The Depths
Bright light casts dark shadows...
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Profile
The Depths are an enigmatic power that is believed to run counter to that of the teaching and precepts Heavens. Unlike the Heavens, the Primordial Lords, or even the Shadow, the Depths are shrouded in mystery, and their physical form has never been seen. Indeed, many theologians believe the Depths are simply a fairy tale or parable for the darkness and dread faced by the lost souls who do not repatriate with their gods after their deaths. Others believe that the Depths are instead a different but equally sinister aspect of the Shadow Worship, considering a vast number of similarity between their supposed portfolios. The precepts of the Depths is to oppose and antagonize life - to actively bring hatred and suffering where there was once love and joy. Not only to others, but ultimately mutual self-destruction not unlike the precepts offered by the Shadow. To most, only the insane or most wounded would follow such a twisted faith. Seen as self-defeated and ludicrous, The Depths are often popularized in plays or literature as evil doomsday cults or archetypal villains. While most accounts of the Depths differ, most describe them in a similar sense as the Heavens - as a collective of deities - that seek to destroy the life and joy given by the Heavens. They are described as a number of malicious faces and clawed hands that emerge from fiery and sulfurous pits. Their holy symbol is often described as two clawed hands battling over a broken red strong.
It is worth noting that the Depths are not known to contact the peoples of Arda, nor empower them with their divine essence as the other faiths of Arda. Most "prophets" of the Depths rarely carry divine power or authority. Indeed, perhaps the sole indication of their existence is that of the tiefling, a rare person born supposedly of a mortal and the corrupted essence of a spirit of the Depths. Such peoples have a powerful ability with a number of evil-aligned magics which often begets their comparisons to the alleged Depths.
Holy Text
If such a faith exists, they have no "official" holy texts. Some desperate or defeated peoples seek clues to their presence look to a number of fragments written and collected by mad "prophets".History
The Depths are not known to have any impactful history on Arda. If such deities do exist, it would likely that they were created at the same time as the other extraplanar beings such as the Heavens, the Primordial Lords, or the Shadow. Theorists could suspect if the deities of the Heavens bound together in their mutual desire for life and hope, malicious beings could have banded together in their mutual desire for death and despair. Of course, such notions are not proven.Domains
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| Darkness, Death, Destruction, Evil, Fire, Madness, Law, Ruin, Trickery |
Adherents
As earlier stated, few would willingly worship deities of cruelty and malice. Indeed, the rare times they are brought up are as curse words "I hope the Depths take you!" or similar such colloquialisms. Those who claim to worship the Depths are broken and lost people, often seeking out revenge or attempting to enact their hatreds and biases against the innocent. Others are simply mentally ill, claiming the Depths whisper vile temptations and compulsions they are unable to resist. Regardless of the reason, few who are whole or sane would have reason to follow the Depths.
Afterlife
Nothing is known about the followers of the Depths in their afterlives. Most suspect they become lost souls, as they failed to follow a "legitimate" deity in their lifetime. Spells to call the dead rarely work on lost souls, and the same principle seems to hold on those who supposedly worshiped the Depths in their lifetime. Others indicate this means the deities of the Depths are cruel captors, not allowing the souls to commune with anyone, but it is unable to definitively proven one way or another.See Also
A part of:Quick Reference
Domains: Darkness, Death, Destruction, Evil, Fire, Madness, Law, Ruin, Trickery
Created: Tieflings (rare)
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