Dark Gods¶
Contested
This page is named in the open question Goddess of Chaos; demigod alignments; Azrael. It spells the Goddess of Chaos Eris, as the 2026 revision does; the Proturan documents call her Aris.
"They literally seek the end of the world / complete reordering." — Gods & Astral Domains
The Dark Gods are the Einar who are "patrons of chaos and destruction". Where the Kalari shepherd humankind and the Rakkarim the wild races, the Dark Gods have no race to patronise and no interest in the world as it is; they want it ended, or remade entirely. Necatus leads them. Vengrul and Eris stand beside him, and a train of lesser gods marked by the moon follow: the Mistress of the Deep, the gods of destruction, decay, plague, torment, deception and despair. They began the Godswar that killed Kalar, they prop up the Sancturi pantheon under borrowed names, and in the Fifth Age the surviving Old Gods have banded together under Necatus as the Night Gods for the sake of survival.
Members¶
The 2026 revision of the gods gives the Dark Gods three principal members and marks the lesser members of the pantheon with the moon.
| God | Title | Domain | Page |
|---|---|---|---|
| Necatus | Lord of Darkness; God of Fear | Thought; Union | Necatus |
| Vengrul | Lord of the Underdark; Lord of Shadow | Matter; Creation | below |
| Eris | Goddess of Chaos | Creation | below |
| Namaka | Mistress of the Deep | Matter | Namaka |
| Thulee | God of Destruction | Creation | below |
| Nirriti | Goddess of Decay | Life | below |
| Nevendra | Queen of Plagues | Life | below |
| Nefia | Queen of Deception | Thought | below |
| Malix | The Tormentor | Union | below |
| Pravustiratel | Lord of Despair | Union | Pravustiratel |
The pantheon's aims are those of its head. Necatus "discovered a way to transfer sharding away from the sleeping god Kalar", and the Godswar that followed, "started by the Dark Gods", ended in the Death of Kalar and the Age of the Dark Sun (see The Einar). In the Sancturi Age the Dark Gods killed Arcantus, "unwittingly" playing into Asmodeus's hands, and are believed to have betrayed and killed Pravustiratel; "Dark Gods have propped up a pretender Sun God hoping to wrest control" of the sun after Anariel gave up its dominion. Those under their dominion die well: in the unrest of the dead that followed Kalar's fall, "beings which are under the dominion of the Dark Gods are transitioning normally" (see Death and the Afterlife). Even the Dark Gods complain, in the Sancturi Age, that "the Auguries are not what they once were".
The Dark Gods are not the Elder Gods, who despise them with the rest; nor are they the Destroyer, who wants nothing remade. Nor are they the Rakkarim, though the oldest documents made them one pantheon (see Earlier accounts).
The Night Gods¶
In the Fifth Age the gods that mortals know are the Night Gods. The Old Gods, "gods which have been well known for much of recent history and remain active (survived the age of the dark sun)", "are organized under a single pantheon (known widely as the Night Gods, as Necatus is the head of the pantheon). Many of their ascendants and allies have fallen in battle with the Elder/Awakened Gods and they have been forced to band together for survival. There is still much enmity and resentment between them, and but for some petty squabbles, they generally act in accord when it comes to matters with gravitas." Listed in order of relative power: Necatus, Lord of Darkness; Tyche, Queen of Fate; Vengrul, Lord of the Underdark; Rakkar, Lord of Strength; Eris, Goddess of Chaos; Thanatos, the Reaper; Pyri, Goddess of Fire; Uaros, God of the Sea, Lord of Tempests; and Menae, God of Illithids, the Insane. The coalition reaches across the pantheons of the 2026 revision: Tyche and Menae are Unaligned, Rakkar, Thanatos and Uaros Rakkarim.
The Night Gods are also the gods of the Sancturi. The Sancturi Pantheon is headed by Amu'Solk, an Ascendant of Necatus; Necatus is worshipped in it as Tenenec, Namaka as Kha'maka, Eris as Er'Deivos, "Lady of Life and Chance" with the phrases "The way of Life" and "Born of Chaos". The Sancturi hunt worshippers of Arcantus with "Dark Gods via Namakan and ?? priests". Among the Sancturi's lieges, the Cutters of Proturas are rumoured to sacrifice to a god "which one is up for debate: Necatus or Namaka are popular choices".
Vengrul¶
Lord of the Underdark in the Domain of Matter and Lord of Shadow in the Domain of Creation; the third of the Night Gods by power. Nothing else is recorded of him.
Eris¶
Goddess of Chaos, of the Domain of Creation; fifth of the Night Gods. The Sancturi worship her as Er'Deivos, Lady of Life and Chance. In the Into the Rift notes a relic, "a finger of the physical form of the Goddess of Chaos (Aris) … kept in a metal black sealed box", "can corrupt anyone spending enough time with it … its presence can be felt from a distance" (see Lesser Relics), and the Post-Sancturi notes list "Aris (Chaos)" among the Astral Dusts of the Fifth Age. Also called Aris in those documents.
Thulee¶
God of Destruction, of the Domain of Creation. The Sancturi Rak'Thule, "Lord of Strength, War", is glossed as "Thule"; whether this is Thulee or another god the sources do not say.
Nirriti¶
Goddess of Decay, of the Domain of Life. Nothing else is recorded.
Nevendra¶
Queen of Plagues, of the Domain of Life. Nothing else is recorded.
Nefia¶
Queen of Deception, of the Domain of Thought. The 2015 Compendium calls her Lady of Illusion, Deception and Trickery, with the panther and the mask for symbols, and files her among the Twilight Gods; its 2019 conversion moves her to the Dark Gods.
Malix¶
The Tormentor, of the Domain of Union. The 2019 Dwarrow note makes him, with Khardas and Adranus, one of the Dwarrow who became shard-holders and gods. In Alghert a demon in disguise claimed to be "fallen of Malix (lied)".
The Destroyer¶
Also called the Mad God. "Believed to have once been an Einar, he no longer seeks power or worship, but simply works toward the destruction of Terrun. His name is unknown, forgotten or hidden. Some of the Dark Gods work with him when it suits their purposes, though they are more wary of him after he tricked many of them into helping him create the Demons. The Dark Gods want to reforge Terrun in their image, not completely destroy it." The 2026 revision does not list him. His part in the making of the Demons is one of several accounts of their origin, an open question held by Demons.
Earlier accounts¶
The 2015 Compendium and its 2019 conversion make the Dark Gods and the Rakkai one pantheon: "The dark gods are Einar which have taken over domains which once belonged to Kalar and/or embraced the dark sides of their domains. They are of the opinion that power and progress is achieved though conflict, chaos and struggle. These gods seek to supplant Kalar's vision with their own and become the new masters of Terrun." Its members were Rakkan, "Lord of Strength, Vitality and Conquest, The Resurrected God"; Necatus; Uaros, "Lord of the Sea, Oceans, Waters, Famine and Drought"; Pyri, "Mistress of Fire and Destruction", who "once married to Erolan, she betrayed him, leading to his imprisonment"; and in 2019 Nefia. Cordia, Mistress of Frost and Necatus's wife, is marked Rakkai among the Sleeping Gods. The 2019 conversion already carries the note "this is no longer correct … dark gods and Rakkai are separate", and the 2026 revision separates them. In the Compendium's telling the Dark Gods corrupted the Titans and "are constantly searching for ways to locate, awaken and corrupt the remaining Titans", and after "Rakkan and the other Dark Gods had split with Kalar, the Titans became pawns in their conflict" (see Titans).
The 2023 Elder Gods notes contrast the two generations: "Most of the younger gods (other than the Dark Gods) are attached to the creations of Kalar (humanoids) and see morality through a humanistic lens."
Gap
No source gives the Dark Gods' own account of why the world must end or be remade, describes their worship outside the Sancturi, or says anything of Vengrul, Nirriti or Nevendra beyond their titles. Their Ascendants are unnamed.