Zuggtmoy Tsuggtmoy
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-
kFoyauextlH
- Posts: 950
- Joined: Sun Jun 15, 2025 3:53 pm
Re: Zuggtmoy Tsuggtmoy
https://www.greyhawkonline.com/greyhawkwiki/Zuggtmoy
https://forgottenrealms.fandom.com/wiki/Zuggtmoy
https://greyhawk.fandom.com/wiki/Zuggtmoy
Added in 1 hour 25 minutes 22 seconds:
https://5e.tools/bestiary/zuggtmoy-mtf.html
"
Regional Effects
The region containing Zuggtmoy's lair is warped by his magic, creating one or more of the following effects:
Molds and fungi grow on surfaces within 6 miles of the lair, even where they would normally find no purchase.
Plant life within 1 mile of the lair becomes infested with parasitic fungi, slowly mutating as it is overwhelmed.
If a humanoid spends at least 1 hour within 1 mile of the lair, that creature must succeed on a DC 17 Wisdom saving throw or descend into a madness determined by the Madness of Zuggtmoy table. A creature that succeeds on this saving throw can't be affected by this regional effect again for 24 hours.
If Zuggtmoy dies, these effects fade over the course of 1d10 days.
Madness of Zuggtmoy
If a creature goes mad in Zuggtmoy's lair or within line of sight of the demon lord, roll on the Madness of Zuggtmoy table to determine the nature of the madness, which is a character flaw that lasts until cured. See the Dungeon Master's Guide for more on madness.
Madness of Zuggtmoy
d100 Flaw (lasts until cured)
01-20 "I see visions in the world around me that others do not."
21-40 "I periodically slip into a catatonic state, staring off into the distance for long stretches at a time."
41-60 "I see an altered version of reality, with my mind convincing itself that things are true even in the face of overwhelming evidence to the contrary."
61-80 "My mind is slipping away, and my intelligence seems to wax and wane."
81-00 "I am constantly scratching at unseen fungal infections."
"
Added in 4 minutes 4 seconds:
"
Zuggtmoy. The Demon Queen of Fungi, Lady of Rot and Decay, Zuggtmoy is an alien creature whose only desire is to infect the living with spores, transforming them into her mindless servants and, eventually, into decomposing hosts for the mushrooms, molds, and other fungi that she spawns.
Utterly inhuman, Zuggtmoy can mold her fungoid form into an approximation of a humanoid shape, including the skeletal-thin figure depicted in grimoires and ancient art, draped and veiled in mycelia and lichen. Indeed, much of her appearance and manner, and that of her servants, is a soulless mockery of mortal life and its many facets.
Zuggtmoy's cultists often follow her unwittingly. Most are fungi—infected to some degree, whether through inhaling her mind-controlling spores or being transformed to the point where flesh and fungus become one. Such cultists are fungal extensions of the Demon Queen's will.
Their devotion might begin with the seemingly harmless promises offered by exotic spores and mushrooms, but quickly consumes them, body and soul.
Zuggtmoy's Lair. Zuggtmoy's principal lair is her palace on Shedaklah. It consists of two dozen mushrooms of pale yellow and rancid brown. These massive fungi are some of the largest in existence. They are surrounded by a field of acidic puffballs and poisonous vapors. The mushrooms themselves are all interconnected by bridges of shelf-fungi, and countless chambers have been hollowed out from within their rubbery, fibrous stalks.
"
"
Why yes, he is literally any generic evil god you have ever heard. But hey, personality matters little: what matters is style. Personally, I tend to put villains under two categories:
The Dragon: a villain characterized more by its power and brute strength (example: Doosmday, Majin Buu, the creatures in monster movies)
The Devil: villains who tend to put their brains and planning to obstacle the main character (Example: Gus Fring, Light Yagami, Loki in most fiction about Asgard)
There are overlaps (See: Aizen from Bleach), but each villains fit somehow this mold and have one trait over the other.
Let's observe Knull's design: he is an very tall (more than a normal human) humanoid with an albino complexion, with pupil-less eyes. The unarmored bits show he is actually very emancipated, and the lack of pupils enhance the skeletal looks while underlining how inhuman he is. When he wants, his mouth becomes 'Venom-esque' mouth, with huge sharp teeth and a long tongue.
As 'the Devil', Knull is not only so over the top evil and unsubtle that it's impossible for him to manipulate anyone, he is unable to come with complex plans. He will either 1) beat you to death 2) If that fails, corrupt you with symbiote matter 3) if that fails, find what can kill you, corrupt it with symbiote matter and use it to beat you to death. His most devilish action, to corrupt Dylan Brock in 'Venom: The Good Son', has been ignored in any story, with Cates pointing out it went against his direction, and has been quietly retconned out.
What about the Dragon? In terms of scope and scaling, Knull is a monster, casually able to slay the Celestial that created the multiverse, stated to be a threat far above Gorr that had been planning to wipe Gods across entire timelines, his reach is all over thanks to Cates' writing... But this is on paper, let's see the execution
First of all, let's return to the design it's literally a very thin and tall albino guy that has to wear an oversized outfit to look bigger. This is not a scary look, it's goofy as hell, especially when he pulls off this incredibly silly grin, that is several times bigger than his mouth! Plus ... let's face it, a "God of Symbiote" should be something far different than 'big tall albino guy'. His power set is also incredibly underwhelming by Cosmic Entity Standards: outside of manipulating his own shadow to create and manipulate symbiote matter as well as the power to corrupt symbiotes with his evil, Knull lacks any substantial power set. In fact, he may be the first cosmic entity in Marvel in a long while that not only cannot warp matter or reality (see: Odin, magical eneities, any average Herald tier wielder of Power Cosmic from ) but he cannot even throw energy blasts or fly under his own power (rather using his symbiote armor to grow wings or his symbiote dragon mounts).
"
"
Mor_Drakka
•
2y ago
So, while I by and large agree with the thrust of this, and I don’t usually comment here so I don’t know if there’s some sort of etiquette I’m breaking here, I do think that in terms of design and themes you’re coming at the character from the wrong angle by sticking to that villain binary. There is definitely a third type of villain, and that is The Mockery. The You, but Not. They are distinct from The Devil, except when they are actually The Devil all along, and they are distinct from the Dragon except when The Dragon was The Mockery all along, but that’s true of The Dragon and The Devil as well.
Knull, on paper, should be a perfect example of The Mockery. Resembling normal but disproportionate in ways that are uncanny and wrong, existence defined by spite, motives which present themselves in the methods of execution rather than the goals being executed. Even the powerset aligns, creating that which resembles life but which exists to destroy then replace. That he has no power of his own except to pervert the creations of others but can do so to obtain any power or exploit any weakness is also thematic there.
They just absolutely flubbed it with Knull regardless, for the reasons you mention. The Mockery does not need to be powerful or smart to be successful. But they do need to be successful.
"
https://forgottenrealms.fandom.com/wiki/Zuggtmoy
https://greyhawk.fandom.com/wiki/Zuggtmoy
Added in 1 hour 25 minutes 22 seconds:
https://5e.tools/bestiary/zuggtmoy-mtf.html
"
Regional Effects
The region containing Zuggtmoy's lair is warped by his magic, creating one or more of the following effects:
Molds and fungi grow on surfaces within 6 miles of the lair, even where they would normally find no purchase.
Plant life within 1 mile of the lair becomes infested with parasitic fungi, slowly mutating as it is overwhelmed.
If a humanoid spends at least 1 hour within 1 mile of the lair, that creature must succeed on a DC 17 Wisdom saving throw or descend into a madness determined by the Madness of Zuggtmoy table. A creature that succeeds on this saving throw can't be affected by this regional effect again for 24 hours.
If Zuggtmoy dies, these effects fade over the course of 1d10 days.
Madness of Zuggtmoy
If a creature goes mad in Zuggtmoy's lair or within line of sight of the demon lord, roll on the Madness of Zuggtmoy table to determine the nature of the madness, which is a character flaw that lasts until cured. See the Dungeon Master's Guide for more on madness.
Madness of Zuggtmoy
d100 Flaw (lasts until cured)
01-20 "I see visions in the world around me that others do not."
21-40 "I periodically slip into a catatonic state, staring off into the distance for long stretches at a time."
41-60 "I see an altered version of reality, with my mind convincing itself that things are true even in the face of overwhelming evidence to the contrary."
61-80 "My mind is slipping away, and my intelligence seems to wax and wane."
81-00 "I am constantly scratching at unseen fungal infections."
"
Added in 4 minutes 4 seconds:
"
Zuggtmoy. The Demon Queen of Fungi, Lady of Rot and Decay, Zuggtmoy is an alien creature whose only desire is to infect the living with spores, transforming them into her mindless servants and, eventually, into decomposing hosts for the mushrooms, molds, and other fungi that she spawns.
Utterly inhuman, Zuggtmoy can mold her fungoid form into an approximation of a humanoid shape, including the skeletal-thin figure depicted in grimoires and ancient art, draped and veiled in mycelia and lichen. Indeed, much of her appearance and manner, and that of her servants, is a soulless mockery of mortal life and its many facets.
Zuggtmoy's cultists often follow her unwittingly. Most are fungi—infected to some degree, whether through inhaling her mind-controlling spores or being transformed to the point where flesh and fungus become one. Such cultists are fungal extensions of the Demon Queen's will.
Their devotion might begin with the seemingly harmless promises offered by exotic spores and mushrooms, but quickly consumes them, body and soul.
Zuggtmoy's Lair. Zuggtmoy's principal lair is her palace on Shedaklah. It consists of two dozen mushrooms of pale yellow and rancid brown. These massive fungi are some of the largest in existence. They are surrounded by a field of acidic puffballs and poisonous vapors. The mushrooms themselves are all interconnected by bridges of shelf-fungi, and countless chambers have been hollowed out from within their rubbery, fibrous stalks.
"
"
Why yes, he is literally any generic evil god you have ever heard. But hey, personality matters little: what matters is style. Personally, I tend to put villains under two categories:
The Dragon: a villain characterized more by its power and brute strength (example: Doosmday, Majin Buu, the creatures in monster movies)
The Devil: villains who tend to put their brains and planning to obstacle the main character (Example: Gus Fring, Light Yagami, Loki in most fiction about Asgard)
There are overlaps (See: Aizen from Bleach), but each villains fit somehow this mold and have one trait over the other.
Let's observe Knull's design: he is an very tall (more than a normal human) humanoid with an albino complexion, with pupil-less eyes. The unarmored bits show he is actually very emancipated, and the lack of pupils enhance the skeletal looks while underlining how inhuman he is. When he wants, his mouth becomes 'Venom-esque' mouth, with huge sharp teeth and a long tongue.
As 'the Devil', Knull is not only so over the top evil and unsubtle that it's impossible for him to manipulate anyone, he is unable to come with complex plans. He will either 1) beat you to death 2) If that fails, corrupt you with symbiote matter 3) if that fails, find what can kill you, corrupt it with symbiote matter and use it to beat you to death. His most devilish action, to corrupt Dylan Brock in 'Venom: The Good Son', has been ignored in any story, with Cates pointing out it went against his direction, and has been quietly retconned out.
What about the Dragon? In terms of scope and scaling, Knull is a monster, casually able to slay the Celestial that created the multiverse, stated to be a threat far above Gorr that had been planning to wipe Gods across entire timelines, his reach is all over thanks to Cates' writing... But this is on paper, let's see the execution
First of all, let's return to the design it's literally a very thin and tall albino guy that has to wear an oversized outfit to look bigger. This is not a scary look, it's goofy as hell, especially when he pulls off this incredibly silly grin, that is several times bigger than his mouth! Plus ... let's face it, a "God of Symbiote" should be something far different than 'big tall albino guy'. His power set is also incredibly underwhelming by Cosmic Entity Standards: outside of manipulating his own shadow to create and manipulate symbiote matter as well as the power to corrupt symbiotes with his evil, Knull lacks any substantial power set. In fact, he may be the first cosmic entity in Marvel in a long while that not only cannot warp matter or reality (see: Odin, magical eneities, any average Herald tier wielder of Power Cosmic from ) but he cannot even throw energy blasts or fly under his own power (rather using his symbiote armor to grow wings or his symbiote dragon mounts).
"
"
Mor_Drakka
•
2y ago
So, while I by and large agree with the thrust of this, and I don’t usually comment here so I don’t know if there’s some sort of etiquette I’m breaking here, I do think that in terms of design and themes you’re coming at the character from the wrong angle by sticking to that villain binary. There is definitely a third type of villain, and that is The Mockery. The You, but Not. They are distinct from The Devil, except when they are actually The Devil all along, and they are distinct from the Dragon except when The Dragon was The Mockery all along, but that’s true of The Dragon and The Devil as well.
Knull, on paper, should be a perfect example of The Mockery. Resembling normal but disproportionate in ways that are uncanny and wrong, existence defined by spite, motives which present themselves in the methods of execution rather than the goals being executed. Even the powerset aligns, creating that which resembles life but which exists to destroy then replace. That he has no power of his own except to pervert the creations of others but can do so to obtain any power or exploit any weakness is also thematic there.
They just absolutely flubbed it with Knull regardless, for the reasons you mention. The Mockery does not need to be powerful or smart to be successful. But they do need to be successful.
"
-
kFoyauextlH
- Posts: 950
- Joined: Sun Jun 15, 2025 3:53 pm
Re: Zuggtmoy Tsuggtmoy
https://www.seattlepi.com/national/arti ... 128218.php
Added in 19 hours 42 minutes 42 seconds:
I don't know about this distinction:
https://scholomance.substack.com/p/the- ... t-is-gonzo
This was another article from them, talking about a butterfly effect in a very intricate system that also made it sensitive to slight fluctuations, but I think it was just too bloated and forgetful of what is necessary for balance, fairness, and "realism", which tends to mean restraint. They also seemed to give up on interactive narratives being more important than nerdiness which seems to muck up everything almost always and is in many ways anti-art at a certain point.
Added in 6 minutes 57 seconds:
https://scholomance.substack.com/p/syst ... ses-of-3rd
Added in 4 minutes 15 seconds:
Add h to feed mushrooms:
ttps://youtube.com/playlist?list=PL_4kns9SH5FfSrE0_KTUYGoaw7MBhECtL&si=kMslG8JgiDplTlYj
Added in 12 hours 2 minutes 18 seconds:
I discovered a really talented artist who has brought up other talented artists from the past:
https://www.gorangligovic.com/personal-work/morgoth
He made some things that never existed which are very good also:
https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/cont ... rmat=1500w
https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/cont ... rmat=1500w
https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/cont ... rmat=1500w
There is a woman with a similar looking name who made another bunch of stuff that never existed:
These things that never existed conform to or honor certain tropes and traditions and stereotypes, older styles, so that they are recognizable and easy to imagine as things that could have been.
Added in 10 hours 51 minutes 48 seconds:
Added in 19 hours 42 minutes 42 seconds:
I don't know about this distinction:
https://scholomance.substack.com/p/the- ... t-is-gonzo
This was another article from them, talking about a butterfly effect in a very intricate system that also made it sensitive to slight fluctuations, but I think it was just too bloated and forgetful of what is necessary for balance, fairness, and "realism", which tends to mean restraint. They also seemed to give up on interactive narratives being more important than nerdiness which seems to muck up everything almost always and is in many ways anti-art at a certain point.
Added in 6 minutes 57 seconds:
https://scholomance.substack.com/p/syst ... ses-of-3rd
Added in 4 minutes 15 seconds:
Add h to feed mushrooms:
ttps://youtube.com/playlist?list=PL_4kns9SH5FfSrE0_KTUYGoaw7MBhECtL&si=kMslG8JgiDplTlYj
Added in 12 hours 2 minutes 18 seconds:
I discovered a really talented artist who has brought up other talented artists from the past:
https://www.gorangligovic.com/personal-work/morgoth
He made some things that never existed which are very good also:
https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/cont ... rmat=1500w
https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/cont ... rmat=1500w
https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/cont ... rmat=1500w
There is a woman with a similar looking name who made another bunch of stuff that never existed:
These things that never existed conform to or honor certain tropes and traditions and stereotypes, older styles, so that they are recognizable and easy to imagine as things that could have been.
Added in 10 hours 51 minutes 48 seconds: