Barghest (Dungeons & Dragons)

The barghest is a wolf-like outsider in the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game that comes from the Bleak Eternity of Gehenna. They are always evil and can change form to appear as a wolf or a goblin at will.

Publication history

As a game monster, the barghest was created by Gary Gygax and appeared in Dragon Magazine #26 in 1979. It would later be included in the Monster Manual II, published in 1983 and the Planescape Campaign Setting from 1994.

Advanced Dungeons & Dragons 1st edition (1977-1988)

The barghest first appeared in the June 1979 issue of The Dragon magazine (#26), in the "Dragon’s Bestiary" feature (billed as "the return of an old and much-requested column", formerly known as "Featured Creature") by Gary Gygax. This article states that "Of the various members of the deodands inhabiting the rifts of the Planes of Gehenna, the barghest is certainly the most common and one of the worst." Barghests are described as lawful evil in alignment, and highly intelligent. The article states that a barghest's natural shape is similar to that of a large goblin, and that it can assume the form of a large war dog or wild dog at will, sometimes giving barghests the misnomer of "devil-dogs".

On the plane of Gehenna, barghests "live in isolation from one another, each having its own stronghold and force of servitors, ruling a smoking rift despotically," according to the article. When a barghest spawns, it sends its litter of six to the Prime Material Plane to feed. These whelps will live alone or in pairs near isolated human communities or with goblin bands, retaining their natural form amongst goblins. Barghests are almost indistinguishable from goblins by other races; in canine form a barghest can become very difficult to notice when motionless, and is almost "impossible to tell from a normal dog, except that other dogs will fear and hate it, attacking at every opportunity." Goblins worship barghests, fearing and serving them and going to great lengths to provide human sacrifices; barghests, in turn, slay the powerful enemies of the goblins and generally enrich their hosts' treasure. A barghest has certain magical abilities, such as being able to charm other creatures, project illusions, and affect other creature's emotions. Magic weapons are required to harm a barghest. A barghest cannot be harmed by fire, but a barghest in canine form can be sent back to its home plane if hit by a magical fire attack. A barghest can slay and devour humans, which causes the barghest to become larger and more powerful through "the unholy vampirism attendant upon the slaughter of humanity." The creature's skin darkens as it grows, from yellow towards a bluish red, eventually terminating in a deep blue. Upon attaining full growth and power, according to the article, the barghest shifts itself back to Gehenna in search of its own reeking valley rift. The creature's description was reprinted in the first edition Monster Manual II (1983).

Advanced Dungeons & Dragons 2nd edition (1989-1999)

The barghest appears for second edition Advanced Dungeons & Dragons in the initial Planescape Campaign Setting boxed set (1994) which introduced the Planescape setting. The set was designed by David "Zeb" Cook, who also wrote the Monstrous Supplement booklet in which the barghest appears. This entry notes that a barghest attacks with its claw and bite, or with just a bite when in canine form. This depiction also notes that barghests may become more powerful by devouring demihuman as well as humans. This set also described the barghest life cycle: "As a whelp it is a hunter and tracker consigned to the Prime Material Plane. There it grows in cunning and wisdom until it is ready to enter into the next stage of its life. At this phase it returns to Gehenna and becomes a leader. It is still a hunter, though now its tactics and attitudes are greater, to match the game – other intelligent beings – that it hunts."

Description

As described in the Monster Manual II (1983) the monster is a sort of otherworldly creature dwelling in a 'plane' or another dimension or reality termed "Gehenna" by the game designers. There, it is described as a sort of unholy lord.

The barghest is described as, occasionally, spawning a litter of 6 which must be sent to the world of men, also known as the Prime Material Plane, to feed upon mankind until they grow large enough to return to their homes in Gehenna. Monster Manual II describes them as being able to take on the form of a dog.

Their ability to take on the form of a goblin, however, is implied by the game designers to make them subjects of worship from goblins when they are found on the material plane. Otherwise described as loners who avoid even their own kind, it seems that the game designers had originally intended for the barghest to be a 'boss' type monster leading a lesser band of goblins. That is, the monster seems suited to a climatic final encounter for a crew of heroes who have invaded the lair of treacherous goblins.

The version of the monster found in Monster Manual II is describe as advancing in power for slaying and devouring the remains of humans. Any human would do, but more powerful and heroic souls (like adventurers with class levels) would be a quicker way to ascend in power.

In this version, the Barghest had certain magical powers usable at will. Changing their shape from dog to goblin, levitating from the ground, concealing their own alignment or ethics from magical detection, and projecting an illusion of themselves. Once in any day, they could attempt to mesmerize a being, make a short distance teleport, or manipulate the emotions of those around them.

Of particular interest in this version of the monster was the possibility of the beast being thrown back to their home plane if assaulted by magical fire if in their canine forms at the time. The barghests were completely immune to being harmed by magical fire, but as this would send the immature barghest back to their home plane and the monster had no means to dimension travel on its own back to the Material Plane, it must be assumed this would not be a happy turn of fate for the creature. It would, logically, be trapped in Gehenna as an immature barghest unable to secure the human victims it needs to mature to adulthood.

The barghest undergoes some changes, however, when updated to the System Reference Document for Dungeons and Dragons Version 3.0 and 3.5. No longer is it immune to fire, nor is it sent back to its home plane by fire. Its magical abilities remain similar to the version that appeared in Monster Manual II, but with some minor changes. It's canine form is no longer that of a dog but a wolf.

It still retains the need to feed upon humans, which increases its toughness and strength. Furthermore, the monster must continue to find more powerful human souls to consumed, which is represented by the 'level' of their victim. As they become more powerful, it requires a more powerful human corpse to grow larger.

It is not, however, described as automatically returning to its home plane upon maturation. Instead, at maturation, it becomes a "greater barghest" and picks up some new magical abilities. Specifically, magical abilities to increase its strength and size as well as the ability to turn invisible.

A barghest is always lawful evil. They must leave their home plane of Gehenna to the Material Plane, where it can feed on the corpse of a humanoid in a way that makes the victim almost impossible to resurrect. Eating any person with sufficient skill and experience, of body and mind, will increase the barghest's own size and powers.

Physical description

A barghest can take the form of a wolf or a goblin, though its natural form is a hybrid of both.

References

• Cook, David "Zeb". Planescape Campaign Setting (TSR, 1994).

• The barghest is depicted as a shapeshifting beast in Sojourn, written by R.A. Salvatore.

External links

• Barghest SRD entry.

Template:D&D navbox