AmmIRight?
Liches are undead spellcasters of a powerful level.
Most Liches were wizards but could also be sorcerers or clerics.
A Lich is the remains of these mortal creatures who embraced undeath as a means of preserving
themselves.
Most Liches hunger for long-forgotten knowledge and terrible secrets.
It is not an easy decision to become a Lich.
The process of becoming a lich is a well-guarded secret.
In order to discover this process many wizards will make deals with fiends, or evil gods.
The process is an arcane ritual that traps the caster’s soul into a device known as
a phylactery.
Doing this binds the soul to the mortal world, it cannot pass on into the next.
A phylactery can really take any form, sometimes it’s an amulet or a small gem encrusted
box.
Once the phylactery is prepared the future lich drinks a potion of transformation which
kills them.
Their soul is drawn into the phylactery and they rise back as an undead lich.
A lich must feed souls to its phylactery to sustain the magic that preserves their body
and consciousness.
There is a specific spell called imprisonment that does this.
It traps the targets body and soul into the phylactery.
After 24 hours the creature is consumed and destroyed entirely.
I’m not sure how often a lich must do this, but if they don’t their physical body begins
to fall apart.
With this phylactery when a lich’s body is destroyed or broken the mind of the lich
leaves it and rushes back into the phylactery wherever it is.
Within days a new body reforms next to the phylactery.
To truly kill a lich you must destroy its phylactery which can be difficult to find.
Liches hide their phylacteries very well as to prevent certain destruction.
I mean the whole point of becoming a lich is to subvert certain destruction, makes sense
you would take precautions for your phylactery.
Destroying a phylactery is no easy task and often involves a special ritual or item, or
weapon.
Because each phylactery is unique one must discover its unique form of destruction.
In other words we’re leaving it open for the Dungeon Master to decide.
Liches are spellcasters.
An 18th-level spellcaster in 5th edition DnD.
Although undead they have advantage on saving throws vs turn undead.
With legendary resistances, an arsenal of spells, and their paralyzing touch attack
taking out a lich could prove difficult.
4th edition lore said that all liches pay homage to Orcus, and it is said that Orcus
can instantly destroy the phylactery of any lich that displeases him.
Which I doubt this is the case anymore, or at least I hope not.
I can’t see liches bowing down to a greater power ever, that’s the whole arrogant personality
of liches.
There are other types of Liches, such as the dracolich which was a dragon that voluntarily
tied its soul to a phylactery.
In order to become a dracolich a dragon needs help.
A group of mages of cultists need to be present to perform the proper ritual.
Dracoliches once created send their spirit out to inhabit their old bones.
They can apparently do this with any reptilian creature, so when their current body becomes
too decayed they can transfer bodies.
The dracolich and his phylactery much be on the same plane though in order for his soul
to reach his phylactery if the body is ever destroyed.
Famous liches include Acererak who I made a video about links in the doobly do.
He currently runs the tomb of horror and can be found in the DnD 5th edition adventure
Tomb of Annihilation.
Probably the most famous Lich, I guess I shouldn't say that I don’t know many liches, there
might be some more famous.
But a lich everyone should know is Vecna from the Greyhawk campaign setting.
Way back in 1974 with the original dungeons and dragons there were two artifacts invented
for that game called the Hand and Eye of Vecna.
They were the only remnants of an evil lich, Vecna, who had been destroyed long ago.
Vecna’s history was mere myth in early dungeons and dragons but was expanded by 1990 with
the adventure “Vecna Lives!”
Vecna created a sword and gave it to his lieutenant Kas and it became known as the Sword of Kas,
another fancy artifact you’ll find in the Dungeon Master’s Guide.
Kas turned on Vecna and attack him with the sword.
Legend says that the only items remaining after the fight was the Hand and eye of Vecna.
Vecna later returned as a deity and has many worshipers in the greyhawk setting.
Also made popular by Critical Role Vecna is sure to pop up again somewhere.
Szass Tam is another famous lich, this one from the Forgotten Realms.
He’s on a council of Red Wizards known as the Zulkirs.
He is the Zulkir of necromancy that oversees and controls Thay. he’s mentioned heavily