Mammon

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Mammon
(Deity)

Titles
The Argent Prince
The Countless
Crowngiver
The Grasping One
Lord of the Third
The Open Palm
Spirit in Gold
The Twice-Fallen
The Voice in Silver
Realm
Alignment
Areas of Concern
Avarice
Watchfulness
Wealth
Worshipers
Guardians of wealth
Misers
The wicked impoverished
Edicts
Gain financial control over others, gather new wealth, count your riches
Anathema
Leave Mammon's cult, allow those who steal from you to go unpunished
Cleric Alignments (1E)
Domains (1E)
Artifice, Earth, Evil, Law
Subdomains (1E)
Construct, Devil, Metal, Toil
Cleric Alignments (2E)
Domains (2E)
Ambition, creation, toil, wealth
Favored Weapon
Symbol
Devil-faced coin
Sacred Animal
Sacred Colors
Gold, silver
Source: Book of the Damned, pg(s). 70–71 (1E)
Gods & Magic, pg(s). 124–125 (2E)
Mammon
(Creature)

Type
Outsider
(devil, evil, extraplanar, lawful)
CR
28
Environment
Any (Hell)
Alignment
Source: Bestiary 6, pg(s). 26–27

The archdevil Mammon (pronounced mam-MONN)1 is Hell's accountant and treasurer. He rules over the lightless realm of Erebus, the third plane of Hell,2 metaphorically located beneath the Iron City of Dis.3 His unholy symbol is a azure coin with the head of Mammon stamped on it.4

Appearance

Mammon once looked like a majestic angel with sleek muscles, gleaming eyes, and white hair; he retained this form after his fall until he was defeated by Sarenrae. Now, all kinds of wealth in Erebus contribute to his body. When receiving visitors, he possesses the Argent Prince, a silvery replica of Mammon's old angelic body. When attending council with fellow archdevils, he instructs his servants to carry a specifically chosen trove to Nessus, so that he can take the most majestic form possible. As his senses extend across every coin in Erebus' hoard, Mammon has become a mathematical genius, capable of instantly accounting his wealth and that of Hell.5

Unknown to anyone but himself, Mammon is incomplete. In the centuries drifting in the Maelstrom after his first defeat, he lost a mighty gem, which he considers his heart, and he can only sense that it floats somewhere dark. He regularly sends servants to search for it but never reveals its true importance to his peers, lest he appears weak or vulnerable.5

History

According to the Chronicle of the Righteous, Mammon was once the angel empyreal lord of gems and silver before he betrayed Heaven and joined with Asmodeus in his Exodus into Hell.6

During the Battle of the Triune Star, Mammon discovered the proteans and sought to turn them against Asmodeus' foes, but he was surprised by Sarenrae and her hosts. In the end, Mammon was cut down, his corpse falling upon the 13,001 gem-filled chests he brought to buy the proteans' aid and left to drift in the Maelstrom.5

Centuries after, agents of Mephistopheles retrieved Mammon and brought him back to Hell. Asmodeus had him brought to the vaults under Dis, where the other archdevils laid him amid a vast trove. However, the fury of the Maelstrom and the power of Hell somehow combined to remake Mammon, who turned his burial treasure into his new body. Asmodeus, intrigued, supplied Mammon with wealth from Nessus and remade his crypt into Erebus, his new realm.5

Realm

Mammon's throne lies in a many-pillared vault filled with mirrors, crystal statues, and gem-encrusted floating bubbles. His ruined angelic body lies within Mammon's Bier, a vault at the heart of Erebus.7

Religion

Both the greedy and the poor pray to Mammon for comforts like money or station. He usually answers by arranging for the supplicant to discover a 'lucky coin' from Erebus, through which he whispers to them to engage in increasingly evil acts to get what they want.5

Mammon's high priestess in the Inner Sea region is the centuries-old Isgeri noblewoman Lady Kaltessa Iyis.8

In the days of Thassilon, Mammon was worshipped by a particularly successful cult, albeit one that was officially frowned upon while secretly being bolstered by the runelords.9 Indeed, in the city of Xin-Shalast, a shrine to Mammon could be found on Temple Row.10

Powerful cultists of Mammon create alluring suits of armor known as nightskins.11

References

Paizo published major articles on Mammon in The Twice-Damned Prince and Book of the Damned.

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

  1. Erik Mona, et al. “Appendices” in Campaign Setting, 247. Paizo Inc., 2008
  2. Erik Mona, et al. “Chapter 3: Religion” in Campaign Setting, 172. Paizo Inc., 2008
  3. James Jacobs, et al. The Inner Sea World Guide, 231. Paizo Inc., 2011
  4. F. Wesley Schneider. Princes of Darkness, Book of the Damned Volume 1, inside front cover. Paizo Inc., 2009
  5. 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 Paizo Inc., et al. “Chapter 1: Fiendish Divinities” in Book of the Damned, 71. Paizo Inc., 2017
  6. Amber E. Scott. “Fallen Celestials” in Chronicle of the Righteous, 55. Paizo Inc., 2013
  7. Paizo Inc., et al. “Chapter 2: Fiendish Realms” in Book of the Damned, 140. Paizo Inc., 2017
  8. James Jacobs, et al. The Inner Sea World Guide, 85. Paizo Inc., 2011
  9. Wolfgang Baur. “The History of Thassilon” in Burnt Offerings, 79. Paizo Inc., 2007
  10. Greg A. Vaughan. “Spires of Xin-Shalast” in Spires of Xin-Shalast, 30. Paizo Inc., 2008
  11. F. Wesley Schneider. Mammon” in The Twice-Damned Prince, 68. Paizo Inc., 2010

External links