Kostchtchie

Born a mortal man of Ulfen stock before being cursed, Kostchtchie (pronounced KOSH-chuh-chai¹ or kosh-TIK-ti-kai²) is now the demon lord of giants and biting cold.³ His unholy symbol is an ice-rimed, rune-carved warhammer.⁴

History

Kostchtchie was not always a demon: once he was an Ulfen man from the land of Iobaria⁵ who hated women and giants and had a violent temper.⁶ His father raised him barbarically, forcing him to slaughter his own mother and sister, but in time, the savage Kostchtchie murdered his father as well. Much of the rest of his mortal life is lost in myth and fable. The next event of which scholars are certain, is the beginning of his unholy ascendency.³⁴

Kostchtchie sought immortality by forcing a bargain with the Witch Queen Baba Yaga. As is often the case with such arrangements, Kostchtchie's wish for immortality was twisted by the evil crone, and he found himself transformed into the demonic form of the thing that he hated most: a giant.⁷⁶ Baba Yaga also hid an element of his mortal soul in a torc, known as the Torc of Kostchtchie.⁴ The defeated Kostchtchie then fled to the Abyss to lick his wounds and, since that time, Kostchtchie has turned his hatred towards Baba Yaga and humanity itself.⁵ He wages constant war on the tribes of Iobaria, and seeks to conquer and destroy the nation of Irrisen, ruled by the many daughters of Baba Yaga herself.⁶ His interest in Irrisen is associated with the recovery of the Torc that holds part of his soul as he considers the Torc may cure his deformity while maintaining his immortality.⁴ While he sometimes campaigns by proxy, Kostchtchie prefers to enter combat in person.⁸⁶ For example, according to the eponymous Record of Truan Iolavai, he took personal interest in Iolavai's investigation of Hask-Ultharan in the great pine forest of Iobaria.⁹

Home

Kostchtchie's home is Skyscar, a huge castle hewn out of a mountain within the Abyssal realm of Jhuvumirak,⁴ which he took when he defeated Sithhud in battle.¹⁰

Appearance

While he was once a man, it is very hard to see any trace of humanity in Kostchtchie's current form. He appears as an immense frost giant with legs perversely twisted and an obscenely muscular frame. His head is small, looking very strange compared to his hulking body. Two tiny, pure white eyes look out from above a massive white beard woven with the skulls of kings and defeated champions of other faiths.³⁴ He always wields his massive adamantine warhammer.⁴

Cult and worshipers

Kostchtchie's main worshipers are frost giants who have turned from the worship of their traditional deities, particularly Thremyr, and instead embraced the demonic as being a more aggressive philosophy.⁴ Some claim that these frost giant worshipers of Kostchtchie are even more war-like and blood-thirsty than their already fearsome frost giant kin. Despite his general hatred of humans, Kostchtchie does have many human worshipers, particularly in the western reaches of the Realm of the Mammoth Lords. They pray for the day when he will finally bring destruction upon their most hated enemy, the realm of Irrisen.³ He also has worshippers in Iobaria and the Crown of the World.⁴

Unholy text

Kostchtchie's unholy text is The Tale of the Deathless Frost usually written in spiralling runes on stone, making it very heavy. To overcome this problem, the short stories are often learnt and told orally. It contains a history of Kostchtchie's ascent to immortal power, where the story of Baba Yaga is twisted from the truth. It also contains his three commandments to his faithful:¹¹

Avenge Yourself Times Three
Bow to No Woman
Kill All Witches

Relations with other religions

Being a mere demon lord, Kostchtchie does not often trouble the greater gods with the exception of Iomedae (see below). His relations tend to be with the other denizens of the Abyss.¹²

Inimical relationships

Dagon: As Dagon is lord of deformity, Kostchtchie hates him seeing the echoes of his own deformation.¹²

Iomedae: Kostchtchie seems to have evoked the particular ire of the powerful goddess, Iomedae, for his hatred of women and just the fact he is a demon lord and murderer.¹²

Mestama: Mestama is the patron of hags and witches and, in line with Kostchtchie's desire to annihilate such women, he seeks opportunities to destroy her followers with glee.¹²

Neutral relationships

Lamashtu: Kostchtchie avoids Lamashtu due to her greater power and so takes no side in Lamashtu's war with Pazuzu.¹²

Nocticula: Kostchtchie desires Nocticula with a passion and wants to conquer to make her his concubine.¹²

Pazuzu: Kostchtchie avoids Pazuzu due to his greater power and so takes no side in Pazuzu's war with Lamashtu.¹²

Thremyr: Rather than the expected animosity to the god Thremyr after taking many of his followers from him, Kostchtchie just ignores this power who seems indifferent to Kostchtchie's poaching of his erstwhile faithful.¹²

External links

Wikipedia:Koschei (real-world fictional character)
Wikipedia:Kostchtchie (Dungeons & Dragons character)

References

There is a major article regarding Kostchtchie in Maiden, Mother, Crone.

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

↑ Erik Mona et al. (2008). "Appendices". Campaign Setting, p. 247. Paizo Publishing, LLC. ISBN 978-1-60125-112-1
↑ Dennis Baker et al. (2013). Bestiary 4, p. 49. Paizo Publishing, LLC. ISBN 978-1-60125-575-4
↑ ^3.0 ^3.1 ^3.2 ^3.3 James Jacobs. (2009). Demon Lords of Golarion. Descent into Midnight, p. 60. Paizo Publishing, LLC. ISBN 978-1-60125-131-2
↑ ^4.0 ^4.1 ^4.2 ^4.3 ^4.4 ^4.5 ^4.6 ^4.7 ^4.8 James Jacobs. (2010). Lords of Chaos, p. 19. Paizo Publishing, LLC. ISBN 978-1-60125-250-0
↑ ^5.0 ^5.1 Adam Daigle. (2013). Baba Yaga. The Witch Queen's Revenge, p. 73. Paizo Publishing, LLC. ISBN 978-1-60125-497-9
↑ ^6.0 ^6.1 ^6.2 ^6.3 James Jacobs et al. (2011). "Religion". The Inner Sea World Guide, p. 232. Paizo Publishing, LLC. ISBN 978-1-60125-269-2
↑ James Jacobs. (2010). Lords of Chaos, p. 8. Paizo Publishing, LLC. ISBN 978-1-60125-250-0
↑ Erik Mona et al. (2008). "Religion". Campaign Setting, p. 174. Paizo Publishing, LLC. ISBN 978-1-60125-112-1
↑ Erik Mona et al. (2008). "The Inner Sea". Campaign Setting, p. 154. Paizo Publishing, LLC. ISBN 978-1-60125-112-1
↑ James Jacobs. (2010). Lords of Chaos, p. 39. Paizo Publishing, LLC. ISBN 978-1-60125-250-0
↑ Sean K Reynolds. (2013). "Kostchtchie". Maiden, Mother, Crone, p. 65. Paizo Inc. ISBN 978-1-60125-494-8
↑ ^12.0 ^12.1 ^12.2 ^12.3 ^12.4 ^12.5 ^12.6 ^12.7 Sean K Reynolds. (2013). "Kostchtchie". Maiden, Mother, Crone, p. 66. Paizo Inc. ISBN 978-1-60125-494-8

[1] Erik Mona et al. (2008). "Appendices". Campaign Setting, p. 247. Paizo Publishing, LLC. ISBN 978-1-60125-112-1

[2] Dennis Baker et al. (2013). Bestiary 4, p. 49. Paizo Publishing, LLC. ISBN 978-1-60125-575-4

[DiMp60-3] 3.0 ^3.1 ^3.2 ^3.3 James Jacobs. (2009). Demon Lords of Golarion. Descent into Midnight, p. 60. Paizo Publishing, LLC. ISBN 978-1-60125-131-2

[LC-19-4] 4.0 ^4.1 ^4.2 ^4.3 ^4.4 ^4.5 ^4.6 ^4.7 ^4.8 James Jacobs. (2010). Lords of Chaos, p. 19. Paizo Publishing, LLC. ISBN 978-1-60125-250-0

[WQR73-5] 5.0 ^5.1 Adam Daigle. (2013). Baba Yaga. The Witch Queen's Revenge, p. 73. Paizo Publishing, LLC. ISBN 978-1-60125-497-9

[ISWG232-6] 6.0 ^6.1 ^6.2 ^6.3 James Jacobs et al. (2011). "Religion". The Inner Sea World Guide, p. 232. Paizo Publishing, LLC. ISBN 978-1-60125-269-2

[7] James Jacobs. (2010). Lords of Chaos, p. 8. Paizo Publishing, LLC. ISBN 978-1-60125-250-0

[8] Erik Mona et al. (2008). "Religion". Campaign Setting, p. 174. Paizo Publishing, LLC. ISBN 978-1-60125-112-1

[9] Erik Mona et al. (2008). "The Inner Sea". Campaign Setting, p. 154. Paizo Publishing, LLC. ISBN 978-1-60125-112-1

[LoC39-10] James Jacobs. (2010). Lords of Chaos, p. 39. Paizo Publishing, LLC. ISBN 978-1-60125-250-0

[11] Sean K Reynolds. (2013). "Kostchtchie". Maiden, Mother, Crone, p. 65. Paizo Inc. ISBN 978-1-60125-494-8

[MMC66-12] 12.0 ^12.1 ^12.2 ^12.3 ^12.4 ^12.5 ^12.6 ^12.7 Sean K Reynolds. (2013). "Kostchtchie". Maiden, Mother, Crone, p. 66. Paizo Inc. ISBN 978-1-60125-494-8

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