In Fairy Form

Mota appears as a small, delicate creature with bluish hair adorned with wildflowers. She is always laughing, behaves carefreely, and loves asking naive questions. Her playful demeanor hides a dark essence. Morgotha takes particular delight in observing suffering and gains immense pleasure from orchestrating complex emotional scenarios she herself creates.

When exposed, she transforms into hag: her skin becomes gray and wrinkled, her hair dirty and tangled, with visible bones around her neck, and her eyes of different colors. Her voice turns rough and menacing.

Mota/Morgotha Mechanics and Strategy

Goal

Morgotha has created a complex enchantment around the lake to feed on suffering. She manipulates situations to force heroes into losing one another, experiencing the bitterness of loss and feelings of helplessness. Her ultimate goal is to acquire a single tear from a hero, which encapsulates the full power of their emotions.

Actions

Initial Contact

Fairy Mota draws the heroes’ attention with her carefree behavior. She asks many naive questions, sometimes not giving them the chance to answer, and admires how strong, beautiful, and intelligent they are. She does not mention the slab but hints at its existence.

If the heroes mention the slab, she may feign surprise and offer to help, provided they were kind to her. In return, she will ask them to fetch a flower from that hill over there. If the heroes refuse, she might pout, call them “meanies,” and sulk, but will not interfere. If they ignore her and head straight for the lake, she watches them silently.

Trap

Upon contact with the lake’s water, monsters appear matching the number of heroes. Each monster is linked to a specific hero and reflects any damage dealt by that hero back onto them.

  • Initiative: Each monster takes its turn immediately after its linked hero.
  • Reflection: Monsters reflect the damage they receive on their turn.
  • Defeat: If a monster is killed, a beam of energy strikes the linked hero, reducing their health to zero, giving them two failed death saving throws, and imposing disadvantage on future death saves.

If the heroes attack Mota during the fight, she transforms into Morgotha, and the monsters immediately dissolve, transferring all accumulated damage to the heroes.

Reaction to Hero Actions

If the heroes expose Mota, she transforms into Morgotha, insulting them and trying to scare them away from “her lake.” To uncover her true nature, the heroes can use Detect Magic (DC 30) or make an Arcana check (DC 30) to realize she is a powerful entity.

If the heroes hesitate too long or avoid touching the water, Morgotha summons the monsters at her discretion. The fight continues until only one hero remains standing or after five rounds, after which the monsters vanish.

After the Fight

  • If anyone survives: Morgotha weeps alongside the heroes and asks for a single tear to resurrect the fallen. Survivors begin to realize that they themselves killed their comrades, and the dead are truly gone. At least one hero always survives.
  • If a tear is given: Morgotha transforms into hag, putting the survivors to sleep and stealing their memories of her. The dead heroes are resurrected, but those who gave their tears develop a subconscious fear of fairies and hags. Fairies and hags gain advantage on attacks against them until the effect is removed with Greater Restoration. They also temporarily lose their memory of the events at the lake.
  • If no tear is given: The heroes can attempt a resurrection ritual if they know how.

Consequences of the Encounter

Victory over Morgotha:

  • The heroes gain access to the slab.
  • Morgotha disappears, leaving a strange rune on one hero. The rune faintly pulses in the presence of magical creatures, especially fairies and hags.

Failure or Agreement to Give a Tear:

  • The heroes lose their memory of the encounter but remain alive.
  • The hero who gave the tear develops a subconscious fear of fairies and hags (removable with Greater Restoration).

Additional Idea: A “Parting Joke”

If the heroes leave the lake without interacting with Morgotha, the slab, or the monsters, she sneaks one of the flowers from her hair into the hero’s belongings. The flower emits a faint violet glow and serves as a beacon, allowing Morgotha to return to them in the future.

Type: Fairy (Infernal Entity), Large Humanoid
Alignment: Chaotic Evil
Armor Class: 18 (Natural Armor + Magical Protection)
Hit Points: 210 (20d10 + 100)
Speed: 30 ft. (Fly 50 ft., Magic)

Attributes:

STRDEXCONINTWISCHA
16 (+3)20 (+5)20 (+5)18 (+4)14 (+2)22 (+6)

Saving Throws:

Dexterity +10, Constitution +9, Intelligence +8, Charisma +11

Skills:

Deception +11, Persuasion +11, Perception +7, Arcana +9, Stealth +10

Resistances:

Necrotic, Cold, Bludgeoning

Condition Immunities:

Charmed, Sleep

Immunities:

Poison (damage and condition), Intimidation

Senses:

Darkvision 120 ft., Magical Awareness
Passive Perception: 17

Languages:

Common, Sylvan, Infernal

Features:

Fairy Form: Can magically change appearance. Can only be detected with magic (DC 30).

Magical Protection: Disadvantage on all ranged attacks against her.

Legendary Resistance (3/Day): Can choose to succeed on a failed saving throw.

Magic:

Spell Save DC: 19 | Spell Attack Bonus: +11

Combat Features:

Claw Attack:

  • Attack Bonus: +10 to hit
  • Damage: 2d10 + 5 (slashing) + 3d8 (necrotic)

Fairy Dust:

  • Effect Radius: 15 ft.
  • Saving Throw: Constitution (DC 19)
  • Effect: Target falls asleep for 1 minute.

Song of Despair:

  • Effect Radius: 30 ft.
  • Effect: Disadvantage on attacks and ability checks for 1 minute.

Legendary Actions (3/round):

Shadow Strike: Deals 2d8 necrotic damage to a creature within 30 ft.

Sandstorm: Creates magical darkness in a 20-ft. radius for 1 minute.

Regeneration: Heals herself for 20 HP.