Sazzozoth

**MUPPETBORN CAMPAIGN**

When Lady Franchezka Zo made a small (large) error preparing a teleportation circle to summon a weapon to her manor, she instead brought into the Plush Plane a creature unlike anything the Muppetborn and their kin had ever before seen. Not comprised of felt, but a being with leathery skin and a natural affinity for flame. Sazzozoth was the first demon to visit the Plush Plane, a plane of existence that is intended to be "off network" from the rest as its goddess's private sandbox.

The balor did not spend much time there, however. As his hulking form rose slowly through the portal, Lady Zo, who was present in the summoning chamber a dozen times thanks to her clothomancy skills and several specially-prepared cloaks, attempted to command him. His response? "I serve no puppet master." Sazzozoth immediately began whipping at the multiple Zos in an attempt to discern the real one, shredding her cloaks one by one. With few options, and with the adventuring party considering leaving her to it, Lady Zo appealed to the heroes to destroy one of the crystals that formed the teleportation circle before the balor fully emerged into their world and became the greatest threat they'd ever known. They succeeded, sending the portal awry and pulling everyone and everything in the immediate area to Avalon.

The portal spread out the individuals across a line along a river in Alshifa in the order they fell through it. While the Muppetborn spent some time inert until their goddess stepped in and reanimated them, Sazzozoth wasted no time in continuing his rampage. He laid waste to the first structure he encountered, a guard post that burned rather nicely. He then began circling the area in search of the one who dared summon and attempt to command him, but he noticed a distinct lack of puppet people among this world's denizens.

Meanwhile, local authorities became aware of Sazzozoth as a threat and tried not to engage, noting that he seemed to be circling around aimlessly and could very well avoid the towns and cities if given no reason to approach them. Necromantic mycologist Tara Pynn, whose tower is warded against perception by all known creatures (which did not include Muppetborn until she corrected this flaw a few days later) was aware of the balor but saw no reason to take any action. Rumors spread among travelers that a balor was causing trouble in the area, but the idea seemed too far-fetched for many to take it seriously.

Sazzozoth ultimately made his way west where, by coincidence, he found the halfway house where Lady Zo had taken temporary residence and had been discovered by the adventuring party. He was observed by the group personally dispatching a group of cultists who had foolishly decided to engage him. Once the party was prepared, they initiated a plan to send to balor back to his original plane.

The group approached him and offered a peace offering, one of the cloaks Lady Zo had used to create duplicates of herself (a spell she could not activate in Avalon where clothomancy is not one of the world's basic magical elements as it is on the Plush Plane). They reasoned that they had never taken any direct action against the balor and that they had a mutual enemy in Lady Zo. Perhaps with her cloak, he would be able to locate her more effectively? During this exchange, one of the adventurers kept referring to Sazzozoth by a different name he had invented for the balor. Caught off guard by this, Sazzozoth revealed his name to them, but this fact was never shared with Lady Zo. He opted to humor the Muppetborn and bargain with them, refusing to leave this plane willingly, but accepting the cloak with the concession that he will kill them last.

Sazzozoth resumed his search for Lady Zo, emboldened by his encounter with the Muppetborn. While having her cloak wasn't likely to be of any use (he's no bloodhound, after all), he finally had confirmation that the tiny cloth people were indeed here and that the one who insulted him was likely not far. But he had taken the bait, and the blue crystal shard sewn into the hem of the cloak he now carried allowed Lady Zo to target him from a distance for the same teleport ritual that had brought him to the Plush Plane in the first place. Once the spell was complete, Sazzozoth felt the effect spread from the cloak over his entire body. He tried to shake it away but could not resist the spell, and the balor was successfully sent back from whence he came.

**SAZZOZOTH'S ABSENCE**

Apart from the Muppetborn and Tara Pynn, no one knows why Sazzozoth appeared in Avalon and suddenly disappeared after a few days. Even though several people had witnessed him from afar and survived, most hearing about him secondhand considered it was probably some other natural phenomenon, or an incredible cover story for whatever actually caused the damage to the places he struck. "It's done, who cares?" seemed a valid response.

The possibility of it all seemed far more likely when, shortly after, demons stormed into the material plane en masse. But by then, there were other things to worry about.

**SAZZOZOTH'S PERSPECTIVE**

When he was returned to his origin plane from Avalon, Sazzozoth retained possession of Lady Zo's cloak. He has no way of knowing that the Muppetborn returned to their plane following their encounters, or that Lady Zo had gone there and back again before becoming stranded in Avalon indefinitely. But he is aware of Avalon, and he would have reason to return there to find and punish her.

It is unknown whether the time he spent away from his demonic plane caused any difficulty for him, such as others attempting to claim his territories in his absence, but these are possible grievances to be added to his list.