Tarrasque

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Tarrasque
Tarrasque.
(Creature)
For another meaning of "Tarrasque", please see Constellation.

Tarrasque,1 also known as the Armageddon Engine,2 is the most powerful of the Spawn of Rovagug.34 It is a creature of unthinkable power, bent on total destruction.4

Appearance

Tarrasque is a colossal, hunched, relatively simplistic-looking land vertebrate, resembling a dinosaur. Its most notable features are a carapace capable of reflecting magic and a huge jaw with sharp teeth capable of swallowing whole villages. Its horns and tail are also deadly weapons in their own right.5

Ecology

Thought to have been created by Rovagug while in the Pit of Gormuz, Tarrasque is one of the most powerful and destructive creatures known. It is believed that this creature is the current herald of the god of destruction. It is seemingly drawn to human settlements, brutally exterminating the populace and hunting down escaping survivors.56 Like the other Spawn of Rovagug, Tarrasque can bring itself back from the dead; one can only hope to banish, trap, or transport it somehow in order to stop its rampage, especially since no method of disabling its regeneration is known.47

History and lore

Tarrasque emerges from the Pit of Gormuz.

Tarrasque emerged in Casmaron from the Pit of Gormuz in -632 AR. It took three months to destroy most of the nearby nation of Ninshabur and force the elite to hide in magically-shrouded Tabsagal, where they eventually succumbed to famine, disease, and suicide.5 After exterminating Ninshabur, it turned west and rampaged into Avistan, destroying the city of Oppara in the process.38

Tarrasque then sought Rovagug's old foes in Garund and brought about the fall of the flying city of Kho, capital of the Shory Empire, causing it to crash in the Barrier Wall mountains in the Mwangi Expanse.91011 It was eventually stopped and imprisoned in a cave somewhere in Avistan; the anniversary of its defeat is celebrated as a national holiday in many nations, including Taldor and Osirion.5

References

For additional as-yet unincorporated sources about this subject, see the Meta page.

  1. In First Edition, this creature's name is always accompanied by the definite article, which was dropped in Second Edition.
  2. Jim Groves, et al. Inner Sea Bestiary, 46. Paizo Inc., 2012
  3. 3.0 3.1 James Jacobs, et al. The Inner Sea World Guide, 35. Paizo Inc., 2011
  4. 4.0 4.1 4.2 Paizo Inc., et al. “Monsters A to Z” in Bestiary, 262. Paizo Inc., 2009
  5. 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 Clinton Boomer. “The Spawn of Rovagug” in The Final Wish, 52. Paizo Inc., 2009
  6. Sean K Reynolds. “Other Gods” in Gods and Magic, 52. Paizo Inc., 2008
  7. James Jacobs, et al. “Adventure Toolbox” in Broken Promises, 81. Paizo Inc., 2019
  8. Eleanor Ferron. Oppara Gazetteer” in Crownfall, 63. Paizo Inc., 2018
  9. James Jacobs, et al. “Regions of the Dragon Empires” in Dragon Empires Gazetteer, 16. Paizo Inc., 2011
  10. James Jacobs, et al. The Inner Sea World Guide, 129. Paizo Inc., 2011
  11. Neil Spicer. “Rise and Fall of the Shory Empire” in The Slave Trenches of Hakotep, 68. Paizo Inc., 2014