Geryon (Dungeons & Dragons)

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Geryon
Dungeons & Dragons character
D&DGeryon.JPG
First appearance Monster Manual (1977)
Created by Gary Gygax
Information
Race Archdevil
GenderMale
TitleThe Wild Beast, (Former) Lord of the Fifth
Alignment Lawful Evil
Home Nine Hells
Superior Asmodeus

In the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game, Geryon was an Arch-Devil of Hell (Baator in later editions of the game), also known as the "Wild Beast".

<i>Dungeons & Dragons</i> Fantasy role-playing game

Dungeons & Dragons is a fantasy tabletop role-playing game (RPG) originally designed by Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson. It was first published in 1974 by Tactical Studies Rules, Inc. (TSR). The game has been published by Wizards of the Coast since 1997. It was derived from miniature wargames, with a variation of the 1971 game Chainmail serving as the initial rule system. D&D's publication is commonly recognized as the beginning of modern role-playing games and the role-playing game industry.

Role-playing game Game in which players assume the roles of characters in a fictional setting

A role-playing game is a game in which players assume the roles of characters in a fictional setting. Players take responsibility for acting out these roles within a narrative, either through literal acting, or through a process of structured decision-making regarding character development. Actions taken within many games succeed or fail according to a formal system of rules and guidelines.

In the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, Baator, also known as the Nine Hells of Baator or the Nine Hells, is a lawful evil–aligned plane of existence. It is one of a number of alignment-based Outer Planes that form part of the standard Dungeons & Dragons (D&D) cosmology, used in the Planescape, Greyhawk, and some editions of the Forgotten Realms campaign settings. It also exists as one of a number of faith-based Outer Planes that form part of the separate 3rd-Edition Forgotten Realms cosmology, used in the setting of the same name.

Contents

Creative origins

Geryon was the fearsome, triple-bodied ruler of Erytheia in Greek mythology, but the D&D Geryon is based on the Geryon from Dante's Inferno. [1]

In Greek mythology, Geryon, son of Chrysaor and Callirrhoe, the grandson of Medusa and the nephew of Pegasus, was a fearsome giant who dwelt on the island Erytheia of the mythic Hesperides in the far west of the Mediterranean. A more literal-minded later generation of Greeks associated the region with Tartessos in southern Iberia. Geryon was often described as a monster with human faces.

Erytheia, part of Greek mythology, is one of the three Hesperides. The name was applied to the island close to the coast of southern Hispania, that was the site of the original Punic colony of Gadeira. Pliny's Natural History (4.36) records of the island of Gades: "On the side which looks towards Spain, at about 100 paces distance, is another long island, three miles wide, on which the original city of Gades stood. By Ephorus and Philistides it is called Erythia, by Timæus and Silenus Aphrodisias, and by the natives the Isle of Juno." The island was the seat of Geryon, who was overcome by Heracles.

<i>Inferno</i> (Dante) First part of Dantes Divine Comedy

Inferno is the first part of Italian writer Dante Alighieri's 14th-century epic poem Divine Comedy. It is followed by Purgatorio and Paradiso. The Inferno tells the journey of Dante through Hell, guided by the ancient Roman poet Virgil. In the poem, Hell is depicted as nine concentric circles of torment located within the Earth; it is the "realm ... of those who have rejected spiritual values by yielding to bestial appetites or violence, or by perverting their human intellect to fraud or malice against their fellowmen". As an allegory, the Divine Comedy represents the journey of the soul toward God, with the Inferno describing the recognition and rejection of sin.

Publication history

Geryon first appears in the first edition Monster Manual (1977). [2] Geryon's realm was further detailed in Ed Greenwood's "The Nine Hells Part I" in Dragon #75 (1983). [3]

Ed Greenwood Canadian writer

Ed Greenwood is a Canadian fantasy writer and the original creator of the Forgotten Realms game world. He began writing articles about the Forgotten Realms for Dragon magazine beginning in 1979, and subsequently sold the rights to the setting to TSR, the creators of the Dungeons & Dragons roleplaying game, in 1986. He has written many Forgotten Realms novels, as well as numerous articles and D&D game supplement books.

<i>Dragon</i> (magazine) magazine de TSR

Dragon was one of the two official magazines for source material for the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game and associated products; Dungeon was the other.

Geryon did not initially appear in 2nd edition, and in the Planescape line the lord of Stygia was instead a trapped archfiend named Levistus. Eventually, Geryon's fate as a deposed Lord of Hell was revealed in the adventure A Paladin in Hell (1998), [4] and Guide to Hell (1999). [5]

Planescape D&D campaign setting

Planescape is a campaign setting for the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, originally designed by Zeb Cook. The Planescape setting was published in 1994. As its name suggests, the setting crosses and comprises the numerous planes of existence, encompassing an entire cosmology called the Great Wheel, as originally developed in the Manual of the Planes by Jeff Grubb. This includes many of the other Dungeons & Dragons worlds, linking them via inter-dimensional magical portals.

<i>Guide to Hell</i> Dungeons & Dragons accessory book

Guide to Hell is an accessory for the 2nd edition of the Advanced Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, published in 1999.

In third edition, Geryon was given statistics in an online web enhancement for the Book of Vile Darkness (2002) titled "Yet More Archfiends". [6] Geryon appeared as a vestige in Tome of Magic (2006). [7] Geryon received a brief description in Fiendish Codex II: Tyrants of the Nine Hells (2006). [8]

<i>Book of Vile Darkness</i> book by Monte Cook

Book of Vile Darkness is an optional supplemental sourcebook for the 3rd edition of the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game. The book was written by Monte Cook and published by Wizards of the Coast in October 2002. Described as a "detailed look at the nature of evil," it was the first Dungeons & Dragons book labelled for mature audiences. The second was the "good" companion volume Book of Exalted Deeds. Another Book of Vile Darkness was published for the 4th edition of Dungeons & Dragons in 2011.

<i>Tome of Magic</i> book by David Cook

Tome of Magic is a handbook of rules and guidelines for the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game. As its name implies, it is a supplement to be used to expand the magical options available in the game. It was first released for Advanced Dungeons & Dragons, 2nd Edition, and the name was reused for a book released for the 3rd Edition of D&D.

<i>Fiendish Codex II: Tyrants of the Nine Hells</i> book by Robin Laws

Fiendish Codex II: Tyrants of the Nine Hells is an optional supplemental source book for the 3.5 edition of the Dungeons & Dragons roleplaying game.

Description

Geryon's only human feature is his handsome head. His body is snake-like with no legs, and he has huge bat wings, and a barbed tail that drips a deadly poison. His arms are strong and hairy and end in paw-like hands, and allow him to use his horn that summons minotaurs. As a vestige, he is instead described as a bizarre creature of tripartite symmetry, resembling three ogre mages fused back-to-back, with three glowing green eyes and a triple set of wings.

Minotaur (<i>Dungeons & Dragons</i>) creature in the Dungeons & Dragons roleplaying game

In the Dungeons & Dragons roleplaying game, minotaurs are a race of monstrous humanoids, resembling bull-human hybrids. Many minotaurs worship the demon lord Baphomet.

History

Geryon was once the lord of Stygia, the Fifth Layer of Hell, a position he gained right after the demotion of Levistus.

Known for his staunch loyalty to Asmodeus, Geryon was the only one to support the Lord of Nessus upon the Hell-wide revolution known as the Reckoning of Hell. Yet, in the aftermath, his faithfulness was apparently useless, as Geryon was demoted and banished to Avernus with his court by Asmodeus himself.

He was at one time a commander of a Stygian fortress known as Coldsteel, only to later lose that position as well. His physical form has ultimately been destroyed and his life-essence was given to power up Glasya, Asmodeus's daughter who recently gained the rulership of Malbolge, the Sixth Layer of Baator. Geryon now exists as a vestige. Binders who summon Geryon can gain some of his powers, such as his extra eyes, his baleful gaze and his power of flight, in return risking being influenced by his personality and acquiring his weakness of irrational loyalty.

4th edition

In 4th edition, his backstory is revealed. Geryon was once an angel in the service of He Who Was, and together with six other angels was a mighty force for good. In a terrible battle with a monstrous foe (unidentified but believed to be a primordial), they ultimately won victory, but four of his brother angels were killed, and Geryon and the other two were badly wounded. Realizing that he could not save them all, He Who Was used the other two angels to save Geryon. Originally grateful, Geryon soon realized that he held the memories and thoughts of his brothers within him, and as a result his agony over losing them was constant and eternal. He joined with Asmodeus after being promised that he would be cured of his pain, and although he was never fully healed Asmodeus was able to dull the agony to a minor irritant. His role in the reckoning and the aftermath is unchanged.

Geryon still lives. After he was exiled by Asmodeus, he went to Tytherion and retreated to a cave. He now occasionally serves as a mercenary for powerful mortals and holds infernal pacts with certain warlocks. Lately, he has been haunted with the question of why Asmodeus exiled him after he proved his loyalty. He believes now that Asmodeus wants him to complete a task so terrible, the Lord of Hell did not dare even speak of it and is afraid of being associated with it even by proxy. He thinks that Asmodeus expects him to figure out what to do and handle it, and spends much of his time trying to determine what task would be so terrible that Asmodeus himself was afraid of it. Even if he figures out what he is supposed to do, he is divided as to whether or not to actually do it.

Vassals

The following beings were among the most notable subjects of Geryon on Stygia. The forces at their disposal are listed, where appropriate:

Many in Geryon's court were destroyed in a battle with the followers of Levistus.

Other publishers

Geryon appeared under the "devil" heading in the Tome of Horrors (2002) from Necromancer Games. [12]

Geryon appeared in Paizo Publishing's book Book of the Damned, Vol. 1: Princes of Darkness (2009), on page 15. [13]

Other media

Geryon also appears as a minor character in Ed Greenwood's novel Elminster in Hell , where he commands an army of devils in Avernus.

Footnotes

  1. ↑ DeVarque, Aardy. "Literary Sources of D&D". Archived from the original on 2007-12-09. Retrieved 2007-02-23.
  2. ↑ Gygax, Gary. Monster Manual (TSR, 1977)
  3. ↑ Greenwood, Ed. "The Nine Hells Part I." Dragon #75 (TSR, 1983)
  4. ↑ Cook, Monte. A Paladin in Hell . Renton, WA: Wizards of the Coast, 1998. ISBN   0-7869-1210-3
  5. ↑ Pramas, Chris. Guide to Hell (TSR, 1999)
  6. ↑ Cook, Monte. "Yet More Archfiends: A Book of Vile Darkness Web Enhancement" (Wizards of the Coast, 2002). Available online:
  7. ↑ Sernett, Matthew, Dave Noonan, Ari Marmell, and Robert J. Schwalb. Tome of Magic: Pact, Shadow, and Truename Magic (Wizards of the Coast, 2006)
  8. ↑ Laws, Robin D., and Robert J. Schwalb. Fiendish Codex II: Tyrants of the Nine Hells (Wizards of the Coast, 2006)
  9. ↑ Greenwood, Ed. "The Nine Hells Part I." Dragon #75 (TSR, 1983)
  10. ↑ Laws, Robin D, and Robert J. Schwalb. Fiendish Codex II: Tyrants of the Nine Hells (Wizards of the Coast, 2006)
  11. ↑ Green, Scott; Peterson, Clark (2002). Tome of Horrors. Necromancer Games. pp. 99–100. ISBN   1-58846-112-2.
  12. ↑ Green, Scott; Peterson, Clark (2002). Tome of Horrors. Necromancer Games. pp. 97–98. ISBN   1-58846-112-2.
  13. ↑ Schneider, F. Wesley. Book of the Damned, Vol. 1: Princes of Darkness (Paizo, 2009)

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