Anders

Anders is a human paladin of Tyr during Act One. He is hunting for Karlach with his companions along The Risen Road.

“

We are paladins of Tyr, Lord of Justice. He sent us after an infernal being, straight out of the Nine Hells, hiding in the form of a one-horned tiefling.

„

— Anders

Involvement

Act One

Anders is in the Risen Road Toll House with his companions, Cyrel and Trynn. If spoken to, he tells the party that the Toll House is safe under Tyr's protection. He explains that they are hunting a dangerous one-horned devil who takes the form of a tiefling responsible for slaughtering refugees. He requests aid from the party in hunting the devil, initiating  Hunt the Devil.

The party can discover Anders' ruse by passing a DC 15 Religion check when interacting with him or by speaking to the corpse in the next room via  Speak with Dead, among other methods. It is revealed that he is a fallen paladin of Tyr pacted with the Arch-devil Zariel, who, in exchange for power, demands either Anders' soul or the head of an Avernus escapee, Karlach.

If the party bring Karlach's Head to Anders, he rewards them with his Sword of Justice. Otherwise, a fight breaks out and the sword can be looted from his body. Killing Anders grants the  Warrior of the Hells inspiration to party members with the  Soldier background, which includes Lae'zel if present.

Companion approval

If the party meet Anders before speaking with Karlach:

• Let me help, I can help you hunt down this monster.  +1  -1

Combat

Attacks and abilities

 Divine Smite ( + )

Damage: 3~24

Normal weapon damage

+ 2d8Radiant

+ 1d8Radiant

Your weapon deals an additional 2d8RadiantDRS damage, increased by 1d8Radiant damage when attacking Fiends or Undead.

 Range: Normal weapon range

 Main Hand Attack ()   –  Sword of Justice

Damage: 7~17

2d6 + 5Slashing

Make a melee attack with your equipped weapon.

 Melee: 1.5 m / 5 ft

 Thunderous Smite ( + + )

Damage: 2~12

Normal weapon damage

+ 2d6Thunder

Your melee weapon rings with thunder as you strike, pushing your target 3 m / 10 ft away and possibly knocking them  Prone.

STR Save

 Range: Normal weapon range

 Tyr's Protection ()

Protect a creature from attacks: increases its  Armour Class by 2.

Spell ends when the Sword of Justice is unequipped.

 Range: 18 m / 60 ft

Recharge: Short rest

Allies

• Cyrel
• Trynn

Encounter details

Anders can be a dangerous opponent for early game parties. Using  Divine Smite and  Extra Attack, he can deal enough damage to easily kill a party member in one turn.

He is also less susceptible to common crowd control spells like  Command and  Hold Person due to his proficiency in Wisdom Saving throws and  Aura of Protection.

Tactics

It may be helpful to view fighting Anders as a damage race. Attempts to slow him down will likely fail due to his high saving throws, so it is recommended to deal as much damage as quickly as possible. Once dead, neither Cyrel nor Trynn are difficult in combat due to their low damage.

The party can also begin the battle by ambushing Cyrel when she periodically walks outside onto the balcony. A successful  Shove can push her off the cliff and kill her instantly, reducing the difficulty of the fight.

Loot

• Longsword
• Scale Mail
• Sword of Justice

Related quests

•  Hunt the Devil
•  Our Fiery Friend

Idle banter

Anders will occasionally chat with Trynn:

Anders: Cut it out. There's worse than gnolls out there.

• Trynn: Nothing we need to worry about.
  • Anders: How about a dragon? Would that worry you?
    • Trynn: I'd give it a bloody good fight, that's for sure.
      • Anders: Ha! Only thing you'd give a dragon is bad gas.

Gallery

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  Model

External links

• Anders on the Forgotten Realms Wiki