Night Hag

Hideous women with clawed hands and feet, dark blue-violet skin, jet black talons and hair, and red glowing eyes

OSRIC

Armor Class	10
Hit Dice	8
Number Encountered	1d2
Attacks	1
Damage	2d6
Move	90-ft
Alignment	Neutral evil
Intelligence	Exceptional
XP	7/1,850+10/hp
Size	Man-sized
Frequency	Very rare
Lair	Nil

Night hags resemble hideous women with clawed hands and feet. Their skin is dark blue-violet, their talons and lanky hair jet, their eyes red with a baneful glow.

Night hags are numerous in their own region of Hades, but seldom found elsewhere. If success seems likely, they will attack any good aligned creature. They come to the material plane to slay very selfishly evil people, whose souls in Hades form soul worms (q.v.: a valuable demonic and diabolical commodity).

Finding such a victim, a night hag casts a sleep spell that affects humans even up to 12th level who fail a saving throw vs magic, then strangles the sleeper. If the spell fails, she returns nightly while æthereal, which she can assume at will. By entering the victim’s dreams, the hag makes him (or her) æthereal as well. Each ride until dawn by the hag (who cannot be unseated from the unfortunate’s back) permanently drains a point of constitution. When all points are drained, the victim dies and the night hag carries the soul to Hades.

Special Abilities

Sleep Spell: Casts a sleep spell that affects humans even up to 12th level who fail a saving throw vs magic, then strangles the sleeper.

Æthereal Form: Can assume æthereal form at will. Returns nightly while æthereal to enter victim’s dreams, making them æthereal as well.

Constitution Drain: Each ride until dawn by the hag (who cannot be unseated from the unfortunate’s back) permanently drains a point of constitution. When all points are drained, the victim dies and the night hag carries the soul to Hades.

Spell-like Abilities: Can cast a magic missile spell for 2d8 damage or a ray of enfeeblement thrice per day each.

Know Alignment: Has the power of knowing a creature’s alignment.

Polymorph Self: Can polymorph herself at will.

Immunities: Invulnerable to charm, fear, sleep, and cold- or fire-based spells. To harm them, a weapon must be of iron or silver or enchanted to +3 or better.

Gate: In extremis, a night hag can try (succeeding half the time) to gate in an ally, with equal chances of a barbed devil or class A demon appearing. She must then reward the devil or demon with a soul worm, a price the night hags will be loath to pay.

Astral Projection: While she has a special periapt she has forged in Hades, a night hag can astrally project her body at will. Upon losing the periapt, she can still depart the plane she is in at the time.

Periapt: This periapt gives the possessor +2 on all saving throws, and cures diseases the possessor contracts. With each use by a good creature, the periapt decays; after ten uses, it vanishes.