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Archives of Nethys

Archives of Nethys

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Vatumledor, Draconic Agent Of Achaekek

When the world was young, Achaekek was the arbiter of the gods. He acted as judge and executioner for any who opposed them. When asked, he would also rein in the strength of unruly gods who threatened what the deities had created. Yet, by the time an alliance of the divine rose to oppose the god Rovagug and imprison him within the Dead Vault, Achaekek had already lost his way and retreated into hiding.

It would be countless eons before Achaekek began interacting with the world again, at which point a family of dragons who respected peace and order heard Achaekek's whispers. They took care of the suffering deity, as much as any mortal—even a dragon—could care for a god, and their worship and their daily recitation of his teachings helped refocus Achaekek. Millennia passed, and the family of dragons fostered new broods, grew ancient and died, and younger dragons took their place.

When humans, specifically the Azlanti, discovered Achaekek, they worshipped him as the god of monsters and natural disasters, inspired by his horrific shape and violent nature. The dragons stealthily infiltrated Azlanti society and tried to teach the Azlanti about Achaekek's true purpose, but they would not listen. And so, the dragon family kept his original purpose and ancient role to themselves, opting to wait for a time when these short-lived mortals were ready to understand. When Earthfall devastated Golarion, though, this family of dragons perished, and Achaekek's faith once again receded into obscurity.

For thousands of years, Achaekek's faith remained hidden until his legacy was discovered by a powerful conspirator dragon named Szandinal. More taken with the legacy of the mysterious dragons who kept the god's faith alive, Szandinal revived the worship of Achaekek among his siblings and children. In time, a new draconic dynasty associated with the Mantis God arose. They watched with amusement as the Red Mantis assassins rose to power, and marked the way in which Achaekek and these assassins seemed to influence each other more and more with each passing century. Over the years, this family of conspirator dragons never grew particularly large, but with each new generation the dragons grew more devoted to Achaekek, reveling in the hidden lore they alone knew about the god and venerating him in the old ways as a god of arbitration rather than assassination.

Tragedy struck in 4534 AR, when then Blood Mistress Behezamine discovered the existence of this “conspiracy of heretical dragons” who venerated Achaekek in secret. She gathered her best and most promising assassins and hunted down Szandinal's five surviving scions and assassinated them. Yet one dragon, Vatumledor, escaped her notice—in no small part due to a conspiracy between him and one of Behezamine's most ambitious followers, a talented but unproven assassin named Jakalyn. In return for her aid in escaping from Blood Mistress Behezamine's wrath, Vatumledor became a close confidant and ally for Jakalyn. In time, this hidden alliance would not only help to increase Jakalyn's influence and power—it would culminate in her overthrowing Behezamine, an act Vatumledor considered to be Achaekek's justice for what she did to his family. With his talent at weaving conspiracies and altering historical records, Vatumledor played a key role in Jakalyn's erasure of Behezamine from history itself.

Adventure Role

Vatumledor still serves as a secret ally for Jakalyn, and in that capacity he acts as a guide and ally for the PCs. Always eager to take part in conspiracies, the complicated plan to catch the hidden traitors who plot against Jakalyn from within the ranks of the Vernai delights the dragon's sense of irony. For now, he works to maintain the current leadership of the Red Mantis rather than conspire for its change. Once he finally brings the PCs into his confidence at the end of Chapter 1, he becomes a potent ally and source of information they can call upon.

Recall Knowledge - Dragon (Arcana): DC 45
Unspecific Lore: DC 43
Specific Lore: DC 40

Elite | Normal | Weak
Proficiency without Level

VatumledorCreature 16

Unique Huge Dragon Occult 
Source Prey for Death pg. 120
Perception +14; (32 to Sense Motive) darkvision, scent (imprecise) 60 feet
Languages Azlanti, Common, Draconic, Shadowtongue, Sussuran, Thassilonian; telepathy 100 feet
Skills Achaekek Lore +15, Acrobatics +14, Athletics +14, Deception +19, Diplomacy +17, Intimidation +17, Mediogalti Island Lore +17, Occultism +15, Religion +16, Society +15, Stealth +14
Str +9, Dex +5, Con +6, Int +6, Wis +7, Cha +8
AC 24; Fort +11, Ref +12, Will +16; +2 status to all saves vs. occult
HP 345; Immunities controlled, paralyzed, sleep
Retract Body [reaction] Trigger Vatumledor is hit or critically hit by an attack made by a creature the dragon can see; Effect Vatumledor retracts the targeted body part or twists away to avoid the attack, gaining a +2 circumstance bonus to his Armor Class against the triggering attack.
Speed 50 feet, climb 50 feet, fly 200 feet
Melee [one-action] jaws +16 [+11/+6] (magical, reach 15 feet), Damage 3d8+17 piercingMelee [one-action] claw +16 [+12/+8] (agile, magical, reach 10 feet), Damage 3d6+17 slashingMelee [one-action] tail +14 [+9/+4] (magical, reach 20 feet), Damage 2d10+17 bludgeoningRanged [one-action] mental blast +15 [+10/+5] (range 100 feet), Damage 6d6+6 mentalOccult Innate Spells DC 25; 9th dominate, mind probe, mind reading (at will), rewrite memory; 4th charm (at will), rewrite memory (at will)
Occult Prepared Spells DC 21, attack +13; 7th haste, soothe, teleport; 6th detect scrying (already cast), scrying, soothe; 5th see the unseen, soothe, translocate; 4th charm, clairvoyance, sleep; 3rd fear, paralyze, slow; 2nd blur, telekinetic maneuver, translate; 1st command, sanctuary, sure strike; Cantrips (7th) daze, detect magic, light, read aura, telekinetic projectile
Conjure Disguise (manipulate, occult, polymorph Frequency once per day) Effect Vatumledor conjures a flesh suit that's a replica of a humanoid he has seen and compresses himself into the suit, along with clothing appropriate for the humanoid. This process takes 1 minute, during which Vatumledor is off-guard. If he stops or is interrupted in this process, the suit is destroyed. Once the process is complete, he can remain in his disguise indefinitely.

The transformation has the effects of change shape, except that the disguise is not actively magical in nature and doesn't register as magical to detect magic and similar effects. Vatumledor loses Retract Body while transformed.

If Vatumledor is critically hit while wearing the disguise, the suit is destroyed, and immediately explodes. This has the effects of Detonate Disguise, except that creatures use the outcome one degree of success better than they rolled on their save.Detonate Disguise [two-actions] (occult) Requirements Vatumledor is wearing his conjured disguise; Effect Vatumledor erupts from the disguise, destroying it. The explosive revelation deals 18d6 bludgeoning damage to creatures adjacent to the dragon (DC 23 basic Reflex save). Creatures that fail their save become dazzled for 1 round as they become covered in scraps from the disguise. Any creatures sharing a space with Vatumledor after he erupts are pushed into the nearest empty space.Draconic Frenzy [two-actions] Vatumledor makes two claw Strikes and one tail Strike in any order.Draconic Momentum When Vatumledor scores a critical hit with a Strike, he recharges Smoke Breath.Rushed Transformation [three-actions] (concentrate, manipulate, occult) Frequency once per hour; Effect Vatumledor quickly reshapes his body into the form of a generic humanoid figure. This has the effects of humanoid form except that it only lasts 1 minute, and he doesn't gain the +4 status bonus to Deception as the transformation makes use of his own scales and plating to crudely mimic a humanoid form. Vatumledor can Dismiss the effect. Whenever the effect ends, Vatumledor leaves behind scraps of magically conjured flesh, which could give away his presence.Smoke Breath [two-actions] (occult, poison) Vatumledor unleashes a 60-foot cone of smoke that deals 16d6 poison damage (DC 23 basic Fortitude save). The smoke remains for 1 minute, obscuring sight with the effects of mist in the cone's area. He can't use Smoke Breath again for 1d4 rounds.Sneak Attack Vatumledor's Strikes deal an additional 3d6 precision damage to off-guard targets.