Larloch Larloch , called the Shadow King , was a Netherese male human and a lich . He was the former Sorcerer - King of the enclave of Jiksidur in ancient Netheril and later the master of the Warlock ' s Crypt and Shadow King of its undead inhabitants . He was one of the oldest non - draconic beings in Faerûn and one of the most powerful mages . Description . As a lich of such extreme age , Larloch ' s body was greatly decayed , with his flesh entirely gone and leaving only his white - boned skeleton . In his empty eye - sockets were two orbs of red light in place of eyes . On occasion , streaks of emerald energy moved about his body , and were a side - effect of his defensive curses . He wore fine clothes that hung off and partially covered his skeleton . At least two dozen " ioun stone " s floated around his skull . Personality . Larloch possessed incredible power and was a superintelligent genius . Over two thousand years , he ' d composed perfect plans to deal with nearly every possible situation , and even for things he was not prepared for , he could come up with an almost - perfect response in moments . He was a talented and cunning inventor of new spell s , , and magical techniques and strategies . But he was also insane , his mind affected by his extreme age . Sometimes he could be calm and even whimsical . Other times he was crazed , snarling and launching spells at random . Larloch once claimed he only sought greater Art , to become more skilled and powerful in the use of magic . As such , he would not battle the servants of the goddess of magic , Mystra , whom he called " the Lady " , saying that " No matter how powerful one becomes , there are always those who are stronger . " He desired only to be left alone by the outside world . He usually killed intruders outright , but occasionally enjoyed speaking with captive adventurers before killing them . Some he freed to perform certain services , albeit with horrific curse s and " geas " es to ensure completion . He had a code of conduct to these things and kept his word , completely freeing and restoring those who were successful , provided they did not attempt to deceive or assault him . History . The Sorcerer - King . Larloch was considered to be nearly 2000 years old " circa " 1372 DR , suggesting that he was born some time in or after the late 7th century before Dalereckoning ( " i . e . " , after −628 DR ) . In time , Larloch rose to become Sorcerer - King of the enclave of Jiksidur in Netheril . At some point , he fashioned the Death Moon Orb , a powerful artifact that allowed him to charm and mentally control the members of his court , to spy on his enemies and learn their plans , and to summon powerful fiend s from the Outer Plane s . It did so successfully , and Larloch ruled for many years , gaining great power . In time , he underwent a transformation into a lich . In the Year of Sundered Webs , −339 DR , Larloch had Jiksidur hovering high over east Faerûn to spy on the rival empires of Narfell and Raumathar . A contingency spell warned Larloch that Jiksidur was facing impending doom , and he fled the city riding a dragon . Very soon after , Netheril suffered Karsus ' s Folly , all magic failed , and Jiksidur fell from the sky to crash into northern Narfell , utterly destroyed . Thus Larloch survived the fall of Netheril , as one of its last arcanist - kings . Some months after the fall , Larloch discovered the ruins of Orbedal , the enclave ruled by his archrival Rhaugilath the Ageless . He claimed the city as his own and constructed himself a crypt out of its broken towers , Larloch ' s Crypt . Once complete , he set about fully exploring the ruins . After many years , he discovered Rhaugilath , who ' d been trapped in a subterranean pocket , and a vicious battle between the two erupted . Larloch was victorious and he bound Rhaugilath to serve him . He became the first of Larloch ' s lich servitors . The Shadow King . Since then , Larloch accumulated a vast collection of spell s , , and undead creatures to serve him . He became known as the Shadow King around the Sword Coast lands , and Orbedal was called " Larloch ' s Crypt " , which was later corrupted into the name " Warlock ' s Crypt " . Over the centuries , a great number of adventurer s attempted to defeat Larloch , but most failed ; the bodies of many were reused as decorations in Warlock ' s Crypt or as undead servants . Some even claimed to have destroyed him , but Larloch always rose again . At least sixteen Red Wizards of Thay ventured into Warlock ' s Crypt , seeking to either kill Larloch or steal his magic , treasures and power , and all failed . All bar one were destroyed . The only one who survived was Szass Tam , Zulkir of Necromancy of Thay , who visited Warlock ' s Crypt around 1366 DR . What transpired was unknown to the outside world ; Szass Tam described the Red Wizards who ' d faced Larloch before him as " inept " , to which Larloch agreed . The two came to some deal or alliance , the details of which were again unknown to outsiders . Larloch gave Szass several powerful magic items and artifacts — including his own Death Moon Orb , and Thakorsil ' s Seat — and granted him a number of hooded companions , to aid him in his plots to control Thay and the demon Eltab . In exchange , over a number of visits , Szass Tam gave Larloch several surviving treasures from the ruins of Jiksidur . One was a certain metal vest of great power called a " mantle " , which Szass or his agents killed several Harpers for . In the Year of the Tankard , 1370 DR , up to nine clones of Manshoon traded a number of spells known only to himself and the Zhentarim to quite a number of wizards , including Larloch , in exchange for sanctuary . In the Year of Lightning Storms , 1374 DR , over two hundred liches attacked the Knights of Myth Drannor while seeking to corrupt part of the Weave . All bore Larloch ' s mark . A great many were defeated by the combined might of clockwork soldiers created by Mystra and the Knights , but the liches did succeed in corrupting dozens of baelnorn s to their will , who also perished in the battle . Larloch later appeared to the Knights to apologize , explaining that he ' d simply given the liches their freedom as a test , to see what they did with it , and called their actions foolish . He said he only sought greater power in the Art of magic , and would not battle those who served Mystra . He was fascinated by Storm Silverhand ' s silver fire , desiring its power for his own but fearing that it could destroy him . Storm allowed him a close look , and he said it was the first kindness he ' d been given in a long time . Post - Spellplague . Prior to the Spellplague , Larloch worked with the Imprisoners to create Blueflame magic items , formed by imprisoning spirits within the items . His apparent goal was to preserve some of his power so that he might access it later . Mystra forbade her clergy to interfere , and the Simbul later theorized that the Blueflame items preserved some of the goddess ' s power , allowing her possible restoration . Larloch had apparently survived the Spellplague of the Year of Blue Fire , 1385 . In the Year of the Rune Lords Triumphant , 1487 DR , Larloch tried to become the new deity of magic by absorbing the wards of Candlekeep and the " mythal " of Myth Drannor . Before he could complete the draining of the mythal , however , he was stopped by the Srinshee and Elminster Aumar . Abilities . Larloch the Shadow King was an awesomely powerful lich mage , supported by his spell s , an arsenal of , and a range of undead powers . The true extents of his powers were unknown , and some were unique and of his own devising , having made a number of permanent magical modifications to his own body and lich nature via " wish " spells and rituals . He so well prepared it was extremely difficult to catch him by surprise . As a lich , he possessed an aura of fear that terrified lesser creatures , and he was immune to the effects of cold and electricity , and to polymorph ing and mind - affecting assaults . Larloch was also immune to one particular arcane spell of each level , though which were unknown to others , and too risky to try to find out . He was , however , vulnerable to the bite of a silver ed weapon , which burned his undead flesh into smoke . This was a side - effect of the alterations made to his body . He particularly made use of a variety of horrible curse s , including defensive curses that left trails of emerald energy moving around his body . If Larloch touched another creature , or was touched by them , they were affected by a " bestow curse " spell , a loss of intellect and abilities , and a horrific change of appearance . A victim could appear withered and ghastly , or rotting and sore - ridden , or be slowly transformed into some ugly monster , limb by limb . Some of these took days or even weeks to take effect , and were hard to remove . Larloch wielded a range of spells for attack , defense and utility , many quickened for immediate use . His tactics in battle were to simply overwhelm his enemies before they could even react , usually by casting " haste " , " time stop " , and the quickened spells in rapid succession . Against other spellcasters , he liked to counter and negate their own spells . Larloch modified a number of his spells so they required no components . He ' d ingrained one spell of every level with no need for preparation , namely " magic missile " , " web " , " dispel magic " , " arcane eye " , " animate dead " , " chain lightning " , " control undead " , " devastate undead " , and " energy drain " , and could cast them once a day without components . A favorite tactic was to use " devastate undead " against his own minions , to drain their health and power his own . If not particularly inclined to fight , or if actually pressed in combat , or just bored , Larloch would simply remove himself from the battle by using " greater teleport " , " etherealness " , by walking through walls or sinking through floors , or similar means . If he was threatened and seriously damaged , a " contingency " spell teleported him away . Either way , he returned to one of his safe rooms to rejuvenate . Activities . Larloch sent his bonebat s and skeletal giant bat s ridden by undead servants , as well as stranger undead creatures , out of Warlock ' s Crypt to hunt for live creatures and travellers , especially live humans . These were brought to Larloch for his experimentations in undeath . Larloch sometimes freed captive adventurers to perform certain services for him , such as retrieving a powerful but well - guarded spell or magical item , held for example by a Red Wizard or an archmage . However , to ensure completion , he placed on these lucky adventurers a number of " geas " es and contingent curse s . Abandoning the mission prompted a horrific transformation into a hideous monster , like a hook horror or a tanar ' ri demon , one limb at a time . Larloch kept his word , however , and those who successfully performed their service were granted complete freedom and restored to their proper forms , provided they did not attempt to deceive or assault him . Occasionally , Larloch allowed Rhaugilath to use either a " dream " or " nightmare " spell , at Larloch ' s choosing , to send a vision to some being Rhaugilath had scried upon . Rhaugilath used these visions to grant some small piece of Netherese lore to the targeted individual . Reportedly , those who received such visions heard Rhaugilath sigh and Larloch chuckle as the vision ended . Possessions . Over his many centuries , Larloch collected a vast hoard of spellbook s , spell s , and other treasures , including several artifact s . This consisted of every common arcane spell and many others , almost every magic item ever made , and most of the artifacts were commonly thought lost or destroyed , or not known at all to the outside world . His collection included several kinds of Netherese power scepter , rare and forgotten to later centuries . Outside the small arsenal he carried and used on a day - to - day basis , he had a collection valued at least 3 , 000 , 000 gp . He knew all their properties and functions well , and if attacked , or about to be , he could quickly equip anything he needed for his defense . He wielded a " staff of the magi " and regularly wore " bracers of armor + 8 " , a " cloak of resistance + 5 " , a major cloak of displacement , " gloves of storing " , a " robe of eyes " , and " winged boots " . He also had an " amulet of the planes " , an " amulet of proof against detection and location " , a " ring of three wishes " , and a " ring of x - ray vision " . Some of these items were not in their standard forms . Among his possessions was a " + 1 light mace of disruption " , permanently reduced to half its normal size ; this was not used as a weapon , but as a focus for his " devastate undead " spell . Impressively , over two dozen " ioun stone s " orbited Larloch ' s head at all times , giving him a wide variety of powers , protections , and enhancements . Some were more powerful than their regular forms , and he had multiples of a few . Relationships . As the Shadow King of Warlock ' s Crypt , Larloch commanded an army of undead creatures to serve and protect him . They were his immortal , devoted servants . Among them was a small army of lich es , numbering at least sixty by 1374 DR . Many were also survivors of Netheril , including Rhaugilath . Their loyalty was absolute , and ensured by some force of magic . Occasionally , he granted some of these liches their freedom , just to see what they would do . He ruled a city populated by undead , including liches , vampire s , wraith s , wight s , and legions of lesser undead creatures . A troop of troll s also defended the city . Larloch also sometimes summoned kastighur demon s from the Barrens of Doom and Despair to serve him . Larloch had dealings and trade with other powerful mages , such as one of the clones of Manshoon . He had an alliance or cooperated with Szass Tam , Zulkir of Necromancy of Thay , and they traded several artifacts and magic items . Larloch commanded a group of mages called the Imprisoners , and worked with them to create Blueflame items . Creations . Larloch was a talented and cunning inventor in the field of magic . He continually developed new spell s , , and strategies for the use of magic . He had a custom spell that allowed him to walk through walls . He also developed " devastate undead " to heal himself by sacrificing his undead servant creatures . Another spell attributed to him was " Larloch ' s minor drain " . He could also create artifact s , such as the Death Moon Orb . It was created by Larloch in the time of Netheril with the intent to scry on and control his enemies and allies , and to summon fiend s . Working with the Imprisoners , Larloch created Blueflame items to preserve his power and that of Mystra . These were formed by binding spirits within the items . Larloch ' s servitor lich Rhaugilath dedicated himself to writing " Of the Fall of Netheril " , a complete history of Netheril . Larloch reviewed each chapter as it was completed , and they were delivered to Candlekeep to be archived in the library there . Base . Larloch dwelled in and ruled over the city of Warlock ' s Crypt . The name itself was a corruption of Larloch ' s name , and the name " Larloch ' s Crypt " came to cover the whole city . The tallest tower was Larloch ' s own home . Certain areas , caskets and cupboards contained magical traps that inflicted his powerful curses upon trespassers . Within the tower were special safe rooms that quickly rejuvenated undead bodies , to which Larloch could quickly relocate if attacked and seriously damaged , only to return revitalized soon after . He spent most of his time in these chambers . Rumors & legends . Rumors and legends knew of Larloch as one of the last remaining sorcerer - kings of Netheril , and also knew he was a powerful archmage . He was known as the " Shadow King " along the Sword Coast lands . A few mistaken minstrels incorrectly called Larloch " the Warlock " or " the Warlock King " , after the Warlock ' s Crypt , but Larloch apparently took umbrage at being called a warlock . Composers of ballads naming him as such were supposedly kidnapped by creatures in the night and carried away to be tortured and turned into some undead thing by Larloch . Singing the ballad titled " The Warlock King " anywhere in three days ' ride of the Troll Hills was not advised , lest Larloch overhear and be displeased .