Athreos, God of Passage

The shrouded Athreos is the River Guide, the divine ferryman of the dead across the Rivers That Ring the World to the Underworld. Silent, bent, and tattered, he patiently fulfills his role. Athreos is never without his signature staff, a gnarled length of dark wood. When he lays his staff over one of the five Rivers, it becomes a boat to carry the dead. Most funeral traditions include small offerings and words of reverence to Athreos. Predominant among these traditions is burying or burning the dead with a clay funerary mask, to “frame” the identity of the dead for Athreos, and with at least one coin, so a soul might pay Athreos to ferry them to the Underworld. Some people are laid to rest with large amounts of grave goods. Memorial practices vary widely by culture, from tearful, somber affairs to lively celebrations. Athreos is also invoked as the god with dominion over borders, boundaries, and that which is “neither.” Those who undertake journeys, especially dangerous ones, often drop a coin into a fountain or a body of water in apotropaic acknowledgment of the River Guide. Bridges and borders are also places where Athreos is commonly remembered, with many such sites being marked by motifs of rivers or spirits. Additionally, phenomena that are neither one thing nor another, defying simple classification, are often considered to be within Athreos’s province—most notably the state between life and death, but also echoes, phantom sensations, and the feeling of déjà vu.

Champions of Athreos

Most worshipers of Athreos believe death is a natural part of life, to be neither rushed toward nor run from. They seek to do their part in fulfilling the natural order, easing the passage of the living into death. Most also respect their ancestors and honor them through tradition, ritual, and memory.

Athreos’s Favor

As all mortals eventually bow before him, the River Guide doesn’t seek worship. When mortal agents are necessary, though, Athreos often seeks the descendants of those who impressed him during their journey to the Underworld. The Athreos’s Favor table offers several suggestions for the nature of your connection to the god.

d6	Circumstance
1	A family member died bringing you into the world.
2	You don’t think or feel as others do, finding emotions messy and confusing.
3	In a brazen or desperate moment, you dared death to take you—and in a way, it has.
4	You sent a Returned back to the Underworld, restoring a measure of order to the cosmos.
5	Serving Athreos is your family tradition, a responsibility honored for countless generations.
6	You have died before, and in that moment, you glimpsed the mists that surround Athreos’s skiff.

Devotion to Athreos

Servants of Athreos facilitate the passage from life into death. As a follower of Athreos, consider the possibilities on the Athreos’s Ideals table as alternatives to those suggested for your background.

d6	Ideal
1	Devotion. My devotion to my god is more important to me than what he stands for.
2	Tradition. Honor the dead through rites of respect and by continuing their ways.
3	Dread. Mortals put their fear out of mind, but through me, they will remember the inevitable.
4	Apathy. Life is but a rehearsal for death, and it’s best not to grow too attached to it.
5	Succor. I offer balm to the dying—which, to varying degrees, includes all of us.
6	Judgment. Violations against the order of life and death must be set right.

Approval

Athreos' approval of you increases when you honor him or the cycle of life and death through acts such as these

Providing coins and overseeing burial rites for those slain during a tragedy
Ensuring that the deeds and knowledge of someone who has died are preserved
Slaying a Returned and its associated eidolon

Athreos' approval decreases if you diminish the River Guide’s influence in the world, impede his work, or disrespect the dead through acts such as these: