Lamashtu

**Lamashtu** (pronounced lah-MAHSH-too) is the mother and patroness of many misshapen and malformed creatures that crawl, slither, or flap on, above, or below the surface of Other World Her unholy symbol is a three-eyed jackal head, which may be represented in many ways, and her sacred animal is the jackal.

## Appearance

Pictures of Lamashtu portray her as a jackal-headed woman, with a
third vertical eye in the center of her forehead, heavily pregnant, with
 feathered wings (like a raven's), a snake's tail, and taloned feet like a vulture's). She is often depicted carrying her two deadly blades, Redlust and Chillheart: the former is of fire, the latter of ice. The blades may grow and shrink from the size of a falchion to that of a kukri. Her head may vary depending on the nature of her worshipers: gnolls preferring the jackal head, medusas a snake's, harpies a hawk's, and so on. She is often depicted surrounded by countless adherents, with a single individual rising above the rest.

## Realm

Lamashtu's realm is Kurnugia, the largest layer of the Abyss.

## Providence

Lamashtu's favor manifests as violent dreams, the appearance of
sudden deformities, or unexplained pregnancies that often result in the
painful (and sometimes fatal) birth of a deformed child. Worshipers who
displease her may give birth to a "perfect" child, such as a human or halfling, nightmares, or welts. They may also find themselves infertile or unable to achieve sexual satisfaction.

## Servants

Yaenit.

Lamashtu and her deranged faithful hold creatures of deformity, monstrosity, and virility in high regard. Thaumaturges and clerics in her service often call shemhazian demons and other Abyssal creatures into their service. Her divine servitor race are the swaithe demons, foul creatures that incite animals to attack civilized society.

## Church of Lamashtu

Lamashtu's church is scattered and lacks an overall hierarchy, yet it is
 rare for two priest's to come into direct conflict, as they recognize
each other's shared devotion and the hostility visited by those outside
the religion. Many demoniacs pay obeisances to Lamashtu as she is a demon lord as well as a goddess. Her followers can most frequently be found in Demopolis and Infernos.

### Worshipers

Lamashtu's followers seek out deformity in themselves and in others,
and perform scarring and mutilation on themselves and others. They
detest traditional forms of beauty and seek to destroy or kill it
whenever possible. Some intentionally make themselves more beast-like,
with her non-human followers do the opposite to better blend in with the
 more civilized races. She is typically worshiped by races such as gnolls (who claim they were created when Lamashtu took a hyena as her consort), goblins, and medusae. Lamashtu is considered the creator goddess of many monster races who worship her accordingly, including lamias and morlocks.

Some sects, including the one in the city of Katapesh,
 have developed the means to supernaturally impregnate humanoids, both
men and women, with children of Lamashtu. Such births cause severe
damage to the host. The monstrous babies may require care in a
specialized nursery. This includes submergence in a mixture of blood,
afterbirth, and the waters of Lamashtu.

### Clergy

Her human priests generally wear a jackal mask (of leather or metal), a pair of swords or knives made to resemble Lamashtu's personal weapons, and a cloak of black feathers. Monstrous races wear much the same but typically forgo the mask.

### Temples & shrines

A devotee of the Mother of Beasts

Lamashtu is not usually worshiped in a constructed building, but
rather a ring of stones, pillars, trees, wooden blocks, a pit in the
ground, or a flat rock. Entrances into underground places of worship
represent the entrance to the goddess' underworld domain. They typically
 are found on the outskirts of civilization, or in the true wilderness,
and many are stained with blood and littered with the remains of failed
births, and the victims of the successful ones.

### Unholy Texts

Lamashtu's cults rarely place much interest or emphasis on texts,
preferring to rely on divine revelation and madness. Nonetheless, the
more coherent of her followers have jotted down some horrendous writings
 over the eons.[*citation needed*]

*The Skull of Mashaag*
The yellowed skull of a yaenit
 who died in the service of Lamashtu, this object has the ability to
speak the goddess' will in several languages. Every few years, her
worshipers meet to hear its teachings, and heroes from each tribe
undergo a series of contests to determine which group is to keep it
next.

*The Four Hides of Lawm*
This is a collection of three leather straps, each made from the
skin of a humanoid. The fourth was lost long ago and is said to contain
 monstrous rites of power and fertility in Lamashtu's name.

### Favored animals

Gods are often associated with certain animals,
 either because they possess a quality favored by the god, or because
the god's faithful feel a special kinship to them. Lamashtu's favored
animals include jackals, hyenas, wolves, and deformed or hybrid animals.