Avatar of the Lantern King

The Lantern King is one of the Eldest-a pantheon of demigods whose rule over the First World is one of capriciousness that can be at times playful, enigmatic, bizarre, or even downright mean. For the most part, the Lantern King's plots and shenanigans tilt toward the cruel, and while he's long been a master at riding the proverbial razor's edge between mischief and outright sadism (if only by conserving his cruelest plans for those who invite that cruelty by being cruel themselves, as in the case of Nyrissa), his latest actions have certainly drawn the notice of the other Eldest. As such, they have largely distanced themselves from him, and as a result of this, any defeat the PCs deal to him in this adventure goes not only unpunished by the Lantern King's demigod siblings but will even be enforced, in a manner of speaking, by the other Eldest so that the Lantern King won't seek continued revenge against the PCs for their victories. Whether or not this also serves to teach the capricious eldest a lesson to temper his need for mischief with occasional bouts of patience and even mercy, only time can tell.

The Lantern King's direct interactions with the PCs in this campaign are via an avatar-a powerful proxy created from himself to rule over the Lantern Kingdom. While this avatar isn't as powerful as the Lantern King himself, it remains the single most dangerous foe the party faces in Kingmaker. As a demigod, the Lantern King is an even more dangerous foe, equivalent in power to a 29th-level creature and possessing abilities beyond the scope of the core experience in the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game. Some of these abilities, such as the power to manipulate reality, to create powerful artifacts like the Apology, and to build entire demiplane realms like the Hunting Dream or the Lantern Kingdom, manifest during the course of the Kingmaker Adventure Path not as rules content but as story elements the PCs will need to endure-see Chapter 11 of this book for more details.

In combat, the Lantern King's avatar uses flight to remain out of melee for the first several rounds of combat, relying upon his spells to soften up the party before using his Strikes against them. He's fond of taking actions that disrupt, torment, or mock the PCs rather than those specifically tailored to maximize damage. For example, he often uses Playful Switch to swap a flying PC in the air with one who's on the ground and can't fly, or he uses illusions to create false foes or locations that play off of previous failures or embarrassments the PCs may have endured during the campaign itself. By playing the Lantern King's avatar in battle as more of a trickster than a cold-blooded killer, you'll not only enforce his legendary personality upon your players, but you'll also give their characters a bit more of a fighting chance against him in battle. He prefers to hold @UUID[Compendium.pf2e.spells-srd.Item.Primal Phenomenon] in reserve to recover from an unwanted condition or situation, and as he realizes the PCs are dangerous foes, he abandons "playful tactics" for more serious or tactical decisions aimed toward defeating the party rather than toying with them.

While the Lantern King faces no lasting inconvenience if his avatar is slain, the sting of such a defeat is enough to compel the avatar to back down and ask for a truce if the PCs reduce him to fewer than 75 Hit Points. If the PCs agree to a truce, the avatar compliments their prowess and promises to turn his attentions away from the Stolen Lands. Furthermore, he agrees to any additional terms the PCs ask for, provided they are within his ability to grant. This includes restoring Nyrissa's place and realm to the First World (although he cannot provide further information about her lost lover) and unmaking Briar to restore her capacity to love.