Darigaaz

Darigaaz
[[File:{{#setmainimage:Darigaaz.jpg}}|250px]]
Details
Race	Dragon
Birthplace	Shiv, Dominaria
Lifetime	~-20,000 AR, reborn ~3346 AR, died 4205 AR
Sources
Time Streams, Invasion, Planeshift

Darigaaz, also known as Rhammidarigaaz, was the son of Gherridarigaaz. His name means "conception" in the ancient draconic language, and he was known as "The Igniter." He aided Urza in allying the Viashino and goblins of Shiv to work in the Mana Rig, then in evacuating Serra's Realm. He later became the head of the Dragon Nations at the time of the Phyrexian Invasion, lending his powerful subjects to the war effort on the side of the Coalition. He, therefore, aided Barrin in defending Urborg, but they were ultimately forced back by the Phyrexian opposition before being called away to the battle of Koilos.

Storyline

Following the Rathi Overlay, Darigaaz was contacted by the draconic planeswalker Tevesh Szat, who told him of the legend of the Primeval Dragons: five ancient, god-like dragons that had ruled Dominaria before the age of men. He showed Darigaaz the corpse of the red Primeval in Shiv, which had been destroyed by the Phyrexians, but told him that the others could still be awakened and used to aid the war effort.

Freeing Rith

Szat then told Darigaaz that the green Primeval was held in Yavimaya, so Darigaaz and his fellow dragons traveled to the forest and found the dormant Magnigoth Treefolk that held Rith. The Primeval telepathically called to Darigaaz from inside her prison, daring him to release her while questioning his leadership abilities. Meanwhile, Darigaaz's leadership was also questioned by Rokun, a black dragon lord, who tried to start a rebellion against him. Enraged by the dragon's words and goaded on by Rith, Darigaaz slew the upstart, throwing his corpse onto the Magnigoth Tree. This sacrifice was the key to releasing Rith, as the boughs fell away and revealed the ancient dragon. Rith immediately took charge of the dragons, commanding them to seek out the rest of her brethren. Darigaaz, awestruck, fell into line behind her leadership.

Freeing Treva

From Yavimaya, Darigaaz and Rith traveled to New Argive, where the next primeval was held. They slew the Phyrexians that had taken the city, pushing into the ancient library. Darigaaz, Rith, and four of the dragon lords descended into the catacombs of the building, where they found the crucified remains of the white primeval, Treva. Rith and Darigaaz stood at the center of the chamber while the other dragons gathered mana to power the ritual necessary to release the Primeval. However, Rith never performed the spell she had claimed she would, instead letting the four dragon lords build up so much mana that they incinerated themselves. Darigaaz was horrified at Rith's callousness, but the sacrifice worked and Treva was reborn. Nonetheless, Darigaaz insisted that no more mortal dragons were to be sacrificed to free the Primevals.

Freeing Dromar

Darigaaz and the freed Primevals next traveled into the depths of the ocean to release the blue Primeval. They found that Dromar's cave was heavily guarded by merfolk zombies, who caused many casualties among the lesser dragons. Darigaaz tried to help his kinsmen but was driven on by the Primevals, breaking through the water into Dromar's cavern. The cave was filled with treasure, which fulfilled all of Dromar's desires and therefore made him stay in the cave forever admiring it. To awaken him, Rith destroyed part of the hoard. She then convinced Dromar to leave the rest of his treasure behind to pursue the greater gem that was Dominaria.

Freeing Crosis

With three Primevals free, Darigaaz found that his mind was no longer his own, all he could think of was freeing the last Primeval and was willing to sacrifice as many mortal dragons as was necessary. However, upon arriving in Urborg, Rith revealed that the last sacrifice needed the other four Primevals to sacrifice themselves, at which point the black Primeval, Crosis, would use his mastery of death to restore the others in full glory. Darigaaz did not understand how the sacrifice could be made, since the red Primeval had been destroyed in Shiv, at which point Rith told him that he was also one of the five primevals, his name meaning "conception" in old draconic. The Phyrexians had destroyed the remains of the original red primeval, but he had already been reborn as Rhammidarigaaz. Following this revelation, Darigaaz and the other primevals threw themselves into Crosis' tar pit prison, freeing him.

Death

Moments later, Darigaaz burst free of the tar, reborn as a god. The other Primevals followed behind, each equally as omnipotent as Darigaaz. As they surveyed their kingdom, they were infuriated at the sight of a challenge to their dominance of the skies: Weatherlight. They set upon the vessel, furiously chasing it through the clouds. Eventually, Darigaaz latched onto the ship, intent on ripping out its engines. However, he was halted by Karn, who touched the dragon's mind, bringing him to his senses for long enough to realize the evil of what he was doing. Darigaaz was horrified at what he had become and so chose to throw himself into a volcano, breaking the pantheon of gods and thereby weakening the other Primevals enough that they could be slain.

Reincarnation

Sixty years after the Mending, Darigaaz is the latest reincarnation of the ancient primeval dragon and the champion of the dragons of Shiv. He hatched from an egg found in a temporal rift, and lived the first twenty years of his life amongst the Ghitu. Driven by a desire to redeem the failures of his previous incarnation, Darigaaz seeks to be a leader, not a commander or a tyrant. He has put his power as the Champion of Shiv under the command of the Shivan Nation's ruling council.

Meanwhile, Tarox of the Bladewing brood secretly hopes to one day seize control from Darigaaz.

Dominaria United

Teferi sought help from the people of Shiv against the Phyrexians, asking dragons, viashino, the Ghitu, and goblins for help. While he and Karn were on the Mana Rig recovering the Golgothian Sylex, a winged phyrexian attacked the Weatherlight. After defeating the monstrosity, Darigaaz and his dragon brethren agreed to join the New Coalition defending Dominaria against the second Phyrexian invasion. He was present and fought in the Battle of the Mana Rig.

Story appearances

Title	Author	Publishing date	Set	Setting (plane)	Featuring
Episode 4: A Brutal Blow	Langley Hyde	2022-08-15	Dominaria United	Dominaria	Karn, Jaya Ballard, Jodah, Teferi, Shanna Sisay, Arvad, Rafwyn Capashen, Slimefoot, Tiana, Ajani Goldmane, Danitha Capashen, Meria, Aron Capashen, Ertai, Darigaaz, Jhoira, Radha
Episode 5: A Whisper in the Wind	Langley Hyde	2022-08-18	Dominaria United	Dominaria	Teferi, Karn, Jhoira, Ertai, Ajani Goldmane, Jaya Ballard, Radha, Danitha Capashen, Sheoldred, Darigaaz, Jodah, Saheeli Rai, Elesh Norn

Gallery

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  Darigaaz the Igniter.

In-game references

Represented in:

• Darigaaz, the Igniter
• Darigaaz Reincarnated

Associated cards:

• Breath of Darigaaz
• Darigaaz's Attendant
• Darigaaz's Caldera
• Darigaaz's Charm

Depicted in:

• Backlash
• Insolence
• Malicious Advice
• Primevals' Glorious Rebirth
• Terminate (Planeshift)
• Tectonic Instability (Invasion)