Cazador Szarr/Combat

Overview

Combat

This page focuses on Cazador's behaviour during combat.

Attacks and actions

 Blight ( + )   –  Woe

Damage: 8~64

8d8⁠Necrotic (64⁠Necrotic against plants)

Deals 8d8⁠⁠Necrotic damage to a target. Plants take maximum damage from this spell, and have  Disadvantage on the  Saving Throw against it.

 CON Save

 Range: 9 m (30 ft)

 Call Lightning ( + )

Damage: 3~30

3d10⁠Lightning

Lightning strikes all targets within the area of effect for 3d10⁠⁠Lightning damage. Then for 10 turns, you can call down lightning again without expending a spell slot.

 DEX Save

 Range: 18 m (60 ft)

 AoE: 2 m (7 ft) Radius

 Fly ()

Fly to a target position

 Range: 18 m (60 ft)

 Forced Teleportation ()

Cazador forcibly teleports one of his vampire spawn to a nearby location.

 Range: 18 m (60 ft)

 Recharge: Per turn

 Misty Escape ()

Transform into a tiny mist cloud. It can't fall, and fits through small openings. It is very hard to damage.

The cloud has  Advantage on Constitution, Dexterity and Strength Saving Throws.

 Range: Self

 Recharge: Per turn

Enough, Wretches!

When Cazador reaches low enough health, he will use Enough, Wretches!, and switch to physical attacks.

 Enough, Wretches!

Cazador switches from spells to savage melee attacks.

 Recharge: Per combat

 Claws ()

Damage: 7~13

2d4 + 5⁠Slashing

Lash out with deadly claws.

 Melee: 1.5 m (5 ft)

 Multiattack ()

Damage: 12~24

2d4 + 4⁠Slashing

+ 2d4 + 4⁠Slashing

The target must be  Blood-Sapped.

 Melee: 1.5 m (5 ft)

 Recharge: Per turn

Tactician mode

 Potent Misty Escape ()

Transform into a tiny mist cloud. It can't fall, and fits through small openings. It is very hard to damage. Foes within 4 m (13 ft) of the cloud may be  Blinded and take 3d6⁠⁠Necrotic at the start of Cazador's turn.

The cloud has  Advantage on Constitution, Dexterity, and Strength Saving Throws.

 Range: Self

 Recharge: Per turn

Honour mode

 Vampiric Swarm

Damage: 12~144

12d12⁠Piercing

Call forth a swarm of vampire bats. Targets are pushed backwards 7 m (23 ft) and may become  Swarmed.

 DEX Save

 Range: 10 m (33 ft)

 AoE: 5 m (17 ft) Line

 Pushes: 7 m (23 ft)

Loot

• Rhapsody
• Szarr Family Ring
• Woe

Allies

•  Bat – 6x (6 additional bats spawn at the start of the second and third rounds)
•  Chatterteeth
•  Fallen Gur Hunter – 3x
•  Predator Werewolf – 4x

Encounter details

• If  Astarion is in the party when meeting Cazador, a cutscene plays out in which he becomes trapped as part of the ritual. He can be freed using the  Help action.
• Cazador attempts to complete the ritual to become the Vampire Ascendant. If 3 turns pass without the ritual being interrupted (by freeing Astarion or killing one of the Vampire Spawn), then at the beginning of the 4th turn, Cazador consumes them all to become the Vampire Ascendant. This permanently kills Astarion, and he cannot be revived in any way.
• If Astarion was not recruited in Act One or permanently left the party prior to the encounter, a Zombie Astarion takes his place as a ritual source. Regardless of the ritual's completion, he dies when the fight ends.
• Cazador is empowered by 7  Ritual Sources from each of the trapped vampire spawn,  Astarion and his six "siblings".  Aurelia,  Dalyria,  Leon,  Petras,  Violet,  Yousen, granting him 1 m (3 ft) of movement speed, 10 temporary hit points, and 1d10⁠⁠Necrotic damage to each attack (including spells), per trapped spawn. These sources are represented by lines of red magic on the floor and can be "stolen" by the party if they stand on top of the magic circles in front of the vampire spawn. 3 of them provide additional bonus effects:
  • Ritual Drain: Astarion: Gain an additional bonus action
  • Ritual Drain: Violet: Gain +5 AC
  • Ritual Drain: Yousen: Heal for 3d8⁠⁠Hit Points each turn
• If Cazador succeeds in becoming the Vampire Ascendant, he permanently gains  Sinister Lord, which replaces the previous Ritual Sources effects. Standing on the magical circles no longer has any effect.
  • When Cazador gains Sinister Lord, his uses of  Legendary Resistance increase to 99, and he replenishes all spell slots.
• If Astarion is not in the party when meeting Cazador, then he is unable to capture him at the start of the fight. This prevents Cazador from starting the ritual and thus deprives him of all the  Ritual Sources and Ritual Drain bonuses as well as the 3-turn countdown to become the Vampire Ascendant.
  • Attacking from range skips the cutscene and leads straight to combat, allowing Astarion to remain in the party uncaptured so long as he stays behind the three steps leading up to the dais. If he crosses that threshold, a cutscene of him being captured by Cazador interrupts combat.
• Cazador always upcasts  Call Lightning to level 5.
• Cazador is immune to the  Nauseous condition inflicted by the  Fallen Gur Hunters, as are all his minions.

Tactics

• Cazador's  Sunlight Hypersensitivity makes him susceptible to  Daylight and similar effects, such as  Lathander's Light or being near any character that is concentrating on  Sunbeam.
  • He takes 20⁠⁠Radiant damage if he starts his turn in sunlight.
  • While sunlit, he has  Disadvantage on  Attack Rolls and  Ability Checks.
  • Daylight forces him out of his mist form.
• Occupying  Ritual Sources is highly advisable in order both to claim their benefits, and to deprive Cazador of them.
  • The 10 temporary hit points they provide can be refreshed by walking off and then back onto the magic circles.
  • Summons, even ones as simple as  Spiritual Weapon, can be used for this purpose.
  • Sneaking into the arena under the cover of  Invisibility allows party members to start on ritual sources.
    • This has the added benefit of mitigating the risk of the Fallen Gur Hunter's  Stench as well as Cazador's  Call Lightning and  Vampiric Swarm by preventing them from hitting multiple characters.
  • Stepping off a Ritual Source refreshes Cazador's Temporary Hitpoints. Using the strategy to block the Ritual Sources can potentially lock party members in their place.^[verify]
• While Cazador cannot be surprised, his allies can. Attacking him while hidden or invisible will still trigger the cutscene, but after it finishes, only Cazador takes action on the first round of combat.
  • Placing  Scratch on Astarion's Ritual Source allows him to use the  Help action to free Astarion.
•  Thoroughly Stuffed grants the party immunity against the Fallen Gur Hunter's stench clouds.
• If Astarion is captured as part of the ritual, it is important that he be freed quickly, lest Cazador complete the ritual and ascend, permanently killing Astarion. If there is not already a party member or summon with the help action near his ritual circle, having any form of teleportation available (e.g.  Misty Step) is valuable.
• As with all fights involving large numbers of enemies, persistent area of effect spells (e.g.  Wall of Fire,  Moonbeam, and  Spirit Guardians) are very effective. Retreating up the stairs creates a choke point; however, this leaves Cazador the use of all his ritual sources, and forces the party to cover more ground should Astarion be recaptured during the fight.