Nyths, otherwise known as wildfire by some barbarians of the North, were predatory aberrations that appeared as glowing balls of light. They were very similar to will-o'-wisps, and hence they were often mistaken for them.[1]
Description[]
A nyth was little more than a sphere of light, 2 to 4 feet (0.61 to 1.2 meters) in diameter, with hue and intensity both changing as it wished.[1] They were completely silent unless they chose to speak, and most spoke Common..[1]
Abilities[]
Nyths had a natural ability to shoot magic missiles from their bodies. They could fire one magic missile every dozen seconds or so, to a range of 110 feet (34 meters). They pulsed brightly when they did so. Moreover, magic missiles cast at them by other creatures were reflected back at their casters.[1]
Rather than being harmed by fire or lightning energies, nyths instead absorbed them. Such energy healed a nyth of its injuries, and when a certain amount was absorbed, it would split into two separate, smaller nyths. This caused bursts of light and sent a multitude of magic missiles flying in random directions, enough that all living creatures up to 30 feet (9.1 meters) away were hit by up to three.[1]
Like a wisp, a nyth could extinguish its glow, becoming invisible for anywhere from 12 to 48 seconds. Firing a magic missile ended their invisibility.[1]
Combat[]
They hunted for prey in daytime, preferring to hide in front of the sun to disguise their light. They attacked with their magic missiles and, if they got close enough, would bite their prey. They used their invisibility to get closer for a surprise attack, or else to escape unseen. They would deliberately fly into fires such as torches to heal any injuries they had.[1]
Nyths were also immune to any effect that influenced the mind or morale, including charms, compulsions, and phantasms, owing to their alien thought processes.[1]
Ecology[]
Nyths in the night.
Being quite similar, nyths and will-o'-wisps could communicate and were known to ally with each other.[1]
People in Faerun learned to avoid nyths, who would avoid them in turn. Some barbarians of the North believed them to be evil spirits. On occasion, nyths were employed as guardians, and defended their new homes against certain intruders with great pride.[1]
Homelands[]
In northwest Faerûn, nyths were known to dwell within the Mere of Dead Men,[3] the Rat Hills, and Ardeep Forest.[1]
History[]
A nyth once haunted the western fringe of the Forest of Lethyr, until a cabal of wizards defeated it in a battle that ended with the deaths of all involved. The city of Nyth in Thesk took its name from this nyth.[4]
In the Year of the Shield, 1367 DR, during the Rat Hills Conflagration of the Rat Hills garbage dump south of Waterdeep, Waterdhavian patrols spotted a group of will-o'-wisps and nyths amidst the fires and engaged them. Though two guards were slain, they drove off the wisps, but the nyths remained in the blaze. The fire caused the nyths to reproduce exponentially and explosively. They went on to populate the area, with four known in the Rat Hills and lots more in Ardeep Forest by 1372 DR.[1]
Appendix[]
References[]
- ↑ 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 1.11 1.12 1.13 1.14 James Wyatt, Rob Heinsoo (February 2001). Monster Compendium: Monsters of Faerûn. Edited by Duane Maxwell. (Wizards of the Coast), pp. 68–69. ISBN 0-7869-1832-2.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Monstrous Compendium included in Ed Greenwood, Steven E. Schend (July 1994). City of Splendors. (TSR, Inc.). ISBN 0-5607-6868-1.
- ↑ Ed Greenwood and Sean K. Reynolds (May 1999). “Wyrms of the North: Voaraghamanthar, "the Black Death"”. In Dave Gross ed. Dragon #258 (TSR, Inc.).
- ↑ Ed Greenwood, Sean K. Reynolds, Skip Williams, Rob Heinsoo (June 2001). Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting 3rd edition. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 209. ISBN 0-7869-1836-5.