Anders

Anders is a Human and Paladin of Tyr, who is hunting Karlach with his companions in The Risen Road.

Overview

Background

Anders is a fallen Paladin of Tyr that broke his oath. He made a pact with the Arch-devil Zariel in exchange for power. In exchange for this power, Anders must provide Zariel a soul - either his own, or that of Karlach.

Involvement

Anders can be found in the Risen Road Toll House, alongside his companions, Cyrel and Trynn. If spoken to, he tells the party that the Toll House is under Tyr's protection and is safe. He explains that they are hunting a dangerous one-horned devil in the form of a Tiefling that is responsible for slaughtering refugees. He requests aid from the party in hunting the devil. This starts the quest  Hunt the Devil.

If succeeding at seeing through Anders' ruse, or by using  Speak with Dead on the corpse in the next room to learn the truth, Anders will reveal that he is a fallen Paladin of Tyr and has made a pact with the Archdevil Zariel in exchange for power. In return, Zariel demands either Anders' soul, or the head of a tiefling that escaped from her, Karlach.

If the party brings Karlach's head to Anders, he rewards the party with his Sword of Justice. If killing him, the sword can be looted from his body.

Companion approval

Meeting him before talking with Karlach

• "Let me help, I can help you hunt down this monster."

 -1 +1

Combat

Attacks and Abilities

 Divine Smite ()

Normal weapon damage +

2d8 (2~16) Radiant

Your weapon deals an additional 2d8RadiantDRS damage, increased by 1d8Radiant damage when attacking Fiends or Undead.

 Range: Normal weapon range

 Main Hand Attack ()   –  Sword of Justice

Normal weapon damage Make a melee attack with your equipped weapon.

 Melee: 1.5 m / 5  ft

 Thunderous Smite ()

Normal weapon damage +

2d6 (2~12) Thunder

Your melee weapon rings with thunder as you strike, pushing your target 3 m / 10 ft away and possibly knocking them  Prone.

STR Save

 Range: Normal weapon range

 Tyr's Protection ()

Protect a creature from attacks: increases its  Armour Class by 2.

Spell ends when the Sword of Justice is unequipped.

 Range: 18 m / 60 ft

Recharge: Short rest

Allies

• Cyrel
• Trynn

Encounter Details

Anders can be an incredibly dangerous opponent for early game parties. With his  Divine Smite and  Extra Attack, he can deal a ton of damage and easily kill a party member in a single turn.

He is also less susceptible to common crowd control spells like  Command and  Hold Person due to his proficiency in Wisdom Saving throws and  Aura of Protection.

Tactics

Fighting against Anders is a damage race. Attempts to slow him down will likely fail due to his high saving throws so the party is better off trying to deal as much damage as they can to him as quickly as possible. Once he is dead, neither Cyrel nor Trynn will be much of an issue due to their low damage.

The party can also start the battle by ambushing Cyrel when she periodically walks outside onto the balcony. A successful  Shove can push her off the cliff and kill her instantly, reducing the number of enemies in the fight.

Notable loot

• Sword of Justice

Idle banter

Anders will occasionally chat with Trynn:

Anders: Cut it out. There's worse than gnolls out there.

• Trynn: Nothing we need to worry about.
  • Anders: How about a dragon? Would that worry you?
    • Trynn: I'd give it a bloody good fight, that's for sure.
      • Anders: Ha! Only thing you'd give a dragon is bad gas.

Related quests

•  Hunt the Devil
•  Our Fiery Friend

Gallery

• 

  Model

External links

• Anders on the Forgotten Realms Wiki