The Arbiter serves the Dusk Lord, a god who presides over transitions, endings, and the balance between light and shadow
Her power flows within the bounds of judgment and guardianship — she is forbidden from intervening directly in mortal affairs beyond the liminal spaces she guards: boundaries, temples, and realms between life and death
She believes mortals must choose to protect their own world, lending wisdom, guidance, and blessings rather than fighting their battles for them
Nidhogg specifically hates the Dusk Lord and anyone who bears his mark, making the Arbiter and the party natural targets for the Cult of the Eclipse
When Serenity cursed the village of Tannis by defiling a holy symbol of the Dusk Lord, the corruption drew the Arbiter’s attention
She erected a barrier around the town to contain the spreading darkness and began preparing a purification ritual — one that would have destroyed all life in Tannis to cleanse the corruption
The party found her in a hidden dungeon level below the church’s catacombs and convinced her to delay the cleansing
They vowed to investigate the source of the curse themselves, and she agreed — marking them with her symbol as emissaries of the Dusk Lord
As a sign of good faith, she destroyed the remaining shadow monsters in town with a single devastating display of divine power: teleporting above the great oak tree, unfurling her wings, and shattering her greatsword into a thousand shards of homing radiant light that annihilated every shadow creature in Tannis
She also gave Skreek a +1 Shield of the Dusk Lord recovered from the church crypt
The Arbiter’s mark was placed on each party member, physically visible on Skreek’s shoulder
The mark grants safe passage through divine barriers, the ability to commune with the Arbiter across distances, and a Blessing of the Setting Sun (1d8 radiant damage, once per long rest)
Communion with the Arbiter is not a physical appearance — her presence settles over the caller “like a cold wind,” her voice “carrying the weight of judgment”
The Weaver and the Cult of the Eclipse consider all who bear the Dusk Lord’s mark to be priority enemies — the mark grants resistance to illusions and fear, purification of corruption, and access to warded leyline temples
The mark persists even through the final battle — in the aftermath, Slumpet reaches up to check that the warmth of the mark is still there
The party discovered Serenity’s altar containing a diorama of Tannis and a holy symbol of the Dusk Lord that had been magically cursed and defiled with blood
They used their marks to summon the Arbiter, who confirmed it was the source of the curse that triggered the Dusk Lord’s ire
She cleansed the holy symbol, vowed to release her barrier from Tannis, thanked the party, and opened a portal to return and begin her work
That night, the party dreamed of Tannis being restored and the Arbiter granting them the Blessing of the Setting Sun
The Arbiter does not have omniscient knowledge — when the party communed with her about the leyline temples, she offered theories and guidance but admitted when she lacked specific answers
At the Winter Leyline Temple, Skreek communed with her to understand the cracked crystal; she explained that leylines are paths through which raw magical energy flows, usable for communication, travel, or power
At the Summer Leyline Temple, when the party could not restore a crystal stolen and returned by Manus, the Arbiter suggested it needed to be cleansed of evil before it could function — Shadicar later succeeded with Dispel Magic
She provided a gem to the blacksmith Sig Rockwell, who used it to enchant a wrist blade with radiant damage for Toby — the “Dagger of Brightness”
In Skreek’s nightmares (inflicted by Serenity), the Arbiter appeared carrying out her purification ritual on Tannis — a vision of what would have happened if the party had failed
The party can use their holy marks to commune with the Arbiter and request aid during the final confrontation against the Weaver
Her Blessing of Justice grants all marked party members temporary hit points, advantage on saves against fear and charm, and radiant weapon damage
Her Intervention automatically triggers the first time a marked party member drops to 0 hit points — stabilizing them, standing them up, and wreathing them in protective holy light
Even from afar, her divine protection represents the culmination of the party’s relationship with her throughout the campaign
