Oaris
Understand and tremble before me. My reach extends to all and is steady yet inevitable. Death's grasp knows no bounds. My influence pervades everywhere - no barrier can impede me, no protector can resist me.Little is known about Oaris, but he is often envisioned as the personification of death, akin to the grim reaper.
Divine Symbols & Sigils
Clergy, Temples and Worshippers
The faith of Oaris is obscure and his priesthood sparse. Many revere Oaris out of fear, making offerings at funerals, yet few worship him as their primary deity. Followers of Oaris, known as Gray Ones, are somber, quiet, and fixated on death and the undead. Like devotees of The Raven Queen and Vandi, Oaris's priests work as undertakers, often concealing their patron's identity. Oaris's clergy instill fear and reverence for death and his power to prevent opposition to the church. Gray Ones spread tales of "Doombringers" mortals who avenge the dead, enforcing respect for Oaris. They claim that contact with Oaris's priests brings death and urge trust in their patience and trustworthiness. Members of Oaris's clergy travel, burying the dead and conducting funerals for a fee. Their immunity to disease makes them sought-after for handling plague victims and diseased lycanthropes. They assist the dying in drafting wills and cryptic messages, emphasizing the influence of the deceased on the living. For a fee, priests of Oaris act as agents or avengers for the dead, fulfilling their wishes. Though Oaris rarely permits resurrection, his clergy facilitate transfers to other temples for attempts at revival, funded by the deceased.Priestly Vestments
Priests devoted to Oaris are garbed in solemn black robes accented by bone-white sashes, often shrouded in hooded cloaks. Within temple confines, they tread barefoot, occasionally unveiling their countenances, yet in public, they conceal behind half-masks resembling skulls, leaving only ash-darkened flesh exposed. For ventures beyond temple walls, adherents of Oaris don their finest armor, retaining their dark cloaks and skull masks. They persist in the ritual of ash-darkening even amidst the perils of adventure, their allegiance to death openly displayed, as they believe in the inevitability of its embrace, rumored to hasten for those who dare provoke them.Hierarchy
All adherents of Oaris address one another as "Death" or "Most Holy Death", prefixing these titles before known names or positions of reverence. Novice initiates are dubbed Daring Ones until they ascend to full priesthood, bearing the esteemed title of Night Bringers.Temples
Shrines to Oaris and his symbol are common where humans bury their dead, but full temples are rare. Temples serve as revered sanctuaries for the deceased, often housing catacombs and ossuaries. Each temple features a throne holding the preserved remains of a revered saint, where initiates undergo a solemn ritual of fasting and meditation in darkness.Rituals
Oaris receives daily worship at dusk, with followers offering personal prayers during the night. The Dusking ritual, held with bones, ashes, and grave dust, symbolizes the proximity of death to all creatures. It features a floating, magically illuminated skull above a bone-adorned altar. Offerings are made during this solemn ceremony, accompanied by tolling bells marking its commencement and conclusion. Other rituals of Oaris involve funerary rites and ceremonies related to the handling of undead, often embellished with impressive theatrics to enhance the perception of the priests' work.Tenets of Faith
The tenets of faith for the followers of Oaris revolve around instilling reverence for death and the power of Oaris, ensuring obedience to the church's authority. They spread the belief that contact with Oaris's priests invites death, emphasizing their absolute trustworthiness and patience. Oaris's clergy also recount tales of "doombringers," individuals who avenge deceased loved ones and punish those who disrespect Oaris's authority, highlighting the consequences of defying the Lord of Death. Initiates receive Oaris's message through communion with the departed, affirming his omnipresence and inevitability in reaching beyond mortal barriers.
Holidays
There is only one calendar-related ritual observed by the Church of Oaris. The Feast of the Moon is known to the faithful of Oaris as the Day the Dead are Most With Us. Oarisytes believe that on that day the essences of all dead folk rise and drift as unseen ghosts across Faerun and seek their living descendants to deliver messages/warnings (by silently writing in dust, sand, or ashes, or by moving objects about, not by speech), or just to observe. To those who worship the Lord of Bones, this is a day to celebrate the dead in chant, prayer, and hymns, culminating in the midnight ritual of the Flagons of the Fallen, wherein glasses of wine are set alight by spells so the spirits who drink of them can be warmed for brief moments in their "eternal chill."
Mental characteristics
Personal history
Oaris was not born per se, he is a manifest of mankind worst nightmares. Always coming to collect his due from those who try to avoid death. The earliest mention of him, appeared in 2,933 BB, after Ervenius' Draught had ended.
Personality Characteristics
Motivation
Oaris had a cold, malignant intelligence, and spoke in a high whisper. He is always alert, never slept, and is never surprised. He is never known to lose his temper or be anything other than coldly amused when a mortal succeeded in avoiding his directives or chosen fates. His influence in Theras is imposed through fear, and he is a master of making mortals terrified of him through his words and deeds. At times, just to remain unpredictable, he seemed almost kind and caring. His cowled skull head is known in nightmares all over Theras, and he is the one deity that almost all Human mortals can picture clearly. Oaris takes care that all mortals thought of him often - he is even known to materialize beside open graves, scythe in hand, just to gaze around at gathering mourners for a few silent seconds before fading away, in order to remind everyone that he is waiting for them all.
Titles:
The Reaper;Lord of Death;
Guardian of the Final Rest;
The Deathless;
Keeper of the Silent Path;
Divine Classification
Demipower
Religions
Alignment
Neutral Evil
Realm
Children
Other Affiliations
| LG | NG | CG |
| LN | N | CN |
| LE | NE | CE |
Orders
Knights of the Undying DragonThis is an ancient order of undead crusaders who serve as the sword-arm of Oaris. The Order includes 12 death knight commanders, each of whom commands the company of 12 skeletal warriors, who in turn each command a platoon of 12 night riders. The death knights all ride nightmares; the sub-commanders and troops ride gaunts. It is not known how the group maintains its size, even after a rare defeat, but their troop strength never changes.
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