Release of the Chained

There is a deep hole in the dark abyss and in it the caged Elder One guards the dark truths of the world, things most mortals and Gods prefer to ignore but cannot avoid. Those precious few who look into the abyss see what others cannot: the world is corrupted and incomplete. The longer the separation, the longer these truths writher and gnaw against their chains, demanding deference and reprisal. One day the chains will shatter and the jealous Gods will topple, the material planes will collide, and all will fall before the restoration of truth.

— The Last Lament, author unknown

Ritual Overview

The Release of the Chained is a corrupted ritual the gods themselves fear. Its successful execution would shatter one of the Divine Shackles currently trapping Tharizdûn, the trickster god of death and madness, in his divinely-imposed prison in the dark abyss. His escape would cause the anhelation of all planes and beings of existence. Because of this, most references to this ritual were destroyed and the few known records that survived remain a closely guarded secret protected by the High Cleric of Pelor and the Keeper of Ioun.

Ritual Goals

Then shall the threads of existence will torn asunder and burned, the ashes scattered, until all is nothing and no one remains to recall existence.

— Faded etching on the Tharizdûn temple wall

While this ritual has never successfully been completed, several depictions of the sinister event have been etched into the desolate Temples of the Chaired Oracle and are preserved in shadowed prayers whispered by the Cabal of the Chained Oracle. Because open worship is understandably discouraged, each worshiping group has its own variation of the ritual's details. Common elements include a summoning Dulnur and the Kragnûl to the center of a temple's ziggurat (the Kragnul serves as a beacon for Tharizdûn), a blood sacrifice-based ritual involving the Shards of the Elder One, or other powerful artifacts, and a recitation from the Shrouded Tenants. Because Tharizdûn is the mad deity of death and trickery, many of its followers are unaware of the deity's true nature, and the anticipated results vary. Most ritual pursuant know that the ritual would unleash waves of destruction, but errantly believe that they would be both protected and exhausted due to their involvement.

References in Popular Culture

Many of the aliases of Tharizdûn are commonly referenced as villains in children's stories and theatrical productions, though they are dismissed as fantastical enemies created to reinforce moral decisions, and not entities of infinitesimal power. Parents will sometimes tell their children that the thunder echoing during severe storms are the cries of Tharizdûn, rattling against the endless prison in the dark abyss crying for revenge against the pantheon.
The Light of Pelor warns of a corrupted consuming darkness that may one day plague the world. Though most practitioners believe he warns against pride and deceit, the truth is far more disasterous.