Murdrick Greybough
Murdrick Greybough
Title: The Lich of Grey Hollow
Race: Badgerfolk
Class: Druid (Circle of Twilight) / Wizard (Necromancy)
Alignment: Neutral Evil
Age: Undead (formerly 75)
---
Appearance
Murdrick's once-imposing Badgerfolk form has withered into an unnerving shadow of its former self. His skeletal figure is draped in a tattered, ash-gray robe woven from bark and moss, with faintly glowing arcane runes carved into the fabric. His fur, now patchy and lifeless, clings to decayed flesh, and his eyes burn with malevolent green flames, the hallmark of his lichdom.
Murdrick carries a staff of blackthorn, its gnarled wood twisted unnaturally, topped with a shard of emerald that pulses with necrotic energy. Despite his decay, his voice retains a commanding, almost regal tone that echoes with ancient wisdom and dark intent.
---
Personality
Murdrick is cold, calculating, and relentless in his pursuit of forbidden knowledge. He views his transformation into a lich not as a curse but as the culmination of his life's work: mastery over life, death, and nature’s flawed cycle.
Though he has abandoned his moral compass, remnants of his old self linger. He respects intelligence and ambition, even in his enemies, and still values the bonds he once shared with Velstrine Mirewhisker and Nepheron Harrowcux, though these feelings are buried beneath layers of bitterness and ego.
Murdrick's view of life is detached and utilitarian—he sees mortals as tools, their lives expendable in the service of his experiments. However, he is not sadistic; he simply operates with a chilling pragmatism that prioritizes knowledge and power above all else.
---
Background
Murdrick was born in the heart of the Thornwood to a family of druidic guardians. From an early age, he exhibited a prodigious talent for both nature magic and arcane study, bridging the gap between the two disciplines.
As he matured, Murdrick became a respected protector of the Thornwood, working alongside Velstrine Mirewhisker and Nepheron Harrowcux to maintain the forest's balance. His insatiable curiosity, however, led him to question the natural order. He believed that life and death were flawed constructs that could be transcended through the fusion of necromancy and druidic magic.
His obsession with the Circle of Life and Death—a forbidden druidic concept—drove a wedge between him and his companions. When Velstrine and Nepheron refused to support his research, he turned to darker sources of power, ultimately performing a ritual that bound his soul to a phylactery hidden within the Obsidian Root of his corrupted domain.
Now, as a lich, Murdrick commands the Grey Hollow, a blighted sanctuary in the Thornwood, and seeks to reshape the natural order in his image.
---
Abilities
Murdrick's mastery of both druidic and necromantic magic makes him a unique and terrifying foe.
Nature Corruption: Murdrick twists natural magic, using corrupted vines, decayed plants, and undead animals to overwhelm his enemies.
Necrotic Mastery: His lichdom grants him powerful necromantic abilities, including the summoning of undead minions and the draining of life from his foes.
Feywild Manipulation: Drawing from his time as a druid, Murdrick can warp the boundary between the Feywild and the material plane, summoning warped spirits or opening rifts to confuse and trap enemies.
Legendary Actions:
Wither and Decay: Causes all living creatures within 30 feet to make a Constitution saving throw or take necrotic damage.
Twisted Summon: Summons an undead guardian, such as a Wight Treant or Marsh Wraith.
Soul Rend: Targets a single creature, dealing heavy necrotic damage and healing Murdrick.
---
Murdrick’s Domain: The Grey Hollow
Murdrick resides in a corrupted sanctuary within the Thornwood known as the Grey Hollow.
The Hollowed Grove: Once a thriving glade, it is now a lifeless wasteland where petrified trees ooze necrotic sap.
The Obsidian Root: A massive, twisted tree that serves as Murdrick’s phylactery and a focal point of his power. Its roots extend into the Feywild, anchoring his domain in both planes.
Minions: Murdrick commands an army of undead creatures fused with natural elements, such as Bog Stalker Skeletons, Fungal Zombies, and Wight Treants.
The Grey Hollow is a place of eerie silence and perpetual twilight, its air thick with the stench of decay and the faint hum of corrupted magic.
---
Relationships
Velstrine Mirewhisker: Murdrick still holds a grudging respect for Velstrine’s wisdom and connection to the natural world, though he sees her refusal to support his research as a betrayal. Velstrine, in turn, mourns the loss of her old friend but views his actions as an unforgivable corruption of nature.
Nepheron Harrowcux: Murdrick’s relationship with Nepheron is deeply antagonistic. He views her cunning and mastery of shadow magic as both a threat and a mockery of his own pursuit of power. Nepheron despises Murdrick, seeing him as a tragic embodiment of ambition gone wrong.
The Thornwood Druids: Once his allies, the druids of the Thornwood now view Murdrick as a dire threat. He sees them as weak and short-sighted, unworthy of the power he has achieved.
---
Goals
Murdrick’s ultimate goal is to reshape the cycle of life and death, creating a world where decay fuels eternal growth, and mortality is a choice rather than a constraint.
Ascension Beyond Lichdom: Murdrick seeks to evolve into a form that transcends even lichdom, merging his necromantic and druidic powers into a godlike state.
Corrupting the Thornwood: He works to spread his influence throughout the Thornwood, using its natural magic as a foundation for his experiments.
Eliminate Velstrine and Nepheron: Murdrick views his former friends as obstacles to his vision and will stop at nothing to destroy them—or, if possible, convert them to his cause.
Comments