Ashen King

A demon in disguise, the Ashen King is masquerading as a tiefling pyromancer to stir up conflict & cover his more nefarious activities. He speaks out against the corrupt nobility that have too much power & wealth, & he calls upon the commoners to seize what's rightfully theirs: equality! In truth, the Ashen King’s idea of equality is a demonic hellscape where the fittest survive & it’s kill or be killed, but the peasants don’t need to know that.

Personality. The Ashen King revels in chaos & destruction. He has little interest in striking deals or gaining political capital; he incites action in the people & watches the chaos. When he gets bored, he tosses a few fireballs into the mix, & he gets bored easily. Like most demons, he expresses his emotions freely & openly. When he’s upset, everyone knows it. When he’s happy (usually due to blowing something up or starting a riot), he laughs like a madman. He keeps no friends & forms no long-term bonds but is happy to pretend to take advantage of someone who can help him. The Ashen King also gets real joy from betrayal, especially if his victim doesn’t see it coming. He savors the look of surprise as they realize what’s happening.

Background. A “demon prince” is really just a powerful demon who has gained enough power to get away with calling itself a prince. There are no regal bloodlines in the lower planes where demons dwell. Demons are formed either from the chaotic energies of their home plane, or by a corrupted soul. In life, the Ashen King was a minor crime lord named Zain Rashad. His penchant for cruelty soon attracted the attention of an order of paladins called the Ordine Lucis. The Ashen King hates paladins. They brought him to justice, & his foul deeds dragged his soul down to the lowest of the lower planes. There he suffered, his soul twisting in the foul energies until it burst forth as a demon. Most newborn demons seek out combat or a demon lord to serve in hopes of growing in strength & evolving to the next order of demon-kind, but not the Ashen King. He decamped from the lower planes quickly, taking to the material plane in the guise of a tiefling sorcerer. He'd gain his power here, by exploiting the “good & righteous” people the paladins who killed him claimed to protect. Then he'd fling the gates to the lower planes open wide & let loose a demonic army, all marching under his banner.

Goals and Motivations. The ultimate goal of the Ashen King is the merging of Quillkeep with the lower planes, forcing it to exist in both places at once & acting as a massive gateway for demons of all kinds to stream forth. The Ashen King likes anything that increases his personal power & is wary of anything that makes his minions too powerful. As long as they remain comfortably weaker than he is, he won’t hesitate to empower them, but if the party wants to negotiate with him, offering something that will make him mightier is a much stronger card to play.

Heartfire. The Ashen King’s signature tool is the Heartfire Blight. Most commonly called simply “Heartfire,” it's a disease that bolsters those who have his favor & strikes down those who oppose him. Symptoms of Heartfire come in 2 forms: Heartfire Blight & Heartfire Boon. Creatures that are infected initially develop Blight symptoms, & only the Ashen King’s blessing can convert the disease into Heartfire Boon. The Ashen King can bestow his blessing by using an action to touch a creature, & it can be revoked at any time, for any reason, at any distance (no action required). When a humanoid is struck by a bite, claw, or unarmed attack from a Heartfire infected creature, the humanoid must succeed on a DC 15 Constitution saving throw or be infected. In addition, the Ashen King & some of his minions can infect creatures directly. Symptoms manifest whenever the creature finishes its next long rest, & desperate souls have been known to stay awake for days on end to delay the inevitable. Heartfire progresses in stages. Infected creatures begin at Stage 1 of the disease. At the end of each long rest, they must make a Constitution saving throw. On a result of 5 or lower, the disease greatly worsens, increasing its stage by 2. On a 6 to 10, the disease worsens, increasing its stage by 1. On a 11 to 14, the disease is unchanged. On a 15 or higher, the disease improves, reducing its stage by 1. Note that Heartfire’s advancement is tied directly to the Ashen King’s power level. Initially it can’t go beyond Stage 2. This applies to both Heartfire Blight & Boon. As the Ashen King’s power increases by making cult sites, advancing to Stage 3 with 2 cult sites, & eventually Stage 4 with 4 cult sites. Heartfire is very resistant to magic. Lesser restoration removes all symptoms for 8 hours, & greater restoration removes the symptoms for 24 hours, but the disease returns to full strength after that time. If an infected creature takes a long rest under the effects of lesser restoration, it has advantage on its next Constitution saving throw to recover from the disease. A creature that takes a long rest under the effects of greater restoration automatically succeeds on its Constitution saving throw, treating the result as though it had rolled a 15 or higher. A heal spell or similar magic (such as heroes’ feast) cures the disease instantly. If a paladin uses Lay on Hands to cure this disease, treat the effect as though a lesser restoration spell was cast on the creature.

Heartfire Blight. Creatures with Heartfire Blight experience chest pains & a fever. These symptoms worsen as the disease progresses, & fatigue quickly sets in. The creature’s fever burns ever hotter & they seem to draw fire toward them, like their flesh is kindling. Their sweat is mixed with volatile energies that combust at the lightest touch of flame. At its worst, the disease literally incinerates them from the inside out, until nothing but ash remains. Once the disease is cured, the creature’s hit point max returns to normal after a long rest.

1. The creature has disadvantage on Wisdom ability checks & initiative rolls. If the creature is immune to fire damage, it instead has resistance to fire damage.
2. The creature suffers 1 permanent level of exhaustion that lasts until the disease is cured. It also loses any resistance to fire damage. When the creature finishes a long rest, its hit point max is reduced by 1. This kills the creature if its hit point max becomes 0. Once the disease is cured, the creature’s hit point max returns to normal after a long rest.
3. The creature suffers a 2nd permanent level of exhaustion. It becomes vulnerable to fire damage. When the creature finishes a long rest, its hit point max is now reduced by 2.
4. The creature suffers a 3rd permanent level of exhaustion & begins to combust from within. When it finishes a long rest, the creature suffers 7 (2d6) fire damage & its hit point max is reduced by an amount equal to the damage taken. The creature dies if this reduces its hit point max to 0, its body burning up & leaving only ashes behind. Once the disease reaches this stage, the creature no longer makes Constitution saving throws to improve its condition. Only a heal spell or more powerful magic can cure the disease.

Heartfire Boon. Heartfire Boon fills infected creatures with courage & energizes their limbs, giving them great physical strength. Creatures with Heartfire Boon no longer make saving throws at the end of each long rest; instead the disease automatically advances to the next stage. The symptoms of Heartfire Boon can still be suppressed by lesser restoration or greater restoration, removing the beneficial qualities of the disease for 8 or 24 hours, respectively. The effects from Stage 1 & beyond are cumulative. Heartfire Boon increases a creature’s challenge rating by 1.

1. The creature is immune to being frightened. Its attacks with unarmed strikes or natural weapons deal an additional 7 (2d6) fire damage.
2. If the creature is hit with a melee attack by a creature within 5 ft. of it, the attacker takes 7 (2d6) fire damage. The creature’s movement speed increases by 15 feet. If it isn’t already, it becomes resistant to fire damage.
3. The creature can cast burning hands once per day as a bonus action. The creature becomes immune to fire damage.
4. Creatures that start their turn within 10 ft. of the infected creature take 10 (3d6) fire damage. Whenever the creature would take fire damage, it absorbs the energy, gaining 5 temporary hit points.