This 192-page hardcover is a companion to the Book of Vile Darkness, which also makes it the second book in the mature audience product line. While Book of Vile Darkness focuses on how to challenge the heroes of a D&D campaign with the most horrifyingly evil and despicable villains (allowing the unwavering light of good to struggle valiantly to win the day), the Book of Exalted Deeds offers a preponderance of material that illustrates the challenges of playing good characters and provides a host of information for running truly heroic campaigns. To give you a more succinct description of what's inside, here's a look at the back cover copy:
Strike Down Evil with the Sword of Enlightenment
"Only those who are pure in word, thought, and deed may look upon the knowledge gathered within this blessed tome. For the blinding truths inscribed within offer nothing but redemption or destruction for the wicked. May these consecrated pages forever illuminate the paths of the righteous."
-- Raziel the Crusader, ruler of the Platinum Heaven
This sourcebook for the D&D game is intended for mature audiences and provides players and Dungeon Masters with inspiring subject matter that will broadenany campaign. Included is a detailed look at the nature of good and the complex challenges that face those who join the eternal struggle on the side of the moral and just. Along with exalted feats, prestige classes, and spells, the Book of Exalted Deeds also provides descriptions and statistics for a host of creatures and celestial paragons to ally with virtuous characters.
Assuming you're playing in a heroic campaign, where (for the most part) your characters are out doing things for the common good, you could run into all sorts of situations where the material in this book would come into play. The various conundrums, conflicts, and catch-22s are just a few of the challenges characters in a heroic campaign face. Some of them are much, much more direct -- for example, being attacked by the physical manifestation of a deity's vengeance:
Aleax
Physically manifesting vengeance, a deity sends forth an aleax to punish and redeem those who stray from the dictates of their alignments, who fail to make the proper sacrifices, or who otherwise enrage the deity. An aleax looks like its intended victim except that its eyes glow bright gold or silver.
An aleax does not exist until it is called into being by a deity. The deity imbues the aleax with a fragment of his or her consciousness before sending it to the location of its intended victim. When it appears, the aleax may utter a few brief words in the language of the deity (which may or may not be understandable to the victim), stating the nature of the transgression and insisting that its victim submit to punishment. After the decree is spoken, the aleax attacks without quarter or mercy. No discussion or plea is heeded.
A deity may have only one aleax at any given time, and an aleax cannot be sent after more than one creature. A deity cannot send a new aleax to exact vengeance against a character who has killed the deity's aleax once before.
Creating an Aleax
An aleax has all of the statistics, abilities, qualities, racial traits, and possessions of its intended victim (referred to hereafter as the "base creature") except as noted below:
Type: Changes to construct.
Hit Dice: Changes to 10-sided Hit Dice. An aleax of Small size or larger gains a number of additional hit points based on its size: Small 10, Medium 20, Large 30, Huge 40, Gargantuan 60, or Colossal 80. These bonus hit points do not change when the aleax shapechanges into a larger or smaller form.
Initiative: The aleax gains a +1 insight bonus on initiative checks.
Armor Class: The aleax gains a +2 perfection bonus to AC.
Special Abilities: The aleax gains all of the intended victim's special abilities plus the following:
Searing Light (Sp): Once per round, as a standard action, an aleax may fire rays of light from its eyes. The rays duplicate the effect of a searing light spell (caster level equals the aleax's Hit Dice).
Shapechange (Sp): An aleax can shapechange at will, as the spell. An aleax typically has one or two favored alternate forms reflective of the deity it serves. (For example, Bahamut's aleax has been known to take the form of a gold dragon.) The aleax retains its extraordinary and spell-like abilities regardless of the new form. Caster level 20th.
Sudden Death (Ex): If the aleax kills its intended victim, the victim's spirit is instantly transported to the aleax's deity, who gives the fallen character one last chance to barter for its life. The deity can demand a service, a sworn oath, a magic item or other precious item, or some similar sacrifice. If the character does not pay, his spirit is destroyed, and the character cannot be returned to life by any means.
If the intended victim destroys the aleax in battle, the aleax and all of its equipment vanishes. However, some portion of the divine essence infusing the aleax merges with the character, who immediately gains the following benefits: a +2 bonus to Wisdom, a +1 insight bonus on all initiative checks, a +2 perfection bonus to AC, and spell resistance equal to the aleax's Hit Dice. The deity's wrath is annulled, and no more attacks will be made against that character for whatever offense begot the aleax (regardless of whether that character is now acting in an appropriate manner).
Special Qualities: The aleax gains all of the intended victim's special qualities plus the following:
Construct Traits:An aleax has immunity to poison, magic sleep effects, paralysis, stunning, disease, death effects, necromancy effects, mind-affecting effects (charms, compulsions, phantasms, patterns, and morale effects), and any effect that requires a Fortitude save unless it also works on objects or is harmless. It is not subject to critical hits, subdual damage, ability damage, ability drain, fatigue, exhaustion, or energy drain. Cannot heal damage, but can be repaired. An aleax is immediately destroyed when reduced to 0 hit points or less. Since it was never alive, an aleax cannot be raised or resurrected. Darkvision 60 ft. and low-light vision.
Fast Healing 5 (Ex): The aleax heals 5 points of damage per round. Fast healing is otherwise like natural healing. Fast healing does not restore hit points lost from starvation, thirst, or suffocation, and it does not allow the aleax to regrow or reattach severed body parts.
Singular Enemy (Ex): Although the aleax is visible to all, only its intended victim can harm it. Attacks made by other creatures are rebuffed, dealing no damage and hindering the aleax in no way.
Spell Resistance (Ex): The aleax has spell resistance equal to 10 + its Hit Dice or the spell resistance of its intended victim, whichever is higher.
True Seeing (Sp): An aleax can use true seeing at will, as a free action. Caster level 20th.
Abilities: An aleax has no Constitution score.
Skills and Feats: An aleax has the skills and feats of the base creature.
Challenge Rating: As the base creature +3.
I can tell you, from first-hand experience, while the actual confrontation with an Aleax is quite nasty, knowing that it's coming for you and waiting for the encounter to happen is even worse.
