Dantes
Dantes — The Encounter
The Damned Rider who hunts the lost through the burning waste · a boss your table can run with almost no prep. SRD 5.1-compatible.
Who Is Dantes
They say a soul too proud to repent was set astride a steed of cinders and made to ride the burning waste forever, hunting down the lost as he himself is hunted. Pilgrims who stray from the safe road tell of a horned rider in graven armor whose passing is heralded by a cold dread, his lance trailing fire, his mount's hooves striking sparks from the bones of the fallen. He does not parley. He rides the damned down as a huntsman rides a hare, the white mane of his steed snapping like a banner, and where he wheels his charger the very air turns heavy with terror. Folk who survive his charge speak of a hooked blade that bites and will not let a wound knit closed, and of a baying cry that scatters the bravest companies into the dark. To meet his eye on the open road, the wise say, is to be marked already for the long ride down.
Run Dantes in Sixty Seconds
- Mount up first. The Rider lives or dies on movement - it starts mounted on the Hellsteed (combined 60 ft.) and should almost never be standing still. Hold position only to finish a kill.
- Open with the charge. Move 20+ ft. straight in, hit with the lance for the bonus 2d10 and a prone save, then Multiattack. The Charge + Dread Presence one-two breaks a formation on turn one.
- Kill-priority: the healer. The Hooked Sword stops a target regaining hit points - land it on whoever keeps the party standing, then ignore them while they bleed.
- When bloodied, never stop moving. Use Wheel and Turn and Parting Blow to kite - charge, strike, ride out, repeat. Standing toe-to-toe is how this boss dies.
- Three ways to run it: (1) lone hunter chasing a fleeing party across open ground; (2) captain of a cavalry pack, charging in waves; (3) lieutenant to a larger fiend, flanking while the flagship anchors.
Dantes
Large fiend (devil), lawful evil
CR 6 · 2,300 XP · GUIDELINECharge. If the Damned Rider moves at least 20 feet straight toward a target and then hits it with a lance or sword attack on the same turn, the target takes an extra 11 (2d10) damage. If the target is a creature, it must succeed on a DC 14 Strength saving throw or be knocked prone.
Dread Presence. Signature. Each creature of the Rider's choice that starts its turn within 20 feet of the Rider and can see it must succeed on a DC 14 Wisdom saving throw or be frightened until the start of its next turn. A creature that fails by 5 or more also drops whatever it is holding. A creature that succeeds is immune to this Rider's Dread Presence for 24 hours.
Actions
Multiattack. The Damned Rider makes two attacks: one with its Infernal Lance and one with its Hooked Sword.
Infernal Lance. Melee Weapon Attack: +7 to hit, reach 10 ft., one target. Hit: 14 (2d8 + 4) piercing damage plus 7 (2d6) fire damage.
Hooked Sword. Melee Weapon Attack: +7 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 13 (2d6 + 4) slashing damage, and the target cannot regain hit points until the start of the Rider's next turn.
Bonus Actions & Reactions
Parting Blow (Reaction). When a creature the Rider can see moves out of its reach, or moves out of the Hellsteed's reach, the Rider makes one Hooked Sword attack against that creature.
Legendary Actions (3/Round)
Wheel and Turn. The Hellsteed moves up to half its speed without provoking opportunity attacks.
Hooked Strike (Costs 1 Action). The Rider makes one Hooked Sword attack.
Cry of the Hunt (Costs 2 Actions). The Rider lets out a baying howl. Each creature within 20 feet must succeed on a DC 14 Wisdom saving throw or be frightened until the end of its next turn.
A horned, ashen-faced rider in scrolled black plate spurs an armored hellsteed across a field of bone and snapped blades, cloak streaming, lance lowered, the steed's mane and tail burning white.
Dantes, Bound
Companion · acts on your initiative
Bound · GUIDELINETrampling Charge (signature). If the Hellsteed moves at least 20 feet straight toward a creature and then hits it with a Hooves attack on the same turn, that target must succeed on a DC 13 Strength saving throw or be knocked prone. If knocked prone, the Hellsteed can make another Hooves attack against it as a bonus action.
Actions
Hooves. Melee Weapon Attack: +6 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 13 (2d8 + 4) bludgeoning damage plus 4 (1d8) fire damage.
Reactions
Sure-Footed (Reaction). When the Hellsteed or its rider would be knocked prone, the Hellsteed can plant its hooves and prevent that effect once per turn.
A nightmare destrier in spined barding, eyes coal-red, mane and tail wreathed in cold white fire; it answers no rein but its rider's.
Guideline numbers — formula-tuned and read from the miniature's design, not yet table-proven. Tell us how it ran in the comments.
How It Fights — by Tier
Same creature, scaled threat. The traits never change; only the numbers move.
Open with a 60-ft. Charge into your front line so the Charge save lands someone prone, then Multiattack the prone target. Kill-priority is whoever is healing - the Hooked Sword shutting off hit-point recovery is the whole point. Pair it with a flagship boss; do not run it solo at this tier.
This is a solo centerpiece: open with Cry of the Hunt to frighten the clustered party, then Charge the squishiest caster (lance + 2d10 + prone). Use Wheel and Turn legendary moves to stay mobile and never sit still for focus-fire, and Parting Blow to punish anyone who tries to disengage. Kill-priority is the healer (Hooked Sword denies HP regen); when bloodied, ride circles and pick off stragglers with hit-and-run charges.
At this tier run it with a pack of mounted minions or in its burning-waste lair, not truly solo - a high-level party out-actions one rider. Open with Cry of the Hunt, Charge the back line, and use legendary actions every round to reposition and re-charge. Pair it with a bigger infernal threat so the Rider plays the relentless flanking hunter while the flagship anchors the fight.
Put Dantes on the table
Download the presupported STL and run the fight tonight — the model, and the encounter that comes with it.
Get the STL on MyMiniFactory →Clay Cyanide Companion Rules v1
How a bound creature acts
- A companion acts on its owner's initiative, immediately after the owner.
- It uses the Companion block above — roughly ×0.6 HP and damage, no recharge abilities, and at most one reaction trait.
- It moves freely; it takes its Action only while its owner is conscious.
- At 0 HP a companion is broken, not dead — restored on a long rest unless your table rules otherwise.
Original Clay Cyanide material © Clay Cyanide LLC — explicitly not the non-SRD official sidekick rules.
Questions, Asked at the Table
What CR is Dantes?
Native CR 6 (Tier 2, ~levels 5-10): AC 17, 119 HP, +7 to hit, save DC 14. He is solo-capable at this tier thanks to legendary actions and the Parting Blow reaction, which let him out-pace a single party member's action economy. Scale him to CR 2-ish for Tier 1 or CR 11-ish for Tier 3 using the tier table - traits stay identical, only the numbers move.
Can Dantes be a companion or ally?
As written he is a relentless, unparleying hunter of the lost, so a straight alliance is a stretch - but a desperate party might strike a bargain to be left off his hunting list, or turn his Hellsteed against him. The Hellsteed itself makes a strong bound mount/companion (AC 14, 71 HP, Trampling Charge) for a fiend-touched cavalier PC who can master its rein.
How do I keep one rider threatening against a full party?
Use the terrain and his mobility. Run the fight in the open where his 60-ft. mounted speed matters, lead with Cry of the Hunt to scatter the group, and spend legendary actions on Wheel and Turn so he charges, strikes, and rides clear before the party can surround him. If your players are high-level, give him a cavalry escort or a bigger boss to fight beside rather than expecting one rider to solo Tier 3.
Tell Us How It Ran
This work includes material taken from the System Reference Document 5.1 ("SRD 5.1") by Wizards of the Coast LLC and available at dnd.wizards.com/resources/systems-reference-document. The SRD 5.1 is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License available at creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/legalcode.
Clay Cyanide Miniatures is not affiliated with, endorsed, sponsored, or specifically approved by Wizards of the Coast LLC. This content is compatible with the fifth edition of the world's most popular fantasy roleplaying game. Companion rules, lore, names, and original mechanics © Clay Cyanide LLC.
Technical Specifications
32mm, 75mm
STL, Pre-supported STL
Standard or ABS-like resin, 0.05mm layer height
Yes — ready to print, optimized supports included
Played Dantes at your table? Log in with your Obsidian Tavern account to leave a balance note, a war story, or a file issue — the sharpest reports get the block revised.
Log in to comment