Death knight


 * For the Warcraft Universe Death Knight see World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King

In the Dungeons & Dragons, and other fantasy roleplaying games, a death knight (also known as a doom knight or demon knight) is a mighty warrior animated as an undead creature by the gods of death, evil deities, demon lords, or other malevolent forces.

Ecology
Martial champions of evil, death knights are usually created by demon lords or evil deities. These horrible undead are most commonly raised from the ranks of blackguards, fighters, rangers, and barbarians, but a paladin who falls from grace near the moment of death may also become a death knight. Paladins who become death knights are subject to the same modifications as are presented for the blackguard in Chapter 2 of the Dungeon Master's Guide.

Death knights generally retain most aspects of their personalities after the transformation, and may continue to observe the same code of honor that they held in life (never attacking from behind, for example).

In Dungeons & Dragons 3rd Edition (and 3.5), a death knight has an aura of fear that will rout groups of low level enemies, can channel powerful negative energy with a touch, and the ability to project explosions of fire and unholy energy.

Environment
Though rare, death knights may be found in any environment, but often choose fortified lairs, such as old castles and towers.

Typical physical characteristics
A death knight's physical form is that of its decayed body. The face is a blackened skull with patches of rotting flesh, with two pinpoints of orange light in the eye sockets. The voice of a death knight is chilling, seeming to echo from deep within. Death knights were powerful people in life and so they often wear expensive or magic clothing and armor. They are quite fond of wearing flowing capes to mark them as figures of importance. The original Fiend Folio indicated that they were "lich-like".

Alignment
Death knights are (nearly) always evil.

Society
Though death knights rarely work with their own kind, they often have a variety of undead servants such as skeleton warriors, liches, and banshees. Death knights often ride nightmares into battle. Given the nature of the creation they are also in the service of some demon lord or god of evil.

Death Knights in Dragonlance
The most famous of all death knights is Lord Soth, a disgraced Knight of Solamnia, from the Dragonlance and Ravenloft campaign settings. Loren Soth, as he was known, was cursed after he murdered his wife and child while at the same time failing to prevent the Cataclysm when he could, under divine orders. He is attended by the skeleton warriors of his fallen troops and a cadre of ghostly banshees.

Soth is the most published Death Knight having been featured in all three editions of the Dungeons and Dragons game, the New York Times best selling Dragonlance Chronicles and Dragonlance Legends Trilogies, other novels of the Dragonlance mythos and outside of it , and various computer games.

Death Knights in the Forgotten Realms
A similar type of undead warrior was seen in the Forgotten Realms campaign setting. A paladin by the name of Miltiades was condemned by Tyr to exist as an undead knight for his resorting to dishonorable assassination tactics to kill his enemy, Zarl. Miltiades retained his sense of good, and fought by the sides of good heroes, helping to defeat the forces of Bane. He was eventually restored to life by Tyr, after helping the heroes destroy a pool of darkness and a pool of twilight.

While Miltiades similarly possessed an enchanted sword and armor, he did not apparently have the ability to cast the magical spells mentioned above, although he did still retain his "normal" paladin abilities (curing, turning other undead).

Death Knights in Greyhawk
The first death knight identified by name in a Dungeons & Dragons product was Saint Kargoth, "King of the Death Knights," who first appeared in Scott Bennie's Dragon article, "Setting Saintly Standards," in 1983. Kargoth appears in the World of Greyhawk campaign setting. Thirteen of Kargoth's fellow and contemporary Knight Protectors of the Great Kingdom joined him in becoming death knights: Lord Monduiz Dephaar, Lady Lorana Kath of Naelex, Prince Myrhal of Rax, Sir Maeril of Naelax, Sir Farian of Lirtham (destroyed 209 CY, but soul now powers the deathblade Astrosus), Lord Andromansis of Garasteth, Sir Oslan Knarren, Sir Rezinar of Haxx, Lord Thyrian of Naelax, Sir Minar Syrric of Darmen, Duke Urkar Grasz of Torquann, Sir Luren the Boar of Torquann, and Lord Khayven of Rax. All were transformed by the power of the demon prince Demogorgon.

Four other death knights of Oerth are known by name, though one bears a pseudonym. The first is known as Saint Ferrante, a fallen paladin of Heironeous, who is currently held in stasis. The second is Sir Loran of Trollpyre Keep, a former knight of Sunndi. The third death knight's real name is unknown, but he calls himself, and believes himself to be, Kas the Bloody-Handed. Oerth's newest death knight is Vanthus Vanderboren, a former nobleman of Sasserine and servant of Demogorgon. Sainte Ferrante appears in Bastion of Faith, while Loran and "Kas" appear in Die Vecna Die! as servants of Vecna. Other death knights also appear in the later adventure, but are not identified by name. Vanthus Vanderboren appears in the Dungeon magazine's Savage Tide adventure path, though he does not become a death knight until late in the campaign.

Publication history
The death knight was created by Charles Stross for the 1981 Fiend Folio. In a review in White Dwarf magazine, Jamie Thompson refered to the Death Knight as one of the more interesting additions in the book.

As with other monsters from the early days of the Dungeons and Dragons game the Death Knight was updated first of Dungeons and Dragons 3rd Editon and then 3.5 Edition by Necromancer GamesTome of Horrors, this publication preceded Wizards of the Coast own publication of the Death Knight in Monster Manual II.