Monster Monday: Vaettr (Wight)

Monster Monday is a feature that will occur every other week. It will feature an excerpt creature from the working draft of the Dragon Heresy RPG.

A wight is the restless corpse of a warrior, animated by bloodlust and hatred. The wight is created when a warrior is so fond of killing, maiming, and fighting without a good cause that upon its death, the Valkyries not only reject the spirit, but deny its passage to Dauthaheim. Clinging to its lust for violence, it rises each night to claim more victims.

They are typically withered husks of fallen warriors, but with plenty of flesh still remaining. They do not rot naturally, but nor do they heal. The wounds taken in life (and in undeath) lie gaping upon them. They are grey-colored, with tattered, wispy hair. If they wear armor (and many do), it will typically be a hodge-podge of pieces—treat the DR of any more interesting armor as half it’s usual value.

Not all wights are human, and it is not uncommon to encounter lizardfolk and human wights alike at the location of long-forgotten battles during the wars that plagued Tanalor and Torengar alike over the last few thousand years.

These restless dead dwell in ancient burial mounds during the day. They have an instinctive feeling for how from from their barrow-home they may roam until they cannot return before the sun rises.

Wights rise at twilight, and roam freely at night, searching for new fights and new death. They will attempt to kill anything living, and will tend to be drawn to warriors first, seeking to add their corpses to their own throng.

Wights are intelligent and angry. They cannot often be bargained with, even if one will pause to engage in conversation. They will emply tactics befitting their weaponry, and engage in ambushes and withdrawals. A wight that fails a morale check withdraws, but does not flee. When attacking in groups, if one begins to withdraw, make a check for the rest. If multiple wights fail such a check, they will engage in a fighting withdrawal, fading back towards their barrow-home and regrouping. They will then attack again, changing tactics if needed.

Wights are determined, dangerous fighters, and will keep coming at a party until the wights are destroyed. Destruction of the vaettr is most frequently and most effectively accomplished by burning them in daylight. Wights that are destroyed in body but whose spirit is not quenched tend to rise as will-o-wisps.

If a wight that has amassed a retinue of zombies is killed, the zombies will head off in a random direction. If they encounter a living creature, they will attack it. Such wandering zombies will continue this behavior until they are destroyed.

Medium undead, neutral evil

Speed 30 ft.

STR	DEX		CON	INT	WIS	CHA
15	14		16	10	13	15
+2	+2		+3	0	+1	+2
Defenses			Wound Thresholds
Threat DC	12		Morale	Injury	KO	Death
Hit DC	22		0-4	5-9	10-18	19+
DR	1-3*		Control Thresholds
Vigor	45		Grab	Grapple	Restr.	Incap.
Vigor Dice	6d8+18		0-4	5-8	9-17	18+

*studded leather (DR 1), a tattered chain shirt (DR 2), or chain mail (DR 3)

Proficiency +2

Skills. Perception +3, Stealth +4

Damage Resistances. necrotic; bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing from nonmagical attacks that arent silvered

Damage Immunities. poison

Condition Immunities. exhaustion, poisoned

Senses. darkvision 60 ft., passive Perception 13

Languages. the languages. it knew in life

Challenge 3 (700 XP)

Sunlight Sensitivity. While in sunlight, the wight has disadvantage on attack rolls, as well as on Wisdom (Perception) checks that rely on sight.

Actions

Multiattack. The wight makes two longsword attacks or two longbow attacks. It can use its Life Drain in place of one longsword attack.

Life Drain. Melee Wounding Spell Attack: +4 to hit, reach 5 ft., one creature. Hit: 1d6+2 necrotic damage. The target must succeed on a DC 13 Constitution saving throw or its wound maximum is reduced by an amount equal to the damage taken. This reduction lasts until the target finishes a long rest. The target dies if this effect reduces its wound maximum to 0.

A humanoid slain by this attack rises 24 hours later as a zombie under the wights control, unless the humanoid is restored to life or its body is destroyed. The wight can have no more than twelve zombies under its control at one time.

Longsword. Melee Weapon Attack: +4 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 1d8+2 slashing damage, or 1d10+2 slashing damage if used with two hands.

Longbow. Ranged Weapon Attack: +4 to hit, range 150/600 ft., one target. Hit: 1d8+2 piercing damage.

Grapple. Melee Weapon Attack: +4 to hit, reach 5 ft., one creature. Hit: 1d12+2 control damage.