Zo! Creature 19

The person who would eventually become a galactic superstar, media mogul, and fearsome bone sage wasn't always accustomed to fame and fortune. Born to an unremarkable family of elebrian serfs in rural Eox, Ahmzovar was a precocious child. He showed early signs of arcane aptitude like many of his ancestors, but he also had a flair for drama rarely seen in cerebral elebrian culture.

Following his dream to become a world-famous entertainer, Ahmzovar enamored anyone who saw him perform with his sparkling personality and theatrical antics. Many wealthy aristocrats became his patrons, allowing him to travel the world and even amass his own outrageous fortune.

Even though Ahmzovar could've simply lived a life of luxury, he stayed connected to his roots, supporting his family and pouring money into public works.

Eventually, he was invited to take an active part in the planet's governance, and he quickly became a popular leader among the working class. No matter what projects he involved himself in, Ahmzovar always seemed to make friends across political aisles. Then the trouble with Damiar and Iovo turned everything upside down. Fearful of more sarcesian attacks, Ahmzovar helped fund research into a superweapon, enabling the project that would soon create the Death Wail. The terrible weapon was unveiled alongside a jingoistic song-and-dance routine choreographed by Ahmzovar himself. The performance inspired a near-unanimous vote among Eox's ruling sages to deploy the weapon.

When the Death Wail was fired, Ahmzovar watched through a powerful arcane telescope from the tallest tower of one of his castles located on a private island in the southwestern Deminas Ocean, not far from the coast of Atraskia and several new sub-nautical facilities the government had recently finished building. From his privileged viewing platform, Ahmzovar witnessed the energies rebound toward Eox as a shock wave rippled through the planet's upper atmosphere. Sensing something catastrophic about to happen, he activated magical barriers around his estate, saving himself and his retinue from disaster. Trapped on his private island after the cataclysm, Ahmzovar used magical communication to reach out to others who'd survived, and from these exchanges, he learned the extent of the disaster. When his island's resources had finally been stretched to the limit, he tearfully made the decision to leave his staff behind as he made the transition into becoming an undead necrovite since only he had enough power to perform the necessary rites.

After the destruction of his world, Ahmzovar fell into a deep melancholy for centuries, remaining in isolation inside his lonely castle as his role in the near extinction of Eox's people weighed on his mind. He blamed himself for the Death Wail's unforeseen consequences. Trapped in denial by grief, Ahmzovar engaged in mental exercises, mind games, and illusionary scenarios over and over and over, trying to figure out some way to atone for his mistakes.

His chance would finally come centuries later when news reached him that a sub-nautical facility of yore had been rediscovered, with a population of living elebrians inside!

His mind racing at the possibilities of redemption, Ahmzovar returned to public life as Zo!, distancing himself from his former identity and positioning himself to gain control of the newly dubbed Halls of the Living.

In the centuries that followed, Zo! reformed the Halls of the Living into a paradise for the elebrians (and eventually others) living there as full- time entertainers while producing content exciting enough to keep the bone sages—and the rest of the galaxy—watching and willing to shell out credits. In his flawed way, Zo! is still a champion of the people. He keeps his past hidden from all but his closest confidants. Zo! is a pacifist who avoids combat, but if forced into a corner, he relies on spells and special talents to survive until he can escape danger. Zo! is one of the original bone sages of Eox, and despite his comedic antics and friendly demeanor, no person in recorded history has ever survived a duel with the undead media mogul. Zo! handles most of his conflicts legally. A team of the best lawyers in the galaxy is at his beck and call should any legal trouble arise.

Campaign Role

Zo! provides comedic relief during Chapter 3 of Guilt of the Grave World while putting the PCs through their paces as part of an annual Zo! Media Productions extravaganza. At this point in the adventure, Zo! is aloof, playing the role of a famous media personality who's found promising new talent he can hire for cheap, but he doesn't take much of a personal interest in the PCs.

Shortly after the PCs' arrival, Zo! learns through his various rumor mills about his rising stars and their run- in with the Corpse Fleet. Once he realizes that the PCs share his interest in living elebrians, he steps in to act as more of a mentor figure for the heroes. Zo! loathes the Corpse Fleet and their depraved mission, so he's more than happy to gift items, pay for services, and sponsor training for the PCs as they prepare to challenge the undead supremacists. Zo! would rather act behind the scenes than get directly involved in the conflict, and no doubt he's already formed several contingency plans in case the PCs fail.