Pazuzu (Dungeons & Dragons)

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In the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, Pazuzu is a powerful demon prince, called the Prince of the Lower Aerial Kingdoms. He rules the skies above all layers of the Abyss. He is sometimes known as Pazrael or Pazuzeus.

Pazuzu has been mentioned in Monster Manual II and the Book of Vile Darkness web enhancement. He is covered in depth in Dragon magazine #329, in the "Demonomicon of Iggwilv" feature.

1 Overview
2 Enemies
3 Cult of Pazuzu
4 References

[edit] Overview

Pazuzu is viewed by the denizens of the Abyss with resentment and grudging respect. Unlike most demon lords, he is not interested in conquest of the Abyss. His main concern is winning followers in the Prime Material Plane by tempting or deceiving those of good alignment. He aids any good creature who summons him, in order to tempt him or her to evil. In Monster Manual II, he is said to be on good terms with daemons (now known as yugoloths) and dukes of Hell. He commands a retinue of six balors, who are known as the Six Wings of Pazuzu and serve as his bodyguards and assassins.

In his true form, Pazuzu is a 7' tall well-proportioned humanoid with four wings. His face combines the features of a handsome man and a hawk. His hooked beak is filled with sharp teeth. He has a noble brow, a large head, and glowing red eyes. His avian feet have long, sharp talons.

The "Demonomicon of Iggwilv" names Pazuzu's lair as Torremor, a tangled mass of beams, pinnacles, arches, ladders, and other structures, held together by rope and chain. Torremor is located on the 503rd layer of the Abyss.

[edit] Enemies

In the "Demonomicon of Iggwilv", Graz'zt is listed as Pazuzu's most notable enemy. Graz'zt alone takes umbrage at Pazuzu's claim to dominion over the skies of the Abyss. Pazuzu is also opposed by the obscure demon lord Lamashtu, "She Who Erases", the demon queen of monstrous birth and deformity. Lamashtu, a former consort of Pazuzu, is the only being who knows Pazuzu's true name. She betrayed him, and in response he ate her eyes and banished her to an unknown layer of the Abyss, possibly somewhere in Torremor.

[edit] Cult of Pazuzu

Pazuzu is the lord of all evil flying creatures. His worshippers rarely occur in societies; usually he is worshipped by individuals. His worshippers include harpies, gargoyles, manticores, wyverns, and sometimes evil fey or dragons. His temples lie in areas unreachable by those incapable of flight: in wilderness, atop cliffs or mountain peaks.

In the "Demonomicon of Iggwilv", cults of Pazuzu are started when someone in desperate need discovers Pazuzu's name and pleads for his help. Pazuzu grants the person aid, and in reply asks that his name be repeated to others. The mortal's miraculous turn of fortune attracts other desperate souls. Pazuzu continues to grant aid when called upon, each time producing more evil results. Eventually the cultists come to depend on him for their success, at which point he reveals his true nature. Those who try to repent are tortured and sacrificed. After a cult has committed its first sacrifice, Pazuzu abandons it and seeks out other prospects. Eventually the cult is destroyed by lawful and good forces; looters discover Pazuzu's name and the cycle's continuance is assured.

[edit] References

Cook, Monte. "Yet More Archfiends: a Book of Vile Darkness Web Enhancement" (Wizards of the Coast, 2002). Available online: [1]

Gygax, Gary. The Lost Caverns of Tsojcanth (TSR, 1982).
Gygax, Gary. Monster Manual II (TSR, 1983).

Jacobs, James. "The Demonimicon of Iggwilv: Pazuzu." Dragon #329 (Paizo Publishing, 2005).
Jacobs, James, Erik Mona, and Ed Stark. Fiendish Codex I: Hordes of the Abyss (Wizards of the Coast, 2006).