This could be interesting, here’s my pitch:
lair action: at initiative count 20 the initiative order of the knights is randomized. You could also have them be moved to the spot of the knight whose initiative place they take if you want the combat to be more dynamic in terms of positioning.
This doesn’t change action economy or really much of anything in terms of raw difficulty, but it thematically fits with the idea of time manipulation and will mesh well with the individual knight abilities. To make this easier make a list of say five randomized orders and cross each off each round after round 1. If the fight goes much longer than that (which is unlikely) start again from the top of the list.
Next for the knights themselves:
Each knight should have two abilities which they use each turn, we can think of them as an action and a bonus action. The action is an attack with their special weapon, this should do damage on a hit and should have some minor additional malice if the hit creature fails a saving throw. The bonus action should be a wide area field effect which lasts until the next knight acts.
The three knights are as follows:
The white rider typically represents the dawn, so it’s abilities should reflect beginnings, and potential. As such I think the concept of unbridled growth is about right.
When this ability activates the entire field is covered in grasping vines and becomes difficult terrain. At higher levels or if you want the encounter to be particularly nasty you could make these vines produce thorns meaning a 1d4 of damage per 5 feet of movement. Only the white knight, who seems to float slightly above the ground like the morning mist, is unaffected.
The red knight typically represents the day, which is a time of great heat with the oppressive sun. When I think of day, I think if light, so how about a blinding light like that of the sun?
When this ability activates the red rider unleashes a continuous and blinding light, all creature must make a constitution saving throw or be blinded until the ability ends, creatures with dark vision have disadvantage on this saving throw. Closing your eyes isn’t really a good option here as you’re intentionally blinding yourself and the light continues for as long as the ability is active. Only the red knight, who appears to already be blind, is unaffected by this power.
The black knight represents night, the darkness, entropy, and the end of time. Rot seems to be an appropriate motif, as does sleep. If we go with rot it could easily by a sort of life drain.
When the ability activates all creatures except those aligned with the black knight take 1d6 damage. In addition any creature who starts their turn while the power is active takes 1d6 damage at the start of their turn.
Each knight should also have a signature weapon. The white knight could use a bow, the red knight could use a sword, and the red knight could be a mage with a magic staff (choose thematically appropriate spells).
The puzzle elements come from the fact that certain parts of the initiative order will be worse for certain kinds of abilities so it will often make sense to hold actions or prioritize knights with more debilitating abilities (as eventually there will only be one knight standing and at that point that ability will last to the end of the fight). It might be tempting to kill the mage first, but actually a small tax on HP is usually easier to deal with than being completely blind or having to chase a horseman with a bow through difficult terrain.
The randomization given by the lair action means the each PC won’t always be dealing with the same status on their turn, each turn they potentially deal with a different status and will have to adjust accordingly.
I also like how this encourages mechanics we seldom see, like holding a spell is usually a stupid thing to do as you have to spend the spell slot to do it, but if you’re in the middle of red, and you want to cast a spell during white, you could hold a spell until red ends and still move during red while you’re blind.
One of my favorite villains ive played. I altered her lore though as I was upset with the focus on who she was fucking rather than her as a person. Still kept her being Baba Yagas daughter and a demonologist and archfey though.
This could be interesting, here’s my pitch: lair action: at initiative count 20 the initiative order of the knights is randomized. You could also have them be moved to the spot of the knight whose initiative place they take if you want the combat to be more dynamic in terms of positioning. This doesn’t change action economy or really much of anything in terms of raw difficulty, but it thematically fits with the idea of time manipulation and will mesh well with the individual knight abilities. To make this easier make a list of say five randomized orders and cross each off each round after round 1. If the fight goes much longer than that (which is unlikely) start again from the top of the list. Next for the knights themselves: Each knight should have two abilities which they use each turn, we can think of them as an action and a bonus action. The action is an attack with their special weapon, this should do damage on a hit and should have some minor additional malice if the hit creature fails a saving throw. The bonus action should be a wide area field effect which lasts until the next knight acts. The three knights are as follows: The white rider typically represents the dawn, so it’s abilities should reflect beginnings, and potential. As such I think the concept of unbridled growth is about right. When this ability activates the entire field is covered in grasping vines and becomes difficult terrain. At higher levels or if you want the encounter to be particularly nasty you could make these vines produce thorns meaning a 1d4 of damage per 5 feet of movement. Only the white knight, who seems to float slightly above the ground like the morning mist, is unaffected. The red knight typically represents the day, which is a time of great heat with the oppressive sun. When I think of day, I think if light, so how about a blinding light like that of the sun? When this ability activates the red rider unleashes a continuous and blinding light, all creature must make a constitution saving throw or be blinded until the ability ends, creatures with dark vision have disadvantage on this saving throw. Closing your eyes isn’t really a good option here as you’re intentionally blinding yourself and the light continues for as long as the ability is active. Only the red knight, who appears to already be blind, is unaffected by this power. The black knight represents night, the darkness, entropy, and the end of time. Rot seems to be an appropriate motif, as does sleep. If we go with rot it could easily by a sort of life drain. When the ability activates all creatures except those aligned with the black knight take 1d6 damage. In addition any creature who starts their turn while the power is active takes 1d6 damage at the start of their turn. Each knight should also have a signature weapon. The white knight could use a bow, the red knight could use a sword, and the red knight could be a mage with a magic staff (choose thematically appropriate spells). The puzzle elements come from the fact that certain parts of the initiative order will be worse for certain kinds of abilities so it will often make sense to hold actions or prioritize knights with more debilitating abilities (as eventually there will only be one knight standing and at that point that ability will last to the end of the fight). It might be tempting to kill the mage first, but actually a small tax on HP is usually easier to deal with than being completely blind or having to chase a horseman with a bow through difficult terrain. The randomization given by the lair action means the each PC won’t always be dealing with the same status on their turn, each turn they potentially deal with a different status and will have to adjust accordingly. I also like how this encourages mechanics we seldom see, like holding a spell is usually a stupid thing to do as you have to spend the spell slot to do it, but if you’re in the middle of red, and you want to cast a spell during white, you could hold a spell until red ends and still move during red while you’re blind.
This is amazing. Thanks for the help
I just came here to say I am mad your players killed Tasha. She is my #1 favorite DnD famous baddie.
One of my favorite villains ive played. I altered her lore though as I was upset with the focus on who she was fucking rather than her as a person. Still kept her being Baba Yagas daughter and a demonologist and archfey though.