Cult of Rakdos
jACE WALKED INTO THE RA.Koos CLUB, PUSHING INTO
a wall of scents and sounds. The ceilings were surprisingly
high inside, draped with banners and spiked chains. An
impish creature hooted as it dangled from a high wire while
a man in leather chaps swallowed orbs of fire and breathed
them back out through his snaggly teeth. Scarred. black-
scaled drakes fought viciously in cages that swung from the
ceiling, and the stink of sweat and singed flesh wafted from
adjoining alcoves. Against the wall stood an enormous sen-
try, somewhere along the spectrum between rotund man
and compact giant, dressed in what looked like the motley
of a harlequin jester crossed with barbed wire.- Doug Beyer, Return to Ravnica: The Secretist
Tomorrow is an illusion; everything is ridiculous. Mem-
bers of the Cult of Rakdos have witnessed the grandiose
s peeches and self-important plans of other guilds and
concluded that their rivals take th emselves far too seri-
ously. Since death comes for everyone, and since order
tends inevitably toward chaos, the Rakdos believe that
unrestrained, moment-to-moment hedonism is the only
sane way to live. Of course, few other Ravnicans would
describe the Rakdos as sane.
The CuJt of Rakdos bears the name of the demon lord
who founded it. As laid out in the Guildpact, the guild
was intended to fill roles concerning entertainment,
mining, and manual labor. Some argue that any effort
to give a demonic cult a res pectable role in society was
doomed to failure, but the cult remains part of Ravnica's
social fabric nevertheless. The Guildpact prohibits the
cult's extermination, and its entertainments-even as
dark and destructive as they are- hold broad appeal.
From rowdy mobs who love to see the Rakdos skewer
the powerful elites to decadent socialites who come to
the Rakdos for illicit amusements, most ofRavnica's
people don't really want th e Rakdos to go away, as much
as they might publicly protest otherwise.I NSIDE THE CULT
As one of Ravoica's original guild founders, the demon
Rakdos has been part of Ravnica for millennia. Mem-
bers of other guilds know Rakdos through his reputa-
tion for capricious cruelty and megalomania, but those
who join the guild idolize him for his magnetic presence,
which inspires art and encourages utter wantonness.
Because Rakdos finds destruction entertaining, his cult-
ists incorporate deadly acts into their performances in
hopes of catching his eye and earning his favor.
Stages for Rakdos performances appear on streets
and plazas throughout Ravnica every night, and they're
gone by morning-carried to and fro on the backs of
giants. Permanent establis hments that cater to dark de-
s ires are tucked away in the seediest neighborhoods of
the city, such as the Smelting Quarter in Precinct Six of
the Tenth District.GOALS O F THE RAKDOS
The Cult of Rakdos is centered on a demon lord who ex-
emplifies the concepts of chaos and evil. At its worst, the
cult is driven by a lust for power, extreme selfishness,
and a lack of compassion. Cultists take delight in caus-
ing pain to others to make sure they know their place,
which is subservient to the powerful adherents of this
self-centered philosophy.
The cult's chaotic nature fuels its passion, impulsive-
ness, and obsession with freedom. A guild of unbridled
hedonism, it does what it wants, driven by base desires
and a strong streak of cruelty.
The Cult of Rakdos was originally recognized as a
guild as part of an effort to channel the impulses of
demons, giants, ogres, and humans into an acceptable
direction. That effort has never been completely suc-
cessful. Now, as tension builds in Ravnica and severa l
guilds attempt to crack down on chaos and criminal
activity, the Rakdos cult reacts to this building pressure
with increasing violence.
The Cult of Rakdos already serves a megalomania-
cal demon of chaos, so its members have no interest
in seeing any other ambitious figure achieve supreme
rulership over Ravnica. They fear that any other guild
might gain enough power to overwhelm all the others
and impose its own values on everyone. For this rea-
son, t hey focus their efforts on subverting other guilds'
schemes, by undermining popular and powerful leaderst11Al'TIR2 <,UllDSOfR\\1'01<,A^77