An artaaglith is a species of tanar'ri demon in the service of Orcus. They resemble awful ram-like humanoid creatures, and primarily serve as controllers of undead armies.
Appearance[]
Artaagliths are menacing satyr-like bodies, possessing hairy goat-like lower legs and a humanoid upper body. They stand around the same height as a human, with coarse black hair and deathly pale skin. It head is ram-like with dark red curved horns and glowing red eyes. Its hooves are blood red. It commonly carries a battleaxe inscribed with skulls and symbols of death, which also serves as a holy symbol.[1]
They are sometimes called "goat demons", although this is technically incorrect, as a ram is a male sheep.[1]
Personality and alignment[]
Alignment[]
As tanar'ri demons, they are always chaotic evil.[1]
Attitude and psychology[]
They are cruel and vindictive, and will use death knell to finish an opponent even while other enemies still exist on the battlefield.[1]
Abilities and traits[]
They are among the weaker demons, but possess abilities above-average relative to a human. Their hide resists non-magical weapons, and they have some ability to resist magic.[1]
Their main power is to create and control undead. They posses the ability to use the spells animate dead, cause fear, death knell, desecrate, and stinking cloud. They can also turn undead.[1]
As tanar'ri, they are immune to poison and electricity, and resist cold, fire, and acid. They can communicate telepathically.[1]
Some increase their power as clerics.[1]
Society and culture[]
Organization[]
They are typically encountered leading a group of weaker undead, including a number of skeletons or zombies. A cult of artaagliths consists of two to five, and a commensurate following of skeletons and zombies.
They can be summoned using the spells summon monster vi or lesser planar ally.
Publication history[]
D&D 3rd edition[]
Artaagliths appeared exclusively in the sourcebook Ghostwalk (2003), which featured Orcus and undead as major antagonists. A Ghostwalk D&D 3.5 update made minor changes, mostly giving them the extraplanar subtype and clarifying skill bonuses.
Creative origins[]
The artaaglith was an original creature by Ghostwalk, and was added relatively late in the book's design process. The art was by Puddnhead, who depicted it as wielding a three-headed flail rather than a battleaxe; author Sean Reynolds suspects this was a failure of communication rather than the artist's error.[2] Its role as a servant of Orcus and ability to take cleric levels reflects the status of Orcus as a deity of undeath in that setting, contrary to Book of Vile Darkness (3e) (2002), in which he is not a deity. Orcus was chosen for the book due to his highly recognizable status among D&D players.[3] This in turn likely inspired the deathly ram-like appearance and undead focus of the artaaglith's abilities.
References[]
- ↑ 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 1.11 1.12 Ghostwalk (2003), p.157-158.
- ↑ Ghostwalk Art Commentary
- ↑ "In the early stages of concepting, Monte and I were trying to think up a new deity of undeath, and we realized that Orcus worked best because he's so recognizable." Product Spotlight: Ghostwalk. Wizards, com, 2003-06-01.