The Charnel Man

The Charnel Man, also known as Baal, is the Demon Lord of blood magic, undeath, pain and overthrow of authority. He is a patron to many who would abuse the power of necromancy for their own aims, and it is said he is the progenitor of Vampires. From his home in Ulingor in the Abyss, he sends forth visions to entice vulnerable mortals to his service and to reek havoc on Utharia. He prefers to take the form of a hairless Human man bathed in blood and sporting blasphemous sigils carved into his body from head to foot and wielding a black mace.

*Any questions can be directed to TheWhacko#1556 in the Questions and Answer channel on the Discord.*

## History

The origins of The Charnel Man were lost to myth long ago, though most speculated that he was born of the remnants of the Damned soul of a necromancer. He himself is not keen to recount his history, and usually treats attempts to inquire into it with a quick and violent death. What is known is that he has had a keen interest in corrupting necromancers all across Utharia with the intent of raising hordes of undead and demonic servants against all lawful authority. His followers claim that it was his influence that created the first Vampires in an attempt to sow discord across mortal societies, and that it was he taught the first Bloatmages how to harness the innate magical power in their blood. While little real evidence exists for either of these stories, it is not hard to see where such conclusions came from.

## Home

The Charnel Man's home in the Abyss is called Ulingor - a world populated by shambling undead hordes and his demonic servants. The land is decorated by iron stakes with mutilated bodies wrapped in barbed chains, where maggots feast freely. His prized creations, the demodad, patrol the skies for all who would challenge his power there, and rivers of blood teem with Fiendish fish eager to strip the flesh from any who step foot in their domain.

## Church and Worshippers

The Charnel Man, called Baal by his followers, has a small following on Utharia, mostly in scattered collections of necromancers and demonologists who seek to undermine local authority in any way they can. These congregations are typically led by a powerful Cleric or Warpriest, who gleefully mutilate themselves with foul sigils to emulate their master. Ritual sacrifice and cannibalism are conducted as a matter of course, and these degenerates take special pleasure in tormenting and murdering followers of The Shepherd. Vampires who attempt to enjoy civilized lives are also a popular target for their fury, and many of his faithful will go dozens of miles out of their way for the chance to harvest their blood for their foul magics. He has no true churches, with his followers erecting altars in secluded caves and the deepest sections of dark forests.

Followers of Baal are unusual among Demon cults in that they prefer not to summon their fiendish allies directly. Rather they busy themselves with creating constructs for the demons to inhabit, where they believe they will have more control than over a demon with its full corporeal body. Flesh and carrion golems, skinstitches and powerful zombies are popular choices for these host bodies, and necromancers in Baal’s service pride themselves in crafting truly horrific monsters out of their rotted harvests. Bloody skeletons are also created and used extensively.

The most prominent aspect of his worship is the Necronomicon Ex-Mortis, equal parts spellbook and holy text. All true copies of the book are bound in the flesh of mortal beings and inked in blood, and are understandably rare. It is filled with both potent necromantic spells and instructions for summoning and binding demonic outsider. Counterfeit copies, bound and inked normally, are a fairly common ornament in arcane libraries, though followers of The Charnel Man attempt to destroy any of these they can find.

## Relationships/Providence

The Charnel Man has very few friends in the universe, claiming only a few of his fellow Demon Lords as kin. He has a deep hatred for The Shepherd, and will take any opportunity to torment her that presents itself, usually through massacres of her clergy. Equally hated are those dedicated to Lawful causes, whom he curses and blasphemes with the foul sigils carved into his flesh.

## Fiendish Obedience

Grind a half-pound of bones from the skeleton of a sentient creature, mix with blood to create a pink paste, and then eat it at the end of a long recitation of prayers to The Charnel Man. Gain a +4 profane bonus on all saving throws against death and negative energy effects.

Evangelist Boons:

1: Power of Death (Sp) *inflict light wounds* 3/day, *death knell* 2/day, or *animate dead* 1/day

2: Destined for Undeath (Su) Your soul is tainted with the essence of undeath. You are damaged by positive energy and healed by negative energy, as if you were undead; the bonus on saving throws granted by your obedience applies against positive energy effects instead of negative energy effects (you retain the bonus on saving throws against death effects). In addition, you gain immunity to exhaustion, fatigue, and nonlethal damage, and you gain a +4 bonus on saving throws against death effects, diseases, mind-affecting effects, paralysis, poisons, stunning, and effects that cause damage, drain, or penalties to your physical ability scores.

3: Word of Finality (Sp) With a single word of unfathomably dark power, you can invoke a concentrated upsurge of negative energy within a living target’s body, snuffing out a creature’s life force with horrific speed. Once per day, you can cast *power word kill* as a spell-like ability. This is a necromancy (death) effect instead of an enchantment (compulsion) [mind-affecting] effect.

Exalted Boons:

1: Necromancer’s Secrets (Sp) *detect undead* 3/day, *command undead* 2/day, or *vampiric touch* 1/day

2: Invoke Death (Sp) Once per day, you can cast *slay living* as a spell-like ability. A creature slain by this spell immediately rises from death as a juju zombie. The juju zombie is not under your control, but it will not attack you.

3: Call the Dead (Sp) Once per day, you can summon a nightwing, 1d3 devourers, or 1d4+1 advanced mohrgs as if you had cast *summon monster IX*.

Sentinel Boons:

1: Abyssal Rage (Sp) *doom* 3/day, *sound burst* 2/day, or *rage* 1/day

2: Aspect of the Prince (Sp) You can take on a form resembling that of the Prince of Undeath himself. You can cast *divine vessel* once per day as a spell-like ability, but only to assume a fiendish aspect. Instead of gaining two claw attacks from this fiendish aspect, you gain a bite attack that deals 2d6 points of damage.

3: Wand of Baal (Sp) Like the legendary *Wand of Baal*, you can cause your mace to inflict instant death upon those it strikes. Once per day as a swift action upon successfully hitting a creature with a melee attack with a heavy mace, you can cast *slay living* on that creature. You must be wielding a heavy mace when you utilize this ability—while the heavy mace can itself be magical, it can’t be one that bears any form of lawful or good magic (such as a *holy weapon*) or one that has particular power over undead (such as an *undead bane* or *disrupting* weapon).