Kuo-toa
Template:Infobox Greyhawk creature The kuo-toa are fish-like Monstrous Humanoids that dwell in the Underdark.
Ecology
Environment
Typical physical characteristics
Alignment
Society
Religion
Language
History
Creative origins
The name "Kuo-toa" was created by Gary Gygax, co-creator of the Dungeons & Dragons roleplaying game. However, the concept is thought to be inspired by the deep ones, creatures that appear in H. P. Lovecraft's novella The Shadow Over Innsmouth. Like the Kuo-toa, the deep ones are a monstrous marine-dwelling race of fish-headed humanoids, who worship a being called Dagon.
The kuo-toa is considered a "Product Identity" by Wizards of the Coast and as such are not released under its Open Gaming License.[1]
Publishing history
Advanced Dungeons & Dragons 1st edition (1977-1988)
The kuo-toa first appeared in dungeon modules D2 Shrine of the Kuo-Toa[1], and D3 Vault of the Drow[2] The first D&D manual that the kuo-toa appeared in was the original Fiend Folio.[3]
Advanced Dungeons & Dragons 2nd edition (1989-1999)
The kuo-toa appears first in the Monstrous Compendium Volume Two (1989),[4] and is reprinted in the Monstrous Manual (1993).[5]
Dungeons & Dragons 3.0 edition (2000-2002)
The kuo-toa appears in the Monster Manual for this edition (2000).[6]
Dungeons & Dragons 3.5 edition (2003-2007)
The kuo-toa appears in the revised Monster Manual for this edition (2003).
The kuo-toa was presented as a player character race for the Forgotten Realms campaign setting in Underdark (2003).[7]
The voice of Dagon was detailed in Dragon #349 (November 2006), in the "Demonomicon of Iggwilv: Dagon".
The kuo-toa monitor and the kuo-toa whip appeared in Drow of the Underdark (2007). The crazed kuo-toa, the kuo-toa exalted whip, the kuo-toa harpooner, and the kuo-toa monitor appear in Monster Manual V (2007).
Dungeons & Dragons 4th edition (2008-)
The kuo-toa appears in the Monster Manual for this edition (2008).[8]
Description
Kuo-toa have scaly, bipedal bodies with fish-like heads.
Society
Kuo-toa often raid seaside settlements for human victims. Most worship the goddess Blibdoolpoolp, though a few remote tribes worship Dagon.
Kuo-toa in various campaign settings
Kuo-toa in the Forgotten Realms
In the Forgotten Realms campaign setting kuo-toans maintain friendly relations with drow, their Underdark neighbours. Blibdoolpoolp is the focus of the kuo-toans' lives, and even has her own monstrous, deformed kuo-toa breed — the giant kuo-toa leviathan. They have total hatred for the sahuagin, another race of fish-like beings[<span title="<translate nowrap> The material in the vicinity of this tag may use weasel words or too-vague attribution.</translate> (October 2007)"><translate> who?</translate>]. In the "Sellswords" book series, Jarlaxle comments to his drow compatriots that a monk (referring to Grandmaster Kane) fights in the same manner as the Kuo-Toa, using their body as a weapon.
Kuo-toa in Greyhawk
In the World of Greyhawk campaign setting, kuo-toa settlements are known to exist in the Underdark, near the Vault of the Drow beneath the Hellfurnaces.
References
- ↑ Gygax, Gary. Shrine of the Kuo-Toa (TSR, 1978)
- ↑ Gygax, Gary. Vault of the Drow (TSR, 1978).
- ↑ Turnbull, Don, ed. Fiend Folio (TSR, 1981)
- ↑ Cook, David, et al. Monstrous Compendium Volume Two (TSR, 1989)
- ↑ Stewart, Doug, ed. Monstrous Manual (TSR, 1993)
- ↑ Cook, Monte, Jonathan Tweet, and Skip Williams. Monster Manual (Wizards of the Coast, 2000)
- ↑ Cordell, Bruce R, Gwendolyn FM Kestrel, and Jeff Quick. Underdark (Wizards of the Coast, 2003)
- ↑ Mearls, Mike, Stephen Schubert, and James Wyatt. Monster Manual (Wizards of the Coast, 2008)
Additional reading
- Cagle, Eric. "The Minions of Darkness." Dragon #300 (Paizo Publishing, 2002).
- Stephens, Owen K.C. "By Any Other Name: Races of the Underdark." Dragon #281 (Paizo Publishing, 2001).