Dungeons and Dragons: Diakk (Hades Chicken)

[@AJPickett]

When you consider that Cegilune had relations with the Giant god Grolantor, she could literally be the mother of the Night Hag species who would, technically be Giant Kin (considering the size and strength of many hags, that certainly checks out), also, as Cegilune began as a very beautiful goddess, one must connect her with the Fomorian Giants of the Feywild, who were cursed with their horrific ugliness, but, like the original hags and their goddess, they didn't start out that way... is there a connection between fomorians and Hags? Maybe...

[@blairshort1098]

Kin-dread.. makes sense.

[@IanWright_au]

Hmm the Fomorians where definately cursed for their own transgressions. Imagine if a waning Celigune was confronted by the arrogant pre-curse fomori, just rubbing their beauty in her face. Ooh yeah they done messed up.

[@Mortablunt]

Hags being giant kin is one of the weirdest lore theories I’ve ever heard. What’s worse is that it’s actually technically true. Well this means it’s time to homebrew small bestiary of huge hags which take after the giant side of the family.

[@AJPickett]

@@Mortablunt hell yeah, that's a worthy endeavour!

[@Harrowed2TheMind]

I mean, some hags do look quite a bit like trolls... 🙄

[@mikewaterfield3599]

Anywhere Yugoloths favor is hazardous to your health.

[@AJPickett]

100% true

[@vodkalord6941]

Insert joke about why a Diakk crossed a road here. Also time to make Colonel sanders a paladin just in case

[@blairshort1098]

To get to the other hide?

[@alexanderlaplante5477]

Why did the diakk Cross the road? To eat what was left of you.

[@blairshort1098]

To find the next garbage bin?.... The Bin Chicken Diakk!

[@gabrieladerre2862]

That's an amazing idea! I'd make him a vendor in the Night Hag ran market of Hades! Maybe have a Night Hag NPC that walks by and throws some shade at him and the PCs if they're if they're of good alignment, when they're at his booth or whatever! 😹😹😹 I grew up in Kentucky. So, I could nail his accent!

[@Nizati]

.... so this is what my friend summoned from hell by accident...... hilarious.

[@skippy9273]

My conspiracy addled mind tries to connect anything that resembles a bird to Pazuzu. These guys' superficial similarities to Kenku don't help lol.

[@AJPickett]

Pazuzu is prince of the lower air kingdoms, the Diakka are flightless. :)

[@rejvaik00]

_"Right now I feel like I could take on the whole __-empire-__ party myself"_ - Diakk

[@IanWright_au]

This humble petitioner requests more on Celigune. looking forward to the next video too :) Hags are probably my favourite creatures in D&D.

[@AJPickett]

Yes sir, I will have that ready for you shortly on Subscribestar.

[@Insane-Howl-Cowl]

Is the Baba Yaga's hutt standing on a greater Diakk's legs?

[@stewiegriffin5557]

I hope not, because my Diakk is so long that it hurts like hell when I step on it

[@AJPickett]

Yes!

[@bloblop8397]

Finally finished my 15 month development program. Your videos where one of few that helped me switch my brain off to the stress of school, and let me try to sleep. Taking my mind off due dates and an often inevitable sense of doom. Lol Just wanted to thank you for that brother.

[@AJPickett]

I live to serve, and well done on enriching your mind :)

[@willriter4882]

Do you wonder if they lay Deviled Eggs?

[@Mortablunt]

20 years, Hellfire!

[@llewelynshingler2173]

BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

[@theonielson1007]

Diakk... Diakk... Diakk... Diakk... Goose!

[@Mortablunt]

More and more itneresting, AJ, you exploring series about the lower planes is going to be your finest content by far!

[@AJPickett]

Somebody's gotta do it :)

[@HBHaga]

I now have this image of a flock of Diakk surrounding a group of PCs, clattering away like shoebills, and falling on the first creature to break and run.

[@AJPickett]

Do not let them flank you.

[@AvromCrovax]

Hell's chicken kitchen famous fried Diakk franchise known all though the underdark for award winning deep fried hell's chicken 🍗

[@cernunnos_lives]

In our ancient world, I think Baba Yaga is a mythic leftover from earlier deity (perhaps from the late Stone Age). She survived only partially from her original form. Perhaps one from a trio of Goddesses, who knows what it was? Regardless her name has power. And despite everything, she is still relevant. I'm totally interested in weaving what we have left from our past, into D&D. Especially if it keeps these identities in our zeitgeist culturally active. Alive and well.

[@royalesilky8410]

AJ could you please consider doing Santa Claus? He is super cool and I feel like he isn't talked about enough! Plus it would be perfect considering the time of year it is, lol

[@nobilisvaga5267]

Imagine a palidon dedicated to returning selûne to her former beauty.

[@trajanfidelis1532]

Hags are interesting. I didn't know they had a goddess. Thanks for the video AJ!

[@jacobfreeman5444]

Gods to the fey is nothing new, although finding out that hags have a divine patron is a surprise.

[@mattmoseley6429]

I mean, they almost had a second one, but she exploded lol

[@blairshort1098]

Cassowaries? Would you make such comparisons to their Face???? 😱

[@pedrovascodeoliveiraveriss6293]

The Diaka would be Honoured to be compared to them, it's the Cassowaries I would Worry about!

[@AJPickett]

@@pedrovascodeoliveiraveriss6293 Diakka hate being called Chickens

[@chadstinson9886]

Love the lore keep up the great work.

[@AJPickett]

Thanks, will do!

[@TheHornedKing]

The forbidden chicken.

[@AJPickett]

And in three words, a nightmare lurks.

[@Jeremycook_]

The art reminds me of the skeckis from Dark Crystal. Edit: You thought so too lol

[@coreycoffell6219]

I keep seeing a scene where they are roost in what was an open air restaurant, on top of a high city building, only venturing out under cover of darkness...

[@jacobwilson8579]

One of my players used wild magic on an enemy Samurai’s less then stable amulet of Planeshift sending her to hell, said pc is trying to get her back letting me bring in the devils of Mamon. So I’m glad for any more ideas for the lower planes thanks again AJ

[@AJPickett]

groovy, sounds a bit like this horrific anime my friend showed me, but I forgot what it was called, something about rising out of the layers of hell causing terrible curses... anyway, much more lower planes info to come this month

[@GeraldBlack1]

Still waiting on that chocobo.

[@pheorrungurd8746]

Thanks for another video!

[@purplehaze2358]

I misread the "Hades Chicken" in the title as "Hates Children".

[@AJPickett]

No, they find them delicious!

[@ruhalajn]

Well that seems unjust. The poor girl was abandoned and tossed aside by her false followers. We must restore her beauty.

[@AJPickett]

There is probably a cult just for that.

[@ruhalajn]

@@AJPickett this is why I like cults so much. So user-friendly.

[@MrMrtvozornik]

Well, she forgot one key thing, Gods need worshipers, worshipers don't need Gods. If they take their place as given, that fate waits them all.

[@zakosist]

I think its more that she stopped doing anything to deserve it and therefore no longer did. Kind of tragic still, but nothing is unconditional, especially high status. A ruler that doesn't care about the people below them dont deserve their rulership

[@ruhalajn]

@@zakosist heresy

[@johngleeman8347]

Yay for flora and fauna of the less-famous lower planes. I can't tell you how many times I mess up Hades and Gehenna. Not sure why. I want to force my players to visit Hades to show off all of the rare (and restoration-resistant) diseases! XD

[@Dustin-j3k]

Thank you lore master for this knowledge

[@davidfletcher6703]

Pretty much nightmare hell Turkeys, lol

[@DEMONOFLOVEANDDEATH]

Bless the Mighty GlueStick

[@sirloin869]

Yes,YES: i want to see a dnd "HFC", hell fried chicken! Or, hades. Or, pandemonium/grey wastes...

[@subterraneansalamander3156]

Please cover gloamings. Gloamings are cool.

[@AJPickett]

*adds to list*

[@AvromCrovax]

Hell's chicken

[@demonblood8841]

Can't wait for you to cover the plane of Hades that's gona be awesome. Great stuff as always AJ

[@demonblood8841]

Elysium is so good you'd never want to leave so Hades is so bad you'd want to arrive? That about right?

[@ruhalajn]

Imagine a survival campaign arc set in Hades. I'd make it much less densely populated and end that arc with the group still there. Fast forward months later and give them ability scores, skills, etc. reflective of what they've had to learn and do to survive.

[@docbaker3333]

I wonder considering that Selune Predated Toril is it possible that Cegilune was a former early priestess of Selune who became a Demigoddess that Got too Ambitious for her own Good and became the bitter crone she is now? Also speaking of the Creature Codex can you please some of the Pathfinder Original demons or some of the races original to it Like the Agathions.

[@pearsonm1306]

Love everything about Hags!!!

[@krispalermo8133]

" Here chic, chic, chic, Chic'KeN ?!"

[@guuspot923]

maybe they couldn't figure out what to make chicken taste like, which is why chicken tastes like everything. I still prefer gluesticks, though. A tasty treat as always!

[@floppa2154]

мне понравилось ! лайк и комментарий , для алгоритмов ютуба =)

[@CatholicDragoon]

Well can I at least cook it first?

[@saeyabor]

9:20 This sounds a lot like a Vrock. Like what would happen if an average Vrock survived a Blood War battle and absorbed some cosmic Law in the process.

[@That80sGuy1972]

To me, this beast is the descendant of Vrocks who found refuge in the Grey Waste (Hades). I feel ya' but these beasties are NPD mutations of whatever (most likely Vrock) origin species. The Grey Waste (Hades) is both (situation relative) a haven and an area of conflict in outer-planar wars. It seems newer AD&D editions moved plagues from the Abyss to Hades as the primary supernatural source... fair enough, but only if they included micro-biomes that work well withing complex cellular (and constituting a gigantic part of them being alive) life being sourced to their positive polar opposites.

[@saeyabor]

@@That80sGuy1972 I think AJ says in the video they're canonically chickens that have been messed with by hags. Their physiology and temperament just sound so Vrock-like that alignment-shifting one from CE to NE could be a different process with the same result, or Vrocks could be the Chaotic version.

[@That80sGuy1972]

@@saeyabor As I said, I feel ya'. I wasn't grinding your gears, I was elaborating the idea.

[@That80sGuy1972]

Great video AJ, such spicy (rancid) chicken. So... now that disease and infection seems to migrate from the Abyss to Hades, is the pro-life micro-biomes that constitute most of how multicellular life actually keeps being alive that functions symbiotically with their immune systems now part of the polar opposition of the recent shift of outer-planar origins of blights to their counterparts? I mean, the new edition writers want to shift the blights over, why are they not using the same reasoning to call in how the blights have a similar countermeasure from the other side that's part of the origin of life? You know, since they called in the complexities of science to call for the planar shift in a fantasy half-^ssed way because science is great until it's not for a fantasy writer. Lazy steampunk writers are a bit more thoughtful on their creations, it seems. In Hades, flesh was supposed to be bland and not filling... not at all sensation-stirring... and those who starved to death in Hades were not supposed to because they were repulsed by the food, but because the planar energy of Hades (depression & nihilism akin) made them feel like eating was pointless. Only a pure heart, a truly devoted dark soul, or a complete narcissus (NPD) could really resist Hades's planar energy. That ironically works against travel in Hades... only apathy about the distance and time spent would allow the person there to actually cover any kind of distance. So, Diakk have color and NPD fire. That would make them a great Hades life form, a thing that would thrive in Hades. I can see Larvae (NE Hades corrupted souls) evolving into Diakk. As for Night Hags, you are very clever AJ... avoiding decades of implied nasty things, the sleeping things, they do to collect Larvae (killing via soul theft) to the one they "ride" every night. AD&D was a game created when the Moral Majority were running rampant and book burning... claiming that art that people who lived life created was what created those people. I was one of those devout readers who could read between the lines and honestly DM the darker side of AD&D with those who enjoy playing it that way.

[@AJPickett]

The blood war takes place on Hades quite a lot, when demons win they tear a part of Hades away and make it part of the Abyss, hence, Hades makes the Abyss a wretched, diseased place.. it's the source. 😎

[@krispalermo8133]

Location, location, and location follow with how old you are and if many in your family and given location has many veterans or washouts from the military that barely got through basic training along with the National Guard. Point being you have a bunch of young men room together that later return to their hometowns. I have heard way too many Bob F-cked a Chicken Jokes over the years and sent them play out at a few gaming groups at my past two gaming shops. Other than frost giants being known as cold pricks, the DM DeusMax the group from a Vrock by having an inbreed storm giant showing up and describe a raging thunderstorm as a metaphor .. well I hope you already got the point. b.) We did an Alice in Wonderland of the Jabberwocky being a featherless bat wing giant chicken the size of a great wrym red dragon that laid waste to the land, it was very over the top Anima campy, the Jabberwocky cross through a Gate for a new world to conquer and ended up in Hades about the size of a pony size turkey surround by hoardings. The DM, well She loved chicken jokes. How do you bribe a group of ogres or hill giants ? Offer them over size chickens with the Polymorph spell. 2.) As stated in my old posts which both That80sGuy1972 have read through and maybe AJ himself as if anyone else that gets bored enough to read through all the other posts and threads on this channel page. My first gaming shop I could stay late nights or wake up on the concrete floor in the morning during the late 1990's, WotC wasn't out yet and it was only AD&D2ndE with Planescape box setting. Then you have other gaming systems such as Rifts and Whitewolf/World of Darkness (WoD): Wraith the Oblivion dealing with PCs being Ghost, along with Mage the Accession on creating spirits or modifying them along with a few mentions on Far Realms and Abysmal spirit lords not forgetting Werewolf spirit rivals. PCs have Passions/proposes with Fethers/touchstones to respawn from after getting killed/ spiritual rip apart. Your PC has to maintain a drive to live more importantly after .. death .. or lose their consciousness becoming Soul Food for another being in the afterlife spirit realms. In mage & werewolf locations like Star Wars Yoda darkside cave used for visions generate spirit energy to feed off of and are used as spawning stones for lesser spirits, be they good or evil. Spirit courts and tribes wage wars over such feeding grounds. So both my gaming shops and the groups playing there more or less heavy modify their D&D lore with Whitewolf/World of Darkness spirit lore cause of dice mechanic system. In WoD spirit beings such as mages, werewolves, Fae, and outright spirit entities Channel energy which is not done in D&D. In Mage a caster able to cast 3rd-level sphere magic can trap, channel, cultivate energy within a given spot to create and energy fountain that spirits can feed off of. At 4th-level sphere they can change one type of energy to another type so they can cast spells with it themselves. I need to stop being long winded, as an example translation take the D&D spell Vampiric Touch 3rd-level arcane spell that drains Hp from another PC/target for themselves. Instead use that spell as a variant to drain Spell points or manna from target. For a more Indepth view WoD just does mechanics better than D&D does, BUT D&D has all the monster picture art of classic old monsters and new ones.

[@krispalermo8133]

Environmental hazers and how real life can be lethal in wetlands or the risk of infection. We are dealing with astral spirit realms and other than D&D rules on planar effects which without magic protection and low saves will kill PCs in under a day such as the Grey Waste. My old RPg groups doing more gothic Lovecraft horror, we do slow drawn out horror using temporary ability points. If your PC has a Wis:16 in Star Wars and gains 16 darkside point they are lose to the darkside in corruption, meaning they just become an evil crime lord or military officers that will mass murder civilians. Or a parent that gets drunk and slaps their family around because they have self-esteem issues. Prime base rolled Wisdom, reduce current wisdom score, current number of temporary wisdom points, number of mental derangements for each point of wisdom lost. Slow side into total madness. But if you being a devotee of the Far Realms you want derangements and Insane Insight. Once wisdom or charisma reaches zero the N/PC becomes a larva for the hag can eat or trade on the soul market. Other side note when AD&D did the Ravenloft Van Richten guides on Ghost, any N/PC of evil alignment or innocence that die painfully rolls Charisma to come back as a haunting ghost. With Sword & Sorcery 3e Ravenloft campaign core book section covers Ravenloft style monsters doing the same thing. So back in the day playing AD&D even if your PC died in game and not Raised Dead cause they were too low in level and poor, they still rolled Charisma to see if they are a ghost or fall into a Planescape side campaign. Keep replaying the dungeon that killed you over and over till you beat it. And find out you weren't being teleported or reform by the gods to try again in your quest, you been dead the whole time. Ghost endlessly lost in the dark the whole time. Lost, " But, but I got a sword ! " The Voice, " You only had a sword because you believed you had a sword. You only believe you found a better sword cause you wanted one and believed you found it." Long term games playing on the theme of reincarnation and after life as such, .. we rolled int/wis/cha then divide for a single average number and that is your base spiritual personality stat for all ability check rolls. So even if you died and got turn into a larva that stat is your drive to become a greater larva or mutate into an imp/ hording. What is the difference between an illusion spell and a light spell ? Roll spellcraft check DC:15+spell level. If you are a Larva and got eaten, will .. roll charisma till you reform as a larva. In WoD system all spirits have touch stone locations to respawn from. Something about matter and energy can't be destroyed but reused, but you fail all of your Charisma rolls then your conscious is gone and you're dead. Clean slate soul raises in neutral balance to get incarnated into the prime material planes once more to re start a new cycle. Ever heard of the term An Old Soul in a young body ? How about those 30 to 60 year olds that still look at the world as a daze confused 13 yo ? Unlike the West religions, India has a lot of stories of angel like being falling and raising back to grace. The lower planes just burn & scrub off coal carbon(sin) build up from life so you can raise again back into the reincarnation cycle. But don't forget there is still an astral crystal shard ( library record ) in the astral sea protected by celestial dragons.

[@That80sGuy1972]

@@AJPickett Dang good point AJ! I was thinking from the point of view of an immutable Hades, like the plane itself would be an insulator of sorts between the two. I keep forgetting the before the creation of the multiverse, the pseudo-nothing that was before it was akin to the chaotic mess that the Abyss, but worse. I often let my own homebrew perceptions bleed into what the canon did not answer fully at the time I created it. Loom of Magus's multiverse creator gods were dragons, and the two that fought to create the canon universe (Asmodeus and the Feathered Dragon) would qualify as just two of them. I was a major content creator for dozens of players and I had only what existed pre-2000 to work with.

[@zacharyweaver276]

These guys sound like great minions for a hag who might bring a few along to the prime material during some scheme.

[@AJPickett]

absolutely, though oddly, the Diakka are quite hard to summon for other diabolists.

[@zacharyweaver276]

@@AJPickett probably because the hags know them better being the origin of their creation

[@jeffreyballinger133]

Hades Chicken vs Fish Dude. Let the battle to the death begin! Sorry AJ. It's been awhile.

[@robertpena1890]

Isn't Babayaga a fey from the unseelie court in the forgotten realms. Some may call her a hag but I wouldn't really classify her as such.

[@AJPickett]

Baba Yaga is an extremely powerful Hag, very close to being a god, she is multiversal and there is lore existing that she has visited Toril, yes.

[@maxxor-overworldhero6730]

The Cluck of Doom.

[@joshuazane3210]

I'd heard of abyssal chickens before, but these are a new one for me. Thank you for introducing me to them!

[@AJPickett]

*tips hat* You're welcome.

[@almitrahopkins1873]

So it’s a neutral evil vrock?

[@AJPickett]

Vrock are powerful demons that can fly, they have avian features, but that is not uncommon for a species that dates back such a long time, you see a lot of avian, reptilian, draconic and amphibian traits in creatures of the lower planes.

[@almitrahopkins1873]

@@AJPickett Vrocks are kind of unique among demons. Reptilian demons are a dime a dozen, but feathers are kind of rare. It always struck me as odd, but feathers appear to be more common among angels than devils and demons.

[@AJPickett]

@@almitrahopkins1873 you're going to like the hordlings, lots of feathers there... And other stuff.

[@davidfletcher6703]

I always thought the Skeksis were interested characters seems that they inspired these creatures and vice versa

[@AJPickett]

You just asked a research specialist an obscure question! LETS GO! "Henson's inspiration for the visual aspects of the film came around 1975-76, after he saw an illustration by Leonard B. Lubin in a 1975 edition of Lewis Carroll’s poetry showing crocodiles living in a palace and wearing elaborate robes and jewelry." source www.bookmice.net/darkchilde/dark/ff.html

[@garvinanders2355]

Didn't know about these guys before so Thank you AJ. Don't use Hades very often honestly.

[@Mortablunt]

The lower planes that aren’t Baator or the Abyss basically get shafted in lore.

[@brettonalwood4173]

I need to go get my fingers on some Diakk finger.

[@Pyre]

AJ: "So the lore for these things is scattered throughout a couple different systems and editions, and the end result is kind of incomplete-feeling overall." Also AJ: "Remember how this whole channel is me taking all available lore about a thing and putting it together into a coherent whole while filling any holes I need to with original theorizing or personal canon so well it's legitimately hard to notice when I do it? Watch this." Also I am personally offended by that art of the Sarcox, and it's only as I'm writing this I realize it's because the horrid thing is basically the Harpy from the Last Unicorn, I.E. an early childhood nightmare.

[@AJPickett]

Oh yeah, so it is!

[@dpme3fan193]

I actually have two questions. Paladins are legendary for having divine health. Is hades a location that would push their disease immunity to its breaking point because of its distance from the divine sources of a paladins powers and the fact that the first layer is the home of the worst diseases in existence? And second, devils try to ascend up the ranks to a higher level of devil. Do demons have a similar way to evolve or are stuck in their form there're in forever?

[@AJPickett]

There is lore specifically about an invasion of Hades by a pack of Paladins, it was so serious the hags created an Altraloth specifically to deal with them... so, Paladins are just fine in Hades, their disease immunity holds... their weakness is their faith, that can only hold out for so long in Hades, eventually, they will just cease to care about gods at all, and lose all their protection. (individual results may vary)

[@Mortablunt]

Demons are kind of like Pokémon, if they kill enough stuff they essentially accumulate power until they can turn into the next form. Assuming nothing kills them.

[@jonathanthomas8736]

Merry Christmas, AJ. Good work as always.

[@wikipediaintellectual7088]

If Diakks are natives of Hades, where do their souls go when they die? And frankly, where do hags go upon death?

[@AJPickett]

Which brings us to the subject of the Hordlings... the millions and millions of Hordlings...

[@wikipediaintellectual7088]

@@AJPickett Looking forward to your video on them. I certainly hope they have it better than lemures and manes.

[@AJPickett]

@@wikipediaintellectual7088 Hmmm, well we shall fine out together :)

[@Mortablunt]

I think fey creatures have souls so they do the usual planes thing. Night Hags are a little different as they count as feinds they meaning that once they are properly killed they’re gone forever, complete cessation of existence.

[@themightymoose5047]

Fantastic as always - been trying to eat well and exercise myself, you're an inspiration! Nerds can be fit too haha

[@AJPickett]

We sure can, I mean look at Luke Gygax, the man is a military grade geek.

[@chriscalvin5083]

Good video AJ

[@zmishiymishi5349]

Me: About to check if my blouse smell. AJ: 15:24

[@Emil-Tiger02]

Yay!

[@tonlito22]

Evil opposite Aarokokra?

[@prestongarner8796]

Are you going to talk about hellcats?

[@AJPickett]

Sure. *adds to list*

[@Arwcwb]

I'll turn off adblock to help creators.

[@bigsarge2085]

bok bok BAGOK!

[@KaelaMensha]

Not BAba YAga, but BAba YagA.

[@AJPickett]

whatever

[@Mortablunt]

In proper Russian it's more like Baba EE-ga (don't ask me why, it's something to do with stress placement and I say Baba Yaga because I'm a muzhik like that).

[@georgeuferov1497]

​@Mortablunt what? It's definitely not Baba eega

[@jgr7487]

and there is another reason why I'd bundle Dryads with the Hags. The Maiden who loos like early Cegilune & the Crones. now, who's the Mother?

[@AJPickett]

Dryads need a remastered video.

[@AncientRylanor69]

😾🧡

[@AncientRylanor69]

[@jonathanbaughman8382]

First Comment