BOOK TWO

Monsters
 CREDITS
Design Director: Matthew Colville Cover Illustration: Nino Vecia

Lead Designers: Willy Abeel, James Introcaso Illustration and Design: Grace Cheung, Rodrigo Clark, Conceptopolis,
Nick De Spain, Hannah Elizabeth, Faizal Fikri, Jason Hasenauer, Patrik
Senior Game Designer: Robert Djordjevich
Hell, Bruno Machado, Sean Murray, Michael “Cookie” Niewiadomy,
Designers: Alex Basso, Rudy Basso, Leon Barillaro, Scott Bullock, Alejandro Pacheco, Gustavo Pelissari, Polar Engine, Henrik Rosenborg,
Carlos “Yumgrub” Cisco, Eric Flannum, Paul Hughes, Amber Litke, D. Sebastian Ruffini, Joe Slucher, Martin Sobr, Stray Studios, Allison
Sadie Lowry, Cassandra MacDonald, Sam Mannell, Hannah Rose, Theus, Nino Vecia, Zuzanna Wuzyk
Eugenio Vargas
Diagrams: Robert Djordjevich
Additional Designers: Teos Abadía, Bianca Bickford, Alex Clippinger,
Playtest Director: Lars Bakke
Celeste Conowitch, Mackenzie De Armas, Alecson de Lima Junior,
Marcello De Velazquez, Scott Fitzgerald Gray, V.J. Harris, Spencer Accessibility Consultants: Jennifer Kretchmer, Katriel Paige,
Hibnick, Chris Hopper, HTTPaladin, Nathaniel Kreiman, Kat Kruger, Marilee Talkington
Sarah Madsen, Jessica Marcrum, Mario Ortegón, Taymoor Rehman,
Michael E. Shea, Sal Tamarkin MCDM Contractors
Fiction and Lore Author and Editor: Matthew Colville Community Manager: John Champion

Lead Editor: Scott Fitzgerald Gray QA Senior Tester: Spencer Hibnick

Editors: Matt Click, Ashley Michaela Lawson, Amber Litke, Sadie Lowry Testers: Nathan Clark, Cassandra “Dig” Crary, Alecson de Lima Junior,
Anna Guimarães, Alex Hencinski
Proofreader: David Shull

Sensitivity Consultant: Maple Intersectionality Consulting, Sal

Tamarkin, Basil Wright

Production: Lars Bakke, Jerod M. Bennett, Josh Gertz

Executive Art Director: Jason Hasenauer

Art Direction: Grace Cheung, Nick De Spain

Graphic Design: Cook and Becker, Ross Donaldson

Layout Lead: Chris Hopper

Layout: Lars Bakke, Gwendolyn Clark, Dylan Grinder, Martin

Hughes, Irrgardless

MCDM Productions

Willy Abeel: Design

Lars Bakke: Development and Production

Jerod M. Bennett: Technology

Grace Cheung: Art

Matt Colville: Writing & Design

Robert Djordjevich: Design

Nick De Spain: Art

Josh Gertz: Production

Jason Hasenauer: Art & Art Direction

James Introcaso: Lead Game Design

Draw Steel

Draw Steel™ & © 2025 MCDM Productions LLC. All rights reserved.

ISBN: 978-1-73751-248-6 v1.0

Printed in the United States of America and Europe

ii
Playtesters


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Gameplay Diagrams use art from Czepeku. Visit czepeku.com for a
wonderful collection of Fantasy and Sci-Fi maps for your table.

iii
 If you’ve opened up this book, then I imagine you’re looking for some Draw Steel monsters. Maybe
you’re seeking a band of baddies to unleash on your Friday night game. Or maybe you want to soak
in all the cool art as inspiration for your worldbuilding. Perhaps you’re peeking at this book in your
Director’s reference pile right before you fight some hobgoblins—in which case, your character now
has the title Sneaky Peeker. Whenever you search for hidden creatures, you can spend 1 Recovery to
give yourself a double edge on the power roll.

I’ve been wrangling monsters for years now. I’ve read about monsters growing up, drawn pictures
of monsters, written stories about them, fought them in games, hid from them in real life, and then
eventually started making monsters professionally. You might have fought or controlled a few of
my foes in MCDM’s Flee, Mortals!, the spiritual predecessor to this book. Good news! Most of those
monsters are here too!

Draw Steel is a new game with different priorities than many fantasy roleplaying games. We wanted
to make sure that above all else, each monster can make a real impact on the heroes’ decisions. We
were able to take many of those already tactical, cinematic, villainous, and fantastical monsters in
Flee Mortals! and crank up their traits and abilities to eleven. Those monsters also paved the way for
a whole slew of new monsters who will make the heroes think twice about charging in carelessly!
Players will have to prepare, have their characters form alliances, and find their party’s synergies if
they want to survive the threats that lurk between these pages.

“Well, what threats?” you might ask. For starters, we’ve got the ghastly war dog army, patchwork
soldiers set to explode when they’ve outlived their usefulness. Then there’s the radenwights, a
band of swashbuckling rodentesque opportunists who dance across the battlefield. Maybe our
crystalline dwarven engineers or the shadow elves who can attack characters across two worlds
simultaneously are more your speed? Oh! Have you ever heard of a meteor dragon? There’s one
waiting for you in here, along with many more creatures ready to crash into all the adventures you’ll
be running in the future!

This book wouldn’t be possible without so many people! The brilliant designers past and present
who joined me in the monster mash. The testers who doomed hundreds of heroes so that future
generations might stand a chance. The artists, editors, and members of the production team who
all came together to make a gorgeous book—hell, two gorgeous books. It was a monumental effort
on all fronts.

But most importantly, this book wouldn’t be possible if we didn’t have someone to make it for—
YOU! If you’ve opened up this book, then this was a great success.

Good luck and have fun!

Willy Abeel
MCDM Senior Game Designer
Mother of Monsters
Draw Steel

iv
 Table of Contents
Table of
Contents
Monster Basics 1
Monsters 29 Hobgoblins 171
Humans 180
Ajax the Invincible 31
Kingfissure Worm 187
Angulotls 34
Kobolds 190
Animals 39
Lightbender 196
Arixx 44
Lizardfolk 198
Ashen Hoarder 46
Manticore 202
Basilisks 48
Medusa 204
Bredbeddle 50
Minotaurs 206
Bugbears 52
Ogres 209
Chimera 56
Olothec 212
Demons 59
Orcs 215
Devils 76
Radenwights 225
Draconians 85
Rivals 231
Dragons 92
Shambling Mound 246
Dwarves 105
Time Raiders 248
Elementals 113
Trolls 254
Elves, High 119
Undead 259
Elves, Shadow 127
Count Rhodar Von Glauer 276
Elves, Wode 135
Lich 279
Fossil Cryptic 142
Valok 282
Giants 144
Voiceless Talkers 286
Gnolls 153
Lord Syuul 293
Goblins 160
War Dogs 297
Griffons 166
Werewolf 322
Hag 168
Wyverns 324
Xorannox the Tyract 327

Dynamic Terrain 331

Retainers 351

v
 Draw Steel

vi
 MONSTER BASICS
Monster
Basics
When Creatures Become Monsters
For the Director
The defining feature of a monster is that they impose their will on the
The information in Draw Steel: Monsters is intended for the
world at the expense of someone else. A monster might take control
Director’s use, and all references to “you” in this book refer to
of the land, summon a terrible force to destroy nature or settlements,
the Director. All players are welcome to read this book, but we
or simply bring harm to someone weaker than them. This means that
recommend stopping short of reading the monster stat blocks.
a creature driven by instinct who hunts for food isn’t a monster unless
Those are for the Director’s eyes only.
they hunt outside their needs or their territory. Without malice or cruel
ambitions that can be opposed, such creatures are no different from a
force of nature.

The Purpose of Monsters A creature becomes a monster when their malice meets opposition.
This often boils down to the monster fighting the hero over the fate of
In Draw Steel, heroes face monsters. Each goblin, human, or zombie the
someone else. The game utilizes each monster in a way that challenges
characters encounter has the potential to become a monster who must
the heroes and their players, inviting the heroes to use their abilities to
be overcome. This book provides you, the Director, with tools to use in
overcome the monster’s will.
these moments, as well as opportunities to explore who these creatures
are before and after they and the heroes come to blows.
When Monsters Become Villains
Every Goblin Has a Story If a creature is always a monster, then they are a villain. Every aspect of
a villain’s values and worldview is imposed upon someone else, to the
In Draw Steel, the relationship between hero and monster is a contextual
point where a villain’s very existence is always in direct opposition to one
one. Before and after conflict, a monster is another character in the story.
or more heroes.
Their status doesn’t rely on whether a creature who regularly acts as a
hero is nearby. Villains typically have personal relationships to heroes that other
monsters don’t. There are universal or moral reasons for heroes and
Therefore, a monster stat block represents a moment in time. It’s
monsters to come to blows with one another, such as “Hurting people
an imperfect translation of a creature while they act as an enemy in
is wrong” or “That doesn’t belong to you.” But only a villain can take
opposition to one or more heroes. While the players of the heroes get
something important from a hero, stand for everything they oppose,
to keep track of a character sheet for the entirety of the game, you use a
or act as a corrupted reflection of them in a way that leaves the
monster’s stat block solely while running combat. Trying to have that stat
world worse off.
block provide every detail about each creature who might engage the
heroes in some way can and will slow the game down. Usually, the struggle against a villain lasts much longer than a single fight.
It’s not enough to oppose a villain with intent, magic, and strength of
The game asks you and the other players to imagine these creatures
arms. A hero also needs justice! The villain’s will needs to be deconstruct-
more complexly than simply noting the damage they deal to each other.
ed and proven wrong before they are defeated, in a way that is cathartic
Heroes have access to abilities, skills, and motivations that don’t involve
to the hero and satisfying for all players.
fighting monsters, and the same is true for all creatures. Most creatures
in this book have a language, a culture, and a multifaceted relationship As said above, a stat block represents a creature in battle. If a villain is
to the world in which they exist. They might share the same careers, reduced to 0 Stamina in combat but their main conflict with the heroes
upbringings, and complications as the heroes. They can even become is not resolved, then they have lost the battle but not the war. They can
allies to the heroes, adventuring alongside them as retainers or in make their retreat, lick their wounds, and try again later. Or if death is
competition with them as rivals. inevitable and their will is strong enough, a villain might return to haunt
the heroes as an undead until one side finally prevails.
You can utilize your own character sheets that detail important creatures’
motivations, skills, and features in addition to the combat-focused
features of a stat block. This can be a useful reference for playing a foe
consistently across the tests and negotiations that are also part of an
adventure, especially for enduring villains.

1
 Coming to the Table Monster Basics
Everyone who plays Draw Steel will have a different take on monsters
To use this book, you’ll also want to be familiar with the information
based on their own experience. In the real world, “monster” has
found in Draw Steel: Heroes. If you read that book first, most of
come to mean “the other,” or that which is not us. The monster is
the information presented in the creature stat blocks in this book
an unknowable threat until it is either known or is no more. Often,
is self-explanatory, and follows the setup of the player characters’
“monster” describes ferocious beasts that can’t be prevented from
traits and abilities in many ways. However, a few differences are
doing us harm. Horrifyingly more often, “monster” is used as a label
worth noting.
for groups of people and whole cultures, usually as a means of denying
their humanity.
Languages
Meanwhile in games, “monster” is a clinical term for an opposing
If a creature knows at least one language, a “Languages” entry in their
force. The monster is the away team. The word describes game actors
lore indicates which languages they know. Creatures who don’t know
who challenge the characters’ capability to achieve their goals. The
any languages don’t have this entry.
monster has traits and abilities that the characters must overcome
using their own traits and abilities. The monster provides the reason
for the characters to have those traits and abilities in the first place.
Keywords
Each stat block has one or more creature keywords. These keywords
It’s worthwhile to discuss with your players how each of them
don’t necessarily mean anything on their own, but special rules might
would like to engage with Draw Steel ahead of embarking on a
apply to them. For instance, a creature with the Goblin keyword
new adventure. After all, their heroes will inevitably face monsters,
benefits from and can contribute to goblin Malice features. (See Malice
and conflict in the game should be more interesting than disagree-
later in this introduction for information.)
ments around it.

General Keywords
Everyone Loves Zombies While many keywords are specific to a group of creatures, such
For certain groups of players, imagining monsters beyond their game as Gnoll or Human, other keywords are found across different
definition isn’t fun. For others, building a morally ambiguous story monster groups.
around facing off against foes very much like their characters requires
Abyssal
too much effort to be satisfying. Thankfully, Draw Steel comes with
Creatures with the Abyssal keyword, such as demons and gnolls, can
an assortment of undead, demons, and war dogs that can be fought
trace their origins back to the Abyssal Wasteland—a chaotic manifold
with impunity. There will always be a need for heroes to rise up
whose denizens hunger for the souls of mortals.
and protect innocent people from these sorts of programmed, irre-
deemable monsters, and doing so is no less heroic than overcoming a Accursed
complex monster. Accursed creatures, such as medusas and werewolves, are under
the effect of powerful supernatural curses that change their
essential nature.

Other Sections Animal

Discussions of monsters, guidelines for encounter design, and The Animal keyword is an easy one! It covers bears, wolves, and really
the monster stat blocks that fill this book refer to the core rules big spiders! Aside from the animals of the real world, fantasy creatures
of the game laid down in Draw Steel: Heroes. You can find with a similar level of sapience and who are part of the natural world
information in that book on specific topics as follows: have the Animal keyword. Animals have only natural defenses.

¥Power rolls, edges and banes, Recoveries, respites, Victories, Beast

Orden, Vasloria, the timescape: Chapter 1: The Basics Creatures with the Beast keyword have animal-level sapience, but
¥Languages: Chapter 4: Background also possess supernatural abilities or traits. Basilisks and chimeras are
¥Abilities, conditions, potencies, surges: Chapter 5: Classes examples of beasts. They don’t have a society, but one has eye beams
¥Actions and maneuvers, creature size, damage and Stamina, that can turn you into a statue, while the other has three heads—each
dying and death, movement and forced movement, high belonging to a different species and one of which breathes fire!
ground, winded, suffocating: Chapter 10: Combat Construct
¥Discovering Lore, Finding a Cure, Crafting Treasures: Construct creatures, such as the ashen hoarder and valok, are man-
Chapter 12: Downtime Projects ufactured, with magic or psionics playing a role in giving them life.
¥Supernatural treasures: Chapter 13: Rewards A construct’s level of sapience is determined by the will and skill
of their creator. Some function entirely on their own, while others
serve as mindless drones who take action only if given orders. Unless
otherwise noted, constructs don’t need to eat, drink water, sleep, or
breathe to survive.

Dragon
Draw Steel

Dragons, the giant reptilian creatures with breath weapons, wings,

claws, and jaws, aren’t the only creatures who take the Dragon
keyword. Creatures related to dragons, such as draconians, also have
this keyword.

2
 Monster Basics
Elemental Encounter Value
If a creature can trace their origin back to Quintessence, the Manifold
Each Director-controlled creature has an encounter value
of Elements, they have the Elemental keyword. This includes
(abbreviated EV) that is used in building encounters. See
creatures of raw elemental power, such as the crux of fire, and
Step-by-Step Encounter Building later in this chapter for more
creatures who merely trace some part of their origin back to Quintes-
information.
sence, such as meteor dragons.

Fey
Fey creatures can trace their origin back to Arcadia, a manifold of Combat Rounds
nature and magic that is the place of origin of all elves. Creatures from Because stat blocks are focused on the tactics and mechanics
this plane often have an innate connection to nature, magic, or both. of combat, all references in a stat block to “rounds” refer to
combat rounds.
Giant
Creatures with the Giant keyword include ogres and trolls, as well
as fire giants, frost giants, hill giants, and stone giants. Giants have
similar body shapes to humanoids, but they’re much larger. Despite
that similar appearance, these creatures have no relation to most
Creature Free Strikes
humanoids (other than the mighty hakaan). When a Director-controlled creature makes a free strike (see
Chapter 10: Combat in Draw Steel: Heroes), they don’t roll. Instead,
Horror
their stat block notes a Free Strike value representing the amount of
Horror creatures, including overminds and voiceless talkers, are
damage they deal with either of the following:
creatures who appear unnatural on most worlds, particularly Orden.
Everything about them is alien, and most have potent psionic abilities. ¥ A melee free strike with a distance of melee 1 or the melee distance
of the creature’s signature ability (see below), whichever is higher.
Humanoid
¥ A ranged free strike with a distance of 5 or the ranged distance of the
Humanoid creatures, such as dwarves and time raiders, are size 1
creature’s signature ability, whichever is higher.
creatures who have similar limb arrangements to and sapience on
par with humans. Humanoids often gather in communities and form A creature’s free strike has the Strike keyword, as well as the Magic,
societies to survive and prosper. Psionic, or Weapon keywords if those keywords are found in the
creature’s signature ability. Additionally, if the creature’s signature
Infernal
ability deals damage of a specific type, the free strike also uses that
Infernal creatures, such as devils and hobgoblins, can trace their
damage type. If the creature’s signature ability deals more than one
origins back to the Seven Cities of Hell—an ordered manifold where
type of damage, you decide which damage type the creature’s free
the natives make plans to tempt mortals into contracts for their souls.
strike uses when the strike is made.
Ooze
Creature free strikes are a static number for two reasons. First, it keeps
Ooze creatures, such as the gummy brick, are semisolid masses of
gameplay fast. You don’t have to stop play to roll dice, and there’s no
moisture and malice who take shape in dark, damp environments.
chance of a creature rolling a critical hit and bogging things down
Their forms range from loosely congealed puddles to more hardened
further when it isn’t their turn. Second, by keeping these static values
and calcified shapes.
relatively low, heroes are encouraged to take more risks when it
Plant really counts, even if that might result in them taking damage from a
Plant creatures, such as the shambling mound, are made of vegetation. free strike.
Like other creatures (and unlike plant objects), they can move and
interact with their environment. Creature Opportunity Attacks
Even though a Director-controlled creature doesn’t have to roll when
Swarm
they make a free strike, if that creature takes a bane on strikes against a
Swarm creatures are actually more than one creature! When a whole
target, they can’t make an opportunity attack against that target.
bunch of creatures get together, whether a swarm of spiders or a
swarm of minotaurs, they move and act together as if they were
one creature.
Stat Block Self-Reference
Undead
Whenever a creature’s stat block talks about enemies or
Undead creatures, such as ghosts and zombies, are the reanimated
allies, it refers to enemies or allies of that creature by default.
flesh and spirits of once-living creatures who have died. Their level of
(Chapter 5: Classes of Draw Steel: Heroes talks about enemies
sapience is determined by the creator or effect that brought them back
and allies.) Likewise, if a stat block refers to a target “within X
from the dead. Some undead function entirely on their own, while
squares,” that always means “within X squares of this creature”
others mindlessly seek to harm the living if given no other instruc-
unless additional text says otherwise.
tions. Unless otherwise noted, undead don’t need to eat, drink water,
sleep, or breathe to survive.

3
 Signature Ability Creature Organization
Every creature has a signature ability. This is the first action that A level 1 ghoul isn’t necessarily as strong as a level 1 orc! Most
appears in their stat block and is noted as “Signature Ability.” creature types have an overarching organization that determines
the power level and encounter value of the monsters within it. Some
Traits modes of organization are built around large numbers of weaker
creatures in encounters, while other modes prefer fewer but more
Many creatures have traits, which are features that don’t require a
formidable threats.
main action, a maneuver, or a triggered action to activate, such as
the Crafty trait possessed by many goblins. (Chapter 10: Combat in A creature’s mode of organization appears after their level in a stat
Draw Steel: Heroes talks about action types.) block. For example, most gnolls are organized as a horde, while
shadow elves have the platoon organization. Some creatures have
Malice a main mode of organization and a handful of minions, while other
creatures use a few different organization types.
Many creatures have abilities and features that require a Director’s
resource called Malice to activate. See Malice later in this introduction Monsters are organized as follows.
for more information.
Minion
End Effect Minions are weaker enemies who are made to die fast and threaten
heroes en masse. A battle with minions is one where the heroes are
Certain creatures have the ability to take damage in order to end one
outnumbered and can experience the joy of cutting through fields of
effect on them that can be ended by a saving throw. The damage the
their enemies. Creatures organized as minions are meant to support
creature takes to end an effect can’t be reduced in any way.
monsters organized in other ways, and have a special set of rules for
doing so (see Using Minions below).
Villain Actions
Minions die quickly! In fact, some might die before they have a
The solo and leader creatures presented in this book are designed to
chance to act. That’s okay! It’s why you build encounters with them
be fought in climactic battles at the end of an adventure or campaign.
four at a time.
Because of this, they have special abilities called villain actions.

A creature with villain actions always has three. Each villain action Horde
can be used only once per encounter, and no more than one villain Monsters organized as hordes are hardier and work in smaller groups
action can be used per round. (This holds even if you have two or than minions, but it still takes more than one of these creatures to
more creatures with villain actions in an encounter, though such an effectively threaten a single hero of the same level. A battle against
occurrence should be rare.) creatures all belonging to a horde sees those creatures outnumbering
the heroes about two to one. Creatures who are part of a horde
A creature can use a villain action at the end of any other creature’s
organization can be especially effective when brought into encounters
turn during combat. Villain actions are numbered and intended to
alongside other horde creatures.
be used in a specific order that creates a logical encounter flow and
cinematic arc, but you can use them in any order you choose. Horde creatures are more fragile than any other monsters except
minions, so be sure to double or triple up on their stat blocks if they’re
The first villain action is an opener, which shows the heroes they’re
key to a combat encounter. There’s a chance that if the heroes act
not battling a typical creature. Openers generally deal some damage,
first in combat and have a lot of Victories, they can kill a number of
summon a lackey or three, buff the leader, debuff the heroes, or
key horde creatures before those creatures can act. That’s why the
move the creature into an advantageous position. They’re a taste of
encounter-building guidelines allow you to run lots of them.
what’s to come.

The second villain action provides crowd control. It typically activates Platoon
after the heroes have had a chance to respond once or twice to the Monster platoons are highly organized and usually self-sufficient
villain, move into position, and surround the villain. This second armies. Platoons are well-rounded organizations well equipped to
action helps the villain regain the upper hand. Like an opener, handle most combat objectives. A single platoon creature is a decent
this action comes in many flavors, but it’s even more powerful threat to a hero of the same level, so an encounter consisting entirely
than an opener. of these creatures typically has one per hero. Platoon creatures often
fight alongside minions and an elite creature or two to round out
The third and final villain action is an ultimate move or “ult”—a
their ranks.
showstopper that the villain can use to deal a devastating blow to the
heroes before the end of the battle.
Elite
Elite creatures are the functional opposite of minions. A creature
noted as an elite is hardy and can usually stand up to two heroes of
the same level. Elites also have a high encounter value. They work well
when individually supporting monsters with other modes of organi-
Draw Steel

zation, but multiple elites can also be effective as a band on their own.

4
 Monster Basics
Leader Support
A leader is a powerful monster who buffs their allies and grants them Support creatures specialize in aiding their allies by providing buffs,
additional actions. They utilize villain actions and can stand toe-to-toe healing, movement, or action options.
with two or more heroes of the same level by themself. Typically,
only one leader appears in a battle at a time, alongside minions, horde Creatures Who Defend
or platoon creatures, and elites. Leader creatures have no additional
A creature who takes the Defend main action (see Chapter 10: Combat
creature role (see Creature Roles).
of Draw Steel: Heroes) can’t take additional main actions on their turn.
This means that if a creature has already taken a main action on their
Solo turn, they can’t also take the Defend main action. This applies even if
A solo creature is an encounter all on their own. They have a special
the creature is granted an additional main action on their turn, unless
set of rules within their stat block and can be deployed … well, solo!
they are specifically granted the ability to take the Defend main action.
A solo creature can typically stand toe-to-toe with six heroes of the
same level. Solo creatures have no additional creature role.
Creatures Who Grab
Creature Roles If a creature has an ability or trait that allows them to grab a target,
they can have only one creature or object grabbed at a time unless
A creature’s role appears after their level and organization in their stat
their stat block specifies otherwise. If a creature has grabbed the
block, and describes that creature’s function in combat in a general
maximum number of targets, the ability or trait they used to grab
sense. Roles are descriptive, and most don’t follow special rules.
can’t be used against another target unless the creature releases an
They simply help you build encounters and use creatures effectively
already grabbed target.
in combat. (More detailed descriptions of these roles are found in
Step-by-Step Encounter Building.)
Creatures Who Summon
Ambusher Unless otherwise specified, a creature or object summoned into a
Ambushers are melee warriors who can slip by beefier heroes to reach combat encounter by another creature takes their turn immediately
squishier targets in the back lines. after the summoner. Once a creature summons another creature, they
can’t do so again until the start of the summoner’s next turn.
Artillery
Artillery creatures fight best from afar, and can use their most Creatures Who Heal Via Damage
powerful abilities at great distance.
Some creatures have abilities that deal damage and allow the creautre
using the ability to regain Stamina equal to the damage dealt. Unless
Brute otherwise specified, if this ability deals damage to multiple targets, the
Brutes are hardy creatures who have lots of Stamina and deal lots
creature only regains Stamina equal to one instance of the damage,
of damage. They have abilities and traits that make them difficult
not the total damage dealt to all targets.
to ignore and hard to get away from, and that let them push
enemies around.
Harmless Creatures
Controller Inevitably, one or more noncombatants might get caught up in a
Controllers are creatures who change the battlefield, often with magic dangerous situation the heroes are trying to get under control. If an
or psionics. They reposition foes and alter terrain to make it advan- adventure or encounter doesn’t specify a noncombatant creature’s
tageous for their allies. Controllers are often on the squishier side, so statistics, you can use the following stat block for them.
they need protection!

Noncombatant
Defender Humanoid or Animal
Defenders are tough creatures able to take a lot of damage, and
who can force enemies to attack them instead of squishier targets.
Defenders often act in squads with allies who have lower Stamina,
1S–2 5 8 0 1
Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike
such as controllers and hexers.
Immunity: — Weakness: —
Movement: —
Harrier
Harriers are mobile warriors who make definitive use of hit-and-run Might 0 Agility 0 Reason 0 Intuition 0 Presence 0
tactics. Their traits allow them to make the most of their positioning
t Size
on the battlefield. The noncombatant can be size 1S, 1M, 1L, or 2.

Hexer
Hexers specialize in debuffing enemies using conditions and other
effects. They are generally squishy and rely on others to defend them.

Mount
Mounts are mobile creatures meant to be ridden in combat, and who
make their riders even more dangerous.

5
 Malice Spending Malice
Monsters can spend Malice the way heroes spend their Heroic
Just as every hero has a Heroic Resource determined by their class,
Resource, activating and enhancing their abilities. Abilities that make
so too do the heroes’ foes need their own juice to fuel their strongest
use of Malice have their Malice cost noted in a creature’s stat block.
threats. Malice is a resource gained and used by the Director. You
use Malice to let enemies in the game activate their most powerful Specific types of monsters sometimes have other ways they can spend
abilities and throw surprises at the heroes during combat. Malice once per turn, typically on features that affect an entire group
of enemies, additional main actions or maneuvers they can take
Earning Malice during their turn, or events that affect the encounter environment.
Such features appear in a special [Creature] Malice stat block entry
At the start of combat, you gain Malice equal to the average number
that precedes individual stat blocks in a creature’s overall section.
of Victories per hero. Then at the start of each combat round, you gain
Malice equal to the number of heroes in the battle, plus the combat You won’t be able to spend Malice on every single option a given
round number. For instance, if five heroes with three Victories each encounter has to offer. It’s totally up to you how you deploy Malice.
are just starting their first combat round, you begin that combat with You can spend it on smaller but still impactful features each combat
9 Malice—3 for the average number of Victories, 5 for the number round. You can save it up and use it on a small number of extremely
of heroes, and 1 for the first round of combat. At the start of the next dramatic abilities. You can spend it on the same feature that uses all
round, provided all the heroes are still alive, you gain 7 Malice—5 for available Malice each combat round and then forget about it until the
the number of heroes plus 2 for the second round. As long as none next round. Do whatever creates the most fun for you and makes the
of the heroes is taken out of the fight, you gain 8 Malice in the third most narrative sense in a given encounter.
round, 9 Malice in the fourth round, and so on.

If a hero dies, they stop generating Malice for you. At the end of an
Basic Malice Features
encounter, any unused Malice is lost. All monsters have access to the following Malice features, in addition
to any “[Creature] Malice” features they might have.
It’s up to you whether you want to show the players how much
Malice you have. Some Directors feel that the tension of watching
Malice creep up can create great drama, while others like to keep the Basic Malice Malice Features
players guessing about what Malice-fueled mayhem might come next. At the start of any monster’s turn, you can spend Malice to activate
Do whatever is the most fun for your group, and if you’re not sure, ask one of the following features:
your players what they would prefer!

s Brutal Effectiveness 3 Malice

The monster digs into the enemy’s weak spot. The next ability the
monster uses with a potency has that potency increased by 1.

s Malicious Strike 5+ Malice

The monster pours all their animosity into their attack. Their next
strike deals extra damage to one target equal to the monster’s
highest characteristic score. The extra damage increases by 1 for
each additional Malice spent on this feature (to a maximum of
three times the monster’s highest characteristic). This feature can’t
be used two rounds in a row, even by different monsters.

That’s So Much Malice!

You often need to prepare only three Malice features for any
given encounter, or four if you’re running an encounter making
use of multiple monster types or bands (for example, orcs
and goblins). Just pick a feature costing 2 to 3 Malice, a feature
costing 5 Malice, and a feature costing 7 to 10 Malice and you
should be covered.
Draw Steel

6
 Monster Basics
Using Minions Shared Low Stamina
Minions have low Stamina and fall quickly in battle. They allow
What they lack in power, minions make up for in flexibility and
heroes to feel extra heroic, since a hero might kill several minions at
their ability to let you control the battlefield. Creatures organized as
once depending on those minions’ level and encounter value!
minions work a little differently from other creatures because they’re
multiple monsters who function as a single unit under your control. Each squad of minions shares a Stamina pool, with initial Stamina
equal to each individual minion’s Stamina multiplied by the number
The knowledge of how minions work isn’t a secret and shouldn’t
of minions in the squad. For example, a goblin spinecleaver has 5
be kept from the players. Share the information in this section with
Stamina, so a squad of eight spinecleavers has a Stamina pool of 40.
them! They’ll have a lot more fun battling minions a shaping narrative
Whenever a minion in a squad takes damage, the squad’s Stamina
around taking out multiple foes at once if they understand how
pool is reduced by a number equal to the damage taken. Because
the rules work.
minion Stamina is tracked as a pool, minions can’t be winded, can’t
regain Stamina, and can’t gain temporary Stamina during a battle.
Organized as Squads
Minions with the same name (for instance, goblin sniper) can be Dropping One Minion
organized into squads of up to eight creatures. All members of a Whenever a minion squad’s Stamina pool is reduced by an amount
minion squad act together on the same initiative, and can make squad equal to an individual minion’s Stamina, one minion dies or is
attacks (see Acting Together below). otherwise taken out of the fight. If a squad of goblin spinecleavers
has its Stamina pool reduced from 40 to 35, the minion who took the
damage that reduced the pool dies. When the Stamina pool hits 30, 25,
20, 15, 10, 5, and finally 0, another minion in the squad dies each time.
If multiple minions take the damage that results in the pool dropping
low enough to kill one minion, the creature who dealt the damage to
the minions decides which of those minions dies. When a minion is
taken out of the fight, they count as being reduced to 0 Stamina for
triggering effects.

Squad Size
A squad of four war dog commandos with 4 Stamina each has
a Stamina pool of 16. A squad of eight goblin spinecleavers
with 5 Stamina each has a Stamina pool of 40.
Damage
The fury’s Brutal Slam deals 12 damage to the squad of goblin
spinecleavers, enough to kill two goblins. The goblin who was
attacked dies first, followed by a goblin of the fury’s choice.

7
 Dropping Multiple Minions
If a minion takes damage from any source except an area effect Whoa! Those Minions Died Too Quickly!
(including abilities with the Area keyword) and that damage reduces Minions are made to die fast. But if the heroes act first in a
a minion squad’s Stamina pool by an amount of damage equal to the combat encounter, have a bunch of damage-dealing area
Stamina of two or more minions, multiple minions are taken out by abilities, and your minions are all bunched together, those
the damage. After dropping any minions who took the damage first, minions might all go down much faster than planned—
the minions nearest to those taken out suffer the same fate. perhaps before they even have a chance to do anything. It’s a
good idea to start a fight with any minions spread out from
Allow the player to narrate how their hero takes out additional
each other, close enough that heroes making use of area
minions killed by a single attack. For instance, if a goblin spinecleaver
abilities won’t entirely destroy your forces. And even if the
takes 12 damage from a fury’s Brutal Slam ability, maybe the minions
heroes do manage to kill all your minions in one fell swoop,
surround the hero, who makes a brutal weapon strike that cuts
remember that you can always have reinforcements show up!
through multiple targets with a single action. Maybe the body of the
original target is hurled into an unfortunate ally. Maybe additional
minions affected by a single-target strike pass out from fright! Taking
Prepping Minion Stamina Pools
out multiple minions is a chance to play up the cinematic aspect
When you’re preparing a battle with minions, it helps to take a
of the game.
moment and write out the different amounts of damage at which a
minion squad suffers a loss of one of their minions. For instance, a
Minions and Area Effects squad of eight goblin spinecleavers loses a minion when they take
Minion squads are particularly susceptible to damage-dealing area
a total of 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 35, and 40 damage. If you do the math
abilities that target multiple creatures, because the minion squad’s
before combat starts (or take a quick moment to jot it down during a
Stamina pool takes damage each time an individual minion takes
pause in combat), it’ll help your game run smoothly.
damage. However, such area effects can kill only those minions who
are in the area. For example, a tier 3 outcome for the talent’s Incinerate
ability deals 6 fire damage to each target in its area. If three goblin
Acting Together
spinecleavers with Stamina 5 are caught in the area, the minion When minions act, each minion in the squad uses their main action in
pool loses 15 Stamina instead of 18, leaving the other minions in the concert. This is because minions have squad actions (see below) that
squad unscathed. require participation from all minions, requiring all attacks by a squad
to happen at the same time. Individual minions can choose to waste
their main action doing nothing when the rest of their squad uses
their main action in concert, or can use a maneuver only to alleviate
their own circumstances (see Minion Maneuvers).

Minion Action Economy

Minion turns are meant to be short. On their shared turn, each minion
can take only a move action and a main action, a move action and a
maneuver, or two move actions.

Individual minions can also make opportunity attacks. That said,

minions usually don’t have bespoke triggered actions, keeping them
easy to run.

Squad Action
Each minion has a signature ability that is typically a strike targeting
one creature or object. When multiple minions in a squad use their
signature ability on a turn, you make one roll for the whole squad.

Each target of a minion’s signature ability is affected by only one

instance of the ability. But when two or three (at maximum) of a
Area Damage squad’s minions attack the same creature or object simultaneously,
each additional minion causes the signature ability to deal extra
The talent’s Incinerate affects three out of the four goblin
damage to the target equal to the minion’s free strike value. Because a
spinecleavers in the squad. The squad’s Stamina pool only
minion’s free strike value is typically lower than the average damage
takes 15 damage total instead of 18.
of their signature ability, it’s usually more effective to have each
minion target a different hero.

As an example, a squad of three demon pitlings are attacking a

Minion Weakness and Immunity shadow and a conduit with their Spit signature ability, with a tier 2
If a minion has either a damage immunity or a damage weakness for
Draw Steel

outcome on the power roll. One pitling targets the shadow, dealing
a source of damage, apply the effects to the minion’s squad once, even
4 poison damage. Two pitlings target the conduit, dealing 4 poison
if multiple minions share the same immunity or weakness. These
damage plus an extra 2 poison damage for the additional pitling.
effects are the last things applied when calculating damage and can
drop (or save!) multiple minions from any source of damage, including If a minion squad scores a critical hit with their signature ability, all
area effects. the minions who participated in using the ability can take another
main action.

8
 Monster Basics
Attached Squad Captain
Any non-mount, non-minion creature, who speaks a language that
a squad of minions can understand can be attached to that squad as
a captain. Captains aren’t necessarily strategic leaders with brilliant
tactics. Sometimes they’re just powerful creatures who bully, inspire, or
have some supernatural influence that drives other creatures to action.

A squad of minions can have only one captain, and a creature can’t be
captain to more than one squad of minions.

Separate Actions and Stamina

A captain takes their turn at the same time as the minion members of
their squad but isn’t limited in their action options as minions are. A
captain’s Stamina isn’t added to a minion squad’s Stamina pool, and is
tracked as for any other creature in combat.

Captain Benefits
Squad Action While a minion squad has a captain, each minion in the squad gains
Two targets are within distance of three pitlings taking the Spit the benefits noted at the “With Captain” entry on their stat block.
squad action. One pitling spits at the shadow for 4 damage, one Usually, this benefit is either a damage boost, a bonus to speed, or
pitling spits at the conduit for 4 damage, and the remaining additional Stamina.
pitling deals an extra 2 damage to the conduit.
I Am the Captain Now
If a squad of minions loses their captain, a new allied creature can
become that squad’s captain at the start of the next round (no
Minion Maneuvers action required).
Minions in a squad use the Grab, Hide, Knockback, and Search for
Hidden Creatures maneuvers together. For Grab, Knockback, and
Search in particular, you make one roll for the whole squad, and each
Stat Block Icons
target of a minion’s maneuver is only affected by one instance of
The stat blocks in this book contain multiple different icons
the ability.
that allow quick scanning for just the right trait or ability for
A minion can take any other maneuver individually, usually to alleviate the situation. The following list provides examples of the most
their own circumstances like standing up from prone or escaping a common icons you’ll come across.
grab. If they do, they can’t participate in their squad’s main action or
e The distance of the ability
maneuver during the turn.
x The targets or affected area of the ability
Free Strike Together t A trait of the creature, often a feature that is always in effect
If several minions in a squad make a free strike at the same target
m A melee ability
at the same time, such as from a hero provoking an opportunity
attack by moving away from several minions surrounding them, the r A ranged ability
damage from each minion’s free strike is added together and treated v An ability that is melee or ranged (your choice)
as one strike.
s A self ability that only targets the user
Tracking Squads a A cube, line, or wall area ability
If you use multiple squads made up of the same type of minions in
b An aura or burst area ability
an encounter—for instance, two squads of goblin spinecleavers—it’s
important to make it easy for the players to tell the squads apart. p A special ability with a unique distance, often the entire
You can use different miniatures for each squad, or give each squad’s encounter map
miniatures or tokens an indicator (a colored magnet, ring, sticker, and ! A triggered action
so forth) to help keep track of which minions are part of the same
d A feature or ability specific to a leader or solo creature, such
squad as they start moving around on the battlefield. Many online
as villain actions
virtual tabletops have tools for adding colors or textures to icons that
make tracking different squads easy.

9
 Step-by-Step Encounter Building Step 2: Choose Encounter Difficulty
An encounter is a scene in which the heroes are faced with challenges After thinking about the components of your encounter, it’s time to
or opposition. As soon as the players have made their heroes and are determine how difficult an encounter you want to create. Encounters
ready to see those heroes put into interesting situations, encounter are rated by categories of difficulty, as follows.
building is the focus of your game! The step-by-step guidelines in this
section are focused primarily on building combat encounters, where Trivial Encounters
battle is a highly likely (and often eagerly expected) outcome. Trivial encounters are easier than easy. They present no challenge at
all for the heroes, who are guaranteed to survive the battle with their
Stamina mostly, if not entirely, untouched. Think 10th-level heroes
It’s Not Science taking on a small horde of typical kobolds. There’s no way the fight ends
While we’d love to create an encounter-building formula that well for the kobolds. These encounters can be fun to occasionally throw
could predict the exact difficulty of any combat encounter, into your game, but for many groups, the novelty disappears quickly; too
there are too many variables beyond the monsters you choose many trivial encounters can feel like a waste of time.
for your encounters that we can’t account for. The heroes your
players create, the encounter maps you choose, the number of Unless you determine otherwise, trivial encounters don’t earn the
supernatural treasures the characters create or collect, lucky heroes any Victories.
and unlucky dice rolls, each player’s tactical acumen, and a
bad day at the office before game night can all contribute to Easy Encounters
an encounter going better or worse for the heroes as they play Unless the heroes have already depleted most of their Stamina and
the game. Recoveries, easy encounters won’t threaten their lives. Easy encounters
are great for adventures that want to give the characters a lot of battles
The guidelines in this section will help get you closer to the
between respites, or for when you want them to feel like superheroes
kind of encounter you desire, but it’ll take a bit of trial and
while still overcoming a combat challenge that feels as though it’s
error to figure out the best approach to encounter building for
within their pay grade.
you and your group. For example, if the heroes in your game
have a lot of damage-dealing area abilities, they’re going to An easy encounter is typically worth 1 Victory.
have an easier time standing up to minions. If you have heroes
who specialize in single-target abilities, they might be able to Standard Encounters
quickly destroy a solo. Standard encounters are the most common for many adventuring
groups. These battles deplete some of the heroes’ Stamina and
Learn what makes a fun, challenging encounter for your group,
Recoveries, especially for melee-focused heroes. Although character
and adjust these guidelines to fit your needs. And remember
death is uncommon in a standard encounter, it isn’t impossible,
that reinforcements can always be on the way for any side who
especially if a player makes a poor tactical choice or finds that the dice
needs them if an encounter is too easy or too hard.
are against them.

A standard encounter is typically worth 1 Victory.

Step 1: Think Hard Encounters

Hard encounters are typically climactic encounters with leaders and
Building an encounter is almost like creating a character! Every
their loyal servants, or some other scenario that puts the heroes’ lives
encounter should have the following:
in real peril. Hard encounters are winnable, but the heroes need to play
¥ A backstory or inciting incident. smart to survive.
¥ Cool monsters.
A hard encounter is typically worth 2 Victories.
¥ A motivation for the participants to be there.
¥ Stakes, or consequences for failure, for all individuals involved.
Extreme Encounters
¥ One or more opportunities for the heroes and villains to learn more
Extreme encounters feature threats of a level that the heroes aren’t
about their opponents—or themselves!
likely to survive if they try to fight to the bitter end. Such encounters
¥ An interesting map that provokes the heroes to think about their
rarely appear in most campaigns, though if the heroes are 8th level or
moves as a team (see Choosing a Map later in this section).
higher, they can typically survive such encounters—or have a good
chance of coming back to life afterward.

An extreme encounter is typically worth 2 or more Victories.

Draw Steel

10
 Monster Basics
Step 3: Determine Encounter Strength Step 4: Determine Encounter Budget
To determine how many creatures and other types of challenges Once you know the party’s encounter strength and have chosen
you should have in an encounter, you need to figure out the heroes’ your encounter difficulty, you can determine your encounter
encounter strength (abbreviated ES). A party’s encounter strength is budget as follows:
used as a benchmark for “buying” monsters for your encounter, as
¥ Trivial encounters have a budget that is anything less than the
explained below.
party’s ES minus the encounter strength of one hero.
To calculate a party’s ES, first determine each hero’s encounter strength. ¥ Easy encounters have a budget of anything less than the party’s ES
This starts at a baseline of 4, to which you add 2 for each level of the but more than the budget for a trivial encounter.
hero. For instance, a 3rd-level hero has an encounter strength of 10 (4 + ¥ Standard encounters have a budget that is between the party’s ES
2 + 2 + 2). Then add the encounter strength of all heroes together, and and the party’s ES plus the encounter strength of one hero.
that’s your encounter strength. This means a group of five 3rd-level ¥ Hard encounters have a budget greater than a standard encounter,
heroes has an ES of 50. but no more than the party’s ES plus the encounter strength of
three heroes.
Each retainer or other NPC fighting alongside the heroes counts as a
¥ Extreme encounters have a budget that is anything
hero when determining encounter strength. If a 3rd-level retainer or
greater than hard.
NPC fights alongside the heroes, they count as a 3rd-level hero.

Encounter Strength
Number of Heroes* How Many Fights Before a Respite?
Hero Level 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 A group of heroes can generally handle from 4 to 6 Victories’
worth of combat encounters before needing to stop for a
1st 6 12 18 24 30 36 42 48
respite to refresh their Stamina and Recoveries. But as with
2nd 8 16 24 32 40 48 56 64 encounter building, determining exactly how many encounters
10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 a party can run through before needing to rest and restore
3rd
resources isn’t an exact science.
4th 12 24 36 48 60 72 84 96
The luck of the dice, the number of treasures claimed, the
5th 14 28 42 56 70 84 98 112
composition of encounters, and the strengths of the heroes
6th 16 32 48 64 80 96 112 128 all factor into this math. And heroes might want to stop for
a respite while they still have plenty of Recoveries because
7th 18 36 54 72 90 108 126 144
they have a downtime project they want to advance, or
8th 20 40 60 80 100 120 140 160 because they’re ready to turn their Victories into XP and gain a
22 44 66 88 110 132 154 176 new level.
9th
24 48 72 96 120 144 168 192 Even if we could account for all those factors, your game might
10th
have outlier experiences in which the party has to stop and rest
*Add one Hero for every 2 Victories the heroes have earned on average. a little earlier than you’d expected, or will push through long
after you thought they’d stop. We think that’s a good thing.
Factor in Victories Part of the fun of roleplaying games is the fact that they’re
Victories make heroes more powerful on the way to their next level. unpredictable, with the dice and the decisions the heroes make
For every 2 Victories the heroes have earned on average, increase the both playing a big part in the story. When players push on
party’s encounter strength as if there were another hero in the party. because they have a lot of Victories, that’s the game working
For instance, if a party of 3rd-level heroes has 2 or 3 Victories each, as intended.
increase the ES by 10. If they have 6 Victories each, increase the ES
by 30. Be careful that the larger encounter strength doesn’t lead you
to using more creatures than recommended in Number of Creatures
below. It’s usually better to use higher-cost creatures in an encounter Encounters Should Have Narrative Importance
rather than add extra creatures when increasing encounter strength Combat encounters should hold narrative weight. Draw Steel
because of Victories. isn’t a game of attrition, where a few trivial combat encounters
can weaken the heroes or winnow down their resources to
Since you can rarely predict the exact order in which the heroes will
make the final, important, epic clash with the villain more of a
face encounters during an adventure, it helps to keep a list of monsters
struggle. A quick combat encounter with two bumbling guards
with an EV cost worth roughly the encounter strength of two, four, and
at a gate is likely over in less than a round, and shouldn’t earn
six Victories that make sense for the adventure you’re running. You can
the heroes a Victory. It’s probably better handled with a test.
then easily drop or swap these creatures into an encounter on the fly.
These can be fun scenes to roleplay, but they aren’t going to
make full use of your heroes’ features and should only occur
sometimes. Most of the time when combat occurs, the stakes
for the heroes and the story should be high!

11
 Star of the Show
Step 5: Spend Encounter Budget Sometimes a combat encounter features a creature who you want to
You spend your encounter budget to “buy” hostile creatures to take part stick around for more than a single combat round, so they can leave
in your encounter. Each such creature costs a number of budget points a lasting impression on the heroes. Such creatures are typically the
equal to its encounter value (EV), as noted in the creature’s stat block. named villains who the heroes face in the climax of an adventure
When choosing creatures, try to choose a variety of creature roles for a or campaign.
more dynamic combat experience.
If you want a creature to stick around in a combat encounter and
become the star of the show, set up a hard encounter and choose
Consider Creature Level a leader or solo creature with an EV that is at least one-third of the
To ensure an encounter is challenging but not devastating for the
encounter budget.
players, you want to choose creatures whose level is no more than
2 greater than the heroes’ level. For instance, creatures of level 7 and
Dynamic Terrain Objects
below are appropriate challenges for a party of 5th-level heroes. If the
The final section of this book introduces and details dynamic terrain
heroes have 6 or more Victories, you can push the upper limit to within
objects—thematic elements you can place in an encounter to challenge
3 levels of the heroes.
the heroes. You can spend your EV budget on dynamic terrain objects
Solo creatures are an exception. A solo creature’s abilities dish out a lot the same way you do on monsters. Adding one or two dynamic terrain
of damage for their level, so restrict them to no more than 1 level above objects to an encounter gives the heroes a challenge to overcome or
the heroes’ average level, unless you want the very real threat of a few resolve beyond simply exchanging blows with another creature. See
heroic corpses lying on the battlefield in the aftermath. Dynamic Terrain for more information.

Some creatures outside of these level ranges might fall into your EV
budget, but such creatures have the potential to deal devastating
Step 6: Build Initiative Groups
damage before a hero gets to do anything about it. That means Once you have your encounter’s foes selected, you’ll put them together
characters could die after relatively few attacks from such a creature, in initiative groups, with all creatures in the same initiative group acting
and that the potencies of the creature’s abilities might be nearly on the same turn.
impossible to resist. None of that is likely to feel very heroic.
Though it’s not a hard and fast rule, as you build your initiative groups,
This comparison is the only indicator that level serves in encounter try to keep the total EV of any group between the encounter strength
building. Everything else relies on the encounter value and organiza- of one to two heroes (see the Encounter Strength table at Step 3 above).
tion mode of your monsters. Doing so helps to ensure that the foes in each encounter group can hold
their own against any one hero in the party without overwhelming
Minions Come in Groups of Four that character.
Whenever you spend EV to buy minions for a combat encounter,
It’s okay to have one initiative group with a total EV of less than the
you buy them four at a time. It’s recommended to buy at least two
recommendation above. It’s also okay for a group to be worth more
sets of minions for any given encounter, as they won’t be effective in
than two heroes, as long as that group consists of a single creature or
smaller numbers.
the heroes have racked up a lot of Victories.
The minions you buy can be arranged into squads of any size you need,
up to a maximum of eight minions in a squad. With eight minions, you How Many Initiative Groups?
could make one squad of eight, two squads of four and four, a squad In a battle without a solo creature, you want about as many initiative
of three and a squad of five, or squads of three, three, and two. More groups as the number of heroes, plus or minus one or two. This gives
minions in a squad leads to more effective minion turns, whereas more you a healthy range of groups to play with and makes your turns
squads of minions are usually easier to track. effective without being overwhelming for the heroes.

Number of Creatures
Too many creatures or too many different stat blocks in an encounter
can create a big cognitive load for you, potentially turning an exciting
combat into a slog.

In general, you don’t want more than eight creatures per hero at a
time in any encounter. Additionally, if the encounter has more than
three creatures per hero, at least half the creatures in that encounter
should be minions.

When it comes to number of stat blocks, you typically don’t want to

use more than six different kinds of stat blocks in an encounter, though
you can probably manage more if you’re using a lot of simple minion
stat blocks. Especially if you’re just starting out as a Director, keep the
Draw Steel

variety of your stat blocks limited until you’re confident in your ability
to run a complex combat encounter.

12
 Monster Basics
Quick Encounter Building Parties Large and Small
The encounter-building information detailed above is intentionally
Draw Steel was made and tested with groups of mainly three
comprehensive. But if you want to build an encounter quickly without
to six heroes, including retainers, since that’s how we expected
doing a lot of math, good news! We’ve got a formula or two you can use
most folks will play the game. If your group is smaller or
to build an encounter quickly after you determine its difficulty. After
larger than that, don’t panic! The game still works and will
going through this process, you can then build your initiative groups.
be a lot of fun for you, but you’ll want to keep the following
guidelines in mind:
Step 1: Party Size, Level, and Victories
What level are the heroes? How many heroes are there? Write down For a party of seven or more heroes, you’ll find that solo
that information, which you’ll use in a bit. creatures don’t quite live up to their name. So give the solo
creatures some lackeys or a few more dynamic terrain objects
How many Victories do the characters have on average? For every two
to help them challenge the heroes. If you want to build an
Victories the characters have, add another hero to the party for the
encounter using two solo creatures and the EV math works
purpose of this method of encounter building.
out, just pay attention to the rules about villain actions and
avoid having both solos focus fire on the same character at
Step 2: Buy Creatures to Fill Hero Slots the same time.
Your encounter has a number of hero slots equal to the number of
heroes in the party you calculated in step 1. This number will be For a party of three or fewer heroes, consider giving those
greater than the actual number of characters if the heroes have two or heroes retainers to make up the difference. Parties that
more Victories. small can struggle against solo creatures and big groups of
minions, given how much damage such foes have to spread
Each hero slot can be filled with a certain number of creatures,
around each turn.
as follows:

¥ Eight minions fill one hero slot.

¥ Two horde creatures fill one hero slot.
¥ One platoon creature fills one hero slot.
Using Creature Roles and Organization
¥ One leader or elite creature fills two hero slots. A creature’s role and organization mode helps you build interesting
¥ One solo creature fills six hero slots plus one slot for each level the encounters with varied challenges. Although including creatures
creature is higher than the heroes. covering every type of role in a combat encounter is likely to make
that encounter too complicated for most groups, a fight against
You adjust your hero slots according to encounter difficulty, which then
creatures who all have the same role typically leads to dull, grindy
dictates the level of the creatures you use to fill those slots:
combat. An encounter with a controller, two defenders, and two
¥ For a trivial encounter, subtract two hero slots. Use only creatures of harriers is more interesting and fun than an encounter with five
the heroes’ level or lower. harriers, greatly reducing the risk of playing out a battle where both
¥ For an easy encounter, subtract one hero slot. Use only creatures of sides simply stand still and deal damage without anything dynamic or
the heroes’ level or one level higher. dramatic happening.
¥ For a standard encounter, use creatures of the heroes’ level or one
level higher. You can add one more hero slot if none of the creatures Ambusher Creatures
are a higher level than the heroes. Ambusher creatures can hide, turn invisible, or otherwise find ways
¥ For a hard encounter, add two hero slots. Use creatures of the heroes’ to get the drop on their enemies. They typically spend half their turn
level and up to two levels higher, or up to one level higher for solo attacking, and the other half slipping away and hiding. Ambushers
creatures. You can add one more hero slot if not all the creatures in focus on taking down a single hero, sometimes dragging their target
the encounter are a higher level than the heroes. into the place where they hide.
¥ For an extreme encounter, add four or more hero slots. Then fill all
Encounters that include ambushers should have plenty of cover or
those slots with creatures of the heroes’ level or higher.
concealment, giving them places to hide. Adding other creatures—
typically brutes, defenders, harriers, or minions—keeps other heroes
Step 3: Add Dynamic Terrain Objects busy while the ambusher focuses on taking down a chosen foe.
Include one or two dynamic terrain objects for encounters of standard
difficulty or easier. Add two to three dynamic terrain objects to hard
Artillery Creatures
and extreme encounters. Use only objects of the heroes’ level or lower.
Artillery creatures are great at ranged combat and can damage heroes
who typically hang back behind beefier allies. Most artillery creatures
are weak in melee, so add some minions, brutes, or defenders for them
to hide behind during combat.

On their turn in combat, an artillery creature typically tries to move

away from nearby foes, putting a brute, defender, or other ally between
themself and nearby threats before attacking an enemy. If forced into
melee, most artillery creatures do whatever they can to get away,
including converting their main action into a move action to flee even
farther. If no enemies are closing in, artillery creatures move to keep
the heroes at the edge of their range, often focusing first on the biggest
threat to their allies.

13
 Brute Creatures As long as a leader or a support creature stays in the fight, their
Brute creatures hit hard and have a lot of Stamina. Their damage output allies are enhanced. They are most effective when protected by
can’t be ignored, so heroes often focus on taking down brutes ahead of and buffing artillery, brutes, defenders, harriers, and minions. You
other creatures who have less Stamina or are weaker in melee. Brutes typically shouldn’t use more than one leader or support creature in an
need to get up close to perform their most devastating attacks, so they encounter, as their overlapping enhancements can turn a seemingly
work best on smaller battlefields. On their turn in combat, a brute routine combat into a fatal one.
moves toward the closest group of enemies and attacks, preferring to
engage multiple foes at once. Brutes are often simpler to run than other Minion Creatures
creatures, so you can include a lot of them in an encounter. As discussed in the Using Minions section earlier in this chapter,
minions allow you to create cinematic battles where the characters
Controller Creatures feel heroic as they cut through multiple foes at once. Using minions
With their ability to hamper and move heroes, controllers make a of a level within two levels of the characters’ average level also keeps
dynamic addition to any battle. They often have complicated actions them dangerous and relevant. When minions work together, they can’t
and traits that create unique effects, so most combat encounters be ignored, as they deal a lot of damage and can easily lock characters
shouldn’t have more than two controllers. down. Minions make decent protectors for ambushers, artillery, and
controllers, as well as for leaders.
Many controllers work best when they have brutes, defenders, harriers,
and minions protecting them and taking advantage of the effects
Mount Creatures
they create. Controllers often use their biggest and most powerful
Mount creatures are good for carrying other creatures into battle.
effects at the start of an encounter, targeting as many foes as possible.
Mounts of size 2 and smaller are typically meant to carry a single
If a controller can’t affect multiple heroes or use their most powerful
rider, while larger mounts can carry more creatures. Adding mounts
feature, they focus on manipulating the battlefield and repositioning so
to combat encounters makes the creatures riding them much faster.
they can use that feature on their next turn.
They pair well with artillery, brutes, controllers, hexers, and support
creatures, as well as with leaders. Mounts without riders can also serve
Defender Creatures the same purpose as harriers in combat.
Defender creatures defend their allies by drawing the heroes’ attacks.
They make excellent protectors for ambushers, artillery creatures,
Solo Creatures
controllers, and support creatures, as well as for leaders. Defenders
Solo creatures can stand as an encounter all on their own for a group
don’t need to stay close to the creatures they protect—and it’s better
of four to six heroes. Their villain actions allow them to hamper and
if they don’t. A defender who breaks away from their charge can often
harm foes outside of the regular turn order. Solo creatures are best
lock down a threat far from the rest of the fight.
encountered alone, and fight most effectively in environments with
During combat, defenders engage heroes who are strong in melee. A plenty of space to move around and find cover.
defender battles as many foes as they can reach so their allies can freely
Solo creatures use every movement advantage they have, whether
move. If more than one defender is in a battle, they typically split up,
burrowing, climbing, flying, swimming, or teleporting around the
each fighting a different hero.
battlefield on their turn. They focus on whichever hero threatens them
most effectively, even as they position themselves to target as many
Harrier Creatures foes as possible with their area abilities.
Harrier creatures make battles dynamic. They can move to attack
vulnerable heroes who are weaker in melee, then retreat (assuming
they can do so safely) to protect their artillery, controller, and
Instant Solo Creature
support allies, as well as leaders. Since harriers can often outrun and
Most leaders and elite creatures can be adapted into a solo
outmaneuver heroes, this forces the heroes to act tactically. Harriers
creature on the fly with the following adjustments:
pair well with creatures of any role, including other harriers.
¥Multiply their EV by 3.
Hexer Creatures ¥Multiply their Stamina by 2.5.
Hexers like to hamper other creatures and target the foes they think are ¥Give them the following trait:
most likely to succumb to their debuffing abilities. If a hero has a great
Solo Turns The creature can take two turns each round.
turn cutting down the hexer’s allies, odds are they’re the threat the
They can’t take turns consecutively.
hexer wants to stop the first chance they have.
¥Give them the following trait if they don’t already have it:
Like controllers, hexers are typically complicated and a bit squishy.
End Effect At the end of each of their turns, the creature can
One or two hexers with a lot of protection from allies can make for a
take 10 damage to end one effect on them that can be ended
fun encounter.
by a saving throw. This damage can’t be reduced in any way.

Leader and Support Creatures ¥Give them the following Malice feature:
Leader creatures have villain actions (see Villain Actions earlier in
Solo Action 5 Malice
this introduction) and fight best alongside allies. Creatures with the
Draw Steel

support role function much like leaders, but they lack villain actions The creature takes an additional main action on their turn.
and are less complex. Leader and support creatures buff and heal their They can use this feature even if they are dazed.
allies, and can grant those allies extra movement and actions. They
remain close to their allies so their features can benefit as many targets
as possible.

14
 Monster Basics
Choosing a Map Encounter Objectives
Taverns have tables, forests have trees, castles have pillars, and fields Specific objectives for combat encounters let you create and run fights
have uneven terrain. The best maps for Draw Steel combat encounters that are about more than characters hacking down their foes to the
have interesting environmental features, and you’ll want to choose last point of Stamina. Chapter 10: Combat in Draw Steel: Heroes gives
a map for your encounter that brings the most out of the rules for an overview of different combat objectives you can set for the heroes
movement, difficult terrain, and falling. to achieve during an encounter, setting out what’s achievable in each
objective so the players know what’s expected of them. This section
Your ideal encounter map might feature ledges, columns, walls,
breaks out those objectives in detail, providing examples you can use
windows, dynamic terrain objects, and the like for creatures to be
and modify for your games.
thrown into, thrown off of, thrown through, or simply use for cover.
Even one major fixture of interest on an encounter map can spark the If your encounter has an objective, start with the objective first and
players to think about how to incorporate that feature into their turns. then pick enemies who can best make that objective a fun challenge for
You’ll also want most of your battles to take place in environments the heroes. Each objective gives advice regarding the types of monsters
with plenty of space to move around, avoiding a lot of long corridors 1 who fit well into the objective, but it’s just advice. The encounter map
square wide. you choose and the specific heroes you’re preparing for might suggest
better choices.
Vertical maps are especially great, as an area with high ledges can lead
to a surprising amount of damage for nonflying allies and enemies The writeup for each of these objectives includes the following sections:
alike. Use flat maps sparingly, reserving them for dramatic showdowns
¥ Monster Roles and Organization tells you which types of creatures
in which heroes and villains must test their strength and convictions
are best used in the encounter.
against each other with no distractions. Though even then, a map
¥ Map Advice covers what to think about when selecting a map for
might have a throne to ascend in the center and steep edges on all sides.
an encounter.
You don’t have to be a master artist to create a great tactical map. You ¥ Difficulty Modifier tells you how the objective can change an
can use hand-drawn shapes and lines on an erasable mat or virtual encounter’s difficulty, typically increasing or decreasing the difficulty
tabletop to represent cliffs, hazards, and more. You can also find by one level (for instance, from standard to hard or standard to easy).
incredible maps online. Some are free, and most others are available for ¥ Success Condition details what the heroes must do to win the
a reasonable price on the websites of many great cartographers. day. When a success condition is met, the heroes’ enemies flee or
surrender, or you can utilize the dramatic finish or event ending
encounter-end options described in Chapter 10: Combat of
Making Objectives Known Draw Steel: Heroes.
Encounters work best if the players have a good idea of what ¥ Victories tells you how many Victories each hero earns for
their characters are working toward, but you don’t need to state completing the encounter, based on the encounter’s difficulty.
objectives outright at the start of every battle. Not all groups ¥ Failure Condition sets out what happens when the heroes have
want to commence combat with you saying, “Your objectives failed and the enemies win.
are to break the eldritch machine and destroy the vampire lord,”
if doing so takes the players out of the game’s narrative.
Fun Is Most Important
In many combat encounters, the objectives are obvious.
If the heroes quickly achieve an encounter’s objective but
For instance, in a battle against a necromancer controlling a
are still having a great time, you don’t need to call off combat
horde of undead minions, the players probably don’t need to
at that point. Maybe the foes who would normally flee or
be told that defeating the necromancer ends the encounter.
surrender decide to make a last stand! Maybe reinforcements
In an encounter against cultists performing a world-ending
show up, or a new objective appears in the form of innocent
ritual, the heroes can guess that stopping the ritual is one of
bystanders shouting for help or nearby cultists performing
their objectives. In fact, specifically achieving that objective
a ritual.
might well be what inspired them to undertake the adventure.
They’re not there for karaoke at the end of existence! By contrast, the most fun for the players sometimes comes
from having a fight cut short. If the characters come up with
Not all objectives are so clear, however. In a battle against
a clever plan that works to end the encounter early, let that
a goblin cursespitter, a kobold legionary, and three human
happen and enjoy the players high-fiving each other in a
knaves guarding the entrance to a bandit fortress, it can be easy
victorious celebration.
to assume that the objective is simply “Defeat them all!” But if
it’s the case that the cursespitter leads the group and defeating
the goblin causes the remaining forces to fall apart, it helps
if you provide at least a hint of that setup at the start of the
battle. The cursespitter could clearly issue orders and even call
the other bandits cowards, demanding that they not run away
“like last time!”

15
 Diminish Numbers Defeat a Specific Foe
The simplest combat encounter objective is almost always “defeat An encounter built around defeating a specific foe includes one or
them before they defeat us.” Though the heroes don’t have to kill every more of the heroes’ enemies commanding the rest, such as a hobgoblin
last enemy in this type of encounter, winning the day requires that bloodlord leading a group of mercenaries, or one or more particularly
they push their opponents to the point where they are broken, flee, powerful foes among a group of weaker ones, such as a pair of tusker
or surrender. demons in a gnoll war band. Because these more-powerful enemies are
the stars of the encounter, if only weak foes are left once the stars are
Monster Roles and Organization gone, the battle loses its challenge and it’s time to wrap it up. It makes
Monsters of any role make sense for this objective, so use a good mix of sense for those weaker foes to flee or surrender once their strongest
roles to challenge the characters and players. Put artillery creatures in allies have gone down.
hard-to-reach places, pair up defenders with controllers and hexers, and
put brutes on the front line to give the heroes something to cut through Monster Roles and Organization
as they seek more-important foes. The specific foe you choose who must be defeated is likely a leader
or a creature with a lot of Stamina for their level (such as a brute), or a
Map Advice creature of any role who is an elite or of a higher level than the heroes.
The general advice that applies to picking maps for encounters applies It helps to give the specific foe a defender or two by their side and some
here. Choose terrain that favors the creatures you add to the encounter, minions to help make them harder to hit.
and give yourself some interesting elevation, cover, and terrain effects. If
you’re using a lot of creatures, be sure to give them space to move. Map Advice
When choosing a map for this type of encounter, consider the
Difficulty Modifier placement of the specific foe. You’ll want to make sure that they’re
This objective doesn’t modify an encounter’s difficulty. protected and not vulnerable to attacks on all sides. If they utilize
ranged abilities, giving them the high ground and setting up a few
Success Condition choke points to make it difficult for the heroes to reach the foe makes
Choose one of the following success conditions: for a good map.

¥ An encounter that includes two or more groups of minions ends If the specific foe is the type of enemy who likes to strike and retreat,
when the heroes have no non-minion enemies remaining. make sure they have areas of cover or concealment to fall back to
¥ An encounter with mostly horde creatures ends when the heroes and a map that gives them plenty of space to move around. If they or
outnumber their foes. their defenders use a lot of forced movement, make sure there are fun
¥ An encounter with mostly platoon creatures ends when the heroes hazards and objects to throw heroes into. If you’re worried about the
outnumber their foes two to one. characters being able to teleport in to attack, find a map with lots of
¥ The encounter ends when the number of remaining foes is half or walls or other barriers, since you need line of effect to your destination
less of what it was at the start. when you teleport.
¥ In a battle against a solo creature, that creature flees or surrenders
It’s also a good idea for the foe to have an escape route, often a choke
when reduced to one-quarter or less of their Stamina and after using
point through which they can retreat. If the characters want to pursue,
all their villain actions.
have the foe’s allies hold them off—but don’t make it impossible for the
heroes to follow!
Victories
If the heroes achieve success, they earn 1 Victory for an easy or
Difficulty Modifier
standard encounter, or 2 Victories for a hard or extreme encounter.
If the creature or creatures who need to be taken down for the
encounter to end make up one-third or less of the opposing side’s total
Failure Condition EV, then the encounter difficulty decreases by one level.
The heroes earn no Victories if they are killed, captured, flee, or
otherwise fail to defeat their foes.
Success Condition
The heroes win when the designated creature or creatures are reduced
Fleeing Foes to 0 Stamina.

When the heroes meet objective success conditions, many

enemies know it’s time to flee. It’s a bad idea to make a habit of
Victories
Each hero earns 1 Victory for an easy or standard encounter, or 2
having enemies who get away come back with reinforcements
Victories for a hard encounter.
to punish the heroes, because the players will soon learn to
make every combat a slog to the bitter end. Most players
and characters would rather see every enemy go down than
Failure Condition
The heroes earn no Victories if they don’t defeat all the designated
let one get away if they know that foe will inevitably come
creatures, including a scenario where designated creatures choose to
back stronger.
Draw Steel

flee if their allies all start dropping.

Make it clear that if a foe is fleeing an encounter, it’s because
they don’t want to face the heroes again. If you do plan to
have a kobold gather reinforcements, have that little dragon
swear vengeance and yell for help as they flee. That way, the
players and the heroes all know that this particular kobold is a
problem, but that other fleeing baddies can be safely ignored.

16
 Monster Basics
Difficulty Modifier
Get the Thing! If there is no powerful monster (amounting to one-third or more of the
Classic heroic fantasy is full of important objects that the heroes must encounter’s total EV) or trap directly guarding the thing, the encounter
protect from the forces of evil: magic rings, royal birth certificates, is one difficulty category easier. If the thing is hidden or held, the
dragon eggs, and the like. Heroes often find themselves at violent odds encounter is one category harder.
with their enemies as they race to collect a valuable or important item
from a guarded temple or castle, or when they need to steal the item Success Condition
from a group of enemies already in possession of it. The heroes win when all the heroes leave the encounter map
with the thing.
Objectives in this category work well when paired with other
objectives, such as defeating a specific foe. For instance, the heroes must
Victories
steal a ledger containing a record of criminal activity from an overmind
If the heroes leave the map with the thing, each hero earns 1 Victory if
and her lackeys. However, even if they obtain the ledger, the battle
the encounter was easy, standard, or hard. They instead earn 2 Victories
won’t be over until they also defeat the overmind, who won’t let the
if the success condition is met and the encounter was of extreme
book go without a fight!
difficulty, or if none of the heroes took damage during an encounter of
standard or higher difficulty.
The Thing
The thing the heroes need to get is typically a size 1T object. (If the
Failure Condition
thing is a creature or bulky object that must be carried past enemies,
The heroes earn no Victories if the thing is destroyed or remains in their
you might instead be looking at an Escort encounter.) Most or all routes
enemies’ possession.
leading to the thing are guarded by enemies, and a trap or a powerful
monster often stands guard directly over the object. The thing might
be fragile (for example, a paper document) or virtually unbreakable (a
magic weapon). The heroes’ enemies don’t want to see it harmed, but
the thing might be damaged accidentally.

Additionally, a thing can have one of the following extra defenses:

Hidden: The thing is hidden! The heroes need to make one or more
successful tests to find it once they’re at its location. Alternatively,
it might be behind a door or in a sealed vessel that must be opened.
Or it might even be hidden in plain sight, surrounded by multiple
nearly identical things, so that an unassuming-looking sword held
by a ceremonial suit of armor turns out to be the magic weapon the
heroes need!

Held: As an especially potent defense, the thing might be possessed by

an enemy. A relic or document might be in a villain’s pocket, but if the
thing is a weapon or implement, the enemy is likely to use it against
characters seeking to take it.

Monster Roles and Organization

This sort of encounter is all about getting in, grabbing an item, and then
getting out. Guards protecting a thing are typically leaders, or other
creatures with the brute or defender role. But you might instead have
a hidden ambusher guarding the thing! Devious! Harriers and mounts
make wonderful additions to these encounters, since they can chase
after heroes who manage to obtain the thing. Likewise, controllers
who can change or modify terrain, hexers who can slow down heroes,
or minions who can clog up hallways can make fleeing with the
thing difficult.

Map Advice
The placement of the thing or the creature carrying it is important.
Make sure the thing isn’t simply hanging out in the middle of a
wide-open space. Place it somewhere on a map where it’s defended by
hazards and choke points—and definitely not near an escape route!
You’ll also want to pick a big map for this type of encounter, since
escaping with the thing is part of the challenge and small maps require
less movement to achieve success.

17
 Monster Roles and Organization
Destroy the Thing! Encounters built around destroying a thing require beefy creatures to
Combat doesn’t always have to be about destroying your enemies. defend the thing—brutes and defenders, as well as squads of minions. It
Sometimes it’s about destroying their stuff! Burning a pirate captain’s also helps to have a few artillery creatures off in the distance harassing
vessel, closing a portal to the Abyssal Wasteland before it lets in an heroes as they attempt to destroy the thing, so that melee heroes
army of demons, or shutting down a massive kobold trap made of have to decide between fulfilling that goal while coming under fire or
spinning blades could so hamper the heroes’ foes that the battle is no taking out the ranged attackers first. If the heroes want to use their
longer worth fighting once the damage is done. own ranged abilities to destroy a thing from afar, a sneaky ambusher or
two makes a delightful addition to the encounter, hanging back in the
Sometimes a thing in this kind of encounter is actually multiple things,
shadows waiting to pick opportunistic heroes off.
all of which must be destroyed.

Map Advice
The Thing The map placement of the thing to be destroyed is key, and it should be
A typical thing is an object with Stamina equal to the heroes’ level
in a location that is easily protected and difficult for heroes to approach.
times 35. If the characters must destroy multiple things, divide the
It can be good to set up one or two hidden entrances to the area holding
thing’s Stamina between all of them. Most objects have poison and
the thing, or even teleportation platforms or portals, so that monsters
psychic immunity, and the thing might have immunity or weakness
can enter the fray once the heroes get close to their target. Otherwise,
to one or more damage types. For instance, a magic statue might have
the same choke points used to defend the object might prevent
immunity to fire damage and weakness to sonic damage.
enemies from reaching the characters as they make quick work of the
Additionally, a thing can have one or more of the following thing with minimal harassment. Smaller maps can work well for these
extra defenses: kinds of encounters, as the heroes’ enemies will have an easier time
closing in around them.
Hidden: The thing is hidden, requiring one or more successful tests by
the heroes to locate it at its location. Alternatively, it might be behind a
Difficulty Modifier
door or in a sealed vessel that must be opened, or hidden in plain sight
If the thing doesn’t have any extra defenses (being hidden or held,
among other similar things.
having extra Stamina, and so forth), the encounter is one difficulty
Held: The thing is possessed by an enemy, allowing a weapon or category easier. If the thing has two or more extra defenses, the
implement the characters seek to destroy to be used against them. A encounter is one difficulty harder.
thing can’t be both hidden and held.
Success Condition
Sturdy: The thing’s Stamina is the heroes’ level times 50.
The heroes win when they destroy the thing. In a multiple-thing setup,
Multiple: There are multiple things, all of which must be destroyed. success might involve destroying only a certain number of the things.
Divide the thing’s Stamina between all the individual things.
Victories
If the thing was destroyed, each hero earns 1 Victory for an easy or
standard encounter, or 2 Victories for a hard encounter.

Failure Condition
The heroes earn no Victories if the thing is not destroyed and remains
under their enemies’ control.
Draw Steel

18
 Monster Basics
Map Advice
Save Another People who need saving by the heroes should be somewhere hard to
No one earns the mantle of hero without saving a few lives. Sometimes reach, away from escape routes and protected by choke points that
the point of an encounter isn’t to kill, but to save as many folks as you monsters can utilize. Make sure there’s more than one route away
can. If the heroes rescue powerful allies from the clutches of their foes from the fight, and that those routes are on different sides of the map.
during combat, the added strength of those allies might be enough That way, freed noncombatants running off in different directions
to make the remainder of the encounter trivial. When you and your create a challenge for heroes trying to protect everyone at once. A map
companions save a griffon from a crew of poachers, the hunters become for an encounter of this type should also be big, since the noncomba-
the … well, you know the rest. tants have to flee the area in order for the heroes to succeed. Make it
challenging for them!
Allies and Potential Allies
Some encounters of this type feature willing allies—creatures able and Difficulty Modifier
willing to fight alongside the heroes. Others feature potential allies— For each willing ally the heroes have a chance to save who is their level
creatures who can’t or won’t join the heroes right away, but who might or higher, add one hero to the party for the purpose of determining the
do so later in the battle. In combat, willing allies can be controlled by encounter’s difficulty.
the heroes (and might use retainer stat blocks), while potential allies
are controlled by you. Success Condition
The heroes win if half or more of all willing allies and potential allies
During an encounter, potential allies must be won over and freed from
survived the encounter, and if all those creatures have been saved—
any captivity before they become allies, requiring a successful hard
either joining the fight or having retreated off the encounter map.
Presence test made as a maneuver. Potential allies otherwise attempt to
flee the encounter on their turns.
Victories
Each hero earns 1 Victory if the success condition was met and the
Monster Roles and Organization encounter was easy or standard. Each hero earns 2 Victories if the
Controllers and hexers make encounters based around saving others
success condition was met and the encounter was hard or extreme, or
exciting. Their ability to hinder and put the whammy on heroes and
if all the creatures meant to be saved survived and the encounter is of
bystanders alike greatly increases the challenge of keeping others
standard or higher difficulty.
alive. Likewise, harriers and mounts can chase down people fleeing
the encounter, minions can cut off their escape routes, and artillery
Failure Condition
creatures can target them from afar. If noncombatants are captured at
The heroes earn no Victories if more than half of the creatures meant to
the start of the encounter, brutes make excellent hard-to-kill guardians.
be saved were killed or captured during the encounter.

19
 Destination
Escort Every encounter built around an escort mission has a destination:
Surprising as it may seem, sometimes the fate of the mission doesn’t a place of safety beyond which enemies won’t follow. When the
rest on the heroes’ shoulders at all! Sometimes it rests on the shoulders encounter begins, the ward’s distance from the destination should be
of someone standing next to the heroes. The heroes’ job is to keep this at least three times the ward’s speed (though they can start closer if
important person safe as they travel to a specific destination. difficult terrain or other obstacles complicate the route). The heroes’
enemies can be placed anywhere on the encounter map, including
Not every escort encounter is on behalf of a wise or mighty ally.
between the ward and the destination, but not within 5 squares of the
Sometimes the heroes are tasked with protecting a helpless or even an
destination.
actively troublesome creature, such as a hapless noble or a wayward
child. They might even have to protect a bulky or inconvenient
Reinforcements
inanimate object. Whatever the case, the enemies just keep coming
At the start of each combat round, any enemies who were killed during
until the heroes get their charge to their destination.
the previous round are replaced by a new group of creatures whose
total EV is within 5 of the creatures lost. You choose the positions for
Ward these new creatures, none of which can start within 5 squares of the
The creature or object to be protected is called the ward. At the start of
ward, the destination, or any hero.
each combat round, the players decide which hero has responsibility
for the ward. The ward moves on that hero’s turn and is controlled by
Monster Roles and Organization
the hero’s player. Creatures who are wards can take a move action or a
Harriers and mounts can catch up with heroes as they attempt to
maneuver on their turn, but not both. You determine a ward’s charac-
reach the destination, while minions can take up space on the map to
teristics and speed, with most humanoid wards having speed 5.
become mobile obstacles. When teamed up with support creatures
A sturdy ward, such as an active humanoid, typically has Stamina who grant extra movement, harriers and mounts become ever more
equal to 20 times the heroes’ level. A delicate ward, such as an elderly dangerous. Controllers are an excellent option for placing obstacles
diplomat or an important object, typically has Stamina equal to 10 in the heroes’ way, while hexers might be able to slow or pin down
times the heroes’ level. the ward. And an ambusher or two lying in wait on the way to the
destination is never a bad choice!

Map Advice
A map for an encounter of this type should be big, with lots of obstruc-
tions, cover, and hazards to make the journey interesting. The heroes
shouldn’t simply need to lead the ward down a road, but should have to
climb cliffs, cross water or lava, fight through brambles, or pass through
mazes of twisting corridors. If the ward has a damage weakness, you
might set up a hazard or two that deals that damage type. If an escort
mission takes place indoors, having a few dead ends where the heroes
must retrace their route or run into monsters is always a great choice!

Difficulty Modifier
An encounter built around protecting a delicate ward is one difficulty
category harder.

Success Condition
The heroes win when the ward reaches their destination.

Victories
Each hero earns 1 Victory if the success condition is met. They earn 2
Victories if the success condition is met and the encounter’s difficulty
is extreme, or if the ward and all the heroes reach their destination in 3
rounds or less and the encounter is of standard or higher difficulty.

Failure Condition
The heroes earn no Victories if the ward is reduced to 0 Stamina or is
prevented from reaching their destination.
Draw Steel

20
 Monster Basics
Map Advice
Hold Them Off A good map for this encounter has a defensive position featuring at
Sometimes the heroes just need to buy time. They might need to least two openings, each of which is 3 squares wide or more. The
battle a conquering tyrant’s army to allow innocent villagers time to defensive position shouldn’t be so wide-open that the heroes can’t
escape. They might need to hold off wave after wave of zombies while possibly defend it, but it shouldn’t be so small that they can too easily
a group of priests completes a ritual to lay the undead to rest for good. lock it down. The approach to the defensive position should include
To achieve this objective, the heroes need to stay alive and protect a areas of cover so that monsters aren’t just charging up a hill at the
particular position for a number of rounds determined by you. heroes. You’ll want a map large enough that monsters can’t rush the
heroes and overwhelm them, but not so large that it takes enemies 3
Defensive Position rounds just to reach the defensive position.
Often with the input of the players, you choose a defensive position—an
area that must be held and controlled by the heroes. Enemies attempt Difficulty Modifier
to get through the defensive position or to reach a certain point in or The difficulty of an encounter built around holding off an enemy
around it, so that the fewer enemies who do so, the better the heroes’ is determined by the creatures present for the battle at the start
chances of success. The area can be any size, with the defensive position of the first combat round. Don’t count reinforcements toward the
often blocking entry to a vulnerable area the heroes are defending. difficulty. The encounter difficulty is one category harder if the
encounter duration is 5 rounds or greater, or if there are three or more
A defensive position might grant benefits to the heroes defending it.
defensive positions.
The approach to the position might be a choke point, involve crossing
difficult terrain, or require climbing. Anyone inside the position might
Success Condition
have the benefit of high ground against anyone outside it.
The heroes win if they survive for the encounter duration and allow
If you want to increase the difficulty of the encounter, you might fewer creatures through or into the defensive position than the number
have two or more defensive positions the heroes must defend, of heroes who started the encounter, including any retainers on the
such as two openings in a canyon pass that both lead to the same heroes’ side.
defenseless village.
Victories
Encounter Duration Each hero earns 1 Victory if the success condition is met. They earn 2
An encounter focused on a defensive position has a fixed duration Victories if the success condition is met and the encounter’s difficulty is
determined by you—the number of rounds the heroes must defend the extreme, or if the party held off the enemy for an encounter duration of
area in order to be successful. A typical encounter duration is 3 rounds. 5 rounds or more and the encounter is of standard or higher difficulty

Reinforcements Failure Condition

At the end of each combat round, you add more enemies to the map The heroes earn no Victories if a number of creatures equal to or greater
for the heroes to battle. These reinforcements appear 10 squares or than the number of starting heroes get through the defensive position
more away from the defensive position. Each new group of enemies or into the desired areas in or around it.
should have an EV equal to that of all the enemies who got past
the heroes during the previous round, plus the EV of one hero (see
Step-by-Step Encounter Building earlier in this section). If you don’t
spend all the EV for the new group, the remainder can be added to
reinforcements in a future round.

Monster Roles and Organization

This type of encounter can be a lot of fun, with creatures of all roles
entering the battle in new configurations of reinforcements each
combat round to keep heroes on their toes. Use controller creatures
to change up terrain and force move the heroes out of position.
Ambushers, harriers, and mounts have the best chance of slipping by
the heroes, especially if they come organized as minions or a horde.
Artillery creatures can harass the heroes from afar, forcing them to
leave their defensive position. Leaders and support creatures are great
for these encounters, as they grant their allies extra movement and
attacks to harass heroes and force them out of position.

To ensure an encounter of this type remains fair for the heroes,

you’ll want to only occasionally use monsters who can fly, burrow,
or teleport.

21
 Map Advice
Assault the Defenses A good “Assault the Defenses” map shares the same qualities as a good
The enemy holds a strategically important position and the heroes “Hold Them Off ” map (above), with the roles of the heroes and their
want it. The encounter ends when the heroes secure the objective enemies reversed.
defensive location for themselves, even if there are more enemies
outside it. Sometimes an encounter with this objective is part of a Difficulty Modifier
combined objective, as when heroes must first assault the defenses, An encounter of this type has a difficulty one category harder if the
then hold that defensive position against counterattack. defensive position grants two or more distinct benefits to its defenders.

Defensive Position Success Condition

You choose the defensive position, setting up an area that must be The heroes win when one or more heroes and none of their enemies
captured by the heroes. The area can be of any size. Not all of the have been in the defensive position for 4 consecutive turns.
heroes’ enemies in the encounter are in the defensive position, with
some outside it attempting to stop the characters before they get close. Victories
Each hero earns 1 Victory if the success condition is met, or 2 Victories
Often, a defensive position grants benefits to its defenders. The
if the success condition is met and the encounter’s difficulty is
approach to the position might feature a number of choke points,
hard or extreme.
areas of difficult terrain, or sections that require climbing or swimming.
Anyone inside the defensive position might have the benefit of high
Failure Condition
ground against anyone outside it.
The heroes fail only if they are unable to achieve the success condition.

Monster Roles and Organization

Defensive positions benefit from having an outside patrol of
defenders and brutes protecting the site, and supporting some
combination of artillery, controllers, and hexers who hit the heroes
hard as they approach. A support creature or a leader can benefit all
other enemies, helping them do a better job of keeping the heroes
hampered and away.
Draw Steel

22
 Monster Basics
Success Condition
Stop the Action The heroes win if they stop the action before the encounter
Sometimes combat is complicated by the fact that the heroes need to duration is up.
stop the villainous actions of their foes. It’s not enough to simply defeat
the warriors in a cult. The heroes must also stop the zealots’ devil-sum- Victories
moning ritual! Or it might be that the heroes need to interrupt a wedding Each hero earns 1 Victory if the success condition is met. They earn 2
and make sure an evil mage doesn’t marry the heir to the throne. Despite Victories if the success condition is met and the encounter’s difficulty
combat, the mage forces the ceremony to continue! Objectives in this is extreme, or if the heroes stop the action before the last round of the
category have a timer associated with them. If the heroes don’t achieve encounter duration and the encounter is of standard or higher difficulty.
the objective in a certain number of rounds, the conditions of the battle
could well change. For instance, if the cultists summon a devil high judge, Failure Condition
defeating the devil suddenly becomes the heroes’ new objective! The heroes earn no Victories if they fail to stop the action before the
end of the encounter duration. They might earn Victories from any new
Encounter Duration encounters that occur because of a failure.
An encounter focused on stopping others’ actions has a fixed duration
determined by you—the number of rounds before the villains
complete their plans. A typical encounter duration is 3 rounds, but Under Pressure
events might change the encounter duration. For example, a character If the heroes have been saving the day faster than you
might succeed on a hard Reason test to dispute a wedding’s legality and expected, it might be time to see how fast they truly are!
increase the encounter duration by 1, while failing to stop zealots from Encounters built around the objective of stopping an action
sacrificing an innocent creature as part of their ritual might decrease or completing an action work well in tandem with the other
the duration by 1. objectives in this section. The heroes might need to diminish
enemy numbers or defeat a specific foe within 2 rounds or
Stopping the Action lose their opportunity to infiltrate the palace. Maybe an escort
The enemies’ evil plans have certain requirements, and if those require- mission needs to reach the destination within 3 rounds to
ments aren’t met, the action is stopped and the heroes are victorious. contain a devastating explosion! See Combined Objectives for
For instance, to complete a ritual, one or more zealot priests might be more details.
required to spend a main action each combat round to continue the
ritual. A wedding or other official ceremony can’t be completed if a
participant or officiant is killed or captured.

Failure Consequences
If the enemies’ plans succeed, additional consequences might unfold
within the encounter. For instance, if zealots summon a demon, or if a
newly crowned evil mage uses their royal authority to summon guards,
the heroes could face extra enemies. These potential reinforcements
aren’t counted toward the encounter’s difficulty, since they appear
only once the heroes have failed the encounter. This is an entirely
new battle now!

Monster Roles and Organization

The roles that best fit this type of encounter depend on the action the
heroes are trying to stop. But if them doing so involves destroying,
capturing, or reaching one or more creatures or objects, then brutes and
defenders make an excellent choice for keeping the characters away.
Artillery and harriers also make good choices for being able to target
heroes no matter where they move on the map.

Map Advice
An ideal map for this type of encounter depends on the action the
heroes are trying to stop, but it shouldn’t be easy for them to reach the
places they need to go in order to complete that objective. Hazardous
terrain, walls, and other forms of cover mean that heroes can’t just
waltz up to creatures or objects that are part of the action to be stopped
and neutralize them.

Difficulty Modifier
The difficulty of this type of encounter is one category harder if the
encounter duration is 2 rounds or less, and one category easier if
the action can be stopped by killing or otherwise neutralizing any
one creature.

23
 Complete the Action Combined Objectives
This encounter objective sees the characters charged with initiating Some encounters have multiple objectives that must all be accom-
an event, performing a ritual, and so forth. For instance, if the heroes plished. For instance, the heroes might need to break down prison gates
are attempting to launch an airship while repelling a time raider (a “Destroy the Thing” encounter) and then battle the guards while
boarding party, the encounter could be over the moment the heroes prisoners escape (a “Hold Them Off ” encounter). The prisoners can’t
manage to activate the vessel and take off with just a few time raiders escape while the gates stand, and breaking the gates is useless if the
actually aboard. prisoners don’t escape, so it’s all or nothing! To win the encounter, the
heroes must meet the success conditions for each of the encounter’s
Encounter Duration combined objectives. And if they succeed, each hero earns Victories as
An encounter focused on completing a specific action has a fixed appropriate for each encounter.
duration determined by you—the number of rounds within which
the heroes must complete their plans. A typical encounter duration Alternative Objectives
is 3 rounds.
Many encounters can be completed successfully in several ways. If
the heroes are fighting an evil emperor channeling the power of a
Tasks and Failures magic crown, they might win by killing or capturing the emperor
In each combat round, half or more of the heroes must use a maneuver
(“Defeat a Specific Foe”), breaking or stealing the crown (“Destroy the
to perform a task that advances their plans. You decide what tasks are
Thing” or “Get the Thing”), or even by negotiating a detente with the
available and where they must be performed. For instance, to launch
emperor’s forces.
an airship, one hero might have to cast off an anchor on deck while
another unfurls a sail at the top of a mast. The list of available tasks If an encounter has multiple alternative objectives, you reward the
can change each turn, as you determine. For more difficult encounters, heroes for the objective they completed the most successfully. For
performing a task might require a successful test. instance, if the heroes steal the emperor’s crown, it doesn’t matter that
they didn’t meet the success conditions for the other objectives—they
At the end of any combat round in which the heroes have failed
still achieve success.
to perform the required number of tasks, the party accumulates
one failure.
Changing Objectives
Monster Roles and Organization The heroes might start an encounter with one objective, only to have
Since stopping and knocking around heroes is the name of their game, you change things up with an unexpected shot of dramatic tension.
controllers and hexers make excellent choices to prevent characters For instance, the characters are battling it out with a demon lord to end
from completing an action, especially when backed up and bolstered by that creature’s reign of terror—a “Defeat a Specific Foe” objective. Then
support creatures. You can also put brutes in the way of the heroes and they suddenly notice the demon’s cultists preparing to sacrifice a group
pepper in ambushers who can harass them and then dance away. of innocent noncombatants, changing the objective to “Save Another.”
When an objective shifts, make sure the players understand there’s
Map Advice now something else at stake. As long as the innocents are saved, it no
The best map for this type of encounter depends on the action the longer matters if the demon lord lives.
heroes are trying to complete. The places they need to reach to perform
tasks shouldn’t be right next to each other, and moving through the
area should be relatively complicated. Changing or Adding Objectives
If you find that the heroes are having an exceptionally easy
Difficulty Modifier time taking on an encounter, you can always have a dramatic
The difficulty of this type of encounter is one category harder if the twist in the middle of the battle that leads to an additional
encounter duration is 5 or more, or if completing tasks requires a objective and changes their current goal. Don’t have this kind
successful test. It is one category easier if the encounter duration of surprise in every battle, but much like using reinforcements,
is 2 or less. changing or adding objectives is a tactic you can lean on when
an encounter you meant to be hard turns out to be trivial.
Success Condition
The heroes win if they reach the end of the encounter duration with 1
or no failures.

Victories
Each hero earns 1 Victory if the success condition is met. They earn 2
Victories if the success condition is met and the encounter’s difficulty
is extreme, or if they reach the end of the encounter duration with zero
failures and the encounter is of standard or higher difficulty.
Draw Steel

Failure Condition
The heroes earn no Victories and can’t complete the action if they
accumulate 2 or more failures during the encounter duration.

24
 Monster Basics
Running Encounters Play Nice—Even If You Don’t Play Fair
Once you’ve built a combat encounter, it’s time to run it! Keeping It might be tempting to keep a flying monster far out of reach of the
the following tips in mind can help make your encounters fun heroes, or popping that third villain action at the start of combat, or
and dynamic. causing rocks to fall from the sky every turn. But the less the heroes can
do about any specific situation, the less involved your players will feel
Use Stat Blocks as Written in the game. Use any tricks you can think of to make combat exciting
and challenge the players, but make sure that challenges can always
Monster stat blocks in Draw Steel are designed to be effective. Most of
be overcome.
the time, if you use the main actions and maneuvers in a creature’s stat
block, that creature will do what you need them to do in a fight.
Choose Your Ending
Remember Default Maneuvers You can end combat with a dramatic finish, which lets the heroes get
in on the narrative fun, or an event ending. See Chapter 10: Combat in
Non-minion creatures can use a main action AND a maneuver on
Draw Steel: Heroes for more information.
their turn, while minions can choose between one or the other. If a
creature doesn’t have a maneuver in their stat block, remember that
they can always use the Grab, Hide, or Knockback maneuvers (see
Allow Heroes to Flee
Chapter 10: Combat in Draw Steel: Heroes), just like the heroes can! If the heroes decide to abandon a fight they can’t win, you can have
them escape using a montage test, or simply describe them running
Keep Creatures Moving away so as to live to fight another day. Do whatever you think will be
the most fun for the players after a defeat.
If you want a dynamic combat, trust that the heroes will move in
response to the monsters moving. Move your creatures to let them take
advantage of flanking, get out of range of the heroes’ abilities, and focus
on vulnerable targets. Optional Rule: Last-Stand Stamina
For players who like to have their characters duke it out to the
Spread the Damage Around bitter end rather than ending combat early, this optional rule
can help you bring things to a quicker conclusion. When it’s
In an encounter with a lot of creatures, it’s tempting to focus fire on a
clear that the heroes are going to win a battle, their enemies
single hero. This can be a good tactical move, but it’s not always fun
are overcome with fear, despair, and panic. In this demoralized
for the players. Many heroes have triggered actions they can use when
state, each enemy’s Stamina drops to 1, and each minion squad’s
they take damage, so spreading the damage around can give those
Stamina pool is now equal to the number of minions in the
heroes a chance to do a cool thing off turn.
squad. The heroes can then make short work of any remaining

Modify Stamina As You See Fit foes, getting the satisfaction of total annihilation via dice rolls.

Do you really want that foe to live for one more round? Give them
a little extra Stamina! Is combat starting to drag? Look at that, every
creature you control now has just 1 Stamina remaining. Of all the
numbers in a monster’s stat block, Stamina is the one you can freely
adjust to serve the needs of the encounter.

Utilize Reinforcements
It can be tough to manage a lot of creatures at once in combat, but
bringing in new waves of creatures allows you to use a lot of different
stat blocks in an encounter without getting overwhelmed by trying to
run all of them at once. Reinforcements can also make an encounter
that initially seems like a cakewalk suddenly feel much more deadly as
the stakes are raised!

25
 Reskinning Monsters Adjusting Monster Levels
Even with a book chock full of monsters, you’re likely to find yourself Each monster in this book was created with the help of handcrafted
wishing you had stat blocks for a specific kind of creature not presented tables of numbers and the extensive monster-making rules developed
in this book or another monster supplement. You might need snake for Draw Steel. As such, stat blocks aren’t intended to be modified or
people, fish people, or a 50-story-tall crab. The good news is that you adjusted (with the exception of animals and rivals, as noted above).
can modify any of the stat blocks in this book to make new creatures Your best bet for adjusting any given monster is to find another monster
with just a little work! of the level, organization, and role you’re looking for, and reskinning
that monster while using their statistics.
Use the following tips for reskinning monsters for your game:
That said, this section provides formulas you can use to get close to
Description: You can change any creature’s description and use their
the appropriate EV for a monster of a level you want to create if no stat
stat block as-is to create something new. If you want a weretiger
block feels suitable for reskinning, or if you want a sense of how Draw
instead of a werewolf, odds are that simply describing the werewolf
Steel monsters work.
as a tiger-humanoid hybrid and mentally swapping the word “wolf”
with “tiger” when you play will get you what you need without
changing anything else. Whenever you find an existing creature
Role, Organization, and Damage Modifier
whose stats are already quite close to what you want, this process is The following two tables detail how a monster’s role and organization
especially easy. affects the numbers in their stat block. These modifiers can be plugged
Movement and Environment: Giving a creature the ability to climb into formulas presented below, along with a monster’s expected level.
or swim at full speed while moving doesn’t change their level or
challenge. Neither does giving them an aquatic origin or the ability
Role and Damage Modifier
to breathe underwater. You can make these sorts of changes freely to Role/Organization Role Modifier Damage Modifier
create new mountainous or aquatic variants of different stat blocks, Ambusher +20 +1
turning demonic gnolls into rampaging fishfolk or cavern-climbing
Artillery +10 +1
horrors with ease!
Damage Types: You can change damage types for abilities, immunities, Brute +30 +1
and weaknesses easily. Transforming an elemental crux of fire into a Controller +10 +0
crux of acid can be done by swapping all references to fire damage in Defender +30 +0
the stat block to acid damage.
Harrier +20 +0
Modifiable Stat Blocks: The stat blocks in the Animals and Rivals
sections of this book are meant to be modified, and those sections Hexer +10 +0
feature rules for creating new animal and humanoid stat blocks. Mount +20 +0
You can use these stat blocks to create nearly any creature who Support +20 +0
falls into either of those categories, including many creatures
Elite* +0 +1
common to fantasy.
Leader +30 +1
Solo +30 +2
*Elite can be used in conjunction with a role that features a +1
damage modifier, for a total damage modifier of +2.

Organization Modifier
Organization Organization Modifier
Minion (Stamina only) × 0.125
Minion × 0.5
Horde × 0.5
Platoon ×1
Leader ×2
Elite ×2
Solo (Stamina only) ×5
Solo ×6
Draw Steel

26
 Monster Basics
Encounter Value and Stamina
A monster’s EV is calculated using the following equation. (The EV for
minions represents four minions together.) Round up results to the
nearest whole number.

((2 × Level) + 4) × Organization Modifier

Monster Stamina can be approximated using the following equation.

Round up results to the nearest whole number.

((10 × Level) + Role Modifier) × Organization Modifier

If you want your non-minion monster to have additional Stamina, you

can add (3 × Level) + 3 to their total.

Damage and Power Roll Tiers

The baseline damage dealt by a monster’s abilities can be approximated
using the following equation. Round up all results to the nearest
whole number.

(4 + Level + Damage Modifier) × Tier Modifier

For horde and minion monsters, divide this result by 2.

If the ability is a strike, add the monster’s highest characteristic

to the total.

The tier modifier uses a different value for each power roll tier.

Tier 1 = 0.6
Tier 2 = 1.1
Tier 3 = 1.4

At higher levels, these values can lead to damage numbers a few points
higher than those seen in this book.

Characteristics and Abilities

Additional rules cover a monster’s characteristics and additional modi-
fications to their abilities:

¥ A monster’s highest characteristic and power roll bonus is equal to 1

+ their echelon. For example, a level 5 goblin (2nd echelon) has a +3
for their highest characteristic.
¥ A monster who uses potencies in their abilities bases those potencies
on their highest characteristic, minus 1 for each tier below tier
3. With a +3 characteristic for our level 5 goblin, their signature
ability uses potency language of m<1] at tier 1, m<2] at tier 2, and
m<3] at tier 3.
¥ If a monster is a leader or a solo, increase their highest characteristic
and power roll by 1 (to a maximum of +5), and increase their
potency values at all tiers by 1 (to a maximum of 6).
¥ A monster’s free strike damage is equal to the damage calculated for
a tier 1 outcome for an ability.
¥ Monster abilities normally target one creature or object. Elite, leader,
and solo monsters have abilities that typically target two creatures
or objects.
¥ If you want a monster’s ability to target one additional target over
what’s expected, multiply the damage at all tiers by 0.8. If an ability
targets two or more additional targets, multiply the damage by 0.5.
If an ability targets one fewer target than expected, multiply the
damage by 1.2.
¥ Plenty more considerations regarding a monster’s features and
abilities go into creating a new monster. More robust guidance for
making new monsters and abilities will appear in the future.

27
 Draw Steel

28
Monsters

Monsters
1st-Echelon Monster Bands 2nd-Echelon Monster Bands cont.
Monster Band Level Typical Organization Page Monster Band Level Typical Organization Page
Angulotls 1 Horde 34 Elementals 5 Elite 115

Demons 1–3 Horde 59 Rivals 5 Elite 236

Dwarves 1–3 Platoon 105 Medusa 5 Solo 204

High Elves 1–3 Platoon 119 Shambling Mound 5 Solo 246

Wode Elves 1–3 Platoon 135 Draconians 6 Elite 85
Goblins 1 Horde 160 Olothec 6 Solo 212
Humans 1–3 Platoon 180 Voiceless Talkers 6 Elite 286
Kobolds 1 Horde 190 Lord Syuul 6 Solo 293
Lizardfolk 1 Platoon 198 Xorannox the Tyract 6 Solo 327
Orcs 1–3 Platoon 215

Radenwights 1 Platoon 225

3rd-Echelon Monster Bands
Undead 1 Horde 260 Monster Band Level Typical Organization Page

War Dogs 1–3 Horde 299 Demons 7–9 Horde 69

Animals 1–3 Elite 39 Giants 7–9 Elite 144

Arixx 1 Solo 44 Ogres 7 Minion 209

Werewolf 1 Solo 322 Undead 7 Horde 269

Gnolls 2 Horde 153 War Dogs 7–9 Horde 310

Bugbears 2 Elite 52 Kingfissure Worm 7 Solo 187

Bugbears 8 Minion 55
Griffons 2 Elite 166
Minotaurs 8 Minion 206
Ogres 2 Elite 209
Rivals 8 Elite 240
Rivals 2 Elite 233
Dragon 8 Solo 100
Dragon 2 Solo 92

Fossil Cryptic 2 Solo 142 Trolls 9 Minion 257

Valok 9 Elite 282

Time Raiders 3 Platoon 248

Elementals 3 Elite 113

4th-Echelon Monster Bands
Lightbenders 3 Elite 196
Monster Band Level Typical Organization Page
Minotaurs 3 Elite 206
Demons 10 Horde 73
Bredbeddle 3 Solo 50
Minotaurs 10 Minion 208
Chimera 3 Solo 56
Ogres 10 Minion 211
Hag 3 Solo 168
Undead 10 Horde 273

2nd-Echelon Monster Bands War Dogs 10 Elite 315

Rivals 10 Elite 243

Monster Band Level Typical Organization Page
Valok 10 Elite 285
Demons 4–6 Horde 65
Dragon 10 Solo 102
Shadow Elves 4–6 Platoon 127
Count Rhodar Von Glauer 10 Solo 276
Hobgoblins 4–6 Platoon 171
Lich 10 Solo 279
Undead 4 Horde 265
Ajax the Invincible 11 Solo 31
War Dogs 4–6 Horde 304

Wyverns 4 Elite 324

Ashen Hoarder 4 Solo 46

Dragons 4, 6 Solo 96

Manticore 4 Solo 202

Bugbears 5 Minion 52

Devils 5–6 Elite 76

Trolls 5 Elite 254

29
 Draw Steel

30
 Ajax the Invincible
Ajax
the Invincible
“On behalf of the college, I would like to thank Lord Alvaro for his “So, what has Jack done? He’s chopped the head off the feudal system
excellent lecture. The whole school owes you a debt for donating in Vasloria leaving only far-flung baronies to fend for themselves. The
your time today. We will now open the floor to questions. Before we do, I people feel scared, alone. Leaderless. If the people use the roads, they risk
would like to remind you that we enjoy a certain amount of informality capture by the dwarves; if they use the woods for resources, they’re cut
here at the war college, but when speaking to Lord Alvaro, let not down by the elves. So they learn to distrust the elves and dwarves.
informality topple over into familiarity. We will take the first question “I think it’s a stroke of genius. Conquering all of Vasloria by force
now. Francis?” would be a long and bloody affair. Instead, he creates the conditions that
“Thank you, sir. Lord Alvaro, what we just heard on the topic of Ajax’s will allow him to save Vasloria. He lets this field lie fallow for a few years,
strategy was pretty chilling. In your opinion, as someone who knew and, when he returns, there’ll be a whole generation of young people
him, how serious is he with his stance on non-humans in Orden? And who do not remember a time when the roads or forests were safe. Who
how should we reconcile this with the treaties he signed with the elves hate the dwarves and elves. When Ajax returns, they will welcome him
and dwarves of Vasloria? Thank you for your time, my lord.” as their protector and he will unite them against these new enemies.
“Ah, yes,” Alvaro said, eyebrows raised theatrically. “Jack’s famous “It’s a long plan, but I can’t see any way it won’t work. Uniting
‘pro-human’ rhetoric.” And there was a susurration among the students. humans by pitting them against everyone else in Orden is a strategy I
For the last hour, Lord Alvaro had only referred to the subject of his think he’ll rely on more and more. It’s working very well for him. Next
lecture as “Ajax.” Everyone in the city knew Ajax and Alvaro attended question.”
university together, but for the first time, the students in the lecture hall “Lord Alvaro, according to the broadsheets, there are many new
understood—they had been friends. churches in Vasloria dedicated to ‘Saint’ Ajax. Do you believe this is part
“The short answer is: no. I don’t believe Jack is a raving ah … ‘human of his grand strategy? Thank you, my lord.”
supremacist,’ as the broadsheets put it. That’s Mortum. But he does find “That’s Mortum’s doing, I’m sure of it. Mortum was a great believer
the idea useful. in the power of religion as a tool to manipulate societies. If Jack’s given
“I spoke for the last hour on Jack’s tactics. But let’s talk about his it any thought at all, he’d see it as a sound strategy for his plan to return
high-level goals for a moment. Remember everything I just said about as, not just the protector, but the savior of the land. I suspect if Mortum
Vasloria. The unique problems it presents to someone like Jack. Vasloria hadn’t pushed the idea, Jack would have thought of it sooner or later.
is probably as complex a problem as Ajax will ever face. No centralized The Pharoah of Khemhara commands enormous power, more than any
government, no infrastructure. There’s no Vaslorian equivalent of the political leader in all Orden, because uniquely he is both head of state
Heliopolis, or Capital, Kashiato, or Qarat al Ya’tib. So how does one and the chief religious officer. Even the emperors of Caelila didn’t think
conquer a region with no unified identity and no central command? of that. Next question.”
“Well, you create that identity. Consider, before the coming of Ajax, “Thank you. Lord Alvaro, if Ajax is trying to conquer the world … do
most humans in the region only knew the elves and dwarves as a source you think he will succeed?”
of trade! Commerce. Large-scale battles were mostly fought between “Yes. Unless there’s rapid agreement between all the powers of
human duchies. the world to work together and stop him? Yes, he’s going to win. It’s
“Ajax systematically defeats those dukes, replacing them with … no precisely because he knew such an alliance of powers was practically
one, and he forces the elves and dwarves to sign treaties at swordpoint. impossible that he even considered a Caelian-style campaign of
Like the dwarves of Kal Kalavar. They pay tribute to Ajax in forced labor. conquest in the first place.
They don’t send dwarves, oh no! They capture humans. Those unsuited “Next question.”
for labor go into the Body Banks.

31
 On Ajax Tactical Stance Ajax Feature
He bestrides the land like one of history’s great conquerors. A
At the start of each round, Ajax chooses a new stance from one of the
combination of ambition, courage, and study created a master
following options and gains its benefits:
tactician in command of a massive army collecting countless priceless
treasures—and no one to stand in his way.
t Insurgent
By Might and Merit Ajax automatically treats his initial power roll as a 17. He can still
roll to determine if he scores a critical hit.
Ajax the Invincible has earned his title. He graduated top of his class
at Capital’s military academy, and then immediately launched into a t Mastermind
campaign across his homeland of Phaedros. At his side was his advisor Before he uses an ability, Ajax can either shift up to 2 squares,
or can cause one creature within line of effect to slide up to 2
Mortum, a nefarious wizard who guided Ajax in the footsteps of the
squares, ignoring stability.
Caelian Empire’s conquests before them.

Together, Ajax and Mortum went on to subjugate and enlist hamlet t Vanguard
after town after city after territory with little standing in their way. Ajax has damage immunity 5. Additionally, any enemy who
When they successfully returned the Chrysopolis—an ancient flying makes a power roll that includes Ajax as a target has a double
bane on the roll.
sky-elf city—to the sky, and their accomplishments literally rose above
the country—no one could ignore their might any longer.

Treasures Abound Ajax’s Malice Malice Features

At the start of Ajax’s turn, you can spend Malice to activate one of the
Ajax lays claims to many powerful treasures, both gifted to him in following features.
exchange for sanctuary and taken by his own hands. The Mantle of
the Phoenix Queen, a harness that conjures the wings of a phoenix.
s Reason 2 Malice
Uthgryl, the Negotiator, Blade of the Gol King, a sword so sharp that it
Ajax attempts to instill doubt into a creature within line of effect
could cleave a person’s willpower in two. The Hand of Kukai, a gauntlet through logic and reason. The creature and Ajax make an opposed
plated in jade that harbors powerful, forbidden magic. Reason test. If Ajax wins, he chooses to either deal 11 extra dam-
age to one target on his next strike or to gain an additional trig-
His arsenal is vast and strategically picked to round out his strength. gered action during the current round. Ajax can’t use this feature
There are few situations he isn’t prepared to handle. against the same creature during the same encounter.

The Iron Saint p Nexus Jewel 5 Malice

Until the end of the round, Ajax chooses one of the following en-
While some of his forces may refer to Ajax as the Iron Saint, the version
vironments he has previously visited and overlays that environ-
of him presented here hasn’t taken up that title yet. Ajax the Invincible ment on top of the encounter map, temporarily merging multiple
will continue to amass followers, treasures, and titles until he can realities.
ascend to his rightful status as a saint. It’s up to the heroes to make sure Incredibly High Above the Ground: The winds whip and bluster.
this will never come to pass. Any creature who can’t fly takes a −3 penalty to stability, and forced
movement effects gain a +3 bonus to their distance against such
Ajax’s Languages creatures.
Swamp: The ground is difficult terrain for enemies. Any creature who
Ajax speaks Caelian, Higaran, Khoursirian, Phaedran, Riojan, Vaniric, starts and ends their turn in the same space is restrained (save ends).
and Vaslorian.
Volcanic Canyon: The air is stiflingly hot. Each enemy takes 5 fire
damage for each square they enter.

Ajax the Leader d Solo Action 5 Malice

Ajax is a master tactician. It would stand to reason that he can Ajax takes an additional main action on his turn. He can use this
feature even if he is dazed.
enter battle leading an army instead of facing the heroes solo.

Future adventures might feature different iterations and stat a Draw Steel 10 Malice
blocks for Ajax. For now, you can convert Ajax the Invincible Area, Magic, Ranged, Weapon Main action
into a level 11 leader with the following adjustments: e Four 3 cubes within 10 x Each enemy and object in the area
¥Reduce his encounter value to EV 52. Effect: Each target makes a test using their highest characteristic.
¥Reduce his Stamina to 280. 1 26 damage; bleeding and slowed (save ends)

¥Remove his Ajax Turns trait.

2 22 damage; bleeding (save ends)
3 16 damage
¥Remove all his maneuvers. Ajax then raises his Blade of the Gol King above his head as four
¥Add the following maneuver: giant blades emerge from the ground to fill the area. Each target
is pushed into an unoccupied space adjacent to the area after the
Draw Steel

Strike Them Down Two allies within 10 squares of Ajax power roll is resolved. Each blade blocks line of effect and can be
each move up to their speed and can use a signature ability. dismissed by Ajax at will (no action required).

¥Adjust the I’m Not Done Yet trait so that Ajax dies at −140
Stamina instead of −350.

32
 Ajax the Invincible
Ajax the Invincible Level 11 Solo ! Is This What They Taught You?
Human, Humanoid EV 156 Ranged Triggered action
e Ranged 10 x The triggering creature
1L 7 700 2 11 Trigger: A creature within distance marks Ajax.
Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike Effect: The target is marked while Ajax is marked. While the target is
Immunity: — Weakness: — marked this way, Ajax gains an edge on power rolls against them, and
Movement: Fly, hover whenever the target uses a triggered action involving their mark on
Ajax, he can make a free strike against them.
Might +5 Agility +4 Reason +5 Intuition +5 Presence +4

d Ajax ! Shieldbreaker Talisman

Ajax Turns: Ajax takes up to three turns each round. He can’t take Magic, Melee Triggered action
turns consecutively. Additionally, he can use three triggered actions e Melee 5 x The triggering creature
in a round while he isn’t dazed. Trigger: An enemy within distance uses an ability to reduce damage.
End Effect: At the end of each of his turns, Ajax can take 20 damage Effect: Ajax makes a free strike against the target, dealing extra dam-
to end up to two effects on him that can be ended by a saving throw. age equal to twice the amount that was reduced. This extra damage
This damage can’t be reduced in any way. can’t be reduced in any way.

m Blade of the Gol King 2d10 + 5 Signature Ability ! Who’s Hesitating?

Charge, Magic, Melee, Strike, Weapon Main action — Triggered action
e Melee 1 x Two creatures or objects e Self x Self
1 16 damage; m<4] the target loses 1d3 Recoveries
Trigger: A creature uses the Hesitation is Weakness ability.
2 22 damage; m<5] the target loses 1d3 Recoveries
3 26 damage; m<6] prone and the target loses 1d3 Recoveries Effect: Ajax shifts up to his speed and can make a free strike. If the
Effect: Ajax shifts up to 2 squares between striking each target. target has r<4], this free strike also makes them weakened until the
end of their next turn.
1+ Malice: Ajax can strike one additional target for each Malice spent.

a Decree by the Jade Hand 2d10 + 5 ! Your Obsession With Me Betrays You
Magic, Ranged Triggered action
Area, Magic, Ranged Main action
e 3 cube within 10 x Each enemy and object in the area e Ranged 10 x The triggering creature
1 11 holy damage; slide 2; p<4] the target is hexed (save ends) Trigger: Ajax causes a creature within distance to gain ferocity or wrath.
2 17 holy damage; slide 5; p<5] the target is hexed (save ends) Effect: If the target has i<4], they use a signature ability against a
3 21 holy damage; slide 8; p<6] the target is hexed (save ends)
target of Ajax’s choice.
Effect: A hexed target glows green, and each of their heroic abilities
has its cost increased by 2.
! You Would Flounder Your Assault? 2 Malice
3 Malice: The potency increases by 1. Additionally, the ground Magic Triggered action
beneath the area drops 3 squares and is difficult terrain. Each flying e Self x Self
target who has m<5] is knocked prone.
Trigger: A creature within 10 squares regains Stamina.
r Divine Vine 2d10 + 5 Effect: Ajax regains the same amount of Stamina.
Magic, Ranged, Weapon Maneuver
e Ranged 5 x One creature or object d Phoenix Wing King 2d10 + 5 Villain Action 1
1 No effect. Area, Magic, Weapon
2 The target is grabbed. e 5 burst x Each enemy in the area
3 11 damage; the target is grabbed.
1 11 fire damage; a<4] weakened (save ends)
Effect: If the target is grabbed, Ajax can choose to keep the vine 2 17 fire damage; a<5] weakened (save ends)
extended, pull the target adjacent to him, or pull himself adjacent to 3 21 fire damage; a<6] weakened (save ends)
the target. The vine stays attached to a grabbed target until it takes Effect: Ajax flies at high speed to cut through each target, then ap-
damage from a strike, the target escapes the grab, or Ajax causes the pears in an unoccupied space within distance.
vine to release the target (no action required).
Special: This ability can be replaced with the features of a different d I’ve Learned Their Tricks Villain Action 2
treasure Ajax has acquired. —
e 3 burst x Each enemy in the area
a Bead of Hell 2 Malice Effect: Ajax uses the shadow elf eclipse’s technique to reduce each
Area, Magic, Ranged Maneuver target’s surges to 0. Additionally, until the end of the round, Ajax
e 5 cube within 20 x Special ignores edges and double edges on any target’s abilities, and ignores
Effect: Ajax throws a glowing bead to a square within distance, which any nondamaging effects of any target’s damage-dealing abilities.
ignites at the start of Ajax’s next turn and creates an area around it Special: This villain action can be replaced with a villain action from
that lasts until the start of Ajax’s following turn. Each enemy in the a creature any target has previously encountered.
area when the bead ignites takes 20 fire damage, and if they have
a<5], they are dazed (save ends). Any enemy who starts their turn in
the area takes 10 fire damage.
d Awe of the Iron Crown Villain Action 3
Area, Magic
e 7 burst x Each enemy in the area
t I’m Not Done Yet.
Ajax dies only when his Stamina reaches −350. While his Stamina Effect: Each target who has i<5] is knocked prone and can’t stand
is below 0, Ajax is bleeding, he can choose any two options from until Ajax deals damage to them. For each target not knocked prone,
his Tactical Stance trait each round, and the Director gains 2 addi- Ajax can move up to his speed toward that target and use Blade of
tional Malice per round. the Gol King against them.

33
 ANGULOTLS
Found in freshwater swamps, rivers, and rainforests, angulotls (ang- Angulotl Malice Malice Features
wa-LAH-tuls) are diminutive, brightly colored amphibious humanoids. At the start of any angulotl’s turn, you can spend Malice to activate
one of the following features.
Rather than defending their settlements and breeding grounds against
hostile creatures, these poisonous frog folk prefer to establish their
homes in places that are nigh-impossible for other humanoids to t Leapfrog 3 Malice
find, such as underwater caves and other enclosed spaces accessible Until the end of the round, when an angulotl moves through an
only by water. Angulotls are happy to hide and watch a gaggle of inactive angulotl’s space, the inactive angulotl can use a free triggered
noisy adventurers stumble past the entrance to their clutch without action to jump 3 squares.
realizing it. But though they prefer to avoid combat, whenever they’re
threatened or pressed, angulotls can turn deadly. b Resonating Croak 5 Malice
Each angulotl in the encounter puffs out their throat and starts
Deadly Toxins loudly droning Any non-angulotl adjacent to an angulotl makes
an Intuition test.
Angulotls are poisonous creatures, which suits their preference to avoid 1 5 sonic damage; slowed (EoT)
aggression—because they don’t need it! The contact toxin secreted by 2 4 sonic damage
their skin gives them an edge in close combat, and they also distill this
3 No effect.

toxin into more potent forms for coating blades and tipping darts.
p Rainfall 7 Malice
An angulotl calls clouds to cover the encounter map and unleash
Indicator Species rain until the end of the round. Any creature or object that is
exposed to the sky is wet until the end of the encounter.
Angulotl physiology is delicately balanced, and it doesn’t take much
to upset that balance. While toxins don’t kill them, they are still
affected by pollutants in their waters. Ongoing contamination of their
environment can corrupt angulotls, making them aggressive, confused,
They like humans! Adults
and angry. Most pollution-corrupted angulotls eventually attack
any creature who crosses their path—even other angulotls! Runoff
tend to freak them out a
from magical experimentation seems to affect them the most—and
sometimes grants them strange abilities.
little. I don’t think they
Moisture Dependent realize tall humans are
Angulotls breathe through their skin, so they need to stay damp or they the same species as tiny
suffocate. They often avoid travel in dry areas, and they prefer not to
stray far from sources of freshwater unless it’s raining. humans!
Clawfish Pinna, Hedge Witch, Gravesford
Known as q’ukutxal (koo-OOK-oot-shaal) to angulotls, the clawfish
resembles a moray eel with eight reptilian legs. These small animals
can slither through grass and clamber up trees nearly as well as they
glide through river currents. Angulotls train them not only to pull rafts,
but to cleverly fight by grabbing and electrocuting foes.

Angulotl Languages
Most angulotls speak Filliaric.

Wet
Angulotls make use of a unique effect called “wet.” While wet, an
angulotl doesn’t provoke opportunity attacks by moving. At the
same time, any non-angulotl who is wet and ends their turn with
none of their movement remaining slips and falls prone. Several
angulotl abilities can impose this effect, but a creature in an encounter
featuring angulotls can also become wet by entering water, as the
Director determines.
Draw Steel

34
Angulotl Cleaver Level 1 Minion Ambusher Angulotl Pollywog Level 1 Minion Harrier

Angulotls
Angulotl, Humanoid EV 3 for 4 minions Angulotl EV 3 for 4 minions

1S 6 4 0 2 1S 6 4 0 1
Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike

Immunity: Poison 2 Weakness: — Immunity: Poison 2 Weakness: —

Movement: Climb, swim With Captain: +1 damage bonus to strikes Movement: Climb, swim With Captain: +2 bonus to speed
Might 0 Agility +2 Reason 0 Intuition +1 Presence 0 Might 0 Agility +2 Reason –2 Intuition –2 Presence 0

m Hop and Chop 2d10 + 2 Signature Ability m Nip 2d10 + 2 Signature Ability
Melee, Strike, Weapon Main action Melee, Strike, Weapon Main action
e Melee 1 x One creature or object per minion e Melee 1 x One creature per minion
1 2 damage 1 1 poison damage
2 4 damage 2 2 poison damage; the pollywog can shift 1 square
3 5 damage 3 3 poison damage; the pollywog shifts up to 3 squares
Effect: The cleaver jumps up to 4 squares before or after making this
strike. t Quick Snack
Any angulotl who can target the pollywog with a melee free strike
can eat them as a maneuver. The angulotl regains 4 Stamina and is
t Toxiferous wet until the end of their next turn.
Whenever an adjacent enemy grabs the cleaver or uses a melee
ability against them, that enemy takes 1 poison damage.

Angulotl Dart Level 1 Minion Artillery Clawfish Level 1 Minion Brute

Angulotl, Humanoid EV 3 for 4 minions Angulotl, Animal EV 3 for 4 minions

1S 5 3 0 2 1S 5 5 0 2
Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike

Immunity: Poison 2 Weakness: — Immunity: Lightning 3, poison 2 Weakness: —

Movement: Climb, swim With Captain: +4 bonus to ranged distance Movement: Climb, swim With Captain: Gain an edge on strikes

Might 0 Agility +2 Reason +1 Intuition 0 Presence 0 Might 0 Agility +2 Reason –3 Intuition –2 Presence +1
r Poison Dart 2d10 + 2 Signature Ability m Hookclaw 2d10 + 2 Signature Ability
Ranged, Strike, Weapon Main action Melee, Strike, Weapon Main action
e Ranged 8 x One creature per minion e Melee 1 x One creature or object per minion
1 2 poison damage 1 2 damage
2 4 poison damage 2 4 damage
3 5 poison damage 3 5 damage; grabbed
Effect: The dart gains an edge on this ability against any target who Effect: Any target grabbed this way takes 2 lightning damage at the
has less than full Stamina. start of each of their turns.

t Toxiferous t Shocking
Whenever an adjacent enemy grabs the dart or uses a melee At the start of each of their turns, the clawfish deals 2 lightning
ability against them, that enemy takes 1 poison damage. damage to each wet enemy within 2 squares.

35
 Angulotl Needler Level 1 Horde Artillery Angulotl Slink Level 1 Horde Ambusher
Angulotl, Humanoid EV 3 Angulotl, Humanoid EV 3

1S 5 10 0 2 1S 5 15 0 2
Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike

Immunity: Poison 2 Weakness: — Immunity: Poison 2 Weakness: —

Movement: Climb, swim Movement: Climb, swim
Might 0 Agility +2 Reason +1 Intuition 0 Presence –1 Might +1 Agility +2 Reason 0 Intuition 0 Presence 0

r Blowgun 2d10 + 2 Signature Ability m Tonguelash 2d10 + 2 Signature Ability

Ranged, Strike, Weapon Main action Melee, Strike, Weapon Main action
e Ranged 15 x One creature e Melee 6 x One creature or object
1 4 poison damage 1 4 damage; pull 2
2 6 poison damage 2 6 damage; pull 4
3 7 poison damage 3 7 damage; pull 6
2 Malice: A target who has m < 2] is weakened (save ends). A target Effect: The target is wet (save ends). Any ally targeted by this ability
weakened this way takes 2 poison damage at the start of each of ignores the damage, is wet until the end of the encounter, and is
their turns. pulled up to 6 squares, ignoring stability.

t Toxiferous s Hop To It 2 Malice

Whenever an adjacent enemy grabs the needler or uses a melee — Free maneuver
ability against them, that enemy takes 2 poison damage. e Self x Self
Effect: The slink jumps up to 3 squares. If they have cover or conceal-
ment when they land, they can attempt to hide.

t Adhesive
The slink excretes a sticky residue into their square at the end
of each of their turns. Any non-angulotl who enters or leaves
the square is stuck, and must use a maneuver to break free or be
restrained until the end of their turn. Objects are likewise affected,
and a creature must use a maneuver to remove an object from the
square.

t Toxiferous
Whenever an adjacent enemy grabs the slink or uses a melee
ability against them, that enemy takes 2 poison damage.
Draw Steel

36
Angulotl Wave Level 1 Horde Controller

Angulotls
Angulotl Tactics
Angulotl, Humanoid EV 3
Angulotls are not generally aggressive, and if confronted, a
patrol of frog folk will usually exchange a few blows before
1S 5 10 0 1 performing a harrying retreat to their hidden villages. In
Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike
defense of their homes, however, they become much fiercer
Immunity: Poison 2 Weakness: — and more determined. In these battles, angulotls try to force
Movement: Climb, swim
fights in or near water to take advantage of their amphibious
Might 0 Agility 0 Reason 0 Intuition +2 Presence +2 nature and the wet effect.

r Refulgent Beams 2d10 + 2 Signature Ability Simple patrols are usually made up of slippery captains leaping
Magic, Ranged, Strike Main action into the backline and harassing low-Stamina heroes while their
e Ranged 8 x Two creatures or objects minion hordes keep higher-Stamina heroes engaged. In larger
1 3 holy damage engagements their tactics become more defensive to protect
2 4 holy damage; r<1] ] the target is illuminated (save ends)
their high-value units. They tend to stay in close and coherent
3 5 holy damage; r < 2] the target is illuminated (save ends)
groups to take advantage of support abilities.
Effect: An illuminated creature or object can’t hide or become invisi-
ble, and any strike made against an illuminated target gains an edge. Angulotl Sample Encounters
¥Clawfish Ranchers, 18 EV: Twelve clawfish, four pollywogs,
a Noxious Bubble 2 Malice two needlers
Area, Magic, Ranged Main action
e 2 cube of unoccupied space within 10 x Special ¥Homeguard Scouts, 24 EV: Sixteen cleavers, eight darts, one
needler, two slinks
Effect: A bubble of toxic gas fills the area, ready to pop. If any creature
¥Corrupted Clutch, 34 EV: Eight clawfish, twelve cleavers,
or object touches the bubble or if the bubble takes damage, it bursts.
Each angulotl adjacent to the bubble is wet until the end of the en- eight pollywogs, one needler, two slinks, one wave
counter, and each enemy adjacent to the bubble makes a Might test. ¥Angulotl Assault Squad, 48 EV: Eight clawfish, twelve
1 3 poison damage; the target is wet and weakened (save ends) cleavers, twelve darts, two needlers, two slinks,
2 2 poison damage; the target is wet (save ends)
one daybringer
3 1 poison damage; the target is wet (EoT)

t Toxiferous
Whenever an adjacent enemy grabs the wave or uses a melee
ability against them, that enemy takes 2 poison damage.

37
 Angulotl Daybringer Level 1 Leader
Angulotl, Humanoid EV 12

1M 5 80 1 4
Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike
Immunity: Poison 3 Weakness: —
Movement: Climb, swim
Might +3 Agility+2 Reason 0 Intuition +2 Presence 0

m Acid Grasp 2d10 + 3 Signature Ability

Melee, Strike, Weapon Main action
e Melee 1 x Two creatures or objects
1 7 acid damage; a < 1] dazed (save ends)
2 10 acid damage; a < 2] dazed (save ends)
3 13 acid damage; a < 3] dazed (save ends)
Effect: The next time the target makes a strike against the daybringer,
the target takes 4 acid damage after the strike is resolved.
1 Malice: The daybringer jumps up to 3 squares before or after using
this ability.

s Sun Lamp
— Maneuver
e Self x Self
Effect: The daybringer expands their throat to make it resemble the
sun until the start of their next turn. During that time, each angulotl
who starts their turn within 10 squares of the daybringer regains 5
Stamina and gains a +3 bonus to speed until the end of their turn.

! Tongue Slap
Melee Triggered action
e Melee 5 x One creature
Trigger: The target makes a strike against the daybringer or an ally
that isn’t a critical hit.
Effect: The outcome of the strike’s power roll is reduced by one tier.
2 Malice: The target is pulled up to 4 squares after the strike resolves.

t Moisturizing End Effect

At the end of each of the daybringer’s turns, they can either take
5 damage or end the wet effect on an adjacent creature in order to
end one effect on them that can be ended by a saving throw. This
damage can’t be reduced in any way.

d New Dawn Villain Action 1

Ranged
e Ranged 10 x Special
Effect: Four angulotl pollywogs erupt from the daybringer’s back and
waddle into unoccupied spaces within distance.

d Plague of Frogs Villain Action 2

Area
e 8 burst x Self and each ally in the area
Effect: Each target can jump up to 4 squares. Each non-minion target
can make a free strike at the end of the jump.

d It Is Day Villain Action 3

—
e Special x Special
Draw Steel

Effect: The encounter map dries up and each enemy and object on it
is illuminated until the end of the encounter. An illuminated creature
or object can’t hide or become invisible, and any strike made against
an illuminated target gains an edge. Additionally, each enemy in the
encounter who is wet has that effect end and takes 6 acid damage.
Each angulotl in the encounter has a double edge on their next strike.

t Toxiferous
Whenever an adjacent enemy grabs the daybringer or uses a me-
38 lee ability against them, that enemy takes 3 poison damage.
ANIMALS

Animals
The natural denizens of every world, animals ferocious, atrocious, and
Defensive Traits
Defensive traits help animals stay out of danger—or to set ambushes
precocious roam the lands between and among settlements of humanoids
for unwary prey.
and other folk. Whether they graze or hunt, stay solitary or move in packs,
fight danger or fly from it, all animals share a singular goal—to live. Most Camouflage (1 Point)
animals are not monsters, but some are twisted by magic and malice The animal can attempt to hide even while observed. While no enemy
to become monsters. A hero wouldn’t mercilessly kill a pack of hungry has line of effect to the animal, they can automatically hide at the end
wolves—but they’ll slay rot-magic dire wolves created by vampires. In many of their turn.
cases, animals are more likely to be bystanders than threats in an encounter.
Typically Used By: Chameleons, foxes, tigers.

Animal Traits Fearsome (2 Points)

As a maneuver, the animal makes an imposing display. Each enemy
This section presents a number of default animal stat blocks with basic
within 2 squares of the animal who has i<1] must shift 3 squares in a
features. You can customize those stat blocks by adding traits from the
straight line away from the animal.
following categories to more closely model the animal’s most identifiable
features. You can spend up to 4 points on traits to add to a stat block without Typically Used By: Aardvarks, lions, peacocks.
increasing the encounter value. Each point you spend after 4 increases the stat
Pack (1 Point)
block’s EV by 2. Unless otherwise specified, you can select a trait only once.
While adjacent to an ally, the animal can’t be flanked or be
made frightened.
Mobility Traits
Mobility traits cover a wide range of the options that keep animals moving. Typically Used By: Hyenas, sheep, wolves.

Burrowing (2 Points) Plated (1 Point)

The animal can burrow. The animal has a +2 bonus to stability, and melee strikes against them
take a bane.
+1 Point: The animal can burrow through stone, creating a tunnel of
their size in each square of stone they move through. Typically Used By: Beetles, crabs, turtles.

Typically Used By: Ants, groundhogs, mohlers. Spiny (1 Point)

Whenever an adjacent enemy grabs the animal or uses a melee ability
Climbing (1 Point)
against them, that enemy takes 3 damage.
The animal can automatically climb at full speed while moving.
Typically Used By: Porcupines, urchins.
Typically Used By: Jaguars, monkeys.
Stench (2 Points)
Flight (2 Points)
At the start of the animal’s turn, each enemy adjacent to the animal
The animal can fly, and their stability decreases by 2 (to a minimum of 0).
who has m<1] must shift 1 square away from the animal.
+1 Point: The animal can also hover.
Typically Used By: Oxen, skunks, wolverines.
Typically Used By: Bees, birds.
Thick Hide (1 Point)
Leaping (2 Points) The animal starts any combat encounter with 10 temporary Stamina.
On their turn, the animal can high jump or long jump up to half their speed. (This trait can be selected twice.)
This jump can allow the animal to move more squares than their speed.
Typically Used By: Bears, elephants, rhinoceroses.
Typically Used By: Frogs, rabbits.
Unrelenting (2 Points)
Slinking (1 Point) Once per combat, when the animal is reduced to 0 Stamina, they can
The animal can use a move action to shift up to 3 squares, even while prone. choose to either remain alive with 1 Stamina or immediately move up
to their speed and make a free strike before dying.
Typically Used By: Snakes, vermin.
Typically Used By: Bears, boars.
Swiftness (1 Point)
The animal has a +2 bonus to speed, and they ignore difficult terrain. Wiggly (1 Point)
(This trait can be selected twice.) The animal ignores opportunity attacks and gains an edge on the
Escape Grab maneuver.
Typically Used By: Tigers, wolves.
Typically Used By: Eels, lizards, rats.
Swimming (1 Point)
The animal can automatically swim at full speed while moving. Withdraw (2 Points)
Whenever the animal takes damage, they can use a triggered action
Typically Used By: Fish, penguins.
to halve that damage and all other damage they take until the start of
their next turn.
Lots of Options! Typically Used By: Armadillos, turtles.
When using animal traits, think about using one mobility trait
and either a defensive or an offensive trait to capture the sense
of the animal. Other animal traits that don’t need to be on the
stat block can emerge naturally through gameplay, such as a
cat taking no damage from a fall.
39
 Offensive Traits Web (2 Points)
When animals hunt or face off against threats, they bring a wide range The animal gains the following ability.
of offensive traits to bear. a Web
Charger (1 Point) Area, Weapon Maneuver
e 3 cube within 1 x Each creature in the area
The animal’s signature ability has the Charge keyword, and they gain
an edge on that ability if it is used as part of the Charge main action.
1 a<0] restrained (save ends)
2 a<1] restrained (save ends)
Typically Used By: Boars, rhinoceroses, swordfish. 3 a<2] restrained (save ends)
Effect: The area is difficult terrain for enemies until the end of
Frenzy (1 Point)
the encounter.
The animal gains an edge on strikes against creatures who are
bleeding or winded. Typically Used By: Pelagic snails, spiders.

Typically Used By: Blood bats, piranhas, sharks.

Supernatural Traits
Grappler (1 Point) Animals who channel magic or psionic power can show off a range of
If the target of the animal’s signature ability has a<1], they are unusual supernatural traits.
grabbed by the animal.
Death Fumes (10 Points)
+1 Point: An enemy grabbed by the animal takes a bane on the Escape Whenever the animal takes damage, each creature adjacent to the
Grab maneuver. animal who has m<1] takes damage equal to half the creature’s
current Stamina.
Typically Used By: Apes, octopuses, snakes.
Typically Used By: Death snails.
Hunter (1 Point)
The animal ignores concealment. Elemental (2 Points)
The animal has an affinity for one of the following damage types:
Typically Used By: Eagles, rats, wolves.
acid, cold, corruption, fire, lightning, poison. The animal has damage
Multilimb (2 Points) immunity 3 to the chosen damage type, and their strikes deal the
The animal can target one additional creature or object whenever chosen damage type instead of their original damage type.
they make a free strike, use the Grab maneuver, or use the Knockback
Typically Used By: Fire salamanders, ice bats.
maneuver. (This trait can be selected twice.)
Gelatinous (2 Points)
Typically Used By: Monkeys, octopuses, quadrakangas.
The animal can move through spaces as if they were size 1T.
Pouncer (1 Point) Whenever the animal takes damage, they can use a triggered action to
As a maneuver, the animal jumps up to 3 squares. If they land on an separate into two animals. Each new animal has the same statistics as
enemy their size or smaller, that enemy is knocked prone and the the original but has half the original’s current Stamina.
animal can make a free strike against them.
Typically Used By: Earthworms, thunderjellies.
Typically Used By: Foxes, wild cats.
Hypnosis (2 Points)
Power (1 Point) As a maneuver, the animal targets one enemy within 5 squares with
Whenever the animal force moves a target, they have a +2 bonus to their gaze, movements, or vocalizations. If the enemy has r<1], they
the forced movement distance. are dazed (save ends).

Typically Used By: Bears, bulls, lions. Typically Used By: Angler fish, snakes, tigers.

Projectile (2 Points) Imposer (2 Points)

The animal’s signature ability gains the Ranged keyword and adds The animal’s size increases by 1 (to a minimum of size 2), and they
Ranged 10 to its distance. gain a +2 bonus to stability. Additionally, the animal gains a +3
damage bonus to strikes.
Optional: The animal’s signature ability can deal acid or cold damage.
Typically Used By: Dire animals, terror lizards.
Typically Used By: Archer fish, snakes.
Pass Through (2 Points)
Reach (1 Point)
The animal can move through solid matter, and strikes made against
The animal’s signature ability gains a +2 bonus to distance. (This trait
them take a bane. If the animal ends their turn inside solid matter,
can be selected twice.)
they are shunted out into the space from which they entered it.
Optional: The animal’s signature ability can deal fire or sonic damage.
Typically Used By: Barn owls, tiger wraiths.
Typically Used By: Frogs, giraffes, pistol shrimp.
Translation (2 Points)
Venom (1 Point) The animal can teleport.
Draw Steel

The animal’s signature ability deals an extra 2 poison damage, and if

+1 Point: The animal can also hover.
the target has m<1], they are weakened (save ends).
Typically Used By: Quantum spiders, thrazzes.
Typically Used By: Platypuses, snakes, wasps.

40
Animal Stat Blocks Animal Level 1 Elite Harrier

Animals
Animal EV 12
The following stat blocks can be used to describe everyday animals
capable of acting as threats or challenges to the heroes under
appropriate circumstances. Alternatively, you can add traits to these 1M 6 60 0 4
Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike
stat blocks to describe animals of a specific type. If you’re adding traits
to animal stat blocks, build out your custom animals ahead of time to Immunity: — Weakness: —
lessen the amount of flipping back and forth between stat blocks and Movement: —
traits during play. Might 0 Agility +2 Reason –2 Intuition +1 Presence –2

Animal Notation m Natural Weapon 2d10 + 2

Melee, Strike, Weapon
Signature Ability
Main action
When building an animal by adding traits to a stat block, you can use e Melee 1 x Two creatures or objects
a shorthand to describe the animal. For example, a dire wolf might 1 6 damage
be denoted as “Predator B: Swiftness, Pack, Hunter” to indicate that 2 9 damage
you’re using the Predator B stat block with the Swiftness, Pack, and 3 12 damage
Effect: The animal shifts up to 2 squares between strikes.
Hunter traits.

The Example Animals table breaks out a number of animals using s Rush
this notation. Selected traits are listed in order by category—mobility, — Manuever
defensive, offensive, and supernatural. e Self x Self
Effect: The animal moves up to their speed.

t Nature’s Spirit
Can I Make a Harmless Animal? While outdoors or in a natural environment, the animal can
You certainly can! Animal traits can be applied to the negate a bane on their abilities or turn a double bane into a bane.
noncombatant stat block to make unimposing animals the
heroes can rescue (see Harmless Creatures in the Introduction Animal Swarm Level 1 Elite Hexer
section). Surviving a wild animal attack can also be handled Animal, Swarm EV 12
through group tests and montage tests as if those animals
were environmental challenges to overcome rather than 2 5 40 1 4
individual threats. Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike

Immunity: — Weakness: —
Movement: —
Might –2 Agility +1 Reason –3 Intuition +2 Presence –3

m Flurry 2d10 + 2 Signature Ability

Melee, Strike, Weapon Main action
e Melee 1 x Two creatures or objects
1 6 damage
2 9 damage; pull 1
3 12 damage; pull 2
Effect: If the target is pulled into the animal swarm, that forced move-
ment deals damage only at the Director’s determination.

t Swarm
The animal swarm can move through spaces as if they were a size
1M creature, and can occupy other creatures’ spaces. At the start
of each of the animal swarm’s turns, they can make a free strike
against each creature whose space they share.

b Impede
Area Manuever
e 1 aura x Special
Effect: The area is difficult terrain for enemies until the start of the
animal swarm’s next turn.

t Nature’s Spirit
While outdoors or in a natural environment, the animal swarm
can negate a bane on their abilities or turn a double bane into a
bane.

41
 Big Animal A Level 1 Elite Mount Big Animal B Level 2 Elite Mount
Animal EV 12 Animal EV 16

2 6 60 1 4 3 6 80 3 5
Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike

Immunity: — Weakness: — Immunity: — Weakness: —

Movement: — Movement: —
Might +1 Agility +2 Reason –2 Intuition +1 Presence –2 Might +2 Agility +1 Reason –1 Intuition +1 Presence 0

m Natural Weapon 2d10 + 2 Signature Ability m Natural Weapon 2d10 + 2 Signature Ability
Melee, Strike, Weapon Main action Melee, Strike, Weapon Main action
e Melee 1 x Two creatures or objects e Melee 2 x Two creatures or objects
1 6 damage 1 7 damage
2 9 damage; a<1] 3 damage 2 10 damage; push 1
3 12 damage; a<2] 3 damage 3 13 damage; push 2

m Toss s Trundle
Melee Maneuver — Maneuver
e Melee 1 x One creature or object e Self x Self
Special: The target must be the animal’s size or smaller. Effect: The animal moves up to their speed. They can make a free
Effect: The target vertical slides up to 3 squares. If the target is an ally, strike against each creature who makes an opportunity attack
they can make a free strike at the end of the forced movement, then against them during this movement.
fall without taking damage.
! Animal Rally
! Juke — Triggered action
— Triggered action e Ranged 20 x One ally
e Self x Self Trigger: The target is knocked prone.
Trigger: The animal is targeted by an area ability. Effect: The animal moves up to their speed. If they end their turn
Effect: The animal shifts up to 2 squares before the ability resolves. adjacent to the target, they can use the Stand Up maneuver to let the
target stand, then get on to ride them.

t Nature’s Spirit
While outdoors or in a natural environment, the animal can ne- t Beast of Burden
gate a bane on their abilities or turn a double bane into a bane. While riding the animal, two size 1 allies can occupy the same space.

t Nature’s Spirit
While outdoors or in a natural environment, the animal can ne-
gate a bane on their abilities or turn a double bane into a bane.

Example Animals
Animal Environment Stat Block Animal Traits EV Description
Rot bat Caves, desolate Animal Flight, Hunter, 14 This large, mangy bat has a skin-peeling bite and a
battlefields Elemental terrible scream.
(corruption)
Thrazz Throughout the Animal Grappler, Hunter, 12 This hexocular, hexapod canine has no fur and knows
timescape Translation no fear.
Wild horse Grasslands, canyons Big Animal A Swiftness ×2, 12 A grazing equine, a wild horse has a remarkable top
Charger speed and a powerful charge.
Quadrakanga Throughout the Big Animal A Leaping, Multilimb, 14 This highly aggressive four-armed kangaroo has a punch
timescape Pouncer that can pierce steel.
Rhinoceros Grasslands, deserts Big Animal B Plated, Charger, 16 A horn-nosed ungulate with a plated hide, a rhinoceros
Power has poor eyesight.
Cass-o-war Canyons, jungles Big Animal B Swiftness, 16 A cass-o-war is a long-limbed sprinting bird with a
Fearsome, Reach colorful collar of waddles and a whiplike tail.
Bear Forests, arctic Predator A Climbing, Thick 12 A bear is an imposing mammal with loose, thick skin
Hide, Unrelenting and a huge appetite.
Titan beetle Caves, jungles Predator A Flight, Plated, 14 This hardy beetle can stand on their hind legs, creating
Multilimb the appearance of an armored warrior.
Draw Steel

Dire wolf Forests, swamps Predator B Swiftness, Pack, 16 This massive wolf is covered in rot and spiked fur.
Hunter
Wode toad Any wode Predator B Leaping, Grappler, 18 A giant hairy toad, the wode toad has clawed limbs and
Reach ×2 two tongues, one on both ends.
Piranha school Rivers, swamps Animal Swimming, Spiny, 12 Piranhas are an aggressive species of fanged fish that
swarm Frenzy leave no remnants of their prey behind.
Slag mite swarm Desolate battlefields Animal Burrowing, Venom 12 A species of silver bugs, slag mites have powerful
swarm mandibles they use to feed on iron and copper.

42
Predator A Level 1 Elite Brute Predator B Level 3 Elite Brute

Animals
Animal EV 12 Animal EV 16

2 5 80 0 5 3 5 100 2 5
Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike

Immunity: — Weakness: — Immunity: — Weakness: —

Movement: — Movement: —

Might +1 Agility +2 Reason –2 Intuition +1 Presence +1 Might +2 Agility +1 Reason –1 Intuition +1 Presence 0

m Natural Weapon 2d10 + 2 Signature Ability m Natural Weapon 2d10 + 2 Signature Ability
Melee, Strike, Weapon Main action Melee, Strike, Weapon Main action
e Melee 1 x Two creatures or objects e Melee 2 x Two creatures or objects
1 7 damage 1 7 damage
2 10 damage; m<1] prone 2 11 damage; push 1; m<1] prone
3 13 damage; m<1] prone 3 14 damage; push 2; m<1] prone

s Ready to Strike b Wild Swing

— Maneuver Area, Weapon Main action
e Self x Self e 1 burst x Each enemy or object in the area
Effect: The predator assesses their environment or lets loose a threat- 1 3 damage
ening roar and gains an edge on their next strike. 2 6 damage
3 8 damage; a<2] bleeding (save ends)

! Quick Strike ! Swat

Melee, Strike, Weapon Triggered action Melee Triggered action
e Melee 1 x The triggering creature or object e Melee 1 x The triggering creature or object
Trigger: A creature or object comes within distance. Trigger: A creature or object within distance deals damage to the
Effect: The predator makes a free strike against the target. If the pred- predator.
ator was hidden from the target, the strike deals an extra 3 damage. Effect: The target is pushed up to 5 squares.

t Nature’s Spirit t Trample

While outdoors or in a natural environment, the predator can The predator can move through enemies’ and objects’ spaces at their
negate a bane on their abilities or turn a double bane into a bane. usual speed. Any mundane size 2 or smaller object whose space they
move through is destroyed. When the predator enters a creature’s
space for the first time on a turn, that creature takes 3 damage.

t Nature’s Spirit
While outdoors or in a natural environment, the predator can
negate a bane on their abilities or turn a double bane into a bane.

43
 ARIXX Arixx Malice Malice Features
At the start of an arixx’s turn, you can spend Malice to activate one of
the following features.
Pebbles dance as the ground quivers. A spray of rock and earth shatters
the afternoon’s peace, and an arixx blooms from the earth. Their
mandibles drip sizzling acid as a talon impales their next meal— s Burning Maw 3 Malice
The arixx dribbles acid over their mandibles, causing the next
sometimes a fat sheep, other times a shepherd.
strike they make to gain an edge and deal an extra 3 acid damage.
An arixx is a chitinous burrowing insectoid beast who stands taller
than a horse. Their hooked claws and serrated mandibles are fearsome a Geyser 5 Malice
weapons, but even more dangerous is the stream of caustic spittle they The arixx’s underground tunnels swell with pressure, causing
use to dissolve their prey. a sudden influx of hot gas to burst from a 3-square-by-3-square
area anywhere on the surface. Each enemy in the area makes an

Pastoral Pest Agility test.

1 4 damage; vertical push 5
Although arixxi can be found anywhere, they are a particular plague in 2 4 damage; vertical push 3
settled lands. An arixx hunts alone, lurking a few feet below roadways
3 The target shifts to the nearest unoccupied space outside the
area.
and pastures. When their sensitive antennae detect movement above,
they burst from the earth, dragging living prey into their tunnels d Solo Action 5 Malice
to be devoured. These hit-and-run tactics make the arixx virtually The arixx takes an additional main action on their turn. They can
impossible to eradicate—unless they have the bad luck to ambush a use this feature even if they are dazed.
party of well-armed adventurers. Many communities pay a handsome
bounty for a slain arixx. p Earth Sink 7 Malice
The encounter map suddenly quakes, then begins to sink. Each
Terror of the Thaw creature on the ground who has a<1] is knocked prone. Until the
end of the encounter, each creature who starts their turn on the
Arixxi are a year-round menace in the warmest lands. In temperate ground and can’t burrow must spend 1 additional square of move-
places, arixxi hibernate during the winter, granting farmers a season ment to leave their starting position, or 2 squares if they start their
turn prone or underground. A creature who starts and ends their
of peace. But this respite is paid for on the first thaw of spring, when
turn in the same space on the ground and can’t burrow sinks 1
every arixx awakens ravenous on the same day and bursts from the square into the ground.
ground to feed.
Draw Steel

44
Arixx Level 1 Solo b Dirt Devil 3 Malice
Arixx, Beast EV 36 Area Main action

Arixx
e 3 burst x Each enemy in the area
2 5 200 2 5 1 4 damage
Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike 2 6 damage; push 2
3 7 damage; push 4
Immunity: — Weakness: — Effect: The arixx flings rocks and debris to fill the area, and has a
Movement: Burrow double edge on the power roll if they started their turn underground.
Might +3 Agility +1 Reason –3 Intuition +1 Presence –4 The area is difficult terrain.

d Solo Monster b Dust Cloud

End Effect: At the end of each of their turns, the arixx can take 5 dam- Area Maneuver
age to end one effect on them that can be ended by a saving throw. e 1 burst x Special
This damage can’t be reduced in any way.
Effect: The arixx kicks up dust to fill the area until the start of their
Solo Turns: The arixx can take two turns each round. They can’t take next turn, then moves up to their speed. Any enemy in the area or
turns consecutively. who targets a creature in the area takes a bane on power rolls.

t Earthwalk ! Skitter
Difficult terrain composed of earth or loose rock doesn’t cost the — Triggered action
arixx extra movement. e Self x Self
Trigger: The arixx takes damage.
t Soft Underbelly
A prone creature making a melee strike against the arixx has a Effect: The arixx halves the damage and shifts up to 3 squares after
double edge on the strike instead of taking a bane. the triggering effect resolves.

m Bite 2d10 + 3 Signature Ability d Acid Spew 2d10 + 3 Villain Action 1

Melee, Strike, Weapon Main action Area, Weapon
e Melee 2 x One creature or object e 10 × 2 line within 1 x Each creature and object in the area
1 9 damage; grabbed 1 5 acid damage
2 13 damage; grabbed 2 8 acid damage
3 16 damage; grabbed 3 11 acid damage
Effect: A size 1 target grabbed this way takes 3 acid damage at the Effect: The ground in the area is covered in a puddle of acid until the
start of each of their turns. end of the encounter. Any enemy who enters the area for the first
time in a round or starts their turn there takes 2 acid damage.
m Claw Swing 2d10 + 3
Melee, Strike, Weapon Main action d Sinkhole Villain Action 2
e Melee 2 x Two creatures or objects —
1 5 damage; a<1] grabbed e Self x Self
2 8 damage; a<2] grabbed
Effect: The arixx shifts up to their speed. If they end this shift above
3 11 damage; a<3] grabbed
ground and within 2 squares of a creature, they use Bite against the
Effect: The arixx can vertically slide each grabbed target up to 3 creature and can then use the Dig maneuver.
squares.

d Acid and Claws 2d10 + 3 Villain Action 3

r Spitfire 2d10 + 3 Area, Weapon
Ranged, Strike, Weapon Main action e 2 burst x Each creature in the area
e Ranged 10 x Two creatures or objects
1 5 acid damage; m<1] weakened (save ends)
1 4 acid damage 2 8 acid damage; m<2] weakened (save ends)
2 6 acid damage 3 11 acid damage; m<3] weakened (save ends)
3 7 acid damage; prone
Effect: The ground beneath each target is covered in burning acid
until the end of the encounter. Any enemy who enters an affected
space for the first time in a round or starts their turn there takes 2
acid damage.

45
 ASHEN HOARDER
Grave robbing is a dangerous business, but necromancers need bodies Soul Shackle
for their experiments. To procure supplies and stay out of danger, these
Creating and powering an ashen hoarder requires a vast amount of
mages build ashen hoarders—hulking constructs made of magically
necromantic energy. Along with an entire ossuary worth of bones to
reinforced humanoid bones.
construct its body, powering the construct requires a soul. That soul is

Appendages and Spikes divided between the hoarder and an object known as a Soul Shackle—
usually a ring or an amulet—that is used to command the construct.
Ashen hoarders sport four long legs made from compact columns of Destroying the Soul Shackle can free the trapped soul, but doing so
bone, allowing them to move quickly and avoid creatures who might sends an ashen hoarder into an indiscriminate unshackled rage as
try to hinder the construct’s grim work. Powerful clawed arms aid the they feel part of their stolen soul shredded into oblivion. The construct
hoarder in digging up corpses and fighting enemies. lashes out against any living creature they can before collapsing in
on themself. Freeing the soul still trapped inside the ashen hoarder’s
When an ashen hoarder obtains corpses, they impale them on the
remains requires completing the Find a Cure downtime project in
many sharp bones protruding from their back. These spikes secure the
Draw Steel: Heroes and the assistance of a powerful holy figure.
corpses and charge them with corruptive energy, ensuring the cargo is
ready for experimentation when it arrives at the necromancer’s door.
Ashen Hoarder Malice Malice Features
Weaponized Bodies At the start of an ashen hoarder’s turn, you can spend Malice to
activate one of the following features.
These automatons are equipped to protect their cargo. If enemies
corner an ashen hoarder, the construct can use the energy stored
within their corpses to reanimate them as deadly mines, detonating s Relentless Strikes 3 Malice
The ashen hoarder moves up to their speed and can make a free
the remains with explosive corruptive energy. Once the threat is dead,
strike against two targets.
the ashen hoarder can retrieve the enemies’ remains and recollect the
pieces of their original load.
a Blade Wall 5 Malice
The ashen hoarder summons a 10 wall of bones and blades into
unoccupied squares within 5 squares of them. Each square of the
wall has 5 Stamina. An enemy who comes adjacent to the wall for
the first time in a round or starts their turn there takes 3 damage.

d Solo Action 5 Malice

The ashen hoarder takes an additional main action on their turn.
They can use this feature even if they are dazed.

a Bone Storm 7 Malice

The ashen hoarder launches bone lances into the air, raining them
down on enemies and impaling those unlucky enough to be on
the receiving end. Each enemy within 20 squares of the ashen
hoarder makes an Agility test.
1 14 damage; restrained and bleeding (save ends)
2 11 damage; bleeding (EoT)
3 6 damage
Draw Steel

46
 Ashen Hoarder
Ashen Hoarder Level 4 Solo t Bladed Body
Construct, Undead EV 72 An adjacent enemy who grabs the ashen hoarder or uses a melee
ability against them takes 3 damage.

3 8 350 3 6
Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike t Soul Singularity
When the ashen hoarder is reduced to 0 Stamina, they explode in
Immunity: — Weakness: Holy 5 a swirling singularity of bone shards and soul energy. Each crea-
Movement: Burrow ture within 5 squares of the ashen hoarder who has m<3] takes 11
Might +4 Agility –2 Reason –2 Intuition 0 Presence –5 corruption damage. A creature killed by this damage has their soul
sucked into the vortex and lost somewhere in the Abyssal Waste-
d Solo Monster land, and can’t be brought back to life until their soul is recovered.
End Effect: At the end of each of their turns, the ashen hoarder can
take 10 damage to end one effect on them that can be ended by a d Skeletal Eruption 2d10 + 4 Villain Action 1
saving throw. This damage can’t be reduced in any way. Area, Weapon
Solo Turns: The ashen hoarder can take two turns each round. They e 8 × 3 line within 1 x Each creature and object in the area
can’t take turns consecutively. 1 6 damage, vertical push 2
2 11 damage, vertical push 2

m Claw and Blade 2d10 + 4 Signature Ability

3 14 damage, vertical push 3
Effect: Each target is force moved straight up, then falls. A target who
Melee, Strike, Weapon Main action
would normally land prone after falling is instead restrained (save
e Melee 2 x Two creatures or objects
ends).
1 10 damage; if one target has m<2] they are bleeding (save ends);
if the other target has a<2] they are grabbed
2 15 damage; if one target has m<3] they are bleeding (save ends); d Mobile Mine Field Villain Action 2
if the other target has a<3] they are grabbed Area, Ranged
3 18 damage; m<4] bleeding (save ends); a<2] grabbed
e 10 cube within 20 x Special
Effect: The ashen hoarder can have up to two size 1 creatures grabbed
at a time. Effect: The ashen hoarder sprays out six size 1M zombie mines
that appear in unoccupied squares within distance. Any enemy
who moves adjacent to a zombie mine for the first time in a round
a Corpse Bomb 2d10 + 4 or starts their turn there causes the mine to explode, dealing 4
Area, Magic, Ranged Main action corruption damage to each creature adjacent to the mine. Any other
e 4 cube within 20 x Each enemy in the area zombie mines adjacent to the exploding mine also explode. At the
1 4 damage; a<2] weakened (save ends) start of each of the ashen hoarder’s turns, each unexploded zombie
2 8 damage; a<3] weakened (save ends) mine can be moved up to 2 squares.
3 11 damage; a<4] weakened (save ends)
2 Malice: Any enemy weakened this way is instead slowed and
d Ossuary Assault Villain Action 3
weakened (save ends).
Melee, Strike, Weapon
3 Malice: The ashen hoarder targets a second 4 cube within distance. e Self; see below x Self
Effect: The ashen hoarder moves up to their speed and uses Claw and
a Impale 3 Malice Blade with a double edge against one target. On a tier 3 outcome, the
Area, Weapon Main action ashen hoarder can use Impale without spending Malice.
e 4 × 1 line within 1 x Each creature in the area
1 6 corruption damage; m<2] the target is impaled (save ends)
2 11 corruption damage; m<3] the target is impaled (save ends)
3 14 corruption damage; m<4] the target is impaled (save ends)
Effect: An impaled creature is restrained and bleeding, and moves
with the ashen hoarder. The ashen hoarder can have three creatures
impaled with this ability at a time.

s Bone Dozer
— Maneuver
e Self x Self
Effect: The ashen hoarder moves up to twice their speed in a straight
line. Each creature or object in the path of this movement is either
pushed into the nearest unoccupied space outside the path, or if they
have m<3] is pushed forward until the movement ends. Any creature
who is force moved forward into an obstacle is dazed (save ends).

! Armor of Corpses 2 Malice

— Triggered action
e Self x Self
Trigger: The ashen hoarder takes damage.
Effect: The ashen hoarder halves the damage. If the ashen hoarder
has one or more creatures impaled, the Malice cost of this feature is
reduced by 1 and one impaled creature takes the other half of the
damage.

47
 BASILISKS Alchemical Properties
With eight legs, a scaled rough hide, and razor-sharp teeth coated in
poison, the basilisk is a deadly threat—even aside from their petrifying Alchemists have discovered a gland in the basilisk’s mouth that
eye beams. This dreadful creature can fell the mightiest of foes with excretes an oil that reverts stone to flesh, making it easier to digest
a look, turning them into an immobilized stone statue who remains prey. If enough of the oil is collected, a salve can be created to restore a
thankfully unaware when the basilisk later consumes their petrified petrified victim. Unsavory alchemists pay good money to those willing
form at their leisure. to steal a basilisk youngling from their nest.

Raising Young
Restorative Salve
Basilisks typically live in mated pairs and raise small clutches of
After a basilisk dies, a character can make a Reason test to
younglings from the comforts of damp caves. Adults prefer to subsist on
claim oil from the basilisk’s mouth, which can be used to create
berries, fish, fowl, and carrion, resorting to eating their petrified victims
a special salve. One dose of salve can be applied to a petrified
only when starving. By contrast, basilisk younglings can eat only
creature as a main action, and 1 minute after the salve is
petrified victims, and basilisks have been known to travel far from their
applied, that creature is no longer petrified.
nest to populated areas in search of prey for their babies.
1 The character must complete the Find a Cure down-
Dangerous Servitors time project in Draw Steel: Heroes to create one dose
of salve.
Crime lords and overminds seek basilisk eggs to hatch, raising and
training basilisks as bodyguards and pets. Training is dangerous, and
2 The character creates one dose of salve and can cre-
ate two more doses by completing the Find a Cure
many handlers (and their unscrupulous colleagues) find themselves
downtime project.
turned to stone when a basilisk escapes and runs amok.
3 The character creates three doses of salve.
Some creatures keep basilisks not for their terrifying abilities, but for
their immunity to petrification. Medusas commonly keep basilisks
as pets, owing to their own limited options for companionship. Both
parties benefit from this relationship, as the medusa feeds their own
victims to the basilisk and their younglings. Basilisk Malice Malice Features
At the start of any basilisk’s turn, you can spend Malice to activate one
of the following features.

t Stone Swim 3+ Malice

A basilisk acting this turn can burrow until the start of their next
turn, and moves up to their speed. They have damage immunity
2 while underground. The basilisk can burrow through stone, but
can’t drag other creatures underground when they do so. At the
start of each of the basilisk’s turns, the Director can spend 1 Malice
to let the basilisk continue burrowing.

a Upchuck 2d10 + 2 5 Malice

Area, Weapon Main action
e 3 cube within 10 x Each enemy in the area
Effect: The basilisk spits up a chunk of partly digested stone.
1 4 damage
2 4 damage; a<1] 2 damage, prone
3 4 damage; a<2] 5 damage, prone and can’t stand (save ends)

a Walleye 7 Malice
A basilisk spews reflective spittle across an adjacent vertical
surface in a 3-square-by-3-square area. The basilisk can use their
Petrifying Eye Beams ability to target a square in the area, causing
the area and distance of that ability to become a 20 × 3 line within
1 square of the wall.
Draw Steel

48
Basilisk Level 1 Elite Brute Basilisk Tonguesnapper Level 1 Elite Hexer

Basilisks
Basilisk, Beast EV 12 Basilisk, Beast EV 12

2 8 80 2 5 2 8 40 2 4
Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike

Immunity: Poison 4 Weakness: — Immunity: Acid 2, poison 2 Weakness: —

Movement: — Movement: —
Might +2 Agility 0 Reason –3 Intuition –1 Presence –1 Might +1 Agility +2 Reason –3 Intuition –1 Presence –1

m Noxious Bite 2d10 + 2 Signature Ability m Prehensile Tongue 2d10 + 2 Signature Ability
Melee, Strike, Weapon Main action Melee, Strike, Weapon Main action
e Melee 1 x Two creatures or objects e Melee 3 x One creature or object
1 7 poison damage 1 8 acid damage; pull 1
2 10 poison damage 2 10 acid damage; pull 2
3 13 poison damage 3 14 acid damage; pull 3
Effect: This ability gains an edge against targets the basilisk has previ- Effect: This ability can pull targets restrained by Petrifying Eye Beams,
ously dealt poison damage to. and ignores stability if it does so.
3 Malice: The tonguesnapper targets two additional creatures or
a Petrifying Eye Beams 2d10 + 2 objects.
Area, Magic Maneuver
e 5 × 2 line within 1 x Special a Petrifying Eye Beams 2d10 + 2
Special: The area extends from both the basilisk’s eyes, and this Area, Magic Maneuver
ability targets the first creature without cover on either side of the e 5 × 2 line within 1 x Special
area. Special: The area extends from both the tonguesnapper’s eyes, and
1 m<0] restrained (save ends) this ability targets the first creature without cover on either side of
2 m<1] restrained (save ends) the area.
3 Slowed (save ends); or if m<2] restrained (save ends)
1 a<0] restrained (save ends)
Effect: If a target is already slowed, the potency increases by 1 for that 2 a<1] restrained (save ends)
target. A target restrained this way magically begins to turn to stone, 3 Slowed (save ends); or if m<2] restrained (save ends)
and a target who ends two consecutive turns restrained this way is Effect: If a target is already slowed, the potency increases by 1 for that
petrified. A target restrained this way or a creature adjacent to them target. A target restrained this way magically begins to turn to stone,
can use a main action to cut encroaching stone from the target’s and a target who ends two consecutive turns restrained this way is
body, dealing 8 damage to the target that can’t be reduced in any way petrified. A target restrained this way or a creature adjacent to them
and ending this effect. can use a main action to cut encroaching stone from the target’s
body, dealing 8 damage to the target that can’t be reduced in any way
a Poison Fumes 2d10 + 2 5 Malice and ending this effect.
Area, Magic Main action
e 3 cube within 1 x Each creature in the area v Wink 2d10 + 2 2 Malice
1 4 poison damage; m<0] weakened (save ends) Magic, Melee, Ranged, Strike Main action
2 6 poison damage; m<1] weakened and slowed (save ends) e Melee 1 or ranged 10 x One creature
3 9 poison damage; m<2] weakened and slowed (save ends)
1 8 corruption damage; r<0] dazed (save ends)
2 10 corruption damage; r<1] dazed (save ends)
! Lash Out 3 14 corruption damage; r<2] dazed and slowed (save ends)
Area Triggered action Effect: A creature dazed this way can’t benefit from edges or double
e 1 burst x Each enemy in the area edges and can’t gain or use surges.
Trigger: The basilisk takes damage from a melee ability.
Effect: Each target takes 5 damage. Any target who has a<2] is also ! Neurotoxin Splash
bleeding (save ends). Area Triggered action
e 2 burst x Each enemy in the area
t Calcifying Presence Trigger: The tonguesnapper takes damage from a melee ability.
The area within 3 squares of the basilisk is difficult terrain for Effect: Each target takes 4 acid damage. Any target who has m<2] is
enemies. also slowed (save ends).

t Petrifying Fumes
Any creature who starts their turn adjacent to the tonguesnapper
and has m<1] is slowed (save ends).

49
 BREDBEDDLE Bredbeddle Malice Malice Features
At the start of a bredbeddle’s turn, you can spend Malice to activate
one of the following features.
In their true forms, bredbeddles are ogre-sized headless giants.
Forever searching for their missing heads, they are drawn to populous
lands, where they decapitate passers-by and magically adopt their t Engreen 3 Malice
victims’ forms. The bredbeddle’s axe lengthens and turns a ghastly green, granting
a +1 bonus to the distance of the bredbeddle’s melee strikes and the
Although bredbeddles have no traditional sensory organs of their own, dimensions of their burst area abilities until the end of their turn.
they are keenly aware of their surroundings. Some lurk along dark
country lanes in their monstrous true forms. Others walk disguised a Shadow Stockade 5 Malice
among crowds, dropping their facade only long enough to waylay a A ghostly size 1L stockade seeps out from under the bredbeddle’s
stranger and lop off their head. feet to fill an unoccupied square within 10 squares. When a size 1L or
smaller enemy enters the stockade’s square, they are restrained (save

Immortal Wanderers ends). When a restrained creature is no longer restrained, the stock-
ade fades away. At the start of each of the bredbeddle’s turns, they
can slide an active stockade and any creature in it up to 5 squares.
Bredbeddles don’t age, and if they are slain, their bodies reform a
few days later. Long ago, bredbeddles were giants who stood high
among the nobility of giant kind. But when they declared themselves
d Solo Action 5 Malice
The bredbeddle takes an additional main action on their turn.
rulers of all giant kind, their kin thwarted the coup and beheaded the
They can use this feature even if they are dazed.
bredbeddles. Now these fallen nobles search the world for their missing
heads, each wielding the axe that decapitated them. Tales tell of how
p Green Phantom 7 Malice
their heads are kept for safekeeping in a fire giant’s cellar to be returned A phantom second bredbeddle phases into view, appearing in an
after an indeterminate period of good behavior, which no bredbeddle unoccupied space anywhere on the encounter map, then van-
has exhibited thus far. ishing at the end of the round. The phantom bredbeddle shares
the original bredbeddle’s statistics but has 24 Stamina, corruption
Green with Frenzy immunity 10, and can fly. The phantom bredbeddle can take one
turn and use any of the bredbeddle’s abilities except for villain
The longer a bredbeddle goes without a head, the more twisted and actions. Only one phantom bredbeddle can be active at a time.
desperate their power grows. Their desire to be whole stretches out
of their body in the form of shadowy dark-green ribbons, wrapping
around and clinging to every surface they spill onto.

Travelers warn one another of roads rumored to be haunted by “wild

green knights,” often avoiding these routes for months. No journey is
worth losing your head over.

Bredbeddle Languages
When a bredbeddle communicates, they typically use High Kuric or
the languages that their head’s previous owner knew. A bredbeddle
who has taken multiple heads over their lifetime most likely knows
Caelian as well.
Draw Steel

50
Bredbeddle

Bredbeddle
Level 3 Solo r Headway 2d10 + 3 5 Malice
Bredbeddle, Giant EV 60 Ranged, Strike, Weapon Maneuver
e Ranged 20 x One creature or object
2 5 300 4 6 Effect: The bredbeddle must have a head in their possession (at-
Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike tached to them or not), which they throw at the target. If the head
was attached, the bredbeddle is left headless.
Immunity: — Weakness: —
Movement: —
1 9 damage; m<1] dazed (save ends)
2 13 damage; prone; m<2] dazed (save ends)
Might +3 Agility 0 Reason –3 Intuition +2 Presence +2 3 16 damage; prone; m<3] dazed (save ends)

d Solo Monster ! Envious Imitation 2 Malice

End Effect: At the end of each of their turns, the bredbeddle can take Magic Triggered action
5 damage to end one effect on them that can be ended by a saving e Self x Self
throw. This damage can’t be reduced in any way.
Trigger: A creature targets the bredbeddle with a ranged strike.
Solo Turns: The bredbeddle can take two turns each round. They
can’t take turns consecutively. Effect: The bredbeddle uses the same ability against the triggering
creature after the triggering strike is resolved, using that creature’s
bonus to any power rolls they make.
t Heady or Not
While headless, the bredbeddle can move into a space contain-
ing a severed head and attach it to their neck as a main action. d Turn Green 2d10 + 3 Villain Action 1
Doing so physically transforms the bredbeddle, who takes on the Area, Magic
appearance, size, weight, and stability of the head’s original owner. e 3 burst x Each enemy in the area
If the bredbeddle takes the form of a creature of size 1L or smaller, 1 p<1] the target turns green (save ends)
the distance of their melee and burst area abilities decreases by 2 p<2] the target turns green (save ends)
1. These effects last until the bredbeddle is killed or beheaded, or 3 p<3] the target turns green until the end of the encounter
until the head falls off after 24 hours. A head that falls off this way Effect: Green shadows crawl out from under the bredbeddle’s feet
can no longer be attached to this bredbeddle. and turn each target green. The bredbeddle has a double edge on
power rolls against any target turned green this way.
A creature must succeed on a hard Might test made as a maneuver
to rip a head off the bredbeddle. If they fail, the bredbeddle can
make a free strike against them.
d Challenge Villain Action 2
Ranged
e Ranged 5 x One enemy
t Resilient Form
The bredbeddle can’t be physically transformed in any way except Effect: The bredbeddle points at the target and issues them a
by their Heady or Not trait. challenge. If the target refuses, they turn green until the end of the
encounter (see Turn Green). If the target accepts the challenge, the
bredbeddle shifts adjacent to the target, who makes a Might test with
b Executioner’s Swing 2d10 + 3 Signature Ability
no additional modifiers.
Area, Weapon Main action
e 2 burst x Each enemy in the area 1 The target is beheaded (see Lop).
2 The target makes the test again.
1 2 damage; a<1] bleeding (save ends) 3 The target can choose to deal 40 damage to the bredbeddle or
2 4 damage; a<2] bleeding (save ends) remove the bredbeddle’s head.
3 5 damage; a<3] bleeding (save ends); m<2] dazed (save ends)
3 Malice: The bredbeddle shifts up to 2 squares, and can target d Headlam Rampage 2d10 + 3 Villain Action 3
additional enemies who come within distance of this ability during Melee, Strike, Weapon
the shift. e Melee 2 x Four creatures
1 6 damage; bleeding (save ends);
or if the target has a<1] they are beheaded (see Lop).
m Lop 2d10 + 3 3 Malice
Magic, Melee, Strike, Weapon Main action 2 7 damage; bleeding (save ends);
or if the target has a<2] they are beheaded
e Melee 2 x One creature
3 8 damage; bleeding (save ends);
1 9 damage; bleeding (save ends); or if the target has a<3] they are beheaded
or if the target has m<1] they are beheaded
2 13 damage; bleeding (save ends);
or if the target has m<2] they are beheaded
3 16 damage; bleeding (save ends);
or if the target has m<3] they are beheaded
Effect: A beheaded target has their head fall into an unoccupied
square adjacent to the bredbeddle, but they remain alive. While
beheaded this way, the target is bleeding and has line of effect only
to adjacent squares. The beheaded target can survive without their
head for 24 hours, and can reattach their head as a maneuver by
entering its square. A target who remains beheaded for 24 hours dies.

s Scramble
— Maneuver
e Self x Self
Effect: While the bredbeddle is headless, they shift up to their speed.
Each time a creature comes adjacent to the bredbeddle during the
shift, the bredbeddle can push that creature 1 square. Each square the
bredbeddle exits during the shift is difficult terrain.

51
 BUGBEARS
Bugbears are the bu’gath in the Khelt language, or “the bearers of the Bu’gathic Magic
great fear.” Modern bugbears come from early goblins who first stepped
Most bugbears have some control over their inherent magic, enabling
into the wode centuries ago. Fey magic twisted their bodies, making
them to perform a trick or two. Dedicated bugbear channelers have
them grow imposingly tall and hairy while removing all sound from
learned to evoke powerful shadow and rot magic. These mages can
their footsteps.
reshape the appearance of the world around them and temporarily
Many bugbears become legendary hunters and mercenaries. Many alter their foes as defensive tactics, providing ample warning to enemies
more become reclusive and hide their whole lives in the shadows. A that they are capable of far worse if those enemies push onward.
rare few dive into their magic potential and become living nightmares Bu’gathic magic also enables bugbears to hide their settlements behind
who haunt the wode. shadowy veils within canyons and impenetrable swamplands.

Thrown Into the Fray Bugbear Languages

Bugbears seldom seek the settlements of others for trade or allyship, Most bugbears speak Caelian, Khelt, and Szetch.
and are known to tenaciously defend their own homes or their
neighbors’ homes. This has given them a reputation of being covert,
insurgent warriors, when in reality, bugbears simply fight to maintain
their quiet solitude.

When bugbears are compelled to take action, they take to the high
ground and use their powerful arms to throw anything they can down
at the problem. This includes daggers, heavy iron balls, each other, and
sometimes throwing the enemy at the enemy.

Goblin Bond
Bugbears value their shared origin with goblins and hobgoblins
despite the three lines branching apart so dramatically. They think
of themselves as goblinoids first and humanoids second, with that
relationship providing a sense of common ground when cloistered
bugbears come out of isolation.

Bugbear Malice Malice Features

At the start of any bugbear’s turn, you can spend Malice to activate
one of the following features.

t Goblin Malice Features 3–7 Malice

The bugbear activates a Malice Feature available to goblins.

s Grab Iron Ball 3+ Malice

For every 3 Malice spent, one non-minion bugbear acting this turn
grabs an iron ball and can use a maneuver to throw it at a creature
within 5 squares of them. The creature takes damage equal to
8 – the number of squares the iron ball was thrown, and if they
have m<1], they are slowed (save ends).

s Grab Javelin 5+ Malice

For every 5 Malice spent, one non-minion bugbear acting this turn
grabs a javelin and can use a maneuver to throw it at a creature
within 5 squares of them. The creature takes damage equal to
12 – the number of squares the javelin was thrown, and if they
have m<1], they are bleeding (save ends). While a creature is
bleeding this way, any ally of the bugbear within 2 squares of
them can use a free maneuver to pull the bleeding creature up to
2 squares.

p Show Them the Great Fear 10 Malice

Draw Steel

A bugbear infuses the encounter map with bu’gathic magic. Until

the end of the encounter, all bugbears and allies have their speed
doubled and can automatically climb at full speed while moving.
Additionally, if the target of any bugbear or ally’s strike has i<1],
the target is also frightened (save ends) and must move their
speed in a straight line away from the creature who made the
strike.

52
Bugbear Channeler Level 2 Elite Controller Bugbear Commander Level 2 Elite Support

Bugbears
Bugbear, Fey, Goblin, Humanoid EV 16 Bugbear, Fey, Goblin, Humanoid EV 16

1L 5 60 0 5 1L 5 80 0 5
Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike
Immunity: — Weakness: — Immunity: — Weakness: —
Movement: — Movement: —
Might +1 Agility +1 Reason +2 Intuition +2 Presence +2 Might +2 Agility +1 Reason +2 Intuition 0 Presence 0

r Shadow Drag 2d10 + 2 Signature Ability m Inspiring Swordplay 2d10 + 2 Signature Ability
Magic, Ranged, Strike Main action Melee, Strike, Weapon Main action
e Ranged 8 x Two creatures or objects e Melee 1 x Two creatures or objects
1 7 damage; pull 2 1 7 damage
2 10 damage; pull 3 2 10 damage
3 13 damage; pull 4 3 13 damage; one target is grabbed
Effect: Each target must be on the ground, and each square a target is Effect: One ally within 5 squares of the commander gains an edge on
pulled through is difficult terrain for enemies. their next strike until the start of the commander’s next turn.

b Blistering Element 2d10 + 2 r You Next!

Area, Magic Main action Ranged Main action
e 3 burst x Each enemy in the area e Ranged 8 x One ally
Effect: The channeler chooses one of the following damage types: Effect: The target moves up to their speed and uses a signature ability.
acid, cold, corruption, fire, or poison.
1 2 damage; m<0] bleeding (save ends)
b Fall Back! 5 Malice
2 3 damage; m<1] bleeding (save ends)
Area Main action
3 4 damage; m<2] bleeding (save ends)
e 5 burst x Each ally in the area
r Twist Shape 2d10 + 2 5 Malice Effect: Each target shifts up to their speed, then can use the Throw
Magic, Ranged, Strike Main action maneuver.
e Ranged 5 x One creature
1 5 corruption damage; p<0] slowed (save ends) m Throw
2 8 corruption damage; p<1] the target is shapechanged (save Melee, Strike Maneuver
ends)
e Melee 1 x One creature or object
3 11 corruption damage; p<2] the target is shapechanged (save
ends) Special: The target must be grabbed by the commander.
Effect: A shapechanged creature is slowed and has fire weakness 10 Effect: The target is vertical pushed up to 4 squares. An ally doesn’t
as their limbs stretch and their skin becomes paper thin. take damage from being force moved this way.

m Throw ! Catcher
Melee, Strike Maneuver Melee Free triggered action
e Melee 1 x One creature or object e Melee 1 x The triggering creature or object
Special: The target must be grabbed by the channeler. Trigger: A size 1 creature or object is force moved within distance, or
Effect: The target is vertical pushed up to 3 squares. An ally doesn’t a size 1 ally willingly moves within distance.
take damage from being force moved this way. Effect: The target is grabbed by the commander.

! Catcher t The Commander’s Watching

Melee Free triggered action Any ally who has line of effect to the commander can end one
e Melee 1 x The triggering creature or object condition on themself at the start of each of their turns.
Trigger: A size 1 creature or object is force moved within distance, or
a size 1 ally willingly moves within distance.
Effect: The target is grabbed by the channeler.

! Shadow Veil
Magic, Ranged Triggered action
e Ranged 5 x The triggering ally
Trigger: An ally within distance takes damage.
Effect: The target is wrapped in shadow and halves the damage. The
target can’t be targeted by strikes until the start of their next turn.

53
 Bugbear Roughneck Level 2 Elite Brute Bugbear Sneak Level 2 Elite Ambusher
Bugbear, Fey, Goblin, Humanoid EV 16 Bugbear, Fey, Goblin, Humanoid EV 16

1L 6 109 0 5 1L 7 80 0 5
Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike

Immunity: — Weakness: — Immunity: — Weakness: —

Movement: — Movement: —
Might +2 Agility +2 Reason 0 Intuition 0 Presence 0 Might +2 Agility +2 Reason 0 Intuition 0 Presence 0

m Haymaker 2d10 + 2 Signature Ability m Sucker Punch 2d10 + 2 Signature Ability

Melee, Strike, Weapon Main action Melee, Strike, Weapon Main action
e Melee 1 x Two creatures or objects e Melee 1 x One creature or object
1 7 damage 1 8 damage; a<1] grabbed
2 11 damage; one target is grabbed; 2 13 damage; a<2] grabbed
one target is pushed up to 2 squares 3 16 damage; grabbed
3 14 damage; one target is grabbed;
Effect: The target can’t use triggered actions until the start of the next
one target is vertical pushed up to 3 squares
round. Additionally, if the sneak started their turn hidden from the
5 Malice: The ability takes the Area keyword and loses the Strike
target, this ability deals an extra 4 damage.
keyword, its distance becomes a 1 burst, and it targets each enemy
in the area.
b Shadow Cloak 2d10 + 2 3 Malice
Area Main action
m Leaping Fury 2d10 + 2 e 2 burst x Each enemy in the area
Melee, Strike, Weapon Main action
e Melee 1 x One creature or object 1 2 damage; i<0] the sneak has concealment
from the target (save ends)
1 8 damage; m<1] prone 2 3 damage; i<1] the sneak has concealment
2 13 damage; m<2] prone from the target (save ends)
3 16 damage; m<3] prone 3 4 damage; i<2] the sneak has concealment
from the target (save ends)
Effect: The roughneck can jump up to 5 squares to an unoccupied
space within distance of the target before making this strike. Effect: The sneak shifts up to their speed and can attempt to hide.

m Drag Through Hell 3 Malice r Carving Dagger 2d10 + 2

Melee Maneuver Ranged, Strike, Weapon Main action
e Melee 1 x One creature or object e Ranged 8 x Two creatures or objects
Special: The target must be grabbed by the roughneck.
1 7 damage; m<0] bleeding (save ends)
2 11 damage; m<1] bleeding (save ends)
Effect: The roughneck moves up to their speed across the ground, 3 14 damage; m<2] bleeding (save ends)
dragging the target with them. The target takes 2 damage for each Effect: While bleeding this way, the target can’t hide from the sneak
square they were dragged through. When this movement ends, the or their allies.
target is no longer grabbed and falls prone. Each square the target was
dragged through is difficult terrain for enemies.
m Throw
Melee, Strike Maneuver
m Throw e Melee 1 x One creature or object
Melee, Strike Maneuver
e Melee 1 x One creature or object Special: The target must be grabbed by the sneak.
Effect: The target is vertical pushed up to 4 squares. An ally doesn’t
Special: The target must be grabbed by the roughneck.
take damage from being force moved this way.
Effect: The target is vertical pushed up to 5 squares. An ally doesn’t
take damage from being force moved this way.
! Catcher
Melee Free triggered action
! Catcher e Melee 1 x The triggering creature or object
Melee Free triggered action
e Melee 1 x The triggering creature or object Trigger: A size 1 creature or object is force moved within distance, or
a size 1 ally willingly moves within distance.
Trigger: A size 1 creature or object is force moved within distance, or
Effect: The target is grabbed by the sneak.
a size 1 ally willingly moves within distance.
Effect: The target is grabbed by the roughneck.
! Clever Trick 1 Malice
— Triggered action
! Flying Sawblade e Special x One enemy
Melee Triggered action
e Self x Self Trigger: The sneak is targeted by a strike.
Effect: The sneak chooses one enemy within distance of the strike to
Trigger: The roughneck is vertical force moved by another creature.
become the target of the strike.
Draw Steel

Effect: The roughneck uses Haymaker against a creature or object at

any point during the forced movement, or after falling as a result of it.

54
Bugbear Knightmare Level 8 Minion Hexer Bugbear Mob Level 5 Minion Brute

Bugbears
Bugbear, Fey, Goblin, Humanoid EV 10 for four minions Bugbear, Fey, Goblin, Humanoid EV 7 for four minions

1L 5 12 2 3 3 6 10 2 3
Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike

Immunity: — Weakness: — Immunity: — Weakness: —

Movement: — With Captain: Gain an edge on strikes Movement: — With Captain: +2 damage bonus to strikes
Might +4 Agility +3 Reason +1 Intuition +1 Presence +4 Might +3 Agility –1 Reason 0 Intuition +1 Presence 0

m Corrosive Blade 2d10 + 4 Signature Ability m Mug and Tear 2d10 + 3 Signature Ability
Magic, Melee, Strike, Weapon Main action Melee, Strike, Weapon Main action
e Melee 1 x One creature or object per minion e Melee 1 x One creature or object per minion
1 3 corruption damage 1 3 damage; pull 2
2 6 corruption damage; p<3] bleeding (save ends) 2 6 damage; pull 3
3 8 corruption damage; grabbed; p<4] bleeding (save ends) 3 7 damage; pull 4, grabbed
Effect: A target grabbed this way or already grabbed by the knight- Effect: If the target is pulled into the mob, that forced movement
mare can be vertical pushed up to 5 squares. deals damage only at the Director’s determination.

t Bu’gathic Inspiration t Swarm

Any ally has a +1 bonus to power rolls, saving throws, or damage The mob can move through spaces as if they were a size 1L
rolled as a d6 or a d3 for each knightmare adjacent to them. creature, and can occupy other creatures’ spaces. At the start of
each of the mob’s turns, they can make a free strike against each
t Magic Terror creature whose space they share.
Each enemy has a −1 penalty to power rolls, saving throws, or dam-
age rolled as a d6 or a d3 for each knightmare adjacent to them. Bugbear Snare Level 5 Minion Ambusher
Bugbear, Fey, Goblin, Humanoid EV 7 for four minions

1L 6 9 2 3
Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike

Immunity: — Weakness: —
Movement: — With Captain: +3 bonus to speed
Might +2 Agility +3 Reason 0 Intuition 0 Presence +1

m Cut ’Em Low! 2d10 + 3 Signature Ability

Charge, Melee, Strike, Weapon Main action
e Melee 1 x One creature or object per minion
1 3 damage
2 6 damage
3 7 damage; a<3] slowed (save ends)
Effect: If the snare started their turn hidden from the target, the
target is automatically grabbed. A target grabbed this way or already
grabbed by the snare can be vertical pushed up to 4 squares.

55
 CHIMERA
Massive flexing claws. Lashing draconic tail. Nimble leathery wings. Chimera Malice Malice Features
And not one, but three menacing heads: a snarling lion, a helix-horned At the start of a chimera’s turn, you can spend Malice to activate one
ram, and a dragon with fire sparking in their throat. Many see the of the following features.
chimera as an aggressor—but few know this creature’s origins as a
divine guardian. t Defensive Snapping 3 Malice
The chimera takes up a defensive stance. Until the start of their
The First Chimera next turn, the chimera can make a free strike against each enemy
who comes within 2 squares of them.
The first chimera was a gift. A deity gave a devout queen this young
guardian—one with a dragon’s cunning, a lion’s bravery, and a ram’s d Solo Action 5 Malice
tenacity. The queen raised the chimera to be a strong protector not just The chimera takes an additional main action on their turn. They
for herself but also her people, who loved the chimera and their ruler. can use this feature even if they are dazed.
But neighboring lands feared the beast. As a conquering force swept
into the land, slaughtering the chimera was their fell goal. a Unstable Terrain 5 Malice
The chimera shakes the ground, causing an eruption of loose
The queen’s resulting fury was said to be felt by the gods. As she rocks and debris that creates three size 2 stone objects anywhere
screamed, a nearby volcano erupted, spewing basalt and chimeras over on the encounter map. Each creature adjacent to one or more
the land. With fiery might, the chimeras destroyed the opposing army, objects when they appear who has a<2] takes 5 damage.
then dispersed. Each found a new territory and claimed the role of
divine protector over that place, its inhabitants, and its treasures. p Ashen Clouds 7 Malice
Until the start of the chimera’s next turn, all areas of the encoun-
Tactical Warriors ter map are shrouded in a thick cloud of ash. All creatures and
objects on the map have concealment that the chimera ignores.
Chimeras have many ways to keep themselves and their charges from Additionally, each enemy in the cloud who has i<1] has line of
being cornered. The lion head snaps up enemies in massive jaws and effect only within 3 squares. The potency of this feature increases
by 1 each time it’s used.
hurls them away, the ram head pummels them to the ground, and the
dragon head bathes them in fire. The three heads crying out together
can shake even the most stalwart warriors.

One Being, Three Heads

Unlike some other multiheaded creatures, a chimera possesses a
single unified mind. Their heads work together, never snapping at one
another over food, favors, or personality conflicts. The heads often
express the chimera’s emotions in unison, braying together in times of
battle or purring all at once to show affection.
Draw Steel

56
Chimera Level 3 Solo ! Ram’s Defiance 2d10 + 3

Chimera
Beast, Chimera EV 60 Melee, Strike, Weapon Triggered action
e Melee 2 x The triggering creature
2 10 300 1 6 Trigger: A creature makes a strike against the chimera and obtains a
Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike tier 1 outcome.
Immunity: Fire 6 Weakness: — Effect: The chimera shifts up to 5 squares. If they end this shift within
Movement: Fly distance of the target, make a power roll.
1 6 damage; m<1] slowed (save ends)
Might +3 Agility +2 Reason –2 Intuition +1 Presence 0 2 8 damage; prone; m<2] slowed (save ends)

d Solo Monster
3 10 damage; prone; m<3] slowed (save ends)

End Effect: At the end of each of their turns, the chimera can take
d Overture of Destruction 2d10 + 3 Villain Action 1
5 damage to end one effect on them that can be ended by a saving
Area
throw. This damage can’t be reduced in any way.
e 1 burst x Each enemy in the area
Solo Turns: The chimera can take two turns each round. They can’t
take turns consecutively. Effect: The chimera can use Bite and Lion’s Toss against each target.

t Volant d Fire Solo Villain Action 2

When the chimera makes a creature winded or reduces them to 0 ­—
Stamina, they can move their speed toward an enemy. e Self x Self
Effect: The chimera uses Dragon’s Eruption and Roar without spend-
m Bite 2d10 + 3 Signature Ability ing Malice.
Melee, Strike, Weapon Main action
e Melee 2 x Two creatures or objects d Chorus of Destruction Villain Action 3
1 9 damage —
2 13 damage e Self x Self
3 16 damage
Effect: The chimera uses Roar, then shifts up to their speed and can
Effect: This strike deals an extra 3 damage if it gains an edge or has a
make a free strike against each enemy who comes adjacent to them
double edge.
during the shift. When the chimera ends this shift, they use Dragon’s
Eruption. The use of these abilities as part of this villain action costs
a Dragon’s Eruption 2d10 + 3 5 Malice no Malice.
Area, Magic, Ranged Main action
e 3 cube within 10 x Each enemy in the area
1 3 fire damage; a<1] 3 fire damage
2 5 fire damage; a<2] 5 fire damage
3 7 fire damage; a<3] 7 fire damage

b Roar 2d10 + 3 5 Malice

Area, Magic Main action
e 5 burst x Each enemy in the area
1 4 psychic damage
2 8 psychic damage; i<2] frightened (save ends)
3 10 psychic damage; i<3] frightened (save ends)

m Lion’s Toss 2d10 + 3

Melee, Weapon Maneuver
e Melee 2 x One creature or object
1 Vertical push 2
2 Vertical push 3
3 Vertical push 5

57
 Draw Steel

58
DEMONS

Demons
Creatures of incarnate hate, demons spawn naturally in the Abyssal
Wasteland. They crave violence and suffering the way other creatures
need food. A demon cares only for themself, and they torture and tear
lesser demons apart for fun.

The bestial appearance of each demon is unique, composed of a chaotic

arrangement of teeth, claws, and limbs meant for killing. Even demons
of the same kind have unique features. One might bear an extra set
of eyes or teeth, while another has a humanoid arm growing from
their forehead.

Demon Stat Block List

Echelon Name Level Organization Role EV
1st Ensnarer 1 Minion Brute 3 for four minions

1st Frenzied 1 Minion Harrier 3 for four minions

1st Pitling 1 Minion Artillery 3 for four minions

1st Bendrak 2 Horde Hexer 4

1st Muceron 3 Horde Brute 5

1st Remasch 2 Horde Ambusher 4

1st Ruinant 1 Horde Harrier 3

1st Torlas 1 Horde Controller 3

1st Chorogaunt 3 Leader — 20

2nd Grulqin 4 Minion Brute 6 for four minions

2nd Orliq 4 Minion Harrier 6 for four minions

2nd Wobalas 4 Minion Artillery 6 for four minions

2nd Bale Eye 5 Horde Hexer 7

2nd Fangling 4 Horde Harrier 6

2nd Fiktin 5 Horde Ambusher 7

2nd Gunge 4 Horde Controller 6

2nd Tormenauk 6 Horde Brute 8

2nd Lumbering Egress 6 Leader — 32

3rd Soulraker Scout 7 Minion Harrier 9 for four minions

3rd Soulraker Soldier 7 Minion Brute 9 for four minions

3rd Soulraker Stinger 7 Minion Artillery 9 for four minions

3rd Blight Phage 7 Horde Controller 9

3rd Chimeron 9 Horde Brute 11

3rd Styrich 8 Horde Hexer 10

3rd Soulraker Handmaiden 8 Horde Ambusher 10

3rd Soulraker Praetorian 7 Horde Harrier 9

3rd Soulraker Hivequeen 9 Leader — 44

4th Optacus 10 Minion Artillery 12 for four minions

4th Tyburaki 10 Minion Harrier 12 for four minions

4th Unguloid 10 Minion Brute 12 for four minions

4th Izyak 10 Horde Controller 12

4th Vicisitator 10 Horde Harrier 12

4th Aurumvas 10 Leader — 48

59
 Mortal Alliances
Demons form temporary alliances with evil mortals in exchange Remasches (REE-mash-iz) have physical forms blended with the
for souls to consume. Such alliances create carnage with alarming nature of the wastes where they dwell. A remasch teleports around
efficiency, though they inevitably collapse when the demons decide to the battlefield, inflicting chaos on their enemies directly or through
devour their foolish partners. The only creature who can truly keep a the minions they control. These demons are rumored to be the initial
demon in line is a more powerful demon. source of the teachings of all shadows through the College of Black Ash.

Soul Reavers Ruinants (rew-in-ANSE) are possessed of glowing eyes and tendril-
ringed maws, their bodies covered in inflamed scars and their breath
Demons feast not on food or liquids, but on souls. Souls fuel their coming as a sickening wheeze. A ruinant can inflict fresh wounds
anarchic powers, and while a demon is starved for souls, they can and burns on their victims in a pattern mirroring those on the
scarcely think. Whenever a demon kills a creature who has a soul, they demon’s own body.
consume that soul and keep its energy within their body. A demon can
Torlases (TORR-lahs-iz) are piecemeal abominations whose physical
then burn that soul energy to enact their most devastating abilities.
forms don’t obey the mundane laws of geometry. They control the

Lethe battlefield by using living flesh and whipping allies and enemies alike
into advantageous position.
When a demon’s soul energy begins to flag, they fall into a state
Chorogaunts (cor-roh-GAWNTS) are terrifying demon leaders.
known as lethe—a violent hunger wherein they can only lash out in
Each is an amalgamation of several demon bodies formed into a
a desperate search for sustenance. Demons who have fallen into lethe
mobile musical instrument. Several heads are arranged into a chorus
become single-minded and violent, seeking only to consume.
embedded in the demon’s chest, and their ribs are upturned into a

Demonic Hierarchy fleshy pipe organ. Their attacks entrance and confuse enemies, making
them more vulnerable to other demons.
Mortal scholars have classified demons into ten categories, each
increasingly more powerful. Though demons don’t use these classi-
fications themselves, this system reflects their hierarchy, as stronger Demon Malice Level 1+ Malice Features
demons bully the weak into service. At the start of any demon’s turn, you can spend Malice to activate one
of the following features.
Each time a demon consumes a soul, there’s a chance they might evolve
into a more powerful demon. The evolution from one category to the
next can be instantaneous, or it can take years. This inconsistency has t Soulburn 3 Malice
Each demon acting this turn has a double edge on abilities.
led to much scholarly debate on whether all souls are equal, or whether
demonic evolution is aided by the consumption of souls that are
p Abyssal Evolution 7 Malice
especially corrupt—or heroic.
A demon minion of your choice transforms into a non-minion
horde demon of the same level.
Demon Languages
Lower categories of demons speak Proto-Ctholl. As demons evolve and a Abyssal Rift 7 Malice
Two size 2 rifts to the Abyssal Wasteland appear at locations
reach category 3 or higher, their speech turns into proper Tholl.
of your choice. Any demon can use an abyssal rift as a portal to

Demons—1st Echelon another abyssal rift in the encounter, moving into any space in
one rift and appearing immediately in any unoccupied space in
the other rift. A non-demon who enters a rift for the first time in a
A number of lesser demons have been identified across categories 1 to 3.
round or starts their turn there takes corruption damage equal to
Pitlings resemble rodents or insects with gleaming green eyes and the level of the highest-level demon on the encounter map.
terrible body odor, and disgorge a viscous, toxic phlegm. An abyssal rift is an immovable object that has 25 Stamina,
damage immunity 2, and holy weakness 5. The rift closes
Ensnarers are the result of pitlings getting hold of an unfortunate soul. when there are no demons remaining on the encounter map.
A pitling in the process of digesting the soul of a creature has that soul Additionally, a creature who has the Magic or Psionics skill can
make a Reason test or Intuition test as a maneuver while adjacent
physically bore through their head to become a fanged appendage.
to a rift to destabilize and close it.
Mouths form across the creature’s body, each attacking with long,
barbed tongues.
1 The rift remains open and regains 5 Stamina.
2 The rift remains open.
Frenzieds are similar to ensnarers, but their transformation into a true 3 The rift closes.

demon is more advanced. This results in a fast and vicious creature full
of energy and hungry for more souls.

Bendraks (BEN-drax) appear as an amalgamation of flesh and the

shards of broken mirrors, which they use to distract and confuse their
foes. A bendrak can divert an enemy’s attack to another enemy, and can
Draw Steel

hide themselves or allies behind dazzling reflections.

Mucerons (MIU-sur-onz) are the result of an ensnarer going through

repeated demon evolutions to become a brutish creature. They are
covered in multiple mouths that shoot out barbed tongues, tearing at
enemies as they are dragged out of position.

60
Ensnarer Level 1 Minion Brute Pitling Level 1 Minion Artillery

Demons
Abyssal, Demon EV 3 for four minions Abyssal, Demon EV 3 for four minions

1M 5 5 0 2 1T 5 3 0 2
Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike

Immunity: — Weakness: Holy 3 Immunity: — Weakness: Holy 3

Movement: — With Captain: +2 bonus to melee distance Movement: Fly With Captain: +2 bonus to speed
Might +2 Agility 0 Reason –1 Intuition –1 Presence –1 Might –2 Agility +2 Reason –2 Intuition –2 Presence –2

m Barbed Tongues 2d10 + 2 Signature Ability r Spit 2d10 + 2 Signature Ability

Melee, Strike, Weapon Main action Ranged, Strike, Weapon Main action
e Melee 3 x One creature or object per minion e Ranged 10 x One creature per minion
1 2 damage; pull 1 1 2 poison damage
2 4 damage; pull 2 2 4 poison damage
3 5 damage; pull 3 3 5 poison damage
Effect: If the target is pulled adjacent to the ensnarer, the ensnarer can
make a free strike against them. t Horrid Stench
Any enemy who has three or more pitlings within 2 squares of
t Soulsight them can’t regain Stamina.
Any creature within 2 squares of the ensnarer can’t be hidden
from them. t Soulsight
Any creature within 2 squares of the pitling can’t be hidden from
them.
Frenzied Level 1 Minion Harrier
Abyssal, Demon EV 3 for four minions

1M 6 4 0 1
Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike

Immunity: — Weakness: Holy 3

Movement: — With Captain: +2 bonus to speed
Might 0 Agility +2 Reason –1 Intuition –1 Presence –1

m Rip and Tear 2d10 + 2 Signature Ability

Charge, Melee, Strike, Weapon Main action
e Melee 1 x One creature or object per minion
1 1 damage
2 2 damage
3 3 damage

t Soulsight
Any creature within 2 squares of the frenzied can’t be hidden from
them.

61
 Bendrak Level 2 Horde Hexer Muceron Level 3 Horde Brute
Abyssal, Demon EV 4 Abyssal, Demon EV 5

1L 5 15 0 2 1M 5 30 0 3
Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike
Immunity: — Weakness: Holy 3 Immunity: — Weakness: Holy 3
Movement: — Movement: —
Might 0 Agility +1 Reason 0 Intuition 0 Presence +2 Might +2 Agility +2 Reason 0 Intuition 0 Presence +1

r Warp Perceptions 2d10 + 2 Signature Ability m Barbed Tongues 2d10 + 2 Signature Ability
Magic, Ranged, Strike Main action Melee, Strike, Weapon Main action
e Ranged 10 x One creature e Melee 2 x One creature or object
1 4 psychic damage 1 5 damage; pull 2
2 5 psychic damage; p<1] weakened (save ends) 2 7 damage; pull 3
3 7 psychic damage; p<2] weakened (save ends) 3 8 damage; pull 4
Effect: If the target makes a strike while weakened this way, the ben- Effect: If the target is pulled adjacent to the muceron, the muceron
drak can choose a second target within distance for the strike. The can either make a free strike or use the Grab maneuver against them.
first target takes half of any damage from the strike and the second
target takes any remaining damage.
r Tongue Pull 2 Malice
Ranged, Strike, Weapon Maneuver
r Vanish 2d10 + 2 1 Malice e Ranged 5 x Three creatures or objects
Magic, Ranged Maneuver
Effect: The muceron pulls each target up to 5 squares.
e Ranged 10 x Self or one ally
Effect: The target is invisible until the start of their next turn. They
t Lethe
can then move up to 3 squares and attempt to hide.
While the muceron is winded, they gain an edge on strikes, and
any strike made against them gains an edge.
t Lethe
While the bendrak is winded, they gain an edge on strikes, and t Soulsight
any strike made against them gains an edge. Any creature within 2 squares of the muceron can’t be hidden
from them.
t Soulsight
Any creature within 2 squares of the bendrak can’t be hidden
from them.
Remasch Level 2 Horde Ambusher
Abyssal, Demon EV 4

1S 5 20 0 3
Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike

Immunity: — Weakness: Holy 3

Movement: Teleport
Might 0 Agility +2 Reason 0 Intuition 0 Presence +2

m Abyssal Strike 2d10 + 2 Signature Ability

Magic, Melee, Strike, Weapon Main action
e Melee 1 x One creature or object
1 5 damage; the remasch can teleport up to 2 squares
2 6 damage; the remasch can teleport up to 3 squares
3 8 damage; the remasch can teleport up to 5 squares
5 Malice: The remasch takes an adjacent creature with them when
they teleport. The creature appears in an unoccupied space adjacent
to the remasch’s destination.

s Grasping Shadow 3 Malice

Magic Maneuver
e Self x Self
Effect: The remasch can teleport up to 2 squares and uses Abyssal
Strike.

t Lethe
While the remasch is winded, they gain an edge on strikes, and
Draw Steel

any strike made against them gains an edge.

t Soulsight
Any creature within 2 squares of the remasch can’t be hidden
from them.

62
Ruinant Level 1 Horde Harrier Torlas Level 1 Horde Controller

Demons
Abyssal, Demon EV 3 Abyssal, Demon EV 3

1M 6 15 0 1 1S 5 10 0 1
Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike
Immunity: — Weakness: Holy 3 Immunity: — Weakness: Holy 3
Movement: — Movement: —
Might 0 Agility +2 Reason 0 Intuition 0 Presence +1 Might 0 Agility +1 Reason 0 Intuition 0 Presence +2

m Bloodletting Claws 2d10 + 2 Signature Ability a Floor to Flesh 2d10 + 2 Signature Ability
Melee, Strike, Weapon Main action Area, Magic, Ranged Main action
e Melee 1 x Two creatures or objects e 3 cube within 10 x Each enemy in the area
1 3 damage 1 Slide 3
2 4 damage 2 Slide 4
3 5 damage; m<2] bleeding (save ends) 3 Slide 5
Effect: The ground in the area turns into a morass of spongy flesh
r Salt Wounds 2d10 + 2 3 Malice before the targets are force moved. Until the start of the torlas’s next
Magic, Ranged, Strike Maneuver turn, the area is difficult terrain, and each creature who moves in the
e Ranged 10 x Three creatures area takes 1 damage for each square moved.

Special: Each target must be at less than full Stamina.

1 1 corruption damage r Grasping Tendons
2 2 corruption damage Magic, Ranged Maneuver
3 3 corruption damage e Ranged 10 x Three creatures
Effect: The torlas pulls each target up to 3 squares.
t Lethe
While the ruinant is winded, they gain an edge on strikes, and any
strike made against them gains an edge. t Lethe
While the torlas is winded, they gain an edge on strikes, and any
strike made against them gains an edge.
t Soulsight
Any creature within 2 squares of the ruinant can’t be hidden from
them. t Soulsight
Any creature within 2 squares of the torlas can’t be hidden from
them.

63
 Chorogaunt Level 3 Leader
Abyssal, Demon EV 20

1L 5 120 2 5
Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike

Immunity: — Weakness: Holy 5

Movement: —
Might +2 Agility +2 Reason +2 Intuition +2 Presence +3

b Agonizing Harmony 2d10 + 3 Signature Ability

Area, Weapon Main action
e 5 burst x Each enemy in the area
1 4 psychic damage; i<1] slowed (save ends)
2 7 psychic damage; i<2] slowed (save ends)
3 10 psychic damage; i<3] slowed (save ends)
Effect: One ally within 10 squares of the chorogaunt shifts up to their
speed.

b Chaotic Entrancing Harmony

Area Maneuver
e 10 burst x Each enemy in the area
Effect: The chorogaunt slides each target up to 3 squares, ignoring
stability.

! I Thrive on Pain 3 Malice

Magic Triggered action
e Self x Self
Trigger: The chorogaunt is targeted by a strike.
Effect: Any damage from the strike is halved, and the chorogaunt’s
abilities deal an extra 3 damage until the end of their next turn.

t End Effect
At the end of each of their turns, the chorogaunt can take 5
damage to end one effect on them that can be ended by a saving
throw. This damage can’t be reduced in any way.

t Lethe
While the chorogaunt is winded, they gain an edge on strikes, and
any strike made against them gains an edge.

t Soulsight
Any creature within 2 squares of the chorogaunt can’t be hidden
from them.

d Frightening Tones Villain Action 1

Ranged
e Ranged 10 x Three enemies
Effect: Each target must choose between taking 5 psychic damage, or
being frightened (save ends).

d Bully the Weak Villain Action 2

Magic, Ranged
e Ranged 10 x One ally
Effect: The chorogaunt kills the target, and each other ally in the
encounter deals an extra 3 damage with strikes until the end of the
round. The Director gains Malice equal to the number of heroes in
the encounter.
Draw Steel

d Running Cacophony Villain Action 3

Magic
e Self x Self
Effect: The chorogaunt shifts up to their speed, uses Agonizing
Harmony, shifts up to their speed, and then uses Agonizing Harmony
again.

64
Demons—2nd Echelon Grulqin Level 4 Minion Brute

Demons
Abyssal, Demon EV 6 for four minions
As demons consume more souls and their mercurial forms shift into
more powerful ones, they begin to evolve more distinct personalities,
desires, and intelligence—often based on the souls consumed. Across 1L 8 9 1 3
Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike
categories 4 to 6, demons develop a particular taste for certain types
of souls, which eventually come to define them should they survive Immunity: — Weakness: Holy 5
long enough. Movement: — With Captain: +2 damage bonus to strikes

Grulqins (GRUHL-kinz) consist of a bulbous head, two powerful Might +3 Agility +2 Reason –1 Intuition –1 Presence –1
arms, and a circular serrated blade of bone that runs down the middle m Spinning Bone Blade 2d10 + 3 Signature Ability
of their head. Charge, Melee, Strike, Weapon Main action
e Melee 1 x One creature or object per minion
Orliq (or-LEEK) are made of shifting bone plates surrounding a swirling
core of corruptive energy.
1 3 damage
2 5 damage
Wobalas (WOH-buh-luss) prefer to kill from afar while protected 3 7 damage
Effect: The grulqin gains an edge on this ability if they previously
by allies, firing psychic bolts from bows shaped of their own
moved 3 or more squares in a straight line on their turn.
flesh and sinew.

Bale eyes, sometimes called “flesh moons,” are colossal floating orbs of t Soulsight
roiling, dripping flesh. A weeping seam in that flesh opens to reveal a Any creature within 2 squares of the grulqin can’t be hidden from
demonic eye whose gaze turns creatures’ mental and physical faculties them.
upside down.
Orliq Level 4 Minion Harrier
Fanglings have bodies overgrown with teeth, fangs, and tusks from Abyssal, Demon EV 6 for four minions
countless creatures. They are deadly in close quarters, to attackers and
bystanders alike.
1T 6 8 0 2
Fiktin (FIK-ten) are cunning hunters who disguise themselves as Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike
mundane objects, leaving a foul-smelling oily red residue wherever Immunity: — Weakness: Holy 5
they have been. Their true form is a humanoid shape made of red oil. Movement: Fly With Captain: +2 bonus to speed

Gunge (GUHNJ) demons are horrifically distended, with maws that can Might –1 Agility +3 Reason +1 Intuition 0 Presence –1
swallow a horse whole. A gunge vomits up bilious slime that traps and
m Soul Prism 2d10 + 3 Signature Ability
dissolves any creature unlucky enough to get caught in it. Magic, Melee, Strike, Weapon Main action
e Melee 1 x One creature or object per minion
Tourmenauks (tor-min-AUX) resemble a hulking ape with a dozen or
more extra mouths distributed around their body. Though their brute 1 2 corruption damage; slide 2

force is formidable, this demon also inflicts raw psychic pain by wailing
2 4 corruption damage; vertical slide 2
3 6 corruption damage; vertical slide 2
from their mouths in different voices—often the agonized voices of
souls the tormenauk has devoured. t Imposing Energy
Any enemy who starts their turn with two or more orliq adjacent
Lumbering egresses are mobile masses of warped flesh set around an
to them is slowed (EoT).
enormous whirling portal to the demonic realms. Lesser demons pour
out through these portals at alarming rates, letting these creatures act
t Soulsight
as devastating siege engines. Any creature within 2 squares of the orliq can’t be hidden from
them.

Demon Malice Level 4+ Malice Features

Wobalas Level 4 Minion Artillery
At the start of any level 4 or higher demon’s turn, you can spend Mal-
Abyssal, Demon EV 6 for four minions
ice to activate one of the following features.

t Prior Malice Features 3–7 Malice 1M 6 7 0 3

Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike
The demon activates a Malice feature available to demons of level
3 or lower. Immunity: — Weakness: Holy 5
Movement: — With Captain: +2 damage bonus to strikes
s Abyssal Jaunt 3 Malice Might +1 Agility +3 Reason +1 Intuition +2 Presence +1
One demon acting this turn folds space around them, temporarily
slipping in and out of the Abyssal Wasteland. Until the start of the r Despair Bolt 2d10 + 2 Signature Ability
demon’s next turn, they ignore difficult terrain, can move through Magic, Ranged, Strike, Weapon Main action
solid matter, and don’t provoke opportunity attacks by moving. e Ranged 20 x One creature per minion
If the demon ends their turn inside solid matter, they are shunted 1 3 psychic damage
out into the space from which they entered it. 2 5 psychic damage
3 7 psychic damage
Effect: The target takes a bane on their next strike. If the target is
winded, they have a double bane on their next strike instead.

65
 Bale Eye Level 5 Horde Hexer Fangling Level 4 Horde Harrier
Abyssal, Demon EV 7 Abyssal, Demon EV 6

4 6 30 2 3 1L 8 30 0 2
Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike
Immunity: — Weakness: Holy 5 Immunity: — Weakness: Holy 5
Movement: Fly Movement: —
Might 0 Agility 0 Reason +3 Intuition +3 Presence +3 Might +3 Agility +2 Reason 0 Intuition 0 Presence 0

r Wilting Visions 2d10 + 3 Signature Ability m Tooth! Tusk! Claw! 2d10 + 3 Signature Ability
Magic, Ranged, Strike Main action Melee, Strike, Weapon Main action
e Ranged 15 x One creature e Melee 1 x One creature or object
1 6 psychic damage 1 5 damage
2 8 psychic damage 2 7 damage
3 9 psychic damage 3 9 damage
Effect: The target has corruption weakness 5 (EoT). Effect: Each enemy adjacent to the fangling takes 2 damage.
2 Malice: If the target has i<2], they have corruption weakness 5
(save ends). a Tumbling Gore 2d10 + 2 2 Malice
Area, Weapon Maneuver
a Demonwarp Tears 2d10 + 3 5 Malice e 8 × 3 line within 1 x Each enemy in the area
Area, Magic, Ranged Main action 1 2 damage; pull 1; a<1] bleeding (save ends)
e 4 cube within 5 x Each enemy in the area 2 3 damage; pull 1; a<2] bleeding (save ends)
3 4 damage; pull 1; a<3] bleeding (save ends)
Special: The bale eye must create the cube beneath themself.
1 3 psychic damage; a<1] the target is warped (save ends) t Made of Teeth
2 5 psychic damage; a<2] the target is warped (save ends)
Whenever an adjacent enemy grabs the fangling or uses a melee
3 6 psychic damage; a<3] the target is warped (save ends)
ability against the fangling, they take 2 damage.
Effect: While warped, a creature has a double bane on power rolls
using any characteristic higher than 0, and has a double edge on
power rolls using any characteristic lower than 0.
t Lethe
While the fangling is winded, they gain an edge on strikes, and
any strike made against them gains an edge.
t Lethe
While the bale eye is winded, they gain an edge on strikes, and
t Soulsight
any strike made against them gains an edge.
Any creature within 2 squares of the fangling can’t be hidden from them.

t Soulsight
Any creature within 5 squares of the bale eye can’t be hidden from them.
Fiktin Level 5 Horde Ambusher
Abyssal, Demon EV 7

1M 6 35 0 3
Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike

Immunity: — Weakness: Holy 5

Movement: —
Might +2 Agility +2 Reason +2 Intuition +1 Presence +3

b Violent Transformation 2d10 + 3 Signature Ability

Area, Magic Main action
e 2 burst x Each enemy in the area
1 3 corruption damage
2 6 corruption damage
3 7 corruption damage; i<3] dazed (save ends)
Effect: The fiktin violently changes shape, dealing an extra 6 damage
to any target they were hidden from with their Aggressive Mimicry
ability.

s Aggressive Mimicry 1 Malice

Magic Maneuver
e Self x Self
Effect: The fiktin transforms into a mundane object of their size or
Draw Steel

smaller and is automatically hidden. They can revert to their true

form as a free maneuver.

t Lethe
While the fiktin is winded, they gain an edge on strikes, and any
strike made against them gains an edge.

t Soulsight
66 Any creature within 2 squares of the fiktin can’t be hidden from them.
Gunge Level 4 Horde Controller Tormenauk Level 6 Horde Brute

Demons
Abyssal, Demon EV 6 Abyssal, Demon EV 8

3 6 25 0 2 2 6 45 2 4
Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike

Immunity: — Weakness: Holy 5 Immunity: — Weakness: Holy 5

Movement: — Movement: —
Might +3 Agility +2 Reason +1 Intuition +2 Presence –1 Might +3 Agility 0 Reason +2 Intuition +1 Presence +2

a Bilious Expulsion 2d10 + 3 Signature Ability m Many Maws 2d10 + 3 Signature Ability
Area, Ranged, Weapon Main action Melee, Strike, Weapon Main action
e 1 burst, or 3 cube within 5 x One creature or object in the area e Melee 1 x One creature or object
1 5 acid damage; m<1] slowed (save ends) 1 7 damage
2 7 acid damage; m<2] slowed (save ends) 2 9 damage
3 9 acid damage; m<3] restrained (save ends) 3 11 damage; grabbed, and the target takes a bane on the Escape
Grab maneuver
Effect: The ground and any surfaces in the area pool with slime. The
slime is difficult terrain for enemies, and any enemy is bleeding while Effect: Any target grabbed this way takes 4 psychic damage at the
in the area. start of each of the tormenauk’s turns.

! Spew Slide 1 Malice b Agony Wail 2d10 + 3 5 Malice

— Free triggered action Area, Magic Maneuver
e Self x Self e 3 burst x Each enemy in the area
Trigger: The gunge takes damage from a melee strike.
1 4 psychic damage; i<1] dazed (save ends)
2 6 psychic damage; i<2] dazed (save ends)
Effect: The gunge vomits with great force, letting them shift up to 3 8 psychic damage; i<3] dazed (save ends)
their speed and ignore any additional effects from the strike. The Effect: The potency increases by 1 if the target is grabbed by the
space the gunge occupied before the shift is covered in slime that tormenauk.
is difficult terrain for enemies. Additionally, any enemy is bleeding
while in the slime.
t Lethe
While the tormenauk is winded, they gain an edge on strikes, and
t Lethe any strike made against them gains an edge.
While the gunge is winded, they gain an edge on strikes, and any
strike made against them gains an edge.
t Soulsight
Any creature within 2 squares of the tormenauk can’t be hidden
t Soulsight from them.
Any creature within 2 squares of the gunge can’t be hidden from them.

67
 Lumbering Egress Level 6 Leader
Abyssal, Demon EV 32

3 6 180 3 7
Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike

Immunity: — Weakness: Holy 5

Movement: —
Might +4 Agility –1 Reason +1 Intuition +2 Presence +2

r Ensnarer Cannon 2d10 + 4 Signature Ability

Magic, Ranged, Strike Main action
e Ranged 10 x Two creatures or objects
1 11 corruption damage; a<2] restrained (save ends)
2 16 corruption damage; a<3] restrained (save ends)
3 19 corruption damage; a<4] restrained (save ends)
2 Malice: Two ensnarers appear in unoccupied spaces adjacent to
each target. On a tier 3 outcome, four ensnarers appear.

b Demonic Egress 2 Malice

Area Maneuver
e 3 burst x Special
Effect: Four level 1 demon minions (most commonly ensnarers,
frenzieds, and pitlings) burst forth from the egress and appear in
unoccupied spaces in the area.
2 Malice: Four level 4 demon minions (most commonly orliq, grul-
qins, and wobalas) appear instead.

! Abyssal Protectors 2 Malice

Area, Magic Triggered action
e 5 burst x Special
Trigger: The last ally minion on the encounter map dies, or the egress
is reduced below 25 Stamina.
Effect: Eight ensnarers appear anywhere in the area.

t End Effect
At the end of each of their turns, the egress can take 10 damage to
end one effect on them that can be ended by a saving throw. This
damage can’t be reduced in any way.

d Frenzied Deluge 2d10 + 4 Villain Action 1

Ranged
e Ranged 10 x Three enemies
1 7 corruption damage
2 12 corruption damage
3 15 corruption damage; two frenzieds appear in unoccupied
spaces adjacent to each target

d Fold Space Villain Action 2

Ranged
e Ranged 20 x Self
Effect: The egress folds into their own portal and teleports to an un-
occupied space within distance. Four level 4 demon minions (most
commonly orliq, grulqins, and wobalas) appear in squares in the
egress’s former space.

d Blood of the Abyss 2d10 + 4 Villain Action 3

Area, Magic
e 10 × 3 line within 1 x Each enemy and object in the area
1 6 corruption damage; r<2] weakened (save ends)
Draw Steel

2 11 corruption damage; r<3] weakened (save ends)

3 14 corruption damage; r<2] weakened (save ends)
Effect: The egress recalls and instantly destroys any minion allies on
the encounter map. A torrent of churned-up minion bodies, blood,
and ichor erupts from the egress, dealing an extra 1 damage for each
minion destroyed this way.

68
Demons—3rd Echelon Soulraker Scout Level 7 Minion Harrier

Demons
Abyssal, Demon, Soulraker EV 9 for four minions
Demons of categories 7 to 9 continue to mutate in new and unpre-
dictable ways, or are sometimes corrupted and spawned from other
powerful creatures to become part of the demonic hierarchy. Addition- 1M 7 12 0 3
Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike
ally, in a plane of chaos, the soulraker demon is notable for fashioning
a facsimile of order within themself. These demonic wasps make up a Immunity: — Weakness: Holy 5
single, chaotic hive mind. They serve a demonic hivequeen, who relies Movement: Fly With Captain: Gain an edge on strikes
on cannibalizing her children to ingest any souls they’ve consumed. Might +2 Agility +4 Reason +1 Intuition 0 Presence –1
Soulraker scouts are the vile progeny of a soulraker hivequeen— m Soul Stinger 2d10 + 4 Signature Ability
demonic wasps who emerge from her distended abdomen with an Melee, Strike, Weapon Main action
earsplitting buzz. e Melee 1 x One creature per minion
Soulraker soldiers are demonic wasps armored in dense chitin who
1 3 poison damage
2 6 poison damage; the scout can shift 1 square
favor driving foes before them. 3 7 poison damage; the scout shifts up to 3 squares

Soulraker stingers are wasps covered in poisonous barbed stingers that

t Abyssal Buzzing
they launch like quills, their wings atrophied and unusable.
Any enemy who starts their turn with two or more soulraker
Blight phages were once angelic creatures. Corrupted by demonic minions adjacent to them takes 3 sonic damage.
forces, each is now a cruel, distended mockery of a cherubic form,
covered in pestilent boils that seep ruinous blight. Soulraker Soldier Level 7 Minion Brute
Abyssal, Demon, Soulraker EV 9 for four minions
Chimerons (kai-MEHR-ons) are a horrifying amalgam of multiple
demonic forms melded into a unique monstrosity, driven by an
2 6 13 2 4
unslakable hunger for souls. Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike
Styrichs (STEE-rix) feature lanky bodies covered with manes of long, Immunity: — Weakness: Holy 5
razor-sharp hair, which they whip around the battlefield to shred Movement: — With Captain: Gain an edge on strikes
their enemies. Might +4 Agility +2 Reason –1 Intuition –1 Presence –1
Soulraker handmaidens are abyssal parasites implanted in victims by m Chitin Bash 2d10 + 4 Signature Ability
a soulraker hivequeen. Handmaidens gestate inside a host until they’re Melee, Strike, Weapon Main action
ready to emerge from the body, then consume souls until they’re strong e Melee 1 x One creature or object per minion
enough to transform into a new hivequeen. 1 4 damage; push 2

Soulraker praetorians are the elite guards of a hivequeen, dripping

2 7 damage; push 2
3 8 damage; push 4
foul-smelling ichor and using their barbed stingers to lay waste to foes.

A soulraker hivequeen is a demonic wasp whose abdomen houses

t Abyssal Buzzing
Any enemy who starts their turn with two or more soulraker
their own soulraker wasp hive, and whose stinging ovipositor implants
minions adjacent to them takes 3 sonic damage.
victims with handmaiden parasites.

Soulraker Stinger Level 7 Minion Artillery

Abyssal, Demon, Soulraker EV 9 for four minions
Demon Malice Level 7+ Malice Features
At the start of any level 7 or higher demon’s turn, you can spend Mal-
ice to activate one of the following features. 1M 6 10 0 4
Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike

t Prior Malice Features 3–7 Malice Immunity: — Weakness: Holy 5

The demon activates a Malice feature available to demons of level Movement: Climb With Captain: Gain an edge on strikes
6 or lower.
Might 0 Agility –1 Reason +4 Intuition +4 Presence 0

b Seeping Blight 5 Malice r Barb Launch 2d10 + 4 Signature Ability

One demon acting this turn expels blight—digested soul juice— Magic, Ranged, Strike, Weapon Main action
onto the ground around them in a 3 burst that lingers until the e Ranged 20 x One creature per minion
start of their next turn. Any enemy who enters the area or starts 1 4 poison damage
their turn there takes 6 corruption damage, and has a double bane 2 7 poison damage
on power rolls until the start of their next turn. 3 8 poison damage
Effect: All soulraker demons have concealment from the target until
the start of the stinger’s next turn.

t Abyssal Buzzing
Any enemy who starts their turn with two or more soulraker
minions adjacent to them takes 3 sonic damage.

69
 Blight Phage Level 7 Horde Controller Chimeron Level 9 Horde Brute
Abyssal, Demon EV 9 Abyssal, Demon EV 11

3 6 40 0 3 3 6 90 2 5
Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike
Immunity: — Weakness: Holy 5 Immunity: — Weakness: Holy 5
Movement: — Movement: —
Might 0 Agility 0 Reason +4 Intuition +2 Presence +4 Might +4 Agility 0 Reason +2 Intuition +1 Presence +2

r Blight Pus 2d10 + 4 Signature Ability m Flux Gnash 2d10 + 4 Signature Ability
Magic, Ranged, Strike Main action Melee, Strike, Weapon Main action
e Ranged 10 x One creature or object e Melee 2 x One creature or object
1 7 corruption damage 1 9 cold, fire, or sonic damage
2 10 corruption damage 2 11 cold, fire, or sonic damage
3 11 corruption damage 3 13 cold, fire, or sonic damage; m<4] bleeding, dazed, or slowed
(save ends)
Effect: A puddle of blight—digested soul juice—covers the ground in
the target’s square, which is affected as if by Seeping Blight (see the Special: After making the power roll, the chimeron decides what
Level 7+ Demon Malice feature). damage type the ability deals and which condition it imposes.

a Blight Rain 3 Malice ! Pain Absorption 1 Malice

Area, Magic Maneuver — Triggered action
e 5 cube within 1 x Each enemy in the area e Self x Self
Special: The blight phage must create the cube beneath themself. Trigger: The chimeron is targeted by a damage-dealing strike.
Effect: The blight phage spins and sheds corruptive blight to fill the Effect: The chimeron halves the damage.
area, which is treated as if affected by Seeping Blight.
2 Malice: The blight phage chooses three 2 cube areas within 10 t Lethe
squares of the phage. Each area is covered with blight and treated as if While the chimeron is winded, they gain an edge on strikes, and
affected by Seeping Blight. any strike made against them gains an edge.

t Lethe t Soulsight
While the blight phage is winded, they gain an edge on strikes, Any creature within 2 squares of the chimeron can’t be hidden
and any strike made against them gains an edge. from them.

t Soulsight
Any creature within 2 squares of the blight phage can’t be hidden
from them.
Draw Steel

70
Styrich Level 8 Horde Hexer Soulraker Handmaiden Level 8 Horde Ambusher

Demons
Abyssal, Demon EV 10 Abyssal, Demon, Soulraker EV 10

1L 6 45 1 3 1M 0 50 0 4
Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike
Immunity: — Weakness: Holy 5 Immunity: — Weakness: Holy 5
Movement: — Movement: —
Might +2 Agility +4 Reason 0 Intuition +2 Presence 0 Might +3 Agility 0 Reason +2 Intuition +2 Presence +4

m Hair Whip 2d10 + 4 Signature Ability t Implanted Parasite

Melee, Strike, Weapon Main action A host creature implanted by a soulraker hivequeen’s Stinging
e Melee 4 x One creature or object Ovipositor has no physical or mental signs of the handmaiden
1 7 damage; pull 1 gestating inside the host’s body.
2 10 damage; pull 2, grabbed After 1d3 + 1 weeks of gestation, the handmaiden fully forms
3 12 damage; pull 3, grabbed inside the host. The handmaiden always moves with and occupies
Effect: Any target restrained by the styrich’s Tangled Nest ability can the same space as the host and can’t be separated from them.
be pulled the distance determined by the power roll. While totally within the creature, the handmaiden doesn’t have
line of effect to the host or targets outside the host and vice versa.
b Tangled Nest 2d10 + 4 5 Malice As a maneuver, the handmaiden can emerge from the host as a
Area Maneuver horrifying tower of flesh and bone that remains attached to the
e 4 burst x Each enemy in the area host’s insides. While emerged, the handmaiden can use a move
1 a<2] slowed (save ends) action to make the host move up to their speed and has access
2 Slowed (EoT) or a<3] 3 damage and restrained (EoT) to the host’s signature abilities, using the host’s modifiers for
3 Restrained (EoT) or a<4] 3 damage and restrained (save ends) any power rolls. The handmaiden has the same Stability as the
host. If the handmaiden or host is force moved, the other moves
t Lethe with them. While emerged, the handmaiden can be targeted
While the styrich is winded, they gain an edge on strikes, and any independently of the host. The handmaiden can retreat totally
strike made against them gains an edge. within the host’s body as a maneuver. If the handmaiden dies,
their remains separate from the host.
t Soulsight The Find a Cure downtime project in Draw Steel: Heroes can be
Any creature within 2 squares of the styrich can’t be hidden from them. used to find a cure that removes a handmaiden from a host. The
cure kills the handmaiden when consumed.

Soulraker Praetorian Level 7 Horde Harrier m Emergent Horrors 2d10 + 4 Signature Ability
Abyssal, Demon, Soulraker EV 9
Melee, Strike, Weapon Main action
e Melee 2 x One creature or object
1L 8 45 0 3 1 8 corruption damage
Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike 2 11 corruption damage

Immunity: — Weakness: Holy 5

3 13 corruption damage; m<4] frightened (save ends)
Effect: If the handmaiden was totally within their host’s body at the
Movement: —
start of this turn, the ability deals an extra 8 damage.
Might +2 Agility +4 Reason 0 Intuition +2 Presence 0

m Barbed Stinger 2d10 + 4 Signature Ability t Lethe

Melee, Strike, Weapon Main action While the handmaiden is winded, they gain an edge on strikes,
e Melee 2 x One creature and any strike made against them gains an edge.

1 7 poison damage; push 2

2 10 poison damage; push 2
3 11 poison damage; push 4; a<4] grabbed
Effect: The praetorian can shift into each square the target leaves.

! Stinging Departure 2 Malice

— Triggered action
e Self x The triggering creature
Trigger: A creature ends the praetorian’s grab.
Effect: The praetorian makes a free strike against the target, breaks
off part of their stinger in the target, and shifts up to half their speed.
The target is bleeding until they remove the stinger fragment as a free
maneuver, taking 6 damage in the process.

t Lethe
While the praetorian is winded, they gain an edge on strikes, and
any strike made against them gains an edge.

t Praetorian Buzzing
Any creature who starts their turn with two or more praetorians
adjacent to them takes 6 sonic damage.

71
 Soulraker Hivequeen Level 9 Leader
Abyssal, Demon, Soulraker EV 44

5 6 240 2 9
Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike
Immunity: — Weakness: Holy 5
Movement: Fly
Might +5 Agility –1 Reason +3 Intuition +3 Presence +2

v Stinging Ovipositor 2d10 + 5 Signature Ability

Magic, Melee, Ranged, Strike Main action
e Melee 1 or ranged 10 x Two creatures
1 14 poison damage; m<3] bleeding (save ends)
2 19 poison damage; m<4] bleeding (save ends)
3 23 poison damage; m<5] the target is implanted
Effect: An implanted target has a soulraker handmaiden parasite
gestating in them (see the handmaiden’s Implanted Parasite trait).

b Forced Gestation 3 Malice

Area Maneuver
e 10 burst x Each implanted handmaiden parasite in the area
Effect: The hivequeen lets loose a subsonic call to each target, forcing
them to immediately emerge from their host’s body as a mature
soulraker handmaiden and make a free strike.

! For the Queen! 2 Malice

Area Triggered action
e 5 burst x Special
Trigger: The hivequeen is targeted by a strike for the second time on
an attacker’s turn, whether by the attacker or another creature acting
on the attacker’s turn.
Effect: Two soulraker minions appear within distance.
2 Malice: A soulraker praetorian also appears within distance.

t Cannibal Queen
At the end of their turn, the hivequeen can consume an adjacent
soulraker demon to end one effect on them that can be ended by
a saving throw (no action required).

t Hive Soulsight
Any creature within 2 squares of a soulraker demon within 100
miles of the hivequeen can’t be hidden from the hivequeen. The
hivequeen has line of effect to such creatures.

d Kicking the Nest Villain Action 1

Area
e 10 burst x Each soulraker minion in the area
Effect: Each target can move their speed and make a free strike. If
no minions are present, four soulraker minions are summoned into
unoccupied spaces within distance before the hivequeen uses this
villain action.

d Buzz Off! 2d10 + 5 Villain Action 2

Area
e 5 burst x Each enemy in the area
1 Push 3; i<3] dazed (save ends)
2 Push 3; i<4] dazed (save ends)
3 11 sonic damage; push 3; i<5] dazed (save ends)
Effect: The hivequeen shifts up to her speed.
Draw Steel

d Bomber Wasp Warfare 2d10 + 4 Villain Action 3

Area, Magic, Ranged
e Four 2 cubes within 10 x Each enemy in the area
1 7 poison damage; m<3] bleeding (save ends)
2 11 poison damage; m<4] bleeding (save ends)
3 14 poison damage; m<5] bleeding (save ends)

72
Demons—4th Echelon Optacus Level 10 Minion Artillery

Demons
Abyssal, Demon EV 12 for four minions
The more souls a demon consumes, the more they evolve. The more
they evolve, the more refined their tastes become, until eventually
demons of category 10 can be satisfied only by consuming souls that 1S 6 14 0 5
Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike
exemplify particular qualities. Many demons of this category have their
tastes honored by their titles, such as Gorgino, the Sensuous Feast; Tyx, Immunity: — Weakness: Holy 5
the Obliviated Spiral; and Lorikta, the Discarded Dream. Movement: Climb With Captain: +4 bonus to speed

Optacus (OHP-tih-cus) demons are abyssal eyes atop a spindly flesh Might +1 Agility +3 Reason +1 Intuition +5 Presence +1
stalk supported by innumerable legs. Able to affix to any surface, they r Optical Flare 2d10 + 5 Signature Ability
shoot deadly beams of fire at distant foes. Magic, Ranged, Strike, Weapon Main action
e Ranged 20 x One creature or object per minion
Tyburakis (tee-berr-AH-kees) appear as a horrifying cross between a
thresher shark and a terror lizard, their tails lined with tiny shark maws
1 5 fire damage
2 8 fire damage
that allow them to bite multiple foes at once. 3 10 fire damage; this damage ignores immunity
Effect: This ability ignores concealment. A winded target takes an
Unguloids (UHN-jyl-oids) have a centaur-like form, with a body and
extra 5 damage.
head resembling a demonic rhinoceros. They are known for their
devastating charge.
Tyburaki Level 10 Minion Harrier
Izyaks (ee-zi-YAHKS) have a mercurial form that ripples with psionic Abyssal, Demon EV 12 for four minions
energy, making these demons appear different to all those who observe
them. Their true form is a brain supported on four bone legs. 2 8 15 0 4
Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike
Vicisitators (vih-SIS-ih-tay-tors) are dangerous and horrifically
unstable, the flesh and bone of their bodies trapped in a state of Immunity: — Weakness: Holy 5
perpetual agonizing flux. Their very touch results in excruciating pain Movement: Swim With Captain: +4 damage bonus to strikes
as it warps flesh, bone, and soul. Might +2 Agility +5 Reason 0 Intuition +3 Presence –1

Aurumvas (or-UM-vahs) the demon king stands alone among named m Tail Bite 2d10 + 5 Signature Ability
demons for craving not only wealth, but highly avaricious souls. A Melee, Strike, Weapon Main action
towering figure with a stack of crowns atop his ophidian head, he is e Melee 3 x One creature or object per minion
a vision of opulence, excess, and absolute debasement. He lords over 1 4 damage
other powerful demons by virtue of the wealth held in his vast vaults 2 7 damage

in the Abyssal Wasteland, acquired through the slaughter of countless

3 9 damage
Effect: The tyburaki can make a free strike against each enemy adja-
creatures. But even as he gazes upon his riches and supernatural cent to the target.
treasures, Aurumvas wants for more. He draws lesser demons and
wicked mortals to his service with the promise of minor treasures,
t Breacher
knowing full well that one needs to spend wealth to make it. If left While swimming, the tyburaki can jump 5 squares as part of their
unchecked, Aurumvas’s servile armies and glittering hoards might one movement.
day encompass the entire timescape.
t Soulsight
Any creature within 2 squares of the tyburaki can’t be hidden
Demon Malice Level 10+ Malice Features from them.
At the start of any level 10 or higher demon’s turn, you can spend
Malice to activate one of the following features. Unguloid Level 10 Minion Brute
Abyssal, Demon EV 12 for four minions
t Prior Malice Features 3–7 Malice
The demon activates a Malice feature available to demons of level 2 8 17 3 5
9 or lower. Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike
Immunity: — Weakness: Holy 5
b Soul Flense 7 Malice
Movement: — With Captain: Have a double edge on strikes
One demon acting this turn unleashes their pent-up agony
and pain on every non-demon in a 5 burst. Each target makes a Might +5 Agility +5 Reason –1 Intuition –1 Presence –1
Presence test.
m Gore Horn 2d10 + 5 Signature Ability
1 10 corruption damage; the target is soul flensed
Charge, Melee, Strike, Weapon Main action
2 The target is soul flensed
e Melee 1 x One creature or object per minion
3 No effect.
Effect: The demon removes all conditions and effects on themself 1 5 damage; push 2
that can be ended by a saving throw, and transfers all those effects to 2 8 damage; push 4
each creature soul flensed this way. 3 10 damage; push 6
Effect: If this ability is used as part of a charge for which the unguloid
moves 2 squares or more, it deals an extra 10 damage.

t Soulsight
Any creature within 2 squares of the unguloid can’t be hidden
from them.

73
 Izyak Level 10 Horde Controller Vicisitator Level 10 Horde Harrier
Abyssal, Demon EV 12 Abyssal, Demon EV 12

2 6 55 0 4 1M 9 60 0 4
Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike
Immunity: — Weakness: Holy 5 Immunity: — Weakness: Holy 5
Movement: Teleport Movement: —
Might 0 Agility 0 Reason +5 Intuition +2 Presence +4 Might +4 Agility +5 Reason –1 Intuition –2 Presence –3

r Nostalgic Wanderlust 2d10 + 5 Signature Ability v Warp Touch 2d10 + 5 Signature Ability
Psionic, Ranged, Strike Main action Magic, Melee, Ranged, Strike, Weapon Main action
e Ranged 10 x One creature e Melee 1 or ranged 10 x One creature or object
1 9 psychic damage; r<3] restrained (save ends) 1 9 damage
2 12 psychic damage; r<4] restrained (save ends) 2 12 damage
3 14 psychic damage; r<5] restrained (save ends) 3 14 damage; i<5] the target is slowed and weakened (save ends)
Effect: The izyak can slide any target restrained this way up to 3 Special: The effects of being slowed and weakened this way can’t be
squares. ignored.
3 Malice: The izyak can vertical slide any target restrained this way
up to 6 squares instead. A target left in midair doesn’t fall until the a Soul Flay 2d10 + 5 5 Malice
restrained condition ends. Area Maneuver
e 6 × 3 line within 1 x Each enemy in the area
a Ruinous Temptation 2d10 + 5 3 Malice 1 4 psychic damage; p<3] bleeding (save ends)
Area, Psionic, Ranged Main action 2 7 psychic damage; p<4] bleeding (save ends)
e 4 cube within 10 x Each enemy in the area 3 9 psychic damage; p<5] bleeding (save ends)

1 4 psychic damage; i<3] dazed (save ends) Effect: Any creature who is bleeding from this ability loses 2d6 Stam-
2 7 psychic damage; i<4] dazed (save ends) ina instead of 1d6.
3 9 psychic damage; i<5] dazed (save ends)
Effect: Any target dazed this way must use a move action to move t Lethe
their speed toward the izyak on their next turn. While the vicisitator is winded, they gain an edge on strikes, and
2 Malice: The area increases to a 6 cube. any strike made against them gains an edge.

t Lethe t Soulsight
While the izyak is winded, they gain an edge on strikes, and any Any creature within 2 squares of the vicisitator can’t be hidden
strike made against them gains an edge. from them.

t Soulsight
Any creature within 2 squares of the izyak can’t be hidden from them.
Draw Steel

74
Aurumvas Level 10 Leader

Demons
Abyssal, Demon EV 48

3 8 260 2 10
Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike
Immunity: — Weakness: Holy 5
Movement: Fly
Might +5 Agility +2 Reason +5 Intuition +3 Presence +5

t Absorb Soul
Whenever any demon is reduced to 0 Stamina within 10 squares
of Aurumvas, the Director gains 1 Malice. Aurumvas loses this
trait while he is dazed.

m Greedy Hands 2d10 + 5 Signature Ability

Magic, Melee, Strike Main action
e Melee 2 x Two creatures or objects
1 15 corruption damage; r<4] weakened (save ends)
2 20 corruption damage; r<5] weakened (save ends)
3 24 corruption damage; r<6] weakened (save ends)
2 Malice: Aurumvas regains Stamina equal to the damage dealt.

r Covetous Bolts 2d10 + 5 3 Malice

Magic, Ranged, Strike Main action
e Ranged 20 x Two creatures
1 15 psychic damage; p<4] dazed (save ends)
2 20 psychic damage; p<5] dazed (save ends)
3 24 psychic damage; p<6] dazed (save ends)
2 Malice: While dazed this way, a target can’t gain Heroic Resources.

r Greed Is Good 2 Malice

Ranged Maneuver
e Ranged 10 x Special
Effect: Aurumvas chooses a supernatural treasure or an item made
of gold and teleports to an unoccupied space adjacent to that object,
then ends one effect on him that can be ended by a saving throw.

t More … More …
While Aurumvas is winded, he has a double edge on strikes.

t Soulsight
Any creature within 5 squares of Aurumvas can’t be hidden from him.

d Time Is Money Villain Action 1

Area, Magic
e 20 burst x Self and each ally in the area
Effect: Aurumvas warps time with his abyssal avarice. Each target
can teleport up to their speed and make a free strike.

d Hostile Acquisition Villain Action 2

Ranged
e Ranged 10 x Special
Effect: Aurumvas chooses up to three treasures within distance that he
has line of effect to and that aren’t artifacts. Until the end of the encoun-
ter, ethereal golden snakes swirl around the target treasures. While an
affected treasure is worn or held by a hero, each time that hero gains any
amount of their Heroic Resource, the Director gains 1 Malice.

d No Matter the Cost 2d10 + 5 Villain Action 3

Area, Magic, Ranged
e Four 3 cubes within 10 x Each creature in the area
Effect: Aurumvas summons treasures from his vaults into the area,
then causes them to explode.
1 10 fire damage; push 1
2 15 fire damage; push 2
3 19 fire damage; push 3

75
 DEVILS
In the lower plane of Hell, devils of the Seven Cities vie unceasingly Devil Languages
for power and control—a conflict fought foremostly through cunning
Most devils speak Anjal and Caelian, among other languages. The more
and schemes. Devils are distinguished from other humanoids by skin
powerful a devil, the more languages they learn in order to more easily
in shades of azure and crimson, as well as their hellmarks: horns, tails,
make ironclad contracts with a wide variety of people and cultures.
hooves, wings, and other infernal features.
Outside of rare circumstances, devils are always willing to negotiate,

Precarious Pyramids ever desiring to twist a situation in their favor.

The Seven Cities of Hell stand atop strict hierarchy and bureaucracy.
Primordial chains of command place each devil in service to a more Devil Malice Malice Features
powerful devil, with the seven archdevil rulers of Hell at the top. While At the start of any devil’s turn, you can spend Malice to activate one of
the following features.
devils are lawful, they’re always looking for another way up the ladder.
They twist every rule to their benefit to gain power and usurp those
they answer to, eager to uncover loopholes in the eternal struggle for s Bureaucratic Tape 3 Malice
significance and supremacy. One devil acting this turn uses a signature ability against an
adjacent creature. On a tier 3 outcome, the target of the ability has

Silver Tongues a double bane on strikes (save ends).

Winsome devils can acquire significant influence by bargaining for t Underhanded Tactics 5+ Malice
the souls of mortals on behalf of the archdevil they ultimately serve. One or two devils can teleport to a space adjacent to one or more
creatures who aren’t hidden and make a free strike. For each 2
Virtuosos with words, devils are skilled at striking deals and forging
additional Malice spent on this feature, one additional devil can
contracts. They exploit the weaknesses of mortals, whether greed,
teleport.
revenge, vanity, or simple desperation. In the heat of battle, a devil’s
supernatural charisma can influence a mortal to do their bidding, often
p Read the Small Print 7 Malice
without realizing until it’s too late. Each enemy in the encounter is subject to a bad deal proposed
by the devils. An enemy must choose between having damage
weakness 5 or taking a bane on power rolls. The bad deal lasts
Negotiations with Devils until the end of the encounter.
Devils are eager to negotiate and strike deals, but often require
more compelling arguments and concrete evidence from the
other party. You can pick from the following motivations and Devil Temptations
pitfalls to quickly create a devil from one of the Seven Cities for Although some devils enjoy comfort and opulence for their
a negotiation (see Chapter 11 in Draw Steel: Heroes): own sake, they primarily use treasure as bargaining chips in
¥Motivation: Greed, Power, Legacy fiendish compacts: bait on the devils’ infernal barbs.

¥Pitfall: Benevolence, Freedom, Protection Even more sinister than a prize won in a devil’s hard bargain
is a gift freely given by a devil. The advantages of such a gift
During a negotiation, an NPC devil has their impression and
are conditional, lasting only until the devil revokes it at some
patience increased by 1 (to a maximum of 5). Their interest
inconvenient time.
goes up to 10 instead of 5.
The following are samples of the wonders that a devil can
When an NPC devil is ready to make an offer, divide their
offer—to only the most discriminating customers, of course. A
interest by 2 to get their final response. A devil typically never
devil might only have two or three of these items available for
settles a negotiation unless they’re promised something
trade, but others (such as an archdevil’s wing) can be won by
desirable in return.
force. See Draw Steel: Heroes for more information about how
these items can be used by heroes.

Components: An archdevil’s wing, archdevil’s blood, soul chalk,

a wide selection of true names
True Names Project Sources: Notes in Anjali for the Devil’s Bargain armor
All devils have two names: one by which they’re commonly known, enhancement or a Hellcharger Helm, notes in Hyrallic for a
and another secret true name. Each devil zealously safeguards the Mediator’s Charm
latter, as their true name can be spoken aloud to aid in summoning
Titles: Diabolist, Maestro
them—or in stripping them of their power.
Treasures: G’Allios Visiting Card, Thief of Joy
Hell’s Defectors Wealth: Each hero can earn 1 wealth in exchange for a
Draw Steel

Not every devil in the Seven Cities wants to ruthlessly ascend the small favor
hierarchy. Some desire advancement, but they remain dissatisfied at
the bottom. As luck would have it, these fiends can free themselves
from Hell’s bureaucracy, for when a mortal overestimates their
fortitude and dies while enacting an infernal summoning, it can leave
an enterprising devil stranded in the mundane world.

76
Devil Clerk Level 5 Minion Brute Devil Scrivener Level 5 Minion Harrier
Devil, Infernal EV 7 for four minions Devil, Infernal EV 7 for four minions

Devils
1M 6 10 0 3 1M 6 9 0 3
Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike
Immunity: Fire 5 Weakness: — Immunity: Fire 5 Weakness: —
Movement: — With Captain: +2 damage bonus to strikes Movement: Fly With Captain: +3 bonus to speed
Might +3 Agility 0 Reason +1 Intuition +1 Presence +2 Might 0 Agility +3 Reason +1 Intuition +1 Presence +2

m Quill Pushing 2d10 + 3 Signature Ability m Litigation 2d10 + 3 Signature Ability

Melee, Strike, Weapon Main action Charge, Magic, Melee, Strike Main action
e Melee 1 x One creature or object per minion e Melee 1 x One creature or object per minion
1 3 damage; push 1 1 3 corruption damage
2 6 damage; push 2 2 5 corruption damage; slowed (EoT)
3 7 damage; push 3 3 6 corruption damage; slowed (EoT)
Effect: Any target adjacent to two or more clerks is taunted until the Effect: The scrivener can shift 1 square.
end of their next turn.
t True Name
t True Name If a creature within 10 squares speaks the scrivener’s true name,
If a creature within 10 squares speaks the clerk’s true name, the the scrivener loses their fire immunity and any nondamaging
clerk loses their fire immunity and any nondamaging effects of effects of their signature ability until the end of the encounter.
their signature ability until the end of the encounter.

Devil Notary Level 5 Minion Hexer

Devil, Infernal EV 7 for four minions

1M 6 8 0 3
Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike

Immunity: Fire 5 Weakness: —

Movement: — With Captain: +5 bonus to ranged distance
Might 0 Agility +1 Reason +3 Intuition +1 Presence +2

r Importunity 2d10 + 3 Signature Ability

Magic, Ranged, Strike Main action
e Ranged 5 x One creature or object per minion
1 3 fire damage
2 5 fire damage; r<2] the target takes a bane on their next strike
3 6 fire damage; r<3] the target takes a bane on their next strike
Effect: One non-minion devil within 5 squares of the notary gains an
edge on their next strike.

t True Name
If a creature within 10 squares speaks the notary’s true name, the
notary loses their fire immunity and any nondamaging effects of
their signature ability until the end of the encounter.

77
 Devil Adjudicator Level 6 Elite Controller
Devil, Infernal EV 32

1M 6 140 1 7
Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike

Immunity: Fire 5 Weakness: —

Movement: Fly
Might 0 Agility +1 Reason +2 Intuition +1 Presence +3

r Infernal Injunction 2d10 + 3 Signature Ability

Magic, Ranged, Strike Main action
e Ranged 10 x Two creatures or objects
1 10 fire damage; i<1] frightened (save ends)
2 15 fire damage; i<1] frightened (save ends)
3 18 fire damage; i<1] frightened (save ends)
Effect: The adjudicator can slide a target frightened by this ability up
to 2 squares.

r Adjudicator’s Interdiction
Magic, Ranged Main action
e Ranged 10 x One creature
Effect: The target makes a Presence test.
1 The target is slowed, takes a bane on power rolls, and can’t
regain Stamina (save ends).
2 The target is slowed and takes a bane on power rolls (save
ends).
3 Slowed (save ends)

r Quid Pro Quo

Magic, Ranged Maneuver
e Ranged 10 x One ally or frightened creature
Effect: The adjudicator and the target teleport to switch places.

! Devilish Charm 2 Malice

Magic, Ranged Triggered action
e Ranged 5 x The triggering creature
Trigger: A creature targets the adjudicator with a strike.
Effect: The target makes a Presence test.
1 The adjudicator chooses a new target for the strike.
2 The adjudicator halves the triggering damage.
3 The target takes a bane on the strike.

t Vexatious Litigation
Any creature within 10 squares of the adjudicator who has p<3]
takes a −2 penalty to saving throws.

t True Name
If a creature within 10 squares speaks the adjudicator’s true name,
the adjudicator loses their damage immunities, any nondamaging
effects of their signature ability, and their Devilish Charm ability
until the end of the encounter.
Draw Steel

78
Devil Jurist Level 5 Elite Artillery

Devils
Devil, Infernal EV 28

1M 6 120 0 7
Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike
Immunity: Fire 5 Weakness: —
Movement: Fly
Might 0 Agility +2 Reason +1 Intuition +1 Presence +3

t Hellfire
Fire damage dealt by the jurist ignores damage immunity.

r Fire and Brimstone 2d10 + 3 Signature Ability

Magic, Ranged, Strike Main action
e Ranged 12 x Two creatures or objects
1 10 fire damage
2 15 fire damage; a<2] burning (save ends)
3 18 fire damage; a<3] burning (save ends)
Effect: A burning creature takes 1d6 fire damage at the start of each
of their turns. A burning object takes 1d6 fire damage at the end of
each round.
1+ Malice: The jurist can target one additional creature or object for
each Malice spent.

b Dismissal with Prejudice 2d10 + 3

Area, Magic Main action
e 2 burst x Each enemy in the area
1 6 damage; slide 1
2 10 damage; slide 3
3 12 damage; slide 5
Effect: If the target has m<2], the forced distance movement gains a
+3 bonus.

r Ashes to Ashes
Magic, Ranged Maneuver
e Ranged 12 x One creature
If the target is burning (see Fire and Brimstone), they take 6 fire
damage.

! Devilish Charm 2 Malice

Magic, Ranged Triggered action
e Ranged 5 x The triggering creature
Trigger: A creature targets the jurist with a strike.
Effect: The target makes a Presence test.
1 The jurist chooses a new target for the strike.
2 The jurist halves the triggering damage.
3 The target takes a bane on the strike.

t True Name
If a creature within 10 squares speaks the jurist’s true name, the
jurist loses their fire immunity, any nondamaging effects of their
signature ability, and their Devilish Charm ability until the end of
the encounter.

79
 Devil Legate Level 5 Elite Defender
Devil, Infernal EV 28

1M 6 160 2 6
Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike

Immunity: Fire 5 Weakness: —

Movement: —
Might +3 Agility +1 Reason 0 Intuition +1 Presence +2

m Infernal Pike 2d10 + 3 Signature Ability

Melee, Strike, Weapon Main action
e Melee 2 x Two creatures or objects
1 9 damage
2 14 damage; a<2] slowed (save ends)
3 17 damage; a<3] slowed (save ends)
Effect: If the targets are adjacent to each other, this ability deals an
extra 3 damage.

m Writ of Execution 2d10 + 3

Charge, Melee, Strike, Weapon Main action
e Melee 2 x Two creatures or objects
1 6 damage; m<1] prone
2 11 damage; m<2] prone and can’t stand (save ends)
3 14 damage; m<3] prone and can’t stand (save ends)
Effect: If this ability is used as part of the Charge main action, the
legate ignores difficult terrain during the charge. Each creature and
object whose space the legate moves through takes the damage from
this ability, but not its additional effects.

m Law and Order

Melee Maneuver
e Melee 1 x One creature
Effect: The target is taunted by the legate (save ends). The legate can
have only one creature taunted at a time.

! Devilish Charm 2 Malice

Magic, Ranged Triggered action
e Ranged 5 x The triggering creature
Trigger: A creature targets the legate with a strike.
Effect: The target makes a Presence test.
1 The legate chooses a new target for the strike.
2 The legate halves the triggering damage.
3 The target takes a bane on the strike.

t Hellish Bailiff
The legate has damage immunity 3 while in one of the Seven
Cities of Hell or within 10 squares of a non-minion devil who is of
a higher level than them.

t True Name
If a creature within 10 squares speaks the legate’s true name, the
legate loses their damage immunities, any nondamaging effects of
their signature ability, and their Devilish Charm ability until the
end of the encounter.
Draw Steel

80
Devil Magistrate Level 6 Elite Harrier
Devil, Infernal EV 32

Devils
1M 7 160 0 7
Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike

Immunity: Fire 5 Weakness: —

Movement: —
Might +1 Agility +3 Reason 0 Intuition +1 Presence +2

m Edge of the Law 2d10 + 3 Signature Ability

Melee, Strike, Weapon Main action
e Melee 1 x Two creatures or objects
1 10 damage
2 15 damage
3 18 fire damage; r<3] dazed (save ends)
Effect: The magistrate shifts up to 3 squares before or after using this
ability, or between each strike.

m Verdict 2d10 + 3
Melee, Strike, Weapon Main action
e Melee 1 x One creature
1 11 damage
2 17 damage
3 21 damage
Effect: This ability has a double edge if the magistrate was hidden
from the target, and deals an extra 5 damage if the target is dazed.

s Justice Turns Its Gaze

— Maneuver
e Self x Self
Effect: The magistrate turns invisible until the start of their next turn,
and can attempt to hide as a free maneuver before the end of the
current turn.

! Devilish Charm 2 Malice

Magic, Ranged Triggered action
e Ranged 5 x The triggering creature
Trigger: A creature targets the magistrate with a strike.
Effect: The target makes a Presence test.
1 The magistrate chooses a new target for the strike.
2 The magistrate halves the triggering damage.
3 The target takes a bane on the strike.

t Leading
Whenever the magistrate moves away from an enemy who is
adjacent to one of the magistrate’s allies, they can shift instead.

t True Name
If a creature within 10 squares speaks the magistrate’s true name,
the magistrate loses their damage immunities, any nondamaging
effects of their signature ability, and their Devilish Charm ability
until the end of the encounter.

81
 Draw Steel

82
Devil High Judge Level 6 Leader d All Rise Villain Action 1
Devil, Infernal EV 32

Devils
Area, Magic
e 3 burst x Each enemy in the area
1M 7 181 2 6 Effect: The target makes a Presence test.
Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike 1 15 psychic damage; the target is charmed (save ends)
Immunity: Fire 8 Weakness: — 2 12 psychic damage; the target is charmed (save ends)
Movement: Fly 3 7 psychic damage
While charmed this way, a creature treats the high judge as an ally,
Might +1 Agility +3 Reason +2 Intuition +1 Presence +4 and the high judge can spend 1 Malice on their turn to make that
creature move up to 3 squares.
r Infernal Decree 2d10 + 4 Signature Ability
Magic, Ranged, Strike Main action
e Ranged 12 x Three creatures or objects d Heed My Decree Villain Action 2
Area
1 10 damage; p<2] the target can’t hide (save ends)
e 5 burst x Self and each ally in the area
2 15 damage; p<3] the target can’t hide (save ends)
3 19 damage; p<4] the target can’t hide (save ends) Effect: Each target shifts up to their speed. The high judge can make
2 Malice: While a target is unable to hide this way, any strike against each creature charmed by All Rise, Compel the Jury, or Devilish
them made by a devil gains an edge. Suggestion move up to half that creature’s speed.

r Compel the Jury 2d10 + 4 d Deceptive Stratagem Villain Action 3

Magic, Ranged, Strike Maneuver Magic, Ranged
e Ranged 12 x Two creatures e Ranged 12 x One creature
1 i<2] the target is charmed (save ends)
Effect: If the target is an ally or a creature charmed by All Rise,
2 i<3] the target is charmed (save ends)
Compel the Jury, or Devilish Suggestion, the high judge and the target
3 i<4] the target is charmed (save ends)
teleport to swap places. Each ally within 12 squares of the high judge
Effect: While charmed this way, a creature treats the high judge as
can then make a free strike against a target of the high judge’s choice.
an ally, and the high judge can spend 1 Malice on their turn to make
Each creature charmed by All Rise, Compel the Jury, or Devilish Sug-
that creature move up to 3 squares.
gestion makes a free strike against a target of the high judge’s choice.

! Devilish Suggestion 2 Malice

Magic, Ranged Triggered action
e Ranged 5 x The triggering creature
Trigger: A creature targets the high judge with a strike.
Effect: The target makes a Presence test.
1 The target is charmed (save ends).
2 The high judge chooses a new target for the strike.
3 The target takes a bane on the strike.
While charmed this way, a creature treats the high judge as an ally,
and the high judge can spend 1 Malice on their turn to make that
creature move up to 3 squares.

t End Effect
At the end of each of their turns, the high judge can take 10
damage to end one effect on them that can be ended by a saving
throw. This damage can’t be reduced in any way.

t True Name
If a creature within 10 squares speaks the high judge’s true name,
the high judge loses their damage immunities, any nondamaging
effects of their signature ability, and their Devilish Suggestion
triggered action until the end of the encounter.

83
 Draw Steel

84
DRACONIANS

Draconians
Draconians—wyrmwights as some call them, also known as dragon Dorzinuuth the Base
knights in Orden—are a people created through an obscure ritual To those who know the Dragon Phalanx of old, no name inspires
known as Dracogenesis. Most draconians have an elemental affinity more awe and fear than that of Dorzinuuth (dor-ZIN-yew-uth). A
connected to their draconic scales, which they can change given mastermind on the battlefield and the foundation of the dragon
enough time and training. knights’ fraternity, Dorzinuuth was known for mounting daring
campaigns and always returning with the same number of soldiers—
Six individual draconians are presented in this section—not an
and often alongside new recruits. In the wake of the death of Good
adventuring party, but six warriors whose reputations precede
King Omund, many were shocked to see Dorzinuuth debase himself
them. All are likely to be found serving in various military forces as
with banditry and petty mercenary jobs. Others hold on to the hope
high-ranking commanders.
that he makes unknown moves in darkness, waiting for the day when
he can again uphold his oath in the light.
Aeolyxria the Uncanny
From the moment she hatched, Aeolyxria (ay-oh-LIX-ree-ah) has
Draconian Languages
enjoyed a fascination with the occult. She wanders the land, gathering
Most draconians speak Caelian in addition to the languages of their
strange tomes and artifacts to study. When she takes a job, it’s
employers and creators. Lydixavus, Phrrygalax, and Dorzinuuth all
because she has a new doohickey she wants to test out. Aeolyxria
speak Caelian and Vastariax. Aeolyxria speaks Caelian and the First
possesses a sharp, tactical mind that lets her treat any battlefield as if
Language. Locratix speaks Caelian and Oaxuatl. Myxovidan speaks
it offered homefield advantage. If she could just get a handle on all her
Caelian and Axiomatic.
equipment, she’d be unstoppable!

Locratix the Morningstar Draconian Malice Malice Features

A traveler from a faraway land and the sole progeny of her Dracogen- At the start of any draconian’s turn, you can spend Malice to activate
esis clutch, Locratix (low-CRA-tics) focuses on survival over all other one of the following features.
things. The very concept of the dragon knights is anathema to her,
as there is no reason a wyrmwight should hand over the power that s Guarding Gale 3 Malice
keeps them alive. Locratix travels widely while taking on mercenary A draconian acting this turn flaps their wings and creates a mighty
jobs, but she is always just one better deal away from skewering her gale. Each creature adjacent to the draconian is pushed up to 4
present employer on the end of her lance. squares, and if they have m<2], , they are knocked prone.

Lydixavus the Deadeye a Breath Weapon 2d10 + 3 5 Malice

Nothing escapes Lydixavus (lee-DIX-uh-vas) or their unrivaled Area, Magic Main action
precision. After decades of careful training, they have honed their
e 4 × 2 line within 1 x Each enemy in the area
breath weapon into a swift and far-traveling bullet of ice. Lydixavus Special: The damage dealt by this ability matches a damage type the
is motivated by revenge. Each scar, each dent in their scales tells a draconian has immunity to.
story, and Lydixavus aims to return those gifts tenfold to those who 1 6 damage

bestowed them.
2 10 damage
3 13 damage

Myxovidan the Sintaker b Scaleshatter Burst 2d10 + 3 7 Malice

Myxovidan (mix-OH-vih-din) was raised by a secluded order of Area, Magic Free maneuver
monks who claimed his obsidian-black scales and nausea-inducing e 2 burst x Each enemy in the area
breath were an evil that must be purged. They subjected him to an 1 7 damage
austere lifestyle, full of intense training, meditation, and denial of 2 13 damage
worldly pleasures. But Myxovidan’s hunger would be satisfied, one
3 16 damage
Effect: The draconian’s scales shatter from battle damage. The draco-
way or another. When Myxovidan departed the order, he left behind
nian has damage weakness 5 but can take two turns per round until
a collection of emaciated monk corpses who looked as though they’d the end of the encounter.
had the life sucked out of them.

Phrrygalax the Subduer

Phrrygalax (fuh-RIJ-ih-lax) was once a dragon knight in the service of
Good King Omund. Though he took the oath to defend others against
tyranny, he was always keenly aware he was created for violence.
When the betrayal of the dragon knight Mandrake fractured the
Dragon Phalanx that was the order of the dragon knights, Phrrygalax
gleefully renounced his oath to follow what he believes to be his true,
brutal purpose. Many who served with him believed he was merely
waiting for a convenient excuse to do so.

85
 Aeolyxria the Uncanny Level 6 Elite Controller
Draconian, Dragon, Humanoid EV 32

1M 5 140 2 7
Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike
Immunity: Poison 6 Weakness: —
Movement: Fly
Might –1 Agility +2 Reason +2 Intuition +3 Presence +1

r Spittlesplash 2d10 + 3 Signature Ability

Ranged, Strike, Weapon Main action
e Ranged 10 x Two enemies
1 10 poison damage; m<1] slowed (save ends)
2 15 poison damage; m<2] slowed (save ends)
3 18 poison damage; m<3] slowed (save ends)

r Experimental Treasure 2d10 + 3

Magic, Ranged, Strike Main action
e Ranged 10 x Two creature or objects
1 The target regains 10 Stamina.
2 12 corruption damage; a<2] weakened (save ends)
3 12 lightning damage; a<2] bleeding (save ends)
Effect: The first time in an encounter that Aeolyxria makes a power
roll for this ability, she can subsequently use the outcome of that roll
instead of rolling whenever she uses this ability until the end of the
encounter.
2+ Malice: The ability targets one additional target for each 2 Malice
spent.

a Elevate 2d10 + 3 2 Malice

Area, Ranged Maneuver
e 1 cube within 5 x Special
Effect: The ground in the area rises 5 squares, creating a pillar of dirt.
Any creature in the area moves with the ground to its new elevation.
1+ Malice: Aeolyxria creates an additional pillar for each Malice
spent.

! Blood For Blood 2d10 + 3

Ranged, Weapon Triggered action
e Ranged 5 x One creature
Trigger: An ally is made bleeding by the target.
1 7 poison damage; a<2] bleeding (save ends)
2 12 poison damage; a<3] bleeding (save ends)
3 15 poison damage; bleeding (save ends)

t That’s Our Opening!

The Director gains 1 Malice whenever Aeolyxria imposes a condi-
tion on an enemy.
Draw Steel

86
Locratix the Morningstar

Draconians
Level 6 Elite Harrier
Draconian, Dragon, Humanoid EV 32

1M 8 160 2 7
Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike
Immunity: Acid 6 Weakness: —
Movement: Fly
Might +1 Agility +3 Reason +1 Intuition +2 Presence +2

m Skewer 2d10 + 3 Signature Ability

Melee, Strike, Weapon Main action
e Melee 1 x Two creatures or objects
1 10 damage
2 15 damage; m<1] slowed (save ends)
3 18 damage; m<2] slowed (save ends)
Effect: Locratix deals 6 damage to each creature or object in a 2 × 1
line behind the target.

a Acidic Stun 2d10 + 3 2 Malice

Area, Magic Main action
e 3 × 1 line within 1 x Each enemy in the area
1 7 acid damage; m<1] dazed (save ends)
2 12 acid damage; m<2] dazed (save ends)
3 15 acid damage; m<3] dazed (save ends)
Effect: While dazed this way, a target takes an extra 6 damage from
Locratix’s abilities.

s Takeoff
— Maneuver
e Self x Self
Effect: Locratix flies up to her speed. Any creature adjacent to the
space on the ground she took off from who has a<2] is knocked
prone.

! Stay Back! 2d10 + 3

Melee Triggered action
e Melee 2 x The triggering creature
Trigger: A creature within distance moves or is forced moved.
1 7 acid damage; a<1] the target’s speed is 0 (EoT)
2 12 acid damage; a<2] the target’s speed is 0 (EoT)
3 15 acid damage; a<3] the target’s speed is 0 (EoT)

t Flighty
When Locratix deals rolled damage to an enemy, that enemy can’t
use Locratix as the trigger for any of their triggered actions until
the start of Locratix’s next turn.

t Absorbing Scales
When Locratix takes damage of any type for which she has dam-
age immunity, she has damage immunity 6 against the next strike
made against her.

87
 Lydixavus the Deadeye Level 6 Elite Artillery Myxovidan the Sintaker Level 6 Elite Hexer
Draconian, Dragon, Humanoid EV 32 Draconian, Dragon, Humanoid EV 32

1M 5 140 2 7 1M 5 140 2 7
Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike

Immunity: Acid 6 Weakness: — Immunity: Corruption 6 Weakness: —

Movement: Fly Movement: Fly
Might –1 Agility +3 Reason +3 Intuition +3 Presence +1 Might –1 Agility +3 Reason +2 Intuition +2 Presence +1

r Breathsnipe 2d10 + 3 Signature Ability m Breaking Palm 2d10 + 3 Signature Ability

Ranged, Strike, Weapon Main action Melee, Strike, Weapon Main action
e Ranged 15 x One enemy e Melee 1 x Two enemies
1 10 cold damage 1 10 damage; m<1] weakened (save ends)
2 16 cold damage; the target takes a bane on their next strike 2 15 damage; m<2] weakened (save ends)
3 19 cold damage; the target has a double bane on their next 3 18 corruption damage; m<3] weakened (save ends)
strike
2 Malice: Myxovidan regains Stamina equal to half the damage dealt.

a Ice Lob 2d10 + 3

b Expunging Exhalation 2d10 + 3
Area, Magic, Ranged Main action
Area, Magic Main action
e 2 cube within 10 x Each enemy and object in the area
e 2 burst x Each enemy in the area
1 7 cold damage; m<1] dazed (save ends)
1 7 corruption damage;
2 12 cold damage; m<2] dazed (save ends) m<1] the target has corruption weakness 3 (save ends)
3 15 cold damage; m<3] dazed (save ends)
2 12 corruption damage;
m<2] the target has corruption weakness 3 (save ends)
s Parting Gift 3 15 corruption damage;
m<3] the target has corruption weakness 3 (save ends)
— Maneuver
e Self x Self
r Step and Swap
Effect: Lydixavus flies up to their speed, leaving a size 1S ice mine in Ranged Maneuver
the space they took off from. The ice mine explodes when an enemy e Ranged 3 x One ally
enters its space, using the power roll for the Ice Lob ability, and target-
ing the triggering creature and each creature and object adjacent to Effect: Myxovidan and the target shift to swap places.
the ice mine.
! Anyone Can Do That 2 Malice
! Wasn’t Aiming For You — Triggered action
— Triggered action e Self x Self
e Self x Self Trigger: An adjacent creature damages Myxovidan with a melee
Trigger: Lydixavus obtains a tier 1 outcome on their signature ability. ability.
Effect: Lydixavus uses their signature ability again, targeting a crea- Effect: Myxovidan recreates the ability to use it against the triggering
ture within 5 squares of the original target. creature. If the ability has a power roll, Myxovidan uses his highest
characteristic score for the roll. If Myxovidan gets a higher tier out-
come than the triggering creature, the Director gains 2 Malice.
t Scorekeeping Scales
Lydixavus knows the location of every creature who has ever
dealt damage to them. If any of those creatures are within 20 t Stench of Death
squares of Lydixavus, Lydixavus always has line of effect to them Whenever an enemy regains Stamina while within 5 squares of
as long as a size 1 opening exists between Lydixavus and the Myxovidan, they regain 3 less Stamina.
target.
Draw Steel

88
Phrrygalax the Subduer

Draconians
Level 6 Elite Brute
Draconian, Dragon, Humanoid EV 32

1L 5 180 3 7
Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike
Immunity: Acid 6 Weakness: —
Movement: Fly
Might +3 Agility +2 Reason 0 Intuition 0 Presence +3

m Baneful Blade 2d10 + 3 Signature Ability

Melee, Strike, Weapon Main action
e Melee 1 x Two creatures or objects
1 10 damage
2 16 damage; m<1] bleeding (save ends)
3 19 damage; m<2] 3 damage, bleeding (save ends)

b Spinning Spit 2d10 + 3 2 Malice

Area, Magic Main action
e 1 burst x Each enemy in the area
1 7 fire damage
2 13 fire damage
3 16 fire damage

s Heavy Landing
Area Maneuver
e Self x Self
Effect: Phrrygalax flies up to his speed and lands in an unoccupied
space on the ground. Each creature adjacent to where he lands who
has a<2] is knocked prone.

! Armor of the Ancients 2 Malice

— Triggered action
e Self x Self
Trigger: Phrrygalax takes acid, cold, corruption, fire, lightning, or
poison damage.
Effect: Phrrygalax takes no damage and instead regains the same
amount of Stamina. He then swaps his current damage immunity
with the triggering damage type.

! Still Your Tongue!

— Free triggered action
e Self x Self
Trigger: Phrrygalax hears a creature within 5 squares reciting the
oath of Good King Omund’s Dragon Phalanx.
Effect: Phrrygalax shifts up to his speed and uses Baneful Blade
against the triggering creature. That ability deals an extra 7 damage.

t Oathbreaker’s Vengeance
Whenever Phrrygalax fails a saving throw, he deals an additional 7
damage on his next strike.

89
 Dorzinuuth the Base Level 6 Leader t End Effect
Draconian, Dragon, Humanoid EV 32 At the end of each of his turns, Dorzinuuth can take 10 damage to
end one effect on him that can be ended by a saving throw. This
damage can’t be reduced in any way.
2 5 180 3 7
Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike
t Remember Your Oath
Immunity: Lightning 6 Weakness: — If Dorzinuuth hears a creature recite the Dragon Phalanx oath, he
Movement: Fly, hover takes a bane on strikes made against that character until the end
Might +4 Agility +1 Reason +1 Intuition +2 Presence +3 of the encounter.

m Punishing Flail 2d10 + 4 Signature Ability t Sheltering Wings

Melee, Strike, Weapon Main action While Dorzinuuth isn’t flying, strikes made against him take a bane.
e Melee 1 x Two creatures or objects
1 11 damage; m<2] prone
d Roaring Gambit 2d10 + 4 Villain Action 1
2 16 damage; m<3] prone
Area
3 19 damage; m<4] prone
e 5 burst x Each enemy in the area
2 Malice: If the target has m<4], they are also bleeding (save ends).
Effect: Dorzinuuth lets loose a powerful roar. Each target makes a
Reason test.
a I’ll Cut A Path 2d10 + 4
Area, Weapon Maneuver
1 Frightened (save ends)
e 5 × 2 line within 1 x Each enemy in the area 2 Frightened (EoT)
3 No effect.
Effect: Before the power roll is made, Dorzinuuth shifts to an unoccu- Effect: Each ally in the area gains an edge on their next strike.
pied space adjacent to the end of the line.
1 7 damage
d Wings of Second Wind 2d10 + 4 Villain Action 2
2 13 damage; m<3] prone
Area
3 15 damage; m<4] prone
e 10 burst x Self and each ally in the area
! Watch Your Six! Effect: Each target shifts or flies up to their speed and regains 10
Melee Triggered action Stamina.
e Melee 1 x One ally
Trigger: An ally within distance takes damage while Dorzinuuth isn’t d Snap, Crackle, Pop 2d10 + 4 Villain Action 3
flying. Area, Magic
e 5 burst x Each ally in the area
Effect: Dorzinuuth shields the triggering ally with his wings, halving
the damage. Effect: Dorzinuuth covers the targets in an electrifying mesh. When-
ever a target takes damage from a melee ability, the attacker takes 6
lightning damage.
Draw Steel

90
91
Draconians
 DRAGONS
“John, you don’t have to do this.” John smiled at his friend. “Yeah.” He looked at the group arguing
Sir John ignored his draconian friend. about the wisdom of his plan and gestured with his head toward a
“Maybe ditch the arms and armor,” Bootblack said. boulder before walking away from the group. Vaant followed. When
“Nah, I thought of that.” John looked down at his gear. “This is they were out of earshot, John explained his plan.
who I am. I go in there under some … some pretense and I might foul the “Look. I don’t believe in coincidences, okay? We need the Thorns,
whole thing up.” He shook his head. “Just another kind of trick.” at the keep, when Saxton shows up. So what happens? They’re tied up
He turned to Embers. “Any luck?” he asked. with this dragon. Well that’s pretty nice for Saxton, isn’t it?” He left it at
Ember’s eyes, currently solid starscape, faded into her normal, gold- that. Waited for Vaant to catch up.
flecked azure eyes. “Yes,” she said, and some tension fled from the group. Vaant looked around. It took him a second. Then he looked at John.
“Choryvixiar, the Forge of Pain.” “You think Saxton got here before us.”
“Oh, wonderful,” Jackson Bootblack said while the rest of the team “Yes, I do,” John said. “I told you I talked to Ffyllynvir, right? Do
groaned. you know what they said?” John paused for a moment and his eyes
Embers recalled her void vision. “I know this dragon,” she said and unfocused as he remembered what Embers said the dragon’s name was.
closed her eyes. “Wings like sword blades. Choryvixiar razed a dwarven “Choryvixiar,” he said, suddenly coming back to reality, “started this
city, the city of Kal Aethyrion.” vendetta against the wode elves a week after Saxton came to power. And
Dazar gave John a look. “John, Kal Aethyrion was sacked twelve I think? It might have been less than a week.”
thousand years ago,” he said. “Ah,” Vaant said, impressed. “And you don’t believe in coincidences.”
“It wanted the legendary armory of Zor, the Metalmaster of “If Embers is right, this dragon might be the most dangerous thing, of
Aethyrion. They treated with it. It allowed them to evacuate the city any kind, in the entire duchy. If I were Saxton? Getting that thing on my
first.” Embers opened her eyes and looked at John. “It can be reasoned side would be my first priority.”
with,” she said, and nodded. “Because if it works,” Vaant said, “you start your campaign with a
“I think it’ll work,” John said. powerful ally. And if it doesn’t …”
Vaantikalisax put a hand on the pommel of his mace. “Why?” he “Then he starts with a powerful enemy. So, first thing he does is find
demanded. out whose side the dragon’s on.”
“I’ll tell you why,” Jackson said. Everyone looked at the polder. “Because that dictates his entire strategy.” Vaant was impressed
“Well, we all know it’s in there, right?” Jackson asked, gesturing to the and more impressed because he’d known John for years and was still
cave. They nodded. surprised. “Well done, John.” Vaant acted like the dragon was already on
“Then it … or he, I guess, knows we’re out here. And he hasn’t roasted their side.
us, so … maybe he’s waiting to hear our offer?” “Everyone thinks this is some big risk, some daring ploy,” John was
John smiled at the troubadour having come to the same conclusion looking at the rest of the team. He shook his head, then looked back
he had. He turned to Embers. “A crucible dragon?” She nodded. He at Vaant. “But if Saxton did it, if he talked to this thing? I can. And I’m a
sighed. better negotiator.”
“The crucibles make fortresses of iron. Steel. And they burn with “Because you’re not an … an ‘unrepentant …’” He couldn’t remember
eternal heat,” Dazar said, the second most qualified loremaster among what the polder, Jackson Bootblack, had called Lord Saxton earlier.
them. “This is just a cave,” he said. “Cockbag,” John finished for him. “I’m not an unrepentant cockbag,
Gwillyv appeared with what looked like a metal roof shingle. She yeah, that’s the idea.”
passed it to A Mist Curls Around Dying Embers. You could see how “Smart,” Vaant said and shook John’s hand. “Good luck.”
heavy it was by the way she held it. “Hey!” Jackson Bootblack said. John turned to look at him. “Saxton’s
“Yes,” Embers said, looking at the metal dragonscale made of armor is made from the whispering iron,” he said. “It’s only found in Hell.
blackened iron. She pressed her palm against it. Metal scored over Pretty good prize for a dragon with taste who turned out to be on the
centuries and impregnated with ancient soot. “This creature had a home right side. Or no side.”
recently, such as you describe, theochron. But something happened and John looked from the polder to the others. “Is that true or did you
it was forced to flee. Wounded, probably. This would have been years make it up?”
ago, and it slumbered here since. Then something woke it.” “I’ll tell you after you come out.” Bootblack smiled. “If you come out.”
She turned the heavy, metal scale over in her hands. “When a dragon John shook his head with amused exasperation. Bootblack spread his
gets this old, all it knows is pain. It becomes hateful, spiteful.” hands and bowed deeply.
“Yeah, I had a bad toothache once, it was a bitch, I know how it feels,” Sir John proceeded toward the cave.
Bootblack said. Everyone ignored him. “John,” Embers said. John sighed and stopped. “Flatter him,” the
“There has to be some other option,” Sir Vaantikalisax said. void mage said. “Appeal to his vanity. Remind him that he’s the most
“Well, I talked to Ffyllynvir or however you pronounce it,” John said. powerful thing in all Omund’s Land.”
“The Thorns are at an impasse. They can’t pull back without exposing “I got it,” John said and filed the information away. He didn’t really
whole villages to this thing, and they can’t bring it down.” know what he was going to say. He was going to present himself and see
“So we fight!” Dazar said and gripped his staff in a battle stance. what happened.
John shrugged. “They tried that,” he said. “If the Thorns couldn’t take “And if you’re wrong?” Gwylliv whispered. John could barely hear her,
this thing down I doubt we could. Time to try something else.” but he could guess what she said.
Dazar came to inspect the dragonscale. Vaantikalisax grabbed John John shrugged with one shoulder. “If I’m wrong, we’re all going to
by the arm. “John, do you know what you’re doing?” he said under his die anyway. No point living in fear. Anyone else?” No one said anything.
breath. Others had asked essentially the same question, but this was Only Vaant and Embers could look him in the eye.
Vaant. “Wish me luck,” Sir John said, and walked alone into the dragon’s lair.
Draw Steel

92
On Dragons Folk in cultures that have developed in close proximity to a dragon

Dragons
might give alms to a dragon as if they were a saint, and treat the
Terrifying behemoths. Harbingers of destruction and woe. Dragons dragon’s seal as a blessing. There is some value to this, for few other
claim the world for themselves, throw the innocent into despair, and predators are foolish enough to encroach on a dragon’s territory.
inspire heroes to draw steel.
Dragon Hoards
Where the Elements Meet Anguish Legendary heroes protect the common folk from dragons. Foolhardy
As elementals are pure expressions of the mundane world, adventurers brave a dragon’s lair to take their treasure.
their shapes can become hardened and bent by intense energies
Mature dragons hoard vast amounts of treasure and wealth as a
permeating that world. Over time, an elemental entangled in extreme
hunting technique. The more valuable their trove, the more prey they
concentrations of rancor or grief might crystallize into a terrifying
lure into their clutches. Desperate kings have sent whole armies to
creature known as a dragon.
their deaths for the opportunity to expand a kingdom’s wealth. Their
Dragons are both a provocateur and a consequence of people’s efforts only expand a dragon’s hoard, though, as weapons, armor, and
anguish. A thorn dragon will cover crops and forests in a fortress of magic trinkets add to the wealth that can’t be ignored.
bramble vines and threaten to starve the people living there, yet they
Younger dragons still settling their domains have been known to
were born out of decades of hunger and strife that came before them.
scour ruins and ancient cities for treasures to start their hoard. It is not
Vanquishing a dragon might be necessary to save innocent lives, but
unheard of for a dragon to either repeatedly visit or settle near people
unless the underlying problems are addressed, another dragon will
who willingly give them their valuables and heirlooms.
take their place in time.

Draco Vulgaris What’s In A Hoard?

Many regular dragons share a number of commonalities between It’s said that the only creature greedier than a dragon is a
them, such as powerful wings, whiplike tails, and reptilian faces dragon hunter. Dragons know this all too well, and their lairs
adorned with horns. People categorize dragons more specifically based are accordingly well-hidden and guarded. Even if would-be
on where they’re found and how those environments have shaped thieves stumble upon an absent dragon’s hoard, their troubles
their forms, such as the gloom dragon having a telltale mantle of fog. are only beginning: some dragons magically know the
Some individual dragons retain a trait or two from their primordial locations of every treasure purloined from their hoard, while
forms, while more powerful dragons have been known to intentional- others maintain discreet contacts with local fences and dealers
ly change their shapes to distinguish themselves even further. in rare goods.

Across all dragons, their breath is their most violent form of self-ex- The following are sample treasures from a dragon’s hoard.
pression. Whether they roar to ward off threats or charge their breath The hoard contains the treasure from each echelon up to and
with elemental energy, no good comes from a dragon opening including the dragon’s echelon. These items can be found in
their mouth. Draw Steel: Heroes.

1st Echelon
Wyrmscale Components: Dragon scales, horns, or venom glands
Most dragons are covered in wyrmscale, a hardy plate that both
Titles: Dragon Blooded
absorbs and emits elemental energy. Wyrmscale not only protects
dragons, but allows them to catalyze their bodies and further shape Wealth: Each hero earns 1 wealth
their environment. The crucible dragon, for example, erupts with 2nd Echelon
blasts of steam that let them take to the air and rain down death
Treasures: Kuran’zoi Prismscale, Purified Jelly
upon their foes.
3rd Echelon
When a dragon feels threatened, their wyrmscale radiates massive
amounts of energy and creates a barrier around them. This barrier Project Sources: Notes in Vastariax for the Dragon Soul armor
buffers both incoming and outgoing force, allowing the dragon to enhancement, notes in Zaliac for a Thunderhead Bident
become even more fearsome should their defenses break down. 4th Echelon
Treasures: Blade of Quintessence, Page from the Infinite
Lords of Their Domains Library: Solaris
It is said that a dragon’s physical form includes the land they’re found
in. The longer a dragon spends time in a location, the more control
they have over it. In an omen dragon’s domain, for instance, the land
becomes barren as old souls become suspended in its thickened air,
with new life unable to breach the soil.
Draco Nobilis
Regular dragons should not be confused with the elder dragons,
This impact is more than a passive consequence of a dragon’s
otherwise known as true dragons. These legendary beings are said
presence, for dragons use their magic to set seals upon creatures and
to be able to devour entire worlds. Even the most fearsome meteor
lands they claim as their own. To be “dragonsealed” in this way is to
dragon possesses only a modicum of a true dragon’s power and wiles.
become an extension of the dragon’s might and subject to their fury.
(The draco nobilis will be explored in future adventures and products.)

93
 Thorn Dragon
Thorn dragons take root in the destitution of nature, and are cultivated
by the suffering of those who struggle against the cruelty of drought,
fire, flood, and more. Though a region’s people might have long
overcome past famine, the desperation of those who suffered long
before has already nurtured their future scourge.

These dragons appear born of the wood, resembling living thickets

bedecked in torturous thorns. With twisting briar horns and wings
shaped by tangled roots, thorn dragons embody the richness of nature
they so readily leech the life from.

Conquerors of the Green

Thorn dragons cultivate their lairs in lush farmlands or flourishing
forests. They engulf these beautiful regions in massive briar thickets,
choking out existing flora until their own brambles are the only things
that grow. In forests, this process drives out local fauna smart enough
to flee rather than foolishly fight against the wood’s new ruler. When a
thorn dragon establishes their lair over a village’s farmlands, local folk
either wisely relocate or slowly starve for the sake of stubborn pride.

Natural Curators
More intelligent dragons seek all forms of riches for their hoard, but
thorn dragons have no eye for worldly treasures. Instead, they amass
the wealth of the wild they represent. Thorn dragons stockpile food—
even food they won’t eat—alongside uncut gemstones, minerals and
ore, wood, oils, and spices.

Bestial Instincts
Compared to more powerful dragons, thorn dragons are closer to beasts
in temperament. They are incapable of speech and act primarily on
instinct as they expand their territories, defend their lairs, and grow
their hoards.

Despite this, the folk of certain settlements manage to avoid being

driven from their homes or starved at the expense of being dependent
on a thorn dragon’s bestial ego. These farmers and woods folk come
to a tenuous understanding with the dragon, trading them the kinds
of treasure they desire in exchange for meager foodstuffs from the
dragon’s hoard.

Territorial Brutes
Thorn dragons are highly territorial, and are vigilant against potential
threats to their lairs. To defend their homes, these dragons take
advantage of their thickets by dragonsealing intruders, pushing and
pulling them across the briars, and letting the thorns bleed them dry.
When mere brambles aren’t enough, thorn dragons either imbue those
brambles’ barbs with poison or breathe out those toxins directly, taking
pleasure in slowly draining the life from their enemies.

Thorn Dragon’s Domain

If the encounter map is a location the dragon has occupied
for 1 week or more, all surfaces on the map are covered in
Draw Steel

overgrowth. Any creature other than the dragon who starts

their turn on the encounter map has their speed reduced by 2
(to a minimum of 1). Any creature made restrained while on
the ground is also made bleeding.

94
Thorn Dragon Level 2 Solo ! Thorny Scales 1 Malice

Dragons
Dragon, Elemental EV 48 Melee Free triggered action
e Melee 1 x The triggering creature
3 8 250 6 5 Trigger: A creature within distance deals damage to the dragon with
Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike a melee strike.
Immunity: Poison 5 Weakness: — Effect: The dragon makes a free strike against the target, and if the
Movement: Fly target has m<2], they are bleeding until the end of their next turn.

Might +2 Agility +3 Reason –1 Intuition +1 Presence +2

d Briar Bindings 2d10 + 3 Villain Action 1
d Solo Monster Area, Magic
End Effect: At the end of each of their turns, the dragon can take 10 e 4 burst x Each enemy in the area
damage to end one effect on them that can be ended by a saving 1 5 damage; a<1] restrained (save ends)
throw. This damage can’t be reduced in any way. 2 9 damage; a<2] restrained (save ends)

Solo Turns: The dragon can take two turns each round. They can’t
3 12 damage; a<3] restrained (save ends)

take turns consecutively.

d Thorned Armor Villain Action 2
—
b Withering Wyrmscale Aura e Self x Self
The dragon’s scales create a 2 aura of withering green magic
around them. Any creature other than the dragon who regains Effect: The thorns upon the dragon’s scales grow longer and sharper.
Stamina in the area regains only half the expected amount. Any Until the end of the encounter, any adjacent creature who targets the
winded creature who enters the area for the first time in a round dragon with a melee strike takes 3 damage. The dragon then uses
or starts their turn there takes 1d3 corruption damage. their Provoking Nettles ability.

a Virulent Breath Signature Ability d Malign Thicket Villain Action 3

Area, Magic Main action —
e 10 × 1 line within 1 x Each enemy and object in the area e Special x Special
Effect: Each target makes a Might test. Effect: Poisonous overgrowth and seeking vines cover all surfaces on
1 12 poison damage; the target is dragonsealed (save ends) the encounter map. The dragon uses their Bramble Barricade Malice
2 9 poison damage; the target is dragonsealed (save ends) feature twice at no cost. Until the end of the encounter, any creature
3 5 poison damage force moved by the dragon takes 1d3 poison damage, and if they
A dragonsealed creature has their wounds bound by nettles and have m<2], they are weakened (save ends).
thorns, causing them to take an extra 1d3 damage whenever they
Special: If the Thorn Dragon’s Domain trait is in effect, any creature
take damage rolled as a d6 or a d3.
other than the dragon who starts their turn on the encounter map
takes 1d3 poison damage.
m Spinous Tail Swing 2d10 + 3
Charge, Melee, Strike, Weapon Main action
e Melee 2 x Two enemies or objects
Thorn Dragon Malice Malice Features
1 8 damage; push 2
At the start of a thorn dragon’s turn, you can spend Malice to activate
2 12 damage; push 4
one of the following features.
3 15 damage; push 8
2 Malice: Each target takes an extra 1d3 damage, and if they have
a<2], they are bleeding (save ends). t Cage of Thorns 3 Malice
A cage of thorns grows around one dragonsealed enemy on the
t Provoking Nettles encounter map, making that enemy restrained until the end of
Once per turn, the dragon shifts up to 5 squares and can move their next turn.
through enemies’ spaces at their usual speed. The first time the
dragon moves through an enemy’s space during this movement, a Bramble Barricade 5 Malice
the enemy takes 3 damage. The dragon grows a 10 wall of briars in unoccupied spaces on
the encounter map. The wall blocks line of effect for all creatures
b Investiture of Verdure 5 Malice except the dragon. Each square of the wall has 5 Stamina and fire
Area Maneuver weakness 5. The area can be moved through but is difficult terrain.
e 10 burst x Each enemy in the area Any creature who is force moved into or within the area takes 1
damage for each square of the area entered and is bleeding until
Effect: Each target must be dragonsealed. Each target is pulled up to 5 the end of their next turn.
squares toward the dragon, who gains 5 temporary Stamina for each
target pulled.
d Solo Action 5 Malice
The dragon takes an additional main action on their turn. They
! Prickly Situation can use this feature even if they are dazed.
Magic, Ranged Free triggered action
e Ranged 10 x The triggering creature p Afflictive Overgrowth 7 Malice
Trigger: A dragonsealed creature within distance ends the dragon- The dragon summons poisonous, biting thorns around their foes.
sealed effect. Each enemy on the encounter map makes an Agility test.
Effect: The target is pulled up to 5 squares toward the dragon, and if 1 12 poison damage; restrained (save ends)
they have a<2], they are restrained until the end of their next turn. 2 9 poison damage; bleeding (save ends)
3 5 poison damage; bleeding (EoT)

95
 Gloom Dragon Unnerving Neighbors
Instinct and curiosity drive these enshrouded hunters. It is rare to find
Where twilight spills long and cold over the lands and chilling fog
a gloom dragon who can be reasoned with, but some might develop
hangs heavy and wet through long autumns and winters, there you
an understanding with nearby settlements, such that each leaves
will find gloom dragons. Wreathed in churning shadows and wrapped
the other to their business. Since gloom dragons focus on individual
in glittering dark scales, gloom dragons bring with them heavy fog and
terrorizing over mass destruction, it is relatively easy to coexist with
mist that manifests hallucinations, trapping their prey in nightmares.
one lurking in the swamps nearby. But in such cases, these dragons
become the subject of stories told to children, warning them to never
Thrill of the Hunt follow voices into the fog.
While many dragons command grand enclosed spaces, gloom dragons
make their lairs within sprawling, murky wilds, commanding vast Gloom Dragon Languages
territories. As clever as ravens and as cunning as hunting beasts, they
Eerie myths surround the gloom dragons, for they wield languages they
use mimicry and hallucinations to draw unsuspecting travelers ever
do not themselves speak. These draconic nightmares can mimic any
farther into the mists of their domain, until the fog swallows the sound
sound they’ve heard. But more mysteriously, the magic that produces
of those travelers’ screams.
their hallucinations also mimics the sounds a foe’s mind produces, no
In areas where gloom dragons settle, people are known to have more matter their language. If a hero hallucinates a loved one dying, everyone
nightmares than usual. around will hear that loved one’s screams for help.

Intangible Treasures
Gloom Dragon’s Domain
Gloom dragons are eerie collectors of voices, memories, and
If the encounter map is a location the dragon has occupied
nightmares, as well as material items. Though able to speak, they can
for 1 week or more, illusory magic suffuses the location with
only repeat exactly what they’ve already heard, and so they prize
shadowy malevolence. Each creature on the encounter map
their vast collections of voices and phrases, using these sounds to lure
other than the dragon takes a −2 penalty to saving throws
mortals close enough to draw out their memories and fears. Endlessly
made to end the frightened condition. Additionally, whenever
curious and fascinated by terror, gloom dragons are keen to see what
a frightened enemy on the encounter map takes damage, they
hallucinations terrorize their prey before they slaughter them.
take an extra 3 psychic damage.
When a gloom dragon slays a victim, they take not just their valuables,
but also whatever is most meaningful to their fears. A broken mirror
from a dead lover will always fascinate a gloom dragon more than a
perfect ruby brooch.
Draw Steel

96
Gloom Dragon Level 4 Solo d Enveloping Umbrage 2d10 + 4 Villain Action 1

Dragons
Dragon, Elemental EV 72 Area, Magic
e 5 burst x Each enemy in the area
4 8 350 2 6 1 Pull 2; i<2] frightened (EoT)
Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike 2 Pull 4; i<3] frightened (save ends)
3 Pull 6; i<4] frightened (save ends)
Immunity: Psychic 5 Weakness: —
Movement: Fly, hover d Pall of Nightmares 2d10 + 4 Villain Action 2
Might +2 Agility +4 Reason +1 Intuition +3 Presence +4 Area, Magic
e 10 burst x Each enemy in the area
d Solo Monster 1 6 psychic damage
End Effect: At the end of each of their turns, the dragon can take 10 2 11 psychic damage
damage to end one effect on them that can be ended by a saving 3 14 psychic damage
throw. This damage can’t be reduced in any way. Effect: Each target must be dragonsealed. Any target who has i<3] is
Solo Turns: The dragon can take two turns each round. They can’t also dazed (save ends).
take turns consecutively.
d Absence of All Light Villain Action 3
b Gloaming Wyrmscale Aura —
The dragon’s scales create a 3 aura of dark supernatural fog around e Special x Special
them that feeds on their victims’ fears and provides concealment to Effect: The dragon disappears from the encounter map. The dragon
the dragon only. Each enemy who starts their turn in the area takes and three hallucinatory illusions of themself then immediately re-
2 psychic damage. Additionally, whenever one or more enemies is appear in unoccupied spaces on the encounter map, and the dragon
in the area, the dragon’s abilities deal an extra 3 psychic damage. and each illusion uses Breath of Brume. Each illusion is indistinguish-
able from the dragon except by supernatural means, has 1 Stamina,
a Breath of Brume 2d10 + 4 Signature Ability and has the dragon’s speed. An illusion acts on the dragon’s turns but
Area, Magic, Ranged Main action can take only move actions. Once per round before or after using an
e 4 cube within 10 x Each enemy and object in the area ability, the dragon can trade places with any duplicate.

Effect: Each target makes an Agility test.

1 14 cold damage; the target is dragonsealed (save ends)
2 11 cold damage; the target is dragonsealed (save ends) Gloom Dragon Malice Malice Features
3 6 cold damage
At the start of a gloom dragon’s turn, you can spend Malice to activate
A dragonsealed creature has psychic weakness 3 and cold weak-
one of the following features.
ness 3. Additionally, the area is filled with magical darkness. The
dragon ignores concealment created by this darkness.
t Dread and Terror 3 Malice
m Phantom Tail Swing 2d10 + 4 The dragon thickens the fog of their Gloaming Wyrmscale Aura
Charge, Magic, Melee, Strike Main action trait and the horrors within it. Each creature in the area takes
e Melee 3 x Two creatures or objects a bane on strikes made against the dragon until the start of the
dragon’s next turn.
1 10 psychic damage; pull 2
2 15 psychic damage; pull 4
3 18 psychic damage; pull 6 a Doleful Visions 5 Malice
3 Malice: The pull becomes a vertical slide. The dragon manifests four 2 cubes of nightmarish apparitions
anywhere on the encounter map. Each creature in the area when
it appears makes an Intuition test.
t Shadow Skulk 1 14 damage; dazed (save ends)
Once per turn, the dragon can shift up to their speed, leaving be- 2 11 damage; dazed (EoT)
hind a 4 cube area of magical darkness in their starting space that 3 6 damage
lasts until the end of the encounter. The dragon ignores conceal-
ment created by this darkness. Any enemy who ends their turn in
d Solo Action 5 Malice
the area and has i<3] is frightened of the dragon until the end of
The dragon takes an additional main action on their turn. They
their next turn.
can use this feature even if they are dazed.

b Visions in the Dark 5 Malice a Phantasmagoria! 7 Malice

Area, Magic Maneuver
The dragon summons macabre, disquieting phantasms in a 10
e 10 burst x Each enemy in the area cube within 1 square that lasts until the end of the encounter. Any
Effect: Each target must be dragonsealed. Each target takes 3 psychic enemy who enters the area for the first time in a round or starts
damage, and if they have i<3] they immediately make a free strike their turn there takes 6 psychic damage, or 8 psychic damage if
against one ally of the dragon’s choice. they are dragonsealed by the gloom dragon. Additionally, the
enemy’s Intuition score is treated as 1 lower for the purpose of
resisting potencies until the end of the encounter.
! Encroaching Darkness 1 Malice
— Free triggered action
e Self x Self
Trigger: A creature within 10 squares moves.
Effect: The dragon moves two existing cubes of magical darkness
they created up to 10 squares each.

97
 All crucible dragons manage to accrue large amounts of armaments
Crucible Dragon and armor in their hoards. They care little for gems and gold, other
than for melting down as filigree or embossing the weapons and
Crucible dragons are born from metallic elementals touched by the toxic
armor they forge.
combination of fiery rage and ice-cold grief—often the result of failure
in the pursuit of perfection. Each dragon is a dark forge of abandoned
creativity melted down in fires of spite, jealousy, and hate.
Flawed Pursuits
The failure that spawned a crucible dragon drives their obsessive
These metallic dragons are massive, heavy creatures requiring an immense
pursuits. They endlessly attempt to reproduce the perfect treasures
release of heat to engage in flight. Their scales range from gleaming silver
they count among their most prized possessions, but can only recreate
to blackened iron, depending on how fastidious they are about cleaning,
flawed copies at a fraction of their original power. Discarded projects,
and are occasionally gilded with more-precious metals. Their long tails
melted heaps of raw iron, and scrap angrily embedded into cavern walls
terminate with a massive, hammer-like tip that can freeze over and
perpetually surround a crucible dragon as examples of their failures,
instantly cool hot metal.
perpetuating a cycle of obsessive rage, grief, and inescapable decline.

Bastions of Steel Crucible Dragon Languages

Crucible dragons make their homes high in the mountains, most
The oldest of crucible dragons are known to speak some Vastariax, though
commonly in peaks cut through with thick veins of iron ore. Occasion-
younger dragons are typically silent. However, survivors of an encounter
ally, one will take over a fortress or outpost, but wherever they settle,
with a younger crucible dragon sometimes report the monster using the
the first thing a crucible dragon sets in place is a colossal anvil. From
Caelian phrases “not enough” and “mine.”
there, the dragon consumes vast amounts of iron, slagging that iron in
their belly to create a fortress of steel around them. Much of the slag is
expelled into heated vats for forging, but a dragon keeps a small reserve Crucible Dragon’s Domain
inside their gut in case they need to melt any intrusive adventurers.
If the encounter map is a location the dragon has occupied for 1
week or more, melted metal and blades coat nearly every surface.
Discerning Collectors Any creature other than the dragon who starts their turn in physical
Crucible dragons are obsessive collectors, and have a habit of narrowly contact with a surface on the encounter map takes 5 damage. Such
focusing on a singular creation when it comes to collection and replication. creatures take an additional 5 damage when they take damage from
Bynirak, the Rain of Ten Thousand Spears, is known to collect only the being force moved into a surface on the map. Whenever an enemy
most finely crafted and powerful magic polearms in Vasloria. Joris’nyrathi, in the encounter uses an ability that deals lightning damage, they take
the Scorching Aegis, is said to have a collection of shields that would rival 1d6 damage to themself and each enemy and object adjacent to them.
any god of the forge.
Draw Steel

98
Crucible Dragon Level 6 Solo ! Polarize Aura 2d10 + 4 1 Malice

Dragons
Dragon, Elemental EV 96 Area, Magic Triggered action
e 3 burst x Each creature and object in the area
4 8 450 6 7 Trigger: The dragon is targeted by two melee strikes in the current
Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike turn.
Immunity: Fire 6 Weakness: — Special: The target must be size 2 or smaller.
Movement: — 1 Push 5
2 Push 7
Might +4 Agility –1 Reason +3 Intuition +3 Presence +2 3 Push 10, ignoring stability

d Solo Monster
d Heart of the Forge 2d10 + 4 Villain Action 1
End Effect: At the end of each of their turns, the dragon can take 10 Area, Magic
damage to end one effect on them that can be ended by a saving e 6 burst x Each enemy in the area
throw. This damage can’t be reduced in any way.
1 4 fire damage; i<2] frightened (save ends)
Solo Turns: The dragon can take two turns each round. They can’t 2 6 fire damage; i<3] frightened (save ends)
take turns consecutively. 3 8 fire damage; i<4] frightened (save ends)

b Magnetized Wyrmscale Aura d Subdermal Shielding Villain Action 2

The dragon’s scales create a 3 aura of magnetism around them —
that affects large masses of metal. Any creature who enters the e Self x Self
area for the first time in a round or starts their turn there while
Effect: Shields embedded under the dragon’s scales emerge, and the
wearing metal or while slagged (see Slag Spew) is pulled up to 2
dragon gains damage immunity 6 at the start of each round until the
squares toward the dragon. A creature pulled this way who has
end of the encounter. If the dragon takes any damage, they lose this
m<3] is unable to willingly move away from the dragon.
immunity until the end of the current round.

a Slag Spew Signature Ability

Area, Magic Main action
d Polarity Chaos Villain Action 3
—
e 10 × 2 line within 1 x Each creature and object in the area
e 10 burst x Each creature and object in the area
Effect: Each target makes an Agility test.
Effect: Each target makes a Might test.
1 13 fire damage; the target is slagged (save ends)
2 10 fire damage; the target is slagged (save ends) 1 16 damage; pull 10 or push 10
3 6 fire damage 2 13 damage; pull 8 or push 8
A slagged target is coated in molten metal and takes 2d6 fire dam- 3 7 damage; pull 5 or push 5.
age at the start of each of their turns. If a slagged target has m<3]
they are restrained (save ends) whenever they take cold damage.
Crucible Dragon Malice Malice Features
m Forge Hammer Tail Slam 2d10 + 4 At the start of a crucible dragon’s turn, you can spend Malice to
Melee, Strike, Weapon Main action activate one of the following features.
e Melee 3 x Two creatures or objects
1 11 damage; m<2] prone
2 17 damage; m<3] prone a Swordfall 3 Malice
3 20 damage; m<4] prone While the dragon is flying, they shape themself into a blade and
Effect: The dragon can make a free strike against each slagged target fall. Each creature and object in the dragon’s space when they
knocked prone this way. hit the ground and in a 6 × 4 line within 1 square of the dragon
takes 7 damage. A creature who takes this damage and has a<4]
1 Malice: The strike deals 1d6 cold damage.
takes 4 extra damage per square the dragon fell and is restrained
(save ends). A creature not restrained this way can move into the
t Heat Buffer nearest unoccupied space.
Once per round while the dragon is flying using their
Thermodynamic Flight ability, they give off a blast of steam to a Shower of Blades 5 Malice
extend the duration of their flight until the end of the next round. The dragon shakes loose a cloud of shattered weapons in a 6 × 4
Each creature in a 4 cube within 1 underneath the dragon when line within 1 square of them. Each creature and object in the area
they use this ability takes 7 fire damage. makes an Agility test.
1 16 damage; bleeding (save ends)
b Thermodynamic Flight 1 Malice 2 13 damage; bleeding (EoT)
Area Maneuver 3 7 damage
e 2 burst x Each enemy in the area
d Solo Action 5 Malice
Effect: The dragon expels blistering steam, dealing 7 fire damage
The dragon takes an additional main action on their turn. They
to each target in the area. The dragon then shifts up to their speed
can use this feature even if they are dazed.
vertically and can fly until the end of the round.

p Meltdown 7 Malice
! Hammer and Anvil 1 Malice The dragon superheats the ground across the encounter map until
— Free triggered action
the end of the round. Any enemy who starts their turn on the
e Self x Self ground is slagged as if affected by the dragon’s Slag Spew ability.
Trigger: While flying, the dragon starts their turn or moves.
Effect: The dragon drops to the ground and uses Forge Hammer Tail
Slam, which deals an extra 4 damage for each square they descended.

99
 Omen Dragon such sites, for what better place to study than a stagnant wasteland that
grants one infinite time?
They have been known by many names: Reaper, Blight, Sorrow,
The effects that surround an omen dragon also mean that new life
Stillness, Vengeance, Grief. The omen dragons carry as many meanings
cannot begin. Civilization cannot exist, let alone prosper, without
and interpretations as death itself—for they are death embodied. This
a reliable food source. When living creatures die in these dragons’
dragon is a coalescing of wayward souls, the stench of death solidified,
domains, their bodies do not decompose. Their souls are sucked into
that clings to the last vestiges of this world—to the detriment of their
the omen dragon, granting the creature ever more power.
surroundings.

Life and Death Wicked Visions

To face off against an omen dragon is to stare down death itself. One can
The opposite of life isn’t death—it’s stagnation. When a soul refuses to
spend only so long near a choir of restless souls before being compelled
move on, it lives outside the cycle of life. Souls can have any number
to sing. For the sin of defiance, this dragon bestows upon their attackers
of reasons to linger: anger, fear, sadness, a thirst for revenge. One skilled
an omen of their own death. Tarry too long near the creature, and a
at dealing with the undead might even be able to shepherd such a
hero risks fulfilling that prophecy, even if they can weather the dragon’s
soul back into its cycle. But when hundreds of souls with hundreds
unrelenting attacks.
of unique motivations bind themselves to an elemental and form an
omen dragon, the only practical way to stop them is to destroy what
they’ve become.
Omen Dragon Languages
An omen dragon speaks with the voices of all the souls they have
As the embodiment of these wayward souls, the omen dragon wields
collected. In addition to Vastariax, the dragon speaks and understands
them like weapons. They can send restless souls to grab creatures
whatever languages those souls knew in life.
and pull them in, or to possess their attackers, compelling them to
distraction in the middle of a fight. They even wrap themselves in the
most durable of souls, creating a stifling aura.
Omen Dragon’s Domain
Life Outside Life If the encounter map is a location the dragon has occupied for
1 week or more, any creature on the map who regains Stamina
Just as the omen dragon exists outside the cycle of life, so too does regains only half the expected amount. Additionally, when a
their domain. The omen dragon’s dragonseal brings desolation and creature on the map who has a soul dies, the dragon absorbs
stagnancy to all living things. Growth does not happen. Living things the soul, granting the Director 1 Malice. The creature can’t be
that grow or creatures who dwell near an omen dragon’s domain do not brought back to life until the dragon is destroyed.
age. One can often find secret societies researching lichdom residing in
Draw Steel

100
Omen Dragon Level 8 Solo ! Don’t Turn Away 1 Malice

Dragons
Dragon, Elemental EV 120 — Free triggered action
e Self x Self
5 10 550 6 9 Trigger: A creature leaves the area of the dragon’s Stagnant Wyrms-
Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike cale Aura trait.
Immunity: Corruption 6 Weakness: — Effect: The dragon shifts up to their speed, and the Deathcount of
Movement: Fly each dragonsealed creature who comes adjacent to the dragon dur-
ing this shift is reduced by 1.
Might +3 Agility +4 Reason +2 Intuition +3 Presence +5

d Solo Monster ! Repent! 2 Malice

End Effect: At the end of each of their turns, the dragon can take 15 Ranged Free triggered action
damage to end one effect on them that can be ended by a saving e Ranged 5 x The triggering creature
throw. This damage can’t be reduced in any way. Trigger: A dragonsealed creature within distance deals damage to the
Solo Turns: The dragon can take two turns each round. They can’t dragon.
take turns consecutively. Effect: The target must choose between making a free strike against
themself or gaining a Deathcount of 5.
t Deathcount
Several of the dragon’s abilities impose a Deathcount on a target. d What You Deserve 2d10 + 5 Villain Action 1
At the end of every turn, a creature with a Deathcount who is Area, Magic
within the area of the dragon’s Stagnant Wyrmscale Aura has that e 5 burst x Each enemy in the area
Deathcount reduced by 1. When a creature’s Deathcount hits 0,
they die. If multiple Deathcounts are imposed on a creature, they
1 Pull 1; the target has a Deathcount of 10

don’t stack. Only the lowest Deathcount takes effect. All Death-
2 Pull 2; the target has a Deathcount of 8

counts are lost when the dragon is reduced to 0 Stamina.

3 Pull 3; the target has a Deathcount of 6
Effect: Each target receives a premonition of their imminent death.

b Stagnant Wyrmscale Aura

The dragon’s scales create a 4 aura of supernatural stagnancy
d Souls of the Broken Villain Action 2
Magic, Ranged, Strike
around them. The area is difficult terrain for enemies, and no crea-
ture except the omen dragon can regain Stamina while in the area.
e Ranged 10 x Five creatures
Any creature dragonsealed by the omen dragon who starts their Effect: The dragon spits fragments of souls to attempt to possess the
turn in the dragon’s aura and doesn’t have a Deathcount gains a targets, making a separate power roll for each target.
Deathcount of 12. 1 p<5] frightened (save ends)
2 p<5] the target moves up to their speed toward the dragon
a Corroding Breath Signature Ability 3 p<5] the target makes a free strike against the nearest ally
Area, Magic, Ranged Main action
e 5 cube within 10 x Each creature and object in the area d So Long and Goodnight Villain Action 3
Area, Magic
Effect: Each target makes an Agility test. e 6 burst x Each creature in the area
1 18 corruption damage; the target is dragonsealed (save ends)
2 14 corruption damage; the target is dragonsealed (save ends) Effect: Each target must be dragonsealed. The dragon’s eyes glow
3 9 corruption damage with unequalled malevolence, and any target who has a Deathcount
Only creatures with souls can be dragonsealed by the omen has that Deathcount reduced to 1.
dragon. A dragonsealed creature appears ghastly and pale, their
Presence score is treated as 1 lower for the purpose of resisting
potencies, and they can’t treat other creatures as allies. Omen Dragon Malice Malice Features
At the start of an omen dragon’s turn, you can spend Malice to acti-
vate one of the following features.
m Barbed Tail Swing 2d10 + 5
Charge, Melee, Strike, Weapon Main action
e Melee 4 x Two creatures or objects t Black Skies 3 Malice
1 14 damage; m<3] bleeding (save ends) The dragon expands their wings to create a shroud of shadow.
2 19 damage; m<4] bleeding (save ends) Until the start of the dragon’s next turn, any strike made against
3 23 damage; m<5] bleeding (save ends) them takes a bane.
3 Malice: The potency increases by 2, and each target is also pulled
up to 5 squares. b Rise and Fall 5 Malice
The dragon flies up to 10 squares and carries fated souls with
t Death or Victory them. Each creature in the area of the dragon’s Stagnant Wyrms-
Once per turn, the dragon chooses one creature with a cale Aura trait makes a Presence test.
Deathcount within line of effect. That creature can choose to take 1 Vertical pull 10
1d6 damage and lose a recovery to increase their Deathcount by 5. 2 Vertical pull 6
3 Vertical pull 4

b Detonation 5 Malice
Area Maneuver
d Solo Action 5 Malice
The dragon takes an additional main action on their turn. They
e 10 burst x Each enemy in the area
can use this feature even if they are dazed.
Effect: Each target must be dragonsealed. Each target takes 9 corrup-
tion damage, and the omen dragon regains Stamina equal to half the p Burn It Right Down 10 Malice
total damage dealt. The target then loses their dragonseal. Each edge of the encounter map burns with intangible purple
flames until the end of the encounter. The flames expand by 1
square at the end of every turn. Any enemy takes 5 corruption
damage for each square of flames they enter.

101
 Meteor Dragon among the smallest of the dragons, but the density of their bodies
exudes an intense field of the cold, airless void of space around them
They dwell in the cold, airless depths of space in lair-cities built of wherever they go.
stolen kingdoms for centuries at a time. Then without warning or
A meteor dragon’s body is infused with crystalline starlight, which they
mercy, a meteor dragon attacks.
can convert to a barrage of white-hot energy rays. At any distance, the
dragon’s presence can forever sear the minds of lesser creatures.
Kingdom Killers
A meteor dragon’s territory is hard to define. Their attacks might come Voidlight Annihilation
ages apart, and not every dead civilization or ruined city is the work of
Voidlight is the name given to the unique energy produced by the
a dragon. But when a city grows too great, an empire too powerful, or a
breath of a meteor dragon. It is anathema to existence, an evil energy
culture too advanced, the meteor dragon descends. Their violence isn’t
that destroys all. Anything that exists, no matter its material, strength,
mindless or wanton, but cold and calculated. Often, they breach dams,
or potency, is inverted and ceases to exist when bathed in voidlight.
trigger landslides, and devastate granaries and fields, knowing that the
chaos and devastation they unleash will continue long after they return
to their lairs.
Meteor Dragon Languages
Meteor dragons are not known for their conversational habits.
Cities in the Sky When they do deign to speak, it is exclusively in Vastariax and the
First Language.
Other dragons hoard trinkets and baubles. Meteor dragons claim
their domain over infrastructure. Palaces, fortresses, monuments, and
towers are often stolen by these creatures and brought back to their
Meteor Dragon’s Domain
spacefaring lairs, arranged into dilapidated tableaus of the places they
If the encounter map is a location the dragon has occupied
have obliterated. A meteor dragon’s floating lair-city is both their hoard
for 1 week or more, each creature other than the dragon has
and home, fused together and secured by the dragon’s glittering crystal
their stability reduced to 0 and automatically obtains a tier
dragonseal. Within this labyrinthine jumble of ruination, a meteor
1 outcome on Agility tests. Additionally, any creature who is
dragon lurks in wait for the next civilization to grow too comfortable.
suffocating during the encounter takes an extra 1d6 damage at

Avatar of the Infinite the end of each round.

Meteor dragons have an innate mastery over gravitational forces

that allows them to crush enemies and buildings on a whim. They’re
Draw Steel

102
Meteor Dragon Level 10 Solo ! A Hero Faces the Void 2 Malice

Dragons
Dragon, Elemental EV 144 Magic, Ranged Free triggered action
e Ranged 5 x The triggering creature
3 15 650 6 10 Trigger: A creature within distance spends their Heroic Resource to
Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike use an ability.
Immunity: — Weakness: —
1 10 psychic damage; p<4] frightened (save ends)

Movement: Fly
2 16 psychic damage; p<5] frightened (save ends)
3 20 psychic damage; p<6] frightened (save ends)
Might +5 Agility +5 Reason +3 Intuition +3 Presence +5 Effect: While frightened this way, the target can’t use the triggering
ability.
d Solo Monster
End Effect: At the end of each of their turns, the dragon can take 20 d Impactful Arrival Villain Action 1
damage to end one effect on them that can be ended by a saving Area, Magic
throw. This damage can’t be reduced in any way. e 1-mile burst x Each creature and object in the area
Solo Turns: The dragon can take two turns each round. They can’t
Effect: Each target takes 30 fire damage, and if they have m<5], they
take turns consecutively.
are knocked prone.
Special: The dragon can use this ability before the encounter begins.
b Voidshroud Wyrmscale Aura
The dragon’s scales create a 1 aura of void space around them.
Any enemy who starts their turn in the area takes 10 cold damage d Burning Aurora Villain Action 2
and is suffocating. Each time the dragon takes damage, the area —
of the aura increases by 1 (to a maximum of 5), and they deal an e Self x Self
extra 5 damage the next time they use an ability that deals rolled
Effect: Until the end of the encounter, each enemy who is dragon-
damage.
sealed and weakened and who the dragon has line of effect to loses
1 of their Heroic Resource at the start of each of their turns (to a
a Gravity Well Signature Ability minimum of 0). The dragon then uses their Cosmic Tail Ray ability
Area, Magic, Ranged Main action with a double edge, targeting four creatures or objects.
e 4 cube within 10 x Each creature and object in the area
Effect: Each target makes a Might test. d Voidlight Breath Villain Action 3
1 20 sonic damage; the target is dragonsealed (save ends) Area, Magic
2
3
16 sonic damage; the target is dragonsealed (save ends)
10 sonic damage
∞
e × 3 line within 1 x Each enemy and object in the area
A dragonsealed target emits a golden aura, and takes 2 damage per Effect: Each target makes an Agility test.
square moved when falling or when force moved into an obstacle. 1 25 damage; i<6] the target is annihilated
2 21 damage; i<5] the target is annihilated

v Cosmic Tail Ray 2d10 + 5

3 15 damage; i<4] the target is annihilated
An annihilated target must make the test again, decreasing the po-
Magic, Melee, Ranged, Strike Main action tency for themself by 2 each time they are annihilated. A creature
e Melee 2 or ranged 15 x Two creatures or objects reduced to 0 Stamina by this dies and their soul is destroyed.
1 15 holy damage; a<4] weakened (save ends)
2 21 holy damage; a<5] weakened (save ends)
Meteor Dragon Malice Malice Features
3 25 holy damage; a<6] weakened (save ends)
Effect: If a target made weakened this way is already weakened, they At the start of a meteor dragon’s turn, you can spend Malice to acti-
are instead dazed until the end of their next turn. vate one of the following features.

t Crescent Claws t Liftoff 3 Malice

Once per turn, the dragon chooses a target within 3 squares. The The next time the dragon uses their Crescent Claws ability, they
dragon can make a free strike against the target, and ignores banes can also slide the target up to 5 squares. If the target is dragon-
when using abilities against the target until the start of their next sealed, the dragon can vertical slide them instead.
turn.
d Solo Action 5 Malice
b Investiture of Gravity 5 Malice The dragon takes an additional main action on their turn. They
Area, Magic Maneuver can use this feature even if they are dazed.
e 15 burst x Each enemy in the area
Effect: Each target must be dragonsealed. The dragon chooses a a Starfall 5 Malice
direction and vertical slides each target 10 squares in that direction, The dragon drops stars into five 2 cubes anywhere on the encoun-
ignoring stability. A target who strikes an obstacle takes damage as if ter map. The area is difficult terrain, and each creature and object
they had fallen the forced movement distance. in the area when it appears makes an Agility test.
1 20 holy damage; slowed (save ends), prone
2 16 holy damage; slowed (save ends)
! Field Collapse 3 10 holy damage
— Free triggered action
e Self x Self d Event Horizon 10 Malice
Trigger: The dragon takes damage from an ability while the area of A black hole manifests as a 1 cube within 20 squares of the dragon
their Voidshroud Wyrmscale Aura is 2 or more. in an unoccupied space. Each creature who has m<5] and each
object of size 3 or smaller is vertical pulled 2 squares toward the
Effect: The dragon halves the damage. Each enemy and object in the
area at the start of each round, ignoring stability. Any creature
area of the dragon’s Voidshroud Wyrmscale Aura trait takes 5 sonic
who starts their turn in the area or any object in the area at the
damage and is pulled up to 5 squares toward the dragon. The area of
end of the round suffers the effect of the dragon’s Voidlight Breath
the wyrmscale aura then resets to 1.
ability, and the black hole disappears.

103
 Draw Steel

104
DWARVES

Dwarves
Possessed of a strength that belies their size, dwarves have flesh infused Servitor War Walkers
with stone—a silico-organic hybrid that makes them physically denser
The war walker is a common sight in both dwarven armies and
than humans or elves. They enjoy a reputation in Orden as savvy
dwarven cities. They vary widely in appearance and make, ranging
engineers and technologists thanks to the lore they inherited from their
from cobbled-together heaps of belts, gears, and plates to elegant and
elder siblings, the long-extinct steel dwarves.
sleek marvels of dwarven engineering. In battle, war walkers carry
They are the children of the Elder God Ord. A common phrase among multiple dwarves and keep foes at a distance. In society, they’re used
the dwarves is “Ord made the world.” Their way of saying, “What will for public transit and accessibility needs within dwarven cities.
be, will be.” Dwarves take great pride in knowing that along with Aan,
Eth, and Kul, their god created the mundane world, and many dwarves Stone Whisperers
leave their homes to see the world and seek glory in Ord’s name.
Some dwarves are born with an innate talent to communicate with

Tools of the Trade stone. Young dwarves identified with this gift are taken to a secretive
enclave where they are trained to manipulate the movement and shape
Those raised within dwarven enclaves have a relationship with of stones using only whispers. The stone whispering technique is a
technology not found in many other places on Orden. The gifts of the deadly and quiet force in battle, and often the rumble of stone is the
steel dwarves are many in number, but the most prominent is that of only precursor to an enemy’s crushing defeat.
pneumatic steam power.
Legends speak of stone singers, dwarves who could move mountains
Dwarves have incorporated steam into much of their warfare and with their song. However, those same legends tell a tale of two stone
weaponry, making them deadly opponents. But like all technology, it’s singers who harmonized their voices and nearly ended the world. This
a double-headed hammer. As much as they use steam for destruction, is why today’s stone whisperers stay quiet, afraid of their own potential.
construction is where it truly shines. Creating the formidable and
brutalist facades common to dwarven architecture is made much easier Dwarf Languages
with the use of tools designed to utilize pneumatic power. Some of the
Most dwarves speak Caelian and Zaliac.
larger and more metropolitan dwarven cities are rumored to power
wealthier districts using steam from geothermal vents.
Dwarf Malice Malice Features
Innovative Operation At the start of any dwarf’s turn, you can spend Malice to activate one
of the following features.
The dwarves have yet to crack all the secrets of the valok, the
autonomous machines that were their ancestors’ greatest achievement,
but they’ve made great strides in researching them. They’ve innovated s Breaching Charge 3 Malice
A dwarf can destroy one adjacent object or square of wall for each
ways to repurpose, recycle, and reverse engineer (to a limited degree)
3 Malice spent. Each enemy adjacent to the destroyed object or
valok assemblage, giving rise to a new multifaceted occupation: square takes the object’s Stamina in damage (3 for wood, 6 for
the operator. stone, or 9 for metal).
Operators now span the world and come from all walks of life, but
the first among them were dwarves who built powered suits from t Rappelling Barrage 5 Malice
Each dwarf acting this turn can automatically climb at full speed
excavated valok parts. These suits were initially used for construction
while moving. At any point during this movement, they can make
and utility purposes, but can be repurposed and refitted for warfare a free strike.
when the need arises.

Word of these wonderous dwarven creations quickly spread among a Snaring Line 7 Malice
Area, Magic, Ranged Main action
the tunnels of the underground, and up into the overworld. This led
e 10 × 1 line within 10 x Each enemy in the area
to a brief arms race where artisans, craftspeople, and smiths from all
over were commissioned by wealthy rulers and aristocrats to create Effect: Each target makes an Agility test.
mechanized suits to bolster their armies and personal guard. 1 8 damage; restrained (EoT)
2 6 damage; slowed (EoT)

The Press-Gangs of Kal Kalavar 3 No effect.

The snaring line remains until the end of the encounter. Any enemy
Before Ajax came to power, the dwarves of Kal Kalavar were renowned who moves into the area for the first time in a round or starts their
for their disciplined constabulary. The constables were kind, kept order, turn there must make the test.
and kept the city safe. Special: This ability can’t be used by a minion.

But now, the dwarves of Kal Kalavar have submitted to Ajax’s rule and
pay him tribute in prisoners. Ajax has need of bodies, to be used as
either forced labor or as fodder for the Body Banks, whether to make
war dogs or grant eternal life to those in Ajax’s favor. Most dwarves
don’t like this deal, but the press-gangs are committed to their work.

The marauder lords who lead the press-gangs make use of salvaged
valok communication arrays that they wear like a mohawk on their
heads. The array gives them access to magnetomancy, allowing them to
shape and levitate metal, including wielding multiple axes in battle.

105
 Dwarf Axethrower Level 1 Minion Defender Dwarf Catchpole Level 1 Minion Brute
Dwarf, Humanoid EV 3 for 4 minions Dwarf, Humanoid EV 3 for 4 minions

1M 5 7 2 1 1M 5 7 2 2
Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike

Immunity: — Weakness: — Immunity: — Weakness: —

Movement: — With Captain: +2 bonus to Stamina Movement: — With Captain: +2 bonus to Stamina
Might +1 Agility 0 Reason 0 Intuition +2 Presence 0 Might +2 Agility 0 Reason 0 Intuition 0 Presence 0

v Whistling Axes 2d10 + 2 Signature Ability m Maul 2d10 + 2 Signature Ability

Melee, Ranged, Strike, Weapon Main action Charge, Melee, Strike, Weapon Main action
e Melee 1 or ranged 5 x One creature or object per minion e Melee 1 x One creature or object per minion
1 1 damage 1 2 damage
2 2 damage 2 4 damage
3 3 damage; one ally adjacent to the target can make a free strike 3 5 damage; grabbed or prone
Effect: The target can’t use triggered actions until the start of the next Effect: If the target is restrained, they take an extra 2 damage.
round.
Dwarf Driver Level 1 Minion Harrier
Dwarf, Humanoid EV 3 for 4 minions

1M 7 6 1 1
Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike

Immunity: — Weakness: —
Movement: — With Captain: +2 bonus to Stamina
Might +2 Agility +1 Reason 0 Intuition 0 Presence 0

v Handaxes 2d10 + 2 Signature Ability

Charge, Melee, Ranged, Strike, Weapon Main action
e Melee 1 or ranged 5 x One creature or object per minion
1 1 damage; push 1
2 2 damage; push 2
3 3 damage; push 4
Effect: A target restrained by a dwarf can be force moved by this
ability. This forced movement doesn’t end the restrained condition
unless the Director determines otherwise.

Dwarf Hunter Level 1 Minion Support

Dwarf, Humanoid EV 3 for 4 minions

1M 5 6 1 1
Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike
Immunity: — Weakness: —
Movement: — With Captain: +2 bonus to Stamina
Might +1 Agility +2 Reason 0 Intuition 0 Presence 0

r Snaring Javelin 2d10 + 2 Signature Ability

Ranged, Strike, Weapon Main action
e Ranged 5 x One creature or object per minion
1 1 damage; pull 1
2 2 damage; pull 2
3 3 damage; pull 4
Effect: A target restrained by a dwarf can be force moved by this
ability. This forced movement doesn’t end the restrained condition
unless the Director determines otherwise.
Draw Steel

106
Dwarf Gunner Level 1 Platoon Artillery Dwarf Launcher Level 2 Platoon Hexer

Dwarves
Dwarf, Humanoid EV 6 Dwarf, Humanoid EV 8

1M 5 26 1 4 1M 5 39 3 4
Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike

Immunity: — Weakness: — Immunity: — Weakness: —

Movement: — Movement: —
Might 0 Agility +2 Reason 0 Intuition +1 Presence 0 Might +1 Agility 0 Reason 0 Intuition +2 Presence 0

r Portable Ballista 2d10 + 2 Signature Ability a Concussive Grenade 2d10 + 2 Signature Ability
Ranged, Strike, Weapon Main action Area, Ranged, Weapon Main action
e Ranged 10 x One creature or object e 3 cube within 5 x Each enemy in the area
1 6 damage; push 1 1 3 damage; push 1
2 9 damage; push 3 2 6 damage; push 3; m<1] slowed (save ends)
3 12 damage; push 5 3 8 damage; push 3; m<2] slowed (save ends)
Effect: If the target is adjacent to an object or a wall after the power Effect: A target restrained by a dwarf can be force moved by this
roll is resolved, they are restrained until the end of their next turn. A ability. This forced movement doesn’t end the restrained condition
target restrained by a dwarf can be force moved by this ability. This unless the Director determines otherwise.
forced movement doesn’t end the restrained condition unless the
Director determines otherwise.
a Sleep Grenade 3 Malice
5 Malice: If the target is pushed into another creature, the target and Ranged, Weapon Main action
the creature are each restrained until the end of their next turn. e 3 cube within 5 x Each enemy in the area
1 3 poison damage; i<0] dazed (save ends)
r Ensnaring Chains 5 Malice 2 6 poison damage; i<1] dazed (save ends)
Ranged, Weapon Maneuver 3 8 poison damage; i<2] dazed (save ends)
e Ranged 10 x One prone, restrained, or slowed creature Effect: A target dazed this way treats their characteristic scores as 1
lower for the purpose of resisting potencies.
Effect: The gunner makes a free strike against the target, and the
prone, restrained, and slowed conditions on the target end. The target
is then restrained (save ends). t Indirect Fire
The launcher ignores concealment and cover, and doesn’t need
line of effect to use their abilities as long as a size 1 opening exists
t Split Shot between the dwarf and the target.
Whenever the gunner deals rolled damage to a target, one crea-
ture or object adjacent to the target takes 3 damage.

107
 Dwarf Reel Winch Level 1 Platoon Support Dwarf Shieldwall Level 3 Platoon Defender
Dwarf, Humanoid EV 6 Dwarf, Humanoid EV 10

1M 5 36 2 3 1M 5 72 4 5
Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike

Immunity: — Weakness: — Immunity: — Weakness: —

Movement: — Movement: —
Might 0 Agility +2 Reason 0 Intuition +1 Presence 0 Might +2 Agility 0 Reason 0 Intuition 0 Presence +1

r Snaring Crossbow 2d10 + 2 Signature Ability m Wide Axe 2d10 + 2 Signature Ability
Ranged, Strike, Weapon Main action Melee, Strike, Weapon Main action
e Ranged 10 x One creature or object e Melee 1 x One creature or object
1 5 damage; m<0] slowed (save ends) 1 7 damage; slide 1
2 7 damage; m<1] slowed (save ends) 2 10 damage; slide 1
3 9 damage; m<2] slowed (save ends) 3 13 damage; slide 1
Effect: The target is pulled up to 5 squares. A target restrained by Effect: The shieldwall can shift 1 square to remain adjacent to the tar-
a dwarf can be force moved by this ability. This forced movement get. A target restrained by a dwarf can be force moved by this ability.
doesn’t end the restrained condition unless the Director determines This forced movement doesn’t end the restrained condition unless
otherwise. the Director determines otherwise.
3 Malice: This ability targets one additional target.
r Reel Them In 3 Malice
Ranged, Weapon Maneuver ! Intercepting Shield 1 Malice
e Ranged 10 x Three creatures — Triggered action
Effect: The target is pulled up to 8 squares. A restrained or slowed e Self x Self
target can be pulled an additional 2 squares. A target restrained by Trigger: A creature makes a strike against an ally adjacent to the
a dwarf can be force moved by this ability. This forced movement shieldwall.
doesn’t end the restrained condition unless the Director determines
otherwise. Effect: The shieldwall becomes the target of the triggering strike and
halves the damage.

t We Have a Quota!
If a target made slowed by the reel winch is already grabbed or t Call to the Wall
slowed, the grabbed and slowed conditions end and the target is Whenever a creature deals damage to or takes damage from the
restrained (save ends). shieldwall, the shieldwall can make that creature taunted until
the end of the creature’s next turn.
Draw Steel

108
Dwarf Stone Whisperer Level 3 Platoon Controller Dwarf Trapper Level 1 Platoon Harrier

Dwarves
Dwarf, Humanoid EV 10 Dwarf, Humanoid EV 6

1M 5 52 2 5 1M 7 36 2 3
Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike

Immunity: — Weakness: — Immunity: — Weakness: —

Movement: Burrow Movement: —
Might +1 Agility 0 Reason +2 Intuition +2 Presence 0 Might 0 Agility +2 Reason 0 Intuition +1 Presence 0

a Tile Slide 2d10 + 2 Signature Ability v Concussive Bolts 2d10 + 2 Signature Ability
Area, Magic Main action Charge, Melee, Ranged, Strike, Weapon Main action
e 2 cube within 1 x Each creature and object in the area e Melee 1 or ranged 10 x One creature or object
1 5 damage; slide 1; m<0] slowed (save ends) 1 5 damage; push 2
2 8 damage; slide 3; m<1] slowed (save ends) 2 7 damage; push 4
3 11 damage; slide 5; m<2] restrained (save ends) 3 9 damage; push 6
Effect: A target restrained by a dwarf can be force moved by this Effect: A target restrained by a dwarf can be force moved by this
ability. This forced movement doesn’t end the restrained condition ability. This forced movement doesn’t end the restrained condition
unless the Director determines otherwise. unless the Director determines otherwise.

a Stone Wave 2d10 + 2 3 Malice a Steam-Powered Snare 2d10 + 2 3 Malice

Area, Magic, Ranged Maneuver Area, Ranged, Weapon Maneuver
e 3 cube within 10 x Each enemy in the area e 3 cube within 5 x Each enemy in the area
1 4 damage; push 2; r<1] slowed (save ends)
Effect: Each target makes a Might test.
2 6 damage; push 3; r<2] slowed (save ends)
1 7 damage; restrained (EoT)
3 9 damage; push 3; r<3] slowed (save ends)
2 5 damage; slowed (EoT)
Effect: The area is difficult terrain for enemies. A target restrained by 3 No effect.
a dwarf can be force moved by this ability. This forced movement The snare remains until the end of the encounter. Any enemy who
doesn’t end the restrained condition unless the Director determines moves into the area for the first time in a round or starts their turn
otherwise. there must make the test.

t Stone Walker Dwarf Warden Level 2 Platoon Brute

Whenever the stone whisperer willingly moves, they can phase Dwarf, Humanoid EV 8
through up to 2 squares of stone as part of that movement. If they
end their movement inside stone, they are shunted out into the
space from which they entered it. 1M 5 59 3 5
Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike
Immunity: — Weakness: —
Movement: —
Might +2 Agility 0 Reason 0 Intuition +1 Presence 0

m Concussive Maul 2d10 + 2 Signature Ability

Melee, Strike, Weapon Main action
e Melee 1 x One creature or object
1 7 damage; push 1
2 10 damage; push 3
3 13 damage; push 5; m<2] restrained (save ends)
Effect: A target restrained by a dwarf can be force moved by this
ability. This forced movement doesn’t end the restrained condition
unless the Director determines otherwise.

a Concussive Shockwave 2d10 + 2 5 Malice

Area, Weapon Main action
e 3 cube within 1 x Each enemy in the area
1 5 damage; push 2; a<0] slowed (save ends)
2 8 damage; push 2; a<1] slowed (save ends)
3 11 damage; push 2; a<2] slowed (save ends)
Effect: A target restrained by a dwarf can be force moved by this
ability. This forced movement doesn’t end the restrained condition
unless the Director determines otherwise.

t Escort the Prisoners

Whenever the warden moves, they can carry an adjacent
restrained enemy as if the enemy were grabbed by them.

109
 Dwarf Marauder Lord Level 3 Leader
Dwarf, Humanoid EV 20

1M 5 132 4 5
Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike
Immunity: — Weakness: —
Movement: —
Might +3 Agility 0 Reason +2 Intuition +1 Presence 0

v Levitating Axes 2d10 + 3 Signature Ability

Melee, Psionic, Ranged, Strike, Weapon Main action
e Melee 1 or ranged 10 x Two creatures or objects
1 8 damage; slide 1
2 12 damage; slide 3
3 15 damage; slide 5
Effect: A target restrained by a dwarf can be force moved by this
ability. This forced movement doesn’t end the restrained condition
unless the Director determines otherwise.
3 Malice: A target force moved adjacent to an ally of the marauder
lord is restrained until the end of their next turn.

r Magnetomancy
Psionic, Ranged Maneuver
e Ranged 10 x One creature or object
Effect: The target vertical slides up to 5 squares. A target restrained
by a dwarf can be force moved by this ability. This forced movement
doesn’t end the restrained condition unless the Director determines
otherwise.
5 Malice: This ability takes the Area keyword and loses the Ranged
keyword, its distance becomes a 10 burst, and it targets each
restrained creature in the area.

! Your Weapon Is Useless

Psionic, Ranged Triggered action
e Ranged 10 x Self or one ally
Trigger: A creature makes a melee strike against the target.
Effect: The target halves any damage from the strike and the trigger-
ing creature takes 4 damage.

t End Effect
At the end of each of their turns, the marauder lord can take 5
damage to end one effect on them that can be ended by a saving
throw. This damage can’t be reduced in any way.

d Ajax Will Pay Well for These Specimens Villain Action 1

Area, Psionic, Ranged, Weapon
e 5 cube within 10 x Each enemy in the area
Effect: The marauder lord uses Levitating Axes against each target,
making one power roll against all targets.

d Don’t Let Them Escape! Villain Action 2

Area
e 5 burst x Each ally in the area
Effect: Each target shifts up to their speed. The marauder lord then
uses Levitating Axes.

d Test Your Metal! Villain Action 3

Psionic, Ranged
Draw Steel

e Ranged 10 x Special
Effect: The marauder lord creates three size 2 metal objects in unoc-
cupied spaces within distance. Whenever the marauder lord uses
Magnetomancy, they can additionally target one of these objects.

110
Servitor War Walker Level 1 Elite Mount

Dwarves
Construct, Dwarf EV 12

3 8 60 2 4
Size Speed Stamina Stability Free Strike
Immunity: — Weakness: —
Movement: Climb
Might +2 Agility 0 Reason –2 Intuition 0 Presence –2

m Grasping Claws 2d10 + 2 Signature Ability

Charge, Melee, Strike, Weapon Main action
e Melee 2 x Two creatures or objects
1 6 damage
2 9 damage
3 12 damage; m<2] restrained (save ends)
Effect: A target already restrained or restrained by this ability is pulled
up to 3 squares. A target restrained by a dwarf can be force moved by
this ability. This forced movement doesn’t end the restrained condi-
tion unless the Director determines otherwise.

b Stunning Blast 2d10 + 2 3 Malice

Area, Weapon Maneuver
e 3 burst x Each enemy in the area
1 3 lightning damage; a<0] slowed (save ends)
2 6 lightning damage; a<1] slowed (save ends)
3 7 lightning damage; a<2] slowed (save ends)

t Cupola
While riding the war walker, three size 1 allies can occupy the
same space. Creatures riding the war walker have cover.

t Mobile Prison Harness

Any restrained or slowed creature who comes adjacent to the war
walker is automatically restrained (save ends) and takes a bane
on power rolls. A creature restrained this way moves with the war
walker.

111
 Draw Steel

112
ELEMENTALS

Elementals
When the gods formed the mundane world, they took sparks of Field of Growth
creation from the roiling plane of Quintessence and gave sentience
The field of growth takes the form of a massive centipede made of
to some of the multiverse’s most basic elements—air, earth, fire, and
vegetation. Often called verdant primevals, these caretakers of the
water. Many elementals contain just one of these components, but can
natural cycle of life (and death) fight those they see as upsetting that
come to embody multiple reagents as they age.
cycle. Fields of growth seek not only to destroy undead and those who
create them, but to sabotage divine servitors who casually peddle
Duality of Form resurrection magic.
Elementals are mercurial creatures of creation, destruction, and
transformation. Though the deities first created the mundane world, Force of Earth
elementals cultivated and shaped it. When a tree, stone, or other
A protective earth elemental, a force of earth resembles a nine-foot-tall
aspect of the world doesn’t suit an elemental, they break it down with
great ape formed of dirt and rough stone. They act as guardians and
elemental fury then build it anew.
historians when among other elementals, working tirelessly to thwart
Elementals change like the winds and the tides, and from age to ills from befalling the group. These elementals are sometimes called
age, they remake themselves to reflect what the world has become. earthen bulwarks.
They are protectors armored by stone, lizards ablaze with fire, and
sometimes dragons clad in steel. Elemental Languages
Most elementals speak Low Kuric. Some can use Caelian when
Rebirth and Reformation they need to.
When an elemental dies in the mundane world, their spirit returns to
Quintessence, where they must rest for decades to regain their strength.
Should the spirit return to the mundane world, they take on a form Elemental Malice Malice Features
that reflects a creature or other aspect of that plane. At the start of any elemental’s turn, you can spend Malice to activate
one of the following features.
Crux of Fire
t Elemental Swap 3 Malice
Cruxes of fire, often called blazecasters, take the form of fiery lizards. Two elementals on the encounter map teleport to swap places,
They commonly live in hot zones of planar convergence or areas and each has damage immunity 2 until the end of the round.
of volcanic activity. These territorial elementals usually question
interlopers from afar—and if they don’t like the answers, they rain s Split 5 Malice
down fire before their foes can draw near. An elemental acting this turn cleaves themself into two separate
elementals. Each elemental has the same statistics as the original,
Though many elementals weave their innate gifts into oral storytelling, except that each has half the original’s current Stamina and is one
cruxes of fire are particularly adroit at animating their stories in size smaller. Both elementals can then shift up to their speed.
silhouettes of flame.
r Convocation o