The Ashen Man
CREATURE 23Variant ancient one
In the Dimension of Time, creatures clad in tattered robes float between encapsulated bubbles of still, captured moments, untethered to any other place, unspeaking and unseeing. The few mortals to meet these enigmatic, faceless creatures have never known them to identify by any name other than the ancient ones, seemingly holding no identity (or no identity they wish to share) beyond their relationship with time.
The ancients profess to have always existed in the Dimension of Time, and for time to have always existed in the Great Beyond. Most reside in Stethelos, the storied city at the center of time, though they're also found wandering the Void, crossing the strangest corners of the Maelstrom where it lies between other planes, and occasionally, venturing into dark corners of the Universe. They serve at the will of Tawil at'Umr, the All in One and the One in All, an avatar of Yog-Sothoth lurking deep within time as Stethelos's caretaker. Though the ancient ones resemble their master in stature and attire, and though none would describe Tawil at'Umr as anything other than ancient in origin, most scholars consider "ancient one" a classification of its own separate from that of Great Old One, and Tawil at'Umr is definitively counted among the Great Old Ones by all who know it.
Where Yog-Sothoth is an embodiment of all space and time, an entity who concerns himself with guarding cosmic secrets, the ancient ones are philosophers and mystics seeking ever more enlightenment. They search, have searched, and will search across time indefinitely and, having found entropy and disorder, conclude this to be the Great Beyond's ultimate purpose. When a new creature dawns, it's pristine and whole—perfectly ordered—for but a single moment before it can be eroded by Pharasma's poison, accumulating decay, change, and chaos, until finally it reaches its ending, when time leaves a twilight creature broken and gone. Law and chaos, the ancient ones believe, aren't opposing or even separate forces, but a single expression of reality viewed from two angles, different from each other only in time.
How Old is Time?
Lying in parallel with the Great Beyond with a presence felt on nearly every plane, from the Inner Sphere to the Outer Rifts, the Dimension of Time holds too many secrets for a reality so seemingly omnipresent. Can a world truly be said to begin before time is there to start? Scholars say Pharasma is the oldest being in the Great Beyond, a survivor of some previous multiverse's collapse, but does the Lady of Graves predate time, or did she bring the Dimension of Time with her so history could begin everything anew?
Into the Dimension of Time
The Dimension of Time is one of the most difficult and complex realms in the Great Beyond to travel to, with restrictions on its access limiting all but the most powerful of planar travelers from visiting it. At the GM's discretion, though, items looted from an ancient one, or even just fragments torn from their robes, could function as the planar key needed to allow a PC to use interplanar teleport to access the Dimension of Time.
When the Ashen Man turns his attention to a world, a projection of that planet manifests among the branches of the doomsday scepter he carries. He can wield this device in combat as a greatclub. If he releases his grip on the doomsday scepter or it's disarmed, it vanishes, after which the Ashen Man can cause it to appear in his hand again as a free action with the concentrate trait during his turn.
The ancient one can predict the presence of a creature through supernatural insight into chaotic probabilities and chance and builds a perception of reality from this information, allowing them to "see" as a precise sense in the listed range. Invisible creatures are visible to them, but veil of privacy prevents a creature from being detected via entropy sense automatically (without a counteract check).
A constant spell affects the monster without the monster needing to cast it, and its duration is unlimited. If a constant spell gets counteracted, the monster can reactivate it by spending the normal spellcasting actions the spell requires.
The Ashen Man is repulsed by an orderly reality. Whenever the Ashen Man sees a creature that was injured restored to its full Hit Points, he becomes obsessed with correcting the defiance of entropy. He takes 8d6 mental damage and can't use actions with the concentrate trait until he's dealt damage to that creature that reduces their Hit Point total from its maximum value.
120 feet. Wait long enough and reality always proves that all things begin so they can end. The Ashen Man is empowered whenever this belief is vindicated. When a creature in the aura gains the Dying condition or increases its dying value, the Ashen Man becomes Quickened for 1 round. He can use the extra action only to Stride or Strike.
The Ashen Man's untethered relationship with time gives him an additional reaction each round, though he still can't use more than one reaction on the same triggering action.
The creature treats its saving throws with the associated save as one degree of success better than it rolled. This is not cumulative with other effects that change their degree of success, like the incapacitation trait (except for rolling a natural 1 or 20). Each time the monster gains mythic resilience, choose one save. The ability should apply to the creature's highest saves first.
An ancient one doesn't breathe and is immune to effects that require breathing (such as inhaled poisons).
Whenever a creature targets the ancient one with a mental effect, that creature takes 8d8 mental damage (DC 43 basic Will save). On a critical failure, the creature also becomes Confused for 1d4 rounds.
Creatures the ancient one affected with a mental effect or communicated with telepathically within the last round can hijack the ancient one's telepathic connection; they automatically ignore the ancient one's immunity to auditory, emotion, and visual effects until the end of their current turn. They can additionally spend 1 Mythic Point as a free action to reach through the connection to manipulate the ancient one's mind, ignoring the ancient one's mythic resilience on Will saving throws.
A creature with void healing draws health from void energy rather than vitality energy. It is damaged by vitality damage and is not healed by vitality healing effects. It does not take void damage, and it is healed by void effects that heal undead.
When the Ashen Man hits a creature with a doomsday scepter Strike, he inflicts the cursed destiny held in trust for all creatures who live: a promise of future death. The target must succeed at a DC 46 Fortitude save or become Drained 2. On a critical failure, the target additionally becomes Doomed 1 or increases its current doomed value by 1.
Time and entropy end all things, even the undead. When the ancient one's Strikes hit a creature with void healing, they deal vitality damage instead of void damage. The ancient one can't use their Strikes to restore Hit Points to living or undead creatures.
The Ashen Man holds aloft his doomsday scepter then swings it violently downward as he rips the quintessence of the planes apart in a 60-foot line, creating difficult terrain and dealing 24d6 spirit damage to each creature in the area (DC 46 basic Fortitude save). The Ashen Man can't Unravel Reality again for 1d4 rounds.
Critical Success The creature is unaffected and can break the telepathic contact, dismissing the vision.
Success The creature becomes Frightened 1 and Slowed 1 for 1 round by the unnerving vision.
Failure The creature is filled with dread and compelled to answer the Ashen Man's question, becoming Frightened 2 and slowed 1 for 1 minute. It can't reduce its frightened value below 1 for as long as it remains slowed.
Critical Failure As failure, but Frightened 4 and Slowed 2. In addition, the creature is Fleeing for 1 round.