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Is there any lore in D&D, whether in 5th Edition or prior, about where the poison "oil of taggit" comes from? What kind of thing is a "taggit"? An animal or plant? A mineral? In 5th Edition, it's listed in the Dungeon Master's Guide on page 258, but as far as I can tell, it's been in the game since at least 3rd Edition, and possibly before.

I know what effect taggit oil has -- it causes long-term unconsciousness -- but I can't find any information about what it is derived from, nor any etymology that might shed light on the question.

Darth Pseudonym
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1 Answers1

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No, there is no official lore

There is a simple mention of the oil of taggit in the 3.0 Dungeon Masters Guide, on page 80 as an ingested poison with a save DC of 15. (Note, the poisons entry is on an earlier page, this is the table listing various poisons). As near as I can tell this is the first official mention of taggit as a poison, and there is no origin for it listed, nor can I find any other official source that lists an origin.

Official mentions in various editions with no source (That I have found):

  • Powers of Faerun
  • Complete Adventurer
  • Book of Exalted Deeds
  • Dungeon Masters Guide
  • Dragon Magazine #349
  • Song and Silence
  • Lords of Madness
  • Enemies and Allies
  • Dragon Magazine #131 (Beasts of Aulbesmil)

Unofficial sources

There is a 3rd party publication by the company "Blue Devil Games", and taggit is listed in their sourcebook on poisons Poisoncraft: The Dark Art, on page 87 with taggit root as the source:

OIL OF TAGGIT*

Steeped taggit root; gray, odorless oil; hedge root family; ingestion DC 15; none / unconsciousness 1d3 hrs; Craft DC 20; Price 300 gp; Exposure DC 4.

(Emphasis mine)

The * next to the name indicates:

Additionally, all of the poisons from the DMG appear here, recast using the new rules and fleshed out with greater detail. These entries appear with a * following the name.

JohnP
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