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Kyrzin, the Prince of Slime

Post/Author/DateTime Post
#1
Ogiwan
Jul 21, 2011 16:22:41 Greetings, all! First, a shout-out to Keith for the newest Eyes on Eberron article, on Kyrzin, the Prince of Slime!

www.wizards.com/DnD/Article.aspx?x=dnd/d...

So, I'm glad to see it because it sheds some light on what the Daelkyr can be. Before that, they were always just kinda....faceless (but powerful) evil masterminds. Now, well, I can see how one works, so I can play around with them some more.

So, Discuss! How do YOU use the Daelkyr in your games, and does Keith's article give anybody ideas?
#2
AvonRekaes
Jul 22, 2011 8:19:16 I've used a daelkyr of my own devising in a previous game, but it is interesting to see how they affect a culture. The way I portrayed the daelkyr were that they were completely unknown by modern culture (except for the Gatekeepers), but Kyrzin is treated more like a deity (he even has "priests"!) local to the Shadow Marches. It's pretty interesting how he spreads into even the most common of people's lives, by way of attributing the common cold to his influence.

Speaking to actually using him in a fight, as discussed elsewhere on the forums, a combination of Belashyyra, Zuggtmoy, and Jubilex would probably make for an awesome fight. I can see it operating like a fight with Lolth. First you fight a humanoid form with a combo of Belashyyra and Zuggtmoy's powers, who has a power like this:

Form of the Slime Prince (Polymorph) Encounter

Trigger: Kyrzin drops to 0 hit points.

Effect: Kryzin assumes the form of the Slime Prince until the end of the encounter. While in the form of the Slime Prince, he gains new powers and cannot use powers from his former form.

The form of the Slime Prince would be Jubilex advanced to level 28 or so (on par with Belashyyra).

I think that'd be a neat encounter.

(Actually, Turaglas might be a better fit, given that Kyrzin is the creator of gibbering aberrants.)
#3
Alex_
Jul 22, 2011 10:28:20 I used the Daylkyr in a game once- the Prince of Eyes. The campaign never advanced so far that the players met him, but they did encounter many of his creations.

I tried to up the creep factor and made the Daelkyr and their creations much more Gieger-esque. They love slime, rubbery limbs and exoskeletons. They blur the line between male and female, seem mechanical and biological at the same time, and are all about transmogrification in a way that desecrates body and mind.

   Mindflayers were more chtulu-like: devoid of clothing, staffs, and hand wringing, but still full of malicious cunning and utter cruelty. They were always surrounded by lesser creatures that they had made into thralls and the process of eating someone's brain was akin to a facehugger from Alien latched to your face (while it emenates psychic blasts to try and keep others at bay).

My Daelkyr were obsessed with beauty and perfection, but in a twisted way. In the book they're described as very beautiful to human eyes, but I figured that in an attempt to make themselves "perfect" they would have augmented their bodies to the point where they were hulking abominations, with the only beautiful part of their body remaining being that serene angelic face.

     Sort of like Koh the Face Stealer (From Avatar the Last Airbender), Leto from Dune (after he fuses with the worms), or Zeraim (From Iria: Zeraim the Animation).
#4
Hellcow
Jul 22, 2011 12:28:24
The way I portrayed the daelkyr were that they were completely unknown by modern culture (except for the Gatekeepers), but Kyrzin is treated more like a deity (he even has "priests"!) local to the Shadow Marches.

Personally, I think the daelkyr are largely unknown to the common people of the Five Nations - I set Kyrzin's basic knowledge as a DC 20 check for non-Marchers. However, Marcher culture is strongly influenced by both the Gatekeepers and the Cults of the Dragon Below, both of which have traditions stretching back to the Xoriat incursion. Note that with the DC 20 "common knowledge", you don't actually get his real name or nature; you have to get to DC 30 (25 for Marchers) for that information. He's a bogeyman whose influence is still felt the Marches, but they don't have a perfect scholarly recollection of the incursion.
#5
AvonRekaes
Jul 22, 2011 16:17:07 Oh yeah, totally. I was being a bit unclear, but the "bogeyman" aspects were what I meant. Previously I would've thought that daelkyr had no lingering impact on the surface at all (except in warnings from the gatekeepers), but it was really interesting to read how they're portrayed in nightmares and children's tales, or local legends, with stuff like the aforementioned bogeyman and monster-under-the-bed tales of our world being attributed to them. (And other huge bigbads too, like the Daughters of Sora Kell).
#6
Ashlock
Jul 22, 2011 21:43:32 Only slightly off-topic question, then, Keith. If the term "daelkyr" is simply not in the lexicon of Eberron's everyday people (which I'd agree with), is the same true for "rajah" (I assume so) or even just "Overlord" in reference to the Age of Demons? How far back in history would you say the average uneducated human's knowledge go? This is a very loose question, I realize, and varies by region.
#7
AvonRekaes
Jul 22, 2011 22:40:35 For those interested:

I pulled together the elements of Belashyyra, Zuggtmoy, Juiblex, and Turaglas into an encounter I think would be pretty awesome to fight. It's not a masterwork of design or anything, since I'm just mixing and matching existing powers, but I figure it'll be helpful for any DMs that want to run the encounter without referencing four browser tabs or several books.

Kyrzin, the Prince of Slime
#8
Ogiwan
Jul 23, 2011 8:04:08
Only slightly off-topic question, then, Keith. If the term "daelkyr" is simply not in the lexicon of Eberron's everyday people (which I'd agree with), is the same true for "rajah" (I assume so) or even just "Overlord" in reference to the Age of Demons? How far back in history would you say the average uneducated human's knowledge go? This is a very loose question, I realize, and varies by region.

Jeff, that is a good question, and one I've wondered about too.
#9
Madfox11
Jul 23, 2011 9:05:01 The DC for the origin myth including the origin of the dragons and the demons and Age of Demons is 10 - meaning it is pretty common knowledge. The DC on how the Age of Demons ended, and that the most powerful demons were imprisoned is 15 - meaning it is somewhat uncommon, but everybody who has studdied religion and history would know of it. Checking the chapter on the Lords of Dust, it is a DC 20 check to remember that not all demons where imprisoned and those that were not scattered all over the world. It is a DC 30 check to actually know about the rakshasa, their service to the Overlords and that they are commonly known as the Lords of Dust. This seems to be uncommon knowledge only known by a select few, mostly the PCs at higher levels and the actual powerplayers (the Chamber, Lords of Dust, daelkyr, etc.)).

Note that the Silver Flame includes some specific info with a DC 15 History check to know about the demonic overlord escaping and how a couatl and Tira merged and reimprissoned the Overlord.
#10
Hellcow
Jul 28, 2011 1:15:06
Only slightly off-topic question, then, Keith. If the term "daelkyr" is simply not in the lexicon of Eberron's everyday people (which I'd agree with), is the same true for "rajah" (I assume so) or even just "Overlord" in reference to the Age of Demons? How far back in history would you say the average uneducated human's knowledge go? This is a very loose question, I realize, and varies by region.

The main thing here is that the daelkyr incursion predates human arrival on Khorvaire by thousands of years... while by contrast, the actions of one of the Overlords is the central pillar of one of the main religions of Khorvaire. Madfox has the DCs of it. As for the word "Overlord", I'd say it's regional. Some people use it, others would say "demon lord", some would say "rajah", etc.
#11
PJammaGod
Jul 31, 2011 22:07:40 Going back to the OP, I use the Daelkyr in almost every Eberron setting game that I've ever run. They are a highly amusing and original concept, one that I never pass up the opportunity to run with.

The best example would be my current (long-running) Game, in which I have a Star-Pact Dragonborn Warlock in the party. He earnestly believes that the stars guide and help him. But in truth he's a (somewhat willing) pawn of a free Daelkyr (yes I said, free). Her real name is unknown (and unless you're an Aboleth unpronouncable anyway), but is called by the monniker Silhouette. Courtesy of some unusual events several hundred years ago this Daelkyr broke free from her prison and has been living merrily in Khorvaire under the disguise of a retired eleven adventurer (she has a tower in Sharn where most of her dealing are conducted, giving the appearance of an elderly elf).

Most of the time when I read about how people interpret their version of the horrors from the Far Realm, they tend to favour the overt twisted and madness of it. Great James Bond larger than life villains relying up insanity and twisted machiavellian plots that seemingly have no rhyme or reason to them. Personally I enjoy the idea of the quiet madness, the one that knaws away at the roots of sanity, slowly creeping up without you even realising. The kind of madness that festers just beneath the thin veneer of civilisation, calling those with an ear to serve.

This Dragonborn Warlock is a prophet and powerful individual, but not everything he reads in the Prophecy is entirely true. His thoughts and will are often subverted by Silhouette, twisted to suit her own designs. And while he directs the party using his often uncanny oracular abilities, in truth they are serving the needs of a Daelkyr that has been setting in motion plans that may not bear fruit for another millenia.

Oddly enough she also happens to be a stalwart ally of the party, for even stranger reasons. Like all Daelkyr she is interested in reshaping worlds, but her power is centered around evolution over time, a kind of spontaenous chaos generating new and novel biological paradigms. So when a group of the Lords of Dust threaten Khorvaire she actually lends quite a bit of power to the adventurers. She's grown to "like" this world in all it's wonderful and varied splendor. And having something else ruin all her "fun" isn't to the Daelkyr's liking. Ironically a being whose ultimate intent is to destroy reality is sometimes the one thing standing between Khorvaire and a demonic apocalypse.

Did I mention that I take great pleasure in messing with my players?
#12
Alex_
Aug 01, 2011 11:07:28    I use the Quori when I want to play with my players' minds and perceptions. The analogy I like to make is...

Daelkyr = Alien = physical horror
Quori = Invasion of the Body Snatchers = psychological horror

#13
Elton74
Aug 10, 2011 13:50:09
Greetings, all! First, a shout-out to Keith for the newest Eyes on Eberron article, on Kyrzin, the Prince of Slime!

www.wizards.com/DnD/Article.aspx?x=dnd/d...

So, I'm glad to see it because it sheds some light on what the Daelkyr can be. Before that, they were always just kinda....faceless (but powerful) evil masterminds. Now, well, I can see how one works, so I can play around with them some more.

So, Discuss! How do YOU use the Daelkyr in your games, and does Keith's article give anybody ideas?

The Daelkyr are agents of Chthulhu, Yog-Sothoth, Hastur, and Shug-Niggurath in my Ebberon games. The Gatekepers are keepers of books that contained Things Man Was Not Meant to Know. The Cults of the Dragon Below love such lore.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
#1 Ogiwan Jul 21, 2011 16:22:41	Greetings, all! First, a shout-out to Keith for the newest Eyes on Eberron article, on Kyrzin, the Prince of Slime! www.wizards.com/DnD/Article.aspx?x=dnd/d... So, I'm glad to see it because it sheds some light on what the Daelkyr can be. Before that, they were always just kinda....faceless (but powerful) evil masterminds. Now, well, I can see how one works, so I can play around with them some more. So, Discuss! How do YOU use the Daelkyr in your games, and does Keith's article give anybody ideas?
#2 AvonRekaes Jul 22, 2011 8:19:16	I've used a daelkyr of my own devising in a previous game, but it is interesting to see how they affect a culture. The way I portrayed the daelkyr were that they were completely unknown by modern culture (except for the Gatekeepers), but Kyrzin is treated more like a deity (he even has "priests"!) local to the Shadow Marches. It's pretty interesting how he spreads into even the most common of people's lives, by way of attributing the common cold to his influence. Speaking to actually using him in a fight, as discussed elsewhere on the forums, a combination of Belashyyra, Zuggtmoy, and Jubilex would probably make for an awesome fight. I can see it operating like a fight with Lolth. First you fight a humanoid form with a combo of Belashyyra and Zuggtmoy's powers, who has a power like this: Form of the Slime Prince (Polymorph) Encounter Trigger: Kyrzin drops to 0 hit points. Effect: Kryzin assumes the form of the Slime Prince until the end of the encounter. While in the form of the Slime Prince, he gains new powers and cannot use powers from his former form. The form of the Slime Prince would be Jubilex advanced to level 28 or so (on par with Belashyyra). I think that'd be a neat encounter. (Actually, Turaglas might be a better fit, given that Kyrzin is the creator of gibbering aberrants.)
#3 Alex_ Jul 22, 2011 10:28:20	I used the Daylkyr in a game once- the Prince of Eyes. The campaign never advanced so far that the players met him, but they did encounter many of his creations. I tried to up the creep factor and made the Daelkyr and their creations much more Gieger-esque. They love slime, rubbery limbs and exoskeletons. They blur the line between male and female, seem mechanical and biological at the same time, and are all about transmogrification in a way that desecrates body and mind. Mindflayers were more chtulu-like: devoid of clothing, staffs, and hand wringing, but still full of malicious cunning and utter cruelty. They were always surrounded by lesser creatures that they had made into thralls and the process of eating someone's brain was akin to a facehugger from Alien latched to your face (while it emenates psychic blasts to try and keep others at bay). My Daelkyr were obsessed with beauty and perfection, but in a twisted way. In the book they're described as very beautiful to human eyes, but I figured that in an attempt to make themselves "perfect" they would have augmented their bodies to the point where they were hulking abominations, with the only beautiful part of their body remaining being that serene angelic face. Sort of like Koh the Face Stealer (From Avatar the Last Airbender), Leto from Dune (after he fuses with the worms), or Zeraim (From Iria: Zeraim the Animation).
#4 Hellcow Jul 22, 2011 12:28:24	The way I portrayed the daelkyr were that they were completely unknown by modern culture (except for the Gatekeepers), but Kyrzin is treated more like a deity (he even has "priests"!) local to the Shadow Marches. Personally, I think the daelkyr are largely unknown to the common people of the Five Nations - I set Kyrzin's basic knowledge as a DC 20 check for non-Marchers. However, Marcher culture is strongly influenced by both the Gatekeepers and the Cults of the Dragon Below, both of which have traditions stretching back to the Xoriat incursion. Note that with the DC 20 "common knowledge", you don't actually get his real name or nature; you have to get to DC 30 (25 for Marchers) for that information. He's a bogeyman whose influence is still felt the Marches, but they don't have a perfect scholarly recollection of the incursion.
#5 AvonRekaes Jul 22, 2011 16:17:07	Oh yeah, totally. I was being a bit unclear, but the "bogeyman" aspects were what I meant. Previously I would've thought that daelkyr had no lingering impact on the surface at all (except in warnings from the gatekeepers), but it was really interesting to read how they're portrayed in nightmares and children's tales, or local legends, with stuff like the aforementioned bogeyman and monster-under-the-bed tales of our world being attributed to them. (And other huge bigbads too, like the Daughters of Sora Kell).
#6 Ashlock Jul 22, 2011 21:43:32	Only slightly off-topic question, then, Keith. If the term "daelkyr" is simply not in the lexicon of Eberron's everyday people (which I'd agree with), is the same true for "rajah" (I assume so) or even just "Overlord" in reference to the Age of Demons? How far back in history would you say the average uneducated human's knowledge go? This is a very loose question, I realize, and varies by region.
#7 AvonRekaes Jul 22, 2011 22:40:35	For those interested: I pulled together the elements of Belashyyra, Zuggtmoy, Juiblex, and Turaglas into an encounter I think would be pretty awesome to fight. It's not a masterwork of design or anything, since I'm just mixing and matching existing powers, but I figure it'll be helpful for any DMs that want to run the encounter without referencing four browser tabs or several books. Kyrzin, the Prince of Slime
#8 Ogiwan Jul 23, 2011 8:04:08	Only slightly off-topic question, then, Keith. If the term "daelkyr" is simply not in the lexicon of Eberron's everyday people (which I'd agree with), is the same true for "rajah" (I assume so) or even just "Overlord" in reference to the Age of Demons? How far back in history would you say the average uneducated human's knowledge go? This is a very loose question, I realize, and varies by region. Jeff, that is a good question, and one I've wondered about too.
#9 Madfox11 Jul 23, 2011 9:05:01	The DC for the origin myth including the origin of the dragons and the demons and Age of Demons is 10 - meaning it is pretty common knowledge. The DC on how the Age of Demons ended, and that the most powerful demons were imprisoned is 15 - meaning it is somewhat uncommon, but everybody who has studdied religion and history would know of it. Checking the chapter on the Lords of Dust, it is a DC 20 check to remember that not all demons where imprisoned and those that were not scattered all over the world. It is a DC 30 check to actually know about the rakshasa, their service to the Overlords and that they are commonly known as the Lords of Dust. This seems to be uncommon knowledge only known by a select few, mostly the PCs at higher levels and the actual powerplayers (the Chamber, Lords of Dust, daelkyr, etc.)). Note that the Silver Flame includes some specific info with a DC 15 History check to know about the demonic overlord escaping and how a couatl and Tira merged and reimprissoned the Overlord.
#10 Hellcow Jul 28, 2011 1:15:06	Only slightly off-topic question, then, Keith. If the term "daelkyr" is simply not in the lexicon of Eberron's everyday people (which I'd agree with), is the same true for "rajah" (I assume so) or even just "Overlord" in reference to the Age of Demons? How far back in history would you say the average uneducated human's knowledge go? This is a very loose question, I realize, and varies by region. The main thing here is that the daelkyr incursion predates human arrival on Khorvaire by thousands of years... while by contrast, the actions of one of the Overlords is the central pillar of one of the main religions of Khorvaire. Madfox has the DCs of it. As for the word "Overlord", I'd say it's regional. Some people use it, others would say "demon lord", some would say "rajah", etc.
#11 PJammaGod Jul 31, 2011 22:07:40	Going back to the OP, I use the Daelkyr in almost every Eberron setting game that I've ever run. They are a highly amusing and original concept, one that I never pass up the opportunity to run with. The best example would be my current (long-running) Game, in which I have a Star-Pact Dragonborn Warlock in the party. He earnestly believes that the stars guide and help him. But in truth he's a (somewhat willing) pawn of a free Daelkyr (yes I said, free). Her real name is unknown (and unless you're an Aboleth unpronouncable anyway), but is called by the monniker Silhouette. Courtesy of some unusual events several hundred years ago this Daelkyr broke free from her prison and has been living merrily in Khorvaire under the disguise of a retired eleven adventurer (she has a tower in Sharn where most of her dealing are conducted, giving the appearance of an elderly elf). Most of the time when I read about how people interpret their version of the horrors from the Far Realm, they tend to favour the overt twisted and madness of it. Great James Bond larger than life villains relying up insanity and twisted machiavellian plots that seemingly have no rhyme or reason to them. Personally I enjoy the idea of the quiet madness, the one that knaws away at the roots of sanity, slowly creeping up without you even realising. The kind of madness that festers just beneath the thin veneer of civilisation, calling those with an ear to serve. This Dragonborn Warlock is a prophet and powerful individual, but not everything he reads in the Prophecy is entirely true. His thoughts and will are often subverted by Silhouette, twisted to suit her own designs. And while he directs the party using his often uncanny oracular abilities, in truth they are serving the needs of a Daelkyr that has been setting in motion plans that may not bear fruit for another millenia. Oddly enough she also happens to be a stalwart ally of the party, for even stranger reasons. Like all Daelkyr she is interested in reshaping worlds, but her power is centered around evolution over time, a kind of spontaenous chaos generating new and novel biological paradigms. So when a group of the Lords of Dust threaten Khorvaire she actually lends quite a bit of power to the adventurers. She's grown to "like" this world in all it's wonderful and varied splendor. And having something else ruin all her "fun" isn't to the Daelkyr's liking. Ironically a being whose ultimate intent is to destroy reality is sometimes the one thing standing between Khorvaire and a demonic apocalypse. Did I mention that I take great pleasure in messing with my players?
#12 Alex_ Aug 01, 2011 11:07:28	I use the Quori when I want to play with my players' minds and perceptions. The analogy I like to make is... Daelkyr = Alien = physical horror Quori = Invasion of the Body Snatchers = psychological horror
#13 Elton74 Aug 10, 2011 13:50:09	Greetings, all! First, a shout-out to Keith for the newest Eyes on Eberron article, on Kyrzin, the Prince of Slime! www.wizards.com/DnD/Article.aspx?x=dnd/d... So, I'm glad to see it because it sheds some light on what the Daelkyr can be. Before that, they were always just kinda....faceless (but powerful) evil masterminds. Now, well, I can see how one works, so I can play around with them some more. So, Discuss! How do YOU use the Daelkyr in your games, and does Keith's article give anybody ideas? The Daelkyr are agents of Chthulhu, Yog-Sothoth, Hastur, and Shug-Niggurath in my Ebberon games. The Gatekepers are keepers of books that contained Things Man Was Not Meant to Know. The Cults of the Dragon Below love such lore.