D&D (2024) D&D Marilith Is Far More Bestial In 2025

The new 2025 Monster Manual has all-new art, and one major change is the depiction of the marilith. Up until now, the marilith has been depicted as a six-armed humanish female from the waist up; while in the 2025 book, the picture is far more bestial in nature.

Not only is the imagery more demonic, it also features the creature in action, simultaneously beheading, stabbing, and entwining its foes with its six arms and snake-like tail.

Left 2025 Marilith / Right 2014 Marilith​

 

[Hussar]

See, @Kobold Avenger, it’s your number two that I take issue with. I don’t see demons as having biology at all. They’re not a living creature.

As such, any gender they express is entirely a mockery of the sentient species that they are trying to corrupt and destroy.

I guess for me, the bottom line would be, demons can’t create. Only destroy. I have zero interest in demons or devils actually being alive.

 

[Alzrius]

They’re not a living creature.

I'm pretty sure negative energy hurts them and positive energy heals them.

 

[Hussar]

I'm pretty sure negative energy hurts them and positive energy heals them.

I didn't say they were undead. But, that doesn't make them alive either. They're not alive, they're fiends. They're not humanoids.

Would you say that Modrons have biology? Are they gendered? When you start looking at most planar creatures, very few actually have any specific gender. Elementals are not gendered. @Maxperson has made a huge deal of the fact that we don't have any pictures of a non-boobie marilith until now. Does that mean that all genie-kind are male? I've never seen a D&D picture of a female genie of any kind. So, by this logic, they must all be male. It's impossible for them not to be male.

Am I the only one here thinking that this is an incredibly ridiculous position to take? That just because all the pictures we've had of a given monster are male, that is the one true version of that creature and must never, ever change? No original takes on that monster must ever be shown? We must adhere to this one vision of the monster that is forever graven in stone?

 

[Kobold Avenger]

See, @Kobold Avenger, it’s your number two that I take issue with. I don’t see demons as having biology at all. They’re not a living creature.

As such, any gender they express is entirely a mockery of the sentient species that they are trying to corrupt and destroy.

I guess for me, the bottom line would be, demons can’t create. Only destroy. I have zero interest in demons or devils actually being alive.

Demons vary in types and origins.

I constantly brought up how types of Demons like Armanites were a biological species that was altered by the Abyss and became Demons, in much the same way that Githzerai are a biological species and not some mockery of a sentient species just because they live in Limbo.

Or how others like Goristo are a form of life native to the Abyss. They could be related other (currently non-Demon) Abyssal species like Stench Kow, created through selective breeding.

 

[Alzrius]

I didn't say they were undead. But, that doesn't make them alive either. They're not alive, they're fiends. They're not humanoids.

I'm pretty sure that positive and negative energy work on any living creature, fiends included. But I'll admit I'm not up to date on 5.5E (or whatever we're calling it now). Certainly, 5E's cure wounds spell says it doesn't work on constructs and undead, meaning that it works on fiends just fine, implying that the former are not alive and the latter are.

Would you say that Modrons have biology?

In point of fact, the modrons being a combination of flesh and metal was a plot point behind the "modronoids" from one (or possibly more; it's been a while) adventures in The Great Modron March 2E adventure anthology.

I've never seen a D&D picture of a female genie of any kind.

Seriously? This picture of the marid (i.e. the water genie) is from, if I recall correctly, the 2E Monstrous Manual:

 

[Kobold Avenger]

Seriously? This picture of the marid (i.e. the water genie) is from, if I recall correctly, the 2E Monstrous Manual:

The Marid in 5e looks feminine to me based on the clothing, even though she doesn't look anything like the 2e Marid. I don't like how Marid appear in 5e either, but at least their MM entry says they have varied appearances, which certainly leaves the room for appearing like the 2e one or the 5e ones and still being Marid.

 

[pemerton]

@Maxperson has made a huge deal of the fact that we don't have any pictures of a non-boobie marilith until now. Does that mean that all genie-kind are male? I've never seen a D&D picture of a female genie of any kind. So, by this logic, they must all be male. It's impossible for them not to be male.

Am I the only one here thinking that this is an incredibly ridiculous position to take?

No.

 

[QuentinGeorge]

Nah, the 3E art was different. Had a background, showed the kraken as being massive due to size comparison, while the recent one is just by itself. The fandom wiki (as much as I loath that becursed website) has both pictures

Unless there's some random Dungeon adventure I'm not aware of in 3E, of course.

"The Styes" in Ghosts of Saltmarsh is a 3E adventure from Dungeon #121. The "juvenile kraken" in Ghosts of Saltmarsh is identical to a differently labelled picture in that Dungeon magazine. adventure

 

[Hussar]

I'm pretty sure that positive and negative energy work on any living creature, fiends included. But I'll admit I'm not up to date on 5.5E (or whatever we're calling it now). Certainly, 5E's cure wounds spell says it doesn't work on constructs and undead, meaning that it works on fiends just fine, implying that the former are not alive and the latter are.

In point of fact, the modrons being a combination of flesh and metal was a plot point behind the "modronoids" from one (or possibly more; it's been a while) adventures in The Great Modron March 2E adventure anthology.

Seriously? This picture of the marid (i.e. the water genie) is from, if I recall correctly, the 2E Monstrous Manual:

Again, this is where I always run into the great wall of Planescape. It's a shame that Planescape has somehow become the default setting for the planes in D&D.

 

[Mecheon]

"The Styes" in Ghosts of Saltmarsh is a 3E adventure from Dungeon #121. The "juvenile kraken" in Ghosts of Saltmarsh is identical to a differently labelled picture in that Dungeon magazine. adventure

Huh, there you go!