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Terrifying monster or cursed woman? You be the judge. Learn about the real-world mythology behind the Pathfinder creature known as the lamia in this free sample episode of Share Lore by Find the Path Ventures.
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\nShare Lore is a bi-weekly Patreon-exclusive podcast that delves into the lore of the world of Pathfinder in a variety of ways. Support us on Patreon to access this and other great episodes.
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\nHost and Author \u2013 Jessica Peters
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\nOpening and Closing Music \u2013 \u201cSpare the Dying\u201d by Arcane Anthems
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\nAdditional Music \u2013 Ryan Mumford
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\nSources
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\n\u201cLamia\u201d by John Keats
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\nBestiary\xa0by Paizo Inc
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\nhttps://www.greekboston.com/culture/mythology/lamia/
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\nhttps://www.greeklegendsandmyths.com/lamia.html
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\nhttps://www.theoi.com/Ther/Lamia.html
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\nhttps://mythology.wikia.org/wiki/Lamia
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\nTRANSCRIPT
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\nShe was a gordian shape of dazzling hue,
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\n\xa0\xa0\xa0\xa0\xa0Vermilion-spotted, golden, green, and blue;
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\n\xa0\xa0\xa0\xa0\xa0Striped like a zebra, freckled like a pard,
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\n\xa0\xa0\xa0\xa0\xa0Eyed like a peacock, and all crimson barr\u2019d;
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\n\xa0\xa0\xa0\xa0\xa0And full of silver moons, that, as she breathed,
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\n\xa0\xa0\xa0\xa0\xa0Dissolv\u2019d, or brighter shone, or interwreathed
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\n\xa0\xa0\xa0\xa0\xa0Their lustres with the gloomier tapestries\u2014
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\n\xa0\xa0\xa0\xa0\xa0So rainbow-sided, touch\u2019d with miseries,
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\n\xa0\xa0\xa0\xa0\xa0She seem\u2019d, at once, some penanced lady elf,
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\n\xa0\xa0\xa0\xa0\xa0Some demon\u2019s mistress, or the demon\u2019s self.
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\nBut who was she? This beautiful, confusing woman? She was Lamia.
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\n[music]
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\nI\u2019m Jessica Peters, this is Share Lore, and today we\u2019re talking about Lamia.\xa0
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\nIn the Pathfinder setting, lamia are a type of bloodthirsty creature, not a single woman.\xa0
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\nJust as they were cursed long ago, lamias can curse those they touch, clouding the mind and regressing conscious thought to purely animalistic instincts. Creatures affected by this curse grow reckless, becoming unaware of the consequences of their own actions and unable to think clearly. This makes the hapless victim all the more susceptible to the lamia\u2019s cunning illusions and insidious charms. The lamia\u2019s animalistic nature and the effect of their cursed touch has led some scholars to theorize that the original lamias must have, millennia ago, turned away from their own reason and intellect and embraced the life of simple beasts. Whether this change was rewarded as a monstrous gift from Lamashtu or inflicted as a curse for abandoning their responsibilities by Pharasma remains the subject of debate to this day.
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\nWhatever the source of this ancient transformation, lamias themselves have grown to enjoy the strengths it has granted them. Regardless, they continue to cling to a hatred of the gods, seeing them as the cause of their monstrous forms and, thus, their eternal exile from the societies they watch with jealous eyes from their lairs amid the ruins of lost civilizations. Because lamias blame divine powers for their curse, they take special delight in the downfall of temples, the suffering and death of champions and clerics, and the spread of dissension within organized religions.
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\nWhile they can briefly assume humanoid form with magic, lamias are usually forced to hide from civilization, making their homes in the barren wilderness. There, they attract cults of their own, gathering up chaotic and evil humanoids. With the help of these cultists,