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ZARI
ELZariel rules Avernus, the first laye r of the
Nine Hells.Once a mighty angel charged with watching
the tides ofthe Blood War, she succumbed to the
plane's corruptinginflu
ence and fell from grace. She recently reclaimedher
position as archdevil of Avernus after the cautiousBel proved inadequate at marshaling
his forces tolaunch offensives against the encroaching demons. NowBel advises her and helps her manage the war, thoughmany whisper that her true agenda is vengeance againstAsmodeus, and her true plan is to drive him from theNine Hells.All who enter and
exit the Nine Hells must passthrough Avernus,
so the infernal armies muster on thislayer. Here, the amnizus guard the citadels overlookingthe River Styx, much of the fighting of the
Blood Wartakes place, and devils gather to invade
the Abyss. Any-one hoping
to reach the lower layers must first contendZARI EL
Large fiend (devil), lawful evilArmor Class 21 (natural armor)Hit Points 580 (40d10 + 360)Speed SO ft., fly 1 SO ft.STR27 (+8)DEX24 (+7)CON28 (+9)INT26 (+8)Saving Throws Int +16, Wis +16,
Cha +18S kills Intimidation +18, Perception +16WIS27 (+8)CHA30 (+10)Damage Resistance s cold,
fire, radiant; bludgeoning, piercing,and slashing from
nonmagical attacks that aren't silveredDamage Imm
unities necrotic, poisonCond
ition Immunities charmed, exhaustion, frightened,poisonedSenses darkvision 120 ft., passive
Perception 26La nguages all, telepathy
120 ft.Challenge 26 (90,000
XP)Devil's Sight.
Magical darkness doesn't impede Zariel'sdarkvision.Fiery Weapons. Zariel's weapon attacks are magical. When
shehits with any weapon, the weapon deals an extra 36
(8d8) firedamage (included
in the weapon attacks below).Innate Spellcast ing. Zariel's
innate spellcasting ability is Cha-risma (spell save DC 26). She can innately casuhe followingspells, requiring no material components:At will: alter self (can become Medium when changing her ap-pearance), detect evil and
good, fireball, invisibility (self only),wall of fire3/day each: blade
barrier, dispel evil and good, finger of deathLegendary Resistance (3/Day). lfZariel fails a saving throw, shecan choose to succeed
instead.Magic Resistance. Zariel has advantage
on saving throwsagainst spells and other magical
effects.C HAPTER
6 I BESTIARYwith the darkness of this layer and the
myriad threats ithouses.
Zariel manages it all and has the ultimate sayover who
comes and goes.Given her role in the Blood War,
Zariel is keenly in-terested in collecting souls from
the greatest warriorson the Material Plane and securing their loyalty. Shebargains hard, and mortals end up worse for dealingwith her, because she holds all the cards. A bargain withZariel is eternal; there is little
hope of wriggling out ofit. However, she does expect
the best from her servants,and so she allows her mortal
followers to live out theirlives, ever honing their talents, so she can put them tothe best use when she finally calls in their debts. As
aresult, Zariel's servants
are universally effective, disci-plined, and dangerous.Regeneration. Zariel regains 20 hit
points at the start of herturn. If she takes radiant damage, this trait doesn't function atthe start of her next turn. Zari
el dies only if she starts her turnwith 0 hit points and doesn't
regenerate.ACTIONSMultiattack. Zarie
l attacks twice with her longsword or withher javelins. She can substitute Horrid Touch for
one ofthese attacks.Longsword. Melee Weapon Attack: +16 to hit, reach 10 ft.,one target. Hit: 17 (2d8
+ 8) slashing damage, or 19 (2d10+ 8) slashing damage if used with two hands, plus
36 (8d8)fire damage.j avelin. Melee or Ranged Weapon
Attack:+ 16 to hit, range30/120 ft., one target. Hit:
lS (2d6 + 8) piercing damage plus36 (8d8) fire damage.Horrid Touch (Recharge 5-6). Melee Weapon Attack:+ 16 to hit,reach 10 ft., one target. Hit:
44 (8dl0) necrotic damage, andthe target is poisoned for 1 minute.
While poisoned in this way,the target is also blinded
and deafened. The target can repeatthe saving throw at
the end of each of its turns, ending the ef·feet on itself on
a success.Teleport. Zariel magically teleports, along with any equipmentshe is wearing and carrying, up to 120 feet to an unoccupiedspace she can see.L EGEN D AR
Y ACTION SZariel can take
3 legendary actions, choosing from the optionsbelow. Only
one legendary action option can be used at a timeand only at the end of another creature's turn.
Zariel regainsspent
legendary actions at the start of her turn.Immolating Gaze (Costs 2 Actions). Zariel turns her
magicalgaze toward one creature she can see within
120 feet of herand
commands it to combust. The target must succeed on aDC 26 Wisdom saving throw or take 22 (4dl0) fire damage.Te leport. Zariel uses her Teleport action.