Grimcrown Caller
- Npc
- humanoid
- CR 4
- Urban
- Ruin
- Graveyard
Appears in: Undead, Curses and Bargains, Urban Intrigue, Social and Negotiation
Grimcrown Caller
AC 14 / HP 55 (10d8 + 10) / CR 4
- STR
- 10
- DEX
- 12
- CON
- 12
- INT
- 16
- WIS
- 15
- CHA
- 17
Binding Circle. While the caller stands within their prepared circle (a 10-foot radius), creatures within the circle cannot teleport or become invisible, and summoned spirits cannot leave it.
Shade Guardian. The caller is attended by a bound shade (use Shadow statistics with AC 13 and 20 HP). The shade acts on the caller's initiative and obeys the caller's commands. If the caller drops to 0 hit points, the shade breaks free and becomes hostile to all creatures.
Staff. Melee Weapon Attack: +2 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 3 (1d6) bludgeoning damage.
Shade Lash. The caller directs the shade to strike. One creature within 30 feet must succeed on a DC 13 Wisdom saving throw or take 10 (3d6) necrotic damage and be frightened of the caller until the end of its next turn.
Speak with Dead (3/Day). The caller summons a spirit to answer up to three questions, as the speak with dead spell. Each casting causes the shade to grow more agitated; after the second casting, the shade has advantage on checks to break free of the caller's control.
How to run Grimcrown Caller
Grimcrown Caller is a cr 4 humanoid for Dungeons & Dragons. Drop it into any urban scene; the statblock above is free to add to your compendium in the app, and the one-shot below gives you somewhere to run it.
Where it begins
- 1
A widow paid the caller to speak with her dead husband and came back mute, her voice traded to bind the spirit longer.
- 2
Three soldiers found their dead captain's signet ring on their doorsteps overnight, each engraved with a new order in his handwriting.
- 3
A pale bird has been circling the bell tower for six days, and the sexton says it screams in a voice he recognizes.
What the Dead Remember
The party needs information only a dead person can provide. A Grimcrown Caller can summon the spirit, but every summoning feeds the shade bound to the caller's crown, and this one is getting hungry.
The Caller's Vigil
A circle of tallow candles marks a low stone platform behind the charnel house. The caller sits at its center, staff across their knees, a crown of yellowed teeth and finger-bones resting on matted hair. A pale bird perches on the staff's tip, turning its head to watch each of you in turn. The air smells of old wax and copper.
The Grimcrown Caller is willing to summon the dead, but states the terms up front: a personal sacrifice from whoever asks the question (a treasured memory, a year of sleep without dreams, or a physical token of real value). The pale bird is a minor spirit bound as a scout. The caller will not negotiate on the core price but can be talked into adjusting the form of payment. If the party is rude or threatening, the caller simply refuses and the shade behind the crown stirs visibly.
