Mellifleur
Encyclopedia
In the Dungeons & Dragons
fantasy
role-playing game
, Mellifleur is the god of lichdom
and magic. Mellifleur is also known as the "Lichlord."
His symbol is a crystal vial held in a skeletal hand, with a ring on its fourth finger.
(1992), including details about his priesthood.
Mellifleur was detailed for third edition in the article "Forgotten Faiths" in Dragon
#359 (September 2007), by F. Wesley Schneider.
, who seeks to recapture and absorb Mellifleur's power. For this reason, some neutral good deities will occasionally aid Mellifleur in the hopes of keeping the forces of Evil divided.
The yugoloth
known as Typhus
was empowered by a cabal of night hags to defeat Mellifleur's armies, back when the lich-god was attempting to seize control of the larva trade.
. There, he hides many magical phylacteries, which can sustain him should he be overcome, or magically trapped.
In the 3rd edition Manual of the Planes
, Mellifleur is called Melif and his realm, rising from Gehenna's deepest and darkest furnace, is called Hopelorn. Hopelorn is a mortuary city carved from obsidian and is a place where sarcophagi light the streets with a hellish red hue. The tiny slits of windows look out into the dead, black landscape. Liches, and other forms of undead, gather to research the arcane arts and the nature of life and death, dissecting captured fiends in fell experiments. Only the yugoloth
race is avoided by the denizens of this place, for fear of bringing that race's wrath down upon themselves, as this is a plane where the yugoloths are at their strongest.
. Mellifleur delights in guiding mortal arcanists along the path to undeath, as his own power is increased by all such acts.
, who was, at that precise moment, endeavoring to elevate one of his servants to divinity. Somehow, Mellifleur's magic diverted this power into himself; thus Mellifleur became both a lich and a god in the place of Nerull's favored minion.
The illithid
s, who seem to know much that is hidden from others, tell a somewhat different story. They claim that Mellifleur interrupted not just one such apotheosis, but many, thus usurping the ascension of many gods on many different worlds. They say that, because of this, Mellifleur became not just a demigod but a lesser god in one unexpected surge of power. This forces Mellifleur to oppose the machinations of many outraged gods of evil.
Dungeons & Dragons
Dungeons & Dragons is a fantasy role-playing game originally designed by Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson, and first published in 1974 by Tactical Studies Rules, Inc. . The game has been published by Wizards of the Coast since 1997...
fantasy
Fantasy
Fantasy is a genre of fiction that commonly uses magic and other supernatural phenomena as a primary element of plot, theme, or setting. Many works within the genre take place in imaginary worlds where magic is common...
role-playing game
Role-playing game
A role-playing game is a game in which players assume the roles of characters in a fictional setting. Players take responsibility for acting out these roles within a narrative, either through literal acting, or through a process of structured decision-making or character development...
, Mellifleur is the god of lichdom
Lich (Dungeons & Dragons)
In the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, the lich is an undead creature; a spellcaster who seeks to defy death by magical means.-Dungeons & Dragons :...
and magic. Mellifleur is also known as the "Lichlord."
His symbol is a crystal vial held in a skeletal hand, with a ring on its fourth finger.
Publication history
Mellifleur was first detailed in the book Monster MythologyMonster Mythology
Monster Mythology is a sourcebook for the second edition of the Dungeons & Dragons roleplaying game. Released by TSR in 1992 and written by Carl Sargent, with interior illustrations by Terry Dykstra, John and Laura Lakey, and Keith Parkinson, Monster Mythology was released as a companion volume for...
(1992), including details about his priesthood.
Mellifleur was detailed for third edition in the article "Forgotten Faiths" in Dragon
Dragon (magazine)
Dragon is one of the two official magazines for source material for the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game and associated products, the other being Dungeon. TSR, Inc. originally launched the monthly printed magazine in 1976 to succeed the company's earlier publication, The Strategic Review. The...
#359 (September 2007), by F. Wesley Schneider.
Description
Mellifleur's features are fairly typical for his kind, though his clean, undamaged, clothing marks him as more concerned with his personal appearance than most liches tend to be. Green gemstones glow within his eye sockets.Relationships
Mellifleur is opposed by NerullNerull
In the World of Greyhawk campaign setting for the Dungeons & Dragons roleplaying game, as well as in the game's default pantheon of deities, Nerull is the Flan god of death, darkness, murder, and the underworld. He is known as the Reaper, the Foe of All Good, the Hater of Life, and the Bringer of...
, who seeks to recapture and absorb Mellifleur's power. For this reason, some neutral good deities will occasionally aid Mellifleur in the hopes of keeping the forces of Evil divided.
The yugoloth
Yugoloth
In the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, yugoloths are neutral evil natives of the lower planes of the Bleak Eternity of Gehenna and the Gray Waste of Hades...
known as Typhus
Typhus (Dungeons & Dragons)
Typhus is an altraloth, a unique magically augmented yugoloth, in the Dungeons & Dragons roleplaying game.-Publication history:Typhus was first mentioned by name only in the daemon entry in the original Monster Manual II as one of the chief beings challenging Anthraxus for the position of...
was empowered by a cabal of night hags to defeat Mellifleur's armies, back when the lich-god was attempting to seize control of the larva trade.
Realm
Mellifleur's realm, called Death's Embrace, can be found on the Plane of GehennaGehenna (Dungeons & Dragons)
In the Dungeons and Dragons fantasy role-playing game, Gehenna , is a plane of existence of neutral evil/lawful evil alignment...
. There, he hides many magical phylacteries, which can sustain him should he be overcome, or magically trapped.
In the 3rd edition Manual of the Planes
Manual of the Planes
The Manual of the Planes is a manual for the Dungeons and Dragons role-playing game. This text addresses the planar cosmology of the game universe....
, Mellifleur is called Melif and his realm, rising from Gehenna's deepest and darkest furnace, is called Hopelorn. Hopelorn is a mortuary city carved from obsidian and is a place where sarcophagi light the streets with a hellish red hue. The tiny slits of windows look out into the dead, black landscape. Liches, and other forms of undead, gather to research the arcane arts and the nature of life and death, dissecting captured fiends in fell experiments. Only the yugoloth
Yugoloth
In the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, yugoloths are neutral evil natives of the lower planes of the Bleak Eternity of Gehenna and the Gray Waste of Hades...
race is avoided by the denizens of this place, for fear of bringing that race's wrath down upon themselves, as this is a plane where the yugoloths are at their strongest.
Dogma
Mellifleur encourages mortals to explore the secrets of life and death, and to ultimately become undead themselves.Worshipers
Mellifleur is worshipped by some lichesLich (Dungeons & Dragons)
In the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, the lich is an undead creature; a spellcaster who seeks to defy death by magical means.-Dungeons & Dragons :...
. Mellifleur delights in guiding mortal arcanists along the path to undeath, as his own power is increased by all such acts.
Myths and legends
Mellifleur was once a mortal wizard (or, as some rumors state, a yugoloth wizard) who performed the rites to make himself a lich. Due to an unforeseen conjunction of the spheres, Mellifleur's ritual tapped into divine forces sent by NerullNerull
In the World of Greyhawk campaign setting for the Dungeons & Dragons roleplaying game, as well as in the game's default pantheon of deities, Nerull is the Flan god of death, darkness, murder, and the underworld. He is known as the Reaper, the Foe of All Good, the Hater of Life, and the Bringer of...
, who was, at that precise moment, endeavoring to elevate one of his servants to divinity. Somehow, Mellifleur's magic diverted this power into himself; thus Mellifleur became both a lich and a god in the place of Nerull's favored minion.
The illithid
Illithid
In the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, illithids are monstrous humanoid aberrations with psionic powers. In a typical Dungeons & Dragons campaign setting, they live in the moist caverns and cities of the enormous Underdark...
s, who seem to know much that is hidden from others, tell a somewhat different story. They claim that Mellifleur interrupted not just one such apotheosis, but many, thus usurping the ascension of many gods on many different worlds. They say that, because of this, Mellifleur became not just a demigod but a lesser god in one unexpected surge of power. This forces Mellifleur to oppose the machinations of many outraged gods of evil.
Additional reading
- Bonny, Edward. "Pox of the Planes." DragonDragon (magazine)Dragon is one of the two official magazines for source material for the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game and associated products, the other being Dungeon. TSR, Inc. originally launched the monthly printed magazine in 1976 to succeed the company's earlier publication, The Strategic Review. The...
Annual #2. Lake Geneva, WI: TSR, 1997. - Boyd, Eric L. Powers & Pantheons. Renton, WA: TSR, 1997.
- Grubb, Jeff, David NoonanDavid Noonan (game designer)David Noonan is an author of several products and articles for the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game from Wizards of the Coast.-Role-playing games:...
, and Bruce CordellBruce CordellBruce Robert Cordell is an American author of roleplaying games and fantasy novels. He won the Origins Award for Return to the Tomb of Horrors and has won several ENnies as well...
. Manual of the Planes. Renton, WA: Wizards of the Coast, 2001.