Vaelith’s Crystal Key

Boon, Faint Essence Rank
Archive of the Eternal Menagerie

Vaelith grants you a large silver-and-gold key set with a multifaceted sapphire-blue crystal. The Key can bind the lingering spirits of defeated or willing beasts and monstrosities, preserving them as loyal companions within an eternal spiritual archive.

These spirits retain fragments of their personalities, instincts, memories, and bonds. They are not mindless constructs. They are dead, changed, and bound to you through Vaelith’s authority over Essence and the Cycle of Reincarnation.

Spirit Slots

You have 3 Spirit Slots within Vaelith’s Crystal Key.

Each Spirit Slot can hold one bound spirit. If all your Spirit Slots are full and you bind a new spirit, you must release one stored spirit from the Key. A released spirit passes peacefully into the Cycle of Reincarnation unless the DM determines otherwise.

Binding a Spirit

When a Beast or Monstrosity dies within 60 feet of you, you may spend 1 minute touching Vaelith’s Crystal Key to its remains and attempting to bind its spirit.

The creature’s Challenge Rating must be 0-2.

A creature with an Intelligence score of 7 or lower can be bound automatically, provided its spirit is not already claimed, corrupted, destroyed, protected, or otherwise made unavailable by another effect.

A creature with an Intelligence score of 8 or higher can only be bound if it is willing and/or has fully submitted. The DM may require a Wisdom (Animal Handling), Wisdom (Insight), Charisma (Persuasion), or Charisma (Intimidation) check, depending on how you approach the spirit.

On a successful binding, the creature’s spirit enters the Key and occupies one Spirit Slot.

The DM may rule that unique, cursed, corrupted, named, magically altered, or narratively significant creatures require additional conditions before they can be bound.

Willing Bond

A Beast or Monstrosity does not need to die in combat to be bound if it willingly offers its spirit to Vaelith’s Crystal Key.

This usually occurs only when the creature is dying, ancient, magically wounded, spiritually trapped, bound by extraordinary trust, or otherwise prepared to pass on.

A living creature bound this way dies peacefully as its spirit enters the Key. Its body remains behind, and its soul does not enter the Cycle of Reincarnation until it is released from the Key.

Summon Menagerie Spirit

As an action, you summon one spirit stored in Vaelith’s Crystal Key. The spirit appears in an unoccupied space you can see within 30 feet of you.

The spirit lasts for 1 hour, until it is reduced to 0 hit points, until you dismiss it as a bonus action, or until you summon another spirit from the Key.

You may summon a Menagerie Spirit a number of times equal to your Proficiency Bonus. You regain all expended uses when you finish a Long Rest. When you finish a Short Rest, you regain one expended use.

You can only have one Menagerie Spirit summoned at a time.

Commanding the Spirit

The spirit is friendly to you and your companions. It acts on your initiative, taking its turn immediately after yours.

On your turn, you can use a bonus action to command the spirit to take one of the following actions:

• Attack
• Dash
• Disengage
• Dodge
• Help
• Hide
• Search

If you do not command the spirit, it acts according to its original personality, instincts, and current circumstances, as determined by the DM.

A loyal wolf spirit may guard an injured ally. A frightened prey-beast may retreat or Dodge. A predatory monstrosity may stalk, circle, threaten, or attack a wounded enemy. A proud creature may refuse humiliating tactics. A protective spirit may place itself between danger and its summoner.

The spirit is loyal, but it is not an empty puppet. It will not knowingly betray you, but it may interpret danger, fear, hunger, pride, or affection through the instincts it carried in life.

Spirit Adjustments

When summoned, a Menagerie Spirit uses the original creature’s stat block, with the following changes:

• Its creature type becomes Spirit in addition to its original type.
• Its hit point maximum equals the higher of its original hit point maximum or 5 × your Druid level.
• Its AC equals the higher of its original AC or 12 + your Proficiency Bonus.
• Its attack bonus equals the higher of its original attack bonus or your spell attack modifier.
• If one of its abilities requires a saving throw, it uses your Druid spell save DC.
• It adds your Proficiency Bonus to saving throws it is already proficient in.
• If the creature has Multiattack, it cannot use Multiattack at Faint Essence Rank. When it takes the Attack action, it makes one attack from its stat block.
• The spirit cannot cast spells, use Legendary Actions, use Lair Actions, or use Mythic traits.
• The spirit cannot regain hit points unless a feature or spell specifically restores hit points to summoned creatures, spirits, or allies.
• If the spirit is reduced to 0 hit points, it vanishes back into the Key and cannot be summoned again until you finish a Short or Long Rest.

Menagerie Spirits count as creatures summoned by your magic for the purpose of your Circle of the Shepherd features.

Lingering Self

Bound spirits retain fragments of their former personalities, instincts, preferences, and memories.

A wolf may remain loyal to pack bonds. A spider may prefer darkness and ambush. A bear may become defensive around smaller allies. A wounded monstrosity may remember pain, rage, fear, or gratitude.

The DM may use these traits to determine how the spirit behaves when not directly commanded.