Tiamat
 | |
| Tiamat's five-headed Chromatic Dragon form. | |
| Tiamat | |
|---|---|
| Titles | The Mother of Dragons The Dark Lady The Tyrant Queen The Scaled Tyrant The Queen of Chaos The Queen Above Us The Chromatic Dragon The Polychromatic Dragon The Dragon Queen |
| Aliases | Takhisis Nyssa Asgorath (disputed) Io (disputed) |
| Alignment | Lawful Evil (disputed) Chaotic Evil (disputed) |
| Pantheons | Mesopotamian pantheon Dracarys Faerûnian pantheon Dawn War pantheon Exandria pantheon Pathfinder pantheon |
In most D&D settings, Tiamat (I say "TEE-uh-mat") is the dragon goddess of evil. She is one of the two principal gods of the dragons, along with Bahamut.
Tiamat is known to the people of the Forgotten Realms, the Nentir Vale, Greyhawk, Exandria, Dragonlance,[1] ancient Mesopotamia, Golarion, and many other worlds and lands by many names, including the Mother of Dragons, the Dark Lady, the Tyrant Queen, the Scaled Tyrant, the Queen of Chaos,[2] the Queen Above Us, the Chromatic Dragon, the Polychromatic Dragon, the Dragon Queen, and more. There are many myths and legends surrounding her, but most agree she is the progenitor of evil dragonkind and a force of great malevolence.
Alignment
Her alignment is a great matter of debate. There are cases to be made for both Lawful Evil and Chaotic Evil.
Mythology
 | |
| Tiamat, goddess of creation, slain by Marduk. |
Mesopotamian mythology
In ancient Babylonian mythology, Tiamat is an ancient goddess of the ocean and creation. She is described as a creator goddess. In the Babylonian myths, after her husband Apsu is murdered by their children, she makes war upon them and manifests as a great dragon. She's then killed by the storm god Marduk, the son of Enki, who takes her corpse and makes the heavens and earth from it. She is thus considered the goddess of the primordial chaos before Creation.
Pathfinder
In Pathfinder, Tiamat, along with her husband, Apsu, is considered (by the dragons, at least) one of the two primeval creator gods of the multiverse.
Tiamat is not as well known on Golarion than in other worlds. She and Apsu fathered Dahak, who fills the role of god of evil dragons more so than his mom.
Eberron
In Eberron, Tiamat is understood to be one of the many fiends produced by the primeval dragon Khyber. Tiamat is, in fact, considered the "truest" child of Khyber—the one most like her mother—and is often referred to therefore as the Daughter of Khyber. She is a great and powerful overlord.
Dawn War myth
Many believe that Tiamat and Bahamut were born from the corpse of their father, Asgorath. They believe that during the Dawn War, Asgorath arrogantly faced down a primordial named Erek-Hus, known as the King of Terror.[3] Erek-Hus slew the dragon god with an adamantine battle axe, cleaving him right down the middle. These two halves became Bahamut and Tiamat. They arose, alive, and worked together to overpower Erek-Hus—basically the only time they've ever gotten along.
Krynn
 | |
| Takhisis. |
The great goddess of evil known to the people of Krynn is Takhisis, whom many believe to be Tiamat. Like Tiamat, she often takes the form of a five-headed dragon, and is known to many as the Darklady.
You're not going to convince me she's not Tiamat.
Abeir
The dragonborn of Abeir believe Asgorath birthed Tiamat and Bahamut peacefully (i.e., he didn't have to die).[4] Originally, he wanted Tiamat to be Bahamut's bride that they might birth a new race of perfect beings—but they ended up hating each other from the moment they left the womb (?).
Chromatic dragons
The orthodox theology of the chromatic dragons states that Asgorath was really Tiamat, and Bahamut is her son. They believe Bahamut rebelled against his mother, spawned the metallic dragons, and spread a myth that he and Tiamat were co-equal beings born from a sort of "allfather" dragon named Asgorath.
They believe that Tiamat is the mother of all creation—the creator of all things.
Worship
All evil dragons pay homage to Tiamat; green and blue dragons acknowledge her sovereignty the most readily. Good dragons have a healthy respect for Tiamat, though they usually avoid mentioning her or even thinking about her.[5]
Presence
Tiamat is known to the peoples of Terra, Golarion, the Nentir Vale, Exandria, Greyhawk, the Forgotten Realms, Krynn, Marillia, and other lands.
Her entry in the 4th-edition DMG is as follows:
Tiamat is the evil god of wealth, greed, and envy. She is the patron of chromatic dragons and those whose lust for wealth overrides any other goal or concern. She commands her followers to:
- Hoard wealth, acquiring much and spending little. Wealth is its own reward.
- Forgive no slight and leave no wrong unpunished.
- Take what you desire from others. Those who lack the strength to defend their possessions are not worthy to own them.[6]
Avatars
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| The Dark Lady. |
Tiamat has two main avatars:
- The Dark Lady: a Middle Eastern-looking woman.
- The Chromatic Dragon: her classic manifestation of a giant five-headed dragon.
Relationships
In most settings, Bahamut/Marduk is numero-uno on her shit list.
In the Forgotten Realms, she was once killed by Gilgamesh/Gilgeam.
Tiamat gets along surprisingly well with Asmodeus. In the Forgotten Realms, things between them may have soured for reasons, but it is generally understood that Asmodeus—for some inexplicable reason—has little problem with her presence in Avernus.
Kurtulmak, god of the kobolds, is, fittingly, her pawn.
Iyachtu Xvim and his father, Bane, have butted heads with Tiamat before.
Mandate
| Edicts[7] |
|
|---|
Power Ranking
| CR | Aspect: 30[8] |
|---|---|
| DR | 10 (lesser power)[9] |
See also
Endnotes
- ↑ debated
- ↑ Not to be confused with the obyrith
- ↑ Why you'd want to 1v1 a guy literally named the King of Terror is beyond me
- ↑ Source: Races of the Dragon.
- ↑ Source: 3e Draconomicon, pp. 35-36.
- ↑ Source: Wyatt, James. Dungeon Master's Guide, p. 163. 2008.
- ↑ 4e Player's Handbook
- ↑ Source: Fizban's.
- ↑ Source: Deities and Demigods.
