Maenads are immortal female followers of the Greek God Dionysus, the most significant members of the Thiasus, the retinue of Dionysus. Their name literally translates as "raving ones". Often the maenads were portrayed as inspired by him into a state of ecstatic frenzy, through a combination of dancing and drunken intoxication. In this state, they would lose all self-control, begin shouting excitedly, engage in
uncontrolled sexual behavior, and ritualistically hunt down and tear animals (and sometimes men and children) to pieces, devouring the raw flesh. During these rites,
the maenads would dress in fawn skins and carry a thyrsus, a long stick wrapped in ivy or vine leaves and tipped by a cluster of leaves; weave ivy-wreaths around their heads; and often handle or wear snakes. Maenads or Bacchae were also known as a type of nymph, immortal goddesses of natural manifestations; Maenads being the extremes of pleasurable emotions and actions: sex, rage, inebriation, frenzy etc.
History[]
Very little is known about the history of maenads. Daphne Landry claims that Maryann, the only known maenad, has always been alive for as long as there was an Earth to walk on. Daphne also claims that she has been known as Gaia, a Greek goddess of earth, and the Egyptian goddess Isis. Glimpses into Maryann's past show that she has always led a lavish lifestyle in large houses with ample supplies of tropical fruit, and Eggs further hints that she is something of a nomad, moving from place to place semi-frequently. This could possibly be in part because Maryann would be "summoned" from one place to the next, answering the call of powerful energy sources.
Late one night years ago, Maryann encountered a young and homeless 17 year old Sam Merlotte eating her food and stealing from her house. She was unnerved at his naked appearance, taking interest in his supernatural nature and how he serendipitously seemed to be drawn to her effigy of Dionysus. Maryann lured Sam to her bed shortly thereafter, where she proceeded to take his virginity and to display some of her own power. Later, while she was showering, a terrified Sam snuck through her drawers where he found a change of clothes and 100,000 dollars. He escaped into the night, and they did not see each other again for many years.
Psychological Characteristics[]
Often, the Maenads were portrayed as inspired by Dionysus into a state of ecstatic frenzy through a combination of dancing and drunken intoxication. In this state, they would lose all self-control, begin shouting excitedly, engage in uncontrolled sexual behavior, and ritualistically hunt down and tear animals (and sometimes men and children) to pieces, devouring the raw flesh.
At least one maenad's inner thoughts was a constant Latin incantation.
Physiology[]
Maenads appeared indistinguishable from ordinary humans, except for the fact they could transform their hands into a three-talon claw. During their sacred rites, the Maenads would dress in fawn skins and weave ivy-wreaths around their heads, and often handle or wear snakes.
Powers & Abilities[]
- Alcohol, Divine, Insanity and Pleasure Empowerment
- Animal Companionship (Leopards, Lions, Panthers, Tigers, & Snakes)
- Divine Communication (with Dionysus/Bacchus)
- Divinity (if a goddess, minor status)
- Deity Soul
- Divine/Madness Aura/Pleasure Aura
- Ecstasy Manipulation
- Addictive Contentment
- Bliss & Horror Inducement
- Pleasure Absorption
- Pleasure Augmentation
- Pleasure Inducement
- Feral Mind (Maenads can succumb to their own powers of ecstasy and frenzy.)
- Fertility Manipulation
- Intoxication Inducement
- Intoxication Recovery
- Madness Form (possibility)
- Madness Manipulation
- Corrupting Madness
- Insanity Absorption
- Insanity Inducement
- Insanity Projection
- Madness Infusion
- Mental Hallucination
- Sanity Theft
- Sanity Transferal
- Nymph Physiology (nymphs of madness)
- Ecological Empathy
- Enhanced Condition
- Enhanced Strength (Maenads are known for being strong enough to tear mortals and even animals apart.)
- Environmental Adaptation
- Indomitable Sexuality
- Nature Unity
- Personal Domain
- Semi-Immortality/Immortality
- Supernatural Beauty
- Zoolingualism
- Party Inducement
- Pleasure Detection
- Riders Aptitude (Maenads can sometimes travel on the backs of wild animals like panthers & tigers wherever they go.)
- Supernatural Dancing
- Unpredictability
Weaknesses[]
- Faith and Belief - A maenad's power steamed from belief in their god and at the moment of being consumed by him, they willingly let down their supernatural defenses, thus rendering them vulnerable.
- Feral Mind - Maenads are the wildest of the nymphs because they are affected by their own powers on each other, which can make them at time very irrational.
- Magic - Maenads are susceptible to the powers of magic.
Notes[]
magic.
Notes[]
- Maenads were also known as a type of nymph, immortal goddesses of natural manifestations; Maenads being the extremes of pleasurable emotions and actions (sex, rage, inebriation, frenzy, etc.).
- In Roman Mythology, Maenads were also known as Bassarids (or Bacchae or Bacchantes) after the Roman equivalent of Dionysus, known as, Bacchus. Cultic rites associated with worship of the Greek god of wine, Dionysus (or Bacchus in Roman mythology), were allegedly characterized by maniacal dancing to the sound of loud music and crashing cymbals, in which the revelers, called Maenad, whirled, screamed, became drunk and incited one another to greater and greater ecstasy. The goal was to achieve a state of enthusiasm in which the celebrants’ souls were temporarily freed from their earthly bodies and were able to commune with Bacchus/Dionysus and gain a glimpse of what they would someday experience in eternity. The rite climaxed in a performance of frenzied feats of strength and madness, such as uprooting trees and tearing a bull (the symbol of Dionysus) apart with their bare hands, an act called Sparagmos, and eating its flesh raw. This latter rite was a sacrament akin to communion in which the participants assumed the strength and character of the god by symbolically eating the raw flesh and drinking the blood of his symbolic incarnation. Having symbolically eaten his body and drunk his blood, the celebrants became pos
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