Malcanthet

Malcanthet

Malcanthet, Queen of Succubi
Malcanthet, Queen of Succubi, as portrayed on the cover of Dragon #353 Art by Wayne Reynolds
Game background
Title(s)	Queen of Succubi
Home plane	507th layer of the Abyss - Shendilavri
Power level	Demon Lord
Alignment	Chaotic Evil
Portfolio	Seduction, Temptation, Sexuality, Eroticism
Domains	Chaos, Evil, Temptation, Trickery
Superior	None
Design details
First appearance	Maure Castle - Dungeon #112
Mythological	Succubus

For other uses of the word Succubus, see Succubus (disambiguation).

Malcanthet is a Demon Lord and is also known as the Queen of Succubi in the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game. She is described as being among the first of the Succubi to come into existence in the Abyss. She is ruthless, having battled numerous other demons, lords, and Succubi in untold numbers of wars to hold her current title. Physically she is an incredibly beautiful human-like female with bat-wings, horns, and a long prehensile tail tipped with a spike-like stinger.

Character Information

Relationships

Malcanthet is the current holder of the title of Queen of Succubi. Other demon lords aspiring to the position include Lady Lynkhab, the currently imprisoned Shami-Amourae, and the exiled Xinivrae. Other rivals exist elsewhere in the Abyss, but they ultimately pose little or no threat to Malcanthet.

Malcanthet was among the first of the succubi to come into being in the Abyss. She obtained her current title after years of waging wars and committing savage betrayals upon her fellow "sister" succubi and former paramours. As a result of her ruthless climb to the top, she has cultivated a long list of enemies, which includes Graz'zt, Yeenoghu, and Baphomet. Her few allies include the Prince of Demons Demogorgon, with whom she birthed the monstrous Arendagrost; Pazuzu, from whom she mothered the succubus Red Shroud; her current consort Mastiphal the Hunting Sovereign; and Socothbenoth, a demon lord concerned with sexual taboos and perversions.

Realm

The Succubus Queen's realm is the 507th layer of the Abyss, and is known as Shendilavri. Once a disgusting layer of heaving and "shuddering flesh", Malcanthet has transformed it into a verdant paradise. But ultimately, it is a paradise for Malcanthet herself only.

Cult of Malcanthet

The cult of the Succubus Queen is a widespread but disorganized lot. Each cult sees another not as an ally but as competition, and most are little more than simple brothels. Most of Malcanthet's followers are female; those few male cultists are viewed either as lowly servants or convenient muscle power. The Thralls of Malcanthet are exclusively female, and as they rise in power, they gain more and more powers similar to those of succubi until they too, can (temporarily) assume succubi forms.

Servants

The Radiant Sisters - Thirteen lilitu bards who serve under their mistress. Their names are actually the colors they radiate, and each one has a soul-draining locket and a shining halo.

In Universe Appearances and Information

The following describes Malcanthet's official appearances in the Dungeons and Dragons universe:

Maure Castle

Maure Castle was an adventure module for Dungeons and Dragons that appeared in Dungeon Magazine Issue 112, written by Robert J. Kuntz and Gary Gygax. This adventure marked Malcanthet's first mention in D&D lore.

During this adventure, player characters encounter a statue which is described as a remnant of the Cult of Malcanthet that once dwelt in the area players are searching in. The statue is said to have been once a direct portal to Malcanthet, and her cultists offered their desires and adoration to her through the statue. The statue still has some powers of mind control and influence within it. Depending on the effects of the statue on players, several events can occur, the most likely is that whichever being is enthralled by the statue, they will eventually be killed by it and their soul absorbed by Malcanthet.

Alternative Character Histories

The following are possible alternative character histories and information which can be used in place of the official Dungeons and Dragons lore for Malcanthet:

Nothlands Universe

Description

Malcanthet is relatively young, as far as demon lords are concerned. The Queen of the Succubi has only come to power in the past few thousand years, after centuries of scheming and warring with her like-minded kin. She is a demon of pleasure and self-satisfaction, and constantly seeks new ways to please herself while relaxing (and scheming) from her palace in Shendilavri. Her title is currently uncontested, but she is known to constantly be working to keep all that would oppose her in their place.

Malcanthet appears as a woman of about human-size, and is marked by her beauty and sexual appeal. However, clear signs of the doom that awaits those who seek her company are manifested in a pair of horns that jut from her brow, as well as large, bat-like wings sprouting from her back and a tail ending in a curved spike. She is most often seen wearing tight, form-fitting robes or nothing at all.

History

Malcanthet is young compared to other demon lords, having only in the past few thousand years entered the playing field. She was born as a product of pure, unrelenting lust and grew in power as the sin of lust grew across the Material Plane. She emerged at a time when many rivals would lay claim to her throne: Shami-Amourae, Lynkhab, and Xinivrae were all potential competitors, but Malcanthet managed to defeat each of them one at a time, either through scheming (as she did with Shami-Amourae) or direct combat (as she did with Xinivrae).

Malcanthet's recent history consists mostly of her attempts to manipulate and seduce other demon lords, particularly Pazuzu and Demogorgon. She has become almost exclusively the Prince of Demon's consort by this point, granting her a firm position within the Abyss. However, some suspect that the Queen of the Succubi is not as loyal to Demogorgon as she appears.

Agenda

Malcanthet's primary goal is and always has been self-satisfaction, and she is constantly working to develop new forms of physical pleasure, and she draws on souls and demons from all over the Abyss to achieve this goal. However, she is aware of her vulnerable position in the Abyss, and constantly schemes to ensure her title as Queen of the Succubi. Her primary competition for the title has mostly disappeared, however: Shami-Amourae, a succubus associated with depraved sexuality, was imprisoned ages ago by Malcanthet and Demogorgon, Xinivrae, a succubus known to seduce women, has been badly wounded and imprisoned within the Dreaming Gulf, and Lynkhab (the patron of self-destructive behavior) has become weak and impotent. Without these enemies, Malcanthet feels quite confident about her abilities to hold on to the title of Queen of the Succubi.

Yet Malcanthet is not without other enemies. Chief among them is the Dark Prince, Graz'zt. Each of the demon lords claims to have spurned the others advances, and the two are constantly scheming to ensure the others destruction. Yet the two are not overtly hostile, as both seem to prefer sending spies and saboteurs to interrupt the others plots.

Malcanthet's alliances with other demon lords seem to be primarily concerned with one thing: fulfilling the Queen's unending lust. Her lovers are many, including Pazuzu (with whom she has sired many powerful succubi, including the enigmatic Red Shroud, but also the terrible Shax) and Socothbenoth (a minor demon lord associated with incest and other sexual taboos). Yet Malcanthet's greatest conquest is without a doubt Demogorgon, with whom she has sired many beings too horrifying to imagine, including the dreaded Arendagrost. With the Prince of Demons' aid, Malcanthet has likely secured her position within the Abyss, so long as Demogorgon's moods do not sway too radically.

Followers

Malcanthet draws her mortal followers from those who seek pleasure more than anything else. Her followers are wicked hedonists, often tempted into following Malcanthet by a succubus or incubus. She has a widespread cult, but these cults rarely, if ever, work together. Her cults often appear as nothing more than brothels to the untrained eye, but they are secretly much more fiendish: victims are often lured inside with promises of sex, only to become the newest sacrifice to the Queen. Thaumaturges of Malcanthet range from simple pleasure seekers, seeking to gain an advantage when courting their preferred sex, to power-hungry politicians who wish to use Malcanthet's mastery of charm and manipulation to drive their political success. Many thaumaturges and followers of Malcanthet fail to realize the horrors that await them once their soul has been forever claimed; most are mislead to believe the afterlife will be a sexual paradise.

During their obedience ritual, a thaumaturge of Malcanthet must achieve sexual release, either alone or with a partner. More powerful thaumaturges of Malcanthet are required to show their obedience by either performing a circumcision on themselves or applying a genital piercing to themselves.

Creative Origins

Compared to other demon lords like Demogorgon, Lolth, Orcus, Zuggtmoy, and Graz'zt, Malcanthet is a relative newcomer to the game. She was first mentioned in the Maure Castle adventure in Dungeon #112, and in another adventure in Dungeon #124, and later in Baphomet's entry in the "Demonomicon of Iggwilv" series in Dragon.

Malcanthet was then fully detailed in the hardcover guide Fiendish Codex I: Hordes of the Abyss (2006), and her own entry in the "Demonomicon of Iggwilv" series in Dragon #353.

External Links

• Malcanthet at Wikipedia
• Malcanthet at the Forgotten Realms Wikia
• Malcanthet at the D&D Wiki
• Malcanthet at the Nothlands Wiki