He Who Was

He Who Was is a Shadar-kai found in the Ruined Battlefield at X: 129 Y: 106 who gives the quest Punish the Wicked. He has a  Raven companion.

“

The murdered lie silent. The raven asks - will you be their voice?

„

— He Who Was quotes the Raven

Overview

As a shadar-kai, He Who Was is a servant of the ⁠Raven Queen. Shadar-kai were formerly elves before being trapped in the Shadowfell and transformed. The Raven Queen, who is obsessed with collecting memories and essences (typically of loss and grief), sends the shadar-kai to retrieve mementos of tragic events, whether they are physical tokens, memories, or the souls of the dead. They are guided in doing so by ravens; the raven companion of He Who Was is one such bird.

Shadar-kai are typically as cold and emotionless as their queen, but for an unknown reason (possibly the effects of the shadow curse) He Who Was has become petty and cruel, taking pleasure in tormenting people while gathering their memories. Ambient dialogue between He Who Was and his raven companion implies that he is no longer following the orders he has been given by the Raven Queen, which the raven is displeased with.

Involvement

He Who Was can be found at a ritual circle he set up to use  Speak with Dead on a corpse of a dwarven woman called  Madeline. Approaching him starts ⁠Punish the Wicked. He initially tells the party to clear off, but his white raven suggests they might be able to help. He explains that the dead woman was a murderer. He asks the party to find  Madeline's Ledger at the tavern she worked in and bring it back so that the murderer may be brought to justice and her victims given peace.

If giving the ledger over to He Who Was, he is able to channel the spirit of Madeline through his body. The party can ask Madeline about the details of what happened, and then decide what punishment she deserves.

If making Madeline stab herself once, or shaming her for being a coward, He Who Was is satisfied. This causes Paladins with an Oath of the Ancients, Oath of the Crown, or Oath of Devotion to break their oath. ⁠No Rest for the Wicked is granted for party members with the  Acolyte background.

Otherwise, if passing the  Persuasion checks to forgive her, or making her stab herself a second time, He Who Was becomes enraged and attacks the party, granting the ⁠Let Sleeping Dogs Lie inspiration to  Acolyte party members. Forgiving her breaks the Oath of Vengeance Paladin oath. Each stabbing inflicts 5 damage, which persists into combat. Failing the  Persuasion check on the forgiveness option also satisfies He Who Was, without breaking any Paladin oath.^[verify]

Combat

Attacks and abilities

 Bane ( + )

Up to 3 creatures receive a -1d4 penalty to Attack rolls and Saving throws.

 CHA Save

 Range: 9 m / 30 ft

 Confusion ( + )

Befuddle a group of creatures, causing them to attack at random, wander around aimlessly, and occasionally skip turns in the stupor.

 WIS Save

 Range: 18 m / 60 ft

 Darkness ( + )

Create a cloud of magical darkness that  Heavily Obscures and inflicts  Blind to creatures within. Creatures cannot make ranged attacks into or out of it.

 Range: 18 m / 60 ft

 Fear ( + )

Hostile targets drop everything and become  Fearful: they have Disadvantage on Ability Checks and Attack Rolls.

If the target ends their turn where they can't see you, they can make another Saving throw to shake off their fear.

 WIS Save

 Range: Self

 Shadow Spear ()   –   Spear

Damage: 5~54

1d6⁠Piercing

+ 4d12⁠Necrotic

Deal an additional 4d12Necrotic with your equipped melee weapon.

 Melee: 1.5 m / 5 ft

Notable loot

•  Raven Gloves - quest reward if Madeline is stabbed or called a coward, cannot be looted if Madeline is forgiven

Related literature

•  Madeline's Ledger
•  Return at Once

Related quests

• ⁠Punish the Wicked

Notes

• He Who Was is not marked with on the map and there is no dialogue to open trading interface when talking to him, but he has more useful items for sale than other NPCs.

Gallery

• 
  The ritual circle with the Raven Queen's symbol
• 
  Cinematic