Planar Bestiary
This songbird's feathers seem more vibrant, more colorful, and more luxurious than those of other avian creatures of similar size and disposition. Their beak is crimson, and their eyes sparkle like stars.
Blown off course by especially violent planar maelstroms in the Feywild, mated abolisher pairs can end up in other dimensions, especially on worlds of the Material Plane. Other times, travelers moving through a Feywild crossing encounter a lone abolisher and, finding them beautiful, capture them and take them as a prize or a pet. Later, they may forget where they got the creature and simply release them someplace new.
Lone abolishers are dangerous enough to those who don't understand their power. A flock of abolishers can wipe away someone's entire mind.
Stealing an abolisher's egg from the nest is rumored to strike the thief down immediately with a curse of senility.
Motive: Sing away memories
Environment: The Feywild, forested areas, or aviaries, sometimes alone or in mated pairs, or in flocks of up to eight
Health: 9
Damage Inflicted: Minor wound (2 points)
Armor: 3 against sound-based attacks
Movement: Immediate; short when flying
Modifications: Speed defense as level 4 due to tiny size; stealth and deception tasks as level 5; memory-stealing song as level 5
Combat: An abolisher bites with their beak, but their primary weapon is song. The abolisher's alluring melodies feel like a mental balm. When the abolisher sings, one creature within short range failing an Intellect defense task takes 2 points of Intellect damage (ignores Armor) and stands entranced. For the target to realize their memories are under assault and do anything other than continue to listen to the beautiful song requires that they also succeed on a level 5 Intellect defense task. Nearby creatures that are not the target hear only delightful songbird music. An ally who realizes what's happening can use their action to shake the target out of their listening trance. A creature who understands the threat is immune to the abolisher's song (and takes no Intellect damage from it).
Creatures who are native to the Feywild or who have fey ancestry are immune to this attack.
Interaction: Abolishers of sorrow are not predatory like wolves, but once they sense unprotected memories, they continue to sing until none are left if not prevented.
Use: The PCs find a home echoing with sweet song and two corpses, dead of mysterious causes. PCs may later learn that despite the dangers of listening to abolishers overlong, some people use them to lessen the sting of loss from a loved one's death or other tragedy. The grieving allow their painful memories to be washed away by this bird's captivating tune. However, if the process isn't monitored by a third party, those seeking relief from their sadness eventually lose too many memories to recall even their own name.
Loot: The nest of a mated pair of abolishers eventually contains two or three perfect eggs with shells of iridescent, jewel-like crystal, as beautiful to gaze upon as an abolisher's song is to hear, each having the value of an expensive item (about 100 gold coins).
GM Intrusion: A collector of rare avian creatures (level 4), wearing headgear that protects them from sound, arrives suddenly, intent on defending the abolisher under assault.