The Dark Giants
The Nightgrey were a sinister subrace of the Ariock Giants, a dark and malevolent counterpart to their more noble kin. Where the Ariock giants valued honor and wisdom, the Nightgrey sought power and dominion through fear and destruction. Their intellect was as sharp as their cruelty, making them formidable enemies. Cunning and manipulative, they used their keen minds to devise elaborate traps and schemes, often playing their foes like puppets on strings.
These dark giants wielded a unique necrotic magic, a corrupted force that allowed them to sap the life force of their enemies. With a single spell, they could drain vitality, leaving only withered husks in their wake.
Their signature ability, however, was their control over a necrotic mist. When they called upon this dark power, wisps of black fog would circle their heads like ominous halos, heralding their presence with dread. The mist would corrupt the very air, choking plants and animals alike, and sowing fear into the hearts of those who dared oppose them.
Unlike their nature-bound counterparts, the Nightgrey despised the natural world. Trees, rivers, and open skies held no allure for them. Instead, they chose to live in massive, labyrinthine stone temples or dungeons, their ceilings soaring over 50 feet high. These lairs were as forbidding as their masters, filled with dark corridors and elaborate carvings that told the stories of ancient and forgotten evils. Within these cold stone halls, the Nightgrey studied dark tomes and scrolls, forever seeking to bring the world under a blanket of eternal shadow.
huge
30'
giant
200 years
neutral evil
shades of grey
blue, amber
shades of grey
mountain, everdeep
Description
Standing at a towering 30 feet, the Nightgrey were beings of both terrifying power and grim majesty. Their skin was a sickly shade of pale grey, hinting at the necrotic forces that coursed through their veins. It was as though their flesh had been touched by death itself, resisting all forms of necrotic magic as if the very essence of death had been woven into their being. Their eyes, burning either blue like the coldest flame or amber like molten metal, pierced through the dark with a malevolent intelligence. Grey hair cascaded down their backs, regal yet wild, giving them the appearance of a dark king or queen. Though their appearance was undeniably majestic, there was something deeply unsettling about them, a demonic presence that clung to their every movement and gesture.
The Nightgrey dressed in ornate, dark robes made from rich materials such as silks and leather, adorned with metallic threads and gems, reflecting their affinity for power and wealth. In battle, they favored weapons as grand and fearsome as they were. Their weapon of choice was a halberd, an enormous, intricately designed weapon whose blade shimmered with dark runes. This weapon, both a symbol of their power and a tool of destruction, was capable of cleaving through the thickest armor with ease, imbued as it was with the same dark energy they wielded in their spells.
Dark Temples and Evil Rituals
The homes of the Nightgrey were usually grand, lordly temples carved from dark stone. No expense was spared in their construction. The walls were adorned with tapestries depicting scenes of darkness and conquest, and their floors were strewn with luxurious rugs. Incense always burned in the air, thick and fragrant, as the Nightgrey performed dark rituals at twilight, seeking to gain more power or to curse their enemies. It was not uncommon to see massive dire panthers prowling their halls, for the Nightgrey kept these fierce beasts as pets and guardians. These panthers, as loyal to their masters as they were deadly, could be summoned to fight alongside them in battle, adding another layer of danger to any who dared challenge the Nightgrey.
A History of Conflict
The Nightgrey despised the Ariock giants, whom they considered weak for their reliance on honor and tradition. Whenever the two factions crossed paths, bloody conflict was inevitable. Many tales throughout history recount the titanic battles between these two races, the earth shaking beneath their feet as they fought for dominance. Despite their shared heritage, the Nightgrey’s hatred for the Ariock was unyielding, and they would not rest until their noble cousins were eradicated from the world entirely.