Nyx¶
"Secrets must be kept. You know what you need." — Monan, ascendant of Nyx (S031)
Nyx is the Keeper of Secrets, a goddess of the Domain of Thought and one of the Unaligned (S420). She is the patron of the Druids of Nyx who hunt and imprison demons and keep the archdemon Bhaal in his prison, of the Nyxian Wardens who police magical crime in Proturas, and of a priesthood that sits among the Kalari factions of that city though she herself belongs to no pantheon. Her sanctuary in the Aquitanian mountains hides the fallen god Arcantus. She is the one goddess who stayed awake and in contact with her dominion through the Hollowing, and the one who tells her own ascendant least.
Also called: the sanctuary of Nyx is named the Sanctuary of Forgotten Secrets in one session record and the Sanctum of Untold Secrets in another (S193, S190).
Domain and allegiance¶
In the Domain of Thought the register lists "Nyx - Keeper of Secrets", neutral in temper, with the hollow-circle mark of the Unaligned, between Khardas as Lord of Industry and Adranus, Lord of the Forge (S420). She is not among the six Unaligned the register names outright.
Her standing with the Kalari is close but not membership. Among the major factions of Proturas, the Nyxian Priesthood is listed under the heading "Kalari" (S078), and her ascendant Monan sits on the Dias of Algahanni, the Kalari meeting place, as one of a council of four. Yet at that council it is Monan who urges the others to "look for common cause amongst the other Gods and Ascendants outside the pantheon" (S031).
The Keeper of Secrets¶
What is known of Nyx's character comes through her ascendant Monan, "his features hidden under a deep hooded robe", at the Council of the Quad on the Dias of Algahanni, where he met Inwe, ascendant of Arya, Khemeia, ascendant of Khardas, and Aion, ascendant of Kalar, to speak of the Hollowing of the Mithis plane (S031, S071). Asked whether "Nyx, keeper of secrets knows where they hide", Monan answered: "My lady may in fact know where many are, but she does not share such secrets with me, nor has she been in contact with me in this past decade. I can feel her dominion from afar, so I know she is still well and awake, but as to what she has been up to or what her present designs are, they remain a mystery … and this is all quite normal for the keeper of secrets."
Monan then counselled that "the laws of the pantheon have always been flexible, and the need here is existential", and when Aion stormed out he pressed into Inwe's hand "a symbol-etched piece of bone", a key to the Vernal Warrens where Arya had cast the Fallen ascendant the others needed to find, and named its gatekeeper. Inwe was left wondering how Monan knew what he knew: "Nyxians are known for dropping their share of surprises … Did Monan know Aion would refuse? … How much more did he know that he wasn't sharing?" His answer was the line at the head of this page. Monan and Aion are treated among the minor figures of Proturas.
The sanctuary in the Aquitanian mountains¶
Nyx keeps a Sanctuary of Forgotten Secrets, "embedded in the tallest peaks of Aquitanian Mountains" (S190), a "Sanctuary in the mountains" above the Aquitanian jungles (S201). There, in the last years of the Sancturi campaign, she was hiding Arcantus, the fallen God of Magic, who "has been searching for a way to restore his godhood" and who, "if he dies on the mortal realm", "will become a sleeping god" (S190). A tome on rare mineral extracts from granite, several of its pages blank, is the key that connects a library's industry section to the sanctuary (S193, S201).
Druids of Nyx¶
The Druids of Nyx are described in the newest account of demons (S019) because "their specialty is hunting, capturing and imprisoning demons". They practise form entrapment, killing a demon's form without destroying the thread that anchors it so that it must remanifest where a prepared living prison awaits; "they can track Dae'cilia on the same plane using a thread drained of all of its energy"; and "they will also hunt down warlocks in order to curb the power of powerful demons". "They are the wardens of the imprisoned archdemon Bhaal, and prioritize curbing the power of the other archdemons on the material planes." Bhaal, "previously considered the most powerful archdemon", is "the only archdemon still imprisoned by the Druids of Nyx" (S022). The druidic tradition itself is described under Druids.
Nyxian Priesthood¶
In Proturas the Nyxian Priesthood is one of the "major above-board factions", listed second among the Kalari factions after the Children of the Light (S078). Its priests serve the city as specialists in demons: the roster for a council-sanctioned excavation in the Marshes of Algher includes a Council Warden, "Human Priest of Nyx, demonic lore specialist" (S073).
The Nyxian Wardens are a fixture of Proturan law. Among the Proturan Arbiters, the federal magistrates who handle murder, treason and other serious crimes, the Arbiter Warden is "a Nyxian arcane warrior, specialized in dealing with magical crimes" (S106). The Warlocks of the Blue Flame "was forced to accept policing from the Wardens due to several high profile demonic incidents", and keep "secret underground areas in the lower reaches away from Warden oversight" (S078). The Wardens as an organization are treated under the Arbiters.
Gap
The sources do not say how the Nyxian Priesthood is organized, who leads it, where its temples stand in Proturas, or how it relates to the Druids of Nyx.
The Nyxian tongue¶
Mages "wanting to keep their magical secrets" write in Nyxian, a rare arcane language whose spells "are encrypted and cannot be read, learned or cast unless you know the correct Cypher to unlock them", and whose magic "is more difficult to identify, dispel and counter" (S304). The source does not say that Nyx made the language, only that it bears her name.
In Play¶
A priest of Nyx is the natural companion for any venture that touches demons: the Proturan Council attaches Nyxian Wardens to excavations and warlock business (S073), the Arbiters call on them for magical crimes (S106), and the Druids of Nyx are the authority on entrapping a demon rather than merely banishing it (S019). Her sanctuary in the Aquitanian peaks is a hiding place for things and gods that must not be found.
Gap
No source describes Nyx's symbols, rites, temples, or any ascendant other than Monan, nor how she passed through the Age of the Dark Sun awake when so many gods slept.