Ancient Vampire Lord

Legendary Resistance (3/Day). If the ancient vampire lord fails a saving throw, it can choose to succeed instead.

Shapechanger. If the ancient vampire lord isn’t in sunlight or running water, it can use its action to polymorph into a Tiny bat, a Medium wolf, a Medium cloud of mist, or back into its true form.

While in bat form, the ancient vampire lord can’t speak, its walking speed is 5 feet, and it has a flying speed of 30 feet. Its statistics, other than its size and speed, are unchanged. Anything it is wearing transforms with it, but nothing it is carrying does. It reverts to its true form if it dies.

While in wolf form, the ancient vampire lord can’t speak, its walking speed is 30 feet. Its statistics, other than its size and speed, are unchanged. Anything it is wearing transforms with it, but nothing it is carrying does. It reverts to its true form if it dies.

While in mist form, the ancient vampire lord can’t take any actions, speak, or manipulate objects. It is weightless, has a flying speed of 30 feet, can hover, and can enter a hostile creature’s space and stop there. In addition, if air can pass through a space, the mist can do so without squeezing, and it can’t pass through water. It has advantage on Strength, Dexterity, and Constitution saving throws, and it is immune to all nonmagical damage, except the damage it takes from sunlight.

Spellcasting. The ancient vampire lord is an 20th-level spellcaster. Its spellcasting ability is Intelligence (spell save DC 25, +17 to hit with spell attacks). The ancient vampire lord can cast misty step and invisibility at will and has the following wizard spells prepared:

Cantrips (at will): fire bolt, chill touch, mage hand, frostbite, shocking grasp

1st level (4 slots): fog cloud, frost fingers, shield thunderwave

2nd level (3 slots): blindness/deafness, mirror image, blur

3rd level (3 slots): counterspell**, dispel magic, fireball, haste, vampiric touch**

4th level (3 slots): black tentacles, blight, elemental bane, wall of fire

5th level (3 slots): cloudkill, cone of cold, enervation, wall of force

6th level (2 slots): chain lightning, disintegrate

7th level (2 slots): finger of death, forcecage, teleport

8th level (1 slot): maddening darkness, mind blank*

9th level (1 slot): shapechange, time stop

*The ancient vampire lord casts these spells on itself before combat.

**The ancient vampire lord always has these spells prepared and can cast them at their lowest level without expending a spell slot once per short or long rest.

Blood Arcana. The ancient vampire lord has spent his centuries of unlife learning the powerful art of blood arcana.

Crimson Exchange. The ancient vampire lord has learned to boost the power of their spells with blood. When casting a spell using a spell slot, the ancient vampire lord can choose to take damage equal to double the level of the spell slot being used to empower the spell with one of three effects. If the spell has a more powerful effect when cast at a higher level, the spell is instead cast as one level higher than the spell slot used. If the spell deals damage, it ignores all resistances. If the spell requires a saving throw, the DC is increased by 2.

Thicker Than Water. The ancient vampire lord has become accustomed to recovering from damage and gains an additional 1d4 hit points for every hit die spent after finishing a short rest. Additionally, a bladed weapon can be used as a spellcasting focus for the ancient vampire lord's wizard spells.

Sanguine Kiss. The ancient vampire lord has learned to use the blood of others to bolster their spells. As a bonus action, the ancient vampire lord can make a melee attack with a bladed weapon against a creature. On a hit, the target suffers the attack's normal effects + damage equal to half the ancient vampire lord's wizard level. If the creature is not an undead or construct, the ancient vampire lord can subtract the aforementioned value from the damage they received as part of Crimson Exchange if used by the end of the turn. The ancient vampire lord may use this feature once per short rest.

Ruby Withering. When the ancient vampire lord has affected one or more creatures with a spell empowered by crimson exchange, the ancient vampire lord may choose to prevent all affected creatures from regaining hit points until the end of their next turn.

Scarlet Tides. The ancient vampire lord has learned to unleash overwhelming spell attacks through the reckless sacrifice of their own vitality. When the ancient vampire lord uses crimson exchange, they can choose to take additional damage equal to the level of the spell slot being used and become unable to regain hit points until the end of their next turn. If the ancient vampire lord chooses to do this, they may empower a spell with two of the three possible effects and have advantage on any attack roles until their next turn.

Misty Escape. When it drops to 0 hit points outside its resting place, the ancient vampire lord transforms into a cloud of mist (as in the Shapechanger trait) instead of falling unconscious, provided that it isn’t in sunlight or running water. If it can’t transform, it is destroyed.

While it has 0 hit points in mist form, it can’t revert to its vampire form, and it must reach its resting place within 2 hours or be destroyed. Once in its resting place, it reverts to its vampire form. It is then paralyzed until it regains at least 1 hit point. After spending 1 hour in its resting place with 0 hit points, it regains 1 hit point.

Regeneration. The ancient vampire lord regains 20 hit points at the start of its turn if it has at least 1 hit point and isn’t in sunlight or running water. If the ancient vampire lord takes radiant damage or damage from holy water, this trait doesn’t function at the start of the ancient vampire lord’s next turn.

Spider Climb. The ancient vampire lord can climb difficult surfaces, including upside down on ceilings, without needing to make an ability check.

Vampire Weaknesses. The ancient vampire lord has the following flaws:

Forbiddance. The ancient vampire lord can’t enter a residence without an invitation from one of the occupants.

Harmed by Running Water. The ancient lord vampire takes 20 psychic damage if it ends its turn in or above running water.

Holy Water. The ancient vampire lord takes 20 acid damage if it comes into contact with holy water.

Stake to the Heart. If a piercing weapon made of wood is driven into the ancient vampire lord's heart while the ancient vampire lord is incapacitated in its resting place, the ancient vampire lord is paralyzed until the stake is removed.

Sunlight Hypersensitivity. The ancient vampire lord takes 20 radiant damage when it starts its turn in sunlight. While in sunlight, it has disadvantage on attack rolls and ability checks.

Multiattack (Vampire Form Only). The vampire makes three attacks, only one of which can be a bite attack.

Unarmed Strike (Vampire Form Only). Melee Weapon Attack: +18 to hit, reach 5 ft., one creature. Hit: 14 (1d8 + 10) bludgeoning damage. Instead of dealing damage, the ancient vampire lord can grapple the target (escape DC 26).

Claw (Wolf or Vampire Form Only). Melee Weapon Attack: +18 to hit, reach 5 ft., one creature. Hit: 17 (2d6 + 10) slashing damage.

Bite (Bat, Wolf, or Vampire Form Only). Melee Weapon Attack: +18 to hit, reach 5 ft., one willing creature, or a creature that is grappled by the ancient vampire lord, incapacitated, or restrained. Hit: 21 (3d6 + 10) piercing damage plus 9 (3d6) necrotic damage. The target’s hit point maximum is reduced by an amount equal to the necrotic damage taken, and the ancient vampire lord regains hit points equal to that amount. The reduction lasts until the target finishes a long rest. The target dies if this effect reduces its hit point maximum to 0. A humanoid slain in this way and then buried in the ground rises the following night as a vampire spawn under the ancient vampire lord’s control.

Broadsword of Life Stealing (Vampire Form Only). Melee Weapon Attack: +18 to hit, reach 5 ft., one creature. Hit: 17 (2d6 + 10) slashing damage. The sword also deals an additional 9 (3d6) necrotic damage. The target’s hit point maximum is reduced by an amount equal to the necrotic damage taken, and the ancient vampire lord regains hit points equal to that amount. The reduction lasts until the target finishes a long rest. The target dies if this effect reduces its hit point maximum to 0

Charm (Vampire Form Only). The ancient vampire lord targets one humanoid it can see within 30 feet of it. If the target can see the ancient vampire lord, the target must succeed on a DC 25 Wisdom saving throw against this magic or be charmed by the ancient vampire lord. The charmed target regards the ancient vampire lord as a trusted friend to be heeded and protected. Although the target isn’t under the ancient vampire lord’s control, it takes the ancient vampire lord’s requests or actions in the most favorable way it can, and it is a willing target for the ancient vampire lord’s bite attack.

Each time the ancient vampire lord or the ancient vampire lord’s companions do anything harmful to the target, it can repeat the saving throw, ending the effect on itself on a success. Otherwise, the effect lasts 24 hours or until the ancient vampire lord is destroyed, is on a different plane of existence than the target, or takes a bonus action to end the effect.

Children of the Night (1/Day). The ancient vampire lord magically calls 4d4 swarms of bats or rats, provided that the sun isn’t up. While outdoors, the ancient vampire lord can call 4d6 wolves instead. The called creatures arrive in 1d4 rounds, acting as allies of the ancient vampire lord and obeying its spoken commands. The beasts remain for 1 hour, until the ancient vampire lord dies, or until the ancient vampire lord dismisses them as a bonus action.

Frightful Presence (Vampire Form Only). Each creature of the ancient vampire lord's choice within 120 feet of it and aware of it must succeed on a DC 25 Wisdom saving throw or become frightened for 1 minute. A creature can repeat the saving throw at the end of each of its turns, with disadvantage if the ancient vampire lord is within line of sight, ending the effect on itself on a success. If a creature’s saving throw is successful or the effect ends for it, the creature is immune to the ancient vampire lord's Frightful Presence for the next 24 hours.

Misty Avoidance. The ancient vampire lord avoids an incoming melee attack by briefly turning their body into a mist.

The ancient vampire lord 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. The ancient vampire lord regains spent legendary actions at the start of its turn.

Move. The ancient vampire lord moves up to its speed without provoking opportunity attacks.

Unarmed Strike. The ancient vampire lord makes one unarmed strike.

Claw. The ancient vampire lord makes one claw attack

Bite (Costs 2 Actions). The ancient vampire lord makes one bite attack.