The Tower of Bab-il

Tower of Babel

Gargantuan structure

Armor Class 25 (natural) Hit Points 500 (20d20 + 200) Speed 0 ft. (immobile)

STR	DEX	CON	INT	WIS	CHA
30 (+10)	1 (-5)	30 (+10)	20 (+5)	20 (+5)	20 (+5)

Damage Immunities Psychic, poison Condition Immunities Charmed, frightened, poisoned Senses Darkvision 120 ft., passive Perception 15 Languages Understands all languages but can’t speak Challenge 20 (25,000 XP)

Legendary Resistance (3/Day). If the Tower of Babel fails a saving throw, it can choose to succeed instead.

Immutable Form. The Tower of Babel is immune to any spell or effect that would alter its form.

Infinite Ascent. The Tower of Babel can transport creatures from its base to any level or chamber within instantaneously.

Actions

• Heavenward Reach. Melee Weapon Attack: +15 to hit, reach 120 ft., one target. Hit: 50 (10d10) force damage. If the target is a creature, it must succeed on a DC 20 Strength saving throw or be pushed back 20 feet and knocked prone.
• Divine Barrier (Recharge 5-6). The Tower of Babel emits a powerful protective field. All creatures within 300 feet of the tower gain resistance to all damage for 1 minute. The tower can’t use this ability again until it completes a long rest.

Reactions

Shifting Architecture. When the Tower of Babel is attacked, it can magically shift its structure, causing the attack to miss. It adds +10 to its AC against a single attack.

Legendary Actions

The Tower of Babel can take 3 legendary actions, choosing from the options below. Only one legendary action option can be used at a time and only at the end of another creature’s turn. The Tower of Babel regains spent legendary actions at the start of its turn.

• Tower Strike. The Tower of Babel uses its Heavenward Reach.
• Divine Resilience (Costs 2 Actions). The Tower of Babel activates its Divine Barrier.

Lair Actions

On initiative count 20 (losing initiative ties), the Tower of Babel takes a lair action to cause one of the following magical effects; the tower can’t use the same effect two rounds in a row:

• 1. Celestial Chorus. The tower emits a haunting, otherworldly melody. All creatures within 300 feet must succeed on a DC 20 Wisdom saving throw or be charmed for 1 minute. A charmed creature can repeat the saving throw at the end of each of its turns, ending the effect on a success.
• 2. Heaven’s Gaze. The tower’s height grants it a unique perspective. The Tower of Babel can see through all forms of magical darkness and illusions within 1,000 feet of it.
• 3. Cosmic Resonance. The tower’s connection to the heavens strengthens its defenses. It gains temporary hit points equal to half its maximum hit points.

Description

The Tower of Babel stands as a colossal monument of ancient ambition and divine retribution. Its immense size and otherworldly aura are awe-inspiring and terrifying. The tower’s purpose and design remain a mystery, but its sheer magnitude hints at a desire to bridge the mortal realm with the divine.

Roleplaying Notes

The Tower of Babel is a symbol of human ambition, hubris, and divine intervention. It can serve as a central plot point or a mysterious location in a campaign, drawing adventurers to unravel the mysteries surrounding its construction and purpose. Whether it holds ancient relics, divine secrets, or a gateway to the heavens, the tower’s presence is sure to leave a lasting impact on any adventure.

Songs of the Sidhe by David Ross

The Tower of Bab-il is a massive many-tiered structure that was obviously left to rot before it was finished. In some places, there are even remnants of scaffolds and support beams that have dissolved with age. It is guarded by many very powerful and secretive fey, including the greatest of ruin chanters. Most of them will attack any interloper on sight, fearing they are looters who have come to take the mythical power of this long-lost site.

Yet, none stand guard outside the Tower. It is a very difficult place to find, hidden in a remote corner of Ladinion. The surrounding land is ravaged by unpredictable storms, mere vestiges of the dangerous power locked within. The Tower is a construct of the Language Primeval, Aleph. Its form and abilities were defined by words so fundamental that they did not merely describe reality, but shaped it. A triumph of mortal mastery over the language, the Tower was built to defy the gods and entropy itself.

By the middle of the Era of Empires, the first great civilizations of modern mortals were all but vanished. The people of one such society, perhaps the last, feared their eventual dissolution. So, they united under a giant nephilim called Nimrod when he said that they could find eternal power and unity if they reached the heights of power inhabited by the gods. To that end, they began constructing a tower at a place known as Bab-il (‘gate of the gods’). They used the Language Primeval, for theirs was among the few remaining mortal cultures that had mastered it; they understood Aleph better than even the greatest sages can fathom today.

The mighty tower grew up and up to impossible heights, reaching ever nearer to the gods. Through eldritch technology built by the Language Primeval, they had the power to harness the storms of the sky and the raw power which the gods might use to smite them for their hubris. Some whisper they even held the secret to forcing their way into whatever pleasant afterlife they desired. The gods above knew that these mortals were dangerous, that they might even steal the station of the gods through their treachery. The Seelie fey below, led by Queen Rhiannon II, saw how easily the world around these united mortals could be destroyed by their mastery.

Uniting against a mutual threat, the younger gods and the elder Seelie together sealed and broke the Language Primeval so that mortals could never again wield its full power. The gods ensured that the civilization was ruined and scattered, while the fey stole away with the unfinished tower and the dangerous technologies locked inside. This Tower of Bab-il still resists the fey’s attempts to unravel its power permanently. They can break and seal the runes and sigils of Aleph inside, but for every part which is broken, another yet-intact part will repair still another segment. An elite guard watches over the tower, for worlds could be shaken or destroyed by its secrets. Many mortals still seek after it, either because they wish to finish it or because they desire to learn the secrets of Truespeech held within. Tales tell not only of unknown runes, but also wind funnels that ‘speak’ the Language Primeval in the storms the Tower conjures around itself and glasswork that projects runic plays of light when the unreliable sunlight strikes at the right angle. These and more tricks of the Tower’s builders constantly vex the fey who wish the Tower destroyed, since weeks of damage might be undone by an unforeseen moonbeam.

Some believe the only way to permanently destroy the Tower is with the Language Primeval that built it – a difficult task, since the Language’s most powerful aspects have been lost for so long. The only ray of hope in living memory came when the Last Word, an obvious word of destruction, was discovered in the Realms Beyond. But it was held by the foul demonic entity Tenebrous until it was lost again with his destruction, so none know if it could have finally brought the Tower down..