Warden Ælle

Warden Ælle is the horrifying corruption of the long dead keeper of this castle, cursed by the gods to its terrible form as punishment for
betraying the code of honor it held in life.
Warden Ælle
resembles a hulking knight, tall and slender, weighing more than 300
pounds. Its face is a blackened skull covered with shards of
shriveled, rotting flesh. It has two tiny, glowing orange-red
pinpoints for eyes. Its armor is scorched black as if it had been in
a fire. The demeanor of Warden Ælle is so terrifying that even
kender have been known to become frightened.
Warden Ælle's deep,
chilling voice seems to echo from the depths of a bottomless cavern.
Warden Ælle converses in the language it spoke in its former life,
as well as up to six additional languages.

### **Combat:**

Warden Ælle
retains the fighting skills it had in its former life. Since it has
little regard for its own safety and an intense hatred of most living
creatures, it is an extremely dangerous opponent. Still, Warden
Ælle retains a semblance of the pride it held as a good
warrior and fights honorably: It never ambushes opponents from
behind, nor does it attack before an opponent has an opportunity to
ready his weapon. Surrender is unknown to Warden
Ælle, and it will parley only if it senses its opponent has
crucial information (such as how to lift it from it's curse).
Warden
Ælle has a strength of 18(00). It usually attacks with a
sword; 80% of the time, this is a magical sword. When a magical sword
is indicated, roll 1d6 and consult the following table:

 2
 3
 4
 5
 6

Warden Ælle wears the same armor it wore in its previous life, but
regardless of the quality of the armor, it always has an AC of 0. Hit
points for Warden Ælle are determined by rolling 12-sided dice. If Warden Ælle is defeated its physical form disintegrates into ash,
leaving no loot to be gathered. 1d4 hours later Warden Ælle is born
again from a phylactery wherein HP and weapon are rerolled. To fully
defeat Warden Ælle its phylactery must be destroyed.
Warden
Ælle's magical abilities make it especially dangerous. It constantly
generates *fear* in a 5-foot radius, and it can cast *detect*
magic*,* detect invisibility*, and* wall of ice *at*
will. Twice per day, it can cast *dispel magic*. Once per day,
it can use either *power word, blind*, *power word, kill*,
or *power word, stun*. It can also cast *symbol of fear* or
*symbol of pain* once per day, as well as a 20-dice *fireball*
once per day. All of its magical spells function at the 20th level of
ability.
Warden Ælle cannot be turned, but it can be dispelled
by *holy word* spell. It has the power over undead of a
6th-level evil priest. Its magic resistance is 75%, and if an 11 or
lower is rolled on the percentile roll, the spell is reflected back
at the caster (the magic resistance is rerolled each time a spell is
cast at Warden Ælle).

### **Habitate/Society:**

Warden
Ælle is a former good warrior who was judged by the gods to be
guilty of unforgivable crimes, such as murder and treason. (In life,
he killed the Lord of this manor and his heir, took the seat of
power, and ruled over the people he governed with extreme cruelty.)
Warden Ælle is cursed to walk the halls it once ruled. It is further
condemned to remember its crime in song every night; few sounds are
as terrifying as Warden Ælle's chilling melody echoing through the
moonlit countryside. Warden Ælle is likely to attack any creature
that interrupts its song or trespasses in its domains.

### **Ecology:**

Warden Ælle
has no physiological functions.