Tharizdun

The Dark God, He of Eternal Darkness, Lord of Decay, God of Eternal Darkness, Decay, Entropy, Malign Knowledge, and Insanity

Symbol: Black spiral or inverted pyramid
Home Plane: Demiplane of Imprisonment
Alignment: Neutral Evil
Portfolio: Insanity, entropy
Worshipers: Evil madmen, psychopaths, destructors
Cleric Alignments: NE, CE
Domains: Trickery, Death, Twilight
Favored Weapon: Whip

Tharizdun (tha-RIZ-dun) is an old and evil god of uncertain origin, imprisoned by the concerted effort of all of the gods. Tharizdun is the god of Eternal Darkness, Decay, Entropy, Malign Knowledge, Insanity, and Cold. It is a long-forgotten god who craves nothing less than the unmaking of the universe, destroying everything—itself included—in the process. He has not been heard from in over one thousand years. If freed, it is said that the gods would again unite to lock him away. Sites keyed to him still exist, and his relics still hold power. Although no true depictions of him remain, he is thought to be an utterly black entity without a solid form, leaving cold, decay, and insanity in his wake. His modern worshipers (such as the Scarlet Brotherhood, many say) carry a symbol of a dark spiral or inverted pyramid.

Appearance, Manifestations

Unlike most deities of Oerth, who take humanoid shape, Tharizdun appears as a dark, amorphous form reminiscent of a sentient sphere of annihilation. Contact with the deity brings insanity and death, and no accurate surviving descriptions or depictions of him remain.

Relationships & History

Tharizdun is hated by nearly all other gods, who would gladly put aside their differences to stop the Dark God from escaping his demiplane prison.
Rao, god of light, is particularly opposed to Tharizdun. Rao's followers believe that the Crook of Rao was originally crafted by that god for the purpose of banishing Tharizdun's dark forces.
Boccob, god of magic, actively opposes Tharizdun and works to ensure that he remains imprisoned. The power of magic is very gradually waning in the world of Oerth, and Boccob suspects that Tharizdun is responsible.
Tharizdun has no allies among the gods. The evil Archomentals, five powerful beings believed to be his offspring, are possible allies in his plots.

Dogma

"Light must be snuffed, perfection decayed, order dissolved, and minds fragmented." The clergy of Tharizdun preach that all things eventually crumble, and in time Tharizdun's victory over the gods will be complete.
All sorts of evil are described in the few remaining texts—foul rituals of sacrifice, destruction, and horrors from beyond the world unleashed upon the innocent. The current teachings of this faith revolve around the number three, the discovery of items relating to his power (keys to contacting him), and the means to free him from his confinement.

Worshipers, Clergy & Temples

Despite Tharizdun's absence, his cults still persist, seeking ways to communicate with their dark master and free him to wreak havoc once more.
Many of his clerics are mad. The rest are deluded enough to think that his release will grant them privilege when he remakes the world. They are very secretive and learn to trust only other members of the cult. They conduct bizarre rituals and explore ancient sites for keys to his chains. Because of their god’s imprisonment, his clerics must be in contact with an object or site imbued with some of Tharizdun’s power to prepare or cast spells.
Tharizdun's few followers are almost all insane, and those who are not are extremely dangerous. Contact with the imprisoned Dark God is only possible in proximity to one of his remaining artifacts or forgotten unholy sites, and even then his blessings come at the cost of madness.
Many cults are unaware that the entity that they worship is Tharizdun. Unable to act upon the world directly, he dispenses his power from cover identities and aspects, such as the Elder Elemental Eye responsible for the infamous Temple of Elemental Evil.
Tharizdun's followers are highly secretive, and his temples are well hidden. Many follow him in the optimistic belief that he will spare his loyal servants when he destroys the multiverse. Their goal is to bring together all of his artifacts, and to free the Ebon God from his imprisonment, where he will destroy the multiverse. Although the cult's leaders are fully aware of this, many low-ranking members merely seek revenge against society, and are unaware with the full extent of the Dark God's destruction, should he be freed.
Followers place great importance on the number three. For example, there are believed to be 333 Gems of Tharizdun, each an minor unholy artifact. Tharizdun's clerics cannot draw power from him unless they are in contact with an artifact such as these.

Vestments

His clerics traditionally wear black or purple robes. Clerics of his aspect, the Elder Elemental Eye, typically wear ochre-colored robes, sometimes altered to represent one of the four elements.

Hierarchy

Many temples are led by charismatic high priests known as the Witnesses of Tharizdun, who live in opulent surroundings and partake in lavish food, drink, and other base desires at the expense of their underlings. Every cult of Tharizdun has a different structure and set of hierarchy for those under the Witness.
The leaders of the cult at the Temple of Elemental Evil are known as the Doomdreamers.

Temples

Those forgotten temples which survive are in dark, underground places, kept extremely cold by ancient magic placed by the fanatics who built them. They make heavy use of black stone and an archaic trapezoidal building pattern. Newer temples to Tharizdun exist in the abandoned buildings of cities, disused sewer chambers, and the cellars of converts. A few operate more openly in remote wilderness areas where the locals are too few and too cowardly to challenge them.

Holidays

Tharizdun's faithful hold Deepwinter 1st as his holiday. Written numerically, the date is 2/1 and is known as the Final Countdown. It is on this date that the faithful say the world will one day end in Madness and Terror. Cultists are said to "celebrate" the day by taking a captive and driving that person mad through pain or fear. Often they release the captive into a community weeks or months later to take out their madness on society.

Rituals

Followers of Tharizdun conduct terrible rituals of sacrifice. Most of their rites involve failed attempts to commune with their deity, or learn the secrets to unlocking the chains that bind him.

Orders

Tharizdun's cult is scattered across the world.
Doomdreamers: His most dedicated followers are the Doomdreamers, a high-ranking caste of priests who receive visions from Tharizdun. They collect rare and esoteric knowledge, such as the names of demons.
Black Brotherhood: A dangerous offshoot of the Scarlet Brotherhood that follows Tharizdun. The majority of the Scarlet Brotherhood do not worship him, and he is not considered a Suel deity, at least not by the current Brotherhood. However, the Brotherhood intentionally spreads rumors to the contrary, sowing fear and misinformation among their enemies.
Midnight Darkness: A cult of assassins dedicated to Nerull, god of death, is secretly led by Karniquaza, a follower of Tharizdun and member of the Scarlet Brotherhood.

Divine Classification

Intermediate God