D&D’s Five Best Cults – Make The Perfect Villains For Your Campaign
Cults are some of D&D’s most memorable villains. Whether they’re trying to end the world or rule it, cults are always a good time.
When it comes to the villains of D&D, one group can fit just about any adventure, any level. And that’s cults. In D&D cults are a ubiquitous force of the world. They might be following a demon lord. Or hoping for power from an archdevil. Or maybe even trying to destroy the world to make way for the Far Realm.
But sometimes, you come across a D&D cult that makes you go, wait, what?
Living Axe
Living Axe is a dwarven group appearing in 1990’s Dwarves Deep who dedicate their lives to the worship of sentient weapons. The most notable of these weapons was a double-bladed axe. The same axe gives the cult its name. Which resulted in followers carrying around multiple axes.
In reality, many of the weapons the Living Axe took all of their orders from weren’t divine or holy as much as houses and prisons for malevolent spirits who suddenly had a little too much authority. That’d be like finding out you were following the orders of a haunted toaster. Or the phantom zone from Superman II.
Order of Blue Flame
The Order of Blue Flame was a group that believed the Spellplague disaster was a good thing. They thought that the wailing years and all the terrible afflictions brought about by changing magic were a sign of the end times. And they wanted more of it.
However, they couldn’t agree on how to make it happen. As a result, many members would spearhead charity and mission projects aimed to help those infected by Spellplague. The idea was that outward kindness would welcome them in many places.
And it worked. Though it had the effect of helping to stem the tide of the Spellplague, even as they professed to be studying it. Couple that with the fact that their most noteworthy gathering, the Festival of Blue Fire, resulted in the deaths of many of their own members, and you’ve got a cult for the books.
Cult of Jathiman
This cult is a little different than the others, not interested in appeasing a specific god or continuing any divine work. Instead, the Cult of Jathiman hated the very notion of gods and thought they could kill the gods themselves through the power of magic, belief, and good old fashion self-sacrifice. It didn’t work out the way they planned and Jergal, Lord of the End of Everything destroyed the entire group in a truly horrible fashion. But they get bonus points in my book for creativity and a real commitment to nihilism.
Cult of the Dragon
Perhaps the group in this list I could almost get behind – but also probably not because that would be madness – the Cult of the Dragon was a group that worshiped undead dragons and dragonliches. Believing that dead dragons shall rule the world,” they revered dragons and brought them treasures and offerings in hopes that they could eventually be convinced to become dragonliches. This eventually turned into an intelligence-gathering ring for the evil dragons of Faerun, and while some dragons opted to become undead, others probably saw this as an opportunity to have worshipers bring them wealth and information. Win/Win.
She-Spider Cult
This cult turned criminal organization originated as a religious Drow organization dedicated to evil goddesses Shar and Lolth. Unfortunately, the cult fell out of favor of the goddesses, and rather than attempt to win back their favor, disband, or even find new deities, the group re-branded to become a crime ring. This sudden change makes me think that perhaps this cult was more interested in being a social group than a religious one.
What’s your favorite cult in D&D lore? What were their goals? Has a DM ever homebrewed one for your game? Let us know in the comments!
Happy Adventuring!
