D&D 5E Question of a Sphinx and a Mythal (Dungeon #63)

[Quickleaf]

I'm adapting Blood & Fire (an adventure Dungeon #63) for my 11th-level Al-Qadim game, and in that adventure there's a mythal (ancient elven mystical power site) known as the Valley of Mists. Currently the valley is occupied by evil mages of the Brotherhood of True Flame, but a LN gynosphinx named Tekhufnet has been inhabiting it for about a century prior.

However, the adventure relegates Tekhufnet's role to a mere paragraph in a random encounter table: she hates the Brotherhood, knows much about them & the valley, and she'll reveal this to PCs if they give her treasure.

Sphinxes, especially in 5e with their vast power, merit a greater role than "treasure for info. plot device" when they appear. They need to present meaningful tests to the PCs, at a bare minimum.

How might I expand on the gynosphinx's role in this adventure?

[SBLOCK=Awesome lair actions sphinxes can do in 5e]

• The flow of time is altered such that every creature in the lair must reroll initiative. The sphinx can choose not to reroll.
• The effects of time are altered such that every creature in the lair must succeed on a DC 15 Constitution saving throw or become 1d20 years older or younger (the sphinx's choice), but never any younger than 1 year old. A greater restoration spell can restore a creature's age to normal.
• The flow of time within the lair is altered such that everything within moves up to 10 years forward or backward (sphinx's choice). Only the sphinx is immediately aware of the time change. A wish spell can return the caster and up to seven other creatures designated by the caster to their normal time.
• The sphinx shifts itself and up to seven other creatures it can see within in its lair to another plane of existence. Once outside its lair, the sphinx can't use lair actions, but it can return to its lair as a bonus action on its turn, taking up to seven creatures with it.

[/SBLOCK]

Some things I've established so far, adapting the adventure for my game:

• Ancient Elves. In ancient times, elves inhabited the valley but abandoned it under mysterious circumstances. A fair number of half-elves live in a humble village at the valley's base, and their leader remembers the traditions of the elven siswa (temple-warriors, a term borrowed from B7 Rahasia).
• Mists of the Mythal. The mythal has 3 properties: no magical summoning (or extraplanar creatures) in the valley, divinations can't penetrate the valley, and magic mists permanently shroud the valley. However, unbeknownst to the Brotherhood, in the elven ruins there exists a way to manipulate the properties of the mythal.
• Appointed by Fate. Tekhufnet was appointed as guardian of the Valley of Mists and its mythal by "Fate herself" (which in the Al-Qadim lore may mean just that, may mean the Loregiver, or a god like Hakiyah the Honest). So far, the Brotherhood hasn't endangered the mythal itself.
• The Blue Sphinx. Tekhufnet is a blue-furred/blue-skinned gynosphinx, earning her the appellation "The Blue Sphinx" by villagers and the Brotherhood.
• Valley Lair. Tekhufnet's lair is the entire valley, and she can be found (d6): (1) Traveling the Astral, Ethereal, or Inner Planes. (2) Flying over the fields (area 9d) with greater invisibility. (3) Lounging in the doves’ grove (area 9h), composing poems and crafting riddles. (4) Prowling the monument (area 9i), intermittently traveling back in time to speak with elves. (5) Hunting/drinking along the stream (area 9j). (6) Resting at her ledge/cave in the mountainside.
• Stalemate with the Brotherhood. Originally, Tekhufnet fought the Brotherhood some 50 years ago, but when the Bey (governor) she was fighting was betrayed by his fellow mages and had his beating heart cut from chest, she entered a stalemate. She hates the Brotherhood, but believes they'll be their own undoing, so she waits.
• Sphinx-Hunters. One Brotherhood mage, Jaheira, views it as her personal quest to subdue Tekhufnet for the Brotherhood; Jaheira leads a group of mercenaries in hunting down the sphinx, but they only find traces of Tekhufnet at most, the sphinx treating it as a bit of a game.
• Covetous Gypsosphinx. There is a gypsosphinx (a NE vulture-headed death-foreteller appearing in the Tome of Beasts) named Zu'l-Janah (replacing the unique dragonne of the same name in Blood & Fire) lairing in a nearby desert necropolis that covets Tekhufnet as his mate and for the secret lore she possesses. Naturally, Tekhufnet finds the gypsosphinx abhorrent. Part of the PCs' quest may involve killing Zu'l-Janah for a desert settlement...or possibly learning of the gypsosphinx's death-prophecies for their own ends.

 

[jaelis]

Well, an obvious direction is to have her ask a riddle, and they need to answer it to get the info. Finding the answer might involve investigation of other areas.

Maybe if they do answer, she cooperates more actively and neutralizes some significant threat that otherwise would present a real problem for the PCs.

 

[MechaTarrasque]

Pretty picture. <br>
<br>
I would give her a prophecy that she needs a certain ally to beat the Brotherhood. Being a sphinx, she takes it seriously. So she tests the PC's (get a little sphinx vs. PC action), and if they make a good showing, she gives them the answer. But then she offers to ally with them if they complete an assignment (of which you have a lot of good options). A sphinx ally is worth a side quest, even a dangerous one.<br>
<br>
Technically sphinxes aren't celestials, but their origin is pretty celestial-y, so you might let someone multiclass into a celestial patron warlock (or make up a sphinx patron warlock).

 

[Quickleaf]

Pretty picture.

It's from the "Sphinx Ambassador" Magic card by Jim Murray. I looked up the card, which gives you the ability to take control of a creature in your opponent's deck so long as they don't guess which one you've taken. Maybe that could serve as inspiration...

I would give her a prophecy that she needs a certain ally to beat the Brotherhood. Being a sphinx, she takes it seriously.

Hmm, well one thing that stands out is the prophecy could reference "servant of the northern sea breeze" or something to that effect... which could allude to either the cleric PC or holy slayer PC (both of whom revere the sea goddess Hakiyah the Honest), or to the half-orc fighter PC who serves the cleric (who stands in for "sea breeze" as an earthly representative of her god), or to the water genasi PC, or to the wandering dervish PC who water-walked an ocean, or even to the sha'ir PC (whose genie patron is Mistress of the Northern Gale). And more generally "northern" fits because many of the PCs come from cities/lands north of where the Valley of Mist adventure takes place in on the world map.

So "servant of the northern sea breeze" could conceivably refer to any or all of the PCs!

And it's something the sphinx could easily misinterpret herself, perhaps seeing the LG cleric and her LG half-orc servant as most likely to fulfill the prophecy, due to her bias in favor of Lawful characters of faith.

My first pass at a prophecy...still need to work it out...

A harrowing flame shall come to the Valley, = Brotherhood of True Flame
And it shall not be beaten back or driven out
Until the heart of its ruler lies in ashes, = reference to heart of mummy lord ex-Bey & current Bey's vulnerability to fire
Turning brother against brother. = Brotherhood is fractious
Whereupon the servant of the northern sea breeze = a single PC? all PCs? a summoned djinn or marid?
Takes up the blade of the master, = take current Bey's sword literally OR take over his control of palace atop elven ruins
Ending the flame by fire and faith. = again referencing Bey's vulnerability to fire AND maybe a use for Channel Divinity with the mythal?

So she tests the PC's (get a little sphinx vs. PC action), and if they make a good showing, she gives them the answer.

You mean a mock combat to test their mettle? They're a pretty potent party. The CR 11 gynosphinx would need to have great creativity or great luck to pose much of a challenge to them. As a point-of-reference, the party handily trounced a CR 13 pyrohydra that ambushed them.

Also...a gynosphinx seem less about testing valor and more about testing wits (i.e. "Gynosphinxes are virtual libraries of knowledge and lore. They ask riddles and present puzzles to test the wit of supplicants that come to learn their secrets. Some are willing to bargain with such supplicants for treasure or service.")

So maybe we could work out a 3-round "combat" which is actually a series of puzzles using her Lair Actions? Initially, she tests whether the PCs realize when a conflict is best surmounted with wits rather than strength-of-arms/magic. Each round could test some aspect of their wits / ability to think outside the box of "normal combat."

For example... not sure what these would test yet, but...

Round 1) Planeshift party to hostile environment, and possibly banish two of them to a different plane, then abandon them there...
Round 2) Take PCs back/forward in time 10 years to some confrontation with Brotherhood...
Round 3) De-age PCs into childhood...the trick being they need to fail their saves (ideally, voluntarily...which would be foreshadowed in previous rounds)...though not sure why yet...

But then she offers to ally with them if they complete an assignment (of which you have a lot of good options). A sphinx ally is worth a side quest, even a dangerous one.

I'm a bit stuck for ideas. My initial idea was "liberate the palace built on top of the elven ruins and I'll aid you", but that's the main dungeon of the adventure...so after that there wouldn't be much for the sphinx to do (since she won't leave her lair and go adventuring with them). Or I guess it could be a more long-term view of "aid", with legend lores, advice, and such.

Or maybe, taking inspiration from the Magic card where the art comes from, she requests they redeem a Brotherhood NPC from evil?

Technically sphinxes aren't celestials, but their origin is pretty celestial-y, so you might let someone multiclass into a celestial patron warlock (or make up a sphinx patron warlock).

Hmm. The sha'ir PC is a warlock, and certainly the gynosphinx might be able to offer some kind of boon...maybe bestowing its Inscrutable trait to the sha'ir PC if they agree to protect the Valley of Mist for the rest of their life?

 

[MechaTarrasque]

It's from the "Sphinx Ambassador" Magic card by Jim Murray. I looked up the card, which gives you the ability to take control of a creature in your opponent's deck so long as they don't guess which one you've taken. Maybe that could serve as inspiration...


Hmm, well one thing that stands out is the prophecy could reference "servant of the northern sea breeze" or something to that effect... which could allude to either the cleric PC or holy slayer PC (both of whom revere the sea goddess Hakiyah the Honest), or to the half-orc fighter PC who serves the cleric (who stands in for "sea breeze" as an earthly representative of her god), or to the water genasi PC, or to the wandering dervish PC who water-walked an ocean, or even to the sha'ir PC (whose genie patron is Mistress of the Northern Gale). And more generally "northern" fits because many of the PCs come from cities/lands north of where the Valley of Mist adventure takes place in on the world map.

So "servant of the northern sea breeze" could conceivably refer to any or all of the PCs!

And it's something the sphinx could easily misinterpret herself, perhaps seeing the LG cleric and her LG half-orc servant as most likely to fulfill the prophecy, due to her bias in favor of Lawful characters of faith.

My first pass at a prophecy...still need to work it out...

A harrowing flame shall come to the Valley, = Brotherhood of True Flame
And it shall not be beaten back or driven out
Until the heart of its ruler lies in ashes, = reference to heart of mummy lord ex-Bey & current Bey's vulnerability to fire
Turning brother against brother. = Brotherhood is fractious
Whereupon the servant of the northern sea breeze = a single PC? all PCs? a summoned djinn or marid?
Takes up the blade of the master, = take current Bey's sword literally OR take over his control of palace atop elven ruins
Ending the flame by fire and faith. = again referencing Bey's vulnerability to fire AND maybe a use for Channel Divinity with the mythal?


You mean a mock combat to test their mettle? They're a pretty potent party. The CR 11 gynosphinx would need to have great creativity or great luck to pose much of a challenge to them. As a point-of-reference, the party handily trounced a CR 13 pyrohydra that ambushed them.

Also...a gynosphinx seem less about testing valor and more about testing wits (i.e. "Gynosphinxes are virtual libraries of knowledge and lore. They ask riddles and present puzzles to test the wit of supplicants that come to learn their secrets. Some are willing to bargain with such supplicants for treasure or service.")

So maybe we could work out a 3-round "combat" which is actually a series of puzzles using her Lair Actions? Initially, she tests whether the PCs realize when a conflict is best surmounted with wits rather than strength-of-arms/magic. Each round could test some aspect of their wits / ability to think outside the box of "normal combat."

For example... not sure what these would test yet, but...

Round 1) Planeshift party to hostile environment, and possibly banish two of them to a different plane, then abandon them there...
Round 2) Take PCs back/forward in time 10 years to some confrontation with Brotherhood...
Round 3) De-age PCs into childhood...the trick being they need to fail their saves (ideally, voluntarily...which would be foreshadowed in previous rounds)...though not sure why yet...


I'm a bit stuck for ideas. My initial idea was "liberate the palace built on top of the elven ruins and I'll aid you", but that's the main dungeon of the adventure...so after that there wouldn't be much for the sphinx to do (since she won't leave her lair and go adventuring with them). Or I guess it could be a more long-term view of "aid", with legend lores, advice, and such.

Or maybe, taking inspiration from the Magic card where the art comes from, she requests they redeem a Brotherhood NPC from evil?


Hmm. The sha'ir PC is a warlock, and certainly the gynosphinx might be able to offer some kind of boon...maybe bestowing its Inscrutable trait to the sha'ir PC if they agree to protect the Valley of Mist for the rest of their life?

The inscrutable trait was the first thing I thought of for a sphinx patron warlock (or maybe something to add to an "oath of secrets" paladin [slightly reworked oath of treachery]).

That is a good point about gynosphinxes being more about wits than valor. The 10 years forward or backward legendary action could be used show the PC's a scene from 10 years ago (legendary back), come back to present time (legendary forward), and then a scene from 10 years in the future (legendary forward), then back the present time (legendary back). It seems like an int or wisdom based check would fit the sphinx's temperament.

I really like the idea of the sphinx getting her hopes up for the wrong PC, especially if she is a little condescending to the right PC (funny if the not very bright barbarian accidentally ends up achieving what needs to be done).

I will have to look up some more monsters from Magic. I love their hydras, which actually seem like better D&D hydras than D&D hydras (can't see the body through all the heads and necks), but I haven't looked at many beyond them.