The cultist’s once-fine shirt and doublet are stained with many a smudge, but it hardly compares to the black pools which replaced their eyes or the oozing inky tears marring their cheeks. However, the waning scribe seems as happy as can be, muttering to themselves fragments of dark secrets so fast that sometimes they forget to breathe. The books they carry are always stuffed with mismatched papers, note scraps, and blood stains. Whenever one is full, they snatch whatever might be at hand to continue their writings. Their only constant is the direfly quill they carry with a fine deadwood shank, direfly stinger point, and direfly wings fused together instead of a feather.

The Word.Knowledge is power. The waning scribe understands this better than most, even their masters among the dark fey. As such, the scribe listened to the mad ramblings spoken by direflies and adapted that into a corrosive magic school built around true names. By knowing anything’s true name, one can manipulate and rule its reality and the scribe believes direflies know the name of everything. Thankfully, the insects are just beasts without the intelligence. Thus, they cannot effectively wield such a power and a scribe cannot fully access it. What they can do is construct a quill using deadwoods and direfly parts, gouge out their eyes, and let cosmic ink with which true names are written fill the sockets. This does give them potent arts against the pitiful magic schools others study.

Waning Scribe

Medium Humanoid (any race), lawful evil

9 Armor Class 14 (studded leather)

58 (9d8 + 18)

Speed 30 ft

Str 8 Dex 14 Con 15 Int 16 Wis 10 Cha 12

Skills Arcana +5, History +5, Religion +5

Damage Resistances poison

Condition Immunities blinded

Senses darkvision 60 ft., passive Perception 10

Languages Common, Sylvan

Challenge 3 (700 XP)

Inkeyes.

The waning scribe understands the literal meaning of any spoken language that they hear. They also understand any written language that they see, but the waning scribe must be touching the surface on which the words are written. It takes about 1 minute to read one page of text. The waning scribe can use any magical scroll.

Innate Spellcasting.

The waning scribe's innate spellcasting ability is Intelligence (spell save DC 13, +5 to hit with spell attacks). It can innately cast the following spells, requiring no material components:

2/day each: dispel magic

1/day each: counterspell

Knowledge is Power.

The waning scribe gains the following bonuses on a creature Inscribed by its Direfly Quill attack.

The ability to read its thoughts as per the Detect Thoughts spell.

Advantage on all Charisma (Deception), Charisma (Persuasion), and Wisdom (Insight) rolls against it.

Advantage on attempts to Counterspell or Dispell magic against spells and effects created by that creature.

Knowing the creature's full name.

Knowing the creature's exact location if it is within 30ft.

Actions

Direfly Quill.

Melee or Ranged Weapon Attack: +4 to hit, reach 5 ft. or range 15/30 ft., one target. Hit: 4 (1d4+2) piercing damage and 7(2d6) poison damage. The creature must succeed on a DC 13 Wisdom save, or be Inscribed. Inscribed creatures suffer disadvantage on all saves against spells until the start of the waning scribe's next turn.