Exemplars of Evil

FEATURES OF THE AREA
The great hall of the palace has the following features:
Safeguard: Before falling asleep, Borak casts Mordenkainen’s
faithful hound; the spell lasts long enough for the
dragon to awaken before it expires. The phantom watchdog
alerts her if anyone approaches within 30 feet, and it can
react to invisible and ethereal creatures.
Illumination: During the day, sunlight streams in
through the courtyard archway, creating bright illumination
in the chamber. At night, braziers flanking the
entrance to the great hall provide bright illumination
in a 20-foot radius and shadowy illumination in a 40-
foot radius. That fails to make much difference in the
gloom, but the braziers are meant to provide only token
illumination for any servants who might need to enter
the chamber at night. Borak and the Al-Iborak have
darkvision and do not need the lights.
Ceiling: The domed ceiling rises 45 feet overhead,
allowing Borak to rear up to her full height and to get
far enough off the ground to make use of her crush
attack if she desires.
Pillars: The dome is supported by heavy stone
pillars that have hardness 8 and 180 hit points. The
pillars are wide enough to provide cover for characters
hiding behind them, whether for Hide checks or as
possible protection from Borak’s breath weapon.
Dais: The stone dais in the middle of the room
rises by three steps to a height of about 4 feet. The
dais is piled high with Borak’s hoard, and the dragon
typically coils around it—and the former sultan’s
throne—when she is relaxing or sleeping.
ENCOUNTER 9-3
She might have already cast guards and wards
over the palace and Mordenkainen’s faithful hound
to safeguard the great hall.
The dragon has a bonus of +39 on her Concentration
check, which allows her to cast spells and use supernatural
abilities defensively without fail. She makes liberal use of
chain lightning (13d6 electricity damage, Reflex DC 24 half)
and her lightning breath weapon during combat, even if
the Al-Iborak are present—they have immunity to electricity
damage. In addition, Borak might cast blindness on a PC
whom she knows to be a spellcaster, or dominate person on
a threatening party member (if she has not done so already
prior to the encounter).
Otherwise, the Thunder Tyrant makes full use of her
devastating attacks, exploiting any knowledge she has about
the party to take out the most dangerous characters first.
She makes crush attacks on groups of PCs that remain close
enough together.
The dragon does not use her ring of djinn calling during the
battle unless she is in serious danger of defeat, or is otherwise
in dire need.
CONCLUSION
The dragon negotiates with the PCs only if she must, and
even then she tries to deceive them. In particular, she does
not reveal her ring of djinn calling, though she might summon
Raijef—either at her first opportunity or if she is reduced to
20 or fewer hit points. When the noble djinni
appears, she uses a wish to have him either heal all her damage
or transport the characters far away where they can no longer
trouble her (Will DC 31 negates).
Depending on how difficult you want to make the final
encounter, Borak’s death or defeat might break the will of the
Al-Iborak, sending them fleeing into the desert, or it could
drive them mad with grief and rage, causing them to attack
the party heedless of their own safety.
Treasure: If the PCs defeat Borak or drive her off, they
can claim her entire hoard, which includes the following:
67,000 sp, 44,000 gp, and 30,000 pp in sacks, barrels, and
chests; assorted gems worth a total of 9,000 gp; and a collection
of art objects (including fine tapestries; cloth-of-gold;
and dishes, goblets, and serving trays made of silver and gold)
worth a total of 8,000 gp. The hoard also contains a Boccob’s
blessed book, a carpet of flying, a pearl of power (5th level), a staff
of earth and stone, and a decanter of endless water.
Depending on the outcome of the battle and their prior
dealings with Rajief, the PCs might also acquire the ring of
djinn calling to which he is bound. The noble djinni willingly
grants the characters three wishes in exchange for his
freedom. If they comply, he thanks them profusely before
returning to the Elemental Plane of Air.
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