Hogesh

The Undying Trickster

In a state we mortals would describe as near-death Hogesh slumbers at the hearth of The Shadowfell, his massive serpentine shape spreading to the far reaches of his domain. In his motionless stupor becoming one with the terrain, covered by a thick layer of whichever material composed the The Shadowfell. This is where Hogesh was condemned to remain after his failed attempt to overtake the other elder gods at the conclusion of The Age of the Planar Conflict.
Hogesh is the god of trickery and subterfuge, having earned these domains during his rise to power as he, contrary to the zealous drive of Araquil and Enthraeim's power granted by Dariël made others do his bidding. And even went so far as to make pacts with the Devils who just had appeared on this fledgling world, his cunning capable to outsmart these devious but inexperienced tricksters. Some hypothesize that their dealings with Hogesh honed their skills, and shaped them into the fiends we know today. With the assistance of these powerful allies, bound by their contracts Hogesh rose in power more quickly than any other Elder-God, ensuring that when things quieted down he was the most powerful being on the world.

The Downfall of Hogesh

But Hogesh was vein and paranoid. And when it became clear that five other beings rivaled power with the mighty Hogesh he made plans to overtake these beings, ensuring he would rule supreme.
And when the Elder-Gods convened at the "Thundering Mountain" he was there, observing the others, gauging their strengths and their weaknesses, making plans on how to exploit these. And when the topic of the lingering primal essence was discussed, it was Hogesh who proposed to form it into beings which would serve the Elder-Gods, formed to their desires. Having power over most of the land Hogesh likewise controlled most of the Primal essence, ensuring that his creation would be the most numerous, and as he only had one goal in mind his Yuan-Ti were also the most suitable for the upcoming fight.
During the agreed upon Armistice, the Yuan-Ti honed their skills, cunning and brutality slaughtering all beings in the domain of Hogesh, harvesting from their remains more Primal essence, which in turn was used to create more of their kind. And when it was decreed that the world was cleansed and the Armistice was ended Hogesh launched his attack.
This initially caught the other Elder-Gods of guard, not knowing how to react to this unprecedented breach of mutual trust, and it wasn't long before the Yuan-Ti, supported by Devils had surrounded Mount Arthum, and it wouldn't be long before the first of the gods would fall to Hogesh' might. The Troirin overseeing the consequence like no other extended a helping hand to Araquil, ensuring her guardians would not be touched by death. Ensuring the defenders could resist the onslaught, albeit for just a moment. But then, seemingly out of no-where the Devils abandoned the siege, tipping the scales slightly more in Araquil's favor, resulting in the siege losing momentum, but still in favor of the attackers.
With his victory assured and outraged by this betrayal Hogesh traveled to the The Nine Hells where he demanded an explanation for this open betrayal of their contract. But instead of devil Hogesh had dealt with before he came face-to-face with the Arch-Devil Asmodeus, more cunning than any Devil Hogesh, who had taken an interest in the dealing of the Elder-Gods and had embedded a clause to the contract which had resulted in a nullification of the contract. But Asmodeus would happily revise the contract, providing the same assistance, but with a slightly higher price. Hogesh as vain as ever couldn't get over this betrayal. And he returned to his siege, where he was faced with a terrible sight.
During Hogesh' absence, word of the siege of the golden mountain had reached the other Elder gods, and it had became clear tat this wan't just a minor skirmish. While the other gods underestimated the threat or already had contributed Grynza the most direct of the Elder-gods, seeing an opportunity for glorious combat, assembled her army of Lizardfolk and marched to the aid of Araquil. The combined strength of Araquil and Grynza was no match for the army of Yuan-Ti, especially as Hogesh wasn't present.
With his army in shambles, Hogesh was servery wounded, and only barely managed to escape to the The Shadowfell where he resided to this day. Equally bound by his wound which never truly heal and the restraints placed upon him be Araquil. Here he schemes and plots, savoring the day which might never come when he completes his failed onslaught.

The Faith: Hogesh's Sleepers

Even in his weakened state Hogesh' power still rivals that of the other gods, his knowledge about forbidden knowledge unrivaled. As such many who choose to devote their lives to his worship and do so openly are scorned and outcast. As a consequence Temples to Hogesh are a rare occurrence at the squares of faith, but if one knows where to look it lingers in the shadows of every major settlement. As such the devotion to Hogesh is practiced in secret, often in temples on the fringes of civilization.
Those that follow Hogesh do so often for individual power. This god of subterfuge grants his devotees many powerful boons, from insight in the world, allowing them to manipulate it; to granting them scraps of forbidden knowledge long since lost to man. How these boons are used is completely up the recipient, but as the god of schemes grants them they often play some role in a greater scheme, only visible to Hogesh himself and his most devoted acolytes. The Sleepers also ensure that these forbidden secrets remain so, often hunting down tomes of great power, ensuring they and the masters control these powerful secrets.
The most devoted members of this faith become aware of the greater schemes, and start actively partaking herein, and become aware that all these schemes serve a singular purpose, freeing Hogesh from his shackles. Often cooperating closely with Yuan-Ti. But an equal number of these schemes target the the architect of Hogesh' downfall, targeting any and all endeavors from Araquil' Justiciars.
The race created by Hogesh, the Yuan-Ti still walk these lands, and with only a few exceptions these are devoted to Hogesh, and from their hidden cities they do endeavor to further their master's schemes, often serving as messengers between sects.

The Temples to Hogesh

A rare sight in many of the larges cities these temples are a not uncommon sight in smaller hamlets where shady individuals are common. And even where the presence of these Temples is commonplace, to find these building one needs to know the exact location, and even then only devotees of the Undying Tricksters are allowed in. The temples present in the larges cities are often not much more than a facade, only there to draw attention away from the actual Temple. The interior of these temples differs greatly from their exterior, and the grandiose interior greatly contrasts their mundane exterior. The central room commonly features a large sacrificial altar in the style commonly adopted by the Yuan-Ti and is only used for a singular goal, sacrificing humanoid to their serpentine god. The remainder of the temple contains lavish quarters, decorated with green satin and large serpentine statues. Many of the mundane objects feature hidden compartments, and switches ensuring that these devotees will always have the advantage, and their secrets remain safe.

Aspects of the Religion:
Structure: Scattered Faith
Activities: Acquiring Personal Power, Maintaining forbidden Knowledge, freeing their master.
Religious Gesture: With one hand around your neck, grab the wrist of that hand with your other hand and bow from your neck.
Mantra: Everybody wants something, Hogesh knows and can provide.

Relations

The scars left by the conflict between Hogesh and Araquil are still painful for both sides, as such the both sides activly sabotage and undermine each-others. And as there is open hostility between these organizations, temples of Hogesh are only present in cities where Araquil has a precense as long as Cawelt's chosen have a powerful presence.
Hogesh and his disciples haven't forgotten the role Grynza and The Troirin played in his downfall, and as such they're also targeted by the Sleepers.

• The Faith of The Troirin is seldom actively targeted, as the god of death is not one you want to anger.
• The Faith of Grynza welcomes these hostilities somewhat, and sees is as a challenge, to be endured and the be answered in kind.

Diplomacy Diagram not available

Everybody want something, Hogesh knows and can provide

In a state near death, Hogesh slumbers in the Shadowfell, scheming the downfall of those that caused his near-demise.

Name: Hogesh
Ally: None
Nemesia: Grynza, Araquil, Troirin
Domains: Trickery, Nature and Knowledge
Core Concept: Power trough Subterfuge
Divine Symbol: A coiled Snake
Alignment: LE

Alternative Names

The Sleepers of Hogesh