There’s no creature more intriguing inDungeons & Dragonsthan the Lady of Pain. Someone must watch over Sigil, and she’s the perfect entity for the job. Sigil is known as the City of Doors, the area at the center of the multiverse that acts as a crossroads. Connected to every single plane of existence and all the worlds within, protecting such an area is a huge responsibility.
The Lady of Pain patrols and controls the only pathways into the City of Doors, and that’s the portals. What exactly is she? How does she control the countless portals coming from all over the multiverse?
The Lady Of Pain
A dangerous guard and special entity, the Lady of Pain looks like a human, but her movements, actions, and abilities prove that she’s anything but. As the watcher of Sigil, when she does come to walk through the area, she floats through, hovering above the ground.
While no one knows exactly what she is, she’s an entity that isas strong as and on par with other deities.
She is so strong thatshe can even stop gods from entering Sigil.You’ll want to avoid her if possible and ensure you won’t be in her way. Those who have been caught in her gaze after interfering with her have vanished into nothing and have had their skin flayed by her stare.
She cannot be defeated by normal meansand candrop characters down to one hit point with a single glance. The offenses can be as fickle as speaking to her unbidden, which may result in a trip to the mazes or being held an inch from death.
She’s an interesting enigma because sheensures the neutrality of the crossroads, with no partiality to either a good or bad aligned situation. With so many connecting worlds, neutrality is key to keeping things balanced.
She does not suffer worshippers to the point thatworshipping her is a crime punishable by being sent to the Mazes, one of her facilities used to protect the City of Doors.
Most importantly, the Lady of Paincontrols the portal operations in Sigil. All portals are at her whim, and if she chooses to shut down one or all of them in the entirety of Sigil, no one can stop her.
She isomniscient; she knows who uses a portal, when they use it, and where they use it, as well as where it’s going. This even includes permanent teleportation circles.
Should she choose,she can stop all transportation in and out of Sigil; however, the consequences can become dire.
If she does stop all portals, the City of Doors will become a prison. No food, water, commerce, trade, or anything will be allowed in or out should she so choose. Sewage and waste will fill the streets, and dead bodies pile up.
Should any factions fight, it’s as simple as stopping all planes to make the factions quickly resolve their issues.
Dabus And The Mazes
Should she need to, aside from closing all portals and flaying dissenters, the Lady of Pain has a few other options for punishment. She hasthe Dabus, which are her personal guard.
They are beings who float through Sigil, enacting her will. They move silently, communicating through illusions.
They are used to help keep Sigil in line with the Lady of Pain at the forefront. This includes little things like upkeep, ensuring the streets are cleaned, the portals are working, the city streets are patched up, and the more broad aspects such as making sure citizens are following protocol in the city.
The Mazesare another form of punishment. Theyrecreate the city streets of Sigil, but they’re completely devoid of any lifewhatsoever. Prisoners are swallowed into the maze and will constantly traverse it, looking for an exit.
Anyone inside the maze won’t need to eat and won’t need sleep, bringing their punishment to a constant search for a way out. There isno means to escape with magiceither, so it’s an eternal punishment enacted by the Lady of Pain herself.
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