Which god is a "cattle rustler"?

[chevalier]

In my current campaign, an experienced player who is definitely more interested in RP is playing a barbarian from a very primitive, hunt-and-gather culture--kind of like an early human or Neanderthal, with a little viking-based. His tribe is nature-based and worships Obad-Hai. (They kind of remind me of the trive from 10,000 BC.)

His backstory: for some reason, the great herds of migratory beasts (reindeer and aurochs and whatnot) that his people depend on have stopped running...the tribe's scouts have ranged far and wide, but they can't find the herds. So the elders sent out some of the young warriors/hunters to try and find what's going on.

I would like to tie in this backstory with the secret resurrection or expansion of the cult of an evil deity (giving the party a reason to seek out their HQ)

But which one? Which of the evil pantheon would be responsible for the disappearance of herd animals? And how, and why?

So far I'm thinking that maybe the BBEG is growing a secret army and has slaughtered the herd animals for food...or maybe the animals have sensed the Huge, Reawakened Evil and fled in terror...I'm usually good with the plothooks, and I'd really like to work in this character's backstory, but I'm stumped.

Ideas?

Thanks!

[Tadanori Oyama]

I think making up a minor deity of your own is the best way to go. Use the demi-god trick where somebody from that area in the past managed to get themsevles worshipped enough to get some divine power.

Failing that, Nerul worshippers could be using the herd animals to get blood for their rituals and raising the bodies as zombies. Or feeding them to some other kind of undead.

[Jade_Tarem]

Don't discount simple deific mischief! In the old Greek myths, Hermes aquired his lyre by stealing Apollo's cattle, hiding them cleverly enough that Apollo couldn't find them, and holding them for ransom. Apollo gave up his instrument in order to get them back. Hermes wasn't evil himself, although stealing the cattle was an evil act. Maybe your trickster god (Olidammara, for the Core pantheon) is the real culprit, having stolen and secured the all the cattle in the lands, and he's now framing the evil deity and his cult as punishment for some past transgression?

[chevalier]

I think making up a minor deity of your own is the best way to go. Use the demi-god trick where somebody from that area in the past managed to get themsevles worshipped enough to get some divine power.

Failing that, Nerul worshippers could be using the herd animals to get blood for their rituals and raising the bodies as zombies. Or feeding them to some other kind of undead.

Zombie aurochs would be cool to fight...and a bunch of the party are followers of Pelor, saw that would appeal to them...

or maybe there is some ANCIENT UNSPEAKABLE EVIL that requires massive amounts of protein...

[chevalier]

Don't discount simple deific mischief! In the old Greek myths, Hermes aquired his lyre by stealing Apollo's cattle, hiding them cleverly enough that Apollo couldn't find them, and holding them for ransom. Apollo gave up his instrument in order to get them back. Hermes wasn't evil himself, although stealing the cattle was an evil act. Maybe your trickster god (Olidammara, for the Core pantheon) is the real culprit, having stolen and secured the all the cattle in the lands, and he's now framing the evil deity and his cult as punishment for some past transgression?

That is the kind of thing Ol' Oli would do. I think it would be great--albeit frustrating if they clear out a whole temple of Nerull and find it's not the answer. And then there would have to be some sort of clue as to it really being Olidammara. This is a possibility.

[Meat Shield]

I'd use whoever the god of famine is, or go with the forgotten demi-god mentioned earlier

[Deth Muncher]

That is the kind of thing Ol' Oli would do. I think it would be great--albeit frustrating if they clear out a whole temple of Nerull and find it's not the answer. And then there would have to be some sort of clue as to it really being Olidammara. This is a possibility.

Or, if there's kobolds nearby, it could be Tiamat. The kobolds are thieving the sheeps and such to feed their god after her re-manifesting on the material plane?

[AstralFire]

I really like the Xanatolidammaros suggestion.

[chevalier]

Or, if there's kobolds nearby, it could be Tiamat. The kobolds are thieving the sheeps and such to feed their god after her re-manifesting on the material plane?

I was thinking about using ol' five-heads in this campaign, so it might be this FTW...

[Jade_Tarem]

I was thinking about using ol' five-heads in this campaign, so it might be this FTW...

Or you could just go the whole hog* and say that it was all the gods (yes, even Heironeous can steal for good causes if he calls it confiscation :smallamused: ), each having gone out one night and stolen only a few cattle for a specific purpose, and then each is outraged to find that suddenly all the cattle are missing the next day and that devoted worshippers across the alignment spectrum are dying of starvation in parts of the world dependent on cattle. But they can't rain firey death down upon the mortals or the other gods that they suspect, because investigating the loss of the cattle might bring their dark little secret to light. So now it's up to your band of (presumably high level) adventurers to figure out what the hell is going on, and stumbling about when the evidence leads them in all directions at once. Meanwhile, the gods begin furiously plotting to make sure that their ancient enemies take the fall for this lunacy...

*Y'know, because the cows are gone. (Rim shot)

[krossbow]

have Cuthbert's followers set up a Giant, incredibly orderly city nearby, and have rounded up all the cattle to pen them in instead of letting them roam and hunt them for the city's food supply.



Can have a nice "Wilderness vs. encroaching society" thing.

[Mewtarthio]

It's Pecos Bill. Trust me on this one.

[UserClone]

Oooo...sounds like a job for Turaglas, the Devourer. He was from Dragon Magazine.

[Nonah_Me]

I would suspect Erethnuyl, as he's the god of slaughter. And soon: slaughter houses?

Blood covered cultist: "What can I do ya fer?"
Consumer: "What's the best cut of meat you have?"
Blood covered cultist: "Weeel, mebbe I can getcha some brisket, or even hind quarter. That'll be seventy newborn skulls, please."
Consumer: "Ugh, it goes up every year..."

[Rei_Jin]

Well, another option would be that there is a BBEG Ex-Druid Blighter working with Tharizdun... destroying migratory creatures to give Tharizdun a nice meal. Every drop of blood shed in the name of Tharizdun helps bring him closeer to escaping his prison after all, and an Ex-Druid would have the know how, and the ability, to cause such a problem with the migration patterns of the herd creatures.

That, and which blighter DOESN'T want to destroy an entire eco-system?

[Collin152]

I would suspect Erethnuyl, as he's the god of slaughter. And soon: slaughter houses?


I was gon' say that.
Erythnul, god of the slaughter!

[RTGoodman]

Erythnul, god of the slaughter!

...Blood for the Blood God? :smallsigh:



I really like the idea of the culprit being a Blighter devoted to Tharizdun. Ol' Tharizdun is all about the destruction of the world and Blighters like to destroy nature, after all. You could even showcase their wanton destruction by revealing eventually that the cattle had been slaughtered and then just left to rot, serving no purpose other than just being destroyed.

(Tangent: I thought this was going to be suggestions for a whole campaign/adventure based on the Táin Bó Cúailnge (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/T%C3%A1in_B%C3%B3_C%C3%BAailnge) where the OP needed stats for Medb, Cú Chulainn, and others. :smalltongue:)

[chevalier]

...Blood for the Blood God? :smallsigh:



I really like the idea of the culprit being a Blighter devoted to Tharizdun. Ol' Tharizdun is all about the destruction of the world and Blighters like to destroy nature, after all. You could even showcase their wanton destruction by revealing eventually that the cattle had been slaughtered and then just left to rot, serving no purpose other than just being destroyed.

(Tangent: I thought this was going to be suggestions for a whole campaign/adventure based on the Táin Bó Cúailnge (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/T%C3%A1in_B%C3%B3_C%C3%BAailnge) where the OP needed stats for Medb, Cú Chulainn, and others. :smalltongue:)

I swear I have seen Cuchlainn statted out somewhere...the assertion was ranger/bard if I remember correctly....

[Ralfarius]

I was gon' say that.
Erythnul, god of the slaughter!
Can't spell slaughter without... Laughter! Hah hah!

[chevalier]

Thanks for the great ideas! So far the ones I really like and can incorporate into my campaign are:

1) Resurrection of Tiamat (perhaps she is a "larval" state and needs to consume mass quantities)
2) Followers of Erythnul, killin' for fun
3) Ex-druid (poss. blighter) looking for vengenance (or gone mad) and seeking to free THARIZDUN. Tharizdun is particularly apt b/c his temples are secret





You could even showcase their wanton destruction by revealing eventually that the cattle had been slaughtered and then just left to rot, serving no purpose other than just being destroyed.



I think that this is an awesome idea and could be used in conjunction with #2 and #3 above.

Keep 'em coming?

C.

[Collin152]

Can't spell slaughter without... Laughter! Hah hah!

o_o
I said that out loud seconds after postign that!
You got the shinn'in!

[Sinfire Titan]

Why not have Atropus do it? Killing cows is one step closer to killing everything on the planet, which is what the Elder Evil wants.

[Ralfarius]

o_o
I said that out loud seconds after postign that!
You got the shinn'in!
I think we've already established that we're the same person.

[Falrin]

Plane rifts: Fun if you're into that sort of thing.

Hags: This is one I'm using right now. A hag covey has a grudge against that tribe for some reason (killed a pet). Now they take revenge.

Druids: A friendly druid cult finds out the herds are weakening. Tribes are growing larger, comerce is spreading and these poor creatures are more vulnerable then everybody thinks, so they herd them to safety.
Note: Memorable fight would be a bunch of wildshaped druids in the middle of a herd. Stampedes, Casting Animals and some Nasty Companions. Works very well when the players try to guide the her back.

An advanced nation on the other side has captured the animals for exploitations.

Undeads. Big evil cleric is raising an undead army. All kinds of lifeforce sucking creeps harvest the unsettled herdes.

It's a scout scam. The scout leader wants to take control of the tribe. Let them go hungry, fight the leaders decissions and finaly be the one who saves the day.

Doomsday. A big wave, a huge vulcano, a meteor shower, a shattering earthquake, apocalypctic riders, ... They felt it coming and fled, the players have to found out and save the tribe/survive the onslaught/...

Evil Golem Testing programs.

Greenpeace saved them from your probably cruel ideas.

Mindthingies feeding on the brains of the herd.

Huge underground structures, big caves, with the usual evil (and hungry) monsters inside.

[Collin152]

I think we've already established that we're the same person.

When was this?

[RTGoodman]

I swear I have seen Cuchlainn statted out somewhere...the assertion was ranger/bard if I remember correctly....

I know one of the big third-party publishers (Green Ronin, maybe?) did a setting called "Tír na nÓg" that's based on Celtic mythology and such - that (or maybe one of the various books full of gods and pantheons) would be my bet. I may have to take a look at the setting book next time I'm at my local used bookstore (since they have about 8 copies of it sitting around).[/derail]


Mindthingies feeding on the brains of the herd.

Or, if you're feeling a little cliche, you could have one or more Good-aligned Mindflayers Squid-Thingies that are trying to survive by killing animals for brains/food rather than humans. Sorta has an "Angel stealing blood rather than draining humans" vibe to it.

[nargbop]

Make up a minor pantheon, along with Pelor the Sun God and Wee Jas the Death God. Every other god has too much culture associated with them, too much civilization.

[Hawriel]

The disappearance of the herds maybe an indirect consiquence to what ever shinanigens the evil cult is up to. They may have fled their normal migration routs to get away from the evil. They may have been hunted down and killed by cultists. If its an undead raising cult, they may have been used for flesh and bone golems. Maybe the rise of the big evil is corrupting the wildlife. The grasslands are dying off so the uncorrupted hurd has left to find a safe place to live.

Going with the corrupted wildlife idea. Some or a majority of the hurd animals may have been corrupted. Making them more agressive. This corruption killed a large majority of the hurds. Some are twisted forms only vaguely resembeling the origional animal. The corrupted animals turned on each other and the hurds started killing its self. Only a handful of animals that where not corrupt ran off, scattered most likly to die from starvation and predatory animals. Predatory animals also have been corrupted. Whether you have Wolves, Lions or other predatory beasts in your plains, they where currupted. They started killing not for food but for a demonic bloodlust.

The disapearence of the hurds most likly could be a byproduct of what dark evil things the cult is doing. At most they could be used as a resorce for some reason or another. IF your useing the gods from the PHB then I think there are only two choices. Erythnul and Nerull. Or it could be a very powerful demon who has ambition of god hood. If thats the case make a new god. And just to ad depth. Maybe in the long run this demon succeeds in ataining godhood. The heroes may save their coner of the world from destruction but the goale of the demon is attained. This could change your world drasticly. Maybe even in ways that are not apparent for years.

[Behold_the_Void]

I don't see any particular need to make this extremely complicated godly conniving. Take... Hextor, let's say. Hextor's armies march. They need food. You have a convenient herd of animals. Hextor's armies gank your food in preparation of the war march.

[Reptilius]

Why not have Atropus do it? Killing cows is one step closer to killing everything on the planet, which is what the Elder Evil wants.

Well, killing of a herd of animals is pretty bad, but probably not enough of a "tragedy" to get its attention (the person in the book decides to trigger a rain of fire on a huge city).

[Sinfire Titan]

Well, killing of a herd of animals is pretty bad, but probably not enough of a "tragedy" to get its attention (the person in the book decides to trigger a rain of fire on a huge city).

Its a starting point. And the spell she uses is Apoc from the Sky, which is Fire, Acid, or Sonic, and hits everything in a 10 mile/CL radius.

[chevalier]

The disappearance of the herds maybe an indirect consiquence to what ever shinanigens the evil cult is up to. They may have fled their normal migration routs to get away from the evil. They may have been hunted down and killed by cultists. If its an undead raising cult, they may have been used for flesh and bone golems. Maybe the rise of the big evil is corrupting the wildlife. The grasslands are dying off so the uncorrupted hurd has left to find a safe place to live.

Going with the corrupted wildlife idea. Some or a majority of the hurd animals may have been corrupted. Making them more agressive. This corruption killed a large majority of the hurds. Some are twisted forms only vaguely resembeling the origional animal. The corrupted animals turned on each other and the hurds started killing its self. Only a handful of animals that where not corrupt ran off, scattered most likly to die from starvation and predatory animals. Predatory animals also have been corrupted. Whether you have Wolves, Lions or other predatory beasts in your plains, they where currupted. They started killing not for food but for a demonic bloodlust.


The idea of our nature-friendsly barbarian encountering a huge field of dead animals, and then several corrupted aurochs/reindeer turning on the party has an appeal...or maybe vast underground caverns of corrupted beasts as an army...

[Hecore]

Why not twist it around? Make the tribal elders worship a dark god whom they've been sacrificing the cattle to. They send out the hunter to make it look like they're doing something about the problem, and also to prevent them from stopping their vile plans.

When the hunter eventually comes back with little to show for his efforts (other then the fact that the cattle are being sacrificed to an ancient evil) you can spring the plot twist. Fight the ancient evil, track down the council of elders, call on other nations to help wage war on the unholy monstrosities that now inhabit the hunters homeland... you've got nearly limitless choices.