran-Tor haunts the des-
fails the saving throw it is charmed by the tem- ert as a semi-solid, screaming, spectre, preying
plar until the end of the Templar’s next turn or on any Templars unfortunate enough to cross
until the charmed creature takes damage. The her path.
Templar can also cause any of the charmed
creatures to drop what they are holding when Unfortunately, the banshee’s ability to recog-
they fail the saving throw. nise a Templar is imprecise, and she will often
substitute ‘any humans with weapons’ for her
Psionic Talent. Roll on the Psionic Wild Tal- preferred prey.
ent table or choose from blade ward, friends,
or true strike.
Uran-Tor
Spellcasting. The Templar sergeant’s’s spell- Medium undead, chaotic evil
casting ability is Wisdom (spell save DC 14, +6
to spell attack rolls). The Templar sergeant can Armor Class 16
cast the following spells: Hit Points 84 (13d8 + 26)
Speed 40 ft. (hover), walk 0 ft.
At will: bane, sacred flame, thaumaturgy
4/day: command, cure wounds, detect magic, STR 1 (-5) DEX 14 (+2) CON 10 (+0)
shield of faith INT 12 (+1) WIS 11 (+0) CHA 18 (+4)
2/day: silence, spiritual weapon, zone of truth
2/day: dispel magic, spirit guardians Saving Throws Wisdom +4, Charisma +8
Skills Deception +7 History +6 Insight +7 In-
timidation +7 Persuasion +7 Performance +7
Damage Resistances Acid, Fire, Lightning,
51
 Thunder; Bludgeoning, Piercing, and Slashing Horrifying Visage. Each non-undead crea-
from Nonmagical Attacks ture within 60 feet of the banshee that can see
Damage Immunities Cold, Necrotic, Poison her must succeed on a DC 16 Wisdom saving
Condition Immunities Charmed, Exhaustion, throw or be frightened for 1 minute. A fright-
Frightened, Grappled, Paralyzed, Petrified, Poi- ened target can repeat the saving throw at the
soned, Prone, Restrained end of each of its turns, with disadvantage if
Senses Darkvision 60 ft., Passive Perception 10 the banshee is within line of sight, ending the
Languages Common, Elvish effect on itself on a success. If a target’s saving
Challenge CR 5 (1,800 XP) throw is successful or the effect ends for it,
the target is immune to Uran-Tor’s Horrifying
Detect Life. Uran-Tor can magically sense the Visage for the next 24 hours.
presence of creatures up to 5 miles away that
aren’t undead or constructs. She knows the Nemesis. Uran-Tor reserves a special hatred
general direction they’re in but not their exact for Thakok-An and her Templars. She may use
locations. her Anti-Magic ability at will against these
Incorporeal Movement. Uran-Tor can move enemies, exceeding her usual limit of 3 times
through other creatures and objects as if they per day).
were difficult terrain. She takes 5 (1d10) force
damage if she ends her turn inside an object. Wail (1/Day). The banshee releases a mournful
Legendary Resistance (3/day). If Uran-Tor wail, provided that she isn’t in sunlight. This
fails a saving throw, she may instead choose to wail has no effect on constructs and undead.
succeed it. All other creatures within 30 feet of her that
can hear her must make a DC 13 Constitution
Actions saving throw. On a failure, a creature drops to
Anti-Magic (3/day). As a reaction, Uran-Tor 0 hit points. On a success, a creature takes 10
may counter any spell cast within 30 feet of her (3d6) psychic damage.
by a creature that she can see. If the spell is
of 3rd level or lower, it fails and has no effect.
If the spell is of 4th level or higher, Uran-Tor
makes a Charisma check. The DC equals 10 +
the spell’s level. On a success, the creature’s
spell fails and has no effect.

Corrupting Touch. Melee Spell Attack: +8 to

hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 14 (3d6 + 4)
necrotic damage.

The dark powers have a

strange sense of humour.
some of their jokes are
centuries in the making.
i like to think that uran-
tor will have the last
52
laugh.
 Honor Title Effects

Appendix E: Score
14+ Pure The character is a bright flame
in the darkness. They have

dark powers checks advantage on Dark Powers checks.

Undead creatures can sense their
location from up to 1 mile away.
10-13 Clean No change,
Overview
In this chapter, you will find stat blocks and 6-9 Tainted The character has gained the
game information for a host of attention of the Dark Powers.
They gain one Minor change.
Consider using Honor in your Ravenloft campaign
as a way of determining the sway the Dark Powers 4-6 Corrupted The character has slipped further
have over any character as a result of their ac- towards their own destruction.
They scare animals and children.
tions. Honor is a barometer for how tightly the dark
powers cling to any particular soul. If creating new They gain one Moderate change
characters for a Ravenloft campaign, you may allow and lose a Personality Trait from
their character sheet.
characters to roll an extra ability score/spend some
of their points on increasing their starting Honor 2-3 Cursed The character sours milk and
score. See the Dungeon Master’s Guide, Chapter 9: small plants wither at their
Dungeon Master’s Workshop for rules on Honor. approach.
They gain one Moderate or Minor
In Ravenloft, an Honor Saving throw is called a change, and lose any Bond from
Dark Powers check. their character sheet.
1 Monster The character is openly
Consider having a character make an Honor saving and obviously imbued with
throw when: supernatural evil.

1. They give in to a dark impulse or temptation They gain one Major change,
2. They commit a murder, theft or another act of and lose any Ideals from their
pre-meditated evil character sheet.
3. They intentionally contribute to the suffering of 0 Soulless The character becomes an NPC
other under the Dungeon Master’s
control. They are wholly a creature
Set the DC in accordance with the severity (by your enslaved to their own evil, and the
estimation) of the moral transgression. Dark Powers have claimed them
for Ravenloft.
On a failure, reduce that character’s current Honor
score by 1. If a character shows exceptional moral
fibre, mercy or compassion in the face of evil, con-
sider increasing that character[s Honor score by 1.

A character’s current Honor score affects how they

are affected by and influenced by Ravenloft’s fell
magic. If a character falls below a certain Honor
score, the Dark Powers begin to mold them exter-
nally to suit their inner darkness. These afflictions
cannot be removed by any means short of regaining
Honor. Rising to a higher Honor score can remove
dark traits gained in this way

53
 MINOR CHANGES MAJOR CHANGES
1d6 Minor Changes 1d6 Major Changes

1 The character gains Darkvision out to 60ft., 1 The character grows thick scales all over their
and Sunlight Sensitivity body, gaining a natural armor class of 18, but
granting them disadvantage on Dexterity
2 The character gains +4 Strength, but gains based ability checks, attack rolls and saving
the flaw “what I can’t fix, I break” throws.
2 The character’s skin becomes deathly pale,
3 The character’s hearing becomes acute, and their unarmed strikes deal an additional
giving them advantage on Wisdom 2d8 necrotic damage on a hit. Direct sunlight
(Perception) checks based on sound, but they deals 10 radiant damage to them at the start
become vulnerable to thunder damage of their turn.
3 The character regenerates 10 hit points at the
4 The character gains +4 Intelligence, but has start of every round. The character cannot
frequent headaches and gains vulnerability enter a residence unless invited by the
to psychic damage owner.
5 The character’s skin toughens, giving 4 The character sprouts reptilian wings,
them a natural armor class of 13, but gains granting them a fly speed of 40ft. The
disadvantage on Dexterity based ability character gains the following flaw “I do not
checks understand metaphor, or jokes”
6 The character gains +2 to Strength, Dexterity 5 The character grows a scorpion-esque tail.
and Constitution, but a -2 to Intelligence, This tail can perform an unarmed strike as an
Wisdom and Charisma action, dealing an additional 22 [4d10] poison
damage on a hit.
6 The character’s devolves into a savage beast.
MODERATE CHANGES Their Strength, Dexterity and Constitution
1d6 Moderate Changes scores increase by 6, and their Intelligence,
Wisdom and Charisma scores drop by 6 (to a
minimum of 2).
1 The character grows claws, increasing their
unarmed strike damage to 1d4. The character
gains disadvantage on ability checks
requiring fine manual dexterity.
2 The character grows a forked tongue, and
gains advantage on Charisma (Persuasion)
checks, but loses the ability to speak 2
languages that they know.

3 The character gains blindsight out to 60ft,

but their eyes become catlike and bright
yellow, even in total darkness.
4 The character can scale walls as if under
the effects of a spider climb spell, but grows
octopus suckers all over their skin.
5 The character’s saliva is highly acidic,
allowing them to cast the acid splash cantrip
requiring no components by spitting at
things. The character can no longer eat
without specialist equipment to funnel food
directly down their throat.
6 The character’s appearance turns grotesque
and deformed, granting them advantage
on Charisma (Intimidation) checks but
disadvantage on all other social interaction.

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