Petrichor Warden
Armor Class 16 (natural armor)
Hit Points 95 (10d10+40)
Speed 30 ft.
Saving Throws Con +7, Wis +5
Skills Survival +5, Perception +5
Damage Resistances fire; lightning
Damage Immunities poison
Condition Immunities exhaustion, petrified, poisoned
Senses darkvision 60 ft., passive Perception 15
Languages Primordial
Challenge 5 (1,800 XP) Proficiency Bonus +3
Actions
Bonus Actions
Reactions
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"It rains there every night, though no roof remains to hear it." — Mara Venn, surveyor of the Glasswater Quarry
Lore & Description
Appearance
The Petrichor Warden is a towering figure of fractured basalt, its body split by glowing orange seams beneath a skin of rainwater. Vapor constantly coils from its shoulders and pours from the hollows of its face, carrying the unmistakable scent of rain striking hot stone. Its hands are oversized slabs of dark rock, each finger ending in a rivulet of steaming water. Where a heart should be, a small storm turns endlessly around a hollow cavity.
Behavior & Origins
Petrichor Wardens are born from grief at places erased by fire, war, drought, or deliberate cruelty. They do not understand that their charges are gone; they only understand that someone failed to return. This warden guards the vanished village of Veyruun, now buried beneath the Glasswater Quarry. It attacks anyone who removes stone from the quarry because it believes the villagers are still sleeping below. The warden can be calmed, or perhaps released, if shown the village's last surviving rain bell, now held by the quarry-master Hadrik Voss.
Running Petrichor Warden
Tactics
The warden begins by using Mourning Deluge to knock down and separate intruders, then closes on whoever carries tools, torches, or quarry marks. It uses Condense the Grievance to slip through narrow gaps and position itself between enemies and the place it protects, saving Guard What Is Gone for attacks against creatures near the supposed ruins. When bloodied, it becomes frantic and focuses on the most obvious desecrator; it fights to the death unless shown the rain bell or convincing proof that Veyruun no longer exists.
DM Tips
- Telegraph its arrival with the smell of rain, wet footprints appearing on dry stone, and distant thunder beneath a cloudless sky.
- Give the warden a halting, literal voice like water running through a cracked cistern; it repeatedly asks, "Have they come home?"
- For a weaker party, reduce its hit points to 70 and remove Rain-Lash from Multiattack; for a stronger party, let Mourning Deluge recharge on a 4-6.
- The encounter need not end in combat: displaying the rain bell, recovering a village memorial, or stopping the quarry can make the warden stand down.
Loot
- Veyruun's Rain Bell — A thumb-sized bronze bell that rings only when rain is nearby. Once per long rest, it can cast fog cloud without components.
- Warden's Heartstone — A warm, rain-filled shard of basalt left behind if the warden is destroyed. It can preserve a corpse from decay for one year and is sought by diviners studying erased settlements.
- Glasswater Quarry Ledger — A water-stained book proving that Hadrik Voss knowingly excavated over Veyruun's mass grave and concealed the evidence.
