1. Characters

Mordain d'Phiarlan

The Fleshweaver
NPC (Monster)
Khresht Rhyyl, the Forest of Flesh in Droaam

One of the most powerful wizards in Eberron is also one of the world’s most terrifying mortals. Mordain the Fleshweaver, the subject of dark fireside tales, lives in exile in western Droaam. Though the Twelve have attempted to imprison Mordain for his attempts to master the magic of the daelkyr, few have the power to directly oppose him.

Near Droaam’s border with the Shadow Marches, Mordain’s Hall reaches into the sky like a massive malformed arm. The area that surrounds it is filled with foulspawn and other horrors of Mordain’s own creation. His servants search constantly for ancient daelkyr sites within Droaam and the Shadow Marches, and some say that the mad mage hopes to reopen the gates to Xoriat.

More than two centuries ago, Mordain d’Phiarlan was one of the Twelve, but the ambitious mage began delving into forbidden lore, choosing to experiment with the magic of the daelkyr. Though he was captured, tried, and petrified in order to expedite his trip to the prison island of Dreadhold, Mordain escaped.

Source: Eberron Campaign Guide

Not many personal grudges jeopardize the Twelve, but when a powerful wizard feels slighted, the impact can be significant. The elf wizard Mordain was banished from the Twelve more than two centuries ago because of his disturbing experiments related to the magic of the daelkyr. He dwells in Droaam now, focused on his research and plotting revenge. His reach isn’t long, but agents of the Twelve avoid Droaam if at all possible.

Source: Eberron Rising from the Last War

The wizard Mordain (NE male elf transmuter 18) was banished from the Twelve (see page 245) more than two centuries ago because of the unorthodox and disturbing experiments he conducted. Mordain seeks to master the magic of the daelkyr, the fiendish beings who created the mind flayers and many of the other aberrations that haunt the depths of Khyber. Malformed flesh golems and strange, disfigured creatures—the results of his horrific experiments—patrol the land around his keep, Mordain’s Hall. A master transmuter and a deadly foe, Mordain is obsessed with his work and has no interest in the outside world. The Daughters of Sora Kell and their followers avoid the lands around Mordain’s tower, and he in turn leaves them alone.

Source: Eberron Campaign Setting

While the Twelve seeks to advance arcane science, its members are expected to abide by codes of ethical conduct. But there have always been wizards who believe that any sacrifice can be justified in the name of arcane progress. One of these is Mordain d'Phiarlan, now known as Mordain the Fleshweaver. As a provost of the Twelve, Mordain sought to advance the arts of transmutation in new and terrible ways. He delved into the forbidden studies of the Closed Circle of Sharn and sought to claim the powers of the daelkyr as his own. The council of the Twelve have sealed all records of his work, but people still whisper of the horrors found in his workshop when his research was finally exposed. Many wonder why he wasn't executed for these crimes; some say that his family connections were too powerful, while others suggest that the lords of the Twelve still hoped to benefit from his work -- even if they couldn't officially condone it.

Whatever the truth, Mordain was excoriated from House Phiarlan and banished from the Twelve in 797 YK. Thirty years later, rumors arose of a dark tower in the far wastes of western Breland, in the region now known as Droaam. Mordain had found a new home, and for the last two centuries he has remained in his sinister keep, shunning all contact with the outside world. The lands around his tower are filled with deadly monsters, and the tales say that these are his creations -- and that the horrors within his fortress are far, far worse.

Some say that Mordain has formed an alliance with the Daughters of Sora Kell, and that they are providing him with knowledge and resources in exchange for living weapons. But it is just as likely that the hags and the wizard have a simple truce: The hags leave Mordain alone, and he keeps his terrors from threatening their rule.

By now, Mordain should be 438 years old -- well into his twilight years. However, a few among the Twelve say that Mordain experimented on himself -- that while he is no lich, he has blended the blood of dragon and troll in his veins, and is no longer an elf in any meaningful sense of the word. Others say that Mordain is a feeble, decrepit creature, but that he never allows outsiders to see him -- he has an army of organic constructs, and projects his thoughts through these vessels. Should a party decide to face Mordain in person, the DM needs to decide whether Mordain is himself a monster -- or whether it is even possible to meet with the Fleshweaver.

Source: Dragonshard

History

Source: Dragon 364

Mordain the Fleshweaver is the subject of dozens of horrifying tales. One story describes an early effort to create a new dragonmarked house, which instead produced a line of foulspawn that devoured Mordain’s own family. Mothers tell their children that Mordain steals disobedient youths for his experiments, replacing them with perfect simulacra so their parents never know. Whatever the truth of these stories, Mordain was excoriated from House Phiarlan in 797 YK. According to the records of Salyon Syrralan d’Sivis, the Twelve tried to execute Mordain and failed. Salyon’s account states that Mordain was bathed in acid, burned at the stake, drowned, and even dismembered, and after each attempt “he rose again, his vigor unchecked and flesh rebound.” He was petrified and sent to Dreadhold, but he escaped before reaching the island prison; Salyon speculated that “no lesser mage could set his will over the flesh of Mordain.”

The first confirmed sighting of Blackroot—Mordain’s tower—occurred in 873 YK. In the heat of the Silver Purge, a troop of Aundairian templars pursued a few werewolves far to the south of modern Aundair. Weeks later, another patrol encountered a lone survivor, half-mad and delirious. He spoke of a tower “with blackened, leathery walls, twisted as the limb of a dragon reaching up to grasp the sun.” The soldier couldn’t account for his companions, and his own condition was testimony to the horrors he had seen. His upper torso had been fused to the lower body of what was posthumously confirmed to be a werewolf. His mental state quickly deteriorated and he soon died of self-inflicted wounds.

Blackroot’s location has long since been confirmed, though the tower is shielded from scrying and divination. Virtuous champions have set out to destroy the foul wizard and his works. Emissaries from the Five Nations sought his aid in the Last War, and mages have dreamed of stealing his secrets. However, few gaze on the face of Mordain and return unchanged . . . assuming they return at all.

June 25th, 2019 November 30th, 2022

Plot Hooks

Source: Dragon 364

Mordain matches one of the greatest mystical talents of the millennium with an utter disregard for the suffering of others. What could bring a group of adventurers to Blackroot? A wizard might hope to acquire the unknown rituals and potent implements locked away in the tower. A Brelish paladin could make it his quest to remove this dark shadow from the border of his homeland. Mordain need not be an enemy, though. He lacks empathy or morality, so he often inflicts terrible suffering when it furthers his quest for knowledge. However, Mordain has no interest in doing evil for its own sake, and any of his experiments could end up serving a greater good. His vast knowledge could be the key to averting a terrible catastrophe, and he might possess information or items that the PCs need to pursue a quest. A few examples are presented below.

  1. The adventurers have business in Khazaak Draal, realm of medusas and basilisks. It’s said that Mordain can provide adventurers with absolute protection against petrification. Mordain does nothing for free, and he has no interest in gold; he asks for a service or sacrifice before he bestows any of his gifts.
  2. Following an encounter with a previously unknown aberration, a PC is afflicted with a condition that defies all forms of mundane and magical treatment. At first it grants the victim useful powers, but it soon becomes clear that the affliction is turning the victim into an aberration—and that it will destroy his mind when it has wound its course. If anyone can lift this curse, it’s Mordain. Is this disease a relic of the daelkyr, or is it the work of Mordain?
  3. In addition to his knowledge of aberrations, Mordain is the foremost authority on aberrant dragonmarks. When a new wave of aberrant marks appears across Khorvaire, the Twelve sends the PCs to seek Mordain’s insight on the matter. Alternatively, an adventurer with an aberrant mark learns that the Fleshweaver has a hoard of aberrant focus items; perhaps she can earn one of these treasures by working for the wizard.
  4. House Jorasco hires the party to retrieve a viable sample of a particular plant from the lands around Mordain’s tower, or House Vadalis seeks one of the strange beasts Mordain has created. The party might not have to deal with Mordain, though removing things from the domain of the Fleshweaver can have unforeseen consequences.
  5. A colorful bird with four wings and two heads approaches a PC trained in Arcana and rituals. This beast carries a message from Mordain that summons the character to Blackroot. No reason is given. Does the Fleshweaver seek an apprentice? Does he have a gift to bestow—some creation he wishes to test in the world? Or has he foreseen the character’s epic destiny and now wishes to shape it for his own ends?
  6. A PC discovers that some of the people closest to him have been replaced by near-perfect simulacrums. This can only be the work of Mordain the Fleshweaver, but why has he done this? Can the heroes free the originals from Mordain’s tower?
  7. Many humanoid races have yet to be given a major role in the setting. If the DM wants to add a particular race to the setting, a city of these creatures can appear on the border of Droaam and Breland. This is Mordain’s work. Can the inhabitants come to terms with their new neighbors, or will minor skirmishes threaten to turn into a full-scale war between Breland and Droaam? Is this Mordain’s intent?
June 26th, 2019 November 30th, 2022