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Yesterday our bi-weekly game met, this time with a side trek from a different DM.
It was 3 linked encounters and the first encounter had the only "cool" dungeon dressing, that of the spiral associated with Tharizdun, carved into the floor of a pyramid.
That was pretty much the only touch of Tharizdun and I told the guest DM after word, "needed more Tharizdun".
But since I'm a Greyhawk fan and I can't say that he is, and since he really only had 4 hours, I guess other things would take priority.
The bad guys were gnolls and the "shaman" had the spiral of Tharizdun carved into his hand. There was a grell that came floating out of a charnel pit. I only associated grells with Tharizdun thanks to Monte Cook's Return to the Temple of Elemental Evil.
A 4-faced statue, representing the four facets of Tharizdun (red/strength/fighters, purple/wisdom/clerics, etc).
Magical implements used to open secret passages (like blowing the Horn of Tharizdun to open a secret door).
Strange carvings that hurt the eye to gaze upon, including weird geometric shapes and writhing tentacles.
Trees full of multi-colored fruit that offering blessings or death to the "faithful".
Inverted pyramids.
Iron triangles.
These are all from the original source (WG4). For later-era Tharizdun, you start seeing aberrations (grells, aboleths, etc), the spiral symbol, and the various trappings of the Elder Elemental Eye.
I would take a leaf out of the cthulu book. Go to the websites and download the wierd music and littanies (have magic mouths along the walls chanting endlessly (and your ipod on)
Also cultists make their masters.. cold and dark is elemental and easily ignored cultists gives a human face that can be related to but is still very, very wrong.
Then do biased, exclusive game design.
Use classes that are offputting and irritating more than deadily:
have exclusive classes/races/sexes etc warp the standards...
0 tollerance on other classes/races etc
Show the intollerance of an uncaring universal force, and why its the enamy of good AND bad.
Amazingly compelling/attractive ALL human male: Spell Thieves, Hexblades, Knights,
Horendously ugly ALL orc female: Monks, Archivists,
NO half orcs... till they find a chamber with 100 half orc babies shackled and chanting (some undead) endlessly with the effect of a castigate spell.. or holy word (if high level) that effects all but cn or psycopathic.
In the Male Human quarters male orcs chained over benches naked yet with books on stands infront of them and mutilated. All exactly the same level, all wizard/cleric: geomancers (complete divine) and coldly insane).
In the Orc female quarters female humans chained and mutilated. All exactly the same level, all bards/'evangelists' (complete divine and VERY warmly insane).
Pop Complete Divine and check the 'divine crusader' all the cultist knights/hexblades should use daggers (tharizduns weapon), with this class they get specialisation and the force domain (warriors salvoing bolts of force and walls of force throw any party exp. after a hex salvo.
Have the ugly orc female monks with things like 'mage slayer' and its additives and grapple after the hex blades hex.. have them whisper sweet sexual fantasies thru black and green teeth with pustulent tounges as opponents are gripped to flabby chests with hard nipples.
The spell thieves throwing their daggers from hiding, all jumping and climbing like some sort of arachnid/ape crossbreeds yet its apparent their human, and attractive and putting themselves thru discomfort and strain.
Some scattered female archivists can be 'entropomacers', some 'void disciples'
Some scattered male spell thieves can be shukeja with the 'black flame zealout' prestige class (swap fire for cold).
Add blurb. Stick to your guns. Don't chuck in any human like 'end character' don't make the borg mistake.
Also, a recognizable NPC is always good. Someone the PCs didn't know was a cultist, but they find him as one of the mob attacking them in a room filled with thuribles burning violet, cloying incense. They only recognize him when his hood falls off in battle. Listen checks first (DC 30+) to see if they recognize his chanting voice. Then in the next room they find his diaries mentioning how he'd corrupted one of the PCs (maybe true, maybe not.... let 'em think about it and eue each other warily for a few sessions).
And cold. Lots of cold. Only Tharizdun's chasuble and robes protect against it. Unfortunately they also drive you mad.
Lancelot's and insanogeddon's lists are good, but there's certainly more Tharizdun stuff you could consider drawing from/creating/alluding to as well:
- the Lament for Lost Tharizdun
- the Dark Druids see RJK's module of the same name, and the Canonfire! file @ http://www.canonfire.com/cfhtml/modu...p=getit&lid=92
- there's also some T. content in Dragon #294 in "EXTENDED PANTHEON: Complete stats for Tharizdun, Iuz, and others" by David Noonan
Here's a listing of the references to Tharizdun from Jason Zavoda's GH Index:
Quote:
Tharizdun [Deity]
(Master of Malevolence, Dark One, Slumbering One, He Who
Slumbers, He Who must Forever Sleep, Great Destroyer, Ultimate One,
Ultimate Darkness, Ultimate Evil, Ultimate Foe, Ultimate Woe,
Unrelenting Darkness, Utmost of the Netherworlds, Absolute
Darkness, Biophage, Blackest One, Dark One, Darkest of
Abominations, Great Evil, Great Master of Evil, Him of Utter
Darkness, Master of Malevolence, One Who We Will Not Name,
Slumbering One)
AOE - 27,28,47,49-51,58,84,94,95,97,98,185,188
CED - 10,11,43,45,63,66,68,69,70,76,79,111,112,161,170
192,199,215,219,220,221,237,240,241,245,246,248
254,296,299,300,301,302,303,307,320,321,324,325
327,341,353,356,357,361,370,372,374,376,377,379
COH - 29,31,34,36,57,359,361,396
DOD - 11,12,17,19,37,40,48,49,74,76,77,91,103,119,141,14 2,150
168,196,208,220,221,224,230,241,252,260,268,271,27 2,273
274,279,281,282,287,288,289,290,291,292,293,294,29 5,296
298,299,300,301,302,303,304,305,306,307,308,309,31 0,311
312,313,314,315,316,317,318,319,321,322,323,324,32 5,326
327,336,337,338,340,341,342,343,344,345,346,347,34 8,349
351,352,353,355,356,357,358,359,360,361,364,365,36 6,367
369,370,371,372,373,374,376,377,378,379,382,383,38 5,386
388,390,391,392,393,394,395,396,398,399,400,401,40 2,403
404,405,406,407,408,409,410,413,414,415,416,417,41 9,420
425,426
DRG#191 - 67
DRG#206 - 44
DRG#241 - 95
DRG#294 - 27,31,32,33,75,79,95,96
DRG#298 - 77
DRG#299 - 103
DUN#41 - 47,51,53,57
DUN#85 - 43
FTAA - 35,91,92,96
FTAC - 49
FTAR#4
IVID
LGG - 96,98,100,129,180,184,185
LGJ#0 - 5
LGJ#3 - 17
LOG - 68,69
PGTG - 5,18,19,21,27
POLY#128 - 28
RT1-4 - 2,4,5,6,7,9,10,12,18,19,27,28,32,38,39,40,42,43,44 ,45
46,48,52,53,62,70,75,78,79,80,81,83,85,89,94,98,10 1,105
106,110,111,113,114,115,116,118,120,125,127,130,13 1,132
133,137,143,144,145,146,147,149,151,153,154,156,16 1,162
163,165,176,181,182,183,184,185,186,187,190
SLV - 10,123
SOD - 67,134,388
T1-4 - 120
TSB - 13,24,33,86
WG5 - 16
WGR3 - 16,22
WGR5 - 5,6
WOGA - 63
Tharizdun, Cult of [ORG]
RT1-4 - 6,9,32,38,39,53,101,106,143,145,146,161,163
Tharizdun, Purple Robes of [ITM]
RT1-4 - 111,114,118,133,154,187
Tharizdun, Temple of (Erelhei-Cinlu)[TMP]
DRG#298 - 77
Tharizdun, Temple of (Scant)[TMP]
LOG - 69
Tharizdun, Temple of (Temple of All-Consumption)[TMP]
RT1-4 - 7,9,10,18,20,32,33,37,38,40,41,42,74,78,89,92,94,1 07
137,145,162,189
Tharizdun, Temple of (Underoerth)[TMP]
DUN#85 - 43,44
Tharizdun, Wailer for (Horn)[ITM]
WG4 - 15
Doomdreamers [ORG]
DRG#294 - 96
LGJ#4 - 2
RT1-4 - 7,19,28,38,39,42,52,53,70,74,75,83,94,101,106,110
120,122,125,126,128,129,130,132,133,136,137,140,14 1
143,144,146,147,151,161,162,163,182,185,187,188,18 9,190
SEE ALSO Triad
SEE ALSO Tharizdun, Cult of
Druniazth {Claw of Tharizdun}[ITM]
DRG#294 - 95,96
DRG#299 - 101
COG = City of Greyhawk (Gem of the Flanaess book)
FTAC = From the Ashes (Campaign bk)
LGG = Living Greyhawk Gaz.
LGJ = Living GH Journal
PGTG = PLayers Guide to GH
SLV = Slavers
TAB = Greyhawk, The Adventure Begins
WGR5 = Iuz the Evil
__________________ grodog
----
Allan Grohe
Editor and Project Manager Black Blade Publishing
A 4-faced statue, representing the four facets of Tharizdun (red/strength/fighters, purple/wisdom/clerics, etc).
Magical implements used to open secret passages (like blowing the Horn of Tharizdun to open a secret door).
Strange carvings that hurt the eye to gaze upon, including weird geometric shapes and writhing tentacles.
Trees full of multi-colored fruit that offering blessings or death to the "faithful".
Inverted pyramids.
Iron triangles.
Yes.
The grell was featured in the original module, as where some other Fiend Folio creatures. Mysterious black metal and magic items related to force are also tharizdunesque.
4E has rituals, use them, they're magic; Want to see the greatest thing you will ever see? then click; You can use “Earth” as a D&D setting; Origins of The Rouse; (look for it) The Rouse responds; (look for it) One can appreciate both old and new D&D.
I didn't know 2E had much reference to Tharizdun, but then again I wasn't playing DnD for most of the 2E era.
Thinking about it, there are a couple of things I could retcon to work with Tharizdun about the session.
There was a purple/black curtain of light that lead us to the pyramid and we had a vision of a magic staff that could be used to gate in an army of gnolls. I'd say it could have easily been a false vision, which instead would have helped to unlock some portion of the dark one's prison. I'd ask, but it is moot, we'll be continuing with our regularly scheduled session next week.
Is Tharizdun still an astral-domain type "God" in 4e? I know he isn't a primordial, but I was wondering if he might be something else. Either a far realm entity, or a being unto himself of pure malevolence.
Tharizdun doesn't exists 4.0 (in a way any can detect in 4.0 reality....some know he suceeded in destroying 3.5 and puppeteered the creation of a world in which things are limited to boundaries that can never breech his now uncontestable eternal dominion).
He was pretty wierd and unbalanced. . sort of weaker but stronger, more a concept to be fit to situations than a rule situations have to fit to. You could make him a primordial far realms entity breeching / pre-existing such limited cosmology but issues arise that subvert 4.0 as would wierd powers, cultists etc as if they cannot warp the patterned predictable system they loose that abberant off-putting unusual edge.
Its a trade.
Best to stick to mobs of demon cultists with pointy hats and good outfits and add flavor text and some ranting spiel and purple highlights to the solo.
Tharizdun doesn't exists 4.0 (in a way any can detect in 4.0 reality....some know he suceeded in destroying 3.5 and puppeteered the creation of a world in which things are limited to boundaries that can never breech his now uncontestable eternal dominion).
He was pretty wierd and unbalanced. . sort of weaker but stronger, more a concept to be fit to situations than a rule situations have to fit to. You could make him a primordial far realms entity breeching / pre-existing such limited cosmology but issues arise that subvert 4.0 as would wierd powers, cultists etc as if they cannot warp the patterned predictable system they loose that abberant off-putting unusual edge.
Its a trade.
Best to stick to mobs of demon cultists with pointy hats and good outfits and add flavor text and some ranting spiel and purple highlights to the solo.
1) Tharizdun was a "god" in 3.x, see the Lords of Madness book. (Sure, the Olympian idea we have is nice, but it isn't the only take on a pantheon's members.)
2) Technically Cthulhu is one also. You're not dumping on him, or the rest of the Mythos, so how is having a mythos analog in 4e a problem? Same status, same purpose in-game.
3) Primordials are only kinda sorta the analog of the Mythos, in that they're weird, so far non-humanoid, and chaos-oriented. FR primordials aside, of course. Their deity-level.
4) I hope this doesn't ruin anything for you: Tharizdun is basically an Astral deity who found this weird black stone that pulsed with evil. It got tossed into the Elemental Chaos, and became the Abyss. Now the EC is filled with demons, where before it was (I suppose) morally neutral. Also, Tharizdun is effectively the abyss, or worse the reason the abyss exists. Whatever that stone is, who knows.
So yeah, get your CoC jollies out. Tharizdun is in 4e.
Trappings: Watch the movie Dark City. Watch the movie Dagon. Re-read or copy all the ToEE trappings.
really, think of the effect you're trying to generate. THEN and *only* then, think up the elements that would get you that effect.
If you want them thinking about entropy, have broken, twisted clock gears floating in the air.
4E has rituals, use them, they're magic;
Want to see the greatest thing you will ever see? then 
You can use “Earth” as a D&D 
The Rouse 
One can appreciate both old and new D&D.
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