Cult of Rakdos

Red Black

Tomorrow is an illusion; everything is ridiculous. Members of the Cult of Rakdos have witnessed the grandiose speeches and self-important plans of other guilds and concluded that their rivals take themselves far too seriously. Since death comes for everyone, and since order tends inevitably toward chaos, the Rakdos believe that unrestrained, moment-to-moment hedonism is the only sane way to live. Of course, few other Ravnicans would describe the Rakdos as sane. The Cult of Rakdos bears the name of the demon lord who founded it. As laid out in the Guildpact, the guild was intended to fill roles concerning entertainment, mining, and manual labor. Some argue that any effort to give a demonic cult a respectable role in society was doomed to failure, but the cult remains part of Ravnica's social fabric nevertheless. The Guildpact prohibits the cult's extermination, and its entertainments—even as dark and destructive as they are—hold broad appeal. From rowdy mobs who love to see the Rakdos skewer the powerful elites to decadent socialites who come to the Rakdos for illicit amusements, most of Ravnica's people don't really want the Rakdos to go away, as much as they might publicly protest otherwise.

Alignment: Usually chaotic, often evil

Suggested Races: Human, goblin

Suggested Classes: Barbarian, bard, fighter, warlock

You might enjoy playing a Rakdos character if any of the following sentences describe you:

• You enjoy mayhem.
• You like playing showy, dramatic characters who are often the center of attention.
• You're drawn to bards or warlocks.
• The idea of finding a heroic way to participate in a demonic cult sounds like a fun challenge.

Structure

As one of Ravnica's original guild founders, the demon Rakdos has been part of Ravnica for millennia. Members of other guilds know Rakdos through his reputation for capricious cruelty and megalomania, but those who join the guild idolize him for his magnetic presence, which inspires art and encourages utter wantonness. Because Rakdos finds destruction entertaining, his cultists incorporate deadly acts into their performances in hopes of catching his eye and earning his favor.

Stages for Rakdos performances appear on streets and plazas throughout Ravnica every night, and they're gone by morning—carried to and from on the backs of giants. Permanent establishments that cater to dark desires are tucked away in the seediest neighborhoods of the city, such as the Smelting Quarter in Precinct Six of the Tenth District.

Public Agenda

The Cult of Rakdos is centered on a demon lord who exemplifies the concepts of chaos and evil. At its worst, the cult is driven by a lust for power, extreme selfishness, and a lack of compassion. Cultists take delight in causing pain to others to make sure they know their place, which is subservient to the powerful adherents of this self-centered philosophy.

The cult's chaotic nature fuels its passion, impulsiveness, and obsession with freedom. A guild of unbridled hedonism, it does what it wants, driven by base desires and a strong streak of cruelty.

The Cult of Rakdos was originally recognized as a guild as part of an effort to channel the impulses of demons, giants, ogres, and humans into an acceptable direction. That effort has never been completely successful. Now, as tension builds in Ravnica and several guilds attempt to crack down on chaos and criminal activity, the Rakdos cult reacts to this building pressure with increasing violence.

The Cult of Rakdos already serves a megalomaniacal demon of chaos, so its members have no interest in seeing any other ambitious figure achieve supreme rulership over Ravnica. They fear that any other guild might gain enough power to overwhelm all the others and impose its own values on everyone. For this reason, they focus their efforts on subverting other guilds' schemes, by undermining popular and powerful leaders and interfering—often violently—with any effort to build a centralized concentration of authority.

The Azorius Senate currently stands as the greatest threat to the Rakdos way of life. The cult targets Azorius senators and arresters for ridicule, harassment, and occasionally assassination. The Boros Legion's zealous pursuit of order and justice poses a similar threat. Although Boros's attention is focused on the Gruul at the moment, Rakdos cultists are well aware that any sufficiently disruptive performance with a high enough body count could bring the wrath of the legion down on their heads. The overreaching of the Azorius and the self-righteous wrath of the Boros engender true fear in the anarchic Rakdos cultists, and the Rakdos respond to fear with bloodshed.

Assets

The Cult of Rakdos attracts misfits and malcontents, who can't abide the civilized norms of Ravnica, as well as wayward souls eager to idolize an ancient demon lord and partake in riots. However, what Ravnicans like most about the guild is that it has evolved into a roving circus that attracts hedonistic, anything-goes performers who really know how to put on a show.

By the time you start your adventuring career, you no doubt have a great act ready to go, and you're champing at the spike-studded bit to get out there and show the world what you've got. But you must earn a place on the stage or in the ring, and that means first doing your part backstage to keep the show running. "Backstage" can also mean "out in the city," carrying out a variety of errands for people who have more pull than you. And with the Rakdos, such errands tend to look more like adventures than like shopping trips.

What does your chosen form of performance look like? What skills do you aspire to learn? Spikewheel acrobats, lampooners, fire jugglers, puppeteers, pain artists, noise musicians, and hellbeast riders form the heart of the cult's bizarre entertainments, putting on shows in guild-owned dark speakeasies and on portable stages in the streets. Performers called uncagers tend—and unleash—the variety of beasts and horrors used in Rakdos shows.

Other Rakdos performers are spellcasters of spectacular sort, using expressive, free-wheeling, and dangerous magic. These mages find inspiration in the responses expressed by witnesses of their magic. They can be equally gratified by howls of laughter or howls of horror—any attention, in their minds, is good attention.

Most Rakdos performers are fighters of the Champion or Eldritch Knight archetype, barbarians of the Path of the Berserker, or rogues of the Thief or Assassin archetype. Spellcasting performers are often bards of the College of Valor or warlocks of the fiend (the demon lord Rakdos).

History

Guild Background

Rakdos Cultist

You're an entertainer at heart, a performer with a flair for the dramatic and a love of the spotlight. You've spent years honing your craft, mastering a demanding set of skills so you can perform them with panache and make them look easy. The wild applause, the screams of the crowds, the mayhem and terror spreading into the streets-this is what you live for.

You're also a member of a cult devoted to an ancient demon who delights in violence and chaos. It just so happens that Rakdos loves a good show, and your highest aspiration is to please the Defiler, the Lord of Riots, with your own performance.

Skill Proficiencies Acrobatics, Performance

Tool Proficiencies One type of musical instrument

Languages Choose either Abyssal or Giant

Equipment A Rakdos insignia, a musical instrument (one of your choice), a costume, a hooded lantern made of wrought iron, a 10-foot length of chain with sharply spiked links, a tinderbox, 10 torches, a set of common clothes, a belt pouch containing 10 gp (a mix of Azorius and Boros 1-zino coins), and a bottle of sweet, red juice

Features

A Flair for the Dramatic

Rakdos performance styles typically fuse standard circus-style acrobatics with fire, wrought-iron spikes and hooks, and monsters. You can roll a d8 or choose from the options below to determine your preferred style of performance.

1. Spikewheel acrobat
2. Lampooning satirist
3. Fire juggler
4. Marionette puppeteer
5. Pain artist
6. Noise musician
7. Nightmare clown
8. Master of ceremonies

Feature: Fearsome Reputation

People recognize you as a member of the Cult of Rakdos, and they're careful not to draw your anger or ridicule. You can get away with minor criminal offenses, such as refusing to pay for food at a restaurant or breaking down a door at a local shop, if no legal authorities witness the crime. Most people are too daunted by you to report your wrongdoing to the Azorius.

Guild Spells

Prerequisite: Spellcasting or Pact Magic class feature

For you, the spells on the Rakdos Guild Spells table are added to the spell list of your spellcasting class. (If you are a multiclass character with multiple spell lists, these spells are added to all of them.) Spells can be viewed in the Spells by Guild Tables.

Your magic often produces a flashy spectacle, wreathing you or your targets in a mixture of harmless flame and shadowy shapes. When you manipulate an opponent's mind, a flaming symbol of Rakdos might momentarily appear like a mask over the target's face.

Suggested Characteristics

Members of demonic cults aren't generally known as the kindest or most mentally stable individuals, so you're likely to have something in your nature that distinguishes you from the law-abiding citizens of Ravnica.

Traits

1d8	Trait
1	I revel in mayhem, the more destructive the better.
2	When violence breaks out, I lose myself in rage, and it's sometimes hard to stop.
3	Everything is funny to me, and the most hilarious and bloodiest things leave me cackling with sadistic glee.
4	I derive genuine pleasure from the pain of others.
5	I enjoy testing other people's patience.
6	I can't stand it when things are predictable, so I like to add a little chaos to every situation.
7	I throw my weight around to make sure I get my way.
8	I enjoy breaking delicate works of art. And fingers, which are sort of the same.

Ideal

1d6	Ideal
1	Guild. My guild is all that really matters. (Any)
2	Hedonism. Death comes for everyone, so take as much pleasure as you can from every moment of life. (Neutral)
3	Creativity. I strive to find more ways to express my art through pain—my own as well as others'. (Chaotic)
4	Freedom. No one tells me what to do. (Chaotic)
5	Equality. I want to see Ravnica remade, with no guilds and no hierarchies. (Chaotic)
6	Spectacle. People are inspired by the greatness they see in art. (Any)

Bond

1d6	Bond
1	I have belonged to the same performance troupe for years, and these people mean everything to me.
2	A blood witch told me I have a special destiny to fulfill, and I'm trying to figure out what it is.
3	I'm secretly hoping that I can change the cult from the inside, using my influence to help rein in the wanton violence.
4	I own something that Rakdos once touched (it's seared black at the spot), and I cherish it.
5	I want to be better at my chosen form of performance than any other member of my troupe.
6	I am devoted to Rakdos and live to impress him.

Flaw

1d6	Flaws
1	My family is prominent in another guild. I enjoy my wild life, but I don't want to embarrass them.
2	I couldn't hide my emotions and opinions even if I wanted to.
3	I throw caution to the wind.
4	I resent the rich and powerful.
5	When I'm angry, I lash out in violence.
6	There's no such thing as too much pleasure.

Contacts

The Cult of is anything but organized. Individuals frequently move from one performance troupe to another. Almost all members of the cult know former castmates now in different troupes, which allows for the possibility of a widespread network of contacts. Roll twice on the Rakdos Contacts Table (for an ally and a rival) and once on the Non-Rakdos Contacts Table.

How do I fit in?

The Cult of Rakdos encourages independent action on the part of its members. Its goal is fomenting chaos, and it firmly believes in putting its own house in disorder before carrying that mission into the larger city. So your role is to execute your vision of grand satire and disruptive performance art, as you aspire to outdo your guild mates and attract the attention of Rakdos himself.

You work as part of a troupe, with your artistic talents used in service to a ringmaster's vision. But your performance is your own, and no one expects you to follow a script. In fact, if you go through a performance without doing something you haven't done before, you're clearly not trying hard enough.

Type

Religious, Cult

Leader

Rakdos the Demon

Location

Rix Maadi