Characteristics
Abilities
Salathiir's tactics are simple: she follows whatever course of action would cause the most suffering. In truth, Salathiir is a cold and calculating demon lord when left to its own devices, and often passes up causing temporary pain in the name of causing greater suffering in the future.
Salathiir is accompanied by a cloud of 2d20 salthezau demons that buzz about her like flies about a corpse.
Lair
Salathiir's lair is the festering pit of despair at the heart of the
Abyss that birthed it. In some legends, it is said that destroying the Demon Dragon here will eliminate her forever.
The Demon Dragon lurks within the pool of primordial suffering that spawned her. This lightless void is a 1,000-foot-wide cavern of roughly spherical shape, save for a gaping opening at its top. Its bottom half is filled with viscous liquid that shimmers with oily, spectral colors. This defiling lake has no shores, and a living creature that is not a fiend that touches the liquid or starts its turn touching it must make a DC 21 Charisma saving throw. On a failure, the creature is affected by the confuse spell. If a creature fails this saving throw again while confused, it gains a form of short-term madness. If it fails this save again while affected by shortterm madness, it gains a form of long-term madness. On a failure while affected by long-term madness, it gains a form of indefinite madness.
Each time a creature fails this saving throw, its form warps to become similar to Salathiir.
First, its eyes turn crimson, then its flesh becomes covered in jet-black scales, then its head becomes perfectly spherical and dominated by a gaping mouth of sharp teeth, then dozens of flapping bat wings burst from its flesh. These transformations can be cured individually by a greater restoration spell. If the creature fails this save while affected by indefinite madness, it is transformed into a salthezau demon. Its soul cannot be recovered until the demon is killed and the creature is returned to life by a wish.
On initiative count 20, two salthezau demons spawn from the surface of this pool and attack the closest creature. These winged monsters try to drag Salathiir's enemies into the pool of suffering, just as they once corrupted Talonixa.
Wealth
Salathiir does not hoard wealth, but her scales are made of a supernaturally powerful material that can only be worked by the most skilled armorers. When destroyed, 3d100 of these scales clatter to the ground, and each is worth 1,000 gp to a master blacksmith. A weapon or piece of armor made from these scales is a +3
Adamantine weapon, armor, or shield.
History
Dawn of the dragon god
Talonixa was a copper dragon who led the intelligent dragons against Sardior. Sardior, the first dragon, afflicted by a disease, grew stronger with every dragon he consumed. She was larger than most dragons, with only Neltharion and a few others being bigger. Talonixa was commanding and cunning, and Malygos did not trust her.
Her mate, Zorix, was a victim of Sardior, and Talonixa became the alpha of the dragons and quickly encouraged the other proto-dragons to destroy Sardior and the not-living.
Ysera opposed Talonixa as she believed that peace could made with Sardior. When Ysera was given a chance to speak her idea of peace, Alexstrasza was worried about Talonixa's reaction. But when Ysera stood up to talk with Talonixa, treator used this occasion to join Sardior. Malygos witness of the betrayal and subsequent devouring by Sardior, would return to the others only to find Ysera and Talonixa in conflict over the fate of those afflcited by the disease. Talonixa advocating that the infected would have to be quarantined or killed for the safety of everyone else.
To Ysera's shock Talonixa quickly collapsed the canyon the bitten were directed into which eventually killed all the bitten trapped inside.
After hearing Sardior's roar but seeing him not appear caused Talonixa to boast her belief of the great behemoth being too afraid to face her and the rest of the dragons. Before the dragon army engaged their enemy in battle Malygos devised a plan in which the army would fly higher in the air where Sardior could not fly. Quickly informing Talonixa of his plan Malygos was relieved to note that she was considering it.
Despite this, Sardior managed a substancial blow against Talonixa's troops, and the 5 dragons, Alexstrasza, Malygos, Neltharion, Nozdormu and Ysera engaged against the monstruous dragon, Ultimately defeating him.
War of the ancients
Siege of the Abyssal Gate
4933 BD through 4930 BD
After the crusade forces reclaim Vexinoth, and bolstered by their success, they attempt to attack demon controlled territories near the abyssal rift, especially as recent information suggest demons are opening more rift to allow more reinforcements.
This siege occurs at a major demon-held fortress located on the edge of the abyssal rift. The fortress, known as the Abyssal Gate, serves as a key portal for demonic forces to enter the material plane. Corellon Loth and Achille lead an assault to close the gate and sever the flow of demonic reinforcements.
A small legion of dragons, who refused to hide, unlike their gods, use this opportunity to launch an assault directly into the abyss. Talonixa leads her small legion into the abyss, but he and his troops are never heard off again after this day.
The abyss
Blood stained with pain drips into the depths of the Multiverse, cascading into its darkest and most sinister crevices. The hatred and agony of the planes accumulates in the abyss, where it simmers and boils like the original elixir that brought forth mortal life.
For eons, a specific type of demon has spawned from this malevolent brew. The Salthezau, also known as Torment Demons, emerge from this well of twisted emotions and spread throughout the planes in pursuit of filling the universe with suffering and perpetuating their monstrous species. These tiny demons resemble large bats and possess three pairs of flapping wings around a spherical body dominated by a large, toothy mouth. Blind, but able to sense the emotions of living beings, Salthezau are relatively harmless on their own. However, when encountered in swarms, they become a terror impossible to escape.
Such was the fate of the dragon Talonixa and her legion. Talonixa had gathered a small troop of elite warriors to fight the demons in their homeplane, flying in the abyss. A swarm of Salthezau greater in number greater than anything she had encountered before attacked her troops. Despite her valiant efforts, the demons latched onto her, weighing her down until she no longer had the strength to flap her wings. Even the bravest of dragons are not immune to suffering.
Thus, Talonixa fell, tumbling for what felt like an eternity into the heart of the abyss and beyond, until she ultimately crashed into the pools of primordial torment from which the Salthezau had spawned. There, Talonixa perished.
Centuries later, Talonixa was resurrected as Salathiir, the Demonlord of Dragon. It is said that every generation, this being of suffering rises from its dark abyssal home to encourage mortal creatures to give in to their darkest desires and plunge the world into pain, hatred, and loss. It is the bane of civilization, the destroyer of peace, and the extinguisher of hope. After gorging itself on torment, it returns to the abyssal pools to heal its wounds and plan its next attack.
Comments
Author's Notes
Inspired by Salathiir from Legendary dragons and by Talonixa from World of Warcraft.