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Archives of Nethys

Archives of Nethys

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Abilities | Monsters | NPCs

Zellara Esmeranda, Harrowed Soul And Teacher

The Esmeranda clan was a storied group of traveling merchants, fortune-tellers, and performers whose lineage could be traced as far back as ancient Thassilon (or so the family tales say). When the eldest daughter of the clan, Zellara, found love during a visit to the city of Korvosa and elected to settle down in that city, the rest of the clan considered her departure bittersweet. Losing Zellara was a blow for the clan, but they were not about to interfere with the desires of her heart. Zellara bid her family farewell and settled down with her husband, Aramir, in the city's cosmopolitan Midland district. The two found a home, had a son, and generally lived a happy life for a few years.

When Zellara lost Aramir to sickness, the rest of her clan urged her to return to them, but she had grown to love Korvosa and its people. She chose to stay and make a living as a harrower for tourists and interested locals. She also took on several students during this time, teaching them the honored tradition of harrowing that was passed down among her clan. Unfortunately, Zellara's love of the harrow would ultimately lead to her death.

During an outing in the city, pickpockets working for a small-time criminal named Gaedren Lamm stole Zellara's cherished harrow deck. Her son Eran took it upon himself to recover the deck, only to end up dying at the hands of Gaedren's thugs. With her son dead and the city guard unable to help, Zellara searched for Eran's killer, eventually tracking down Gaedren to his hideout only to be slain by him as well. Overcome with anguish and despair at the moment of her death, Zellara's spirit connected to her harrow deck, allowing her to live on as a ghost intent on stopping Gaedren and protecting the city of Korvosa.

As a ghost, Zellara recruited a group of heroes to help her with her goal. From her harrow, Zellara could advise the heroes and frequently performed harrow readings to guide them during their adventures. With Zellara's help, these heroes not only brought Gaedren to justice, but eventually liberated all Korvosa from the tyranny of its new ruler, Queen Ileosa Arabasti. In the final days of this campaign to save Korvosa, Zellara's deck become empowered, transforming into a harrow deck of many things. This new deck gave the heroes a greater advantage moving toward their final battle.

Feeling she had accomplished her goal and could trust the heroes to save the city, Zellara's spirit moved on to the Boneyard. Once there, she awaited her soul's judgment, but realized that her connection to the power of the harrow deck of many things afforded her more liberty than other souls. She eventually discovered she could step “out of line” from her judgment, free to return when saw fit. Zellara saw this development as an opportunity to visit her loved ones one last time before moving on.

Zellara returned to Golarion and watched the lives of her clan, the saviors of Korvosa, and her former students. She spent several years observing them from afar, occasionally providing subtle guidance to help them with their goals or problems. Among these was her final student, Raven Nicoletta. Zellara checked in with Raven several times over the years, watching her grow into a brilliant harrower, surpassing Zellara's skill and even some of the greatest harrowers of the Esmeranda clan. In recent years, however, Zellara watched Raven become selfish, obsessed with power and legacy, and fall into the ways of evil. Zellara remained with Raven, hoping to return her to a better path, but found herself no longer able to influence her former student. Raven was lost to her. Zellara now believes that Raven is beyond saving and, while mourning this loss, hopes to find someone to put an end to the evil Raven seeks to enact on the world.

Campaign Role

Zellara is a guiding figure for the heroes. She's aware of Raven's entire history and can bring the heroes up to speed on Raven's abilities and motivations. Although Zellara's grown more powerful as a ghost than she ever was in life, Raven is still beyond her ability to stop all on her own—she needs the PCs to step up to this task. Zellara sees the same potential in these heroes as she saw in the heroes of Korvosa over a decade ago. She hopes that these heroes will be the ones to put an end to Raven's evil machinations, and perhaps even save her from herself. Having gained wisdom in her afterlife, Zellara can provide any information or advice the heroes might need on their journey to recover the Deck of Destiny.

Recall Knowledge - Spirit (Occultism): DC 42
Recall Knowledge - Undead (Religion): DC 42
Unspecific Lore: DC 40
Specific Lore: DC 37

Elite | Normal | Weak
Proficiency without Level

Zellara EsmerandaCreature 14

Legacy Content

Unique CG Medium Ghost Incorporeal Spirit Undead 
Source Pathfinder #192: Worst of All Possible Worlds pg. 90
Female human ghost
Perception +13; darkvision, harrow sense
Languages Common, Shoanti, Varisian
Skills Acrobatics +12, Diplomacy +14, Fortune-Telling Lore +12, Occultism +14, Performance +12
Str -5, Dex +6, Con +2, Int +4, Wis +5, Cha +6
Boundless Spirit Unlike other ghosts, Zellara is not bound to a specific site or object. She can freely manifest wherever she likes.
Harrow Sense Zellara can detect the presence of harrow cards as an imprecise sense out to 1 mile. She can detect harrow cards as a precise sense out to 120 feet.
AC 22; Fort +8, Ref +14, Will +11
HP 195 (negative healing, rejuvenation); Immunities death effects, disease, paralyzed, poison, precision, unconscious; Resistances all damage 15 (except force, ghost touch, or positive; double resistance vs. non-magical)
Rejuvenation (divine, necromancy) When Zellara is destroyed, she re-forms after 2d4 days at the site of her destruction, fully healed. If she is bound to a harrow deck or harrow card, Zellara can manifest near the bound item instead. Once her ex-student Raven has been defeated, Zellara will return to the Boneyard to face her final judgment.Unbound Fate Zellara's connection to the harrow and fortune-telling in life have given her full control of her fate in the afterlife. She can ignore any fortune or misfortune effects that affect her. If she is forced to roll twice as part of a fortune and misfortune effect, she can take whichever die result she prefers, even if the effect would normally force her to choose one of the results.
Speed fly 25 feet
Melee [one-action] ghostly hand +12 [+8/+4] (agile, finesse, magical), Damage 3d12+8 negativeRanged [one-action] ghostly harrow card +12 [+7/+2] (magical, range increment 60 feet), Damage 3d8+8 negativeOccult Innate Spells DC 20, attack +12; 7th plane shift, teleport (at will; self only), true seeing; 5th crushing despair, sending; 4th confusion, read omens; 3rd dispel magic, hypercognition; 2nd augury, telekinetic maneuver; 1st command, mindlink; Cantrips (7th) detect magic, ghost sound, mage hand, prestidigitation, read aura, telekinetic projectile
Flurry of Cards [two-actions] Zellara unleashes a barrage of harrow cards that deals 7d6 negative damage in a 30-foot cone (DC 20 basic Reflex save).Harrow Binding [three-actions] (divination, occult) Requirements Zellara is within 120 feet of a harrow card or harrow deck; Effect Zellara intentionally binds herself to a harrow card or deck she can sense. While bound in this way, she grants her Stack the Deck ability to anyone carrying the bound card or deck. The trigger and effect for Stack the Deck changes to affect the creature carrying the bound item. She can still Stack the Deck for herself while bound. Zellara can unbind herself from the item as an action, which has the concentrate trait.Stack the Deck [reaction] (divine, fortune, occult) Trigger Zellara is about to attempt a saving throw; Effect Zellara looks to her immediate future and determines the most favorable outcome for her. She gains a +4 circumstance bonus to the triggering saving throw. If she rolls a critical failure on her saving throw, she can reroll the check, but does so without the bonus.