Murdak – Marduk, Babylonian god of creation, water, agriculture, justice, medicine, and magic
https://wiki.wizard101central.com/wiki/NPC:Murdak
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marduk
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mušḫuššu
Thank you to Ben A. for helping me make this connection.
Murdak, a Blue Djinni, is the House Tabbi Djinni in Caterwaul Canyons.
He finds it strange that the Binny Jezzerit seem to able to control Pol Atraydies. He leaves it to your wizard to discuss the matter with Reverend Mother Meowhaim. He is also not the doddering old fool he pretends to be.
Marduk (Sumerian: amar utu.k “calf of the sun; solar calf”) was a god from ancient Mesopotamia and patron deity of the city of Babylon who eventually rose to power in the First Millennium BCE. In the city of Babylon, Marduk was worshipped in the temple Esagila. His symbol is the spade and he is associated with the Mušḫuššu.
By the 1st millennium BCE, Marduk had become astrologically associated with the planet Jupiter.
The mušḫuššu or mushkhushshu is a creature from ancient Mesopotamian mythology. A mythological hybrid, it is a scaly animal with hind legs resembling the talons of an eagle, lion-like forelimbs, a long neck and tail, two horns on its head, a snake-like tongue, and a crest. The mušḫuššu most famously appears on the Ishtar Gate of the city of Babylon, dating to the sixth century BCE.
The current list of all the (known) Mirage references can be found here.
Although I am well versed in Pop Culture references but I do not claim to have caught them all. Let me know your favorites in the comments and if I’ve missed one you caught, let me know so I can add it to the list.
Text for this article is excerpted from the linked wiki pages
Murdak image is from Wizard101, and is copyright of KingsIsle Entertainment
Marduk image is borrowed from Wikipedia. It is in the public domain.
Image usage qualifies as fair use under US copyright law.
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