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Archives of Nethys

Archives of Nethys

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Vordakai

At the height of his power well over 10,000 years ago, the original Vordakai was among the most powerful necromancers of the land. When this cyclops tyrant was defeated during the chaos following Earthfall, one of his apprentices claimed his name as well as his greatest treasure, the Oculus of Abaddon. Though he had been the least of the necromancer's apprentices, the new Vordakai was nevertheless a powerful wizard, but it would take more than power to claim the true Vordakai's mantle. Betrayed by followers of the original leader who refused to serve him, the new Vordakai was sealed into his own tomb, and over the passage of eons, the cyclops lich atrophied.

Although much weakened today, Vordakai remains a dangerous opponent who can devastate a poorly prepared party on his own. Don't be afraid to play Vordakai as arrogant creature—he has existed for longer than most creatures on Golarion, after all, and if he makes arrogant mistakes (such as neglecting to cast spells defensively or provoking Attacks of Opportunity), that not only gives the PCs a chance to survive but also helps to establish the ancient lich as both overconfident and a bit careless from his long period of quiescence. Keep in mind that Vordakai is the most powerful foe the PCs have encountered in the Kingmaker Adventure Path thus far, and in defeating him, they will accomplish something truly legendary.

If Vordakai has the chance to prepare for battle before combat, he takes 3 rounds to cast tongues, resist energy (choosing an energy type he knows the PCs favor as a result of watching them via his familiar), and then mirror image just before entering battle. Finally, he activates true seeing using the Oculus of Abaddon before entering combat (doing so in the first round of a fight if instead he's caught by surprise by the PCs).

Once combat begins, Vordakai starts by casting dominate on the party's strongest healer; if successful, he commands the healer to his side to defend him by attacking anyone who attacks the lich in melee. On subsequent rounds, Vordakai uses ranged magic against the party, casting vampiric exsanguination as soon as he's reduced to 100 Hit Points or fewer. When facing only one or two foes, he prefers to attack with Consume Memories followed by a hand Strike, opting to save his spells for an emergency.

The greatest diminishment of Vordakai's power is represented through the loss of his soul cage—the magical item he initially used to trap his own soul and enable his transformation into a lich in the first place. He cannot create a replacement as long as he remains atrophied, but his arrogance works against him here. Only if he's reduced below 20 Hit Points does he realize that the PCs have a very good chance to defeat him, and if he survives long enough to take a turn after this realization, he casts his 5th-level dimension door to flee to area C5 of his tomb. If he's able to escape in this way, he'll wait for a few days before returning to his tomb, infuriated if the PCs have released his prisoners and robbed him blind. At this point, Vordakai can become a recurring villain in your campaign!

Recall Knowledge - Undead (Religion): DC 40
Unspecific Lore: DC 38
Specific Lore: DC 35

Elite | Normal | Weak
Proficiency without Level

VordakaiCreature 12

Legacy Content

Unique NE Large Undead 
Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 606
Male cyclops atrophied lich
Perception +23; darkvision, true seeing
Languages Cyclops, Daemonic, Jotun, Necril
Skills Abaddon Lore +27, Acrobatics +20, Arcana +25, Athletics +21, Crafting +23, Deception +21, Intimidation +21, Occultism +25, Religion +25
Str +5, Dex +4, Con +5, Int +7, Wis +5, Cha +5
Items Oculus of Abaddon, spellbook
AC 33; Fort +23, Ref +20, Will +25
HP 200 (negative healing); Immunities death effects, disease, paralyzed, poison, unconscious; Resistances cold 10, physical 10 (except magical bludgeoning)
Atrophied Lich Sometimes, a lich that remains immobile and insensible for extended periods of time—as Vordakai did after he was imprisoned in his tomb just prior to Earthfall 10,000 years ago—can become atrophied. The exact effects of atrophy vary from lich to lich but always result in a reduction of spellcasting power and damage to their soul cage link. In Vordakai's case, he has forgotten much arcane lore and lost a significant amount of his spellcasting ability. At the height of his power, he was a 20th-level wizard, but today, his power has reduced to that of a 12th-level wizard. More troubling to the lich is the fact that he can no longer use a soul cage to rejuvenate—if Vordakai is destroyed, he crumbles to dust, forever dead. Given time, Vordakai could recover his power and regain his rejuvenation ability, but it's unlikely the PCs will give him that chance, as it would take the lich several years to undo the ravages of centuries.Counterspell [reaction] Trigger A creature casts a spell Vordakai has prepared. Effect Vordakai expends a prepared spell to counter the triggering creature's casting of that same spell. He loses its spell slot as if he had cast the triggering spell. He then attempts to counteract the triggering spell.Flash of Insight [free-action] (divination, occult, fortune) Frequency once per day. Trigger Vordakai is about to roll a d20. Effect Vordakai peers into an occluded spectrum of possible futures. He gets a success (but not a critical success) without rolling.Frightful Presence (aura, emotion, fear, mental) 60 feet, DC 29Steady Spellcasting If a reaction would disrupt Vordakai's spellcasting action, the lich attempts a DC 15 flat check. On a success, the action isn't disrupted.
Speed 25 feet
Melee [one-action] hand +24 [+19/+14] (reach 10 feet, finesse, magical), Damage 4d8 negative plus paralyzing touchArcane Prepared Spells DC 35, attack +27; 6th dispel magic, dominate, vampiric exsanguination; 5th dimension door, mind probe, tongues; 4th dimension door, phantasmal killer, suggestion; 3rd magic missile, mind reading, paralyze; 2nd mirror image, resist energy, telekinetic maneuver; 1st command, ray of enfeeblement, true strike; Cantrips (6th) chill touch, mage hand, read aura, shield, telekinetic projectile
Rituals; 8th imprisonment (cannot currently cast); 6th planar binding; 2nd create undead
Consume Memories [two-actions] (attack, arcane, enchantment, mental) Vordakai draws out a creature's memories and consumes them, learning bits and pieces of the world through the victim's thoughts. The lich makes a hand Strike against the target; if he hits, he deals 6d6 negative energy damage. The target must attempt a DC 32 Will save, after which it is temporarily immune to Consume Memories for 24 hours.
Critical Success The target takes no additional ill effects.
Success The target becomes stupefied 1 for 1 round.
Failure The target becomes stupefied 1 with an unlimited duration. Vordakai gains a +1 status bonus to all skill checks for 1 minute as a result of the consumed memories.
Critical Failure As failure, but the target is stupefied 2 with an unlimited duration. In addition, Vordakai can telepathically learn one specific bit of secret information known by the victim, subject to the GM's discretion.Drain Oculus [free-action] Frequency once per day; Effect Vordakai taps into the Oculus of Abaddon's power to cast any arcane spell up to 6th level, even if the spell being cast is not one of his prepared spells.Familiar Vordakai's familiar, Horagnamon, is on page 254.Paralyzing Touch (arcane, curse, incapacitation, necromancy) A creature damaged by the lich's hand Strike must succeed at a DC 32 Fortitude save. The creature becomes paralyzed for 1 round on a failure. On a critical failure, the creature is paralyzed permanently, falls prone, and seems dead. A DC 25 Medicine check reveals the victim is alive.