Sovereignty

**Sovereignty** is a player character in the Avernus campaign. She is a tiefling paladin on a journey to sidestep destiny and kick ass.

## Build

### Class

Paladin, Oath of Redemption(formerly Oath of Conquest)

### Avernus Effects

+2 STR, -4 INTExtra tail

RP
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## Description

#### Physical

Sovereignty is a pale tiefling with curved horns, hooves, and a tail. She wears cursed black plate armor (ep. 04) and is gifted feathery wings by Zariel (ep. 05). After her celestial glow-up in Avernus, her eyes became golden, her hair shone blue, and her armor transformed to white and gold.

#### Personality

She is mellow and socially blunt. She believes fate is oppressive and overwhelming, and gradually learns how to trust her gut to make choices that are her own.

## Biography

Background: Haunted One.

Sovereignty was born into a temple of the devil Zariel, sheltered and isolated by cultists. She grew up in the shadow of her bloodline, which she viewed as the root cause of her miserable childhood.

She escaped the temple as a young adult. Alone and in hiding, she took an Oath of Conquest to/for herself – dedicating her life to reclaiming her autonomy and her path. Young Sovereignty joined the crew of La, the pirate queen, where she met Dess. They later formed the Sideshow Slashers, a group of mercenaries and thieves who traveled under the guise of performers.

## Descent into Avernus

The Sideshow Slashers are summoned to Baldur's Gate, hired by the Flaming Fist to help "root out evil" within the city. They enter the Lower City looking for their contact Captain Zodge.

**EPISODE 1:** The party ignores every plot point and red flag while entering the city, focused entirely on following their paycheck. They put on a show to draw a crowd. When Sovereignty's sword demonstration falls flat, Dess and Four jump in to salvage the performance. While looking for another contact later at the Elfsong Tavern, Sovereignty acts as a caretaker for Dess, who has transformed into an elderly elf man.

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> **Dess:** “Come my child, my throat is parched, let’s go and get us a drink!”
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> **Sov:** “Just because you’re like this doesn’t mean I have to buy you drinks! That’s not how this works.”
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> **Dess:** “*What*, child? You know I’m deaf in my left ear!”
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Sov then stumbles into a private gambling room and blatantly snoops around looking for the contact's distinguishing tattoo. ("I'm looking at their hands 🂡 *and* their hands  ✋!") She also backs out of a tournament after losing a game, stating that she doesn't like to lose. Later, the Slashers hear an unsettling prophetic song at the tavern. When the party discusses the devils in the song with disdain, she covers her cloven feet. She also keeps a level head when the patrons are rattled.

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> **Giggles:** “We could all die!”
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> **Barkeep Allan:** “We *could* all die, that’s what I’m saying! Gee, I might have to close down early tonight.”
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> **Sov:**“Well, that’s true *any* time, we could die any time. You don’t have to close down *early*.”
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The party's contact hires them to eliminate some pirates who are after her for cheating. When the pirates arrive at the tavern and are rude to Fenris, Sovereignty throws the first punch. She later chooses to knock the captain out instead of killing him, and turns him into the city guard for a reward. She is focused a lot on finances at this stage, but is it just because a certain changeling loves money? Who's to say.

Dess negotiates free rooms for the party, and Sov continues the caretaker ruse by carrying Dess' fragile disguised self upstairs bridal style. Dess requests beeswax from the inn to block the ambient noise, but instead molds it into a little bee and gives it to Sovereignty.

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> **Sov:**“Dess did you actually use the wax they brought up to your room, or did you just *ask* for it?”
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> **Dess:** “Oh you know *me,* I just asked for it!”
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The following day, the Sideshow Slashers make their way to the Vanthampur bathhouse in search of the cultists' hideout. Sov makes sure to look out for Haro, who has to break in separately from the group.

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> **Haro:** “Did you see that guy walking into the bathhouse? With a robe on?”
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> **Sov:** “Well, you can’t take your robe off *before* you get into the bathhouse.”
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When the party finds the entry to the cultists' underground hideout, they knock out an innocent masseuse to keep her quiet. Sov lays her gently on a nearby table before the group descends.

**EPISODE 2:** Sov and Fenris lead the way into the cultists' dungeon. They encounter an old friend of Fenris, also accompanied by a necromancer. When Dess calls for a group huddle to decide if the duo should be allowed to join the Sideshow Slashers, Sovereignty suggests "if we get sketchy vibes, we can always just take them out." As the party continues through the hallways and combat, Sov notes that she *really* dislikes cultists. She later prioritizes tending to a tiefling hostage, Vendetta Kress.

> **Vendetta:** “Are you with the Dead Three?”
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> **Sov:** “No, there’s WAY more than three of us."
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**EPISODE 3:** When Judgment and Haro are hallucinating from pixie dust exposure, Sovereignty waits for the party to mess with them for a few minutes before healing their condition.

**EPISODE 4:** Sovereignty steals a set of black plate armor from the Vanthampur estate. It's cursed, but looks "fly af" according to the official campaign notes.

**EPISODE 5:** When the party fights a group of cultists, a devil calls out Sovereignty by name and attempts to keep her away from an angelic statue of Zariel. When Sov reaches the statue, it speaks to her telepathically – a plea for help from Zariel herself, or perhaps some apparition. Sov says she's not exactly Zariel's #1 fan. The voice reveals that the devils are eradicating her bloodline, trying to keep them apart. She offers Sov a gift for the journey ahead, reassuring her that regardless of her decision, she will still have the choice to kill or spare Zariel in the future. Conflicted, Sovereignty accepts and is gifted golden wings. The party is tasked with returning the Shield of the Hidden Lord (containing the rowdy devil Gargauth, aka Gary) to Candlekeep.

**EPISODE 6:** Sov and Judgment are sent to find food. They 100% do NOT steal it from a hunter's trap and take credit for catching it... (she commits to the bit for the rest of the campaign and makes a lot of unfortunate survival rolls)

**EPISODE 7:** After being transported to Elturel and putting on an impromptu show, Sov wields the provocative inhabited shield in battle.

**EPISODE 8:** (14:37 - 19:20) After Gary telepathically attempts to flatter Sov, she shuts him down and reiterates that their relationship is combat/antagonistic only. He prods Sov to think about why the devil in Baldur's Gate knew her name, and why he wanted to keep her away from the statue (like, reeeally tries to spell it out for her). Then he caves and explains that only those of Zariel's bloodline can wield the powerful Sword of Zariel.

**EPISODE 9:** Exposure to Avernus causes Sovereignty to grow a second tail (bonus attack) and additional strength (+2) , but negatively impacts her intelligence (-4 RIP). She befriends the flesh golem Mikey after removing a thorn from his foot and fending off his redcap bullies. He gifts her a brooch and she teaches him to fist bump. Later, when the party must travel into Lulu's mind to recover her memories, Sov gifts her the wax bee Dess had made as a comfort item during the ordeal. When Sov asks the night hag Mad Maggie what she's researching, Maggie reveals she's chronicling the rise and fall of Zariel. Dess tries to help Sov get intel and unintentionally puts her on blast for having mommy issues lol.

**EPISODE 10:** Sovereignty attempts and fails to get Mikey to join the party. When the party receives an infernal warmachine and 2 Devil's Ride motorcycles, Sov and Anatoly take the bikes. During combat against warlord Raggadragga, they each hold one end of a chain so they can coordinate attacks and clothesline their opponents.

Zariel makes an appearance at Mahadi's Wandering Emporium, forcing the party to their knees. While holding Sovereignty by the throat, she reveals that she would have had Sov killed sooner, if it weren't for the cult hiding her away as a child. Zariel also says that the party should leave her to her devices, as "chaos and abyss will be on your doorstep" if she dies. Sov nears blacking out, making choked pleas to the shield ("You're on your own, kid!") and Lulu ("This isn't really her, she's good inside!"). Zariel releases her, stating that she will be waiting at the top of her tower to settle things – if the party survives long enough to get there. Later, at the emporium, Sov and Dess go to a stylist tent run by the gold dragon Ana (wife of Vex). They exchange information about Arkhan. Dess and Sov both get jealous when Ana shows the other attention. Sov feels resolute about taking down Zariel and looking good while doing it.

**EPISODE 11:** Sov and Dess send a prank letter to archmage Sylvira on behalf of Judgment. Sov and Anatoly participate in a Devil's Ride race against the warlord devil Princeps Kovik. Sov uses magical commands and her generally conquering presence to take out the competition, helping Anatoly take the win. Later, at Haruman's Hill, the party sees ghostly flashbacks of Zariel when she was an angel, fueling Sov's internal conflict about what to do with her.

**EPISODE 12:** Sov and Dess receive a response from Sylvira to their terribly written (and incorrectly signed) prank mail. They are illiterate, but Judgment at least receives a saucy spellbook out of the ordeal. Later, when Dess runs her mouth and get in trouble with Lord Arkhan, Sov steps in to bargain ("I am kind of the brains of the outfit" lol). Arkhan agrees to trade the vial of blood they need for the Orb of Dragonkind they're carrying.

**EPISODE 14:** Sov, Fenris, and Four talk to the archdevil Bel. He shows them a vision of Zariel's defeat, and her signing the contract that keeps her trapped in battle the way she is. Back at the warmachine, Sov officiates Fenris and Reya's wedding with help from Dess.

**EPISODE 15:** In the warmachine, after an intense psychic battle with a sibriex, Dess falls asleep suddenly on Sovereignty's shoulder. Sov wakes her up to check on her and offers some old coffee. Dess asks her to test it first. Sov discovers it has been corrupted by the affects of Avernus when it completely knocks her out.

   (16:30) In a vision... Sovereignty stands in the town around the temple she grew up in, now empty. A lone figure - a handsome naked devil - approaches and reveals himself to be Gargauth. She offers him some clothing to cover up. Gary describes the purpose of this vision through a convoluted metaphor monologue, conjuring a skull into his hand for dramatic effect. ("I didn't get any of the things you said, but the skull was VERY good." -Sov) He simplifies that she will have to choose between running from or embracing her destiny. He then conjures a portal for her to continue alone through her trials. Sovereignty notes it's discomforting that even Gary doesn't want to be the protagonist of this particular adventure. And she steps through. Sov experiences a series of vignettes and choices: escaping from the cult as a child... lifting a tingly sword from a pedestal... meeting Dess for the first time... choosing a doorway of the angel Zariel over the doorway of the devil... destroying a throne... leading an army...
**EPISODE 18:**

> ***Zariel:** "No one but ME can stand up to the threat of the demons. I don’t see YOU with that sword and an army at your back, child."*
> ***Sovereignty:** "What about THIS army?" (and I gesture to my beautiful friends)*
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*Notes to be continued! Still re-working thru backlog... BUT to sum up (spoilers for the broad strokes of the ending, probably out of order) – The party fights Zariel & co, complete with an epic Endgame-esque appearance of all their allies. Once Zariel is weakened, they sever her contract to Avernus, allowing her to pursue her own redemption. She gives Sovereignty a Wish feather and returns to Celestia with Lulu. Asmodeus summons the party to a separate plane for a little chat. Gargauth, also on the plane with them in non-shield form, stands up for the party and is slain. When Asmodeus leaves, Sovereignty immediately uses the feather to revive Gary. He is restored to his pre-devilish self. Sovereignty then learns she is supposed to take Zariel's position in Avernus, continuously keeping the balance. Unaware this was the consequence of her role in the fight, Sov is dismayed. Dess offers to stay with her before remembering the effects of Avernus would eventually destroy her. Then Anatoly, with his rule-breaking THREE (3!!) warlock patrons and a faux allegiance to Asmodeus, assumes the role in her place. He becomes the party's friendly connection to the armies of Avernus.*

Sovereignty and Dess return to Baldur's Gate to begin touring on their new theatre ship, managed by Gargauth, to perform and rescue orphans as La did for them. Sovereignty also disbanding any fiend-loyal cults along the way, upholding her duty to continue the fight Zariel was once committed to, and spreading the word of her redemption.

## Notable Inventory

* Sword of Zariel
* Shield of the Hidden Lord (vacant)
* Devil's Ride warmachine motorcycle
* Infernal chain
* Wish feather (former; used to restore Gary)
* Wax bee (from Dess, given to Lulu)

## Trivia

* She writes names and notes down on her arms to remember things
* Whenever Dess performs, she always has to wipe away a tear
* She almost always plays along with Dess' shenanigans, including (but not limited to): betting how long it will take their Judgment and Anatoly to die, committing mail fraud, suggested murder, games of I See With My Little E, signing Four up for Construct Mingle, playing go-between when Dess is being petty and not talking to party members, etc.