• NOW LIVE! Into the Woods--new character species, eerie monsters, and haunting villains to populate the woodlands of your D&D games.

Demogorgon: Lame or Awesome?

Except you've got it backwards.

The Demogorgon of 1E had the baboon heads and tentacle arms. The notion of each head having its own personality, and vying with one another for superiority, is a much later addition. (Late 2E or 3E, I forget which.)

They gave the concept to the image, not the other way around.

Ah. I own up to that then.

I started playing DnD during the AD&D 2nd Ed days, so that's the only Demogorgon I know.

Props to whoever came up with the backstory to that portrait, that was inspired.
 

log in or register to remove this ad

Just because Asmodeus has three heads (one of a man, one of a bull, and one of a ram) and a serpent's tail in the Lesser Key of Solomon doesn't change the fact that it is lame. :)
Sure, but if you accept the premise that art design that emulates the popular mythology of the medieval period is a desireable goal in a fantasy role-playing game, then the D&D depiction of Demogorgon is quite awesome indeed -- or, at least the image in the AD&D Monster Manual is. To quote James Maliszewski: "I've always found medieval demonic images to be far creepier than modern ones, precisely because they have some atavistic connection to aspects of my cultural memory. Modern demons are just imaginary creatures; they're not monsters, if you catch my meaning."
 

Hey all! :)

Demogorgon is cool, cooler than Orcus and probably one of D&D's most iconic villains/monsters.

Demons always make for a much cooler bad guys simply because visually they were more varied in appearance than say devils, or even daemons.

I hear a lot of people saying otherwise in this thread without suggesting something better...and yes I read Shemeska's list...it was laughable.

...and I agree with Mouseferatu, Anthraxus is much cooler than Mydianchlarus. :p

I do wonder who will be on the cover of future Monster Manuals though? I mean Vecna is in Open Grave, Tiamat was in the Draconomicon. Of the great iconic D&D monsters there can't be many left.

I do like the idea that perhaps the third book would have a three headed monster (Cerberus?) and so on. Though with Tiamat out of the picture for Monster Manual 5 I don't see that idea gaining much mileage.

As to the cover of MM2 itself, I like the visual look of Demogorgon, but it does seem as if he's posing for the 'camera' rather than about to lay a smackdown on someone. So for something so threatening, he doesn't appear very threatening. Still a nice cover though...but Demogorgon shouldn't be nice.
 

hmm, as with Grazzt I just have a hard time grasping what he is about. Are there any iconic Demogorgon adventures, plots or places?

(Orcus is easier to grasp for me, thanks to Necromancer Games Adventures)
 

You're kidding, right? :eek: The entire notion of some great power being manipulated to grant all fiends across the multiverse their teleportation powers was one of the silliest aspects of Planescape's flawed conception of the fiends. The sooner that entire element, and everything associated with it, are forgotten, the better.
I'm a huge fan of Planescape and I have to say that I fully agree with this statement. That particular concept (and the adventure written to support it) is so horribly silly and lame that I wish it had never been made. It even tops Faction War and Die, Vecna, Die for silliness.
 

Hey Klaus, how about you try your hand at drawing him? :)
Oh, I'll probably do a two-headed tentacled baboon when the time comes to make COunter Collection 4e: Epic 2. And I'll call him Gorgodemon. ;)

Much like I did the Demonic Prince of Undeath:

attachment.php
 

hmm, as with Grazzt I just have a hard time grasping what he is about. Are there any iconic Demogorgon adventures, plots or places?

(Orcus is easier to grasp for me, thanks to Necromancer Games Adventures)

Yes.

In 3.5, towards the end, Savage Tide in Dungeon and the follow up pieces in Dragon.
 


demogorgon.gif


I'll go along with the Demogorgon> Orcus thing too- always been my fave named demon though I don't feel any depiction has truly captyured the way I imagine him. I imagine him alot less "colorful" and not completely baboon -ish as depicted in many recent renderings. Instead I imagine him being alot more slimy, dripping/oozing,festering,mucus-y,deep-sea-ish and a little more alien or cthulhu mythos-esque. He would be various hideous shades of green,grey,black, & dark mustard.

Thats just me though.:angel:
 


Into the Woods

Remove ads

Top