Atropus

Atropus is as much a place as it is a being. It is a small moonlet spinning through the void, waiting to be ensnared by the pull of the planets it nears. To those on the surface of the chosen world, the elder evil appears as a speck in the sky. At night it is almost invisible, blending in with the darkness, but during twilight and dawn, it looks like a moving pinhole of darkness. As it draws closer and its sign intensifi es, it grows, expanding from a tiny dot to a small disk until it dominates the sky. Pitted and slick with the black slime of the putrid amniotic fl uid of its birth, it hangs above, always drifting away from the light of the sun and lurking overhead when the sun has fl ed. It has the appearance of a huge chunk of black stone, but from certain angles, it looks like a great hairless head, black eyes glassy and soulless. Atropus has no understandable personality and no inclinations other than craving the destruction of all living things. This rock is not uninhabited: Undead conjured from the darkest nightmares infest it. These horrors claim the craters for themselves, fl itting through the shadows, ravenous for the energy of the living. The master of them all is the focus, an extension of Atropus’s will. The focus is a headless, human-shaped creature with fl esh fossilized during Atropus’s endless roaming through the cosmos. Closer inspection reveals that its foul body shares the same hideous coating that wells up from the rents and fi ssures on the moonlet’s surface.

Aspect of Atropus CR 23

hp 858 (66 HD); fast healing 20; DR 15/epic and good LE Gargantuan undead (evil) Init +5; Senses blind, blindsight 500 ft., true seeing; Listen +76 Aura negative energy (30 ft.) Languages telepathy 1,000 ft., tongues AC 43, touch 15, fl at-footed 42; Dodge, Mobility Immune anathematic secrecy (malefi c property), cold, gaze attacks, elder evil immunities (page 6), undead immunities (MM 317) Resist acid 20, fi re 20, positive energy 10; SR 34 Fort +24, Ref +25, Will +42 Speed 50 ft. (10 squares); Spring Attack Melee 2 slams +54 each (4d8+24/19–20 [on critical hit, death (Fort DC 67 negates) plus 1d6] plus Con drain plus energy drain) Space 20 ft.; Reach 20 ft. Base Atk +33; Grp +69 Atk Options Awesome Blow, Cleave, Combat Expertise,

Great Cleave, Improved Bull Rush, Improved Overrun,

Improved Sunder, Power Attack, Powerful Charge, Whirlwind Attack, aligned strike (evil, lawful), Constitution drain, energy drain, epic strike Special Actions call meteor shower, create spawn, divine scourge (malefi c property) Spell-Like Abilities (CL 20th):

At will—blight (+53 melee touch, DC 25), circle of death (DC 26), create greater undead 3/day—quickened circle of death (DC 26), meteor swarm (DC 29), waves of exhaustion 1/day—symbol of death (DC 28), wail of the banshee (DC 29) Abilities Str 58, Dex 13, Con —, Int 25, Wis 24, Cha 31 SQ nondetection, sign (restless dead) Feats Ability Focus (energy drain), Awesome Blow, Cleave,

Combat Expertise, Devastating Critical (slam)ELH (DC 67), Dodge, Great Cleave, Great Fortitude, Improved

Bull Rush, Improved Critical (slam), Improved Initiative,

Improved Sunder, Improved ToughnessLM, Lightning

Refl exes, Mobility, Overwhelming Critical (slam)ELH, Positive Energy ResistanceLM, Power Attack, Powerful Charge,

Quicken Spell-Like Ability (circle of death), Spring Attack,

Weapon Focus (slam), Whirlwind Attack Skills Balance +70, Climb +93, Concentration +69, Escape

Artist +70, Hide +58, Intimidate +79, Jump +32, Knowledge (arcana) +76, Knowledge (religion) +76, Listen +76, Move Silently +70, Spellcraft +86, Use Rope +1 (+9 bindings) True Seeing (Su) As the true seeing spell; continuous; caster level 20th. Negative Energy Aura (Su) All undead creatures within 30 feet gain +5 turn resistance and fast healing 5, while all living creatures gain fi ve negative levels for as long as they remain in the area unless they have some protection against negative energy effects. Living creatures that have 5 or fewer Hit Dice are slain and rise as spectres after 1d4 rounds. Tongues (Su) As the tongues spell; continuous; caster level 20th. Constitution Drain (Su) Living creatures hit by the aspect of

Atropus’s slam attack must succeed on a DC 53 Fortitude save or take 1d6 points of Constitution drain. On each such successful attack, the aspect of Atropus gains 5 temporary hit points. These temporary hit points last for up to 1 hour, and an aspect of Atropus can gain a maximum number of temporary hit points equal to its normal hit point total. Energy Drain (Su) Living creatures hit by the aspect of

Atropus’s slam attack gain three negative levels. The DC is 55 for the Fortitude save to remove a negative level.

For each negative level bestowed, the aspect of Atropus gains 5 temporary hit points. There temporary hit points last for up to 1 hour, and an aspect of Atropus can gain a maximum number of temporary hit points equal to its full normal hit point total. Call Meteor Shower (Su) The aspect of Atropus can sacrifi ce 50 hit points to call down a torrent of meteors. All creatures (including the aspect of Atropus) within a 100-foot radius take 10d6 points of bludgeoning damage and 10d6 points of fi re damage. A DC 53 Refl ex save halves this damage. After the meteor shower each square in the area becomes diffi cult terrain and costs 2 squares of movement to enter. Create Spawn (Su) A living creature of size Huge or smaller slain by the aspect of Atropus becomes an angel of decay (see page 30) in 1d4 rounds. Spawn are under the command of the aspect of Atropus and remain enslaved until its death. They do not possess any of the abilities they had in life. Divine Scourge (Su) Once per day as a swift action, the aspect of Atropus can cause all divine spellcasters and extraplanar outsiders within a 1,000-mile radius to become sickened for 1d4 hours. An affected creature must succeed on a DC 53 Fortitude save or take 66 points of vile damage. Anathematic Secrecy (Su) The aspect of Atropus is immune to all divine divination spell effects. Nondetection (Su) As the nondetection spell; continuous; caster level 20th.