Paladins

Fiends plague the material realm. Far be it for the lower planes to simply leave mortals to their own being. No, great evils must corrupt mortals, swaying them from their natural propensity for good. This is the logic a paladin must use to convince themselves that the war and strife and pestilence wrought upon the world by the mortal races is not caused by some innate fault in their souls but only by the influence of corrupting evil. For this reason, many paladins swear their oaths specifically to fight the fiend they believe to have the greatest negative influence on their world. Such a paladin names themselves as that fiend's Nemesis. Most insist on the capitalisation.

Belial

While his daughter Fierna rules Phlegethos, the devil Belial holds true power. He is the man behind the throne, whispering and manipulating and puppeteering rather than exposing himself to true responsibility in the public eye. To his Nemeses, he represents the perverse power that viziers and whisperers have over a just ruler. Not that any paladin would acknowledge Fierna as a just ruler, but the point still stands.

• Crown
• Devotion
• Redemption

Demogorgon

Demogorgon is the truest representation of the chaos of the demons. His form practically defies description, with every part of his body ripped and stitched together from different animals, his two heads as much at war with each other as everyone else in existence. Nemeses of Demogorgon must be particularly careful to avoid strife among their retainers, for Demogorgon, intentionally or not, quells threats by inciting bitter infighting.

• Devotion
• Conquest
• Vengeance

Dispater

Dispater is the emotionless archdevil of Dis, narcissistic and paranoid to the extent that he has frozen his face for fear his feelings would be used against him. There is only one person he trusts, his consort Lilis, though by what method she has gained his trust is unknown, as even his servants are tasked with spying on one another for traitors. He represents the failure of the legal system to provide insurance against all threats, for no amount of legislation could ever quell his fears.

• Ancients
• Crown
• Devotion
• Treachery

Fierna

Fierna is the embodiment of nepotism, having been given her position as ruler of Phlegethos only by virtue of her father's influence, and only retaining that power on condition of her father's continued guidance. There are rumours of an incestuous relationship between them as well, either filling the role of debauchery that they must uphold, or as part of an assurance that their power remains in the family. In either case, their Nemeses condemn their relationship and the systems of nepotism that corrode the lines of rulers.

• Crown
• Devotion
• Redemption
• Treachery

Fraz-Urb'luu

The Demon Prince of Deception sows doubt in one's mind about those they trust. If Fraz-Urb'luu can spark illusions and craft lies, who is to say what is really true? Who is to say what the true version of reality truly is? If there is a demon controlling everything that you see, manipulating your senses, then what assurance do you have about any of your beliefs? Any of your experiences? Any of your senses? These thoughts can drive a person insane. Nemeses of Fraz-Urb'luu soothe themselves with the one truth they know Fraz-Urb'luu cannot hide from them: "I think, therefore I am."

• Devotion
• Redemption

Glasya

Glasya has never fought for a single thing in her entire devilish existence. As the daughter of Asmodeus she was born with inconceivable power. As the former consort of Mammon, she was gifted with extravagant wealth and influence. Even her current position, ruler of Malbolge, the sixth layer of the Nine Hells, became available to her only by some miracle that its previous ruler ballooned to planetary size and imploded -- a remarkable coincidence considering Glasya had just decided that the layer should be hers. Nemeses of Glasya worry that her supernatural luck might inspire others to wait for fate itself to give them what they want, rather than strive to improve themselves and take what they want on their own merits.

• Conquest
• Devotion
• Treachery

Graz'zt

For a demon, Graz'zt prides himself in his elegance and wit. A most popular theory for his rise become to the Dark Prince is that he was once a devil who grew tired of the scheming and backstabbing and migrated to the Abyss to more easily stake out a claim for territory. No demon is as cunning as him. No demon is as handsome. His followers are seduced rather than corrupted, guided rather than conquered, and unlike a devil he is not opposed to cheap tricks and lies. His Nemeses swear celibacy to resist his influence.

• Conquest
• Devotion

The Hag Countess

Not a true devil, the Hag Countess, like other night hags, were exiled to the Lower Planes for their extreme evil. Even for hags, they took sadistic pleasure in the torture of lesser beings. The Hag Countess was the worst of them all, manipulating the archdevils against one another in a bid to take one of the layers of the Nine Hells for herself. She inherited Malbolge for her troubles, but when Asmodeus' daughter turned her greedy eyes to her, the Hag Countess mysteriously imploded, becoming one with Malbolge in a twisted image of her viscera. Nemeses of the Hag Countess believe her not to be truly dead, but instead to be an abomination that seeps evil in through the ground, causing famine and sickness in one last gasp of malevolence to all living beings.

• Ancients
• Devotion

Juiblex

Juiblex is a conduit for chaos, a formless, shapeless blob of pure evil that indiscriminately consumes all in its path. Gluttony in individuals, plus blind expansionism in empires that uselessly destroy the very land they seek, are said by Nemeses to stem from the corruptive influence of the Faceless Lord, the Lord of Shapeless Things, the Lord of Nothing.

• Conquest
• Crown
• Devotion

Kalkan

Not all angels who fall become devils. Kalkan is a rakshasa, a tireless immortal fiend who takes on the appearance of a humanoid tiger dressed in the refined clothing of a sultan. Kalkan wishes to make the world his own and doesn't care how he does it or how long it takes. Kalkan is only inconvenienced by death, not stopped. He throws all of his powers at a problem until either it goes away or he is resurrected to try once again. He represents to his Nemeses the ceaselessness of evil, the impossibility of their task, the sacrifice that good must make that evil may ignore. To swear to destroy Kalkan is not just to destroy a particularly powerful rakshasa. No, it is to prove that diligence can be met with diligence, vigilance can be met with vigilance, power can be met with power, and evil can be met with good.

• Devotion
• Vengeance

Levistus

For the murder of Bensozia, consort to Asmodeus and mother to his beloved daughter Glasya, the archdevil Levistus was encased in ice. Somehow still considered to be the ruler of the frozen realm of Stygia, Levistus calls to those in hopeless situations and provides them the strength and courage to break free and take revenge on those who have wronged them. His power of hope is not as wholesome as it seems, however, for he uses hope not just to inspire courage, but also to trap others in the same way that he has been trapped, drawing on their souls to fuel his own escape. Not only does hope inspire inaction just as often as it inspires action, but even the heroics that Levistus inspires are propelled by raw emotion rather than careful consideration of what is right or wrong.

• Devotion
• Redemption
• Treachery

Mammon

Mammon is the patron of greed and lust. He rules Minauros with the lazy indifference of a baron to his serfs, letting the realm fall into disrepair in favour of slowly but surely expanding the coffers hidden underneath his beautiful castle. Nemeses of Mammon blame him for the greed of both governments and corporations that exploit their workers and hoard money without investing it back into the community.

• Ancients
• Conquest
• Devotion
• Redemption

Mephistopheles

Mephistopheles presents himself as a gentleman willing to negotiate any price, but in truth he boils with rage and anger underneath, for every step he takes towards ripping the throne of the Nine Hells from under Asmodeus and sitting in it himself, Asmodeus seems to have anticipated his move and pushed him even further away. To his Nemeses, Mephistopheles represents the futility of impotent ambition.

• Conquest
• Devotion

Moloch

As the only devil free to roam on the material plane, many paladins view Moloch as not only a representation of the consequences of unchecked evil, but also the only true evil that is worth fighting at the present moment. The other fiends are locked away in the Lower Planes while Moloch corrupts the material plane from the inside out. To his Nemeses, Moloch is the dark side of freedom, the kind of freedom that allows for hatred rather than love, for stupidity and anger rather than togetherness. The world needs to be guided, not ignored.

• Conquest
• Devotion
• Vengeance

Orcus

Orcus is the perversion of the natural cycle of life and death. He is the Demon Prince of Undeath and to refuse to take up arms against him is to allow the entire world to be violated.

• Ancients
• Devotion
• Grave
• Vengeance

Yeenoghu

A gnoll warband is more of a force of nature than an army. A hurricane. A flood. A famine. A plague. Their supernatural hunger and brutal cycle of reproduction, devouring the flesh of the fallen, stems from their demon master Yeenoghu, the crazed representation of insatiable bloodthirst. Yeenoghu is more than his hunger, however. He is also the inevitability of destruction. The tide against progress. The end of civilisation.

• Ancients
• Conquest
• Crown
• Devotion
• Grave

Zariel

Of all the fallen angels, Zariel has fallen the hardest, and the most irreversibly. Her lust for warfare drew her from her comfy position on Mount Celestia down into the Blood Wars raging in Avernus, and once Asmodeus was finished with her, she was an angel no more, but a burning general of the Nine Hells. Some angels thought they could save her, but she only dragged them down with her in the end. Not only does Zariel represent the very concept of war to her Nemeses, she also is a bitter reminder that some people simply cannot be redeemed.

• Devotion
• Redemption

Zuggtmoy

In the wild woods, mushrooms break down that which is dead and dying and restore its nutrients to the earth. Zuggtmoy, the Demon Lady of Fungus, seems not to understand, for if she had her way, her fungi would absorb all the earth and leave nothing left to grow. She represents premature death and decay.

• Devotion
• Grave

Statblocks

Fiendbane

Medium humanoid (any race), any alignment (usually non-evil)

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• Armor Class 19 (+1 plate; 21 with shield of faith)
• Hit Points 150 (20d8 + 60)
• Speed 30 ft.

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STR	DEX	CON	INT	WIS	CHA
19 (+4)	9 (-1)	17 (+3)	15 (+2)	16 (+3)	17 (+3)

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• Saving Throws Wis +7, Cha +7
• Skills Investigation +6, Persuasion +7, Religion +6
• Senses passive Perception 13
• Languages any 3 (usually including Abyssal or Infernal)
• Challenge 12 (8,400 XP)

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Aura of Protection and Courage. Friendly creatures within 10 feet of the fiendbane have advantage on saving throws and are immune to the frightened condition while the fiendbane isn't unconscious.

Spellcasting. The fiendbane is a 10th level spellcaster. Its spellcasting ability is Charisma (spell save DC 15). It has the following paladin spells prepared.

1st level (4 slots): compelled duel, detect evil and good, detect magic, protection from evil and good, shield of faith
2nd level (3 slots): locate object, zone of truth
3rd level (2 slots): magic circle

Sacred Weapons. The fiendbane's weapon attacks are magical and deal an additional 14 (4d6) radiant damage on a hit (included in the attack).

Actions

Multiattack. The fiendbane makes two melee weapon attacks.

Greatsword. Melee Weapon Attack: +8 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 11 (2d6 + 4) slashing damage, plus 14 (4d6) radiant damage. If the target is a fiend or a warlock of a fiend, it takes an additional 7 (2d6) radiant damage.

Healing Touch (3/Day). The fiendbane touches a willing creature. The target regains 10 hit points and is cleared of the poisoned condition, if applicable, as well as any diseases.

Mortal Enemy of Evil

Medium humanoid (any race), any alignment (usually non-evil)

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• Armor Class 21 (+3 adamantium plate; 23 with shield of faith)
• Hit Points 170 (20d8 + 80)
• Speed 30 ft.

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STR	DEX	CON	INT	WIS	CHA
20 (+5)	10 (+0)	18 (+4)	16 (+3)	17 (+3)	18 (+4)

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• Saving Throws Wis +8, Cha +9
• Skills Investigation +8, Persuasion +9, Religion +8
• Senses passive Perception 13
• Languages any 2 (usually including Abyssal or Infernal)
• Challenge 15 (13,000 XP)

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Aura of Protection and Courage. Friendly creatures within 30 feet of the mortal enemy of evil have advantage on saving throws and are immune to the frightened condition while the mortal enemy of evil isn't unconscious.

Spellcasting. The mortal enemy of evil is a 15th level spellcaster. Its spellcasting ability is Charisma (spell save DC 17). It has the following paladin spells prepared.

1st level (4 slots): compelled duel, detect evil and good, detect magic, protection from evil and good, shield of faith
2nd level (3 slots): locate object, zone of truth
3rd level (3 slots): dispel magic, magic circle
4th level (2 slots): banishment, locate creature

Sacred Weapons. The mortal enemy of evil's weapon attacks are magical and deal an additional 21 (6d6) radiant damage on a hit (included in the attack).

Actions

Multiattack. The mortal enemy of evil makes two melee weapon attacks.

Greatsword. Melee Weapon Attack: +10 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 12 (2d6 + 5) slashing damage, plus 21 (6d6) radiant damage. If the target is a fiend or a warlock of a fiend, it takes an additional 7 (2d6) radiant damage.

Healing Touch (3/Day). The mortal enemy of evil touches a willing creature. The target regains 30 hit points and is cleared of the poisoned condition, if applicable, as well as any diseases. Additionally, the mortal enemy of evil can end one spell affecting the target.

Nemesis Strategies

Oath. A Nemesis must stick to the tenets of their paladin oath when pursuing justice against the Great Evil they have sworn to destroy. A vengeance paladin ignores lesser evils and goes straight for the heart, seeing any distractions as temptation away from their oath. An ancients paladin must not only defeat the evil, but also provide a shining beacon of truth of what it means to resist their temptations as inspiration to others. A conquest paladin gains allies only by testing their mettle in combat first. A redemption paladin seeks to turn people away from the Great Evil's temptation rather than kill them, hoping to blot out their influence by lack of worship rather than through force. No two Nemeses go about their quest in the same way, nor do they fight the same either.

Paranoia. A Nemesis is vigilant against falling much more so than other paladins, for falling from their oath means that the Great Evil has been strengthened. They often go to extreme measures to ensure that nothing sways them from their quest and might view any attempt at stopping them as a sign of the Great Evil's influence. If the fight doesn't directly concern their quest, they would rather retreat than see it to the end.

Efficiency. A Nemesis uses all of the retainers at their disposal to finish fights quickly and efficiently, for their work is never finished and they have much to accomplish in a very short time. Idle worship of the Great Evil might be quickly stamped out by their priests. Community reparations for damages done in the name of the Great Evil might be undergone by their servants. The paladin themselves might be more inclined to heal than to fight, to persuade rather than demand, and to bribe rather than face consequences.

Paladin Tactics

Paladin. The Nemesis is the front line in any battle, striking with the certainty and conviction of an executioner. They don't rely on their spells during combat, instead focusing on ensuring that their weapon strikes true and the greatest threat is eliminated first. High level paladins might banish the ringleader rather than fight it head on, and lower level paladins would almost certainly cast compelled duel on the biggest threat to ward it away from their teammates. Outside of combat, the paladin sheaths their weapon and becomes more of a spellcaster, using spells like magic circle and zone of truth as interrogative techniques, or using spells like detect magic and locate object to seek out information regarding the Great Evil.

Bodyguard. The bodyguard's principle directive is not to protect the paladin, per se, but instead to ensure that its fight against the most dangerous enemy is not interrupted. The bodyguard sticks close, attacking any minions that might try to join in with their master.

Priests. The priests mainly act according to the tactics available to a cleric, sticking to the back lines and providing ad hoc support as needed. Outside of combat, their spells help with the reparations on communities affected by the Great Evil.

Defector. Many Nemeses have a warlock defector as a retainer, either persuaded or intimidated into their service. This defector acts according to the tactics of a warlock, also staying far back and providing covering fire. They are also used to take out enemy spellcasters. Outside of combat, a warlock defector is sometimes used as a spy within the ranks of the Great Evil, though this can backfire easily.

Tianah's Quest

• Great Evil. Mammon.
• Featured Subclass. Ancients.

Lady Tianah and her retainers fight against the influence of Mammon in the material realm. They rally against the greed of massive institutions that leave the peasantry and common folk with nothing.

The first phase of their quest is to defeat a greedy landowner who has hoarded guards and wealth in his small fortress on a major highway, fleecing travellers for petty cash. This landowner was funded by Queen Patricia of the Highlands.

The second phase of their quest is to depose Queen Patricia of a small nation who has enslaved her people in horrific work conditions in order to excavate a lost dwarven mine and keep the gold for herself. There are rumours that her royal court is filled with cultists of Mammon.

The third phase of their quest is to wage war against the cult of Mammon, striking them at the source and destroying the evil warlocks who have sowed so much evil in the world already. It will not be an easy task, as much of the world's governing bodies have been infiltrated by members of the cult.

The fourth phase of their quest is to descend into Minauros and defeat Mammon personally in his lair, thus eradicating his influence once and for all.

Carlin Xandar

Carlin Xander is Lady Tianah's long lost old foster brother, a human, who chanced a meeting with her during her recovery from her enslavement and swore a vow to protect her. The last time they had seen each other was when they were separated when they were very young, and while Tianah had been transferred to another noble McKelray family who had raised her in the ways of the Ancients, influencing her to take up her paladin oath, the Xander family had instead fallen into disrepute after their Lord withheld their rightful taxes and forcefully evicted them. Carlin took up the sword and fought against injustice in his own way, but when he reconnected with Tianah, he knew that her oath against evil was nobler than the life of a mercenary.

He has secretly been offered compensation by agents of Mammon to betray Tianah, and with his past experiences of being cast aside by a Lord who cared nothing for his family, he has not revealed to her this offer. The temptation to defect is always present in the form of a coin of Mammon hidden in his breast pocket. Further strengthening this temptation is the fact that he harbours secret romantic feelings for her, and if his feelings are not reciprocated, he may flip that coin after all.

Carlin can be represented by the veteran statblock.

Severin Havel

Severin Havel is a human priest of Waukeen, the goddess of commerce. He is a businessman first and foremost and has been sent to ensure the success of Tianah's quest, and, more importantly, the return on the investment of the church. Severin's presence may not always be a good thing for Tianah, as he is constantly urging her to find a way to profit from her quest. Her beautiful suit of armour and masterwork weapons won't pay for themselves, nor will the continuous expenses required to feed and house her retainers magically grow from trees. Her quest requires sponsorship, and sponsorship requires a return.

Severin himself is not aware, but many of Mammon's agents have infiltrated his church. Having seen the success that Tianah has achieved in bringing stability to regions that were otherwise exploited and left to rot, he has loosened his insistence on bringing in gold for the church, but the agents of Mammon within that church are not happy with this shift in priorities. They send frequent "auditors" to check up on him and bully him into getting back to his original purpose. Severin is more of an accountant than a priest and is very susceptible to bullying.

Severin can be represented by the trickery priest statblock.

Victory Sallubria

Victory Sallubria is a defected warlock of Mammon, a tiefling of scaly gold skin, long black hair, and sharp white teeth he displays with a prideful smile. He was defeated and captured by Tianah, but managed to convince her to let him defect and help her on her quest once he had convinced her that enslaving him made her no better than Mammon himself. Carlin Xander keeps a careful eye on the tiefling, never trusting a devil to betray its own kind, but Victory is nothing but a man of his word.

Of course, Victory never liked Mammon. His line is tainted by Mammon's greedy ways and he has watched generations of warlocks in his family see their fortunes squandered, their great hoards left behind as they were dragged screaming into the desolate dungeons of Minauros. You can't take it with you, after all. He doesn't want that for himself. If he can tear himself away from Mammon's temptations, perhaps he can achieve long-term prosperity.

Victory can be represented by the warlock of the fiend statblock.

Other Retainers

Conflict

Conflict with Lady Tianah and her retainers might occur at various stages of her quest.