Xenda-Dran's Array Heroic Tier

Slaads are known for their imposing presence and their unpredictability, yet the legendary Xenda-Dran struck fear into even the mightiest of his kindred. Sages say that during Dran's metamorphosis into what should have been a green slaad, he instead became something else, a creature that drew power from both chaos and shadow. This new Dran was quickly recruited to the service of the slaad Ygorl, Lord of Entropy, as a sorcerous assassin.     
    Few killers have shed more blood across the worlds than Xenda-Dran. The slaad took great pleasure in assassinating powerful enemies, and with each slaying his powers grew stronger. The mightiest denizens of the Elemental Chaos found their existences cut short as they were strangled by their own shadows or saw their own flesh stripped from their bones by discordant energies.
    Xenda-Dran began to collect trophies from his greatest kills, and he enchanted them into armaments that made him even more formidable.
✦     From the hands of a rival assassin, the babau Timmevinc, the slaad crafted grisly gauntlets that channeled the demon's corrosive power.
✦     When Dran defeated a pack of ice devils bent on Ygorl's death in the middle of a deadly storm, he claimed the leader's horn for a special focus.
✦     The hides of sixty-six different elemental denizens were sewn into his cloak, including the skins of slaad warriors, the scales of demons, and the preserved flesh of myriad archons.
✦     The djinn lord Abisali-agharr sat in his fortified palace in the clouds, surrounded by mighty elemental warriors. Still, he could not find safety from Xenda-Dran's blades, and his soul was trapped in the assassin's magic ring.
✦     Even the most powerful slaads who crossed Dran met grisly fates—Dran's boots were made from the remains of the void-bending black and gray slaads, reminding his fellows that he found them fit only for treading on.

The legends are unclear on how Xenda-Dran met his end. Some say his final adversary was none other than the enlightened githzerai master, Liricosa. Most believe that Dran was destroyed in their confrontation, but some monks claim that Liricosa's transcendent wisdom taught even a slaad the way of order. They believe that Xenda-Dran transformed one final time, into one of Liricosa's pupils.
    Whatever truly happened, Xenda-Dran's armaments were scattered throughout the worlds. From time to time, the items resurface, spreading death and destruction before disappearing again, inspiring legends as well as the crafting of many imitations.

Xenda-Dran's Array Items

Xenda-Dran's Array Benefits

Babau GauntletsLevel 10+ Uncommon

These clawed, demon-hide gauntlets ooze the corrosive blood of a babau on command.

Hands Slot

Property

You can use your Dexterity modifier in place of your Strength modifier when making a melee basic attack.

Attack Power (Acid) ✦ Encounter (Immediate Reaction)

Trigger: You are bloodied by a melee attack, or you are hit by a melee attack while bloodied.

Effect: The triggering attacker takes acid damage equal to one-half the item's level.

Ring of the Djinn SlayerLevel 11+ Uncommon

This gold and silver ring feels lighter than air and seems to be constantly crackling with static electricity.

Ring Slot

Property

When you deal untyped damage with your assassin's shroud power or your assassin's strike power, you can choose to make the damage cold, thunder, or lightning damage instead.

Utility Power (Varies) ✦ Daily (Minor Action)

Effect: Choose cold, thunder, or lightning. Until the end of your next turn, any enemy that hits or misses you takes 1d10 damage of the chosen type.

Level 21: 2d10 damage.

Hailstorm Ki FocusLevel 8+ Uncommon

This ice devil horn is inscribed with glowing runes. When you meditate upon it, you visualize yourself enduring the merciless ice and lightning of a mighty hailstorm.

Implement: Ki focus

Enhancement Bonus: Attack rolls and damage rolls

Critical: +1d6 cold and lightning damage per plus

Property

If you roll a natural 1 on an attack roll using this ki focus, you take cold and lightning damage equal to the item's level.

Utility Power ✦ Encounter (Minor Action)

Effect: Until the end of your next turn, your melee attacks using this ki focus deal 1d6 extra cold and lightning damage.

Rift Dancer BootsLevel 8+ Uncommon

These mismatched boots look somewhat unremarkable on the outside, but on the inside they appear to be filled with an unnaturally black void.

Feet Slot

Utility Power (Teleportation) ✦ Encounter (Move Action)

Requirement: You must have used an attack power that allows you to move this turn.

Effect: You teleport up to your speed.

Level 18: You can use this power twice per encounter.

Elemental Ward CloakLevel 9+ Uncommon

This midnight blue cloak has many different and colorful hides stitched into its lining.

Neck Slot

Enhancement Bonus: Fortitude, Reflex, and Will

Property

You gain an item bonus to all defenses against attacks with the acid, fire, cold, thunder, or lightning keywords. The bonus equals the enhancement bonus of this cloak.

Published in Dragon Magazine 408.