D&D Beyond’s June Drop Features 4 Biblically Accurate Horrors, 3 New Spells, And More

Biblically accurate celestial horrors, spells that summon fragments of dark stars, and a handful of new magic items in D&D Beyond’s new Drop.

D&D Beyond hits the second big Drop of the new D&D Beyond Drops program. And while the development team is still looking at ways to make content sharing and so on, if you have a Master or Hero tier subscription, you do have access to the newest big Drop for June, which features four new monsters, all corrupted angels, as well as three new spells, three new magic items, and five new digital battle maps. Let’s take a look.

Eyes And Halos And How Many Heads? – D&D Beyond’s Celestial Horrors

First things first, let’s take a look at the new Celestial Horrors. These are four new stat blocks that range from CR 6 all the way up to CR 25, each one representative of a different way an angel might turn into something horrific that besets upon a party of adventurers.

Why corrupted celestials? Well, as it turns out, the Drops is one way for D&D designers to explore the themes of a book from different angles. And while you might not associate Ravenloft with angels, celestials can make for good horror.

You’ll find the angels of death (CR 14), also known as carperi, there’s also the angels of obsession (CR 6), whose form is likened to the cherubim, not the cute little babies, but the more like the Biblical version with the head of a human, lion, ox, and eagle (though the D&D version is different) wielding spears. The angels of slaughter (CR 25) are all about unleashing wrath; and finally the angels of vengeance (CR 9), whose many halos and eyes are sure to make a player character be afraid.

“Many commonfolk pray to the angels, lifting their tear-streaked faces to the sky in search of a powerful being who can fix their problems, remedy their grievances, or show them mercy. What the gods who answer those prayers fail to reveal is that the angels sent on their behalf are often more terrifying than the demons and devils everyone fears. These horrors are creatures of celestial provenance that are either terrifying in their natural form or warped versions of their benign selves through interactions with ever-demanding mortals.”

But there’s also three new spells of varying degrees of power:

• Searing Orb – A 2nd-level Cleric and Paladin spell that lets you hurl an orb of searing energy that deals 3d4 radiant damage to the target, and hit or miss, explodes in a blinding flash of 2d4 radiant in a 10 foot radius
• Tortoise Shell – A 2nd level Druid, Ranger, and Artificer spell that gives a target +3 to their AC unless they move, in which case it’s only a +1 bonus; like a worse Shield of Faith
• Void Star – A 7th-level Warlock and Wizard spell that lets you hurl a fragment of a dark star at an enemy, dealing 6d12 necrotic damage on a hit, and 3d12 damage at the end of the target’s next turn, healing you for the same amount

All in all, not bad. Interesting. But nothing game breaking. At any rate, you can check out the new spells and everything else at the link below.

Celestial Horrors eh? And here you thought attacking and dethroning the gods was only for 2020!

Bell of Lost Souls Staff Writer and DM, J.R. covers RPGs of all stripes and on occasion eats sandwiches. You can ask him about either at [email protected]

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Source: Bell of Lost Souls