Ramenos
Encyclopedia
In many campaign setting
s for the Dungeons & Dragons
fantasy
role-playing game
, Ramenos is the bullywug
deity of somnolence, intoxication, and decay.
(1992), including details about his priesthood.
, who also has large numbers of bullywug followers, is unknown, but Ramenos scarcely cares for anything. He is related to the yuan-ti
deity Merrshaulk
, with whom he shares a layer of the Abyss, in the sense that they are both aspects of the primal World Serpent archetype.
A former consort of Ramenos is Urae-Naas, a slaad
lord who rules the Phage Breeding Grounds on the Abyss
. She appears as a bloated slaad, too obese to use her legs.
. There, demons push sacrifices into the frog-god's open mouth.
Bullywug clerics have a 50% chance of summoning more monsters than usual, but there is a 25% chance that these monsters will not be under their control. They are more limited than most clerics, being able to cast only summon spells, inflict spells, and their domain spells.
Since then, Ramenos has fallen into dreams and periods of prolonged intoxication. He seems to be undergoing a long process of self-extinction.
Campaign setting
A campaign setting is usually a fictional world which serves as a setting for a role-playing game or wargame campaign. A campaign is a series of individual adventures, and a campaign setting is the world in which such adventures and campaigns take place...
s for the Dungeons & Dragons
Dungeons & Dragons
Dungeons & Dragons is a fantasy role-playing game originally designed by Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson, and first published in 1974 by Tactical Studies Rules, Inc. . The game has been published by Wizards of the Coast since 1997...
fantasy
Fantasy
Fantasy is a genre of fiction that commonly uses magic and other supernatural phenomena as a primary element of plot, theme, or setting. Many works within the genre take place in imaginary worlds where magic is common...
role-playing game
Role-playing game
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 or character development...
, Ramenos is the bullywug
Bullywug
In the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy roleplaying game, the bullywug is a type of fictional monster for player characters to encounter. The bullywugs are portrayed as a violent race of marsh-dwelling frog-like humanoids. The bullywug was introduced in the first edition Advanced Dungeons & Dragons...
deity of somnolence, intoxication, and decay.
Publication history
Ramenos was first detailed in the book Monster MythologyMonster Mythology
Monster Mythology is a sourcebook for the second edition of the Dungeons & Dragons roleplaying game. Released by TSR in 1992 and written by Carl Sargent, with interior illustrations by Terry Dykstra, John and Laura Lakey, and Keith Parkinson, Monster Mythology was released as a companion volume for...
(1992), including details about his priesthood.
Description
Once active and strong, Ramenos now slumbers most of the time, barely able to sustain attention to his own fate. He takes the form of an enormous, bloated frog with a maw vast even for one of his kind.Relationships
Ramenos's relationship with the human demigod WastriWastri
In the World of Greyhawk campaign setting for the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game, Wastri is the Suloise god of Amphibians, Bigotry, and Self-Deception...
, who also has large numbers of bullywug followers, is unknown, but Ramenos scarcely cares for anything. He is related to the yuan-ti
Yuan-ti
The yuan-ti are a fictional species of evil snakemen in the role-playing game Dungeons & Dragons. The species comprises a number of castes. In some campaign settings, the yuan-ti are descended from evil human cultists who mixed their bloodlines with those of serpents...
deity Merrshaulk
Merrshaulk
In the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy roleplaying game, Merrshaulk is the yuan-ti deity of poison and somnolence. "Merrshaulk" is likely a dwarven rendering of his name; the yuan-ti pronounce the name more like "Mi-Shao-Shur," although they view it as too holy to pronounce around outsiders...
, with whom he shares a layer of the Abyss, in the sense that they are both aspects of the primal World Serpent archetype.
A former consort of Ramenos is Urae-Naas, a slaad
Slaad
In the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game, slaad are a fictional race of Outsiders that resemble giant humanoid toads of various colors.-Development and licensing:...
lord who rules the Phage Breeding Grounds on the Abyss
Abyss (Dungeons & Dragons)
In the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, the Abyss or more fully, the Infinite Layers of the Abyss, is a chaotic evil-aligned plane of existence. It is one of a number of alignment-based Outer Planes that form part of the standard Dungeons & Dragons cosmology, used in the Planescape...
. She appears as a bloated slaad, too obese to use her legs.
Realm
Ramenos shares his slumbering realm of Smaragd on the 74th layer of the Abyss with the yuan-ti god MerrshaulkMerrshaulk
In the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy roleplaying game, Merrshaulk is the yuan-ti deity of poison and somnolence. "Merrshaulk" is likely a dwarven rendering of his name; the yuan-ti pronounce the name more like "Mi-Shao-Shur," although they view it as too holy to pronounce around outsiders...
. There, demons push sacrifices into the frog-god's open mouth.
Clergy
Bullywug shamans are weak among their people. They act as advisors to tribal leaders (who they are often related to), and are religiously bound to get intoxicated with various plant alkaloids regularly.Bullywug clerics have a 50% chance of summoning more monsters than usual, but there is a 25% chance that these monsters will not be under their control. They are more limited than most clerics, being able to cast only summon spells, inflict spells, and their domain spells.
Rituals
With the proper rites performed at one of Ramenos' ancient, ruined temples, his avatar can still be called forth. Otherwise, he will not bother.Myths and legends
Bullywugs have only the most primitive creation myths, and they have no stories of Ramenos playing a role in them.History
In the dim epochs of the past, Ramenos was worshiped by a now-extinct race of froglike humanoids, of whom bullywugs are among the few, degenerate descendents. Deep within the jungles, plateaus, and swamps to the south, evidence of his old glory can still be seen in the form of ruined temples with enormous stone statues of the god, their mouths still open to receive sacrifices.Since then, Ramenos has fallen into dreams and periods of prolonged intoxication. He seems to be undergoing a long process of self-extinction.
Additional reading
- Greenwood, EdEd GreenwoodEd Greenwood is a Canadian writer and editor who created the Forgotten Realms. He invented the Forgotten Realms as a child, as a fantasy world in which to set the stories he imagined, and later used this world as a campaign setting for his own personal Dungeons & Dragons playing group...
, Eric L. Boyd, and Darrin Drader. Serpent Kingdoms. Renton, WA: Wizards of the Coast, 2004. - Smith, Lester W, and Wolfgang BaurWolfgang BaurWolfgang Baur is an American game designer, best known for his work with Dragon magazine. He designs role-playing games and also is known for his work at Wizards of the Coast.-Biography:...
. Planes of ChaosPlanes of ChaosPlanes of Chaos was a boxed set for the Planescape campaign setting of the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game.-Contents:Planes of Chaos is an expansion set for the Planescape campaign setting which details the five chaotic Outer Planes: Arborea, Ysgard, Limbo, Pandemonium, and the Abyss...
. Lake Geneva, WI: TSR, 1994. - Wyatt, JamesJames Wyatt (game designer)James Wyatt is a game designer and a former United Methodist minister. He works for Wizards of the Coast, where he has designed several award-winning supplements and adventures for the Dungeons & Dragons roleplaying game...
, and Rob HeinsooRob HeinsooRob Heinsoo is an American tabletop game designer. He has been designing and contributing to professional roleplaying games, card games, and board games since 1994. He has also designed and contributed to miniatures games and a computer game.-Career:...
. Monsters of Faerûn. Renton, WA: Wizards of the Coast, 2001.