Yuan-Ti cults across the planes

11 posts / 0 new
Last post
Kobold Avenger's picture
Offline
factotums
Joined: 2005-11-18
Yuan-Ti cults across the planes

Partially inspired by Keith Baker's article on the Shulassakar in Eberron I've always toyed with the idea of different cults or factions of Yuan-Ti... Yuan-Ti who would rever great serpents other than Merrshaulk or Sessinek. They would have alignments other than chaotic evil.

Now the Shulassakar are Yuan-Ti who model themselves after Coatl's, and I can clearly see some cults based on Lillendi, or the various types of Naga and 'wyrms'. So picking off some mythological serpents (mainly vedic), D20 Modern and Deicide/V:tM, I have names like the Brood of Vasuki, the Children of Sesha, Ananta’s Watchers, Manasa’s Guardians, the Serpents of the Light, Infinity Serpents, Mucilinda’s Vanguard, and Nidhogg’s Spawn for Yuan-Ti cults.

I'm trying to come up with motivations and beliefs and methods for each different Yuan-Ti cult...

So anyone have ideas to throw out there?

Kobold Avenger's picture
Offline
factotums
Joined: 2005-11-18
Yuan-Ti cults across the planes

Out of the cults out there I can think of:

The Cult of Merrshaulk: This would basically be the standard Yuan-Ti cult in D&D, Chaotic Evil in alignment.

The Brood of Vasuki: I've only put a little thought into this one, basically their neutral in alignment, based out of the city of Bhogavati on the (demi-)plane of Naga-loka. They're tied to the serpent Vasuki from Hindu mythology who I can't remember the full details but churned the oceans of the divine milky substance known as the Amrita which resulted in preserving existence.

Sesha, Ananta, Manasa: All Hindu serpents as well.

Nidhogg's Spawn: A Norse serpent, would have something to do with Nidhogg, Linnorms and Ygdrassil.

Infinity Serpents: Were described somewhere in D20 Modern: Urban Arcana.

Apep's Nest (a newer idea): Tied to the Egyptian serpent Apeps.

Mucilinda's Vanguard: Tied to a Bhuddist serpent.

Shekinster Children: A cult having an association with the Naga goddess in D&D.

A non-Eberron based Coautl cult could be the Serpents of the Light.

Then what would a Lillendi cult be called?

Azure's picture
Offline
Factol
Joined: 2006-05-17
Yuan-Ti cults across the planes

Quote:
Then what would a Lillendi cult be called?

How about the Singing Serpents (as Lillendi value music and art).

Kobold Avenger's picture
Offline
factotums
Joined: 2005-11-18
Yuan-Ti cults across the planes

Now granted with my ideas of ancient history, there would certainly be the Aeon of the Serpents when ancient primal Naga had a massive empire across the planes. I see many of the Yuan-Ti being the half-mortal descendants and worshippers of the beings of this ancient age. The Aeon of the Serpents has long since passed, the primal naga mostly disappeared.

However I see beings like dragons, coautls, lillendi, salamanders, the lesser naga (the current ones) and many others as their descendants. Many of the mythological serpents and serpent deities are the ancient naga that still live on.

So does anyone have a list of serpent deities?

Azure's picture
Offline
Factol
Joined: 2006-05-17
Yuan-Ti cults across the planes

Quote:
So does anyone have a list of serpent deities?

One awesome, awesome resource i got as an x-mas present one year is the "Dictionary of Ancient Deities" by Patricia Turner & Charles Russell Coulter from Oxford University Press (1997). I'm not going to peruse the whole thing for you, 'cause the index lists no less than 97 references to mythological serpents! I highly recomend this exaustive delve into worldwide folklore to EVERYONE!

oh.....ok....i'll give you three you've (probably) never heard of

Ophiomorphus (Gnostic) - Creator serpent god, son of Ialdabaoth. Creator of the spirits known as the Archons.

Ndengei (Fiji Islands) - Creator. Divine serpent god with stone flesh who hatched mortals from a bird's egg. Ndengei hathed two eggs, from which came a male and a female, the ancestors of the human race. He is also the god of the underworld and judge of the dead. The way to him is barred by a giant with an axe. Whenever Ndengei turns over, earthquakes are created.

Sesha (Brahmanic, Hindu) - Sesha, the world serpent, provides the couch on which Vishnu rests over the primal sea. He is depicted with a thousand heads, dressed in purple, holding a plow and pestle. Sesha was given his name by Brahma, and it means "Eternal". He symbolizes time. At the end of each kalpa (1000 ages), he destroys the world with fire. He is one of the Naga kings who rule in Patala, the underworld.

....these are of course highly edited snippits from the book. The hindu deities have especially long-winded histories, but the book includes (but is not limited to) Norse, Aztec, Maian, Babalonian, African, Persian, Polynesian, Greek, Egyptian, American Indian, Aborigine, etc., etc., etc! 525 pages of VERY SMALL TYPE. Again, any- and everyone should get this book, if for no other reason than to look up the REAL origin of Demogorgon. Smiling

Azure's picture
Offline
Factol
Joined: 2006-05-17
Yuan-Ti cults across the planes

oopsie, my bad.... you do know of Sesha and the other naga kings (perhaps i should read your posts before posting a reply...)

Dalmosh's picture
Offline
Namer
Joined: 2011-03-13
Re: Yuan-Ti cults across the planes

There are at least two other lesser CE yuan-ti religious factions who follow powerful and rather archaic Abyssal entities. Sch'theraqpasstt the Serpent Reborn, a primitive uncategorized Demon Lord attributed as the original creator of the Yuan-ti, since fallen to insanity after a failed bid to merge with its own Abyssal Layer. Since its layer is a telepathic dreamscape called the Mind of Evil, I have always considered its cultists to exemplify the psionic aspects of the race. Its avatar is a giant winged serpent.

The Vanguard of Sertrous (3.5 ed. Elder Evils) worship a fallen Obyrith Lord now returning to power. Sertrous embodies the serpent in its aspect as a slanderous deceiver that tarnishes the faith of the pure through heresy, and his form and original portfolio reflect a focus on crawling vermin.

Hyena of Ice's picture
Offline
factotums
Joined: 2009-09-25
Re: Yuan-Ti cults across the planes

There's a subrace of Yuan-Ti in Nyambe African Adventures as well; I imagine they would worship local serpent deities.

Then of course there is Ananke, the Protogena *e.g. Greco-Roman mythology* of infinity and innevitability, wife of Chronos (Chronos the Protogenos of time, not the Titan Chronus) Ananke is the ouroboros personified.

Kobold Avenger's picture
Offline
factotums
Joined: 2005-11-18
Re: Yuan-Ti cults across the planes

I'll eventually follow up with some of my ideas on Yuan-Ti cults, whenever I cover them in my Humanoids of Sigil thread.

Palomides's picture
Offline
factotums
Joined: 2010-06-26
Re: Yuan-Ti cults across the planes

I don't know if it will fit in with the yuan-ti; but if you are just interested in various snake gods, one of my favorites is the Rainbow Serpent of the native Australians.
The Rainbow Serpent controls the most precious resource in the Outback, water. It's slithering causes the gullies where water collects. I also created most rock formations as it pushed up from under the earth. It is "closely linked to land, water, life, social relationships and fertility".

Snakes are often depicted as possessing tremendous knowledge (although the tales differ as to whether we are better off or not from learning this knowledge)
I also think of snakes in the rituals of Pentacostal snake handlers and in voodoo (although the later may be what I picked up from Hollywood's depiction of voodoo, I know little about the real thing).

The early Egyptians had Apep, the ultimate force of darkness and chaos against the gods (until politics caused Set to move into the role) that would try to devour Ra during his weakned state as Ra journeyed through the underworld each night

I got most of this from Wikipedia, but:
Ningishzida: a serpentine Mesopotamian deity of the underworld. His name in Sumerian is translated as "lord of the good tree" (possible connection to a certain Biblical story?)
He might have been the child of Ninazu (the god of the underworld AND of healing) In one depiction, he is seen intertwined (possibly copulating) with another snake around an axis. Many believe that this was largely the inspiration for the Caduceus of Hermes - a symbol of healing and medicine

AlexanderDrake's picture
Offline
Namer
Joined: 2008-11-25
Re: Yuan-Ti cults across the planes

How about this series of ideas....

In honor of the movie Thor, a northern Midgard Serpent.

And for Legends of the 5 Rings, a Naga worshiping cult.

Planescape, Dungeons & Dragons, their logos, Wizards of the Coast, and the Wizards of the Coast logo are ©2008, Wizards of the Coast, a subsidiary of Hasbro Inc. and used with permission.