Tiamat - The Scaled Tyrant

*Return to The Pantheon*

Tiamat appears as a frightful drake with massive leathery wings spouting poisonous clouds of fire. Her five vicious dragon heads take on one of five unique colours, representing the chromatic dragons she birthed into the infantile world.

## Tenets

* *Amass wealth, but spend little. The gold - and the power that comes with it - is sufficient reward in itself.*
* *Do not forgive nor forget an indignity to yourself. Let no affront go unpunished.*
* *Take what you covet. Those without the strength to defend their dominion are not worthy to have one.*

## History

Tiamat was one of the first metallic dragons created in Bahamut's wake to protect civilisation against the Abyssal Incursion of the Second Age of Eshun. Once the demons had been defeated, she was assigned as a guardian to several villages and cities of Zalgovich, just as many other metallic dragons had. Corruption had entered her heart however, and she took to guarding these settlements as a cruel tyrant rather than a benevolent protector, demanding payments and tithes from the villagers in exchange for her services. By the time she began taking sacrifices, the ruby dragon Sardior had heard of her evil acts and began the trek over to her to put a stop to it.

Tiamat had an extensive network of spies and messengers at her feet, and heard of Sardior's arrival days beforehand, allowing her to set an ambush. The ground was razed in their intense battle, but Tiamat had the upper hand with her ambush and Sardior was left fleeing the fight mortally wounded. He managed to make it back to his lair and inform his four draconic generals of Tiamat's betrayal before succumbing to his wounds. The generals sent a message to Bahamut to inform him of this tragedy, but set out to face the scaled tyrant themselves without waiting for backup. The recurring battle had a similar outcome as it had before, with Tiamat killing the four generals thanks to another ambush. Realising her power, she began to plot to expand her borders, but Bahamut and an army of metallic dragons arrived before she could heal from her previous battles and begin her plan. She was quickly subdued and brought before the platinum dragon for punishment. Her scales were stained red from the blood she had shed and to remind her of the great Ruby Dragon she had destroyed. Four angry heads sprouted from her neck to represent the four generals she had claimed the lives of, and she was then banished from the material plane.

Whilst wandering the outer planes, she succumbed to her want of power and wealth. She tore the sparkling gemstone scales from her new heads, now coloured by the raw skin underneath of five hues. Driven to find a suitable domain by her accrued Dragonsickness, she came across the first layer of hell, Avernus. Butting up against the entryway to the Abyss, Avernus was a land of chaos and strife. Tiamat saw the legions of devils fighting off the hordes of demons with little to no structure, discipline or tactics, and saw an opportunity. If she could bend the will of the devils to hers, not only could this layer become her own personal domain but in time they could march back to the material plane and take it for herself. The Lord of the Hells appeared to her and offered her a seat in his inner circle of archdevils if she could straighten up his army. She accepted, and from the respect of her new devilish army and the chromatic dragons she had created in her wake back on the material plane, ascended to godhood.