Piscaethces
| Piscaethces | |
|---|---|
 A glyph of Piscaethces, on the spear of Argripyek, as depicted in Night Below (1995). Art by Arnie Swekel. | |
| General information | |
| Portfolio: | Domination, oppression |
| Home: | Baator (or wanders) |
| Alignment: | Lawful evil |
| Gender: | Female |
| Class: | Wizard 16, Priest 16 (avatar) |
| Superior: | None |
| Rules items | |
| Domains: | Second edition spheres: All, Charm, Divination, Elemental (Air, Earth, Water), Guardian, Law, Protection, Summoning, Sun (reversed, minor access only), and Weather. |
Piscaethces the Blood Queen is the aboleth deity of domination and oppression and one of the Elder Evils. Her symbol is a sphere of mucus surrounded by droplets of the same substance.
Description
Piscaethces is portrayed as a gigantic, bloated aboleth with no tentacles, surrounded by mucus the color of blood.
Relationships
The Blood Queen is allied with Kiaransali and opposed by Callarduran Smoothhands, Laduguer, Lolth, and Vhaeraun. Ilxendren, lesser god of the ixzan, both respects and fears Piscaethces and her creations. Juiblex and Tharizdun are occasional rivals for aboleth devotion, but Piscaethces cares nothing for this.
Other Elder Evils honored by the aboleths include Bolothamogg, Holashner, Shothotugg, and Y'chak.
Realm
Piscaethces is said to have a realm in Minauros on the plane of Baator, where the mucus that bleeds from her body becomes a vast bog. The aboleths themselves believe that she "travels the currents of probability between infinite realities, spreading her seed almost as an afterthought as she moves from one world to another."
Dogma
Piscaethces seeks to dominate all existence, though her interests are primarily directed in realities other than the Material Plane. The aboleths teach that the Blood Queen is uncaring and unfeeling, caring nothing for her creations. She created them by accident as a by-product of the interaction between her body and the physical world; the aboleths accept and even appreciate this. They see the disinterest of their creator as a liberating condition, enabling to make their lives as they desire it, not as some extradimensional being demands.
Worshippers
Piscaethces is not worshipped, but aboleths pay her their respects.
Clergy
The closest thing to clerics of the Blood Queen among the aboleths are the savants, who cast spells both as clerics and wizards. They are the leaders of their kind, dominating it from within their great cities. They are very few in number, and it may be true that Piscaethces selects them individually.
In Lords of Madness, savant aboleths are portrayed as casters of arcane spells only, and Piscaethces is portrayed as a being too uncaring even to grant spells to her followers.
Temples
Piscaethces is honored in aboleth architecture by the inclusion of large domed windows of red crystal, and by stone murals depicting aboleths sacrificing sentient beings to the goddess as a sign of respect. Great stone altars with statues of the Blood Queen on either side are used for sacrificial rites.
Rituals
Aboleths sacrifice humans, derro, drow and other beings to honor their goddess.
Myths and legends
The Once and Future Queen
Piscaetheces left the Prime Material Plane long ago, and the aboleths do not expect her to return from her wanderings. However, they believe that if she does return, this is a sign that all of existence is circular, and therefore can be completely dominated.
Creative origins
Piscaethces was first introduced in Night Below by Carl Sargent, where she was called simply the Blood Queen. She was given the name "Pisaethces" in Drizzt Do'Urden's Guide to the Underdark by Eric L. Boyd. Lords of Madness named her Piscaethces and interpreted her as more of a Lovecraftian elder being than a traditional god.
References
Notes
Citations
Bibliography
- Baker, Rich, James Jacobs, and Steve Winter. Lords of Madness. Renton, WA: Wizards of the Coast, 2005.
- Boyd, Eric L. Demihuman Deities. Renton, WA: TSR, 1998.
- ———. Drizzt Do'Urden's Guide to the Underdark. Renton, WA: TSR, 1999.
- Sargent, Carl. Night Below: An Underdark Campaign. Lake Geneva, WI: TSR, 1995.
Encyclopedia Greyhawkania Index
The Encyclopedia Greyhawkania Index (EGI) is based on previous work of Jason Zavoda through '08, continued by numerous other fans. The EGI article has a list of sources, product names, abbreviations, and a link to the full, downloadable index.
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