Legendary Resistance (3/Day). If Zan'Darwa fails a saving throw, it can choose to succeed instead.
Spider Climb. Zan'Darwa can climb difficult surfaces, including upside down on ceilings, without needing to make an ability check.
Magma Web Walker. Zan'Darwa ignores movement restrictions caused by webbing, including web created from its magma web.
Fire Aura. At the start of each of Zan'Darwa's turns, each creature within 10 feet of it takes 9 (3d6) fire damage, and flammable objects in the aura that aren’t being worn or carried ignite. A creature also takes 9 (3d6) fire damage if it touches Zan'Darwa or hits it with a melee attack while within 10 feet of it.
Elemental Rebirth (Mythic Trait; Recharges after a Short or Long Rest). If Zan'Darwa is reduced to 0 hit points, it doesn’t die or fall unconscious. Instead, it regains 210 hit points, gains a flying speed of 60 feet, and its monster type changes to Elemental. In addition, Zan'Darwa's Fire Form intensifies to a molten blazing aura, increasing the range of its Fire Aura to 30 feet.
Multiattack. Zan'darwa makes three attacks: one with its bite, and two with its spit fire venom. It can replace one of these attacks with its magma web.
Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +11 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 9 (1d8 + 5) slashing damage plus 9 (3d6) fire damage, and the target must make a DC 18 Constitution saving throw, taking 18 (3d12) poison damage on a failed save, or half as much damage on a successful one. If the damage reduces the target to 0 hit points, the target is stable but poisoned for 1 hour, even after regaining hit points, and is paralyzed while poisoned in this way.
Spit Fire Venom. Ranged Weapon Attack: +11 to hit, range 60/120 ft., one target. Hit: 9 (3d6) fire damage plus 9 (3d6) poison damage.
Magma Web (Recharge 5–6). Ranged Weapon Attack: +11 to hit, range 30/60 ft., one creature. Hit: The target is restrained by magma webbing. As long as a creature is restrained in this way, they take 9 (3d6) fire damage at the start of each of their turns. As an action, the restrained target can make a DC 18 Strength check, bursting the webbing on a success. The webbing can also be attacked and destroyed (AC 10; hp 30; vulnerability to cold damage; immunity to bludgeoning, fire, poison, and psychic damage).
Zan'Darwa can take 3 legendary actions, choosing from the options below. Only one legendary action option can be used at a time and only at the end of another creature’s turn. Zan'Darwa regains spent legendary actions at the start of its turn.
Attack. Zan'Darwa makes one attack with its bite or spit fire venom.
Elemental Rift (Costs 2 Actions). Zan'Darwa summons two magma mephits (see the Monster Manual) to appear in unoccupied spaces within 10 feet of it.
Molten Net (Costs 3 Actions). Zan'Darwa unleashes a spray of molten webbing in an area that it can see within 60 feet, filling a 30-foot cube. This ability doesn't have a recharge, and creatures inside its area are subject to the effects of Zan'Darwa's Magma Web attack. The webbed area is difficult terrain, lightly obscured, and lasts until the start of its next turn.
If Zan'Darwa's mythic trait is active, it can use the options below as legendary actions for 1 hour after using Elemental Rebirth. While in this new elemental form, Zan'Darwa takes on the form of a monstrous fire serpent with draconic wings and long spider-like legs.
Frenzy Bite. Zan'Darwa makes two attacks with its bite.
Magma Rain (Costs 2 Actions). Zan'Darwa creates a downfall of molten magma in an area it can see within 60-feet. The area fills a 10-foot-radius, 40-foot-high cylinder and each creature inside the area must make a DC 18 Dexterity saving throw. A creature in the area or entering it on the first time during their turn takes 8d6 fire damage on a failed save, or half as much damage on a successful one. This lasts until the start of Zan'Darwa's next turn.
Flame Breath (Costs 3 Actions, Recharge 5-6). Zan'Darwa exhales fire in a 60-foot cone. Each creature in that area must make a DC 18 Dexterity saving throw, taking 63 (18d6) fire damage on a failed save, or half as much damage on a successful one.
Description
Crafted in the elemental plane of fire by drow archmages and given the breath of life by Lolth, Zan'Darwa was born. An amalgamation of the perfect spider elemental hybrid, Zan'Darwa was created to serve the drow of Primavera in their war against the duergar of the underdark.
The war changed to a slaughter as Zan'Darwa's wrath burned the underdark and all that stood to oppose the drow. It wasn't until the sacrifice of a group of duergar clergies that Zan'Darwa was sealed away in the temple of the Forgemaster, where it lies in wait for the seal to once again be broken.
Zan'Darwa as a Mythic Encounter
Zan'Darwa is a formidable enemy under normal circumstances, but to give characters a truly mythic challenge, you can have it become reborn as a truly fearsome elemental. When this happens, Zan'Darwa becomes an entirely new serpent-like creature while still retaining some semblance of its former self.
Read or paraphrase the following text when Zan'Darwa uses its Elemental Rebirth trait:
The hellfire arachnid collapses to the ground, crying out in a nightmarish shriek as its last breath leaves its body. The corpse then ignites in a brilliant light as fiery magma erupts from its cracking form. Two large, draconic like wings sprout out from the carapace, and a serpent-like fire elemental crawls out from the body with long shriveled spider legs. The new creature rises up and takes flight!
Fighting Zan'Darwa as a mythic encounter is equivalent to taking on two challenge rating 17 creatures in one encounter. Award a party 36,000 XP for defeating Zan'Darwa after it uses Elemental Rebirth.
Lair and Lair Actions
Zan'Darwa's Lair
Zan'Darwa's home is also its prison; sealed away in the Temple of the Forgemasters by the duergar clerics who gave their life to stop its cataclysmic destruction of the underdark. It awaits after years of solitude to be released from its prison and return to its drow masters.
Lair Actions
On initiative count 20 (losing initiative ties), Zan'Darwa can take a lair action to cause one of the following effects. It can’t use the same effect two rounds in a row.
- A noxious cloud of toxic smoke fills a 20-foot-radius sphere within 120 feet of Zan'Darwa, lasting until initiative count 20 of the next round. Creatures and objects within or beyond the smoke are lightly obscured. A creature that enters the toxic smoke for the first time on a turn or starts its turn there must succeed on a DC 19 Constitution saving throw or take 9 (3d6) poison damage and become poisoned until the end of its next turn. Creatures that pass the saving throw take half damage and are not poisoned.
- All metal objects, including held weapons, and armor inside the lair heat up. If a creature is holding or wearing a metal object, the creature must succeed on a Constitution saving throw or take 8 (2d8) fire damage as this happens, or half as much on a successful save. A creature takes an additional 8 (2d8) fire damage at the end of each of their turns if they are still in physical contact with the object. A creature can choose drop the object if it can to avoid damage. If it doesn't drop the object, it has disadvantage on attack rolls and ability checks until initiative count 20 of the next round.
- Zan'Darwa's webs begin to flame up and burn with searing heat, any creature in an area of magma webbing or is restrained by Zan'Dawra's Magma Web takes 9 (3d6) fire damage and is ignited. A creature ignited this way takes additional 9 (3d6) fire damage at the start of each of their turns that they are ignited.
Regional Effects
The region containing Zan'Darwa's lair is warped by its presence, which creates one or more of the following effects:
- The region within 5 miles of the lair becomes infested with spiders.
- Nonmagical plat life within 1 mile of the lair withers and dies.
- Pockets to the elemental plane of fire form within 5 miles of the lair. Magma mephits occasionally spawn from these pockets.
If Zan'Darwa dies, the spider population returns to normal and the pockets close within 1d10 days. Plant life begins to return to the region as normal.
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