The Unnamed Keeper

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Medium Undead (cursed spirit), Neutral Evil

Armor Class 17 (salt-stiffened oilskin)

Hit Points 187 (22d8+88)

Speed 30 ft. climb 30 ft.

STR 18 (+4)

DEX 16 (+3)

CON 18 (+4)

INT 12 (+1)

WIS 16 (+3)

CHA 19 (+4)

Saving Throws Dex +7, Wis +7, Cha +8

Skills Stealth +7, Perception +7, Intimidation +8

Damage Resistances cold; fire; lightning; necrotic; bludgeoning from nonmagical attacks; piercing from nonmagical attacks; slashing from nonmagical attacks

Damage Immunities poison

Condition Immunities charmed, exhaustion, frightened, grappled, paralyzed, poisoned, prone, restrained

Senses darkvision 120 ft., passive Perception 17

Languages Common, telepathy 60 ft.

Challenge 12 (8,400 XP) Proficiency Bonus +4

The Name Must Not Be Spoken. The Keeper's true name is forgotten. Whenever a creature knowingly speaks the Keeper's name, "Morrow Vane," within 120 feet of it, the Keeper gains one Naming Mark, up to five marks. For each Naming Mark, the Keeper's attack rolls and saving throw DCs increase by 1, and it deals an extra 3 (1d6) necrotic damage with each weapon attack. The Keeper loses all Naming Marks when it finishes a long rest or when a creature uses an action to successfully complete a DC 18 Intelligence (History) or Wisdom (Religion) check while within 10 feet of its coat.

Storm-Sewn Form. The Keeper can move through a space as narrow as 1 inch wide without squeezing. It can climb difficult surfaces, including upside down on ceilings, without making an ability check. It is immune to effects that turn undead.

Beacon-Eater. Bright light within 30 feet of the Keeper is dim light, and dim light within that area is darkness. Whenever a creature within 30 feet of the Keeper casts a spell that creates bright light, the Keeper gains 10 temporary hit points and can immediately move up to half its speed without provoking opportunity attacks.

Lighthouse Bound. The Keeper knows the direction and distance to every open flame, lighthouse, lantern, or beacon within 10 miles. It cannot willingly move more than 10 miles from the lighthouse where it died unless carried inside a container made of lead or black salt.

Innate Spellcasting. The Unnamed Keeper's spellcasting ability is Charisma (spell save DC 16, +8 to hit with spell attacks). It can innately cast the following spells, requiring no material components:

1/day each: control weather

3/day each: darkness, misty step, sending

At will: dancing lights, minor illusion, thaumaturgy

Actions

Multiattack. The Keeper makes three Oilskin Lash attacks, or two Oilskin Lash attacks and one Lantern of the Last Watch attack.

Oilskin Lash. Melee weapon Attack: +8 to hit, reach 10 ft., one target. Hit: 13 (2d8+4) slashing damage, plus 7 (2d6) necrotic damage. If the target is Large or smaller, it must succeed on a DC 16 Strength saving throw or be pulled up to 10 feet toward the Keeper and restrained by spectral cords until the end of its next turn.

Lantern of the Last Watch. Ranged weapon Attack: +8 to hit, range 60/120 ft., one target. Hit: 22 (4d10) radiant damage, plus 7 (2d6) necrotic damage. The target must succeed on a DC 16 Constitution saving throw or be blinded until the end of its next turn. A creature that fails this save by 5 or more is also frightened of the Keeper until the end of its next turn.

Sound the Fog Bell (Recharge 5-6). The Keeper rings an unseen bell. Each creature of its choice within 30 feet must make a DC 16 Constitution saving throw, taking 27 (6d8) thunder damage and becoming deafened for 1 minute on a failed save, or half as much damage on a successful one. A creature that fails the save is also pushed up to 15 feet away from the Keeper. The Keeper can then teleport to an unoccupied space it can see within 60 feet that is in darkness or heavy obscurement.

Walk the Cliff Path (1/Day). The Keeper summons a spectral cliff path in a 60-foot-long, 10-foot-wide line originating from itself. Each creature in the line must make a DC 16 Dexterity saving throw. On a failed save, a creature takes 36 (8d8) bludgeoning damage, is knocked prone, and hangs over the path's edge, restrained until the end of its next turn. On a successful save, it takes half as much damage and isn't knocked prone. The path remains until the start of the Keeper's next turn; it is difficult terrain, and a creature that enters it for the first time on a turn or ends its turn there takes 9 (2d8) cold damage.

Bonus Actions

Snuff the Flame. The Keeper extinguishes one nonmagical flame or one magical light effect of 3rd level or lower within 60 feet. If the effect is magical, its caster can make a DC 16 spellcasting ability check to resist. The Keeper can then move up to 15 feet without provoking opportunity attacks.

Reactions

Stormcoat's Turn. When the Keeper is hit by an attack while in dim light or darkness, it halves the attack's damage and moves up to 10 feet. This movement can pass through other creatures, but the Keeper cannot end inside another creature's space.

Legendary Actions

The Keeper can take 3 legendary actions, choosing from the options below. Only one legendary action can be used at a time and only at the end of another creature's turn. The Keeper regains spent legendary actions at the start of its turn.

Coat Flare. The Keeper makes one Oilskin Lash attack.

Douse the Watch. The Keeper extinguishes one nonmagical flame or one magical light effect of 3rd level or lower within 60 feet.

Stormstep (Costs 2 Actions). The Keeper teleports up to 40 feet to an unoccupied space it can see that is in dim light, darkness, fog, or rain.

Bell Through Bone (Costs 3 Actions). One creature the Keeper can see within 60 feet must succeed on a DC 16 Constitution saving throw or take 18 (4d8) thunder damage and be unable to speak until the end of its next turn.

Lair

Lair Actions

On initiative count 20 (losing initiative ties), the creature can take a lair action to cause one of the following effects; it can't use the same effect two rounds in a row:

The Beam Sweeps. A beam of corpse-pale light sweeps across the lair. Until initiative count 20 on the next round, the Keeper can see invisible creatures, and each enemy that starts its turn in bright light must succeed on a DC 16 Wisdom saving throw or be frightened until the end of its turn.
Black Surf. A wave crashes through the lair. Each creature on the ground must succeed on a DC 16 Strength saving throw or be knocked prone and pushed up to 20 feet. The Keeper is unaffected and can move across the water without penalty.
Names in the Fog. Whispers fill a 30-foot-radius area within the lair until initiative count 20 on the next round. The area is heavily obscured for creatures other than the Keeper. The first time each enemy speaks during this effect, it must succeed on a DC 16 Charisma saving throw or grant the Keeper one Naming Mark.

Regional Effects

The region containing the creature's lair is warped by its magic, creating the following effects:

Within 6 miles of the lighthouse, storms gather unnaturally whenever night falls, and the sea remains rough even beneath clear skies.
Names spoken near the cliff path are carried for miles by the wind; witnesses frequently hear their own voices answering from the fog.
Lanterns and signal fires within 1 mile of the lighthouse burn with a blue-black flame and cast shadows toward the sea.
At midnight, a spectral bell rings from the lighthouse, and anyone who hears it must resist the urge to walk toward the cliff path.

If the Keeper dies, the storm abates after 1d10 days, but the lighthouse lamp remains dark until someone carries its original brass lens to the sea and speaks the Keeper's forgotten name one final time.

Environment Coastal, Urban

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"Do not call him by name. The fog is listening." — warning scratched into the door of Gullwatch Light

Lore & Description

Appearance

An empty lighthouse keeper's coat walks upright along the cliff path, its heavy yellow oilskin cracked and salt-whitened. Brass buttons glimmer like drowned eyes beneath a collar turned against the wind, while black water drips constantly from sleeves that end in grasping, invisible hands. A dented storm lantern hangs where a heart might be, shining with a narrow beam of corpse-pale light. Beneath the coat is only rolling fog, tangled seaweed, and the suggestion of boots that never quite touch the ground.

Behavior & Origins

Morrow Vane was the keeper of Gullwatch Light, a remote lighthouse whose lamp failed during the Tempest of Saint Orra. He walked the cliff path through the storm to relight it and was swept into the sea; his coat returned three nights later and has continued its rounds ever since. The spirit believes every living traveler is a ship that has lost its way, and it tries to guide them toward the cliff edge. The Keeper grows stronger when named because each spoken utterance restores a fragment of the identity it surrendered to the storm. A concrete way to end its haunting is to recover Morrow Vane's rusted logbook from the wreck of the bell tender ship Vesper's Mercy and burn every written version of his name in the lighthouse lamp.

Running The Unnamed Keeper

Tactics

The Keeper opens by snuffing nearby light and using Sound the Fog Bell to scatter the party, then targets isolated characters with Oilskin Lash attacks. It positions itself in darkness or fog, using Stormcoat's Turn and Stormstep to deny clean attacks while its lantern blinds ranged threats. When bloodied, it uses Walk the Cliff Path to divide the battlefield and attempts to drag a heavily wounded creature toward the sea. It fights to the death within sight of its lighthouse, but flees if forced more than 10 miles away from it.

DM Tips

Telegraph the danger with footprints that begin and end abruptly, a lantern beam moving against the wind, and villagers who refuse to say the lighthouse keeper's name.
Use a wet, distant voice and have the empty coat turn its collar toward whoever speaks; reward players who refer to it only as 'the Keeper.'
For a weaker party, remove the extra damage from Naming Marks and reduce Sound the Fog Bell to 4d8 thunder damage; for a stronger party, let Naming Marks increase to seven and allow the Keeper to use Snuff the Flame as a legendary action.
Make the battlefield memorable with slick stone, steep drops, swinging lanterns, and sudden fog, but clearly describe safe routes so movement remains tactical rather than arbitrary.

Loot

Morrow Vane's Brass Lens — A thumb-sized fragment of the lighthouse lens, warm even in seawater. It can reveal invisible creatures when held before a flame and is central to ending the haunting.
Salt-Stiffened Logbook — Usually found in the lighthouse or among the wreckage of Vesper's Mercy. Its pages record the names of every person Morrow failed to guide home.
Storm Lantern of Gullwatch — The Keeper's lantern remains cold and unlit after its defeat. If rekindled with lightning, it casts light through fog and grants advantage on checks made to navigate during storms.

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Generation Info

Original prompt:
"CR 12: A lighthouse keeper's coat that still walks the cliff path on stormy nights. It grows stronger each time it is named aloud."

Created: Oct 17, 2026
Modified: Oct 26, 2026

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