Dzarûmazh the Deathless, also known as the Conqueror Worm or Mr. Dorian Hargrave, is a draconic True Fae who is not content to remain bound by a weakness to cold iron, instead wandering the mortal world, seeking to forge a Contract with the substance.
Biography[]
Rumors abound of the origin of this Other. Some say Dzarûmazh has always wandered this side of the Hedge in some form, seeking the secrets of iron. Others say that he arrived more recently, as a response to tales of glory-seeking dragonslayers and the rewards they acquired in doing so.
The dragon is generally uninterested in battle, should it not further his quest, instead behaving on a system of reciprocity. He treats fairly those who will share their information with him, rewarding them if their information is particularly useful. Those who try to lie to him will only find a painful lesson in return.
The conqueror worm's focus on his quest is not, however, just a simple obsession. At some point in the beast's clouded past, a great enemy thrust and trapped an ensorcelled, cold iron spearhead into Dzarûmazh’s chest, and with each passing year, it worms its way closer to the dragon's heart. Should he not succeed in forging his contract with cold iron, the dragon will inevitably die.
Unsurprisingly, this event has driven him to desperation, forcing him away from Arcadia.
Appearance[]
As with all of the Gentry, Dzarûmazh bears a multitude of forms. He in particular bears three common forms: the mortal shape of one Mr. Dorian Hargrave, a similar changeling form, and his "true" form of a great dragon. Additionally, Dzarûmazh is capable of taking a host of animal forms, each of which he can change largely at will.
The mortal form is that of a stately, older gentleman, whose face bears a severe cast and searching, predatory red-brown eyes. His breath is acrid, while his teeth are inhumanly perfect and white. When wearing a changeling mien, his body grows mottled green-brown scales. His acrid breath turns to streaming smoke, and his teeth and nails turn to fang and talon. Black horns flow along the back of his head. Fitting for his appearance, he masquerades as a Draconic Fairest.
In his nightmarish, true form of a great dragon, accounts tend to be inconsistent. What is agreed is that the monster's scales are the same as in his changeling guise, with eyes the color of luminous blood. His long, sinuous body ends in scimitar-sized talons. The beast is too large to fit in any space smaller than even a large school gymnasium, and then only by coiling repeatedly inward upon himself. He is a titanic creature and may well be capable of altering even the size of his “true” form.
Dzarûmazh's Changelings[]
Dzarûmazh's constant travels to and from Faerie grants him the opportunity to capture whatever human he desires. Traits of those the dragon captures may vary from the traditional sacrificial virginal maid to the courageous knight who would save her. Such changelings would be aptly positioned to ferret out his secrets, from his few haunts in Faerie to any weaknesses he may bear.
Character Sheet[]
Dzarûmazh
(Numbers listed before a slash are for Dzarûmazh’s human or changeling forms, while those after are for his “true” shape.)
Mental Attributes: Intelligence 7, Wits 5, Resolve 10
Physical Attributes: Strength 4/20, Dexterity 5, Stamina 6/20
Social Attributes: Presence 6/12, Manipulation 7, Composure 9
Mental Skills: Academics (Research) 8, Crafts 4, Investigation (Artifacts) 9, Medicine 6, Occult (Alchemy) 10, Politics (Changeling) 6, Science (Metallurgy) 5
Physical Skills: Athletics 3, Brawl 4/10, Drive 2/0, Firearms 1/0, Stealth 2, Survival 7, Weaponry 8/0
Social Skills: Expression 6, Intimidation (Formal Challenges) 10, Persuasion 4, Socialize 4/0, Streetwise 2, Subterfuge (Lies) 8
Merits: Allies (innumerable; only available to Dorian Hargrave), Contacts (as Allies), Eidetic Memory, Encyclopedic Knowledge, Fame (Antiquities Collectors; Dorian Hargrave only) 1, Meditative Mind, New Identity 4, Resources 5, Status (Hargrave Imports; Dorian Hargrave only) 5, Striking Looks 4
Willpower: 10
Virtue: Fortitude
Vice: Pride
Initiative: 14
Defense: 5
Speed: 14 (human or changeling forms) or 30 (“true” form)
Health: 11 (human or changeling forms) or 40 (“true” form)
Wyrd: 10
Contracts: Artifice ••••; Dream •••••; Elements (Metal) •••••; Vainglory •••••
Glamour/per Turn: 100/15
Armor: 3/3 (human or changeling forms) or 7/7 (bulletproof; “true” form — in this shape, modern firearms are useless against Dzarûmazh)
Weapons/Attacks:
| Type | Damage | Range | Dice Pool | Special |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Swordcane (human form) | 2(L) | — | 14 | — |
| Fist (human form) | 0(B) | 8 | — | — |
| Claw ("true" form) | 1(L) | — | 31 | See below |
| Bite ("true" form) | 2(L) | — | 32 | See below |
| Breath ("true" form) | 0(A) | 20/40/80 | 8 | — |
Fae Aspects[]
- Legendary Monster: Most True Fae are limited to a maximum of 6 in any Trait while in the mortal world. Dzarûmazh transcends this limitation; he is able to draw on his full might in either world.
- Dragon’s Fury: Dzarûmazh normally only makes one attack (claw or bite) per turn. By spending three points of Glamour per attack as a reflexive action, however, the Deathless can add up to two more attacks in a given turn (for a total of two claw attacks and one bite). Regardless of how many attacks he makes in a turn, though, the dragon’s enormity works somewhat to his disadvantage in dealing with much smaller foes: for every three full dots of Size by which the subject of a claw or bite attack is smaller than Dzarûmazh, the dragon loses two dice on his attack roll.
- Hellish Heart: A venomous fire rages within the belly of the Deathless, which he can disgorge in a vicious, flesh-scouring stream of toxic vapor. By spending five points of Glamour and as an instant action (requiring a Dexterity + Athletics roll), Dzarûmazh can spit his baneful breath at a given target, inflicting aggravated damage on a successful attack. Note that the dragon can make no other attacks during a turn in which he employs his lethal flame.
- Immortal Flesh: As one of the True Fae manifested in the mortal world, the dragon can shrug off some of the lesser slings and arrows of the mundane. Bashing damage does not affect Dzarûmazh at all, unless delivered by a cold iron bludgeon. Cold-forged iron causes aggravated damage, should someone be skilled enough to strike the creature with such.
- Ruled by Passion: The True Fae are entities almost embodied by their passions and vices, with higher morality and self-denial little more than a whim to them. For them, passion is virtue, and the denial of passion an affectation. Their supernaturally amoral nature is reflected in an inverted ability to gain Willpower. Dzarûmazh regains one Willpower point from indulging his Virtue, but refreshes his whole pool when satiating his Vice.
- Ten Thousand Shapes: By spending three points of Glamour and as a reflexive action, Dzarûmazh can reshape himself at will into whatever living form suits his current needs: human, animal or even something more fanciful. He tends to “default” to certain forms (like that of Dorian Hargrave), though nothing expressly confines him to such familiar shapes. Dzarûmazh can use this Aspect to increase the Size of his dragon form, as well, adding one point of Size to his default Size of 20 per point of Glamour spent. As a side effect of this ability, the dragon can speak any earthly language, as well as being able to read and write any that have a written form.
- Unholy Splendor: While in his “true” form, the Deathless continually projects an aura of otherworldly awe and dread. Any attempt to attack or even defy him requires the reflexive expenditure of a point of Willpower, which allows a character to act as she will with regard to Dzarûmazh for the remainder of the scene. By spending three points of Glamour as an instant action, the dragon can redouble the power of this aura with a Presence + Wyrd roll, forcing every character whose successes on a Composure + Wyrd do not meet or exceed his own to fall prostrate for the remainder of the turn. Only through the reflexive expenditure of another point of Willpower can such a character again act against the Deathless.
References[]
- CTL: Night Horrors: Grim Fears, p. 34-39