Szass Tam has held many titles. Zulkir of Necromancy, commander of the Dread Legion, tharchion of Thaymount. And of course, Regent of Thay. There are few dark plots in the Forgotten Realms that Tam hasn't had a hand in. And you can work to stop his next attempt to seize power in Arcana Unleashed: Deadfall.
But who is the lich behind the machinations? This article examines Szass Tam's history, why he's such a threat to Toril, and the plots that make this powerful, undead spellcaster one of the most dreaded villains in Faerûn!
- Szass Tam in Dungeons & Dragons History
- Why Must Szass Tam Be Stopped?
- Can You Stop Faerûn's Most Dire Threat?
Szass Tam in Dungeons & Dragons History
Szass Tam has loomed large throughout the vast history of Dungeons & Dragons.
To weave his legend, this article has pulled references from his many appearances across eras and editions, as well as other media sources such as fiction novels, films, and video games. Certain events that have not been made canonical in D&D 5.5e have been included in order to properly reflect the scope of Tam's era-spanning machinations.
The Villainous Mystique of Szass Tam
Szass Tam is a true mastermind-style archvillain. Tam prefers to enact his schemes through proxies, working from the shadows as an unknown puppetmaster. He weaves intricate plots enacted by often unwitting and disposable servants from the comfort of the Citadel, his palace in Thaymount.
Tam abhors the living, preferring to lead vast armies of Undead under his thrall. For Tam, this bias has been confirmed throughout countless battles and wars, as he's seen firsthand the victory that can play out with vast numbers of Undead to overwhelm an opponent.
As a lich, Tam is willing to play the long game. He has the privilege of allowing his plots and plans to play out across several lifetimes, and each defeat is only a temporary setback in the overall goal. Since Tam always has another plot in the works, he will often feel a sense of tacit respect for those who foil his plans in a particularly strategic way.
Szass Tam's Life as a Mortal
As a human, Szass Tam amassed magical power by operating in the shadows. Tam would use a pseudonym to recruit adventurers to seek out powerful magic items without drawing attention to himself. Inevitably, Tam would kill these treasure hunters once they'd grown experienced enough to present a threat to him or his plans.
Ruthless even in life, Tam killed his own mentor once he felt he'd surpassed him, accumulating his wealth of arcane goods. Tam even reanimated his mentor's body to serve as a skeleton guard in the Citadel.
Becoming a Leader and a Lich
Tam eventually joined the ranks of the Red Wizards, the dominant ruling class of Thayan society. These Red Wizards were led by the zulkirs, the most powerful spellcasters for each of the eight schools of magic. As a Red Wizard, Tam killed the zulkir of Necromancy, a vampire named Nyressa Flass, and claimed her title for himself.
As zulkir of Necromancy, Tam led or joined efforts to invade other nations on behalf of Thay. It was in such a battle that Tam sustained the wounds that would kill his mortal body and lead to his rising as an undead lich.
Tam continued to operate from behind the scenes as his power grew. He manipulated the Harpers into attacking his rivals in Thay, allowing him to solidify his own power. He made false deals with armies of Elementals from the Elemental Plane of Fire in order to overthrow enemy governments, a move that finally made Tam a known and feared figure in Faerûn.
Though happy to send his Undead armies into battle, Tam often won victories through other means. He turned potential enemies into allies by showing them visions of his armies soundly defeating theirs. He unseated his top rival, Maligor the zulkir of Transmutation by once again manipulating the Harpers into destroying gold mines central to Maligor's power.
Tam's Conquest of Thay
Over a century into his role as zulkir of Necromancy, Tam made a major grab for dominance in Thay. Tam gathered zulkirs and the citizens of Thaymount, Tam's seat of power, to a celebration. Tam unleashed a secret agenda, using an artifact to activate the Beckoning Death. This powerful ritual turned most of those in attendance into an Undead army at his command. This new army would serve as a tactical tool for Tam's next goal, to take supreme leadership over Thay.
Tam utilized many tactics in his coup of Thay. First, he secretly orchestrated the murder of two zulkirs, then obfuscated their investigation. He also fed information about rival Thayan armies to the nation's enemies, leading to their defeat. Both of these moves were intended to convince the Thayan populace that Tam was the only one who could keep them safe.
When other zulkirs rose up against him, Tam shifted to open war, using his legions of Undead as armies to take the nation by force. The Thayan Civil War lasted five years, with several zulkirs switching sides throughout, enemies becoming allies and vice versa.
The cataclysm known as the Spellplague occurred amidst this Thayan upheaval, leading to a disruption in arcane power across the Realms. This halted Szass Tam's ability to hide the rot and decay of his lich form with illusory magic and revealed his undead nature to any who looked upon him. During this time, Tam struck a bargain with Bane, Lord of Tyranny, to grant him the power he'd need to complete his conquest, in exchange for Tam's soul after a period of 1,000 years.
With this new surge of power, Tam was able to gain the upper hand in the war, defeating his zulkir rivals or driving them out of the nation that the lich had now conquered.
Szass Tam's Regency
His coup complete, Tam replaced the previous zulkirate with himself as Regent of Thay. Not content to rule within his own borders, Tam set out to attack the rival nation of Aglarond and claim their grand fortress of Emmech for himself.
It was a brutal war that decimated Tam's armies, including tens of thousands of his Undead hordes and several thousand living soldiers and Red Wizards. The cost of his war against Aglarond shifted the Thayan civilian view of Szass Tam's leadership, leading him to rule with fear rather than respect.
Four decades into Tam's rule, he set his ambitions higher. After the Spellplague, Tam had used his authority to create a series of fortresses in Thay known as Dread Rings. These Dread Rings allowed necromancers to perform powerful rituals to steal the souls of the living.
Tam intended to turn those who died inside the Dread Rings into Undead forces for his army, and use their souls to fuel his own grand design of ascending to godhood, destroying the world as he did so. Thankfully for the Realms, he was foiled in this plan by a group of zulkirs and heroes.
After his ascension failed, Szass Tam was unable to maintain his position as regent. He reestablished the zulkir council, though it largely exists as a puppet government still under Tam's rule. These sycophants ruled Thay's day-to-day operations, while Tam focused on making another attempt at becoming a god.
His Dread Rings in Thay were left useless, so he sought new attempts to recreate the ritual outside of Thay. He sent the lich Valindra Shadowmantle to investigate the mysterious Soulmonger in Chult, as well as build a Dread Ring in the Neverwinter Wood. He also sent his apprentice Sofina to unleash the Beckoning Death within the city of Neverwinter, an attempt to bring more Undead to his ranks. None of these efforts succeeded.
Where is Szass Tam Now?
Tam's obsession with ascending to godhood caused him to turn away from the political strife in Thay. His loyalist zulkirs were usurped and replaced by rivals to his power. After decades of absolute power, Szass Tam finds himself just one of eight zulkirs on a council that does not kowtow to him.
Though Tam still yearns to ascend, he has turned his attention back to Thay. Not content to serve on a council with zulkirs who dare to see him as their equal, Tam desires to once again claim rulership over Thay, and return it to its Undead dominance.
To that end, he is working toward a demonic ritual called Malefice Mortum — one that would raise an unstoppable army of demonic Undead and put the whole of the nation within his reach. And he does not lack for muscle while he works. The Dread Legion, Tam's private army, sits garrisoned at the Citadel in Thaymount, waiting on the word of a master who has never once been in a hurry.
Why Must Szass Tam Be Stopped?
It would be foolish to think of Tam's diminished power as a similar diminishment to the threat he poses. His ability to plot over the span of centuries means that even the most crushing defeat is truly only a minor setback.
Though Tam has not yet obtained godhood, it's clear he has no intention of halting his pursuit of it. It's also clear that Tam excels at exploring every avenue he can towards his goals. As dangerous as he is to Faerûn as a lich, he would be an exponential threat, rivaling Vecna, to the multiverse if he became a god.
Gods must maintain some degree of balance; it's true. And on the surface it might appear that the limits of divine influence that Szass Tam could wield would be kept in check by the other gods. But one must only remember that Tam's entire mindset is built towards following every possible contingency until he achieves his goals.
For this reason, Szass Tam cannot be allowed to rise back into power over Thay. He cannot have his Undead legions spread across Toril. He cannot be once again allowed free rein to pursue his ascension to godhood. And he absolutely must not be allowed to succeed.
Can You Stop Faerûn's Most Dire Threat?
We know that Szass Tam is eagerly plotting his return to power. On September 15, you can take part in a heroic mission to halt his plans in Arcana Unleashed: Deadfall. This adventure for level 11-20 characters sends your party on a magical spy thriller into the heart of Thay, recruited by Zulkir Xelnene Thrul into Operation Deadfall — a clandestine campaign of infiltration and sabotage meant to unravel the lich's plans before Malefice Mortum can be completed.
Master subscribers get their hands on it first, with early access starting September 1, followed by Hero subscribers on September 8.
Do you have what it takes to stop Szass Tam for good? Or will his face be the last thing you see as your plans—and material form—turn to dust? Only one way to find out!
-
View User Profile
-
Send Message
Posted Aug 12, 2026The 5e movie is canon! Hurray!
Does the OG movie have a place in such?
Also, I hope we can find Szass's soul jar & destroy it in this adventure.