Darkness falls across the land. The midnight hour is close at hand. Creatures crawl in search of blood, to terrorize your neighborhood.Jakael "Black Hand" MisonEvery morning, Jakael Mison wakes up, performs his morning ablutions, then spends a good hour putting on his skin for the day. Having been an actor, even as a child, it has become second nature. He puts make up on his face and neck, and wears a wig. On most days, he's a normal halfling male, not too handsome, hairless chin, plain and tall. Forgettable. When he wants to be seen, Jakael is a young halfing maiden, with long black locks and bronze skin. In human towns, he's a human boy, stocky from too much sugar pie, dirty from the fields, and about to come of age. And when need be, he becomes a dour old dwarf, beard to his knees and eyes buried in a purse of wrinkles. A skilled singer, his voice can mimic nearly anyone, man, boy, or woman.
In his true form, Jakael Mison is a lean 4'2" halfling male of indeterminate age, hairless, and covered head to toe in a scarred patchwork of gray, pink, and white flesh. His body has been deeply scarred by magical fire and experimentation.
BackgroundJakael was born a performer, the youngest halfing in a line five generations old. Songsters, actors, entertainers the likes of which are rare in these days. He has lasted. The rest of his kin died in the great fire.
It was murder of the highest degree. The assassins had locked the exits and set a magical blaze in the seats below the king's balcony - though he was already dead before the flames reached his warm body. Jakael saw it happen from the stage. People swarmed to the doors, only to find them locked, and then found themselves trapped and crushed amid a panicked throng of people quickly catching flame. The actors and crew tried the stage exits, only to find swords in their bellies.
Fire had trapped everyone, including the assassins. People were quickly succumbing to the smoke. Jakael dropped through the center stage trap door and made his way blindly through the crawlspace under the stage, which started to fill with smoke. The stage was burning above him. He crawled through fire to escape, the sole survivor.
Young Prince Centiv was the sole survivor of the royal house. He had been home, bedridden with the pox. The prince got wind of the halfing boy who lived and took him in, feeling a sense of shared tragedy. The prince survived the virulent outbreak, though with scars that would mark his once fair face forever. They grew up like brothers, one human and one half. King Centiv and the halfing blood prince were inseparable, the courtiers would say.
Only many years later, after he had spilled blood countless times with his scarred hands for the crown, did he uncover the truth: the regent had laid the plan to clear the path to the crown and rule behind the throne of a boy king. And the real deceit: Centiv had known of the plot, and acted the unwitting fool. When he was ready to take the reins of his kingdom, Centiv had the regent tried and hung for treason. By then, Centiv could already wield his powers with casual ease.
In secret, Centiv had become a necromancer in service to the darkest mistress, the goddess Shar. Jakael figured that was the bargain he had made, to survive his childhood pox. Centiv did not dwell on his childhood, and neither did Jakael. Centiv kept Jakael around, not because of their childhood bond. He kept him around because he was useful. Centiv made Jakael his left hand - captain of his private guard, playwright and lead actor in the king's plots against his enemies.
Shar, through Centiv, has strengthened Jakael's crippled body, making it stronger and making his daily pain duller. A wicked mistress, her gifts have not lessened his scars or returned his appearance. He is more monstrous now than ever. Jakael does not mind. His face does not matter, and the pain is almost gone at times.
Personality Traits- Terrified of fire.
- Numb to his past, no longer angry or upset.
- A survivor, he serves Centiv because he sees it as the safest path.
- Distances himself completely from his halfing culture.
- Humorless and reserved.
- Avoids doing anything that would draw attention to himself.
- Cold, calm, and cautious.
- Rules his charges with an iron fist.
- Takes acting seriously.
- When in disguise/acting, his persona varies wildly, usually never even remotely resembling himself.
- In private, still keeps up with the latest plays and concerts religiously.
- His senses are muted except for his sense of taste - he is quite the epicurean.
- A lifetime of pain and the gifts of the dark goddess have left him almost numb to even the most grievous wounds.
- If recognized and confronted, disavows any relationship to Prince Centiv or the court.
- As a final trump card, would reveal that Prince Centiv was party to his own family's murder, in order to win his freedom.
Adapting Jakael For Your CampaignJakael serves Prince Centiv, but Centiv does not have to be a crown prince. He can be a high ranking nobleman, or the son of a powerful archmage. The theater can be in Waterdeep, Sharn, or any metropolis where nobles have the time to regularly enjoy the theater. In the Forgotten Realms, Centiv serves the Hand of Shar. In Eberron, Centiv serves the Hand of Shadow, a secret death cult of The Shadow. In a Points of Light campaign, Centiv serves the Shadow Hands, a criminal organization unknowingly serving as a claw of Tiamat.
Stat Blocks (Heroic and Paragon)Jakael Mison
Level 8 Elite Controller (Leader)
Small Natural Humanoid XP 700
Initiative +7 Senses Perception +7
HP 178; Bloodied 89
AC 24; Fortitude 20, Reflex 20, Will 20
Resist 10 necrotic; Vulnerable 5 fire
Speed 6
Action Points 1
M Shadow Gloved Backhand (Standard; at-will) ♦ Necrotic
+13 vs AC; 1d8 + 5 necrotic damage, and the target is dazed (save ends).
R Evil Eye (Standard; at-will) ♦ Charm, Psychic
Ranged 5/10; +11 vs Will; 1d8 + 5 damage, and the target is weakened (save ends).
Shadow Walk (Immediate Interrupt; when targeted by a melee atack; recharge 56) ♦ Arcane, Teleport
Jakael shifts 2 squares.
c Swallow Shadows (Standard; encounter) ♦ Arcane, Necrotic, Teleport
Close burst 2; +11 vs Reflex; 3d8 + 5 damage, and the target is pulled 2 squares and is blinded (save ends). Both Jakael and an ally he can see teleport, swapping squares.
Mirror Man (Move; encounter) ♦ Arcane, Conjuration, Teleport
Jakael summons his Shadow into his square. He teleports 20 squares, but must end up in a square that is bright light. As a minor action, Jakael's Shadow may Shadowbite: melee 1; +13 vs AC; 1d8 + 5 necrotic damage.
Second Chance (Immediate Interrupt; when hit by an attack; encounter)
Jakael forces the attacker to reroll the attack and take the new result.
Alignment Evil Languages Common, Giant
Skills Arcana +12, Athletics +11, Bluff +14, Dungeoneering +12, Intimidate +14, Streetwise +14
Str 14 (+6) Dex 14 (+6) Wis 17 (+7)
Con 14 (+6) Int 17 (+7) Cha 20 (+9)
Equipment leather armor
Jakael Mison
Level 12 Elite Controller (Leader)
Small Natural Humanoid XP 1,400
Initiative +10 Senses Perception +10
HP 246; Bloodied 123
AC 28; Fortitude 24, Reflex 24, Will 24
Resist 10 necrotic; Vulnerable 5 fire
Speed 6
Action Points 1
M Shadow Gloved Backhand (Standard; at-will) ♦ Necrotic
+17 vs AC; 2d6 + 5 necrotic damage, and the target is dazed (save ends).
R Evil Eye (Standard; at-will) ♦ Charm, Psychic
Ranged 5/10; +15 vs Will; 2d6 + 5 damage, and the target is weakened (save ends).
Shadow Walk (Immediate Interrupt; when targeted by a melee atack; recharge 56) ♦ Arcane, Teleport
Jakael shifts 2 squares.
c Swallow Shadows (Standard; encounter) ♦ Arcane, Necrotic, Teleport
Close burst 2; +15 vs Reflex; 4d8 + 5 damage, and the target is pulled 2 squares and is blinded (save ends). Both Jakael and an ally he can see teleport, swapping squares.
Mirror Man (Move; encounter) ♦ Arcane, Conjuration, Teleport
Jakael summons his Shadow into his square. He teleports 20 squares, but must end up in a square that is bright light. As a minor action, Jakael's Shadow may Shadowbite: melee 1; +17 vs AC; 2d6 + 5 necrotic damage.
r Peak into the Shadows (Standard; recharge 6) ♦ Arcane, Psychic, Teleport
Ranged 10;+15 vs Will; 4d8+5 psychic damage, and the target is stunned and teleported to a dark corner of the Shadowfell until the end of Jakael's next turn, at which point the target returns to the previous square or an unoccupied adjacent square if the previous square is occupied, and is dazed until the end of the target's next turn.
Second Chance (Immediate Interrupt; when hit by an attack; encounter)
Jakael forces the attacker to reroll the attack and take the new result.
Alignment Evil Languages Common, Giant
Skills Arcana +15, Athletics +13, Bluff +16, Dungeoneering +14, Intimidate +16, Streetwise +16
Str 15 (+8) Dex 15 (+8) Wis 19 (+10)
Con 15 (+8) Int 20 (+11) Cha 21 (+11)
Equipment leather armor
Encountering JakaelIn order to distance himself from the crown, Jakael uses Centiv's resources to hire unlikely servants of the crown - they almost never know they serve Centiv, and the ones who discover the truth always wind up dead. Centiv uses Jakael to strike at his enemies - anyone that would stand in his path to power - and to keep the citizens in control. Nothing fosters nationalism and faith in the crown like terror. Sacrificing a few citizens for the greater good of the state is a just and entertaining cause for Centiv. Jakael hires the monstrous actors, writes the murderous script, and Centiv enjoys the show at a distance, playing his part as the heroic, harrowed young lord of his nation.
The party can cross paths with Jakael in several ways. They can encounter him one of his many villainous disguises. Jakael's duergar mercenary is uncanny. Or he can play the halfling merchant, hiring the party as a wealthy patron and setting them up for disaster. Jakael played right, the party will encounter him in the middle of town, in the middle of the day, and not even remember what he looks like.
Only when he uses his powers does his act tell. When he uses his
Shadow Gloved Backhand, his left hand shimmers with black fire - it is where his nickname, "Black Hand" comes from. When he uses
Evil Eye, black smokey tendrils emanate from his eyes. When he uses any of his teleportation powers, black flames ripple across his skin.
Jakael has been doing the crown's wetwork for years. When he must get his hands dirty, Jakael wears full-body black leather armor and a black hooded cloak to hide his powers as much as possible. In combat, Jakael hangs back, letting his grunts do their job. He only acts if necessary to take out tough enemies, weakening them with
Evil Eye. Given his extensive teleportation powers, he is hard to pin down. He stays out of melee when possible, and always has multiple escape routes planned ahead of time. He has no qualms of abandoning his henchmen and fleeing if it seems the tide is turning.
Burn the World (level 8 encounter)Jakael Mison (as an Orc)
10 Orc Pyromaniac
2 Orc Alchemist
2 Cave Troll
8 Orc Warrior (level 7)
Merchants and peasants have balked at the skyrocketing taxes. The crown claims they are to cover the rising costs of hiring more soldiers. People say that solders are not necessary at peace time - but war comes. Centiv is building an army to invade a neighboring kingdom, but he cannot tell his country that just yet, so he has tasked Jakael to remind the people of the need. Jakael has amassed a small warband to burn away at the borders of the kingdom.
The party can encounter the warband attacking a village, along a trade route in ambush, or they can be hired by Jakael directly. He can appear as a sheriff in need of deputies to deal with reported orc attacks coming from the woods at the edge of the kingdom. In truth, the woodsmen would be no match at all for the orcs, and Jakael wants to minimize the damage and maximize the perceived threat. If the party fights off a large threat and survives, the people will demand more border patrols. If the powerful party fails, the people will be terrified and demand a razing of the forest. Either way, a win-win situation for Jakael.
Jakael hangs back, disguised as an old, bent over orc shaman. He engages when the party appears to be making a dent in his forces. He tries to drop at least one of the PCs before fleeing.
Smooth Criminals (level 8 encounter)Jakael Mison (as an Orc)
1 Oni Devourer
4 Orc Darkblade
Jakael has hired orcs from a nearby warband to murder a wealth merchant who opposes Centiv's plan to raise the trade tariffs in the region. The merchant has hired the party to protect his trade caravans from a recent wave of orc raiders, and now the orcs have struck his home. The first assault failed, and the merchant hires the party to protect his country estate from further incursions. He hopes that their repeated success will deter further assaults. Thwarted thus far, Jakael has come to finish the job himself.
His group of assassins approaches in the dead of night, and Jakael has instructed the Oni to appear exactly like him. He will flee before the party can separate him from his group, but not before the party notices that he does not appear or act like the other assassins at all.
Beat Him! (level 12 skill challenge/encounter)Jakael Mison (as himself)
2 Troll (level 10)
The party has caught the trail of Jakael at the kingdom borders. His men defeated, the party pursues Jakael through forest, inadvertently grabbing the attention of a pair of trolls. Jakael ignores the trolls. The party can either continue running after Jakael or stop to fight the trolls. Jakael is headed to a river at the edge of the woods, and more than likely the narrow bridge that crosses it.
Fighting in the forest would be a bad idea, as the trolls have the advantage, and who knows how many more will show... If they run for it, they can make it to the bridge and clear the forest. The trolls will not likely leave the forest, as they would be in the open and under the bright midday sun.
Skill Challenge: level 12
Complexity: 3 (requires 8 successes before 4 failures)
Primary Skills: Acrobatics, Athletics, Endurance, Insight, Nature, Perception
Acrobatics DC 16: You take a short cut, vaulting across a dry gully. Failure means you fall behind, adding one additional failure.
Athletics DC 16: You leap through the forest, jumping over thick knots of roots, hoping to slow down the trolls behind you.
Endurance DC 16: Adrenaline kicks in as you fly through the forest as fast as you can. Failure means you tire and cannot roll an Endurance check again.
Insight DC 21: You realize the trolls are trying to herd you into a certain direction through the forest and head down a different path.
Nature DC 21: Paying attention to the trees and underbrush ahead, you are certain this way will come to a quick stop and jig to the side.
Perception DC 16: You spring along a small deer trail, where the dirt is packed down and clear of underbrush.
Success: The party beat the trolls to the river bank, but have lost Jakael's trail. He has disappeared, but the trolls have abandoned their pursuit.
Failure: The party has ended up in a tight copse of trees with no way out except back the way they came from. Trolls crash out of the underbrush and surround them. Add an additional 4 Troll (level 10).
Thrillville (level 12 encounter)Jakael Mison (as a Zombie)
6 Zombie Throng
2 Zombie Hulk (level 10)
It is time for war. Reports of border conflicts between Centiv's kingdom and the neighboring kingdom have increased. Most of those conflicts have been Jakael's men in disguise, under one flag or the other. And now, through the direction of the dark goddess, Jakael has unearthed from a long forgotten barrow an ancient tome that will summon legions of the hungry dead. He intends to use this ritual in the capital, and has already left a long trail of clues that would pin the heinous act upon the neighboring state. Hundreds will die, and thousands more after the call for a war of revenge.
Tonight in the capital, the new royal theater is packed and the party is attending as honored guests. A once forbidden play has been allowed to grace the stage once again. It last played the night the late king died. As the curtain parts and the lights dim, a fog settles about the city, and with it the dead, on their way to the theater.
