Anders

Anders is a human former paladin of  Tyr during Act One. He is hunting for  Karlach with his companions along the Risen Road.

“

We are paladins of Tyr, Lord of Justice. He sent us after an infernal being, straight out of the Nine Hells, hiding in the form of a one-horned tiefling.

„

— Anders, a very honest paladin with nothing to hide

Involvement

Act One

Anders,  Cyrel,  Trynn, and an  unnamed deceased fourth companion are in the Risen Road Toll House. If spoken to, Anders tells the party that the Toll House is safe under Tyr's protection. He explains that they are hunting a dangerous one-horned devil responsible for slaughtering refugees, who takes the form of a  Tiefling. He requests aid from the party in hunting the devil, initiating the quest ⁠Hunt the Devil.

The party can discover the "Tyrran's" ruse through a number of methods, including passing a DC 15 Religion check when interacting with Anders, challenging him to recite a creed as a  Cleric of Tyr, or speaking to the corpse of the unnamed companion in the next room via  Speak with Dead. It is revealed that he is a fallen paladin of Tyr pacted with the Archdevil  Zariel.

If the party bring  Karlach's Head to Anders, he rewards them with his  Sword of Justice. Otherwise, a fight breaks out, and the sword can be looted from his body. Killing Anders grants the ⁠Warrior of the Hells inspiration to party members with the ⁠Soldier background, which includes  Lae'zel, if present.

Companion approval

If the party meet Anders before speaking with Karlach:

• Let me help, I can help you hunt down this monster.  +1  -1

Combat

Attacks and abilities

 Divine Smite ( + )

Damage: 3~24

Normal weapon damage

+ 2d8⁠Radiant

+ 1d8⁠Radiant

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

Damage: 7~17

2d6 + 5⁠Slashing

Make a melee attack with your equipped weapon.

 Melee: 1.5 m / 5 ft

 Thunderous Smite ( + + )

Damage: 2~12

Normal weapon damage

+ 2d6⁠Thunder

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 a dangerous opponent for early game parties. Using  Divine Smite and  Extra Attack, he can deal enough damage to easily kill a party member in one 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

It may be helpful to view fighting Anders as a damage race. Attempts to slow him down will likely fail due to his high saving throws, so it is recommended to deal as much damage as quickly as possible. Once dead, neither Cyrel nor Trynn are difficult in combat due to their low damage.

The party can also begin 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 difficulty of the fight.

Loot

•  Longsword
•  Scale Mail
•  Sword of Justice

Related quests

• ⁠Hunt the Devil
• ⁠Our Fiery Friend

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.

Gallery

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  Model

External links

• Anders on the Forgotten Realms Wiki