[Plot] Serving Yugoloth Mercs (my players OUT!)

[WizarDru]

- Deliver a sealed message to an extraplanar city (forged message from a human Earth kingdom... unconvincing if delivered by 'Loths).

How about messing about with the Bastion of the Last Hope? Those darned anarchists are really starting to bother folks on Carceri, and the 'loths have designs on ways of irritating them to cause problems on Carceri...perhaps even inciting them to strike against some target on Carceri. This could be a morally complex issue...causing possibly non-evil (but not necesarrily good) beings to strike at evil ones. But doing it through, at best, ethically questionable ways.

- Protect an evil cultist who's traveling from one place to another.

Have the players assigned to 'take a dive' when protecting said cultist, as part of a complicated power play by KH or someone else. For example, perhaps he's agreed to send minions (the PCs) to defend a priestess of Lolth and her group, and the PCs are instructed to stand aside when the inevitable attack comes. What do they do? Ethical problems abound.

- Steal gold & jewels from a wicked baron who out-smarted the 'loths once.

I've got three words for you: Cindy Lou Who. "But, why Mr. Paladin? Why?"

- Destroy the temple of a rival demon-prince.

A temple that just happens to be located under something far more innoucous, and that is put into jeopardy when some of the cultists and minor demons flee into the buildings above. Say, oh, I dunno, an orphanage. "Where did the bone devils go?!?"

- Free a fallen angel from a celestial prison.

Have the fallen angel decide that he's tried both paths, good and evil, and now chooses a new one, neutraility. [Hey, throw the poor PCs a bone, here]. It's a half-victory, but I'm betting that any non-victory for evil will be enjoyed by the PCs more than a victory for both sides.

 

[Nifft]

I love all the ideas offered so far, but WTF is a BEARNOLOTH? It sounds big and bear-ish, so it's probably cool... but where do I find it?

Thanks, -- N

 

[Shemeska]

I love all the ideas offered so far, but WTF is a BEARNOLOTH? It sounds big and bear-ish, so it's probably cool... but where do I find it?

Thanks, -- N

The Baernaloth, or a Baernaloth (singular and plural same form) are the progenitors of the Yugoloths. Think of them as either the first Yugoloths, or as a seperate fiendish race that then made them as their servitors and chosen children to spread evil to the multiverse.

The Baern resemble sickly, wasted humanoids around 10 feet tall or so with the nearly skeletal head of a goat (mixed with other features). Each of them appears to be afflicted with its own unique physical ailment such as rotting flesh, respiratory diseases, etc. It may be a reflection of their tie to the Waste, or simply a consequence of their utter age. They have a good shot at being the oldest beings in existance on the lower planes. (according to some sources).

The Baern serve as 'advisors' and teachers to the most powerful Yugoloths who seem to respect, fear and admire the Baernaloths with a fanatical devotion that borders on worship. The Baern may be the ultimate puppet masters in existance, with a rumored ability to simply control the younger fiendish races by will alone, including the Yugoloths whom they created, and the Baatezu and Tanar'ri alike.

The Baern typically have a loose grip on reality, as it seem that the evil they are composed of may over the eons break even their own sanity. Perhaps they might simply one day after so long realize the hollowness of their own existance. Who knows. The insanity they seem to have may only be yet another layer of deception.

The Baern claim to have been created out of the essence of the Gray Waste, the chosen harbingers and representatives of the abstract concept of evil. They in turn created the Yugoloths in their own image as children and servents. Sometime after this, one of the Baernaloths (or three of them, depending on the source) known as Apomps attempted to create his own fiendish race in emulation of that which his brothers and sisters had done. He created his own children and named them Gehreleths (Demodands). He showed his creations to the other Baern who were abhorred at them since rather than being beings of neutral evil they were tainted with the flaws of chaos. They hurled Apomps from their ranks and upon threat of death, Apomps led his creations to the plane of Carceri. Even now, Apomps, now a Baernaloth perhaps elevated to divine status, sits and broods, wishing only to wreck the work and plans of his former kin and to obliterate the Yugoloths entirely.

At the direction of the Baern, the Yugoloths created the Baatezu and Tanar'ri out of the flaws of law and chaos within themselves. They may have even inserted 'something' into the process of creation to one day allow them to unify the new races under their own control. But the Yugoloths will speak nothing of this, and the Baatezu and Tanar'ri call it blasphemy.

The Baernaloths see all of creation as one gigantic experiment under their control. Even their own children the Yugoloths are only bits of equipment, further variables in their eternal quest into the definitions and forms of that which they embody in spirit made flesh. The Baern seem apathetic and emotionless often, though the act of inflicting pain upon another being draws a fanaticism in their eyes that is fearsome to behold. They are the definition of soulless abominations, blights upon existance.

Thankfully for all of creation they are few in number. Many of them simply vanished or withdrew from sight after the creation of the Yugoloths, the passing of a torch so to speak. The Baern may have faded from the known planes, drawn back to whatever blackest of sources they were sent forth to serve. Or the Baern may be waiting and watching for certain events to come to completion. Waiting for certain stages of their experiment that is the Blood War to reach a conclusion.

The monuments in the hinterlands of the Waste known as the Loadstones of Misery are very likely the pre-Yugoloth creations of some or all of the Baernaloths. They seem to be the focus of the leeching power of the Gray Waste, the sources of the eternal sucking of emotions, colors, resolve, and will from all who dwell upon the plane. But what then might they be there to do? What are they drawing out of those upon the plane, and for what purpose?

A group of the Baern known as The Demented is known to council the General of Gehenna and perhaps the Oinoloth as well. These Baernaloth embody neutral evil not as a rejection of law and chaos, but rather they embrace it. They straddle and embody both extremes of law and chaos at once. A combination of merciless tyranny and domination with random and utter destruction. Their ultimate goals, and the names of their number are unknown, save that they seem to hold the most influence over the rulers of the Yugoloths.

Look in 'Faces of Evil: The Fiends', 'Planes of Conflict', and 'Hellbound: The Blood War' for references. The stats of the Baernaloth in 2e however are utterly at odds with the stories of them, and the influence they possess. *shrug*

 

[LGodamus]

I love all the ideas offered so far, but WTF is a BEARNOLOTH? It sounds big and bear-ish, so it's probably cool... but where do I find it?

Thanks, -- N

NeverMind Shemeska was quicker on the draw

 

[Nifft]

Ah-ha! Thank you!

So, Baernoloths are NE deity-level thingies. Cool. So, IMC, Pazuzu is gonna be a Baernoloth -- His dominion is "diseased air", which fits the whole 'Loth poison/disease theme.

(BTW, IMC he's the Lord of Marrashi & Phiul as well as legions of Nycaloths, so "demon-prince" is a poor fit.)

(Also BTW: if you put Insanity, Evil, and Godlike in a bag and shook it, you'd remind me of the Far Realms. Perhaps the Baernoloths aren't from around here... perhaps "here" isn't from around here, if They created creation.)

Anyone got info on a conflict between them and the Qlippoth?

-- N

 

[Shemeska]

(Also BTW: if you put Insanity, Evil, and Godlike in a bag and shook it, you'd remind me of the Far Realms. Perhaps the Baernoloths aren't from around here... perhaps "here" isn't from around here, if They created creation.)

Anyone got info on a conflict between them and the Qlippoth?

-- N

Powerful yes, godlike... not really in the same sense. Physically they're fairly weak, but with a depth of knowledge to make a deity of secrets weep for shame. Wierd powers, tough to classify by stats. In my own game I have a number of the Baern working in the background, each with their own name, physical affliction, and unique set of powers and abilities.

The Yugoloths claim the Baern were created by 'EVIL' itself as an abstract concept when the planes were first created. Make your assumptions about origins before that point and the Far Realm at your leisure. Could work some ways, other ways not. I havn't worked on it much along those lines, though the Far Realm has some hints of existance within Pandemonium IMC.

As far as the Qlippoth I can't say since they're a Green Ronan thing from one of their 3e books and not something that was even in Planescape lore. Nor do I use the Qlippoth in my own games, so I don't have much ideas there for you. However I've always speculated that the Yugoloth creation of the Baatezu (and Tanar'ri) was directed by the Baernaloths for the express purpose of shunting the Baatezu into Baator with the intent of having them displace and destroy the Ancient Baatorians. The Baatorians as primal aspects of Lawful Evil in perhaps a similar way that the Baern exemplified primal NE might have been viewed as the only valid threat to the Baern in their grand view of the future course of evil within all of existance.

It may have been less a purification of their children the Yugoloths than a wish to create another future servitor race at their fingertips to displace the only fiendish race that might have posed a risk to their own plans. If you use the Qlippoth, the same thing might have been the case with the Tanar'ri and them. The Baern wishes to eradicate the ideological competition from the very early beginning and so obliterated them in those early days by creating a race to replace them.

 

[demiurge1138]

I doubt that info exists, as Green Ronin daemons are quite different than Planescape yugoloths, so there's no already existing crossover. But I don't see why there can't be one.

Perhaps the baernoloths were the arch-rivals of the qlippoth, since they reigned at about the same time (if you want to get LE in on the act, there are always the ancient Baatorians, of whom nupperinos are the only representative commonly seen [rumors say that they still lurk in the frozen wastes of the Fifth Hell]).

The qlippoths were all but destroyed by the devas, while the baernoloths created the yugoloths (and one of their number, Apomps, went insane and created the gelereths). So the baernoloths, and thus the yugoloths, probably see the qlippoths as pathetic has-beens and pay them little attention. The qlippoth, however, are still incredibly bitter, and may take advantage of themselves being under the radar by planning a major assault...

Demiurge out.

 

[LGodamus]

Hey Shem I got a query for you....was all the jive about the baerns creating the demons and devils ever really confirmed or was it left hazy with that being the story told by the loths?

even in faces of evil alot of things were presented as facts and then said " all of the info could be in error" they left it hazy on purpose......was all of this cleared up in Hellbound, which I never bought?

 

[Nifft]

D&D is a game, not a novel -- there is no truth except what I, the almighty DM, say there is. So I'm not sure if LGodamus' question has an answer.

HOWEVER, as the almighty DM (of my little game), I'm gonna ask that any thread cross-trade be accompanied by cool & interesting suggestions that will help me hurt -- er, entertain -- my players.

Thanks, -- N

 

[Shemeska]

Hey Shem I got a query for you....was all the jive about the baerns creating the demons and devils ever really confirmed or was it left hazy with that being the story told by the loths?

even in faces of evil alot of things were presented as facts and then said " all of the info could be in error" they left it hazy on purpose......was all of this cleared up in Hellbound, which I never bought?

Aye, the Yugoloth creations myths were of course from the mouths of the 'loths themselves and thus based on reputation here there's doubt on the truth of it.

However if you ignore them fully, the circumstantial evidence is pretty heavy. I'll have to dig out the actual quotes from Hellbound (which backs up 'Faces of Evil' but not directly out and out saying that was the truth). But as I recall it was along the lines of 'The Yugoloths don't make their case for their origins as insistently as the Tanar'ri or Baatezu, they just put out their proof and let it stand for itself.' (if that's from 'Faces of Evil', my mistake).

The 'loths have circumstantial evidence of being far older than the Baatezu and Tanar'ri, and knowing things that they otherwise wouldn't about the other two fiendish races. The Maeldur et Kavurik (one of the earliest Solars who was corrupted by the Baern and used as a living device to provide the 3 fiend races with their teleport abilities), as well as the involvement of the Baernaloth by the name of Daru Ib Shamiq lends further credence to the basis of the Yugoloth myths.

The information regarding Apomps and the Gehreleths also lends some more circumstantial evidence to parts of the 'loth creation myths.

Little bits and pieces from different places back up their own versions of events, and well, there's precious few individuals old enough to have an honest claim to dispute those events. The Baern are freaking old... but good luck finding one and making it answer your questions. Same goes for anyone else of potentially equal age. Apomps might know, but he hates the Yugoloths with such a passion that he'd likely lie just to discredit them.

In summation: portions of the 'Faces of Evil' creation myths are backed up by things not completely in character and subject to IC and source bias. But it doesn't explicitely back up everything, so there's perfectly enough room in there to make some things lies or halftruths. Not that a Yugoloth would ever do such a thing.