Romos (RHO-mose)
Romos is the god of death. Distinct from Zoas--the god of the grave, who rules the transition from life to death (and, occasionally, back again)--and Lord Pholir--the male aspect of the god of twilight, who grants peaceful sleep at the end of the day and is associated with old age--Romos's domain is the violence, grief, pain, and abruptness which is so often associated with death. They are the god of executioners, blood mages, and all those who find joy in the act of destruction. Though some of the followers of more lawful gods look upon the devotees of Romos with disdain or even fear, they have a healthy priesthood whose membership is respected (though rarely liked). Their female aspect presides over hateful and violent mortals, while their male aspect regards the art of necromancy as his domain.
Divine Domains
Lady Romos is the goddess of poison, disease, murder, torture, and pain. Assassins, torturers, violent madmen, and sadists of all types revere her as their guardian and guide. In her temples across the world, they make sacrifices of blood and suffering, and she rewards them with power from her island on The Divine Sea.
Lord Romos, generally regarded as the less sinister of the pair, is the god of necromancy, the undead, vampires, and blood magic. While the Lady is evil, the Lord is possessed of great and powerful magic which can grant immortality (of a sort) to those who court his favor. He values ruthlessness and abhors waste, encouraging his followers to raise the corpses of mortal creatures who have died that they might continue to have purpose.
Clerics of Romos follow the death domain, and paladins swear oaths of glory or conquest.
Holy Books & Codes
Lady Romos's followers read her will from the unholy manuscript known as Radak's Scroll, a text written in dragon's blood on tanned human skin. Radak's Scroll is a catalogue of violent delights sure to draw the attention and patronage of Lady Death. Radak, the first acolyte of Lady Romos, performed all these acts and more in her time, and it is her skin which became the scroll in the ritual which set her free to join her Lady across the Divine Sea. Replications of the Scroll appear on the preserved hides of many humanoid and non-humanoid creatures across the face of Berth, but the dubious honor of its original materials belongs unquestionably to the humans.
Lord Romos communicates with his devotees through high high priest, the lich Shethigra. A powerful necromancer, Shethigra has been guiding the Order of Death for nearly 3000 years now, and has outlasted entire cultures. He is a fascinating individual to talk to, by all reports, though his schedule rarely allows him to converse with the common worshiper.
There are rumors, whispered by the acolytes, that Shethigra has led the Order away from the will of Lord Death in recent centuries, and that somewhere in the world there is a different text. One much gentler and more authentic, written in the hand of a child. The Order will severely punish any who speak of it, but the sect which believes these things claim that they see images in their dreams of Lord Romos as a black-and-violet winged butterfly being chased by a sickly little girl. Little is likely to come of these rumors, but they are a growing force in popular depictions of Lord Death.
Divine Symbols & Sigils
Lady Romos is represented by a pair of crossed daggers, often depicted dripping blood or poison off the ends of their blades. She is also associated with obsidian, for its color and sharpness.
Lord Romos is represented by a death's head wreathed in flame, or sometimes by a bat. Only those heretics who wish to meet their Lord swiftly are caught depicting him as a butterfly.
Tenets of Faith
Holidays
The third day of the Silent Moon is dedicated to Romos. This is a day on which families celebrate the lives of their loved ones who have passed on. The night, however, is when many questionable rituals are conducted, for it is said that beneath the dark of the moon after the Day of Death, the barriers between life and death are the thinnest.
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