Bysalindub

Bysalindub

The Lie Behind the Veil

Old Green Dragon

Size/Type: Huge Dragon (Air)
Hit Dice: 27d12+162 (337 hp)
Initiative: +4
Speed: 40 ft., fly 150 ft. (poor), swim 40 ft.
Armor Class: 33 (–2 size, +4 Dex, +21 natural), touch 12, flat-footed 29
Base Attack/Grapple: +27/+43
Attack: Bite +33 melee (2d8+12)
Full Attack: Bite +33 melee (2d8+12), 2 claws +31 melee (2d6+6), 2 wings +31 melee (1d8+6), tail slap +31 melee (2d6+18)
Space/Reach: 15 ft./10 ft. (15 ft. with bite)
Special Attacks: Breath weapon, frightful presence, spell-like abilities, spells
Special Qualities: Blindsense 60 ft., darkvision 120 ft., low-light vision, immunity to sleep and paralysis, DR 10/magic, SR 22, keen senses
Saves: Fort +25, Ref +19, Will +22
Abilities: Str 35, Dex 10, Con 23, Int 20, Wis 21, Cha 24
Skills: Bluff +38, Diplomacy +40, Disguise +32 (+34 acting), Gather Information +36, Intimidate +34, Knowledge (arcana) +32, Knowledge (local) +32, Listen +33, Sense Motive +35, Spot +33
Feats: Alertness, Flyby Attack, Hover, Improved Initiative, Multiattack, Persuasive, Snatch, Wingover
Environment: Temperate forests and overgrown wetlands
Organization: Solitary or “Circle” (manipulated agents, dominated pawns, and disposable fools)
Challenge Rating: 16
Treasure: Triple standard (hoarded, scattered, and stolen under false pretenses)
Alignment: Lawful Evil
Advancement: 28–39 HD (Huge), 40–54 HD (Gargantuan)
Level Adjustment: —

Special Attacks

Breath Weapon (Su): 60 ft. cone of corrosive gas, 12d6 acid damage, Reflex DC 30 half; usable every 1d4 rounds.

Frightful Presence (Ex): 240 ft., Will DC 31 negates; creatures with fewer HD become shaken for 4d6 rounds.

Spell-Like Abilities (CL 9th):
At will – suggestion (DC 22), charm person (DC 20), detect thoughts (DC 21)
3/day – dominate person (DC 24), hallucinatory terrain (DC 22)

Spells Known (6/7/7/7/6/5/3; save DC 17 + spell level)

0 – detect magic, ghost sound, message, prestidigitation, read magic, resistance
1st – charm person, disguise self, silent image, obscuring mist, mage armor
2nd – mirror image, suggestion, detect thoughts, invisibility
3rd – glibness, major image, nondetection
4th – polymorph self, charm monster
5th – dominate person, false vision
6th – mislead

Description

Bysalindub is long and narrow, her body stretched rather than built, with a lean, sinewy frame that looks used rather than maintained over the centuries. She lacks the heavy bulk common to her kind, and instead presents a form that appears worn into shape by time, where every movement is deliberate and controlled rather than driven by raw physical dominance.

Her scales are an uneven, dulled green marked by faint yellowing along their edges, with dark, vein-like patterns visible beneath older plates that hint at age rather than strength. Several scales sit crooked or chipped, and there is no uniform sheen across her body, giving her a hide that appears neglected rather than preserved. When she moves, there is a faint friction, a subtle and unpleasant sound of scale against scale that betrays the condition beneath the surface.

Her wings remain functional but bear the marks of long use, their membranes lined with thin, healed tears that form a rough, patchwork pattern rather than anything resembling majesty. While they carry her without difficulty, they do not inspire awe, and instead reinforce the impression of something that has endured rather than something that has been cared for.

Her face is carefully arranged into something meant to be trusted, and this is where the deception takes its most effective form. She lowers her head when speaking and stills herself completely when listening, maintaining a calm, attentive gaze that suggests patience and understanding. Every aspect of her expression is controlled with intent, crafted to present a version of herself that invites confidence rather than fear.

At closer range, however, the strain of that control becomes evident to those who are perceptive enough to notice it. Her stillness is too rigid to be natural, her gaze lingers just a fraction too long, and her attention feels less like warmth and more like focused assessment. She does not listen because she cares, but because she measures, weighs, and prepares.

Lore

Bysalindub does not act from refinement, philosophy, or any elevated sense of purpose, and it would be a mistake to attribute such qualities to her behavior. She is driven entirely by self-interest, tempered only by a patience that allows her to extract greater value over time rather than seeking immediate gain.

She involves herself in the lives of others not to guide or uplift them, but to position them in ways that will later serve her needs. She offers advice that works, provides support that stabilizes, and shares insight that leads to genuine success, allowing those under her influence to rise in power, security, or reputation in ways they could not have achieved alone.

This improvement is deliberate, because she understands that something built high is far more valuable when it falls. At the moment when loss will be greatest, she acts in whatever way ensures collapse, whether through a final suggestion, the withholding of guidance she has trained others to depend upon, or the revelation of truths she has allowed to remain hidden until the worst possible time.

She does not rely on constant deception, and in fact prefers to tell enough truth to establish trust that will carry her influence forward without resistance. Once that trust is secured, the rest unfolds naturally, as her victims make the very choices that lead to their undoing.

She has no interest in the aftermath beyond what it provides her, and she does not linger to witness suffering out of cruelty or satisfaction. What matters is that the outcome serves her, and that the moment of collapse occurs exactly when it will cost the most.

Tactics

Bysalindub begins nearly all encounters through deception, typically adopting a humanoid form that presents her as useful, informed, and reliable to those she seeks to influence. Through the use of glibness, suggestion, and charm, she establishes control early in an interaction, gathering information and identifying vulnerabilities before revealing anything of her true nature.

She isolates her targets socially long before she ever attempts to isolate them physically, ensuring that when conflict arises, her opponents are already divided in trust, understanding, or purpose. This groundwork allows her to dictate the flow of events even before combat begins, shaping the circumstances to favor her position.

When forced into open conflict, she relies on confusion and control rather than brute force, using hallucinatory terrain, illusion, and misdirection to separate opponents and dismantle coordinated resistance. She commits only when the advantage is clearly hers and withdraws without hesitation if that advantage shifts, as she has no attachment to pride or dominance that would compel her to remain in a losing fight.

Her approach to battle reflects her nature as a whole, where outcomes matter far more than appearances, and survival with advantage is always preferable to victory at cost.

Physical Presence

Bysalindub presents as something that has endured rather than something that has aged well, and there is a persistent sense that her form reflects use rather than care. Her lean and uneven body carries the visible marks of time, and nothing about her suggests preservation, reverence, or dignity.

The calm demeanor she projects is not a natural state, but a maintained one that requires constant control to uphold the illusion she presents to others. This controlled stillness is the foundation of her deception, allowing her to appear safe, measured, and trustworthy to those who do not look closely enough.

Those who do look closely, however, begin to see the effort behind it, and in that effort lies the clearest indication of what she truly is.

Kelwyn’s Notes

There are creatures one studies from a distance, and there are creatures one studies with care, and Bysalindub belongs quite decisively to the latter category because she does not present herself as something to be feared, but rather as something to be trusted. I confess, with no small measure of irritation at myself, that I did not meet her with the level of suspicion such a creature deserves, as she presented herself as something tempered by time, possessed of patience, and inclined, so I believed, toward quiet guidance rather than overt domination, which made the deception all the more effective.

What she is, in truth, is neither subtle in motive nor elevated in purpose, and any attempt to frame her behavior as philosophical would be an error in judgment. Bysalindub is not a creature of deep moral reasoning, but rather one of appetite that has learned the advantage of restraint, allowing her to take more later by delaying gratification in the present. She does not construct deceptions for the sake of artistry or intellectual satisfaction, but because they yield greater returns when allowed to unfold over time, and the illusion of care she presents is simply the most efficient method by which she secures that outcome.

Her impact upon those who encounter her is rarely immediate, and it is precisely this delayed effect that makes it so complete and so difficult to resist once it has taken hold. She embeds herself within moments of vulnerability or ambition, offering precisely what is needed to ensure growth, stability, or success, and in doing so creates a reliance that deepens with each interaction. Those who fall under her influence begin to trust her judgment, to seek her counsel, and to incorporate her presence into their decision-making, until the moment arrives when that trust becomes the instrument of their undoing.

I will not detail the specific circumstances of my own encounter with Bysalindub, as such detail would add little of value to this record and would serve only to satisfy curiosity rather than provide instruction. It is sufficient to state that I extended trust where I should have exercised scrutiny, and she accepted that trust with the practiced ease of a creature that has done so countless times before, which led to a moment of realization that was neither dramatic nor theatrical, but instead quiet and absolute in its clarity.

If there is a lesson to be drawn from this, and I believe there must be, it is that one should be exceedingly wary of that which presents itself as helpful without requiring cost or effort in return, as such offerings are rarely without consequence. Bysalindub does not demand payment upfront, nor does she rely on threats or coercion to secure compliance, but instead remains present, offers assistance, and waits until the moment arrives when the cost can be collected in full, at which point it becomes clear that the debt was never optional, only deferred.

I advise, therefore, not only vigilance but restraint, as it is not enough to recognize danger if one has already accepted its terms. One must be cautious in what is accepted, measured in what is trusted, and deliberate in what is relied upon, because in the case of Bysalindub, stillness is not kindness, patience is not virtue, and the absence of immediate cost is not evidence of goodwill, but rather the clearest indication that something far worse has simply been delayed.