# Vash'Aran, Visage of the Enlightened One ## Archdevil of the Grey Waste Rumors say that Vash started as a cambion in the service of Bel, at the time Lord of Avernus. As a commander for Bel, Vash distinguished himself in the eyes of the Lords of the Nine for his prowess against demons and his negotiating ability with the warriors of the Higher Realms. After many successful battles, someone with a fear of losing their position spoke with the Lord of Nessus, asking for the commander of Bel to be relocated to another plane to test his true capabilities. During an incursion, Vash'Aran was instructed to go through a wizard's portal and set a foothold in the mortal plane. He traversed to one of the largest cities in the Prime Material and crafted a mercenary force comprised of the lost and disenfranchised. Tieflings, half-elves, and half-orcs were the largest part of his force, with humans filtering in for the pay or the service to a powerful lord. This went on for years, until he was called back and promoted from cambion to Archdevil. Normally, this would be a proud moment, but his assignment was Skullkeep in the Grey Waste, a port on the River Styx that is constantly attacked by demons and is often overrun by the unending hordes. It has been seen as a miracle by many that, not only has he maintained his post, but the city has actually grown in importance and force. ## Vash'Aran, Large Fiend (devill, titan) Lawful Evil Armor Class: 19 Hit Points: 351 (26d10+208) Speed: 30ft, fly 60ft ### * STR---- DEX---- CON---- INT---- WIS---- CHA ---- 27 (+8) 14 (+2) 26 (+8) 26 (+8) 19 (+4) 25 (+7) ### Saving Throws DEX +9 CON +15 WIS +11 CHA +14 Skills: Arcana +15 Athletics +15 History +15 Insight +11 Persuasion +14 Religion +15 Damage resistances: Cold, Electricity; Bludgeoning, Piercing, and Slashing from Nonmagical Attacks that aren't Silvered Damage Immunities: Fire, Poison Condition Immunities: Poison Senses: Truesight 120ft., passive perception 14 Languages: Common, Infernal, Telepathy 120ft. Challenge Rating 24 -- Proficiency Bonus +7 ### Fear Aura. Any creature hostile to Vash that starts its turn within 20 feet of him must make a DC 22 Wisdom saving throw, unless Vash is incapacitated. Unless the save succeeds, the creature is frightened until the start of its next turn. If a creature’s saving throw is successful, the creature is immune to Vash’s Fear Aura for the next 24 hours. Innate Spellcasting. Vash’s spellcasting ability is Charisma (spell save DC 23). Vash can innately cast the following spells, requiring no material components: At will: detect magic, fireball, major image, 3/day each: dispel magic, hold monster, mirror image, mislead, raise dead, circle of death, blade barrier, counterspell 1/day each: demiplane, blade of disaster, true polymorphy Legendary Resistance (3/Day). If Bel fails a saving throw, he can choose to succeed instead. Magic Resistance. Bel has advantage on saving throws against spells and other magical effects. Magic Weapons. Bel’s weapon attacks are magical. ### Actions Multiattack. Vash'Aran makes four attacks: one with his bite, one with his claw, one with his sword, and one with his tail. Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +15 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 22 (4d6 + 8) piercing damage. The target must succeed on a DC 23 Constitution saving throw or become poisoned. While poisoned in this way, the target can't regain hit points, and it takes 21 (6d6) poison damage at the start of each of its turns. The poisoned target can repeat the saving throw at the end of each of its turns, ending the effect on itself on a success. Claw. Melee Weapon Attack: +15 to hit, reach 10 ft., one target. Hit: 17 (2d8 + 8) slashing damage. Sword. Melee Weapon Attack: +15 to hit, reach 10 ft., one target. Hit: 17 (2d8 + 8) slashing damage plus 21 (6d6) fire damage. Tail. Melee Weapon Attack: +15 to hit, reach 10 ft., one target. Hit: 19 (2d10 + 8) bludgeoning damage. Teleport. Vash can teleport 120 ft. as an action. ### Legendary Actions Vash can take 3 legendary actions, choosing from the options below. Only one legendary action option can be used at a time and only at the end of another creature’s turn. Vash regains spent legendary actions at the start of his turn. Spellcasting (1 action) Vash can cast one of his at will innate spells. Attack (1 action) Vash makes a single attack with his sword. Move (1 action) Vash moves his speed and does not draw opportunity attacks. This can be ground or fly speed. Teleport (2 actions) Vash can teleport to any location in range he is familiar with, even if he cannot see the destination. Summon soldiers (3 actions) Vash pulls a squad of 3 cambions from his soldiers through a dimensional rift and they fight for him. \pagebreakNum <div class='footnote'>Vash'Aran</div> ### Description Vash'Aran has been using some of the essence of demons and celestials that attack his outpost to craft a small demiplane that diverts the creeping gloom of the Grey Waste, the manic destruction of the Abyss, and the rigid heirarchy of the Hells and dilutes their influence in a similar fashion to how the Prime Material plane dilutes the influence of the Outer Planes. Demons get ground into their essence after being destroyed on the battlefield or after being captured using the same technology that devils use for transportation when in the Hells proper. Where Soul Coins are a higher concentration of fuel, Vash would rather create new soldiers from the souls collected rather than running out of this precious resource. Many of the soldiers that inhabit Skullkeep are cambions and tieflings, but there can be found quite a few mortals, some succubi, some mid level demons, at least three feykind, and even some celestials. It's become a trading post for some, and the material combinations that can be found here are almost unheard of except in the City of Doors. Demonsteel greatswords, angelic armor, and devilish canons are all used in conjunction for the security and protection of the keep, but the magic Vash'Aran weaves in the keep's name is the real protection. From the outside, the walls look manned by archers, crossbowmen, balistas, and mages. Once inside the walls, the apparently small keep stretches in what appears to be infinite lengths. Vash'Aran's command of the dimensional magic, coupled with his understanding of planar essence from the corpses of planetouched creatures, helps to fuel the demiplane he created inside the keep. Now, no matter how many creatures assail the walls, they have only ended up becoming inhabitants of Skullkeep or fueling the espansion of the dimension that the true Skullkeep has become. ## Lair actions On initiative count 20 (losing initiative ties), Vash/Aran can take one of the following lair actions; he can’t take the same lair action two rounds in a row: Banish. Vash casts the banishment spell. Balanced Restraint. Vash'Aran targets one creature he can see within 60 feet of him. The target must succeed on a DC 22 Wisdom saving throw or become restrained for 1 minute. The target can end the effect on itself if it moves to deal any damage to one or more of its allies. ## Regional effects The region containing Vash'Aran’s lair is warped by his magic, creating one or more of the following effects: Dimensional border. Hostile creatures reaching the walls of Skullkeep have to make a DC 22 Charisma save or be banished back to their plane of origin. Convincing whipsers. Creatures inside of the city of Skullkeep are bombarded with subluminal messages that help to reinforce peace inside the city. Any influence from an outer plane on mortals can be undone after one long rest inside the walls. Hellish Doorways. Sapient creatures within 1 mile of the lair may be shown a portal by one of Vash's servants that coresponds to a fixed doorway. This door will lead to a demiplane that taps into the psyche of the one entering, and is relatively safe for the purposes of a long rest. If Vash'Aran dies, these effects transfer over the course of 1d10 days to his chosen heir.