Achlys

All dragons are capable of making a pact with pieces of the Shade, even Necromancers and their variants who have submitted to the will of the Plaguebringer. The Shade covets Mother’s Chosen for their ability to access the inner workings of a dragon through disease. If a Necromancer clears the way in, the Shade can feast on the dragon’s magic, or propagate itself within the new host. Once a pact is made, the Necromancer feeds the Shade either their own magical energy or that of a victim, and in exchange they can access the immense power even a fragment of the Shade possesses. In doing so, they become a Lich.

The Shade’s power bolsters a Lich’s Necromantic abilities, turning them into a towering force, difficult to oppose or stand against. Other Necromancer variants will find their traditional abilities amplified, and may even come to believe they can cure disease just as a Necromancer can. In reality, this effect is merely an infection of the Shade, eating away at the Plague magic that propagates the disease. This ability is also what causes a Ghoul’s fatal curse to slow, and even regress, making pacts with the Shade particularly appealing to a suffering Ghoul.

In the early stages, there may be no change in a Lich’s appearance and many slip among their Necromantic brethren with none the wiser. However, over time the Lich’s wings and stitches of plague turn black and their original primary color leeches through as Mother’s Blessing is devoured. The more a Necromancer relies on the Shade’s power the quicker they turn. The Shade is eager to encourage its use by feeding its host less and less power over time, tricking the Necromancer into pulling on it more as the dragon tries to perform feats that had previously been easy. In later stages the Lich’s primary color also begins to turn black as the Shade exhausts the dragon’s magical energy and begins to consume their lifeforce. A Lich that has blackened completely is in danger of losing all of themselves to the Shade, mind, body, and soul.