History Check:

The
Tarrasque
By Jeff LaSala
Illustration by Craig J Spearing

The script was elegant, unhurried, composed by the steady

hand of an educated man in seeming possession of his fac-
ulties. The pages had been neatly gathered, rolled into a
scroll case of bone capped with silver, and delivered to the
queen’s agent directly.
Its writer and sender, purportedly an archmage, elected
to remain anonymous. The courier relayed only this
description of his client: a figure in gray, cowled and soft-
spoken, whose certainty of purpose was so strong as to be
palpable. Here follow the words that make up his attempt to
understand the tarrasque, and his effort to pass that knowl-
edge on. . . .

S ole Survivor
You think you know monsters. You may spend your
life battling aberrations in subterranean realms,
demons in blasphemous temples, or angels in the
astral skies. You may even have slain dragons.
But you have never seen the wrath of a true mon-
ster—one that devils and archons alike would shy
from, a beast that slumbers now in a place so remote
even the deep-dwelling drow cannot fathom it.
I have looked into the soulless eyes of the Great
Beast, and it looked back into mine. Whether by fate

TM & © 2012 Wizards of the Coast LLC. All rights reserved.

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 History Check: The Tarrasque

or fortune, I have been spared its teeth and the acidic higher and deeper—into the enmity between the gods divine prison, and the archomentals retreated into
razors of its gullet. I have lived to tell the tale. and primordials, which began with the Dawn War. the depths of the Elemental Chaos to thwart their
The monster gave no warning when it emerged It was in the hoard of Arvvestrix the Black, a enemies—but before they fled, they hatched a plan
from beneath the countryside of my father’s land, wyrm of singular notoriety, that I found a rare book. to birth the most terrible monster the world has
then quickly destroyed a nearby farm and devoured The writing was in the Supernal script, the language ever seen.
every living occupant. In less than a day, the barony of astral and divine beings, and the author spoke
was ravaged by its hunger: meadows and forests
trampled and desecrated, livestock and game swal-
knowingly, seemingly at first hand, about the Dawn
War. Now, I have read many texts about that mythic
Weapon in Waiting
lowed or driven away. Our keep, which had withstood conflict in the Age Before Ages, but most of them are All wars beget new weapons. Conflict is the father of
peasant uprisings and enemy sieges for centuries, contradictory and slanderous—the propaganda of one invention, after all. In the midst of its cosmic strife,
crumbled under the fury of the tarrasque. faith or another. This tome, however, was different, the Dawn War propagated many abominations—
I alone survived, whether by happenstance or and from its pages came the foundation of my quest living weapons used by both sides, some of which still
some greater design. Was my escape from death a for answers. lurk in forgotten or familiar places. Atropals, astral
sign? I began to believe so, and I became grateful not The world began with the primordials, elemental stalkers, phanes . . . the list goes on, and mortals are
only for my continued life but also for the opportunity beings of godlike power, whose works were violent fortunate if they never meet a single one of them. The
that my survival afforded me: The appearance of the and ever-changing. When the gods arrived and tarrasque was the last and unquestionably the most
tarrasque on my family’s land set me on the path of shaped the churning chaos into a hospitable, stable powerful of these new weapons of war.
my life’s work: my study of the Great Beast. But for world where new beings could live and thrive, the pri- Before their exile, the archomentals wrought one
that event, I might have lived and died as the idle mordials were outraged and sought to tear the gods’ final act of spite. Combining their talents, they fash-
son of an inconsequential nobleman. A greater trag- work apart. So began the Dawn War, a struggle so ioned in secret an abomination of unquenchable
edy, surely? long and vast that no mortal can truly grasp its scope. hunger. Imix the Fire Lord infused the tarrasque with
In the years that I have walked this earth, the The primordials could not conceive of defeat. burning internal heat and murderous energy. Cryo-
Great Beast has emerged three times. The first time, Foolishly, they fought against one another as often nax the Bringer of Endless Winter and Ogrémoch
to destroy all that I once held dear; the second and as against the gods and the angelic armies of their the Stone Tyrant gave it immortal endurance. Olhy-
third, to enlighten me. In my work, I have delved dan- enemies. Though the gods were outnumbered, they dra the Mistress of the Black Tide and Yan-C-Bin the
gerous ruins, consulted with mystic sages, and spoken worked in concert and with ordered determination. Great Cloud inspired the creature’s inexorable wrath.
at length with the dead. My quest for knowledge of The Dawn War finally ended with the defeat of the There is evidence that at least two Elemental Princes
the Great Beast has set me upon fey pathways and the primordials. Most were slain, imprisoned, or forced did not survive this creation process—a force of acid
roads between the planes. into dormancy so they could no longer threaten the and a creature of bone and blade—but their names
Now I am much too old. I have learned many stability of the world. have been lost.
things. And so I impart this warning to you: Accept During the struggle, some primordials were more The archomentals then seeded the newborn tar-
the inevitable when the Great Beast returns for the prudent than most. These forward-thinking entities rasque into the still-young natural world, leaving it to
last time. temporarily set aside their differences with one incubate for centuries in the elemental core. One day,
another for the sake of survival. The most powerful it would awaken, once more to unleash the primordi-
Dawn of the Beast were the self-styled Elemental Princes, called by
some the archomentals, who formed an alliance.
als’ wrath and tear apart the works of the gods.
The primordials intended that their volatile pet
No fewer than a dozen sages I spoke with ascribed Together they sought to unleash a being known as would be a being so mighty, so intelligently mali-
the tarrasque’s existence to fell rituals and the dark, the Elder Elemental Eye, who they believed was cious, that it would pluck dragons from the sky and
“miscast” magics of mortal wizards. Such claims are the first and most powerful of their kind. The gods summon exarchs from the heavens to feast upon. Yet
vague, lazy hand-waving of dubious scholarship. To ultimately foiled their plans; the Eye remained in its their work was necessarily imperfect, tainted with
understand the origin of the tarrasque, one must look the same mindless rage that roiled inside its makers;

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 History Check: The Tarrasque

longer-limbed and much bulkier. Wingless, horned, have you heard of either of them? No, because none
and armored in “a shell like melted diamond,” the survived to keep those names alive. The Great Beast
HISTORY CHECK creature possessed a deafening roar and devastatingly does not discriminate between good and evil, law or
A character who makes a DC 15 Arcana check massive tail. Ponderous, yet capable of surprising chaos, dark or light. Despite the nature of its makers,
knows that the tarrasque is purported to be a bursts of speed, the creature shrugged off spells and the tarrasque is not a force of evil. It favors warm
tremendous beast that appears from time to slew every knight and summoned monster in its path. flesh, but if something is consumable—a broad term
time and ravages the world around it. A DC 25 Most who beheld the Great Beast were transfixed in indeed—it can and will be consumed. Elf, demon,
Arcana check will reveal that the tarrasque is horror, a sensation with which I am intimately famil- human, giant, illithid, halfling, sapling, catapult: all
an abomination formed by the primordials as iar—too overwhelmed by its presence to even flee. All food for the tarrasque.
a weapon against the gods, that it sleeps in the things within its reach were devoured or destroyed:
core of the world and only seldom rises. A DC people, horses, wagons, siege weaponry. It was the
ghostly voices in the speaking-gem who named the
C ycle of Chaos
30 check reveals the tarrasque’s bond with the
creature “tarrasque.” The term is derived from an No doubt you have wondered: If the tarrasque cannot
world itself, its near-indestructible nature, and
elvish word meaning “unstoppable.” The old, broader be slain, why are we still here at all? Why hasn’t
just about everything the narrator postulates in
meaning has long since fallen out of use, and the everyone seen it? Why, in some realms, does no one
this article.
word now has only one association. even believe in it?
Miraculously, Aeritueur did not fall to the Great Because the tarrasque is not tireless. On each
Beast’s hunger as its neighboring realms had—else occasion when it disappears, the Great Beast’s weak-
there would be no records of this first emergence. The ness—time itself—is revealed, though few possess the
the primordials were not the gods, after all. And so
creature abruptly stopped just before setting upon the frame of reference to understand it. The tarrasque
with the gods almost upon them, the archomentals
kingdom, then sank smoothly into the nearby moun- is an engine of destruction and elemental energy
concluded their work, their power nearly spent, their
tainside like a xorn passing through solid rock. It was sheathed in worldly flesh. It is therefore subject to
living weapon prematurely abandoned and thus
never heard from again during Aeritueur’s history. worldly limitations. It is powered by the magic of the
malformed.
I have studied evidence from other old civiliza- primordials, but even fire must have fuel. Everything
the tarrasque consumes is broken down and con-
E arly A ssaults tions across the known realms that knew of the
Great Beast’s passage. Primitive paintings on cave verted into potential energy—energy that the beast
For centuries the tarrasque remained dormant. The walls, glyphs etched into desert tombs, and sculp- cannot call upon until after it slumbers for some
archomentals had ceased to be concerned about their tures perched upon crumbled temple walls depicted period of time.
secret project. They had fallen to fighting one another an unkillable, wingless monster that rose from the This cycle of sleeping and waking is erratic. In
again, only occasionally halting to advance their earth and devoured everything around it. None of older accounts, the tarrasque slept for two years at
collective agenda for the Elder Elemental Eye. Mean- these accounts confused the beast for any sort of a time, then rampaged for only a few days before
while, in the natural world, mortals and immortals dragon. Feared as they are, dragons are nothing like disappearing again. Sometimes it would become
alike remained unaware of the danger germinating the tarrasque—even the vilest of wyrms can be rea- more active, staying awake for months, chewing up
beneath them. soned with. whole swaths of a continent with no sign of stopping,
Then one day it finally awoke. A long-ago kingdom I once explored the ruin of a drow city, all but for- then sink into the earth again and slumber for more
named Aeritueur was the first to speak in definite gotten by Lolth’s faithful, that had suffered the fury than a decade.
terms of the tarrasque’s rampage. As chronicled of the tarrasque. The human realm of Irentia and the When the tarrasque emerges from its subter-
by eladrin magic in a malachite “speaking-gem,” demon-worshiping gnoll tribes of Gajraharr were also ranean slumber, it does so almost anywhere. Most
the loremasters of Aeritueur described a colos- both obliterated. The former was a champion of righ- reports of the beast stem from wilderness areas
sal beast superficially resembling a behemoth but teous gods, the latter a blight upon all free races. But because densely populated areas suffer the most
casualties. Therein lies the difficulty in studying the

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 History Check: The Tarrasque

E yewitness to I have heard apocryphal tales of the tarrasque’s

death. In every such account, it is said the corpse
FOR DMS: NATURE OF Destruction could not be salvaged because it sank quickly into
the ground, reclaimed by the earth. In truth, the
THE BEAST Many have tried to slay the tarrasque. Of course they creature’s “death” is merely a premature descent into
Is the narrator correct about all this tarrasque have. Felling dragons, while exceptionally difficult, its elemental torpor—an involuntary reaction that
lore? He certainly seems to thinks so. He has can earn you wealth and fame. Slaying demons and removes it from the threat of further injury, and the
put in more hours researching it than any other defeating devils has a strong appeal for the boldest start of another period of slumber.
being he knows of. And according to the Arcana of heroes. But the tarrasque—the ultimate killing Some tales have reached my ears of the tarrasque
check listing on page 13 of the Monster Manual, machine, eater of kings and kingdoms—is the greatest slumbering in shallow places, later to be disturbed by
he’s on the mark. catch of them all. Can you imagine the glory? a dwarf miner’s pick or roused by Underdark explor-
But he doesn’t have to be right. As DM, you’re I did, once, the second time I faced the tarrasque. ers. In each case, the Great Beast either devoured the
the final arbiter of your game. The tarrasque I was hale and full of vengeance. But instead of intruder or else merely stirred and fled deeper, not
can be whatever you want it to be. The original taking part in the frontal assault, I watched from yet desirous of waking in full.
Advanced Dungeons & Dragons Monster Manual 2 a distance, casting protective spells and conjuring
entry said nothing of its origin, while most sub-
sequent materials blamed the Elemental Princes
defenses for my allies. Despite my efforts, and theirs,
the tarrasque tore through them all. My betrothed
O ther Facets
of Evil (the archomentals) for the tarrasque. The was among them, a paladin as courageous and true- of the Beast
iconic D&D beastie is loosely based on the real- hearted as any exarch, devoted to her deity in every
world myth of the Tarasque, a turtle-shelled way. She faced the Great Beast armed with a foot- Not all who believe in the tarrasque’s existence fear
French dragon that was charmed by a saintly man’s lance, but she did not wield it. Instead, she the creature. Some people revel in the destruction it
woman and was slain, like King Kong, due to its sought to calm it with hymns, to halt it long enough unleashes. Numerous cults devoted to the Great Beast
weakness for beauty. In your game, maybe the for our companions to pierce it with powerful weap- have risen from the ashes of its rampages—and then
Great Beast can have a similar soft spot. ons. For her trouble, she was bitten in two, then faded away as quickly, their “god” silent for too long to
It’s your campaign. If you want the tarrasque swallowed. Hers was not a hero’s death. Not worthy of sustain mortal interest in their cause. Those cultists
swimming around the Astral Sea, chomping on a bard’s song. It was hideous, and it was swift. that survive through the full span of the tarrasque’s
gods and angels, go for it. If you want it rampag- I alone survived. Again. Devastated, I sank further slumber are usually eaten when they finally meet
ing like Godzilla through a city and fighting other into my studies and began to enlist other monster their monstrous benefactor.
colossal monsters, do it! If you want it to be con- slayers to quest against it. Of all the cults I have observed, none have thrived
trolled by powers of good or evil, why not? The next time I encountered the Great Beast was more than the Reckoners, founded three centuries
when it emerged from a glacier thirty-three years ago by a deva who was himself slain by the Great
later in the frozen north. The small army I com- Beast and rose again. While I shake my head at the
manded nearly succeeded, piercing it with enchanted Reckoners’ mad vision, I admire their talents. They
tarrasque and its long history. There are rarely any blades seemingly faster than it could dispose of them, have found ways to harness the negative energy that
survivors. From small hovels to whole nations, where but in the end it trampled and devoured them all. flows in the tarrasque’s wake and have wrought
the tarrasque treads, precious little endures. Hence, Even the red dragon I rode failed to do lasting harm. atrocities almost as great.
even descriptions of the Great Beast are the stuff of When I brought my mount close, the wyrm’s power of The tarrasque has also factored into the history of
legend. Few exist who have spied it directly. I am flight failed it—a vestige, perhaps, of Yan-C-Bin’s mas- powerful artifacts. Due to the elemental acid and fire
one of these. tery of air. Unseated, I fumbled with my own magics. that churn in its stomach, it is capable of dissolving
The tarrasque rushed at me, and only a wisely pre- anything, even otherwise indestructible objects. It is
pared teleportation spell saved me. written that the Fang of Baator, the Ebon Band, and

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 History Check: The Tarrasque

the Talisman of Ahrjez were once devices of notoriety

that were unmade by the tarrasque’s guts. In theory,
one could destroy the infamous Demonomicon or the ONE TARRASQUE, MANY POSSIBILITIES
Hand of Vecna if one were willing to be eaten while There are lots of ways to use the tarrasque in a cam- slumbering tarrasque so that when it next awakens, it
holding such an item. paign, and not all of them have to be about slaying the won’t need to rest again so soon. A tarrasque rampag-
Interestingly, but not surprising given its nature, Great Beast when it wakes up. Here are a few ideas. ing for a year or more could really mangle the gods’
denizens of the other planes have little to fear from Cult Clash: Plenty of people might have a reason worldly efforts. Stopping this elemental scheme could
the Great Beast. The Feywild, the Shadowfell, the to try to use the tarrasque. Most have no idea how to be a paragon or epic tier event.
Astral Sea, even the Elemental Chaos itself—these find it or wake it, but an evil cult—like the Reckoners Artifact of the Matter: The heroes have come
places have never known the dread presence of the (see “The End Is Nigh!” in this issue)—believes it has into possession of an artifact of great evil that must
tarrasque because it cannot, or will not, leave the discovered a way to choose the place of the beast’s be destroyed—but they don’t know how to accom-
mortal world. It is bound here, as the primordi- emergence. Battling such a cult could easily be a mul- plish that. It’s been suggested to them that feeding
als ensured it would be when the world was young. tistage adventure during the heroic tier. it to the tarrasque could do the trick, and the Great
Accordingly, the Great Beast is as indestructible and Vengeful Druid: Some druids are more militant Beast has even been located slumbering in the shal-
inexorable as the earth itself. Yet I have uncovered than others. One in particular has become convinced low Underdark. Can they reach the tarrasque and stir
convincing evidence that the tarrasque could be slain that the Great Beast is an expression of nature, cre- it just enough to get it to swallow the artifact without
if it was removed from the mortal world—not the least ated by the world to punish the depredations of waking it? The risk is great and certainly suitable for
of which are various reports that the creature shies civilization. She intends to rouse the Great Beast with paragon or epic tier characters.
away from planar portals. a ritual and command it to attack the tyrannical city Unchained Eye: This article suggests that
beyond her forest. It hasn’t entered her overzealous Tharizdun, in the guise of the Elder Elemental Eye,
To What E nd? mind that the tarrasque’s first feast will be her forest might have had something to do with the tarrasque’s
and all its inhabitants. Dissuading the druid from this creation. If so, perhaps the tarrasque’s steadily
The tarrasque’s full story is doubtless much too long,
course of action is a task for heroic tier adventurers. increasing power is a lead-up to the apocalypse that
and beyond our scope to observe, to be properly
Elemental Uprising: The Elemental Chaos is full will allow the Chained God to break free from his
recorded—not to mention too filled with contra-
of god-hating beings who would be happy to see the divine prison. Once the tarrasque no longer needs
dictions. In my opinion, many of the paradoxes in
mortal world broken up into its baser components to sleep, the destruction it will bring down upon the
reports about the beast stem from its adaptability.
again. Chapter 2 of The Plane Below: Secrets of the natural world will require the concerted resistance
Yes, the tarrasque is changing. It seemingly has
Elemental Chaos is a rogues’ gallery of angry elemental of many divine agents as well as the aid of epic tier
grown steadily more powerful through the ages; per-
beings. Maybe they’re taking cues from the Elemen- adventurers. What better distraction to serve as a
haps it has even grown larger. In ancient times, the
tal Princes and have found a way to power up the prelude to Tharizdun’s jailbreak?
Great Beast slept for years and woke for days. Now it
sleeps for decades and wakes for . . . much too long.
The next time it rises—will it ever sleep again? A new
era may soon be upon us, and it is not a pleasant one world can stop it. I am done trying. Perhaps there is About the Author
wisdom in the madness of the Reckoners. Jeff LaSala is a writer/editor of speculative fiction and an
to contemplate.
These words are my final warning. I myself will inquisitory game designer. He has written an Eberron ®
This, of course, is merely the account of one. I have novel, a slew of DDI articles, and some RPG books for Good-
postulated many theories and attempted to chronicle soon be gone. Through my studies, I have deduced
man Games, and recently edited and co-wrote the cyberpunk
the tarrasque’s course, but no divinity or elemental what I believe is the site of the tarrasque’s final emer- anthology + soundtrack, Foreshadows: The Ghosts of Zero.
being has confirmed my work or dissuaded me. The gence. I go there now, and will wait patiently. It may Dwelling in the chthonic depths of New York City, he imag-
tarrasque is as old as the world, and nothing in the be years, it may be days. I will kneel before its fury ines a world splintered into sorry hemispheres.
and its majesty, and I will submit.

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The End Is Nigh!
Followers of the Tarrasque
By Dennis Johnson
Illustration by Craig J Spearing

Our master’s rage tears at my chest. My mouth moistens at beast’s destructive impulses, the Reckoners murder
the sight of the towers. The tarrasque’s will is clear: the city and destroy as they await the tarrasque’s next awak-
must fall! And we Reckoners shall deliver its judgment! ening, when they shall revel in its rampage until the
tarrasque consumes them, too.
Death. Pain. Helplessness. Inevitability. To the people The connection between the tarrasque and the
of the world, hiding in scattered points of light amid Reckoners is not well understood by those outside
a sea of darkness, these are facts of life symbolized the cult. Its leaders speak of hearing the tarrasque’s
by the unstoppable destructive power of the tar- heartbeat through the earth, of seeing its destruction
rasque. Not a distant dark god or an unknowable Far in their dreams, and, most commonly, of feeling its
Realm horror, the tarrasque is a monster of the world insatiable hunger. Although the tarrasque has never
that reminds everyone of life’s simple truth: The end displayed any magical abilities that could explain
comes to all things, and it rarely comes peacefully. these sensations, divinations have detected the resi-
Any heroes who defy this truth face the daunting due of shadow energy at the sites of tarrasque attacks.
prospect of battling not only the tarrasque, but also Scholars believe this energy is not directly created by
those who serve it. Many misguided souls bow to the the tarrasque, but is rather a by-product of the deaths
tarrasque’s might, while an unlucky few are driven the monster causes. When an unlucky few living on
mad by exposure to the dark energy lingering in the these blighted lands absorb this energy, they develop
abomination’s wake. These cultists deliver death in the tarrasque’s penchant for destruction and become
the tarrasque’s name while it sleeps, and pitch in to obsessed with serving the monster. Other Reckoners
create truly epic carnage when it wakes. recognize this corruption when they see it and bring
the newly cursed into the fold.
T he Cult of the Reckoners directly linked to the tarrasque are a
minority; most have simply embraced the cult’s per-
Tarrasque verse interpretation of the tarrasque. The cult asserts
that the tarrasque is not an abomination, but a primal
Worship of the tarrasque is common following one of spirit of justice and punishment. The tarrasque’s
the monster’s attacks, but quickly fades as the crea- task is to cleanse the earth of those whose cruelty
ture sleeps again and fear of its power fades. The only or selfishness makes them unworthy of the spirits’
enduring cult of the tarrasque, called the Reckoners, gift. Those who serve the tarrasque and act as it does
persists because its leaders are continually inspired might be spared its wrath; those who support the
by a connection to the tarrasque. Corrupted by the

TM & © 2012 Wizards of the Coast LLC. All rights reserved. D e c e m b e r 2 012 | D R AG O N 4 18
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 The End Is Nigh!

corrupt societies that the tarrasque hates deserve the

same deaths as their rulers.
more powerful “connected” Reckoners, who are so
close to complete madness that they rarely interact
Heroic Tier
directly with other cultists. The greatest of these, and F Disciples of Erathis are seeking a firsthand
account of the last days of a lost civilization.
The Reckoners the ultimate leader of the Reckoners, is still Thaeras,
who has avoided death and reincarnation to remain a Equipped with scrolls of Speak with Dead, the
Goal: To kill on as large a scale as possible, carry- deva fallen star. party travels to the civilization’s ruins and finds
ing out the tarrasque’s work until it awakens. Structure: Reckoners live in small groups hidden a group of Reckoners in the company of a legion
Stated Goal: To honor the tarrasque, destroyer from outside authorities, blindly following their local of half-shattered skeletal warriors. The cult has
of corruption, and to spread such destruction wher- cult leaders. These demagogues communicate “the raised these tarrasque victims—the “blessed of
ever possible. tarrasque’s will” and control most aspects of Reckon- the beast”—to honor the civilization’s destroyer.
Size: Thousands of Reckoners are spread through- ers’ lives. Farvel uses the local leaders to coordinate With too many potential enemies to simply attack,
out the world; hundreds of them are psychically efforts at the direction of his bosses, enabling the cult the adventurers must find a way to deal with the
connected to the tarrasque. to act on a global scale. The hunger for power and Reckoners and get the information they need from
Alignment: Evil; though the tarrasque kills on death that the Reckoners’ leaders share makes them the undead.
instinct and is unaligned, the malign energy cor- see the merits of each other’s plans and tends to limit F All of a village’s residents suffer from terrible
rupting some Reckoners twists their morality, and factionalism. nightmares in which they are devoured by the
their followers kill innocents with questionable Activities: Reckoners build magical shrines tarrasque. Reckoners are tainting the townsfolk’s
justification. to the tarrasque in areas it has struck, concentrat- dreams with the shadow energy that corrupts the
Philosophy: Most Reckoners believe that the ing the shadow energy found there and corrupting cultists. The adventurers must discover the cult
indiscriminate destruction of the tarrasque, who nearby residents. The shrines preach their apocalyp- and break its curse, before they succumb to the
rises from the earth to crush entire civilizations, is tic philosophy to the weak and fearful and build the same fate.
proof that society is inherently unnatural and evil. Reckoners’ numbers across the world. Where they
Reckoners connected to the tarrasque require no F Reckoners have infected a beneficent king with
have amassed sufficient strength, Reckoners use the hunger of the tarrasque, turning him into an
such philosophy; the beast’s insatiable hunger makes magic and subterfuge to enact grandiose schemes
destruction an end in itself. aggressive despot who antagonizes his neighbors.
to bring down civilization; while they are not above His ministers worry, but he refuses to be exam-
History: This first enduring tarrasque cult was random, isolated murders to sate their bloodlust, they
created around three hundred years ago by a deva ined by doctors or mages. The party is hired to
prefer to follow the tarrasque’s example and cause infiltrate his court, discover what has caused the
named Thaeras. Killed by the tarrasque and reborn destruction on a wide scale.
in the wasteland it created, Thaeras was corrupted change, and stop his descent into madness before
he pushes the kingdom into war.
by lingering shadow energy, but memories of his past
lifetimes left him with enough sanity to think ratio- A dventure Hooks
nally. Thaeras learned to control the energy left in the Just because the tarrasque is a level 30 monster that Paragon Tier
tarrasque’s wake and infect others with his functional will probably sleep through most of an adventurer’s F Oracles foresee that the tarrasque will destroy a
madness. Linked together by their common bond to career doesn’t mean that it cannot play a major role heavily populated area in a matter of days. Tasked
the tarrasque, these founding Reckoners began con- in a campaign. The adventure ideas below are a few with finding a way to quickly evacuate the region,
verting frightened people and bringing death in the examples of how the tarrasque can make an impres- the characters discover a large, inactive portal
beast’s name. sion in every tier. to another plane. The party must investigate the
Leadership: Common Reckoners currently follow
portal, arrange safe passage with the forces on the
a human wizard named Loman Farvel, who uses ritu-
other side, and convince the panicked people to
als to command local cult leaders across the world.
step into the unknown.
Most of Farvel’s schemes are dictated to him by the

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F Refugees from a warring kingdom describe mass

sacrifices of citizens in the tarrasque’s name. Reck-
Monster T heme: Rending Jaws
oners have convinced the embattled queen that if R eckoner The Reckoner’s mouth opens beyond its natural size,
and ghostly fangs, capable of biting through metal
they sacrifice enough “criminals” to the tarrasque,
The most gifted Reckoners respond not only to the and bone, appear. This ability helps brutes and others
it will arise and devour her enemies. With the
energy linking them to the tarrasque, but harness it cope with well-armored defenders.
cultists gaining dark magic from each sacrifice,
the party must convince the queen to stop the kill- for themselves. Nearly any intelligent creature could
be such a cultist, and powerful rituals could infuse Triggered Actions
ings, end the military threat that prompted them, Rending Jaws F Encounter
or remove her from power. unintelligent creatures with this ability. Giving a Trigger: An enemy is hit by the Reckoner’s melee attack.
monster one or more of the powers provided below Effect (Free Action): The triggering enemy takes 5 extra
F Cyclopses have redirected a vital river from the
can show its connection to the tarrasque by echoing damage, and until the end of the Reckoner’s next turn, a
surface to the Underdark. Investigating characters
the abomination’s abilities. –5 penalty to AC.
find that the river is now flowing into a portal to Level 11: 10 extra damage.
Reckoners in the heroic tier might not be visually
the Feydark. A fomorian lord is gathering elements Level 21: 15 extra damage.
distinctive, except perhaps by wearing horns or a coat
of the natural world and working with the Reck-
resembling a carapace. At the paragon and epic tiers,
oners to create a fey tarrasque. Whether through
brute force, sabotage, or finding a way to break the
more prolonged exposure to the tarrasque’s shadowy Scion of Annihilation
leavings transforms cultists’ bodies to mimic the tar- A wave of unnatural fear washes over the battlefield
alliance with the Reckoners, the party must put a
rasque: Teeth grow into fangs, skin hardens almost as the Reckoner infuses its attacks with the unstop-
stop to the fomorian’s work.
into scales, or sharp horns protrude from the head. pable power of the tarrasque.

Epic Tier Abomination’s Frenzy Minor Actions

F Miners have discovered the resting place of the Scion of Annihilation F Recharge 5 6
Screaming louder than naturally possible, the Reck- Effect: Damage from the Reckoner’s attacks cannot be
tarrasque, deep within the Underdark, guarded oner lashes out with unexpected speed. Monsters reduced in any way until the start of its next turn.
by a powerful group of Reckoners. Mind flayers, with reach benefit most from this ability.
drow, and an ancient purple dragon are among
the forces racing to attempt to gain control of the Standard Actions T he Tarrasque’s
tarrasque. The party must get to the site first and
either help the cultists hold off their enemies or
M Abomination’s Frenzy F Encounter
Effect: The Reckoner makes a melee basic attack against
R etainers
find a way to destroy the dormant tarrasque, and each enemy within its reach.
When the tarrasque wakes, it eats anyone present,
accomplish either without waking the monster. the first of many victims. The surviving Reckoners,
F The party learns that a powerful item that they Furious Tail their shadow energy enhanced in the presence of
need was swallowed by the tarrasque long ago. With a sweep of the Reckoner’s hand, a ghostly their master, follow the tarrasque into battle.
They travel to the Barrens in the Abyss, where tail slaps down a nearby enemy. This power helps
lie the ruins of every civilization that ever was or
ever will be. The party must find the last city that
artillery and controller monsters keep targets at Lore
a distance. History DC 32: As the tarrasque approached
will ever be destroyed by the tarrasque, where
a great city, several humanoids were seen running
the abomination’s undead body still hunts, and Minor Actions
M Furious Tail F Recharge 5 6
ahead of it. The pity of the city’s defenders turned
retrieve the artifact lodged in its shriveled gullet.
Attack: Melee 3 (one creature); level + 3 vs. Fortitude to horror when they saw that these cultists were not
Effect: The Reckoner pushes the target up to 4 squares, and fleeing, but leading the monster to the city. Shining
the target falls prone. champions blessed by Bahamut rode out and engaged

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 The End Is Nigh!

the tarrasque. They realized too late that the cultists

were magically weakening them. The cultists danced
Tarrasque Reckoners T he Tarrasque
on the champions’ corpses as the tarrasque smashed in Combat Long ago, the primordials created the tarrasque as a
through the city walls and the massacre began. Reckoners stay at the edge of combat, singing their living engine of destruction whose only purpose was
master’s praises and shouting curses at their ene- to obliterate the works of the gods. Drawn forth from
Encounters mies. They might seem harmless until heroes feel
the results of their magic. Each cultist falls quickly if
the core of the earth, the legendary beast stirs only
to rampage across the world’s face, leaving ruin and
Proximity to the tarrasque transforms the Reckon- attacked, but a brief incantation from another lets it despair in its wake.
ers’ shadow energy to complement the monster’s rise from death.
abilities; these cultists are encountered only with About the Author
the tarrasque. They follow the abomination until it Dennis Johnson is a first-time game writer but long-time
returns to slumber in the earth, when their abilities plot weaver. Even from his new lair in the Hudson Valley he
return to normal but their obsession becomes stron- still schemes against his former and future players in Ohio.
ger than ever.

Tarrasque Reckoner Level 30 Minion Controller Tarrasque Level 30 Solo Brute m Tail Slap F At-Will
Medium shadow humanoid XP 4,750 Gargantuan elemental magical beast XP 95,000 Attack: Melee 3 (one creature); +33 vs. Reflex
HP 1; a missed attack never damages a minion.Initiative +19 HP 1,140; Bloodied 570 Initiative +23 Hit: 3d10 + 31 damage, and the tarrasque pushes the
AC 44, Fortitude 42, Reflex 42, Will 43 Perception +17 AC 42, Fortitude 44, Reflex 41, Will 40 Perception +19 target up to 4 squares.
Speed 6 Speed 8, burrow 8, climb 8 Blindsight 40 M Trample F At-Will
Standard Action Resist 10 to all damage Requirement: The tarrasque must not be bloodied.
r Annihilator’s Curse F At-Will Saving Throws +5; Action Points 2 Effect: The tarrasque moves up to its speed and can move
Attack: Ranged 10 (one creature); +33 vs. Will Traits through enemies’ spaces during the move. Each time
Hit: 5 damage, and the target gains vulnerable 10 to all O Earthbinding F Aura 40 the tarrasque enters an enemy’s space for the first time
damage (save ends). Flying creatures are slowed and have a altitude limit of 4 in during the move, it makes the following attack a against
Minor Action the aura. Any creature that enters the aura above the alti- that enemy.
R Stir Again (healing) F Encounter tude limit is pulled down to the limit. Attack: Melee 0 (one creature); +33 vs. Reflex
Effect: Ranged 10 (one Reckoner that died in this encoun- Immutable Hit: 5d12 + 16 damage, and the target falls prone.
ter); the target is restored to life, regains 1 hit point, and The tarrasque cannot be dazed, deafened, dominated, C Frenzy F At-Will
stands up as a free action. immobilized, knocked prone, petrified, restrained, slowed, Requirement: The tarrasque must be bloodied.
Skills Arcana +22 stunned, knocked unconscious, or weakened. Effect: Close burst 3 (creatures in the burst); the tarrasque
Str 12 (+16) Dex 18 (+19) Wis 15 (+17) Elder of Annihilation uses bite or tail slap against each target, and any target hit
Con 20 (+20) Int 14 (+17) Cha 22 (+21) Damage from the tarrasque’s attacks cannot be reduced in by such an attack takes 10 extra damage.
Alignment evil Languages Common any way. Triggered Actions
Eternal Slumber M Fury of the Tarrasque F At-Will
When the tarrasque drops to 0 hit points, it sinks back into Trigger: The tarrasque takes damage.
the world’s core and slumbers once again. Effect (Immediate Reaction): The tarrasque makes two
Standard Actions melee basic attacks.
m Bite F At-Will Str 42 (+31) Dex 26 (+23) Wis 18 (+19)
Attack: Melee 3 (one creature); +35 vs. AC Con 37 (+28) Int 3 (+11) Cha 7 (+13)
Hit: 3d10 + 31 damage, and the target falls prone. Alignment unaligned Languages —

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