Elder Evils

Despite the seals that hold its mind within the crystalline
prison, Pandorym remains conscious and aware of its
surroundings. Deathless and bored, it eagerly latches onto
the psyche of any sentient creature that wanders too close,
attempting to reunite its mind and body. But these mortal
pawns are too fragile to endure its control. To its eternal
frustration, the crushing power of its mind breaks its servants
long before they can perform any helpful action. Until, that
is, very recently. (DC 37)
GOALS
Pandorym seeks, above all else, the reunion of its potent mind
with its unstoppable form. (Knowledge [arcana] DC 30)
From those whose minds held up—at least for a time—to
the impossible might of its psyche, the terrible weapon has
learned of the destruction of its betrayers. It suspects that
descendants might yet exist of those who lured and snared it,
and once it achieves freedom, Pandorym will seek revenge on
those innocents for the crimes of their ancestors. (DC 34)
After it slakes its thirst for vengeance, Pandorym intends
to complete its end of the bargain it struck millennia ago.
Although Pandorym’s summoners didn’t respect that binding
covenant, the quasi-living weapon possesses an unremitting
sense of honor. It will fulfill its contract by obliterating every
deity it finds in this reality. It knows that gods can’t easily
die, but it plans to rip them from existence. (DC 37)
Once it has finished these tasks, Pandorym will return to
its home reality—if it can. If it is prevented from leaving the
multiverse, whether through a conscious act or because the
rift created to summon it cannot be remade, Pandorym will
end the Material Plane, one world at a time. (DC 42)
PANDORYM
IN THE CAMPAIGN
Either the mind or the body of Pandorym alone is powerful
enough to end a campaign. If the two are brought together,
the alien weapon would be unstoppable. A reunited Pandorym
should lead to the end of the campaign world.
TIMELINE
Here is a possible campaign timeline coded with Encounter
Levels to help you construct adventures around key
events that might occur as Pandorym attempts to release
its mind.
EL 5: Tune Majii (NG female human bard 2/wizard 2)
is concerned about the recent disappearance of her father,
Lucather. She has been in contact with the PCs before, perhaps
as an employer, and is known to be reliable and helpful. She
approaches them with a tale of sorrow and a promise of a rich
reward. She asks the PCs to discover the current whereabouts
of her father, who was last known to be exploring a certain set
of ruins. The trail has gone cold, and the PCs begin to trace
the old man’s movements.
EL 10 (Faint Sign): In an occurrence seemingly unrelated
to the concerns of Tune Majii, a council of clerics has
convened. Their deities have warned them of an unknown
being that is attempting to release an imprisoned evil of
unimaginable power. One of the PCs (a cleric, paladin, or
other divine spellcaster) receives word from a representative
of her faith. The party is tasked to hunt down and stop this
threat, but little is known of its nature.
At the same time, barely perceptible arcane glyphs appear
in the night sky. Conjurers report difficulty casting spells,
and an emergency meeting of sages is called. The arcane
casters suspect a weakening connection with the rest of the
multiverse, which might be related to these signs.
EL 15 (Moderate Sign): The PCs discover that the being
they seek is a misguided agent of supreme law who does not
view its objective as an evil or foolish act.
Meanwhile, the nocturnal glyphs become more prevalent
and numerous, as the bonds connecting the Material Plane
to other planes continue to weaken. Summoned creatures do
not automatically return home, and divine spellcasters find
it more difficult to channel the power of their patrons.
EL 17 (Strong Sign): The PCs learn the identity of both
the rogue agent and the being it wishes to release. A kolyarut
known as Obligatum VII believes it is bound by law to free
the imprisoned Pandorym. The PCs might have run across the
creature earlier but not realized that it was their adversary.
CHAPTER 6
PANDORYM
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SIGN: SEAL OF BINDING
This sign manifests as a glyph that spreads across the sky and increasingly
interferes with planar communication and transportation.
Faint: Conjuration (calling, summoning, and teleportation)
and divination spells and similar spell-like abilities are impeded,
meaning that a caster must succeed on a Spellcraft check (DC 20
+ the level of the spell) or lose the spell or spell slot without effect.
In addition, spells that forcibly return creatures to their native
plane, such as banishment and dismissal, automatically fail.
Moderate: As faint, but in addition, summoned creatures no
longer return to their native planes. When a summoning spell’s
duration expires, the summoned creature is no longer under the
caster’s control.
Divine spellcasters have difficulty drawing on the Positive
Energy and Negative Energy planes, and they cannot communicate
easily with their deities. Divine spells are cast at –1 caster
level, and turn or rebuke attempts take a –5 penalty on the check
and damage rolls.
Strong: As moderate, but in addition, a conjuration (teleportation)
spell or similar spell-like ability has a 20% chance of a
mishap (see teleport, PH 293), regardless of familiarity with the
destination. The spell fails, and the caster and all others affected
by the casting each take 5d6 points of damage.
The connection with the transitive planes and the Outer
Planes grows more tenuous. Divine spells are cast at –2 caster
level, and turn or rebuke attempts take a –10 penalty on the
check and damage rolls.
Overwhelming: All conjuration (calling, summoning, and
teleportation) effects cease to function. Divination effects that
contact extraplanar beings (such as commune and contact other
plane) are likewise foiled. Divine spellcasters attempting to
replenish their spells for the day incur a 20% chance per spell
of not gaining the spell or spell slot. Divine spells are cast at –4
caster level, and turn or rebuke attempts take a –20 penalty on
the check and damage rolls.
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