Elder Evils

CHAPTER 5
THE LEVIATHAN
priest. When the characters disrupt
Axihuatl’s plans, he takes a personal
interest in them and unleashes his
various minions against the party.
Until Axihuatl is actually revealed as an ixitxachitl, he
operates in the background, primarily through other creatures
in his thrall. After the PCs disrupt his first ceremony,
Axihuatl sees them as a threat and directs Marcus Hape to
deal with them.
Once his ritual goes wrong and the Leviathan threatens
the world, Axihuatl reluctantly approaches the PCs, asking
for aid. He instructs the PCs on how to use the Abyssal Shard
to send the Leviathan back to sleep and might even be willing
to accompany the party. If he does accompany the PCs,
Axihuatl will not actively help them, but he defends himself if
attacked. For the most part, he hangs back and does as little as
possible—either because he is planning to destroy the party
once he has completed his task, or due to his well-developed
sense of self-preservation.
DESCRIPTION
Axihuatl is a vampiric ixitxachitl who has been alive for
290 years. In this time he has grown to considerable size
and now resembles a mottled, horrific manta ray with large,
intelligent eyes, a thick tail, and well-developed fins capable
of dexterously manipulating objects.
In his researches and travels, Axihuatl has located and
aided in the creation of magic items tailored specifically to
his physiology. He wears two bands on his tail that provide
protection and magical enhancements equivalent to rings
or bracers of the same type (see below), as well as two
ioun stones, which he
Axihuatl
found while searching for
one of his most important possessions—the
artifact called the Abyssal Shard. The Shard is a
fragment of black rock that orbits Axihuatl’s head in a fashion
similar to an ioun stone. This object is critical to his plans to
awaken the Leviathan and will also play an important role
in putting it back to sleep once the task of destroying the
surface world is complete.
Recently, Axihuatl has been spending considerable time in
the surface world, using his wand of polymorph to transform
himself into his human alter ego: Enshaddon, high priest of
the Leviathan. In this form, he leads the Cult of the Leviathan
and has been using human worshipers to perform rituals to
summon aberrations and awaken the Leviathan.
Axihuatl CR 19
hp 206 (24 HD); fast healing 5, regeneration 1 hp/hour
Male advanced vampiric ixitxachitl cleric 16
CE Large aberration (aquatic)
Init +5; Senses darkvision 60 ft.; Listen +4, Spot +12
Languages Abyssal, Aquan, Common, Draconic
AC 25, touch 15, flat-footed 24; Dodge
Miss Chance 50% for 15 rounds/day
Immune fi rst 50 spell levels absorbed (up to 8th level)
Fort +16, Ref +8, Will +22; +5 against spells cast by lawful
casters
Speed swim 30 ft. (6 squares)
Melee bite +24 (2d8+7 plus energy drain)
Space 10 ft.; Reach 10 ft.
Base Atk +18; Grp +24
Atk Options energy drain, ignore object’s hardness 1/day
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ABYSSAL SHARD
A fragment of elemental chaos, the Abyssal Shard is a key element
in Axihuatl’s ritual to awaken the Leviathan. As chaos calls
to chaos, the presence of this chunk of living disorder draws
the great beast from its slumber just far enough for Axihuatl
to influence its actions. Once the Leviathan’s task is complete,
Axihuatl intends to have Marcus Hape or another minion cast
the shard into the Leviathan’s heart, where it will be absorbed,
sending the creature back to its slumbers.
The Abyssal Shard can be used like an ioun stone. Placed in
the air, it orbits around the user’s head, providing a +5 bonus
on saving throws against spells cast by lawful opponents and
+5 to the save DC of spells cast against lawful opponents.
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Illus. by F. Tsai
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