Abraxas
Abraxas represents a rarity among demon princes in that his devotees are tolerated, if not altogether welcomed, in civilized lands throughout the mortal realm. Commoners and nobles alike honor Abraxas for his ability to protect them from ill luck and magical curses and hexes.
Followers of Abraxas fund their cult by selling medallions enchanted with the word “Abracadabra,” a talisman that guards its wearer against all manner of calamities. Abraxans claim that the gods are evil beings who have trapped the souls of their mortal followers in all-toofragile physical shells, isolating them from a world of absolute spirit (known as Pleroma) where joy is boundless and there are no limits to the pleasure and indulgence experienced by all. The concept of harm does not exist in such a world, and it is from this absolute, Abraxans claim, that their trinkets and amulets draw their protective powers.
Whatever the source, the charms work. The word of power “Abracadabra” appears at the top and is written in an inverted triangle of eleven lines. Each line consists of one letter fewer than the one above it, until the word disappears completely. The shrinking of the word represents, in metaphysical terms, the fading of potential harm to the wearer. The wordplay is emblematic of most of the teachings of Abraxas, which consist of intense magical theory and complex numerological formulae meant to give the practitioner a greater understanding of the material world and how to manipulate it through arcane magic.
Description
Abraxas appears as a powerful, bare-chested humanoid man with the head of a rooster topped by an elaborate golden crown (which, according to his followers, represents the reward of Pleroma, in which everyone is king). He carries a shield in one hand and a long, corded leather whip in the other. Below the waist, his body consists of several constantly writhing snakes.Realm
Abraxas’s Abyssal realm, Pleroma, is very much as advertised in his cult’s literature. There, souls are transformed into beings of light who experience nothing but pure pleasure and ecstasy. Boundless joy is theirs from the moment they enter the afterlife to the moment ten years later when they are completely consumed by bliss—their souls utterly annihilated and absorbed into the landscape of The Abyss. By the time souls enslaved to Pleromic rapture realize the terminality of their situation, they’ve long since surrendered the ability to do anything about it in exchange for greater and greater feelings of euphoria. The transaction fuels Abraxas’s power, which appears to grow stronger with each passing year.Worshippers
Abraxans believe that the only way to achieve Pleroma is to escape their mortal shells by living a life opposite to that which should have been theirs, but for the duplicity of the gods. By denying themselves the pleasures of the flesh and leading austere, faultless lives, they hope to “trick” their containers (bodies) into releasing their spirit forms. Once free, their souls transcend the material world and enter the endless pleasures promised to them by the Supreme Unknown. Riddled with highly offensive condemnations of even the most apparently altruistic deities, the cult’s doctrine wins few allies among the clergy of the civilized world. However, followers of Abraxas don’t physically hurt anyone, are as chaste as the most devout nuns of The AllFather, and sell amulets of proven protective value, so most rulers view the cult as a strange but harmless sect more worthy of praise than prosecution. The plain lifestyle espoused by Abraxans appeals to commoners who disapprove of lewd behavior but who secretly wish to debauch themselves in the most obscene manners imaginable. Lacking the courage to do so in life, they instead punish themselves with self-denial and self-abuse, withholding from themselves in life of exactly the type of pleasures they hope to indulge in after death. Flagellation plays a significant role in the cult’s observances (Abraxas’s favored weapon is a whip for a reason). Many multiclass as wizards or sorcerers to further explore arcane magic, which they interpret as the mortal world’s sole tie to the realm of Pleroma. Abraxans determine for themselves when they have finally tricked their body-prisons into releasing their spirit forms—a journey that invariably commences with suicide.Obedience
Each morning, thaumaturges dedicated to Abraxas spend 30 minutes in self-flagellation with a small whip or tree branch. Collecting his own blood into an inkwell, the thaumaturge spends the rest of the hour inscribing the “Abracadabra” pyramid as many times as possible—on rocks, paper, amulets, or even the walls of buildings—all to further the notoriety of the cult. While writing the pyramid, the thaumaturge quietly imagines himself enjoying debauchery of all sorts. After 30 minutes of this, the thaumaturge’s spell selection is replenished for the day.
Divine Classification
Demon
Alignment
Chaotic evil
Current Location
Species
Realm
Children
Aligned Organization
Ruled Locations
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