Shadow demons are winged, incorporeal fiends that are exceptionally sneaky in darkness and weakened in bright light. They form when a demon's body is destroyed but it is prevented from reforming in the Abyss, most often due to mortal magic. Thus they are outcasts from the normal abyssal hierarchy.[2]
Two notable shadow demons attached themselves to mortals with pacts shading into possession.
Description[]
Appearance[]
Shadow demons are winged humanoid creatures with sharp claws whose lower body trails off into nothing.[2]
Abilities[]
The following is drawn from the Monster Manual,[1] but some of it has been demonstrated on-stream:
- Damage vulnerabilities: radiant
- Damage resistances: thunder,[4] acid, fire, necrotic, bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing damage from nonmagical weapons[5]
- Damage immunities: lightning, cold, poison[6]
- Condition immunities: prone, restrained, grappled, paralyzed, exhaustion, petrified, poisoned
- Light Sensitivity: The demon has disadvantage on Perception checks and attack rolls while in bright light.[7]
- Incorporeal Movement: The demon can move through solid matter as if it were difficult terrain. It takes 1d10 force damage if it ends its turn inside an object.[8]
- Shadow Stealth: While in dim light or darkness, the demon can Hide as a bonus action.
Actions:
- Claw: Shadow demon attacks have +5 to hit, reach 5 ft., dealing 2d6+3 psychic damage or, if the demon had advantage on the attack roll, 4d6+3 psychic damage.
- Multiattack: The demon makes three claw attacks.[9][10]
History[]
Campaign One: Vox Machina[]
Fan art of Percy, The List, and Orthax, by Toby Sharp.[art 2]
A shadow demon called Orthax appeared to Percival de Rolo, in what Percy thought was a dream, and offered him vengeance against the Briarwoods and their associates, who had destroyed his family. It was with Orthax's inspiration that Percy designed his first gun,[11] a pepperbox pistol called The List. Every target that Percy killed in revenge was offered as a soul to Orthax.[12]
Years later, while on the hunt for the Briarwoods, Percy began to act increasingly erratic and violent due to Orthax's influence. Dark smoke began to emerge from Percy's body and envelop him during these moments.[13] When the Briarwoods were defeated in Whitestone and Percy tried to sever his ties to Orthax, the demon, having grown far stronger than a typical shadow demon, appeared and fought Vox Machina. As a precaution, Scanlan then threw The List into acid in hopes that that would sever the demon's tie to Percy.[14]
Fan art of Anna Ripley enveloped by Orthax on the Isle of Glintshore, with Percy in the foreground, by Truffery.[art 3]
Thus Orthax was forcibly separated from Percival, but the shadow demon struck a new pact with one of Percival's enemies, Anna Ripley, who was in the process of escaping from Whitestone, and she began making firearms of her own. So when Vox Machina caught up to Ripley, Orthax reappeared and assisted her in the fight on Glintshore, which led to Percy's death by Ripley's updated pepperbox, Animus. The rest of Vox Machina felled Ripley and the demon,[15] but Orthax remained in the Material Plane through its attachment to Animus. It used this attachment to grab hold of Percy's soul, preventing his resurrection until Keyleth managed to sever the thread connecting it to Animus through the use of Greater Restoration.[16]
Unwelcome Spirits[]
During the War of Ash and Light, a shadow demon named Trush, attempting a ritual from the Shadowfell, manipulated the veil between the Shadowfell and the Border Ethereal to possess a goblin warlock and town seer of Urzin, Bol'bara.[17]
Critical Role: Call of the Netherdeep[]
Shadow demons can be encountered near the active abyssal rift in the Betrayers' Rise[18] or out in the wastes of Xhorhas.[19]
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 See D&D: Monster Manual (2014), 5th ed., p. 64.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 See D&D: Monster Manual (2014), 5th ed., p. 54.
- ↑ See Tal'Dorei Campaign Setting, pp. 70–71.
- ↑ See "Cloak and Dagger" (1x68) at 4:00:29.
- ↑ See "Denouement" (1x35), part 1, at 1:28:25.
- ↑ See "Denouement" (1x35), part 1, at 1:23:24.
- ↑ See "Cloak and Dagger" (1x68) at 3:56:34. See also at 3:26:23, at 4:03:02, and at 4:06:06.
- ↑ See "Denouement" (1x35), part 1, at 1:23:08.
- ↑ See "Denouement" (1x35), part 1, at 1:40:11.
- ↑ See "Cloak and Dagger" (1x68) at 4:06:06.
- ↑ From Percy's intro. See "Arrival at Kraghammer" (1x01) from 5:58 through 6:07.
- ↑ See "Thar Amphala" (1x101) at 3:06:08.
- ↑ See "Whispers" (1x29) at 3:01:40.
- ↑ See "Denouement" (1x35), part 2, from 0:05:32 through 0:09:15.
- ↑ See "Cloak and Dagger" (1x68) at 4:18:00.
- ↑ See "Passed Through Fire" (1x69) from 1:08:12 through 1:09:15.
- ↑ See Explorer's Guide to Wildemount, p. 250. See also p. 261.
- ↑ See Call of the Netherdeep, p. 63.
- ↑ See Call of the Netherdeep, p. 42.
Art:
- ↑ Depiction of a shadow demon, by Conceptopolis from Monster Manual 5th ed., p. 64. This page contains unofficial Fan Content permitted under the Wizards of the Coast Fan Content Policy. Not approved/endorsed by Wizards. Portions of the materials used are property of Wizards of the Coast. ©Wizards of the Coast LLC.
- ↑ Fan art of Percy, The List, and Orthax, by Toby Sharp (source). Used with permission.
- ↑ Fan art of Anna Ripley enveloped by Orthax on the Isle of Glintshore, with Percy in the foreground, by Truffery (source). Used with permission.