Banshee, Lawful Evil
| Armor Class | -5/0 | Str | 8 | ||||
| Movement | 9, Fl 30 (B) | Dex | 14 | ||||
| Level/Hit Dice | 15 | Con | 8 | ||||
| Hit Points | 120 | Int | 15 | ||||
| THAC0 | 11 | Wis | 15 | ||||
| No. of Attacks | 1 | Cha | 17 | ||||
| Damage/Attack | 1d4 | ||||||
| Special Attacks | Aging Touch, Keening | ||||||
| Special Defences | Hit only by +4/+2 magical weapons (see below) | ||||||
| Magic Resistance | 50% | ||||||
Marble appears as she looked on the night of her betrayal and death. She has pale skin and long, raven hair. Her cold, ice-blue eyes show the only expression on her otherwise deathly still face. Her slender throat is marred by the smooth cut which ended her life. The flowing, white satin gown she wears is stained with the blood that flowed from the fatal wound.
On the horrible night years ago when Marble's life blood spewed onto Kartak's reconstructed corpse (see Chardath's character description for details), she willed herself to avenge her murder. So strong was her hatred of the lich Kartak and her brother Chardath, so powerful was her will, that she actually recreated herself into a unique ghost of tremendous power.
Marble is a mutable ghost. Her consciousness can manifest structural firmness in selected limbs. In other words, she has substance on demand and can pick up objects, fight, and use touch abilities. She can also become incorporeal at will, gliding through walls and doors or simply vanishing before startled eyes.
Background: Marble is the younger sister of Chardath Spulzeer. Although her background is presented in the entry detailing Aggarath's domain lord, certain aspects of it deserve to be highlighted and expanded upon here.
As a child, Marble grew up under the protection of her older brother. When others turned away from her or looked upon the young woman only with pity, Chardath was always there to comfort her. It was his intervention that kept her innocent despite the increasingly offensive nature of Castle Spulzeer's diversions.
On the night that Chardath was dominated by Kartak, Marble had no idea what fate was about to befall her. When she was awakened by her brother and dragged into the hidden basements of Castle Spulzeer, her terror mixed with confusion and uncertainty. No words can describe the betrayal that she felt when the dagger was drawn across her throat and her blood allowed to pour from her body.
Marble died believing that Chardath was acting of his own free will. To this day, no one has been able to convince her that this is not the case. And in all likelihood, no one ever will.
This is not to say that Marble is unaware of Kartak's involvement in her demise. She fully realizes that her life was sacrificed to restore the lich. However, Marble believes that Kartak and Chardath were allies at the time of her demise.
Current Sketch: When she was drawn into the crystal, Marble was already a ghost, not a living person. As such, she had no life energy to be absorbed by the ruby crystal. No such creature had ever been slain by Aggarath before, and the result was most unusual. Instead of becoming a captive of the gemstone universe, she became a part of its very fabric.
Marble now exists simultaneously throughout the domain of Aggarath. Her ability to interact with the others is limited, however, for she is as much a prisoner of the place as they are. As far as Marble is concerned, she exists only in a realm of ruby. She feels like a fly encased in amber, unable to move at all and confined from all sides. The effect that this has had on her mind is nothing less than shattering.
If Marble is ever somehow freed from her prison, she will emerge as a wild creature, frantic with the desire to destroy both Kartak and Chardath, and then to escape all boundaries. She will not stop until she finds the openness and freedom of final oblivion.
Combat: Marble is no longer the tenuous spirit that she was. When she was absorbed into the fabric of the crystal, an incredible transformation took place. All of the stored life energy that the magical dagger had absorbed over the years poured into her, making her far more powerful than she was in the realm of men.
Marble was once a third-magnitude ghost (see Van Richten's Guide to Ghosts). Now, thanks to the power she absorbed when she came into the crystal, she has become a fifth-magnitude spirit. As such, she has an Armor Class of either -5 or 0, depending upon the situation. She is AC -5 when ethereal and being attacked by nonethereal foes like the PCs; under these conditions, only +4 or better magical weapons can hit her. She is AC 0 when corporeal or if attacked by a foe who is also ethereal; in these circumstances, she can be hit by +2 or better magical weapons.
Marble attacks with her icy touch. Victims who fail a saving throw vs. spell age 1d4x25 years. Priests at or above 13th level automatically succeed the saving throw. Other characters at or above 15th level receive a +2 bonus to their savings throws. Should she actually attempt to strike someone, her blow does a mere 1d4 points of damage.
The most formidable weapon in Marble's arsenal is her keening ability. Thrice per day she can emit a horrendous, unearthly screech that causes all creatures within 50 feet who fail a saving throw vs. spell to die instantly. A -2 penalty applies to all saving throws made to resist this power at night. If Marble uses this power during the day, her victims are entitled to a +4 bonus to their saving throws (instead of the above penalty). Because of her passionate hatred for Kartak, this focused ability does affect the lich, should she ever be within his presence again.
She can become invisible at will, and is able to focus her energies to affect changes in physical objects and her surroundings (within 50 feet). For example, she could cause all of the paintings in a gallery to become twisted and macabre-looking. This ability functions like the polymorph object spell, but has no need of components. These effects remain for an hour after she has left the area.
Marble is immune to all spells that affect biological creatures. She also has the ability to rejuvenate. That is, she can heal her own wounds instantly, but then must rest for 10 minutes before using any other ability (except becoming incorporeal) again.
As a fifth magnitude ghost, she is immune to damage from holy water or the touch of a holy symbol. She can be turned by priests, but with a -4 penalty to the turning roll. If other undead are present, the roll to determine how many Hit Dice worth of undead creatures are affected also receives a -4 penalty.
